Addison freshens!

We had been expecting Addison, one of our 3 Brown Swiss heifers, to freshen any day.  Since it was her first calf, we knew she could be a bit late but she chose a perfect day to get the job done.  Dan knew at morning milking that she was in the beginning stages of labor so when he went to check on her at about noon, he took the camera hoping for some action.

Rosy, Tartine and Liesel watch the goings on from their paddock
across from the barn yard.

Addison is comfortable on the nice bedded pack.  The beginning of the feet are just visible.

The guineas leave in a huff after Dan tells them that their advice is not wanted.

The view from atop the stone wall.

Alpine and Melody mill about the waiting room, like expectant aunties.
It looks like Addison is in good hands and Dan thinks it will be a little while longer
so he decides it would be a good time to get some lunch.

An hour or so later Dan finds a successful delivery, with no help!  Lots of moral support, though.

Addison gets right down to business cleaning the little bloke.

What a lovely, sunny day for having a baby!

Since mama and baby were doing so well, we left them right where they were so the little fellow could

get used to his new surroundings.  I headed down to check on the two of them a few hours later.  Who do I find trying her hardest to usurp Addison in her first gig as mother?  Why Jackee of course!

Yes, Jackee, notorious for budging right in whenever a baby is in the vicinity, waits patiently
for the little guy to grab some grub.

If that is not a guilty looking face, I don't know what is!!

More tiny paintings

Part of the reason for my lack of blogging time is that I am trying to make more painting time.  Therefore, I thought I should at least post what I paint.  Whether the results of my efforts are worth the time I spend on them is debatable, but here they are anyway: (click on images to enlarge)

Ainsley and Wanda

Guineas in the Snow

Tub O' Ducks

The Pig Barn

These paintings are a bit larger than the last series that I shared; these are 4" x 6" and fall under the OSWOA heading.  Yes, Original Small Works Of Art is a real thing that I did not make up.  Unlike ACEO pieces, which can be prints (and are 2.5"x3.5"), these must be original works of art.  The idea is to make original art affordable and accessible, although if you look on ebay or etsy you will find that some OSWOA pieces are still downright expensive.  

Anyway, I thought that the small size would be great to experiment with.  These paintings were done on Yupo in watercolor.  Yupo is a synthetic paper with a plastic quality to it.  Normally, any kind of plastic will repel water media of all types, but Yupo accepts it.  However, unlike traditional watercolor paper, paint dries on the surface of Yupo rather than being absorbed into it, so the finished effect is much different.  I'm not sure if I like it.  One thing I will say on its behalf though, is that mistakes just wipe right off of the paper with a wet paper towel.  Although, I kind of always thought of that as one of watercolor's many charms and challenges ..... mistakes become part of the process as well as the finished piece.

All in all, I'm finding that I enjoy working in a much smaller format than I'm used to.  The jury on Yupo is still out though.