I got back from 3 days at TNNA (trade-show which needs a blog post by itself) and an hour later there were lambs! This wasn't a complete surprise because, although lambing isn't due to start for another 6 weeks, one ewe definitely stood out from the flock as "more pregnant". Phyllis is a lilac ewe that had been sold a few years ago. She returned to me this fall, but no one said anything about being bred. I guess that was due to a mishap at her previous home. Even though I knew that these lambs would not be 100% Jacob, I'm so used to seeing spots, these were an initial surprise.

The lambs' fleeces are quite different. The one in the foreground has that wavy, coarser look and the other is curly. Notice too that the one in the back is lighter. I don't know how much of that is due to the camera (I think it flashed when I took this photo) and how much is real. I thought that he didn't look true black, but in this photo he is definitely lighter. He might make a great fleece wether. (I think the sire may have  been a Merino--have to ask about that again.)