Snowshoeing in Glacier…

Seems like forever since I have been on here!  Life is just crazy busy but going well here.  It seems like winter has been oh, so very long this year.  Perhaps it because it’s because we haven’t seen the sun in what seems like forever.  No big dips in temperature, which has been great for the seep and other outside animals.

Last weekend the sun finally came out, so we took the boys and Emma up to the Park to do some snowshoeing…

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Reflection on Lake McDonald…

As you can see, part of Lake McDonald was glass smooth and the mountains reflected beautifully…

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Where the road is closed off for the winter and people are allowed to snowshoe and cross country ski…IMG_0113IMG_0107IMG_0106

 

Walking down the trail with their snowshoes…

 

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Dad helping put on snowshoes…

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Hayden running with his…

 

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The little group of snowshoers…

 

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Wore out…

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The little girl and her daddy…

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Running Fast…

 

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Sled Ride…

 

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At our destination…

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The walk back out…

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Meeting a cross country skier…

 

 

IMG_0116IMG_0162IMG_0075IMG_0054-EditIMG_0182Sunset that evening…

 

Beautiful way to spend a day…

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Sleigh Ride…

About two weeks ago we were able to get together my husband’s side of the family and go on a sleigh ride…PicMonkey Collage PicMonkey Collage1 PicMonkey Collage2

The kids got to do some sledding…PicMonkey Collage4

And warmed up with some hot cocoa and hot apple cider. We also had a yummy lunch of chili, cornbread and cookies.PicMonkey Collage5 PicMonkey Collage6 PicMonkey Collage7 PicMonkey Collage10 PicMonkey Collage11 PicMonkey Collage12 PicMonkey Collage13

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We had a wonderful day filled with lots sun, giggles and laughter.  Unfortunately, the next day our family started to come down with influenza type A … yuck! It knocked us out of commission for a couple of weeks.  I think we are all the mend now though… 🙂

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First Taste of Spring…

We’ve had our first taste of Spring this year!  Finally, the four Suffolk ewes we had bred last fall lambed.  They were all a week later than expected but it worked out wonderfully as the week they were due we had temperatures 20 to 30 below zero with lots of snow.  The temperatures have shifted to the high 30’s and low 40’s, a bit better for lambing in.  Smart mamas!

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The first ewe to lamb was Garrett’s ewe, Velma.  She had no problems and lambed in front of a large audience, giving birth to a large, single, ram lamb

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The next ewe to lamb was Teigen’s ewe, Cookie, she is a yearling and it was her first time lambing.  Sometime in the wee hours of the morning she gave birth.   When I went to check the ewes in the morning, Teigen’s ewe was out standing with a little lamb beside it and then my eye caught a little lump in the snow.  When I went closer I found another lamb, I thought she was dead and then she moved just a bit…wow…made me go into hyper-drive. She was sooo cold, cold mouth, body, etc. I couldn’t believe she was still alive. She had the full spa treatment…warm water soak while in a garbage sack to retain all of the mama’s smells, tubed with mama’s milk, then on to a warming box with a hairdryer, and eventually a warm rice sock on the belly and she gradually came to life. She started to nuzzle and looking for something to eat and drank most of her bottle…

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And as things typically go in our house, the recycling had just been taken out and the only bottle we could find was a 2 liter bottle!  But it did the trick…

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The kids have affectionately named her Elsa from the movie Frozen.   Elsa, eventually tried out her little legs and then did some more snuggling with the rice sock. When she woke up and she was hungry and her temperature was back to normal, so she was reunited with mom and brother.  The mom ended up taking  her back no problems, let her nurse and all is well!

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The next one to lamb was Maddie’s ewe, Wild…

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Again with a full audience hanging out in the feed bunk…IMG_8840

Two onlookers…

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The second little ewe lamb was having a bit of trouble breathing so I was busy using a nasal syringe  to help clear the mucous from her throat. IMG_8850-001 IMG_8838

A nice set of twins, one ram and one ewe!

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Garrett and Emmy watching…

Then Sunday morning we were greeted with this…

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A strong, healthy ewe lamb.  Dried off and had a full belly!

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Now we have a few weeks off until the Icelandics start their run.  Which will mean long days and short nights. But I look forward to it all year!  Hopefully the Icelandics have as good of a run as the Suffolks did.

Coming Soon…

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Beautiful Day with the Boys…

After the fog cleared early last Monday, we were graced with a virtually cloud-free, blue sky day.  I knew I needed to head to Glacier, even if it was just for a few hours…

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That afternoon was virtually windless making Lake McDonald very glass like!  Actually, I don’t remember ever seeing it as smooth as it was that day.P1120188

Two of the boys also decided to tag along…

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A hot day for a Freeze…

The temperatures are rising, so we took  a quick drive to take a cool plunge for a few minutes today…

 

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Sisters

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Contemplating whether to jump in or not!

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Silly sisters…IMG_7017

The Line-up…IMG_7020 IMG_7024

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Taking the plunge!!

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Rocking the tube…IMG_7056 IMG_7066 IMG_7084

It’s soooo cold, mama!!

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There was a bit of fishing going on as well!IMG_7077

Sissy trying to touch them…

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Caught another…IMG_7081

Nice one!

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Pulling a lamb…

 

Hayden has become quite the helper around here this lambing season.  He loves all aspects of lambing, even when things are going quite right.  He has witnessed two cesarean sections that were performed on ewes this year.  He has stayed up several times to the wee hours of the morning, assisting in lambing.  He fights with his older siblings over who gets to help pull the lambs.

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Here, Fiona, was having just a bit of difficulty getting this big ram lamb out.  Tori is showing Hayden what to do.   I like letting the kids help when it is not a crisis.  Then hopefully when there is a one, we can handle it better…IMG_3727

 

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One leg out and untangled…IMG_3732

Working on the other slippery one…IMG_3734

Pulling…IMG_3738

Both legs out and we can see the face and if you look close, horn buds through the perineal area…IMG_3739

Free!
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Mama getting him all cleaned up…
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Together with his sister.IMG_3752

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