Well--it's been awhile since I posted but a lot has happened during that time. Two more lambs were born and I bought 9 Angus cows with calves at their side. Besides that I have also looked at buying a new bull, fought unsuccessfully to save Uncle Bob's sick bull calf, experienced farming in extreme cold and wet conditions, tried to keep a determined escape artist of a dog within his pre-established boundaries, saved a lamb that got caught in the fence, bought a tractor among other things.

After a lot of thought and angst, I decided to sell all of my sheep. It was a hard decision to make because I loved having them. Unfortunately, they required too much time and money. Mostly it was my lack of time that did them in. I was often out there checking on them 4-5 times a week. The hour drive each way was killing me and taking away from time with my wife and kids. My life was just too complicated. Add to that trying to deal with sticky situations surrounding a family farm when you are frustrated didn't make things any better. I think I am going to start seriously looking for another farm to lease just to simplify things. I am tired of all the flak and folks working against me knowingly or unknowingly. Maybe it's a case of too many cooks in the kitchen and too many folks taking advantage of the situation--I don't know. I do know that I have seen and experienced enough to know that I don't want any part of it anymore. Suffice it to say that there is no advantage to being a member of the family.

I feel more a peace now since I have made this decision. I'll keep the cows, chickens and dog as long as I can. Hopefully, I'll find something closer to Nashville within the next few months.