It was early morning. So early it was still almost dark outside. Ruthie was sounds asleep when Papa reached out of the darkness and touched her shoulder.
"Zoey," he said softly, he smelled faintly of hay and the smoke from the garage's stove, "Rise and shine, Snowball is almost ready to have her baby."
Zoey's eyes opened sleepily and she rubbed her eyes.
"Come on little girl Snowball and I need your help." Papa said as he went down the steps blocking out the light as he went.
Zoey rolled out of the bed and padded over to one of her windows. It was all frosted up from the cold. She put her small hand on the glass to melt the ice so she could see out. It was dark but the yard was lit from the security light. The snow sparkled. The stairway light lit her way as Zoey found a pair of old pants and a sweatshirt and then she rooted under her blankets to find her socks that she'd kicked off during the night. The floor had chilled her bare toes so she sat on the edge of the bed to put her socks and pants on over her pajama pants and then yawning she pulled the sweathirt over her pajama shirt. It was so cold out she knew she'd be glad to have the extra layer.
Zoey could hear Mama and Papa talking down in the kitchen as Mama got the breakfast things out. She heard the clunk of the griddle as Mama put it on the stove and the screech of the silverware drawer. The griddle meant Mama was probably making pancakes and sausage and maybe even blueberry sauce!
Zoey scooted down the steps on her behind, sometimes the steep steps scared her and she was afraid to go down them like a big girl.
Mama stopped mixing the pancake batter and told Zoey to get some bands from the bathroom and her brush. While Mama braided Zoey's long brown hair into pigtails, Papa mixed up some formula and put it into two bottles and put them into Zoey's coat pockets. Then he pulled on his coveralls and barn boots. His stocking cap then went on almost covering his eyebrows. Gloves finished the outfit and then he had Mama fill a big black rubber bucket with hot water.
As soon as Zoey's hair was braided and the bucket filled Mama helped Zoey into her own pair of snowpants and barn boots then a coat, stocking cap and thck mittens. She gave her a couple of old flannel rags. And then Papa and Zoey stomped out into the cold.
It was so cold out that the air stung Zoey's face and froze the inside of her nose. Nugget, Australian Shepherd, bounded around them wanting to play.
"Let's go Nugget!" Papa said, "Snowball's having her baby!"
"Woof!" said Nugget.
The snow crunched under their feet as they walked and little snow devils whirled in the driveway as they crossed it to the garage and barn.
Smoke rose from the garage's chimney making the world smell like "ham and cheese" as Zoey called it.
The barn was around the corner from the garage, it was really only an addition to the back of the big 3 car garage but Papa had it fixed up nice for the sheep with a section for the ewe's to eat and a special area for the mamas to have their babies.
Sliding open the barn door, Papa, Nugget and Zoey slipped in trying to keep the cold out. The barn smelled cozy, with scents of sweet grain feed, damp wool and hay.
Archie and Lily the two lambs whose Mama's couldn't feed them because of udder problems, bleated a greeting.
"You go ahead and feed the lambs and I'll see how Snowball is doing." Papa instructed.
Zoey climbed over the gate. and two hungry lambs nuzzled her hands and coat and knees looking for their bottles. Giggling she settled in a clean corner of hay to feed the two lambs. Lily was a petite Suffolk lamb with a black face and Archie was a stout precocious Corriedale with a white face.
Holding a bottle in each hand she settled to feeding the two lambs who wiggled their long uncropped tails furiously and sucked greedily. They made quick work of their milk. Their mamas watched contentedly as they ate their own breakfast of sweet feed.
Archie finished his breakfast first so while Lily finished hers Zoey peeked over the gate. Papa had his coveralls off and flopped over the gate. He was crouched in the straw next to Snowball who was laying on her side breathing heavily. He rolled up the sleeves of his old long sleeve wool undershirt. After rinsing his hands in the bucket of hot water he dried them on his old work pants.
Just then a grunt escaped from Snowball.
"Oh boy, here we go!" Papa said. "Come help."
Zoey pulled the bottle away from and indignant Lily and shoved it back in her coat pocket to keep the little bit of milk that was left warm and scrambled back over the gate. She unzipped her coat and flopped over the gate next to Papa's and then removed her hat and scarf. She quickly dipped her hands in the scalding water and shook them off.
She knelt in the straw next to Snowball's head and stroked her velvety ears. Snowball snuffled at her and grunted again.
"Here Honey, come look, you can see the baby's head. Thank goodness. Her last 2 babies cam breach."
Zoey crawled around to Snowball's backside. A teeny tiny white nose peeked out, and as Snowball pushed the whole head appeared.
As Snowball strained 2 small hooves appeared tucked under the baby's chin. Then came the neck, shoulder and then, PLOP, a whole baby lamb.
Snowball scrambled to her feet and licked and fussed and nosed her baby. Papa made sure that the lamb's nose and mouth were clear of afterbirth.
Snowball nudged her baby trying to make it stand up.
"Help him stand Zoey. Help him get his legs under him."
"Is it a him?" Zoey asked.
Papa checked under his tail. No I guess its not. She's a girl. One day you can help her have babies of her own!"
"Neat!!"
"Ok once you get her used to standing then help her find her mama's teet so she can nurse. Lambs need their mama's milk right away. I'll give Lily the rest of her bottle before she knocks the gate down. Lily was banging loudly on the gate with her little hooves still indignant at her interupted breakfast.
Zoey settled in the straw and pulled the damp gangly lamb into her lap. Snowball watched closely and nuzzled her baby and nudged Zoey with her nose.
"What shall we call her?" Papa asked from the other side of the gate.
"I dunno. I hafta think about it." Zoey replied.
She held the lamb under its belly trying not to touch the icky umbilical cord. Soon it seemed to get the idea that it was supposed to stand on its legs.
By now Papa had finished feeding Lily and was silently leaning over the gate watching his daughter as she concentrated on helping this tiny helpless creature.
Zoey finally reached under Snowball's belly and gently touched her udder so as not to startle the ewe. Then she found a teet and gelty squeezed until a little milk came out onto her fingers. Then she rubbed her fingers on the lambs mouth. The lamb sneezed. Zoey tryed again. This time the lamb smacked her gums as the taste of the milk registered on her taste buds.
Papa laughed. "She likes it!"
Zoey aimed the wobbly baby with its 'airplane' ears toward Snowball's nipple and pried open the lamb's mouth. She quickly popped the nipple into its mouth and squeezed the base of the nipple. The lamb swallowed twice and then started to suck.
Zoey let out a "Aha!" and clapped which startled both the baby and the Mama and she had to do the process all over again. But this time when the lamb caught on she stayed real still and quiet and the lamb ate greedily.
Snowball and Pap both seemed satisfied that the baby was ok.
Papa rinsed his hands in the bucket and so did Zoey and they both struggled back into their warm things.
Papa checked on all the sheep once more and made sure everyone had eaten and had fresh water. He lowered the heat lamp down closer to Snowball and her new baby. And then patted Snowball's rump.
"You did good old girl. You did good."
They turned off the barn lights and then slipped back out into the cold morning air. The snow glittered and glistened. Letting her scarf flop, Zoey ran across the driveway whooping and hollering with joy of life, with Nugget barking at her heels.
Papa laughed heartily. Life was good.
They bumbled throught the front door to smells of pancakes and blueberry sauce. Tuffy the farm cat and snuck in with them and wound his way around their ankles.
After they thanked Jehovah for the day and the food and the new little lamb, they told Mama all about the baby and how well she had come into the world. And Papa told how much Zoey had helped.
They later named the baby Annabelle and sure enough Zoey did help her have her own babies a couple years later.
