Warm Raspberry Jam on a Dreary Day

It's a little cliched to say so, but it seems that our little Mocha Latte is growing so fast. When we weighed him last weekend he weighed 42 pounds already. He is less timid and  comes closer and closer when I go into the pasture at feeding time each morning. Mocha has already reached the stage that I like to compare to the human "terrible twos." He seems unable to walk anywhere, jumping about and leaping and twisting all over the place. He constantly pesters his "Aunt" Leezza and "Grandma" Took. The other evening I was peering out the back window and caught him attempting to nurse. It seemed that his mama was kicking him away and running from him each time the little guy tried to poke around under her. I was concerned because his mama, Mango, has been such a good mama for a first timer and shouldn't be self-weaning for several months. It wasn't until she circled away from my sight and came around their condo that I realized he was trying to nurse on Took, his grandma! No wonder she was kicking. From behind, Took and Mango look the same, white. In short, Mocha is a little pest.

Last month I picked up my last batch of yarn for this year. It is a lovely heathered grey made by combining last year's fleece from our poor departed Firenze's and Took's blanket fleeces. Morning Star Fiber Mill produces such lovely yarn from our fleece. I will be posting this new yarn on my Etsy store this afternoon. It is such a beautiful soft grey heather and I am eager to get started knitting something with it. Someone from my family is going to get a Christmas gift made from soft grey alpaca yarn this year.

Since today's weather is so typical of November in Ohio; cool, dreary and rainy, I decided to make another batch of raspberry jam this morning. Jam making is a satisfying project for days that could otherwise be depressing. I got five pints of berries on sale at the grocery store the other day because I was rapidly running out of the jam I had made this summer. Besides the fact that I love to look in the pantry and see rows and rows of gem colored jam jars, I also like to have extras to give as gifts for the holidays. 

Of course I had to sample some of the warm, ruby red, jam as soon as I had poured the last jar. There is always one jar that isn't completely full. That's the one I allow tastings from and both Rich and I indulge in multiple samples on toast or warm bread. Yum! The rest go into the pantry for gift giving.