The year 2013 has been a very busy one for us but we have met so many nice people that we wouldn’t have met if not for our alpacas. We have seen the smiles and laughter that our alpacas bring to others and that makes it all worthwhile. We want to thank our friends and family for their support and encouragement. This year we regularly attended the Shelburne, Meaford and Flesherton farmers markets. Weather permitting we would have two alpacas along with us, we now have 12 trained alpacas that we take out to various events. At each market there would be a few people who regularly stopped by each week to visit with the alpacas. We hosted several group events at our farm this year. The largest event was our 2nd Open Barn and even though the weather didn’t cooperate we had a great day. The seniors from the Adult Day Program in Dufferin County came for a visit – we moved the store out to the barn so our entire morning was surrounded by the alpacas. Wasaga Beach Presbyterian Church Sunday School children had a great visit, the children had raised money to buy an alpaca through World Vision for a family in South America, this was their chance to see alpacas up close and learn why alpacas are so important to the people of South America. The Probus by the Bay ladies started with a barn visit on a rather cold day, then inside for a mini fibre demonstration, a visit to the store and to get started on their Christmas shopping. We hosted three events for local business groups to come and meet the alpacas and learn a bit about them, and visit the store - Stay In Grey group, The ABBBE group and The Beaver Valley Accommodations group and friends. Again this year we volunteered at many of the events sponsored by Alpaca Ontario – Canadian International Farm Show in Mississauga, The Outdoor Farm Show – Woodstock , The International Plowing Match – Mitchell and The Royal Winter Fair – Toronto. At two of the events we took a couple of our own alpacas for the day, they are always a big hit. Carolyn loves these events as she also gets a chance to spin while there. We participated in two Rubber Duck Race fundraisers, The Priceville Classic Car Show & Fund Raiser , The Markdale Fall Fair, and Agrication at Shelburne. Agrication is an event we would like to see happen in Grey Highlands; the event has six different type of farmers together at an arena with their animals and a display showing what they do on their farm. The local Grade 3 students come throughout the day and have a 10 minute session with each farmer. The idea is to teach the children about the different types of farming and to keep the next generation interested in farming. Spring 2014 will be a busy season we are expecting 12 crias, 10 of them are from our new herd sires so we are very anxious to see what they will produce. If you are still looking for the perfect Christmas gift – give the gift of warmth – Alpaca. We will be open daily 9:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m. up to Dec. 23rd. We accept VISA and MasterCard to make your shopping even easier. We have something for everyone! Warm cozy alpaca socks, gloves, mitts, scarves, cool chullo hats. Many items are knit locally using our own alpaca fibre. Beautiful alpaca shawls, sweaters for men and ladies. Needle felting kits, super soft alpaca stuffed bears, rabbits, lions, horses and alpacas. New to our store this year are our beautiful 100% alpaca rugs. We have two sizes, 3’ X 5’ and 5 X 7’. We wish you are your loved ones a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! We welcome farm visits, please call or email first to be sure we are home. Remember to check out our facebook page, it is updated with photos more often than the Farm News. Have a pronking day! Carolyn & Doug