Neglecting my blog.

Well it's been quite a few months since I last posted, so I had better get my act together and keep this a bit more up to date.

I was due to finish my current contract at work this next month but have now been told this will be extend until next September. Things are very busy there and when it comes to my days off I seem to be a bit lacking in energy to do a lot. This is not helped by the weather we are having here in Wales. For the 3rd year in a row we have had no Summer, the rain started the 3rd week of June and has been here pretty much ever since. As a result of this it has been a bad year for my vegetable garden. The courgettes and squash were rotting before they got to any resonable size. The beans have hardly done anything, the onions stayed small and those that we managed to use are all rotten at the top and the salad stuff turned to mush before we got to use it. The only things that have been a success are the cucumber and the carrots and as a result I am going to have to buy veg, something I am not very happy about.

The good news is we've just had another lovely break visiting friends in Zakynthos (although we didn't even escape the rain there this year) We go every year at the end of October to visit our friends George and Andriana. They have a small apartment complex in Alykes surrounded by olive groves, it is the perfect place to unwind and recharge the batteries.

An old building I love in the village.

The harbour.

The olive grove.

Views across the field.

Views across Alykes.

The pool.

The bad news is that about a month before we left I set off on a get fit/lose a little bit of weight regime. I follow a wonderful blog of a lady called Sue (our new life in the country) and she along with her Mum are trying different diets to lose weight before Christmas. Whilst I feel at 8st 12lbs I don't really need to lose alot of weight I do feel a bit on the podgy side. So after 4 weeks of cutting down my food portions and having a bit of excersise I had actually lost 6lbs. (I can't remember when I was last that weight) I was well chuffed but unfortunately after Andriannas delicious cooking I have now put 4lbs back on again.......gutted......Some serious effort is going to be required to get rid of that again, especially as it's not that long till Christmas now.

A day off.

Where does the time go, half way through the year already. I can't believe that the nights will be starting to draw in soon. We've been so busy at work recently that I haven't had time to blog much. I don't like working shifts, twelve hours a day is no fun and leaves no time in the evening to do anything except feed the chooks, eat tea and go to bed. Still, no work today but the weather is a bit dull at the moment so I'm not sure which way it will go yet though its looking like it may be leaning towards rain.

The garden is doing well at the moment, the chooks sweet corn is growing well and the courgettes are now taking form.

Radish, beetroot and dwarf runner beans

Chard, carrots, shallots and lettuce.

The Wyandotte chicks are starting to feather up at last, I'm not sure what sex they are yet though. I'm thinking from the space for their comb and the shape of the wing that maybe I have one pullet and four cocks although I'm hoping that I am wrong and that there is no more than one cock as I can't really keep more than one. They were enjoying having dust bath yesterday.

The other chicks are are now seven weeks old and are growing nicely, I think that I may be lucky and have four pullets but I am not 100% certain on one of them as the feathers are neither rounded or pointy but fingers crossed it will be a pullet. They were moved yesterday to a larger run as they were rapidly outgrowing the eglu I use as a broody pen and seem to have settled in nicely, although one jumped through the electric fence within about five minutes but we managed to get here back in.

A Lazy Day.

I had a bit of a lazy day yesterday, Pete was working so I decided to have a day of doing not much at all. Cleaned the chickens out in the morning then just pottered around the garden for a bit. The weeds are growing at the same rate as the veg so its a constant battle to keep on top of them, but I won't let them beat me. The flower beds need tackling next but the ground is so hard with lack of rain I just can't be bothered to do it at the moment. The Roses are covered in buds this year so should give a good display once they are out fully. The wild part of the garden could probably do with a strim but I don't want to spoil it at the moment so that can wait as well until the flowers are finished and it's all died back.

In the afternoon when Pete had finished work we went for a short walk down by the river and into the wood. It is lovely and peaceful and we often walk there.

Then back home for roast pork and to spend the evening sat up by the log cabin to catch the last bit if sun and partake in a few bottles of bud.

This Year's Veg

The veg garden is doing well this year, probably because for the first time since we moved here we have had some sun at last. In fact it has been quite hot at times, lets hope it continues throughout the Summer. On the down side there's a lot of watering to be done (good job we are not on a meter).

We have only got a couple of bags of potatoes this year as they take up so much room. Last year we had 4 beds and quite a few bags but the crop was very poor averaging only 4 or 5 potatoes a plant. In the front beds we have Cabbage and sprouts, we're not big eaters of these but they are both useful veg for the chickens over winter. We also have a bed of leeks and a bed of Garlic.

In these four beds we have Onions, Shallots, Carrots, Chard, Dwarf Runner Beans, Asparagus, Beetroot, Courgettes and Squash. To the left hand side we have Raspberries and Strawberries. We also have three more large beds on the next terrace which contain Brocolli, Lettuce, Radish, Rocket and Spring Onions and two small beds near the house which are for the herbs.

In the greenhouse we have Tomatoes and Cucumber.

And more Tomatoes and Melons.

Still to come on a bit are Aubergines, Peppers and all the flowers for the hanging baskets and planters around the house.

There's nowhere I would rather be then pottering around the garden with my chooks, it's a lot of work but I find it relaxing. It's a shame that work always seem to get in the way of what we like best.

The New Chicks

I love my two Silver Dorking chickens (Dilys & Gwyneth), they are the friendliest and cheekiest of all my girls but they have one down side, they seem to be forever broody. So at the moment I've got two lots of chicks on the go with them. Some Cuckoo Scots Dumpy's and some Bantam laced Wyandottes.

These are the Wyandotte chicks at 2 days old.

And now at 3 weeks old they are still balls of fluff.

The Scots Dumpy's at 2 days old

At 4 days old they are already growing feathers.

And at 4 weeks old.

We got snowed in.............

................for 17 days.

This was the worst winter since we moved down here but also the best. I love the snow, everything seems peaceful and quiet. The -12° I could do without though, it was a constant battle trying to keep the chickens water and our own from freezing.

The Drive.

There's a car under here somewhere.

Across the Garden.

Across the Valley.

Up the Garden.

Up the house lane.

The Garden.

.............And 3 Months Later.

The Front

Bedroom 1

Bedroom 2

Bathroom

The Living Room

The Kitchen

The Garden