Gray and dreary, that's how our day was. It started raining in the early morning hours. I don't think it stopped all day. If it wasn't raining, it was snowing. It is damn cold for us. I watched the snow level go down, down down all day. Wouldn't be surprised to have snow on our yard in the morning.

I went to town to pick up our youngest daughter who wanted to join us for Sunday dinner. Our road was treacherous. Sloppy red mud clung to the tires and flew up on the sides and windows. I got a couple of quick adrenaline rushes when the car started fishtailing. I learned to let the steering wheel go and let off of the gas when that happens. It usually straightens up quickly but it is no less frightening. Big truck traffic was heavy and there was one pick up truck slid off the side of the road with cops all around. I hope no one was hurt.

The alpacas are all soaked as they haven't the sense to stay out of the rain. The goats are much better about getting undercover in this weather. The cats barely poked their noses outside. They stayed in the barn in the driest spot they could find. Buddy, bless his guardian dog soul, slept, all stretched out most of the day. He really enjoys this cold messy weather.

I cooked a rump roast in the oven to help keep the house warm. Then after dinner I made bran muffins for tomorrow's breakfast. They are supposed to help get the cholesterol back under control. They are pretty good muffins, made with molasses and raisins, but one must drink lots of water to prevent other uncomfortable problems! Ha! What was that old scientific theory? For every action there is an opposite and equal reaction! Ha! Seems to apply to lots of things in life, doesn't it?

Today I took a day off and went to town. My daughter drove and we took her daughter, 2 year old Eden, and my other daughter's 2 year old son, Logan. We went to the fabric store and to the mall for lunch and to let the kids play at the mall playground. I only bought gifts for the kids and some birthday gifts for Jacob, who will be turning 8 next month.

The day was fairly warm and sunny until we returned home. Then the wind kicked up big time. I guess the next big winter storm front is on the way for the weekend.

I spent a bunch of money at the feed store this afternoon. I had to throw away the last 3 bales of bermuda hay Steve bought. The rain we had turned the hay all black and moldy, not fit for consumption by animals or humans! Ha! We had to replace the hay, buy dog food and two kinds of pellets, one for the goats and one for the alpacas. I really don't see how people feed an alpaca for only $10 a month if they live in Arizona. Maybe they buy the hay by the truck load or something.

I spent the time between getting home from town and getting dinner, cleaning the old moldy bales out of the barn and sweeping up the floor afterwards. The wind was so bad that I could not sweep the hay out of the barn. It would've blown straight back in my face. So I picked up the heavy slices of hay in each bale and threw them out the door. The stuff left on the floor, I either raked or swept into one of the empty stalls. It will have to be removed on a day with less wind.

I got my blood test results back from my doctor today. My cholesterol is up in spite of the fact that I am on drugs for it. I will have to go back on a stricter diet and exercise more. Such a drag! I love to eat and I hate to exercise! Isn't raising your hand to your mouth and chewing exercise???? LOL!

Steve and I spent a wonderful weekend at the "Alpacas Among Friends" seminar in Sonoita, AZ. It was hosted by Mike and Linda of Square Top Ranch and several other local alpaca breeders. We met some nice people and learned a few new things. We got to see some really nice alpacas, a cute little alpaca products store and a fiber tumbler.

Mike and Linda have a beautiful setup for their alpacas and a gorgeous home. Sonoita is a quaint little southwest town set in rolling grasslands in the high desert of southern Arizona. The landscape there is much different than where we live here in Mescal.

The first day, Saturday, the weather got really cold and nasty. It was pretty ironic after having a week of warm days and sunshine. We all huddled in the barn wearing our winter coats while speakers shouted over the sound of the pouring rain beating down on the metal barn roof. We spent the afternoon in Linda's beautiful home which was much warmer and dryer than outdoors.

Today was also spent partly outside and partly inside. We got to evaluate four maiden female alpacas. They were all show quality animals so, needless to say, they were all just about perfect. I would've loved to take any one of them home!

I learned that I need to get busy and really start marketing my business. I feel more motivated after attending the seminar but also worry about finding my niche and being able to give good service and sell good products to people. Doing this blog is a good thing. I also need to establish a website, get my business cards printed and obtain my retail license.

I met some ladies who are in a fiber guild today. They had their spinning wheels there to demonstrate what to do with alpaca fiber. They also want to buy some baby angora goat fleece(mohair) from me. I will be contacting them soon.

Next weekend there is an alpaca auction in Phoenix. It is hosted by the Snowmass Alpaca Ranch out of Idaho. I have attended that in previous years and it is also great fun. Then in March the Southwestern Alpaca Show is held in Phoenix. I'm sure some of the alpacas that were at the seminar will also be in that show. I will try to talk Steve into going to that this year.

Our weather is hanging in there for spring. Just gorgeous!

Thought I heard a rattler when Steve and I got home from town last night. I put all my stuff in the house and grabbed a flashlight to look for it. The sound was coming from near the pool. It turned out to be water hissing through a small hole in a hose! Thank goodness! I thought it was a little too early and still, hopefully, too cold for the old snakes to be emerging!

I will share an embarrassing moment with you. Steve and I went to a neighboring goat farm yesterday. The owner had advertised some Saanen/Nigerian dwarf cross does for sale. I am thinking of getting one or two milking goats in case I need milk for my new angora kids in a few months. Anyway, we went to this farm just down the road. She had scores of goats, Saanen, Oberhasli and lots of others. I noticed that many of them did not have ears. I asked the lady, "Why did you cut off their ears?" She said, rather indignantly, "I didn't cut off their ears! They are La Manchas! They are born that way!" Boy was my face red!

The La Manchas are big milk goats. They are pretty handsome goats but they don't have much of an ear. It is just a little rosette on each side of their head. I had never seen that particular breed before. They were friendly goats but too big for me. On the other hand, I liked the Saanens. They are all white and a little smaller and they have cute ears that sort of stick out sideways from their heads. They seemed even more friendly than the La Manchas and very calm. I did not buy any does from her yesterday. She said the small breeds go really fast because she doesn't charge much for them and they are not registered. She only had two left yesterday that were already claimed. She did say that more will be born in about 2-3 weeks and she would call me. Now I'm having second thoughts of course. Am I really ready to take on new baby kids that need to be bottle fed every few hours again? Guess I'd better get ready!

Today it is like spring! The mesquite trees have new buds on them and I saw a new tiny lizard crawling on the side of the house. I tried to get a picture of a big red cardinal in the mesquite tree out front. I guess I moved too close and he flew away. There are birds everywhere. It is still and warm. Steve says we'll be swimming by the end of the week! It is wishful thinking, of course!

People have been sending quite a few emails about our country, asking for prayers and awareness. I heard a guy on"Glen Beck" today. He was one of those financial wizards or economists. He says we are headed for financial disaster and it is already starting in Greece. I guess the people are rioting in the streets there protesting the massive increase in their taxes and more government bureaucracy. The financial guy says we should all be preparing. We should be thinking about and preparing to protect our families, take care of our own and do things like growing our own food and figuring out what we can make that others will want to buy. He thinks there will be chaos here too and that we should prepare. Pretty scary stuff that some of us have been thinking about for a long time. It is just the first time I heard someone on TV actually say it. The worst is not behind us as some would have us believe.

So I really do need to get some more laying hens. They can be meat and eggs. I don't know about getting any cows or dairy goats but maybe getting one or the other might not be a bad idea. There are plenty of rabbits and quail around here too. A little target practice may be in order. And I'm already thinking about what to plant in my garden this year. I need to get some good top soil and potting soil. I've got plenty of fertilizer already, though, so no expense there! Ha!

It is really cold here today, well, it's cold for us. We are lucky that we don't have 30 or more inches of snow on the ground. I am thankful that we don't. Everything is wet, though, soaking wet again. My feet will not get warm and the hay is ruined. It is time to buy more anyway.

The sun is trying to come out and the animals will dry off and be warm again. We are supposed to get back to our normal warm weather by tomorrow. It is supposed to be a balmy 70 degrees again.

Prince was fighting with Stewie this morning. Stewie was giving back as much as he got. He has the funniest alpaca noise I have heard yet, very high pitched. Maybe his voice hasn't changed yet! Ha! I think Stewie has the prettiest face of all my boys.

The big Tom Cat with the white feet was around again this morning. He is huge. I haven't seen Mikey since the day before yesterday. I called and called him yesterday. When my daughter got home from school at 2 pm, she suggested that I go feed the animals right away. She said a massive rain storm was headed this way and she had just gotten out of it at Marsh Station Road which isn't many miles up the road from us. So I did go feed them and called for Mikey. He didn't come so I had to shut the barn anyway. It was good that I fed everyone and shut the barn when I did. The rain started before I even finished filling water buckets and didn't stop til this morning. There was fog again this morning too, damp thick white stuff. I'm glad I didn't have to drive in it. Again, I am glad we do not have a bunch of snow to drive through.

I paid the bills this morning and am trying to figure out how to print my business cards on my computer. Haven't figured it out yet. Very frustrating. My eldest daughter has promised to help me. It will be better than paying someone a fortune to print them.

I am glad the Saints won the Superbowl, but I sure was disappointed with the commercials this year. They all seemed to be crude or rude! Our family had a good time together and with all the good food, I'm afraid I stuffed myself! So much for dieting!

Today I felt mostly tired. I watched the grand kids this morning and went shopping for Valentines after my daughter got home from school. None of the stores had what I was looking for so I guess I will have to go further afield.

I am afraid the rain made the lice hatch out on the goats. They are all scratching themselves with their horns. This seems to be a regular occurrence with angora goats and I don't know how to prevent it. I put Ivomec solution on them after they are sheared but it doesn't work very well when they have a nearly full fleece. Maybe I will try a powder I have to give them some relief until shearing next month.

I cannot believe it is nearly shearing time again. I hope to send my alpaca fleece to be processed into yarn or blankets this time. I will probably have to send my mohair to a different mill than the alpaca fleece or just sell it outright.

Today I got an email from the Alpaca Owners and Breeders Association. They are giving subscriptions to the Alpaca Magazine with farm membership again. They were making you pay $50 for the magazine and an additional fee for membership in the organization. I stopped getting the magazine because of the cost when they separated it from the membership. Now that the magazine is included again, I may use my farm business account to reapply for membership. I love getting the magazine. It is so full of interesting information about the alpaca world.

Yeah! We finally had a bright sunny day! All the animals seemed to enjoy soaking up the warmth after all the rain. The road dried out some too and was not as slippery today.

My daughter and I went grocery shopping today. When we got back I spent a little time sitting out in the sunshine while I watched my grand daughter. Then it was time to feed people and animals again. I always feed the critters first and then the family. All the grandkids and parents usually come for dinner on Friday so it gets pretty chaotic and noisy. That is why I moved here though, to be near the grandkids.

Tomorrow Steve will be home and we will be cleaning inside and out. Sunday is Superbowl and everyone will be here for food and fun. We'll be rooting for the Saints!

Today we had nothing but rain,rain,rain, all day. The ground is soaked so there are puddles everywhere. I fed the goats inside or under cover so they could stay out of the wet stuff. Prince and Stewie are pretty wet.

This evening after I fed everyone the second time, I heard Tinker sounding his alarm call and all the dogs going nuts. I looked out the window first. There was a herd of cows on top of the hill trying to get into the neighbor's pasture. I hollered at Steve, "Did you shut the gate?" When he answered in the affirmative, I went and got my camera. It was getting dark and the flash kept going off but maybe you will be able to see some of the cows. I also took some pictures of the alpacas. They get so noble looking when they are sounding off alarm calls. They stand really tall and alert. I wish I could describe the alarm call. It is different than any of the other sounds they make. Someone describe it as a "trumpeting" but I would not describe it that way. I think it is kind of like the noise that zebras make if you ever watch any nature shows.

Buddy barked at the cows at first but lost interest really quickly. He sauntered over to say hello and touch noses with Little Buck and The Donald. They get their hackles up when Buddy comes by but they are just showing off. They know he watches out for them.

I hope tomorrow is a little dryer than today. They are supposed to get several more inches of snow on Mt. Lemmon in Tucson tonight. The road up there is closed again. Our road is open, it's just muddy as all get-out! I see little green shoots springing up here and there in the yard. Steve will not like that as they are most likely stickery weeds. One more job to do on the weekend. Gotta keep that man busy! Ha!

Little Bones was doing funny things yesterday. I tried to get a picture but failed. She was standing in her feed basket trying to reach some branches on a tree over her pen. I asked her what she was doing but she just looked at me. So I said "Stay there! Til I get the camera!" And she did until I actually had the camera pointed in her direction, then she jumped down before I could get the shot. Go figure!

We seem to have anew resident lately. A big roadrunner has been hanging out in Donald and Little Buck's pen. Today I was in the barn and something ran behind me and knocked a bucket off the counter. I did not see who or what it was but I suspect it was either the roadrunner or the new cat that has been around. Most of the dry cat food had disappeared from the dish. I did manage to get a few shots (camera shots) of the roadrunner.

My African violets are blooming and looking really healthy and gorgeous lately. I took some pictures of them too. I love African violets and orchids. The flowers last such a long time.

Today I added up all the receipts from feed and vet bills and other purchases for the farm this year. Hopefully Steve will be able to use that info this year to help with our taxes. I also got back on my walking/weight lifting schedule. Now if I could just stay on this damn diet!