Choices. And no choices.

The summer is flying by and, as always, it feels like I am trying to get three months' worth of chores and activities done within the final weeks of the vacation. Between tending the gardens - both flower and vegetable - and getting the house ready for our first real house guests, it's been a busy month so far. The list of things to do is long, and getting Bill separated from the ewes is right up there. Priority. No more lambs.
Since the ads have not generated any interest in him or in any of the ewe lambs - which is disappointing and also understandable - my next move will be to contact some 4-H folks in NH and VT to see if I can gift a few. Not an ideal way to reduce my flock, but since I still cannot bring myself to eat them (or have anyone else eat them!), the options are few.

This is a part of the shepherding that I do not like. For some, I think it's been enough to get them to give up sheep altogether.

the white clematis

The gardening has been mixed this year - some things are doing really well and others have not flourished at all. My white clematis, which has slowly matured over the years, has produced four gorgeous blossoms this year. Last year, there were two or three maybe, and the year before that I saw the first one ever. The plant has been there for at least ten years and is finally starting to mature. Metaphor?
So worth the wait. The flowers are about 6" in diameter and last for a good, long week. The damn Japanese beetles like them, too, as you may be able to see some nibbles taken from the lowest one in the picture.

Cows on the old Emerson land

My morning walks with Henry have been full of sweet and salty smells, big sticks and occasional wildlife sightings. Even though the neighborhood is changing - way too quickly and dramatically for my tastes - some things have stayed the same. Bode, our neighbor's black lab who is Henry's best buddy, flushed a huge turkey this morning and it flew - really flew! - across the creek and over towards Vaughan's Island. I'd never seen one fly that kind of distance, so it was amazing to see. A small flock of geese passed overhead as we walked home - way too soon to be heading south in my opinion. But, I suppose they know something I don't and are heading out for warmer grounds while the travel conditions are good.
The hummingbirds are everywhere, loving the copious jewelweed that has grown all over The Salty Ewe Farm. I'm tempted to pull some to do another dye bath, but the pleasure of watching the hummingbirds hover around them keeps me from touching them. Another metaphor?

Summer is sweet here at The Salty Ewe. I am hoping that a crop of new visitors next summer will find it as restful and grounding as I do; my bet is that we'll do just fine as the Salty Ewe's agritourism chapter begins. Eager to write that one and see what comes.