New Faces on the Haypatch!

Stop by and welcome the new residents!

January 23, 2006 - HayPatch, UT - Not to sound sheepish about the new faces at the HayPatch, but the new sheep on the patch are beautiful!

First off, the black faced ewes are lambing. To date there are 6 new lambs. One ewe, being a master of many disguises, surprised Ivan by producing a third lamb in the evening after he placed the ewe and her twins in the barn.  While most of the lambs are camera shy, we were able to capture a couple below, including the magically produced lamb pictured with its mother.
All lambs and mothers are doing well. Cards are being accepted at 9500 S HayPatch Place.

While the lambs are cute and all, the big story on the 'Patch is the new  sheep trio (a male and two females) that have decided to take up residence in the orchard. The unusually coiffed sheep are call "painted desert sheep".
Males of this breed are usually horned. Another couple of interesting tidbits -- what sets this breed of sheep apart from their typical farmland cousins is their colorful markings and the fact that they shed their hair/fur in the Spring. No shearing necessary! 
For more information on this type of sheep, stop by this site. Also, check out the photos below. The ewes are rumored to be pregnant. We'll know shortly whether or not that is true!
 

In unrelated news:

Erin Graduates!

Erin is all smiles after receiving her degree.

January 23, 2006 - HayPatch, UT - She's done it! Yes, Erin has received her degree from the Utah College of Massage Therapy.
Overheard at the ceremony as she received her degree:

"Why, anybody can have a brain. That's a very mediocre commodity. Every pusillanimous creature that crawls on the Earth or slinks through slimy seas has a brain. Back where I come from, we have universities, seats of great learning, where men go to become great thinkers. And when they come out, they think deep thoughts and with no more brains than you have! But they have one thing you haven't got - a diploma. Therefore, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Universitatus Committeatum E Pluribus Unum, I hereby confer upon you the honorary degree of Th. D...that's Doctor of Thinkology."

OH, wait, that was  while I was watching the Wizard of Oz. What was overheard and witnessed was Erin receiving special commendations for performing a minimum of 5 massages at each Saturday clinic that was held throughout her "stay" at the college. Apparently, a lot of the students wimp out on this and don't have enough muscle to complete the full five. Not Erin! She did them all!

"Magic Hands" as she is now known, is available by special appointment only to elite members of society.  She will be taking her license exam on 1/24/2006. No doubt she will pass with flying colors.

In unrelated news:

Boxes of Birds!

January 23, 2006 - HayPatch, UT - Birds up close and personal! Ivan, in a sudden fit of creative energy, built a planter box in the bedroom window.  The birds, while often scared by movement near the window, have often been seen eating, fighting, flapping, and snoozing in the box.

In unrelated crime news:

Notorious Oakeson Clan Strikes Again

January 23, 2006 - HayPatch, UT - The notorious Oakeson crime family was at it again. This time, they were caught burying something...or was it someONE in the basement? Surveillance photos, above, show the family mixing the cement and smoothing off the grave to cleverly hide their misdeeds.
The crime has been reported to the proper authorities -- the network known simply as D.I.Y.