On the Farm with Gracie

Good morning all… all I seem to do is apologize for being late with updating my blog.  Sheesh, it is hard for a little girl to find time in a day to type on the Mac.  After all the days are shorter and personally I think Mama Bear likes it as she manages to get all of us in bed earlier.  Not sure what she does after we go to bed but I like to think she has a stash of really good hay or alpaca ration to munch on while she watches over us.

Was your Christmas good?  Ours was excellent.  The HuMan always makes sure we have our alpaca food along with really good hay and lots of water to drink and of course Mr Ed gets his big warm bottle of milk and yogurt twice a day.  Do you know that boy is now taller than me?  He has lived with us since the day he was born so sometimes I forget that he is one of those big CRITTERS and should be bigger than me but to me he is just my little brother.  

   

Helping with the lights?

When Mama Bear was reading us the story about the night before Christmas I thought it rather interesting that Santa uses Reindeer.  Why would he choose reindeer when he could have ME?  I am really fast and love to run.  And why does the lead have to be a male?  I could don a red nose and look pretty darn impressive if I do say so myself. My buddy Tonka Toy was being silly the other day so I have to show you a photo of him.  He looks like he should be the red nosed Cane Corso or like one of those pigs with the apple ready for the oven.  Ughhh…did I actually say that?

Tonka the "DIva"

Tonka..is that a ball or an apple?

Voila!

Maybe we should have a contest or something to see who gets to pull the sleigh?  I could be “Gracie the DIVA”.  A pink boa might be just what is needed to kick this up a notch or I have this cute rings of bells?  I tried on some antlers with bells; thought I might imitate Rudolph but dang I didn’t like them so the HuWoman only managed to get one photo before they went flying so right here and now I am telling you that I will not be wearing any antlers… Boas I am okay with.  Hang on and I will find a couple of photos for you.  Even ones of Tonka trying to be a DIVA…that is so funny, Tonka is a boy.

Gracie..the Pink Boa'd Alpaca...ready to replace Rudolph

Me & My Pink Boa

Speaking of DIVA’s do you know that my HuWoman Sister is a DIVA?  She is the owner of the Grandboy and Grandgirl but besides that she has a company that is called Designing Diva and she makes all kinds of jewelry and stuff that is so gorgeous.  I asked her about making me a Gracie ring but she just laughed and said she would make me a Gracie necklace but thought the ring might irritate my toe…she is probably right so I hope when she makes my necklace it has some really big PINK jewel in it because I love pink… You should check out her website at www.designing-diva.com That HuWoman is crazy for chocolate, chocolate, and more chocolate.

Oh my, this morning I am just bouncing around all over the place.  I have an update on my barn.  It is finally finished.  Now the HuMan and HuWoman just have to spend a day outside digging in the snow to make sure there are no nails or sharp objects that might hurt Gracie or any of my friends.  It looks rather nice but I am still waiting to see if they put a sign up that says “Gracie’s House”.  I am so spoiled and such a DIVA.  Watching them build the barn was rather fun but I did feel sorry for the two HuMan types that were building it.  It was so cold here that it pained me to stick my nose out and it just kept snowing.  I overheard my HuMan say that they had to use a Tiger torch to that the ground so they could drill the pilings for the posts.  When I heard that I went running to see this Tiger torch; okay I am really confused there was no Tiger anywhere to be seen.  Think the HuMan was just kidding with me.  Wait, I have pictures of my new digs.

The Beginning of My House

Happy Dance... my House is done

I am going to have to go soon as Mama Bear is calling for me.  What are you all doing for New Years?  I think we might just snuggle in and let Mama Bear read us a good story.  Love the holidays; we are forever getting treats.  When the HuWoman cooks she saves all the peelings from fruits and vegetables for us.  Wow, we had some really good things, yams, potatoes, carrots etc and  all kinds of fruits.  A culinary delight if I do say so myself.  It is always extra good when they had lots of company.  The HuMan Son came home for Christmas dinner.  He was very tired after his long drive so didn’t visit Gracie and friends this time but he usually does.  It would have been nice to see him especially seeing as I heard he got a new hat that has a rabbit fur on it… they put rabbits on hats?  how ever do they eat?  The HuWoman and her sister were saying how much he looks like the Grampa Greenwall in that hat. Lots of other relatives stopped by for dinner too.  The HuMan Girl and family live too far away so we only got to talk to them on the phone.   The GrandGirl tells me she is on a mission to raise money to save dolphins.  She is dolphin nuts.  I am very proud of her and happy that she is going to help the dolphins.  

Rumor has it that the HuWoman is going on a road trip with her sister to some place south..think she said Phoenix.  Then my HuMan is going to fly down and stay for a few days so that means another HuWoman by the name of Donna will be looking after us.  Donna is really nice so that is okay.  It always takes Mr. Ed a couple of days to get used to her and Mama Bear tries to take her hat and mitts but it all ends up being okay.

Mama Bear, Mr. Ed, Bandit Boy, Tonka and of course me, Gracie the tech savvy alpaca want to wish you and your family Happy New Year and may 2010 be a year of dreams come true!  If my dream comes true it will look like this   “Gracie’s House”…  Bye for now

Happy New Year!

P.S.  So if you think I should try out for Rudolph’s job next year let me know. maybe we could start a petition!  Gotta go…Mama is getting louder with the Gracccccieeeee!

Wow, I think I have been so busy just trying to stay warm that I forgot how to use my Mac.  The last time we were talking the HuMan was just finishing up with the black seeds. Combining complete he managed to clean up around the yard some more from the big storm we had in July.  Did I tell you about the storm; surprising that I didn’t end up in the next county.  It was the 18th of July when a “plough wind” blew through.  On a tower that was located 2 miles from home the wind was clocked at 142 kms an hour.   I say “was” because it was crumpled like a lego building that wasn’t bolted together very well.

Is there a greenhouse under there?

In the farm yard we had to use all our toes and borrow a bunch more to count the number of trees that were blown down.  The HuWoman used to have a greenhouse but it ended up under one of the big spruce trees.  A couple of the big farm buildings (My HuMan calls them shops) had fairly major damage with sheets of metal twisted up or ripped off.  So, when I say we were really lucky to survive I am not joking.  One of the BIG CRITTERS didn’t survive.  April was behind a windbreak when the wall blew over. It is very sad even when it is one of the BIG ones…April was a friendly giant with the softest brown eyes.

More sad news from the farm.  On November 23rd my four legged dog friend Casey passed away.  She was a severe epileptic.  She told me that when she was only two years old a cow had got out and she went to put her back in.  It had been raining so the gras was wet and slippery.  When she went racing towards the cow she couldn’t stop and instead slid under the cow. Using her head that crazy cow just tossed her like salad.  The HuWoman witnessed this and came to the rescue or who knows what the outcome would have been.  Miss Casey Queen (she liked that title) had no broken bones, just lots of bruising that she said was very painful and of course in her words “a scrambled brain”   For the next eight years Casey took a lot of drugs and they had many side effects.  Finally the seizures just got to be too much.  It still seems very strange to not have her come for a daily visit.  Did I tell you Casey liked to eat our food…silly girl did she think she was an Alpaca?

My Friend Casey

I digress.. life on the farm was pretty normal up until the first week of December.  Holy… it really got cold and we got about 36 inches of snow in one fell swoop and my Gracie barn wasn’t done.  The man said he was short staffed and having issues everytime the HuWoman called.  She was getting pretty loud when he finally told her that they were coming the 5th of December.  Of course the deep freeze hit so the workers didn’t come.  Last Thursday I think it was…the 9th I think we had the distinction of being the coldest place in the WORLD!  Colder than Siberia… Something like -46 with no wind chill.  Sheesh.. no wonder we are so tough!

This morning the men who are building the Gracie barn arrived.  They had to move a whole bunch of snow before they could dig the holes for the big poles.  They didn’t get much more than that done but believe me when I say that I will keep my eagle eye on them. Oh, Oh, have to run.  Mama Bear is telling me to get off the computer or I am going to go blind.  Talk to you soon.

Well, here it is the 13th of November and another week has flown by.  The HuMan’s talk about how time flies and it appears they may have something cause it sure is flitting by. Seems like I just wrote to you all and then I looked and realized that it was more than a week ago.  The weather here has been quite warm for November so Mr. Ed, Bandit Boy and I have been spending most of our days running around enjoying the sunshine.

The HuWoman said she is going to start putting up Christmas decorations..wonder if she needs me to help her or if I should just offer my services as a supervisor.  Not too sure I would be good at going up a ladder; no problems doing stairs but a ladder might just be another story.  Can’t say as I much remember my first Christmas but then again I wasn’t even 2 months old.  This year my plan is to pay way more attention to the goings on.

Do you suppose there is an Alpaca Santa Claus that brings gifts for all good boy and girl Alpacas?  I sure hope so…Mama Bear tells really good stories about Christmas and what will happen.  She tells Mr. Ed and I that if we aren’t good we will only get a lump of coal in our stocking.  What stocking I ask?  Apparently there are things that I just don’t understand but I am sure that closer to the time Mama Bear will explain them to Mr. Ed and I.  Think Bandit Boy knows, maybe I will ask that handsome young man.

A couple of other things happened this week.  The HuMan finished getting all those oily little seeds into the bins.  I overheard him say that he was running out of bin space and was going to have to haul some canola to the elevator..Why would those oily seeds want to go on an elevator?  Mama Bear had to explain that the seeds don’t go on a real elevator but to a grain elevator where the seeds wait to be put on a train to go either to Vancouver to go on a ship to other countries or down east to be processed. Interesting if I do say so.  Must say I am glad that my HuMan is done combining, I was missing him and when he is really busy t cuts into Gracie time.

This weekend the HuMan and HuWoman are going to do some fencing so we have some new pens.  Can’t wait it will be fun.  Will try to get some pictures of my weekend antics.  Shoot Mama is calling me again..it must be my bedtime.  Talk to you later.

Hard to believe that tomorrow I will be one year and one week old. Time really does fly when you are busy playing.  Last Sunday I spent most of the day resting from all the party excitement.  Bandit Boy wanted to know why the HuMans don’t have Bandit parties…had to explain again why I am so special.

It is November 5th and where we live it was 14 degrees Celcius (that is almost 60 degrees on the American scale).  My HuMan is busy on the big machine…that would be a combine.  As of this morning he still had about 120 acres of canola to do.  The weather turned crummy back in September and it seemed that everyday it either rained or snowed..not exactly good harvesting weather.  Just know he will be way happier to get old those little black seeds in the bin then he will be able to sing “Let it snow”!  Just for the record let it be known that I do not like canola..too oily if you know what I mean.

Personally, I am not that anxious to have the snow arrive.  It stays for a long time and my new digs haven’t been built yet.  The HuWoman spoke to the builder people this week and they figured they will start in another week or so.  Just think a “Gracie Barn”.  I know, it has to be shared with the others but I like to think they are building this just for little old me.

Last week the HuMan had to drive to Calgary and pick up a huge shipment of sweaters for Paca Pops Kidz.. You know Paca is all about me…the “tech savvy alpaca”.  Well maybe not seeing as the biz was in operation before I came along but I like knowing it is all about us furry folk.  So in between resting up from the party I had to supervise the unpacking, sorting and counting of all the new product.  Thank goodness the HuMans picked Tonka to try on hats.  Not sure they were my color..(oh Gracie you are so funny,everything is your color when you are a Diva)  Let me see if I can dig up a photo of poor Tonka.

Tonka modeling a Snowboarder Hat.. How handsome

Can you just picture it if the HuMan decided to use all of us as models?  Currently there are  10 of us Alpaca types on the farm and a whole litter of those BIG CRITTERS.  At one year of age I can’t count high enough to figure out exactly how many there are.  Guess I don’t have enough toes!  Maybe I can borrow some of Tonka’s toes to count on.  Speaking of Tonka, we had great games today and for the record I am still faster than he is.  Want to see some of the BIG ONES?  The babies are bigger than I am!

BIG CRITTER'S

Just so you know, the creamy alpaca in the photo is Joey.  He likes to think he is one of the Big Critters.  What is wrong with him?

Gotta go, Mama Bear is calling and so is my bed.  Good night all.

Wow…it was a great party.  Sorry, I should have done this post when I went to the barn last night Mama Bear told me I had to go to bed so no being “tech savvy” until tomorrow. I had a really hard time choosing whether I should be a Diva for my birthday or just a girlie girl.  The HuWoman tried brushing some of the straw out of my hair prior to the party but I had been rolling so it was a bit of a challenge.  I really want to share some photos with you.  So here goes nothing.  Don’t you just love my beads?

Should I be a Diva?

Being the Hostess and centre of attention takes a lot of effort.  I had to greet people and make sure they all had drinks and snacks before dinner.  Some of my friends brought Llama Wine …too funny!

Meeting new friends

Did I tell you I got birthday cards and presents too.  Big bundles of asparagus…my favorite not that I mind snap peas either.  I was eating from a plate that was sitting  on the counter..then oops, it went on the floor  Being the centre of attention the HuMan’s just put more of my favorite out and I just kept on eating.  Think the HuWoman thought it was better that I was eating asparagus off the counter than eating her succulent plant…but it tasted so good.  Besides the flower child friend said I was just cutting it back, no harm done right?  Sometimes I do get myself in some strange predicaments.  At one point I thought the hummus looked sort of yummy by got x-nayed on that! Why I ask?

My favorite

Mmmm Mmmmm Good

I did ask the HuWoman if she needed any help while I was in the kitchen but she said she was okay and that I should just play with the guests and have a good time.  If you have read my blog along the way you know how much I love my HuMan.  He is my hero and when I don’t know where he is I tend to get a little stressed and talk alot while I am looking for him so it is best to just keep my eye on where he is at all times.  Actually, I just really like to talk, communications is very important.

What is my HuMan doing?

So then after Tonka, Casey and I played and ran in circles and I had eaten way too much we did a few photos of the friends that joined me to celebrate my birthday.  I hope all birthdays are this much fun! Have some great photos of some of the HuMan friends that attended my party.

Friends at Gracie's Birthday Party

It is rather fun and special too being born on Halloween.  The birthday party was a roaring success if you ask me.  Tonight I want to end by showing you just one more photo.  The HuWoman carved this pumpkin especially for my Birthday party.  I hope you all have a good night and I will talk to you next week.

Haunted Castle

There is definitely a buzz in the barnyard today.  I am going to be ONE tomorrow… can’t wait to see what the HuMan’s have planned for me.  They have great parties and like to invite baby alpacas like moi to their parties.  Mr Ed and I attended a BBQ they hosted this summer and we made quite a splash if I do say so myself.  If I look really hard maybe I can find a couple of photos to show you.

Gracie @ the BBQ

Mr. Ed being fed by a guest

As you can see Mr. Ed was getting his bottle from a guest and I had to provide instruction…  All this talk about my birthday is making me reminisce about the last year and what a journey it has been.  While looking through photos and doing my blog you probably have noticed that I have a few of those HuMan and HuWomen in my life that I am rather partial to along with several friends that are dogs and of course those of my own kind.  

I wanted to share this photo with you of when I was little and needed some love…of the HuWoman kind.

Gracie can you feel the love

Well if the last year has been this much fun I can hardly wait to see what the next year brings.  I heard a rumor that they are having a PARTY!!! bring it on..  Another rumor that is afloat is that I am getting a new barn…wonder if they will put my name above the door?

I have to go play now but keep checking back because if the rumor is true I will be able to tell you about my “Surprise” birthday party. Even tho’ I froze my ears I can still hear really good!  Have a fun day!

Wow, can you believe it?  Less than a week until Halloween.  This will be my first Halloween and my first Birthday.  If you recall I was born on Halloween last year so I don’t remember much about it.  This year is going to be so exciting.  What are you going as?  I can’t decide what I should be…a devil, a witch or a butterfly.  I think I will try on all my costumes to see which one is best suited for me.

I wonder how many kids will come to the farm for treats this year?  Aren’t they going to be surprised when they are greeted at the door by me, none other than “Gracie” the tech savvy Alpaca.  Well, I just wanted to tell you all that I am trying to decide what to be for the big night.  Watch my blog for an update on my decision.  The HuWoman said she would help me get ready but wanted to charge the camera batteries to ensure that she gets some good shots of me.  It is really nice this afternoon so I think I will have a nap and dream about Gracie’s first Halloween.  Cheers for now.

I couldn’t stand it!  I am too excited and then Tonka showed me this picture so I had to try on my outfits.  Check out the Big Dog Tonka as “Devil Boy”

Tonka Toy a.k.a. "Devil Boy"

So, how exactly do I get this hat on my head?

Gracie's Hat Dilemma

Okay, I had to ask the HuMan for a little help with this one…

A little HuMan help

Voila…the finished product

"Witch Gracie"

Don’t you think I look really scary?  Well, then I decided that maybe I should be an angel complete with wings… well Mama Bear had other ideas.  Everytime I put my wings on she was there trying to take them off.  I tell you they ended up in the dirt more often that not so I probably won’t be an angel even tho’ if I do say so myself I am a cute one.  What do you think?

"Angel Gracie"

Then we decided to be Devils like Tonka.  Even little Mr. Ed got into it while having his bottle.

Devil Boy Mr. Ed

"Devil Girl Gracie"

Gracie Pumpkin Head

Well, I was fooling around with the pumpkin that I am going to take trick and treating and ended up with it stuck on my head.. thought the HuMans were going to fall down they were laughing so hard.  They tell me that Saturday is really going to be a special day for me.    Exciting I say.

On the subject of Halloween the GrandGirl and GrandBoy sent me a couple of photos that were pretty funny.  They say I am the tech savvy Alpaca but I am thinking those GrandBabies are pretty savvy…let me show you what I mean.

I miss the GrandGirl and GrandBoy.  Hope they come to visit me soon.  Well it has been a very exciting day and this little girl needs to have a really big sleep.  Good night.

Wow, summer was great! The weather was cooperating, well my HuMan complained about the lack of moisture and his crops but personally it was great. Warm and sunny just the way we alpacas like it.

In June one of the big critters..that would be a llama (wow are they huge) gave birth to twins! Guess this is not very common and she said “no way, one baby is enough” so little Mr Ed came to live with me. He was a tad on the small size being a twin and all. My Mom, Mama Bear adopted him right out of the gate… well she wouldn’t let him suckle her but she is the protector of Ed and I.. Oh how we love Mamma Bear. Wait I’ll show you a picture of my friend Mr Ed. Isn’t he cute? He has really big ears…

My other friend that lives with us is Bandit Boy. Sad story, Bandit was four months old when his Mom got sick and she died! The HuWoman did some research and discovered what he should be fed and bottle fed that boy too! Good grief, she has been bottle feeding babies for a couple of years now..finishes with one and another one comes along. Welcome to Motherhood I say… Hang on I bet if I look I can find a photo of my buddy Bandit.

So, don’t you think he is rather handsome. The HuWoman thinks he should be an advertisement for Dasani water bottles. Not a bad idea.

The summer of 09 was really great because the human grandbabies came from Texas to visit. It was love at first sight.. they are more my size and we had play dates everyday. We ran and ran.. the grandbabies would run as fast as they could…I gave them a headstart only to be fair but would pass them within seconds. I am exceptionally speedy especially when I put my head down and just dig down deep and GO!

Hugs from my HuMan boy buddy… When I play I like to run into people or other animals, Tonka, Bandit Boy or Ed with my chest.. This grandBoy friend always said “Gracie knocked me down but she was just playing”.  No wonder I fell in love with him.

The grandGirl friend loved to feed Mr. Ed… she was forever feeding him and loving him up.. Very lucky little boy if I do say so myself.  So as you can see summer was great.  

This is me, Gracie, heading out to see my Mom… My Mom, fondly known as Mamma Bear, hates this red coat that the humans dress me in. You can’t see it but I actually am wearing one of the Paca Pops Kidz sweaters underneath… that flintstone sweater kept me really warm. As I was born premature my hair wasn’t as long as it should of been so I needed all the help I could get. In this photo you might also notice that I froze my ears..yup, I lost the tips of both of them.

Then my huwoman came up with another idea… wait she is looking for the photo.The huwoman thought my stub ears might be bothering me so our came a sweater and scissors.. Do I not resemble E.T.? Certainly made more than a few people laugh but it kept me warm.. My routine for the winter of 2008/2009 was out in the barn with my Mom during the day (if it wasn’t too cold) and in the house for an extra bottle and a sleep over with my buddy Tonka. Did I neglect to tell you about all the games I had with Tonka and Casey? We chased each other around the house; good thing the humans kitchen had an island, it made for a great race track.

Tonka has really big soft ears that I love to chew on AND there were tons of toys in the human house. Do you know how much fun you can have with a sneaker? Love chewing on shoe laces, taking papers out of the recycle bin or out of the human hands that were trying to read them. When I was really small I didn’t get into a ton of trouble but as I grew and my reach extended I did manage to get into a wee bit of trouble.

The humans learned that if you didn’t want Gracie to have it not to leave anything where Gracie could reach it can curiosity just gets the best of me. It wasn’t long until I could reach things on the counter. And when the human opened the fridge door and got out the milk and yogurt. Yee Ha.. party time! The humans experimented with different foods as well as my alpaca crunchies and hay.. I love asparagus, carrots, lettuce etc. Okay, let’s get serious, I love most anything that is a fruit or vegetable.

Should probably tell you how much fun it was to see the reaction on the faces of folks that happened to stop by for coffee and a chat.  Settled in to have a wee visit and then I would make my appearance.  Shocked would be an understatement.  The best was when they had their back to me .. how much fun to come up behind them and nuzzle them or better yet start yanking on a their shirt or blouse.  Such fun!

Well, the days started getting warmer and I started spending more time outside with my Mom and the other alpacas. I think the humans missed having me in the house so everytime they would come out to the barnyard I would be allowed out to follow them around and play. It became and still is the daily ritual and I get really upset if they don’t let me out. Sometimes I even spend time in the shop helping???? the humans getting Paca Pops Kidz sweater orders ready to go.

Fudge was born October 31 2008.. slightly premature she was doing great with her Mom, Mama Bear. Mid November was really cold in Alberta and for whatever reason Mama Bear took Fudge outside and cushed with the babe on the windward side of her. When her human owner found her, Fudge as she was known then, had almost no body temperature and was on the brink of death

Brought to the house she was given a small shot of whiskey, wrapped in a quilt and put on an alpaca rug in the kitchen. Don’t ever tell her she was laying on one of her kinfolk.

Gracie & Tonka

Tonka Toy, our Cane Corso, was really intrigued by what was going on and decided that he could take over some of the duties. He laid close to Fudge and I am sure that his body heat is one of the reasons she is with us today.

All day he laid with her and watched over her. Every time she was given a bit of milk he was right there licking her and just watching over her. For two days she was pretty much unresponsive and the prognosis wasn’t great. But..she turned the corner and there in our kitchen was this little bit of an girl standing up trying to SUCK the big dog. Tonka was appalled! The look on his face nothing short of priceless.

The games began, she chased him; he chased her. When she went out to feed from her mom she wore a sweater and a dog coat. Mama Bear was not impressed with that red dog coat. I can’t tell you how many times we put Fudge in the barn and within minutes out of the pen would fly the red coat. The winter of 2008/2009 was one for the history books; it was miserable.

Gracie

Waiting for the Fireplace

Too cold for the little girl to be out she spent cold days in the house and colder nights. Fudge took to becoming a great Canadian and watching hockey with her HuMan.  If she was out in the kitchen or down the hall and a team scored it was amazing. She would hear the crowd and come running full tilt from where ever she was to see what was going on. It was during one of these races that she came whipping around the corner on the hardwood and wiped out.. wasn’t really Graceful…hence she became Gracie. We are considering buying Gracie a team jersey so she can cheer on her favorite NHL team.

Guess you are probably wondering about having an alpaca living in the house and how the bathroom breaks might work or not! Gracie was house trained within about 3 days. We fed her a bottle and would wait about 20 minutes before taking her out for a walk. It was no time at all until she was going to the door and doing alpaca speak to get out.

Gracie is mad about her HuMan. She follows him wherever he goes. When he goes to check the water trough for the cattle, she waits at the fence for him to come back. She reminds of the song ” I will follow him; follow him wherever he may go”.. The wee alpaca girl loves to be cuddled and her favorite thing to do is put her nose into the man’s hand and get it tweaked.. all part of her daily ritual that includes a lot of hugs.