Gorgeous sunny weekend

Our favourite motto.

The weekend weather was absolutely gorgeous, the sun shone and took the edge of the cold breeze first thing in the morning, and then got warmer and warmer throughout the day. The sky stayed clear and bright and everything seemed fresh and waiting in anticipation. There was only one thing for it, a quick trip to the shops and then get stuck in!!

We have lists of things to do as long as your arm, all stored in our heads and, in Hubbys' case also written on pieces of paper, dotted around the house, cars and anywhere he happens to be when an idea strikes!

First on my list......finish the en-suite bathroom. 

So on Friday I painted the window frame, jazzed up the plain roller blind with an offcut of CK fabric (a tea towel actually!!) and a piece of shelf edging lace, then arranged a few pretties and some new towels. Et voila........a room that looks pretty and is all ready for action after a hard day outside.

First on Hubbys' list was finishing off the second veggie bed ready for Jason to top it up with manure and compost later in the day.

Sophie sloping off on a rabbit hunting mission.

The far corner of the pond by the house. 

 Then it was all hands to the deck and another clear up around the pond. We have one side almost finished nearest the house and are now aiming to get started on the far side of the pond, (it is split in the middle by an overflow system and the path that leads to the barn). But Mr and Mrs Duck have taken up residence and there are signs of imminent nesting and the arrival of another Mrs Duck over the weekend (lucky man........two wives to tell him what to do!!), so we may have to go slowly and carefully and leave them a bit of untouched pondside.

Far pond - the home of Mr and Mrs (and Mrs) Duck.........

Ten tyre stacks filled and ready for action.

My next job was filling the tyres with a mixture of compost and manure ready for veggie planting, we are using these this year for herbs, salad crops and some carrots and parsnips as we may not have to time to do all the double digging required for all the main raised veggie beds. It will also be slightly easier for us to protect this area from the deer we have roaming the area. Ten tyre stacks took nine full bags of compost and four of manure, so that involved lots of digging mixing and pushing of wheelbarrows!!

Whilst I was doing that Hubby took delivery of his new toy.............a great big JCB to help level the earth that is in mounds all over the place and eventually this will be used to dig a drainage ditch along the side of the orchard. Of course a little play had to be had and a mound of earth that had stood at the end of the pondside has now vanished!

Then he got stuck in and started painting the farmhouse doors, we found out the reason they were flaking SO badly....they had been painted with interior grade gloss paint and only a thin coat at that! So after a good rub down and a coat of undercoat they are now almost all wearing a lovely coat of gorgeous green paint. This is my absolute favourite colour in the world and is also traditional to houses in the area, a very happy coincidence.

Where have all the people gone.........inside for a lovely cup of coffee and a round of chicken salad buns and a well deserved sit down.

Then we unearthed the petrol mower and gave the grass nearest the house its first trim of the year. Bushes and trees near the orchard were trimmed and lots of the wild brambles ,that are seriously overgrown were trimmed back. Then there was only one thing for it, to finish the weekend off in our now traditional way with a huge bonfire, and then into the house for hot bubble baths and a lovely homemade beef casserole in front of our roaring log fire.

A good productive weekend, hope yours was as good and as fun as ours only not quite so tiring!

Til next time

Sue xx

The En-suite.......

Just a little glimpse of what the bathroom looks like now, what will it look like after the weekend?

 Better I hope!

Hubby is tackling the outside and I'm on bathroom duty, once I've finished I've promised I will clear a little bit more of the pond....honest!!

Sue xx

Happy Birthday to a lovely lady.

Todays post is different.............it's dedicated to a very special lady.

One who is just twenty years older than me, one who has shaped my world and the world of the people around her, one who is so special and doesn't realise the impact on the people around her of her 'specialness'. The one lady in the world that can make me happy by being happy and sad when she's sad.

  She's supported me when I've been down, laughed with me when I've been happy, spoke her mind and put up with the sulks when I know deep down she's right but attempted it my way anyway.

  She's been there. What more can you ask. We've fell out, we've made up. We've laughed, cried and had the biggest girly giggling fits together.

 

She's the glue that holds the family together, the arms you run to when the world turns bad and the one person in the world that you love unconditionally and loves you back the same way.

  She's my Mum. 

Love you Mum. 

Always and forever. 

  Happy Birthday.

My mum with the man she loves.......luckily it's my Dad!!

Sue xx

Dog tired.....

Please don't make me go for another walk ...

On a dull, cold March day sometimes it's just fine to snuggle up on the sofa and relax. If only I could be as chilled out as Sophie. I seem to flit from job to job always busy, always something to do. I have decided to make more of an effort to sit back, chill out and read some of the many, many books we have. Mostly my unread books are about things we still have to learn as we embark on this new way of life, rearing chickens, keeping pigs, planting veggies etc etc. ... so it's still work right!!

Just a lovely picture of some flowers in the jug on my workroom windowsill.

The rest of the room is not nearly as neat and pretty.........yet!!

Sue xx

Pond or lake?

The pond (lake?) before.

Over the weekend as well as attending the Farmers Market and doing all the normal 'chores' we decided to attempt the huge job of clearing around the pond. Is it a pond or is it a mini lake, we don't know.

Slightly overgrown around the edges.

By the end of the day on Friday it felt like a lake and we had only cleared about 30 foot around the side nearest to the house and we were all exhausted. Hubby was a naughty boy and started to use his new chainsaw even though he has not done his Safety and Maintenance Course yet, and he didn't even have all his safety stuff on - BAD BOY. I had visions of a trip to the nearest A & E with his leg tucked under my arm and an unconscious man bleeding and making a mess all over my lovely little Corsa ( I could have folded him up and put him in the boot I suppose!!).

Getting stuck in with gusto.

Jason discovered that if you hit a Bulrush with your rake it's seed head explodes and an amazing amount of cotton wool-like seed covers you from head to foot, we were spitting the blooming things out for ages and rubbing our eyes too.

One down....two to go!

Later Jason also took the opportunity of the lovely dry sunny day to sand down all three doors ready for painting and a really good job he has done too. A couple of days with no rain and they will have dried out enough for a fresh coat of undercoat and paint.

Hi Ho Hi Ho it's off to work I go ...

I, meanwhile was given the task of removing all the weeds, bulrushes and things we had dredged out of the side of the pond, in my trusty barrow to the bonfire site. So the day finished with a bonfire (once again). And three very tired but happy folk retired to our lovely cosy house for a curry and a couple of Magners each round a roaring log fire........well earned and delicious!

Looking slightly better, but lots more to do!!

Sue xx

Market Day

My stall.

Well Sunday dawned bright and sunny, the sort of day when you really don't mind getting out of bed. After a couple of rousing coffees and a quick bowl of cereal we loaded the car and set off for the village Farmers Market, literally just in the centre of our village, (it would be even closer if our driveway wasn't one and a half miles long).

This was to be my first Farmers Market, I was eager to see if my shop stock would sit well with the other farmers offerings. It did....it looked lovely and I received SO many nice compliments and so much encouragement.

 

I was very pleased to be given a huge area just next to the fireplace, so I had the side of the little stage platform that I could fill with goodies too, and everyone who sat in the little café area to drink their coffees and eat the lovely bacon butties could sit and plan their next purchase looking directly at my stall.

 

The lovely vegetable man. No wonder he looks proud the veggies were amazing.

Lovely bulbs and garden plants.

Everyone was really friendly and pleased to meet us, the word had spread around the village that the 'new folks' from the farm would be having a stall and Lovely Hubby had been roped in to help with the frying of bacon butties and much washing up. Only the day before he had been complaining that all this outdoor work was roughening up his hands, well....hands that do dishes........as the Fairy advert goes!!

Yummy cakes ... mmm ... resistance is futile!!

We had a brilliant time, lots of buying as well as selling went on and I came away with a beautiful bunch of flowers, some little bottles of liqueurs, a large chunk of Brie for Hubby, a bottle of freshly pressed apple juice, the most gorgeous tasting carrot cake, a dozen free range eggs and 3 enormous leeks (to be turned into a proper bowl of leek and potato soup later this week.

Hubbys favourite stall.

The range of stalls is amazing and the entire thing SO well run. Everything seems to compliment each other and the atmosphere is friendly and welcoming. If you are in the area next month make every effort to come, you will not be disappointed, it will be Easter Sunday so there are lots of extras planned, an Easter Egg hunt for the children and raffles etc.. and once again the lovely, yummy bacon butties.

Proper Ready Meals....the sort that are home cooked and delicious and just ready to pop into the freezer, and take out to whip up a quick tea after a days hard digging.

Flowers galore and all things Eastery.

An excellent morning was had by all and after a quick tidy of the Village Hall it was time to retire (with all the other stall holders) to the Village Pub....well it would have been rude not to!!

Sue xx

Farmers Markets and Daffodils

Gorgeous 'Tete a Tete' daffodils bought from Great Haseley Farmers Market.

Yesterday was busy, but not in the way I had anticipated. No, we couldn't dig, the half bed we had already started had filled up with rain overnight and the last trench we had left looked like an Olympic swimming pool for rabbits!

Instead I started a practice table for the Farmers Market on Sunday and got completely carried away pricing the new stock and sorting the stock from the shop into my new workroom. It's all starting to take shape at last but the lavender didn't get bunched or bagged, so that lovely little job has been saved for today, first though I have to go and 'cut in' the edges in the en-suite bathroom so Jason can get busy with the paint roller this afternoon. Hopefully that won't take TOO long.

This morning I have been busy researching Farmers Markets in the area, I have found a total of nine that look promising, all fitting the criteria of being less than 1 hours drive away, on for a least a couple of hours and not clashing with the ones I am already booked for. Lots of nice shopping for me then!

 The first one to check out is tomorrow in Prestwood, I'm looking forward to it already.

I'll have to get my stall a bit more minimal than I'm used to though, think on a slightly smaller scale and not chuck everything on at once - this is the last show I did.

It was at the North Lonsdale Agricultural Show in Cumbria, and a fun and mud filled day was had by all. Sometimes I think I just go mad and pile everything on at once, I must be selective and restrained!!

 Now off I go to wield my paintbrush, well maybe after just one more cup of coffee, and later Lavender, mmm gorgeous. 

 Sue xx