Glorious July

I know it must have rained in July, but I can't remember it. I think it rained at night, but not often. The main event of the month was the BDS Driving Days in the Shropshire hills. This is a 5 day organised holiday with us camping in Jeannies camper van and the ponies in an electric fence paddock next to us. There were 25 turnouts altogether but the 20 mile drives ( 10 miles up serious hills, picnic stop for an hour or so, then 10 miles downhill home.)





 could be driven alone or with friends. We did 3 drives, with a day off in between where we shopped at the amazing Aadvark books, a huge agricultural building full to overflowing with new and second hand books, which was in the same little village where we were based. 

My friend Paul and his partner were also there, as was Rae, another friend. It was a wonderful time, marvellous weather, good friends, fabulous driving, and thanks to Pauls culinary skills, magnificent food. 

The early part of the month was spent driving the ponies to get them fit enough, and that was good fun too.

I came home to red mite on the chooks, lice on the goats, and fleas on the dogs. Oh joy!

June 2011, life goes on

Here we are, 2 weeks after the wedding, all dressed up in the new carriage at our first proper competition. All went well at first, we got a reasonable dressage mark, but then it went a bit wrong. Well quite a lot wrong actually. Whilst practicing for the cones, one pony had abit of a panic and took off, taking his mate with him, that wouldn't have been too much of a problem as they are quiet ponies and i could have stopped them fairly easily but as i turned them, the seat came off and I was ejected in a graceful arc and dropped to the rock hard ground in a splat. I knew I wasnt damaged, but oh boy did it hurt. and continued to hurt for the next 2 weeks, and now I'm having fluid drawn off my hip every week from the soft tissue damage. It turned out the seat was velcroed on! it is definitely going to be bolted on before we use it again! At least the ponies weren't fazed by the experience. 

Meanwhile life at no 2 continues. We've had great growing weather, raining mostly at night and hot sunny days. The grass seed has taken in the bare patches although the pigeons and pheasants have eaten alot, and the rabbits eat the new grass but its coming along in spite of them. Of course that means more mowing, especially as I'm doing battle with the docks, and the wheelhorse, sadly, is very unreliable. John Galvin is the only one who can get it going, and he's away most of the time so the decision was made to get a newer one. Well here she is, in all her beauty, I dont know how old she is, but a hell of a lot newer than the other one! I got her off ebay and i think I'll try to sell the old one on ebay too. There are some nuts who love old machinery so it might be worth it.

The chickens are all growing, I've got 35 now, i hope to sell some of them but not until they are ready to start laying as they're worth more then, so meanwhile they're just eating their heads off and needing lots of attention. I do love them though, they are so entertaining to watch, I've become an expert on poultry politics!

The 3 little gardens I've planted up are growing well although next year will be much better when everything has had a chance to grow.

I've started on garden no.4, its going to be cottage garden style and I've grown lots of plants from seed but again they won't flower till next year so I'd better live that long.

I've booked a holiday, the first in 8 years, a city break of 5 nights in Istanbul. Christopher took me there for my 50th birthday and I really loved it. This year its my 60th so Jeannie, Rosemary and myself are going in September. I miss the dogs already.

I've continued to have work done to the house. The little porch over the kitchen door is good, I can leave the kitchen door open when its raining and it doesn't come in. 

The best thing is that I've had a toilet fitted under the stairs. I haven't got a door on yet so its a bit odd to have a toilet in the dining room but greatly practical when you live on your own. I have got an original victorian door which matches the others in the house for it, but i've got to get the old paint stripped off and a door frame made. 

Thats about it for now, thanks for looking in, and feel free to leave a comment if you're inclined.

Where did May go? June 2011

May was all about the wedding. I wanted to get my house and garden looking respectable, and that meant all 2011's plans had to be completed by May 21st. I'd got lots of people staying locally or camping in the garden and as it was still being over run by goats it was all hands on deck in the last couple of weeks to get it all tidy and pretty. It wouldn't have mattered,  of course, but pride being what it is , you have to do your best.

The wedding was wonderful, in a tiny church set in a beautiful landscape only accessible by crossing a stream (there was a bridge) and walking up a field. My sister, who is an Anglican Priest, took the service so it was very personal and loving.

The Bride was very beautiful and the Groom was handsome, the Bridesmaids adorable.

Me and the old girls staggering up the hill.

Lots of confetti.

The groom's father looking very proud.

The Grooms Mother and Sister sharing the moment.

Just after signing and witnessing the Registers. John doing a grand job.

The proud Parents.

The Close Family

 With the Best Man

The magnificent cake, made by a college friend of Jo's.

The cake didn't get cut till the next day, we had a little ceremony in the garden.

It was such a happy time, lots of old friends and family together in a real celebration, full of love and joy.

Jo and Julek set off on honeymoon to Mexico and had a truly wonderful time. Oh happy days.

I've got a million photos of the day, with all the guests and all the fun, but I've just chosen a few for here. 

April Brings Easter Chicks

The sun has shone continuously this month and I've really made the most of it. I love my life.

Firstly, the eggs in the incubator hatched, with me pacing the floor and Jeannie waiting for  telephone updates throughout the night. Actually I couldn't get hold of her to watch the last chick hatch, so I dashed to the farm in my PJ's and she dashed back in hers just in time to watch it hatch. .What a pair of silly old biddies we are. I had no idea what an exhausting process it is if you are the chick, the poor little souls were so tired, my heart went out to them.

They recover pretty quick though and grow at an amazing rate, had to go for the carpentry again to make a brooder. I used some unused skirting board I found in the barn and it looks abit smarter than the run. They are about 5 days old when the photo below was taken, 

  
and this is 9 days later, and as you can see Blondie is a giant!

and this one can fly straight out so I've had to build a vertical extension for them. They go outside in the sunshine in the daytime and come in under a lamp at night.

  

Meanwhile Gretel hatched 3 chicks, one lavender and 2 partridge. They are about a quarter the size of the others and at first were no trouble at all. Then after a week Gretel took against the lavender one and did this so its now living in the house and becoming a house chicken. Hopefully it can go in with the next lot of big chicks as it will be about the same size at first.

A glut of eggs meant lemon curd, and that meant danish pastries, they didn't last long. Yum Yum. 

My lovely wheelhorse, 40 years old and going strong, has really come into its own this month. It did need a new spark plug, but £2.38 for maintenance at that age is not bad. I eventually worked out how to lower the undercarriage to mow but its  its also pulled  a harrow,  its little trailer and  dragged tangled wire off the diminishing bonfire pile to the skip. It even mowed the path into the woods which was getting very overgrown. Trying to get the garden ready for the wedding has been hard but I suppose it has made me get on with it. I will have at least 2 caravans, 2 camper vans, 4 tents and goodness knows how many assorted bodies on the floor or in the barn. 

My path to the woods.




These reprobates have been incarcerated as they have been destructive to the point beyond patience. I know you can't blame a goat for being a goat but they could win Mastermind with their ingenuity to get at my plants. Hopefully the fence I've been waiting for for 2 months will be put up this week so they can have their own paddock. I will miss them being about the house, but not in it!!

Holly had had a hard day in the garden.

A walk in the woods.

We took the ponies to Cricklands for our first competition as a pair. I had a mini lesson with James then off we went. The boys were great, very calm and well behaved but really focussed when they needed to be. We were second to go and the first one tipped over causing a bit of anxiety as the backstepper was injured. Everyone kept saying "are you OK to go?" but It didnt phase me and I can't attribute any of my errors to that. We came second and were so thrilled with the boys I became quite emotional.

Next time it will be the wedding !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Mad March

What a month! 
I've got masses of stuff starting off in the greenhouse, flowers, vegies, herbs, and summer bulbs. I got a bit carried away with a new electric propagator and its great. Its been too cold in the greenhouse at night, and too hot in the day. Suits me fine but the seeds find it a bit shocking. As usual its chaos management, I'll be building raised beds when each lot of seeds is ready.

 I've made a flower bed outside the kitchen window, which looks rather dull at the moment but hopefully it will look better in the summer. 

I can't plant anything out there till I've got my new fence to keep the goats out, they are very entertaining but very mischievous and quite destructive. I found them on the dining table finishing off the bunches of tulips I'd just bought, if I hadn't found a stem on the floor I'd have thought I had imagined buying them. They've also taken to 'nesting' in the back of the pantry, on top of the vacuum cleaner and some old coats. I'm going to fence across the paddock so there is a 'farm' end and a more 'tidy' end. I still want to be able to see them from the house though, I would miss their 'help' when I'm doing things! I suppose shutting the kitchen door would help.

I've had 2 disasters on the chicken front, Vera, one of my black pekins who was a little wild, flew out of her run straight into the open mouth of Holly, who dispatched her instantly, before she could even squawk. A short life but a happy one. The major  chicken tragedy was when Camilla, elegant and beautiful wife of Charles, knocked over a steel sheep hurdle and garrotted herself,  also dying instantly, with a broken neck. I really began to wonder if I was a safe person for chickens to live with, but I persevered and have replaced Camilla with Camilla2 and a younger one called Dianna. I have also taken up carpentry and have made a super big run for the Pekins. Its not what you might call a work of art but its strong and practical and I'm rather proud of it. Christopher would be impressed. 





I've got 2 pekins broody, with 6 eggs each so maybe I'd better start making a brooder and growers pen. See, I even know the correct terms, tee hee. I've also got 7 large fowl eggs in the incubator, but i have had no success at that yet. I shall keep trying, I certainly cant eat all my eggs so I might as well increase my chicken empire. 

The ponies are now contained in their own 2 acre field to stop them getting too fat, and are being driven regularly. They are getting quite fit, and quite cheeky. Jeannie and I went for a lesson with James Broome (look him up on youtube.) last week, and I learnt some new techniques which was great. One day I might even understand how to adjust pair reins but at the moment I still have to be shown although Its becoming slightly clearer. We are going to go down and have a lesson about once a fortnight if we can, especially as we can't get to any competitions for ages.



I haven't done anything to the house this month, I've been too tired with all the outside stuff, and its been lovely to have a fire to collapse by that doesn't involve any work. My legs have stood up to it well, but I'm feeling very tired. A few easy days are in order I think.


Last but definitely not least, the wedding plans are gaining speed as we get nearer the day. I think it will be fun, but theres a huge amount of work to it all, and I am so grateful to so many people who are helping.


Thanks for stopping by.