Maria and I are thinking of lambing early next year. I called our friend Darryl Kuehne, the Vermont farmer who brought us Zelda and our other sheep and he has a Border Leicester ram who is available for breeding. If we brought the ram here to Bedlam Farm in late November and kept him here for six to eight weeks, that would give him two breeding cycles to impregnate our ewes. The lambs would be born in April or early May, depending on when the ram comes. We would keep one or two and Darryl would keep the rest for his flock.

I lambed four different times at Bedlam Farm and am comfortable with it, Red would be very helpful, we’d have to convert the donkey’s stall into some lambing pens which would be easy, Maria would love to have some more wool to sell, Red would love to have another sheep to herd, I loved lambing, it would be a shame to waste what I learned about it, it is very satisfying and meaningful, especially if you are set up for it, as we are.

Rose and I had some wild times lambing in the middle of winter and much snow and ice, but there are few feelings comparable to pulling a lamb out of a struggling ewe at 3 a.m. in a howling blizzard. I will never forget it and will do it in a much more orderly – and warmer – way. Might be some lambs running around for the June Open House at Bedlam Farm.

I suspect Maria would love to have a lamb or two to bring into the world – I think it would be a wonderful experience for her as it was for me –  my camera wouldn’t mind it either. We’ll talk to Darryl over the next few weeks and decide, I’ll keep you posted.