Tag: Winter

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Some Much Needed Rain

russianriverThank goodness we got another storm that brought some more rain.  I measured and this week the farm got 8+” from the storms that came through.  At the end of last month I had started to get a little worried since our dry spell seemed to stretch on and on.  We were having very warm temps for the winter as well.  It definitely felt more like spring.  The grass in my pasture had stopped growing and that is not what the sheep want to see!

As much as I hate keeping the sheep in the barn during a heavy storm it is very dry, warm and cozy in there.  I put down fresh straw and everyone just hunkers down.  And although nor the sheep or I enjoy slogging through the mud the days after a rain we all do love the life the water gives to the plants.  Including the moisture received by the hay and alfalfa fields of the central valley which will feed the flock next year.  I am hoping that we will get enough precipitation this winter to drastically lower the hay prices this year.  I won’t hold my breath but I’ll keep my fingers crossed 🙂

 

 

 

 

The Russian River really flows after a big rain and it feels so good to watch it grow to a muddy, healthy size!

 

 

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Brrrrr!

DSCF3120 DSCF3121Temperatures have been unseasonably cold for our area.  December usually brings rain but instead we are having a cold snap.  Dipping into the high twenties many nights in a row is not common for Sonoma County but these freezing temps have even been happening state wide.
I realize we have nothing to complain about since thirty degrees is a warm day in Wisconsin this time of year.  But having to do chores when everything is frozen and frosty definitely gives me a great respect for shepherds of the mid-west!

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Firewood Stacked and Ready to Burn!

Ready to be stacked

 

 

 

 

 

I rely on the wood stove to keep me warm all winter.  This requires that I have a lot of wood to supply the stove.  I have run low many times and have always managed to scrounge up some wood one way or another, but is not ideal.  When the wood pile runs low I tend to light shorter fires, less often and obviously am cold a lot more.

Firewood Storage SpaceThis year I was determined to not run low so I could relax and just light a fire whenever the thermometer read under 65 degrees.  Friends chipped in and helped me gather about a cord together.  Some came from trees that had been removed along roads.  Some came from a dead fig tree that I had on the property that needed to be taken down since I moved here 2 years ago.

But for the first time this year I am actually buying a cord of white oak.  I feel a bit like a sell-out but I am willing to risk that title to be warm!

All the oak came split and dumped in my driveway from an outfit in Santa Rosa.  All I had to do was stack the pieces, which feels a bit like playing a puzzle.

Luckily the only wood I had to split was some of the fig, but it was so dry it made me feel wonderfully strong and empowered!  It will be so nice to just enjoy the winter in a warm cozy house.  Sometimes it can be 80 degrees inside when the wood stove really gets cranking.  Makes it feel like a whole other season altogether.

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Baby It’s Cold Outside!

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Brrrr! We have had a long stretch of cold days and nights over the past few weeks.  The water buckets have been frozen over, the water nozels are frozen closed, the ground is icy.  As you can see even the sheep are frosty!I know that compared to most of the country our temperatures are very mild.  My friend Jane who has an animal rescue in Wisconsin has been telling me about her weather and there 30 degrees is warm and it’s 20 below that qualifies as cold!
IMG_1016Frosty on the outside, toasty on the inside!
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