Summer Update

I have been craving Pineapple Upside down cake for awhile. When I mentioned making one to Chris he crinkled his nose and said he doesn’t like it. I guess that is why I don’t make it very often. He added “Why don’t you put some rum in it”. Ohhh! That sounds good. My response was “Tortuga”. First thinking of the wonderful rum cakes made in the Caribbean and then of course thinking of Johnny Depp in the Pirate movies. I immediately set out to find the perfect recipe to entice my husband into liking the wonderful upside down cakes.

I settled on this recipe for Pineapple-Rum Upside-Down Cake.
It turned out beautifully. Chris had no complaints; I think he really liked it but of course will not admit to it. While in the grocery line I noticed the cover of Better Homes and Gardens featured a photo of an Upside Down Berry Cake. Next time I might use berries in the place of the pineapple.


Shelter Progress

What ever does not kill you makes you stronger. Building this shelter has been a true test to our relationship. Chris has learned that all though I can be tough at times I am no burly man. He has mentioned that I have marshmallow muscles. I have seen his butt crack more in the last month peeking out from the back of his jeans then I have ever in the 14 years I have known him. So much so I suggested to him he put some sunscreen on it. On occasion I need to remind him I am doing the best I can. Heavy lifting and manual labor is not my strong suit, and no I am not good at hammering a nail straight while clinging to a ladder several feet off the ground. However if he wants me to make him a drill cozy, I’m his girl. I will be so glad when this thing is finished and we have a little more free time on the weekends.


Alpaca Babies So Far


Do you remember the little girl born in May up in Rosehaven Alpaca farm in NY? We have gotten updates and she is doing great. We decided to name her "Ginger".



Satine finally had her baby. She had a white male we are calling “Calvin”.



Calvin had a difficult start due to the fact Satine’s milk did not fully come in when he was born. He was loosing weight the first few days which is a very critical thing for these little guys. We let the Vet step in and had both Mom and baby stay at their facilities for a few days so they could be under 24 hour care. Both are doing great now and are back home with us.



Just last Saturday Tasha had her baby. She popped that boy out in a matter of minutes, it was amazing. We are naming Tasha’s Baby “Macho Latte”.



Chris thought of the name Macho Latte and it suits him. He kind of has a look on his face where he is running the show, and gives off an air of attitude.



Of course he is the sweetest when he is napping.

Molly Our Goat

Meet Molly, our Nigerian Dwarf Goat. She was born April 2, 2007. We bought her from a goat farm in New Mexico located east of Albuquerque. Chris was able to pick her up last month on his way home from a dental conference. We decided to add a goat to the farm as a natural means to get a handle on some of the weeds that are growing all over the pastures. We thought it would be best to get a young one that would grow up with the alpacas.


She is a female cream with dark points. Nigerian Dwarf Goats are proportioned miniature dairy goats. They can milk 3 to 4 pounds of milk per day. We are not planning to milk her. The Nigerians breed year round and usually have multiple births. She had a brother in the same litter. The females can be 17 to 19 inches tall, and the boys can average about 19 to 20 inches tall. Both sexes average about 75 pounds full grown.


She is only 3 months old and is still small. She is able to move freely from pasture to pasture by crawling under the gates. We set up a little area in Accoyodor’s shelter since he has a place all to himself he enjoys the company.


Here is Molly and Accoyodor sharing some hay.


All the alpacas have pretty much adopted Molly as their own. She gets lots of loving attention from all of them. She has settled right into routine with the alpacas. The best thing is she is eating all the weeds they do not eat.


Molly is adorable and we have fallen in love with her from day one. She is absolutely hilarious. She has got a lot of spunk, sometimes she will run and kick up her heals and jump around. She is real fast and it sounds like a train when she runs by. She has her work cut out for her, and it will probably take her a few years to get a handle on all the weeds growing on the property. She is more than willing to take on the challenge. Molly fits in nicely to our growing farm.

Our Anniversary

Chris and I were married 8 years ago today. This is a photo of us on our honeymoon in Jamaica. It is one of my favorite photos of the whole event. At the time two of us lazily ridding horseback and enjoying the day was so outside the box for us. The photo is almost a glimpse into our future and we had no clue at the time. 8 years ago we were both in college. I was in college getting my bachelor of science in psychology, and he was at dental school working on his doctorate. If someone would have told me that 8 years from then we would be running our own dental office while becoming alpaca ranchers in New Mexico, I would have thought they were crazy.

My life is full and that is a good feeling. Who knows what is next on the horizon for us. We have only just scratched the surface of our lives together.

Know that your future is not written in stone and can have endless possibilities.