Too much to do...... too little time.......
I am just about to wipe a thoughtful skid mark from the kitchen floor and a disemboweled field mouse needs shifting from it's last resting place from the kitchen top.
True to form it's raining........
more muddy footprints all over the house before our visitors arrive
Big Breaths John....Big Breaths
Showing posts with label visitors. Show all posts
Showing posts with label visitors. Show all posts
Visitors and culling
Tomorrow Chris' Brother Jonathan, wife Charlotte and nephew Leo arrive. in Trelawnyd
They live way down in Broadstairs in Kent and in the ten years ( to the day!) that me and Chris have been together, this is their first visit to our home all together ( remember Leo visited earlier in the year!) As you can imagine it is an important visit for us.
Yesterday I have shampooed the dog smell out of the carpets,wiped the dog snot from the windows and bought fresh flowers and a Halloween pumpkin for the house.
Today I will give the cottage a general scrub, and will try and tidy up the garden in preparation and early this morning I have put together a hamper for Jon and Charlotte to take home with them.
In the hamper I have put my own fresh produce (leeks, artichoke hearts,pumpkin,onions shallots and sprouts) I then added my own jars of picked onions and pickled spicy beetroot and topped it all off with six newly laid eggs, some donated green chutney from old Mrs Jones and some bought honey from Eirlys' farm.
Visitors need to be fed well!
Yesterday, the sick ghost hen fell over when out for a drink and was unable to get up again. Luckily I found her quickly and knew there was nothing more I could do , so in the field and with a heavy heart I sat and stroked her for a short while before putting her out of her misery. She was the only the second hen I have culled myself since Bob the retired poultry keeper showed me how to dispatch my young cockerels last year, and no matter how necessary the job, I really do hate doing it.
Three juvenile cockerels need culling next week and I think I will ask Bob to come and help me again with the job.......As I sat on the grass in the field with a dead fat hen on my lap I realised that I will never make a proper farmer!
I am just too soft
They live way down in Broadstairs in Kent and in the ten years ( to the day!) that me and Chris have been together, this is their first visit to our home all together ( remember Leo visited earlier in the year!) As you can imagine it is an important visit for us.
Yesterday I have shampooed the dog smell out of the carpets,wiped the dog snot from the windows and bought fresh flowers and a Halloween pumpkin for the house.
Today I will give the cottage a general scrub, and will try and tidy up the garden in preparation and early this morning I have put together a hamper for Jon and Charlotte to take home with them.
Visitors need to be fed well!
Yesterday, the sick ghost hen fell over when out for a drink and was unable to get up again. Luckily I found her quickly and knew there was nothing more I could do , so in the field and with a heavy heart I sat and stroked her for a short while before putting her out of her misery. She was the only the second hen I have culled myself since Bob the retired poultry keeper showed me how to dispatch my young cockerels last year, and no matter how necessary the job, I really do hate doing it.
Three juvenile cockerels need culling next week and I think I will ask Bob to come and help me again with the job.......As I sat on the grass in the field with a dead fat hen on my lap I realised that I will never make a proper farmer!
I am just too soft
Blanche update, crops and unruly behaviour
Blanche and the duckling made their first shakey way into the hen house run this morning. Blanche still has not eaten, so I have put tempting dishes of cat food,corn and pasta in the corner of the coop, but at least they had a quick wander around. 
The vegetable plots are looking quite presentable now. The above plot which is filled with herbs,spinach,turnip, parsnips,broad beans and peas, is green and fresh and neat and tidy although several of the more overactive hens have now learnt to infiltrate the fencing!.
This afternoon two sets of walkers numbering around 40 individuals ambled down the lane and both groups stopped to buy eggs. All were retired members in a walking society, and as usual they came into the field to have an impromptu "guided tour".
Older people can be more unruly than smaller groups of visiting kids, as they all seem to chatter on at once and split up into little sub groups, then these smaller groups seem to call out questions like bullets shot out of a machine gun.
"what's eaten your rhubarb?"
"what's the turkey called?"
"Is that a cornflower?"
" How do you grow celery?"
"Have you got a bag of manure for sale?"
" Joan see that hen? poor little mite... it's limping!"
and then more worryingly......
"Ohhhhhhh Marjorie's fallen over a guide wire!!!"
"giggle,giggle,giggle"
Indeed, Marjorie HAD fallen over a fence guidewire as she tottered down to have a look at the bantams (below) and thankfully she was laughing about it as she was sat on the grass, so was all of her friends who had grouped around her in a circle (I had visions of litigation)but at least they were cackling loudly. Her hips thankfully seemed to be intact , so with a couple of free duck eggs tucked into her rucksack, I sent them all on their way.....
The vegetable plots are looking quite presentable now. The above plot which is filled with herbs,spinach,turnip, parsnips,broad beans and peas, is green and fresh and neat and tidy although several of the more overactive hens have now learnt to infiltrate the fencing!.This afternoon two sets of walkers numbering around 40 individuals ambled down the lane and both groups stopped to buy eggs. All were retired members in a walking society, and as usual they came into the field to have an impromptu "guided tour".
Older people can be more unruly than smaller groups of visiting kids, as they all seem to chatter on at once and split up into little sub groups, then these smaller groups seem to call out questions like bullets shot out of a machine gun.
"what's eaten your rhubarb?"
"what's the turkey called?"
"Is that a cornflower?"
" How do you grow celery?"
"Have you got a bag of manure for sale?"
" Joan see that hen? poor little mite... it's limping!"
and then more worryingly......
"Ohhhhhhh Marjorie's fallen over a guide wire!!!"
"giggle,giggle,giggle"
Indeed, Marjorie HAD fallen over a fence guidewire as she tottered down to have a look at the bantams (below) and thankfully she was laughing about it as she was sat on the grass, so was all of her friends who had grouped around her in a circle (I had visions of litigation)but at least they were cackling loudly. Her hips thankfully seemed to be intact , so with a couple of free duck eggs tucked into her rucksack, I sent them all on their way.....
Sunny Day
The weather has been glorious today. I was up at 7am and had completed all the household jobs (including preparing the evening meal) by 8.30am. I only stopped to have a coffee and a small heart attack ( more about that later) and then at 9am all the dogs and I went over to the field to spend the whole day in the warm sunshine
Today I have started to plant out early peas and potatoes, but the work was slightly slow as a steady stream of visitors have graced the field. The two Mrs Jones' (Morwenna and Gwyneth) called down to visit the pigs. Mrs "pen-y-cefn-isa" Jones (right) ran a busy farm for most of her life, and does miss having livestock around her. Ever the pragmatist she delighted in giving Boris a good "feel" to check how meaty his breast was. She is slightly disappointed that I will never kill him to eat! Mrs Jones' grandfather actually rebuilt our cottage! Morwenna does not get out very much due to bad health, but seemed to delight at being given the guided tour. Her joy at having a morning out was infectious.
During their visit, another elderly chap called in to photograph some of the animals and stopped for a chat, and soon after Sue (who had donated her kids old rabbit hutch to me last week) turned up for some eggs and a chin wag
This morning I let Albert out into the garden and literally within seconds he had climbed onto the shed, then from there he scrambled onto the outhouse then appeared on top of next door's conservatory!..I guess it was a case of excitement over sense! The dew on the conservatory roof proved too slippy for his unconditioned paws and quite gracefully and in slow motion he slid out of view and off the roof!..............My nerves were shot to ribbons! I galloped around into the neighbour's garden expecting to see the little chap broken on the stone patio, his stiff leg fractured all over again!, but after swinging quite happily by a paw from the plastic guttering, he had scrambled down the water pipe and was nonchalantly licking his slightly whithered leg......I think he must of frightened himself just a little, as soon after he wandered back into the cottage and plonked himself down in the bedroom window seat! He has sat there all day!
The chicken wire pea supports don't look pretty but will hopefully protect the pea plants from the chickens (though not from mice).
Today I have started to plant out early peas and potatoes, but the work was slightly slow as a steady stream of visitors have graced the field. The two Mrs Jones' (Morwenna and Gwyneth) called down to visit the pigs. Mrs "pen-y-cefn-isa" Jones (right) ran a busy farm for most of her life, and does miss having livestock around her. Ever the pragmatist she delighted in giving Boris a good "feel" to check how meaty his breast was. She is slightly disappointed that I will never kill him to eat! Mrs Jones' grandfather actually rebuilt our cottage! Morwenna does not get out very much due to bad health, but seemed to delight at being given the guided tour. Her joy at having a morning out was infectious.During their visit, another elderly chap called in to photograph some of the animals and stopped for a chat, and soon after Sue (who had donated her kids old rabbit hutch to me last week) turned up for some eggs and a chin wag
This morning I let Albert out into the garden and literally within seconds he had climbed onto the shed, then from there he scrambled onto the outhouse then appeared on top of next door's conservatory!..I guess it was a case of excitement over sense! The dew on the conservatory roof proved too slippy for his unconditioned paws and quite gracefully and in slow motion he slid out of view and off the roof!..............My nerves were shot to ribbons! I galloped around into the neighbour's garden expecting to see the little chap broken on the stone patio, his stiff leg fractured all over again!, but after swinging quite happily by a paw from the plastic guttering, he had scrambled down the water pipe and was nonchalantly licking his slightly whithered leg......I think he must of frightened himself just a little, as soon after he wandered back into the cottage and plonked himself down in the bedroom window seat! He has sat there all day!
The chicken wire pea supports don't look pretty but will hopefully protect the pea plants from the chickens (though not from mice).Local Colour
The one thing about selling eggs and potatoes is that local people have to come to you. Like any small community there always seems a surfeit of characters popping in and out of the cottage and field.
Most of the visitors are very Welsh and many elderly, so they always seem to have time for a chat about all sorts.
Today Mrs A popped in with a rather upsetting story of gum disease and tooth decay.( she always has a dozen eggs and 2 lbs of spuds ). Mrs Jones (almost totally deaf and the spit of Geraldine McEwan, from tv's Marple) tottered down for eggs, spuds and some thrown in lettuce. She is my favourite customer and is always eager and terribly interested in any news that we both may have. Auntie Gladys brought some more scones down to tie on the cottage door handle
(with a small note reminding me to pick her entry up for the Prestatyn flower show next Friday) her excitement in entering a show other than the historic Trelawnyd show is almost palpable, and very infectious. After all this trouble I bloody hope she wins.
Pippa the doctors wife,dropped in with a huge bucket of alfalfa and lettuce for the ducks,we always have a jolly-hockysticks kind of chat over the garden wall, which always reminds me of middle aged wartime characters in Mrs Miniver.She being Lady Beldon and me definitely playing Mr. Ballard.
Geoff, my affable Liverpudlian apprentice called down at teatime with daughter Helen,to play with the hybrid chicks,and neighbours Mandy, John, Steve and Carole always seem around with a friendly conversation, wave and gossip about something in the village........
and I wonder that some days I never seem to get anything done
Most of the visitors are very Welsh and many elderly, so they always seem to have time for a chat about all sorts.
Today Mrs A popped in with a rather upsetting story of gum disease and tooth decay.( she always has a dozen eggs and 2 lbs of spuds ). Mrs Jones (almost totally deaf and the spit of Geraldine McEwan, from tv's Marple) tottered down for eggs, spuds and some thrown in lettuce. She is my favourite customer and is always eager and terribly interested in any news that we both may have. Auntie Gladys brought some more scones down to tie on the cottage door handle
(with a small note reminding me to pick her entry up for the Prestatyn flower show next Friday) her excitement in entering a show other than the historic Trelawnyd show is almost palpable, and very infectious. After all this trouble I bloody hope she wins.Pippa the doctors wife,dropped in with a huge bucket of alfalfa and lettuce for the ducks,we always have a jolly-hockysticks kind of chat over the garden wall, which always reminds me of middle aged wartime characters in Mrs Miniver.She being Lady Beldon and me definitely playing Mr. Ballard.
Geoff, my affable Liverpudlian apprentice called down at teatime with daughter Helen,to play with the hybrid chicks,and neighbours Mandy, John, Steve and Carole always seem around with a friendly conversation, wave and gossip about something in the village........
and I wonder that some days I never seem to get anything done
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