Westfarm Goats

Sunday, October 9, 2011

Knitted items

I've started listing my knitted items for sale. You can go directly to this Etsy website to purchase them (my westfarmgoats website is not caught up yet). http://www.etsy.com/shop/westfarmgoats

More available soon!

Wednesday, October 5, 2011

I read this in Cappers magazine. It really reflects my philosophy of investing in humans.

"Live Abundantly" by Colleen Newquist

My son came out of a sandwich shop to where I waited in the car and handed me a few dollars in change from his purchase. He put the coins he said, in a box for the needy. I had to smile. He's been doing this-giving money to anyone who needs it - for as long as I can remember.

The first time he came home from school and said he'd given his money to a classmate for lunch, I was upset. But I quickly stopped myself. Wasn't that how I'd been brought up? If I needed money, as a child or as an adult, my dad would have his wallet out, no questions asked, regardless of his own financial situation. I'm so glad the apple didn't fall far from the tree.

As I've gotten older, I've come to realize that holding on to money only makes me feel poor, mean and scared. Sharing what I've got-whether it's money, food or time- is freeing. Sharing is a show of confidence in the powers that be, a belief that we will alsways have what we need.

I'm lucky that I've never not had enough. And even luckier that I have a generous son to remind me.

(Colleen Newquist lives abundantly in Park Forest, IL. Find more of her writing and illustrations at colleennewquist.com)

Tuesday, October 4, 2011

Wonderful yarns!

As always there are gorgeous yarns at the Taos Wool Festival, but in my new mode of simplicity I don't find myself wanting to buy ALL of them. I made very deliberate choices and only bought 4 skeins. These will be knitted into socks and sold through my website.

Monday, October 3, 2011

Taos Wool Festival

Went to the Taos Wool Festival with friend Nancy this weekend. It was a wonderful restful and restorative time for us, as well as being lots of fun.
We admired the Navajo Churro sheep. These are some of my favorite sheep. They have a double fleece - a course outer part and a softer inner coat, although the resulting yarn is usually more on the course side, better for outer garments and rugs. They come in all colors and some even have four horns.
The churro sheep are a well adpated to the SW. They originated from the sheep brought by the early Spanish explorers. They were almost wiped out in the mid 20th century when the government decided that the Navajo should be raising Merino sheep. Only problem with merinos is their soft wool tangles easily in the vegetation of the southwest and then don't do so well eating it either.
Luckily the churro didn't become totally extinct and has had a comeback in the last 30 years.