Afternoon kidding

I was in town today when I heard a rooster crow -- that's the ring on my cell phone. It was Katherine. "She's pushing!" After a brief conversation, I realized that Katherine didn't know I was in town. She was calling from the barn phone and had been out there with Carmen since morning. She was calling me to let me know that we'd soon have kids, because she knew I didn't want to miss Carmen's birth. My comforter was in the dryer at the laundromat, but I didn't hesitate to pull it out, still wet, throw it in the car, and head home.

Carmen is my baby, the first goat I ever raised in the house. She also represents other firsts for me -- my first home-grown master champion and my first ARMCH. She was also the first kid we ever had with hypothermia and the first kid I had to tube feed. She's also my most famous goat. Her picture is in The Year of the Goat. Have I convinced you yet that she's special? So, when I knew she was in labor, I didn't even think twice about coming straight home.

I ran into the house, handed the wet comforter to Jonathan, and traded my town coat for my barn coat. Carmen was standing there looking at me when I walked into the barn. She was quiet, but the fat string of mucous under her tail told me that she was indeed in labor. About half an hour later, she gave birth to a white doe and then a red and white doe. I'm so glad she kidded today, because we have a busy week coming up, and now I don't have to worry about her.

She is named after Carmen, the opera, so we name all of her kids after opera characters. Any suggestions?