New visitors to our website might be forgiven to think we have no life in between auroras as the last few posts on the blog have been aurora centred! If it wasn’t for Farmer working away at the real work that needs to be done, there might be a bit of truth in it…
It is now April and lambing has started. This brings a change in farmhouse routine as Farmer is up with the larks and out until dark. This morning he has come in with a lamb from a set of twins, whose mother seems to have abandoned her. Another set of twins had just been born when he went into the field – a hooded crow was hovering about to see what he/she could get from the situation. Farmers need to have eyes in the backs of their heads at this time of year, to minimise the impact of raw nature on the young lambs.
We have 2 bottle fed lambs in the stock shelter beside Studio. Daughter has called them Fae and Feya (I think that is how you spell it, Freya without the fr sound), and they are thriving. It is very sweet to see them ‘discover’ the great outdoors. One or two of our guests have come in for a chance to bottle feed them which is always nice!
The few remaining cows to calve are in the field around the house, and it is lovely to see them grazing in the sunshine and the calves running round madly, all leg and knee with flicking tail.
Things are beginning to move in the garden too. And in the old woodland garden (now a total exclusion zone because of the landslides and fallen trees!) the beautiful Magnolia is flowering – you can see it from the main road.
The bird feeders are busy too. Lots of squabbling Goldfinches! I have been noticing how aggressive they can be. The swallows are back and so we have left the big shed doors open again, so they can start nesting in their usual places.
