October 13, 2012
If you had asked this city girl twenty years ago whether I could have imagined myself living in the middle of a cornfield I would have said, "No way!" But almost twelve years ago I married a country boy and as of a week ago we officially became alpaca farmers. Last Saturday we celebrated the arrival of three lovely female huacaya alpacas and are awaiting the arrival of a fourth, a lovely black female named Firenze. Took, a beautiful white six year old and her four-month-old female cria, Mango seem to be settling in and enjoying our small but lush pasture. Leeza, a beautiful dark brown yearling, is their herd mate and she is adjusting very well. Our five-year-old Labrador Retriever, Callie, is having a little bit of difficulty understanding that these new "girls" are here to stay and pose no threat to her status as the princess of the acres. We are confident that she will adjust. It takes time.
My husband, Rich, and I became interested in alpacas last April when we stayed at Historic Maple Hill Manor B&B in Springfield, Kentucky. We became fascinated with their herd and considered the possibility of starting a herd of our own someday. That began seven months of research about alpacas and owning an alpaca business. We read on-line articles, books, magazines and visited many alpaca farms both large and small. On one of our farm visits we found a mentor in Amy, at Amy J's Homestead not far from our home, where we ultimately purchased our first four girls. Took and Firenze are both pregnant and next summer will be delivering two more crias to add to the herd.
I have always felt that life is an adventure and look forward to each day as a gift that can be filled with wonder. As an educator, I have always been eager to learn something new every day. So this new endeavor is a wonderful adventure in which Rich and I will be learning something new every day that will enrich our lives.
No comments:
Post a Comment