Monday February 1st 2021: Imbolc, the midway point between the Winter solstice and the Spring equinox, the beginning of the return of Spring, St Brigid’s day (who also happens to be the patron saint of chicken farmers amongst others) there are plenty of customs and traditions surrounding the day but for me it is definitely celebrating the turning of the wheel towards Spring and all its glory 🌸 🌼🌷🌻
John has returned to his ‘proper job’ this month so today for the first time in a while I am here on my own for the day. He did go out and feed most of the birds before he went though bless him, I need to get out and sort the horses and the Guineas. First and foremost I got the house bits done, some washing up, washing on, rubbish out, feed the cats and dogs, have breakfast etc etc all at my own leisure 😀 It is great having John around but it is more restricting when you have someone else to cater for and work around all day long 😜 So what is on my agenda, well a lot will depend on the weather and I think we are in for more heavy rain at some point in the early part of the week and of course it is still quite cold this morning. I do have a few seeds to sow, lemon grass which I love growing as it smells amazing, I have some garlic chives I want to get growing and probably today I will spent a small amount of time in the greenhouse checking over what is already in there and maybe a bit of tidying and sorting. At some point I need to give the poly tunnels and the greenhouse glass a good wash to maximise the light getting in and no doubt I will find jobs as I go round. Yesterday I spotted a pot of snowdrops in the cold frame, lovely little white heads bobbing gracefully on the end of the slender green stalks, I had thought I had lost them all. There were plenty here when we came but with the constant re arranging of areas I had forgotten that I dug them up and potted them, happy discovery 🥰
I went out and did the things I needed to get done (it is pretty cold out, not frozen but not mild either) had a look round in the greenhouse, nothing much to report. It feels like I am waiting…..waiting for the vaccines so start making an impact, waiting for things to start bursting into life, just waiting and waiting for something that signals life is beginning to shift and change 🙄 It’s been a tough, long Winter and we could all really do with some sunshine on the horizon. Don’t get me wrong I am under no illusion that life is going to get back to normal anytime soon, I think the process will be long and slow but I am hoping there will be some kind of normality coming our way.
I got the Rayburn lit and then once that settled down I had a few bits of paperwork and bills to sort out.
Well I would have got some bits done except that he internet keeps dropping in and out 🙄 I reported the fault over a week ago and luckily we have a mini hub which they activated back then, it settled down and has been fine all week and now it’s started playing up again, I can only hope it’s because they are fixing it, what are the chances 😏
Tuesday: It’s 11am and have sat down with a coffee. John did the feeding again this morning before going to work 😀 At my leisure I had breakfast, put some washing on, fed the cats and dogs, went out to feed the horses, put the eggs out and then spent an hour doing some weeding on that front bed. It is nice and mild out but very very soggy underfoot after yet more heavy rain overnight, it does not take much to soak everything after the amount of rain we have had over the last week. As it was quite pleasant I thought I could probably weed the bit of the bed I could reach from the pathway, it is very claggy and I almost stopped after my gloves got completely clogged but decided to carry on regardless. I would have done more except I remembered that I needed to make some bread so that was a good time to break and have coffee at the same time. I came in through the the kitchen and out to the boot room to take off my coat and wellies, noticed the cat had knocked over an egg box that had two eggs in it, I cleared it up and then realised I had left the kitchen door ajar. Then ensues a game of cat and human, the cat got in the house, we have had this a few times, it’s Jack and he likes to make you chase him and try and get him out from hidey holes 😜 It is exactly how you can imagine it would be but eventually he gives up and goes back out to the boot room. We need to work out what to do about the eggs in boxes because the cats have taken to sharpening their claws on the boxes totally ravaging them and breaking any eggs in the process. I would have hoped that by now they would be spending more time outside but it seems although they were born in a barn they rather prefer a comfy, cosy boot room to lounge around in all day and night! They have also worked out that if they knock a box over that is partially filled they get broken eggs 🙄 and an extra feast 😂 I assume as the days get longer and warmer and I am spending more time outside, they will too 🤷♀️
I am avoiding lighting the Rayburn until much later, I lit it around midday yesterday and we were sweating by the evening as it was so much milder out 😂
I had intended to get something ‘useful’ achieved but as ever those little jobs took over. A delivery, the postbox, lunch, sort out the ring doorbell, bread making. The ring doorbell has not been working, it has gone offline, who gave it permission for that I don’t know 🤷♀️ anyhow I decided to get it in and charge it and sort it out. I discovered that when John put it back up in a slightly difference place, the security screws could not be fully screwed in, no wonder it’s not bloody working. Honestly it was a simple enough job, we took it down, including the back plate, to install a cover over the top because of the rain affecting it, the cover had to come back off for some reason that John explained but I can’t remember. He put the unit back up without the cover and it never worked, I assumed it was because of bad weather, but no today when I went to get it in I discovered the problem of the security screws. Basically there is not enough room to get the screwdriver at an angle that you can fully screw them in (there was room before the alteration) as there is a fence in the way. Actually, thinking about it I’m not sure that affects the working of the unit but even so 🙄 I will get it charged, get it back online and put it back up myself, properly this time.
Wednesday: Not much to report today, the weather was fairly mild again but we are looking at another beast from the east arriving at the weekend. With that in mind I have ordered more hay wheels for the horses to keep them going. John did the feeding this morning just leaving the horses, Guineas, dogs and cats for me to get done. I then spent half an hour or more trying to get the ring doorbell working, I was walking around the front trying to see where the wifi drops out. I think since we have re insulated and cladded the signal strength is too poor to reach to the gate next to the egg shed. It reaches about half way but that’s no use really as we have cctv that can see that far, the doorbell was for, well doorbell enquiries really 🙄 So I deactivated it, cancelled the subscription for video capture storage and put it up for sale, by 5.30 it was sold and gone and I need to go back to an old fashioned door bell. To be honest I’m quite glad, it constantly went off with egg customers coming and going plus if I wasn’t in the connection while trying to talk to someone was not the best.
We rang the bell and clapped our hands for Captain Sir Tom Moore tonight, he really did become a national treasure, he inspired people and gave people hope during some very depressing times through the pandemic RIP. He had an amazing 100th year, raising over 30 million (in a very short space of time), becoming an honorary Colonel, an honorary member of the England cricket team, a number one hit, a world record being the oldest person to have a number one hit, a royal variety performance, an honorary doctorate, birthday messages from the Queen, members of the royal family, the Prime Minister and receiving a knighthood, but what he gave was so much more so so many people, hope and perseverance 🥰
Thursday: A wet day again today, although the morning was dry just as I decided it was time for a walk the rain started. Not to be deterred I carried on anyway but was soaked through by the time I got back, good job I had lit the Rayburn before going out. The task was to get my coat and gloves dry before it was time to go out and do the animals, it was my wax jacket (which obviously needs rewaxing) the rain had got in somehow and I needed to get it dry again because putting on a wet coat to go out is not nice at all. Anyhow I was saved by the fact that John came home earlier than expected 😀 and so he did them lol. I had Mia for the day as she, like a lot of school children, is beginning to struggle emotionally with the lockdown and being at home all the time. She came over for the day so that she could have time to herself and do something different. Shelley, Josh and Flo came over to join us on the walk, we were all soaked but we had a lovely time splashing in puddles and letting the rain drip down our faces. I did feel really sad when Josh cried because he could not come in to nanny’s house, it s heartbreaking really but between us adults we had agreed that I would form a childcare bubble with Sam to help out with things got tough. I am pretty sure Shelley could do with the break as well but at the minute sadly it has to be this way 😔 I had to peel off Mia’s clothes and put them to dry by the Rayburn so she spent a couple of hours wrapped in a blanket on the sofa with a hot water bottle watching the tv. We had made biscuits in the morning so we had a snack and a drink and a rest while we warmed up and dried off. The biscuits are a really simple recipe from Mary Berry, the more of her recipes I use, the more I choose to do, they always turn out as expected. These are called fork biscuits use three ingredients (four if you include chocolate chips) and are easy enough for little children to do.
100g (4oz) butter, softened 50g (2oz) caster sugar 150g (5oz) self-raising flour, mix it all together, form 16 balls, press down with a fork that is dipped in water and bake at 180c for about 10 minutes or until the edges are just turning golden, I leave them to cool for a while until I move them as they are still quite soft while they are hot. We added some cocoa powder and chocolate chips but you could add whatever flavours you have or like. I can’t show you a picture as Mia took them home to share with George, Lucie, Mummy & Daddy, we gave one each to Josh and Flo too.
Friday: A lovely mild, sunny morning so far. I have done all the usual things plus fill up the wild bird feeders, I have a hay delivery coming at lunchtime but have stopped midway during the hoovering to have a coffee 😜 I have plenty to get on with and we are expecting the temperature to drop tonight and have a snow warning for Saturday into Sunday so we will see how that pans out. With that in mind I thought I would get all the house jobs done so that I can maybe sit and doing some crafting over the weekend. I am still waiting for some paper to arrive before I can do the Lino prints, hopefully that will arrive today. I keep looking at the garden but yet again overnight we had some heavy rain so the ground is totally sodden and it’s not worth compacting it by treading all over it. We could really do with a dry period now, the long range forecast does not look too bad as far as rain goes. I always find February a long month, which is ironic as it’s the shortest, but it is almost a long slow plod towards warmer days and crucially warmer soil, we will get there, we always do, time keeps on marching on and the wheel keeps turning 🌝
The rain is back and hammering down again, we are so waterlogged, not just our paddocks but all around the area and parts of the country 😏 My heart actually sinks when I hear the rain becoming harder.
When I was getting the dustbin back in this morning I noticed the little crocus that we planted a couple of years ago in the grass under the cooking apple tree. When the crocus open thats when you will see the first bees of the year flying around 🐝 And talking of bees I am doing an online beekeeping course 😀 Hopefully, if I think I can look after bees ok I will order my first bee hive and some bees. I also hatched a plan to breed ladybirds lol, last year I bought the larvae for the brassica cage but I figured if I can find a bunch of ladybirds as they come out of hibernation and put them in the greenhouse I should be able to get eggs and hatch them 🤷♀️
Saturday: Foggy this morning and it got heavier as the morning went on but by the afternoon it had cleared. It was cold as well first thing, we did the morning rounds, I cleaned out the guinea pigs and put fresh bedding in all the other pens/stables and then I started to help John with the side driveway, my toes were getting colder and colder and I had to change into my isotherm wellies which are much warmer. We got a temporary small gate up, none of the merchants can get hold of any at the minute so we have a piece of ply instead. We took the old fence and gate down and then the fox chap turned up, there are a few problems on the farms around us and we have nightly visits here, they are trying to dig into the stables where the hens are at the minute. A quick chat turned into an hour talking about all kinds of things by this time is was lunchtime so I went in to stick the kettle on and make bacon rolls. Shelley came to get some eggs so that was another chat over the fence for a while, time to light the Rayburn and have a sit down 😂 we haven’t got very far in the last few hours today. I did go online and order a uk grown silver birch to plant in the area and they also had a good deal on some cherry plum trees so I really had to buy them too 😜
Sunday: Not as cold as I thought it was going to be this morning but the temps have plunged this afternoon and the wind is bitterly cold. The forecast is for seven days below zero 🥶 a mini beast from the east, many places have snow but we don’t….yet! We did the animals rounds and then John did a bit on the side driveway, moving a layer of mud that has built up over the past couple of years. We treated ourselves to a costa this morning and I also booked a takeaway roast dinner from the pub in the next village along 😀 Got to have a few treats in this lockdown winter. Apart from the usual jobs we haven’t done much else today, I have been doing a bit of Lino cutting and printing but that’s it really.
Another week over and hopefully another week nearer to normality 🙄 Its going to be a cold one, below freezing which means carrying water to the paddocks and breaking ice on what’s already there. I am hoping the ground will freeze overnight so I can get a wheel of hay rolled out to the horses, filling up a tonne bag and dragging it out is pretty hard work when the ground is churned up with wet mud. Oh the joys of a winter on the smallholding, oh wait there are no joys 😂
frieslandfarm (flowers) 