My Friday Happy List

I have been neglecting my Friday happy lists something terrible. Poor neglected little things. But I have been happy on Fridays. Have no fear.

This week, my happy-makers are:

1. My husband is coming home. After being gone for two weeks, I am missing that guy.

2. The father of my children is coming home. They are so excited. And I am tired of being a single Mommy.

3. I did not have four kids in bed with me last night. For some reason, when Justin is gone, the kids all gravitate to my bed during the night and I wake up with knees in my back and arms across my face. Not completely restful.

4. Living near my family. Mom, Livie, and Tori took pity on my snappish, over-tired state and took the kids last night for a sleep over.

5. Things to look forward too
                   --a parade and festival on Saturday
                   --Mom's birthday on Sunday
                  --Justin's birthday Monday
                  --a thrift store day next Wednesday
                  --and last, but definitely not least, conventions starting.

Speaking of loving being near my family, here are some pictures of sheep herding. Really, sheep chasing. Owen is selling his sheep. He either had to do a lot of sheep fence building or sell the sheep and buy a few more cows. So he is opting for the cows. The sheep have been free range most of the summer and every time a car drives by and comes to a stop, he has a mini panic attack. (A case was just won in Albany where a woman hit a cow on the road, her insurance refused to pay for the damage and said it was the farmers fault. The farmer lost the case and was responsible for paying for the car. Eeek.)

I am a bit sad to see them go. No more baby lambs for the kids to pet and poke. But then I am not the one who had to go chasing them or get up to check on lambing ewes in the night.

Sheep a-runnin'

Going up the lane

Slowly following the sheep up to the corrals

Which was the wrong technique, since they found a loose bottom wire and surged off in a southernly direction

Mossy rocks while waiting for the sheep to reappear

Owen and Gilbert chasing sheep the modern way

The sheep obediently going this way

....only to turn around and go that way.

Lily explaining sheep turning strategy to Gilbert

Coyote the dog, enthusiastically chased the sheep for awhile and then with the fifth about-face, decided it was a mugs game on a hot day and sat down to await further developments. 

A teensy frog

Elsie and I were matching while we were sheep chasers. Well, we were mostly just standers who flailed arms and hollered.

Finally, after half an hour of "herding" the sheep got into the corral. 

After the sheep were finally in the corral ready for shipping, Gilbert grinned and said "Fun. Yelling!" Haha I don't think it was quite so much fun for Owen and Livie and Tori

Owen driving by the house on the way to cut a farmers field. He and Cody have been doing a bit of custom hay work, haying other people's farms. Cody just bought a baler from Wisconsin, so he was excited to try it out last night. And today. And tomorrow. They like haying.