The month of Feburarury full moon is named after its typical snow fall average. This is the month that the Northern part of the United States sees its largest amount of snowfall for the season. I will say that so far, that is holding true. While we are not blanketed in snow, we did have about 1.5" that covered the ground just last week. Now it is slowly melting off with the warmer temperatures on the way. Rebecca Hoverson captured our farm in a nightly
cover of snow and it turned out beautiful. Many other names for this full moon include: Bear Moon (the month when bear cubs arrive), Bony Moon ( month of hunger) Quickening Moon (when animals start to show and become closer to delivering their young).
We have reached the halfway point between Winter and Spring and is time to celebrate Imbolc. This year it is celebrated on February 1st. The word "imbolc" means "in the belly of the Mother," because the seeds of spring are beginning to stir in the belly of Mother Earth. The term "oimelc" means ewe's milk. Around this time of year, many herd animals give birth to their first offspring of the year, or are heavily pregnant. As a result, they are producing milk. This creation of life’s milk is a part of the symbolic hope for spring. This holiday also celebrates Brigid, the Celtic fire and fertility goddess. Over the years, Brigid was adopted by Christianity as St. Brigid. Brigid (or Bridget) is the patron saint of Irish nuns, newborns, midwives, dairy maids and cattle. The stories of St. Brigid and the goddess Brigid are very similar. Both are associated with milk, fire, the home, and babies. It is said, that if Imbolc brings fair blue skies then winter is sure to return. One of my favorite short stories of weather predictions for the month tells of the Winter Witch. If the weather is fair on the day of Imbolc, then the Winter Witch will be out to collect her fire wood to prolong winter in the Spring. If the weather is foul and unfavorable, then the Winter Witch will be in her cottage and unable to collect the fire wood to prolong Winter into Spring. Does this story remind you of a certain animal that they pull out of the ground every year?
For this month, I tried a new bag pattern. It has a clear front window and is the perfect size to stick in your project bag for all the notions you need to pack along with. The base layer is quilted and has either a black or white zipper for closure on it.
The wool this month is Suffolk blended with Merino. I chose to blend with purple, red and pinks in honor of the American holiday Valentine's Day. It is a way to help ignite your 'love' of meat sheep wool. Suffolk is categorized as a meat sheep breed. Many farmers who raise Suffolk normally heap their wool into the compost or burn pile due to the short staple length and the lack of market for yarn purposes. Staple length is relatively short 2-2.5 inches. The wool has an amazing 'spring' to it and does not felt. This wool, once spun into yarn, would make an amazing replacement for a super wash blend for your socks. Give it a try!
We have started welcoming our first lambs onto the property. This is 3 weeks earlier than last year. We are thinking with the drought summer we had last year, our ewes went into heat sooner than normal. We used a fine fleece Shetland ram this year. So all of our Shetland lambs will be pure while the Icelandic lambs will be crossed.
