Triple Threat

Well, with a skein of white wool in my stash, lamb in my freezer and milk in my fridge, I'd have to say that I agree - Icelandic sheep are a triple threat.

Yes, you caught it, I have sheep milk in my fridge. So far I have made cream cheese (was more like ricotta), kefir (which I screwed up by looking at the centigrade side of my thermometer instead of the farenheit side... oh well, it is still good in smoothies) and yogurt. As well, Dean has used it in his coffee, Drew has had it on his cereal and my dad drank it by the glassfull.

Its a little precious to drink it that way. I get about a litre a day. Brida's huge udder contributes 3+ cups and Draga contributes 1 cup. Freya, whose lamb is a month old today, goes up onto the stanchion tonight for the first time. My next project is to make feta cheese. I'll have enough milk after tonight's milking.

Other than a little milk in his coffee when he was out of cream, Dean (and Rhiannon) refuse to partake. They say they are grossed out. Dean says it turns his stomach... So, as Drew and I sat down to a bowl of yogurt and raspberries yesterday, I said, "well, if we really did have to live off of our land, you and I would thrive and they would all starve!" Drew says it the best tasting milk he has ever had!

So, I don't go too far from home these days and my mornings start on the stanchion. It is beautiful in the morning. The apple trees are all in blossom, the birds are singing. In the evening, everything has to stop for a half hour again. There is something to these pastoral rhythms. I sing to the sheep (suppsed to help them relax and give more milk) and I think a little but mostly I just am in that moment with the sky, the flowers, the blossoms, the sounds of my farm and I'm loving it.