Let it snow! let it snow!

Yesterday morning we awoke to about 3 inches of snow here in South Lincs!!!! out I went to a garden full of very quizzical faces? apart from my big laying girls the others little guys had never seen snow, Bokky's remaining 3 chicks refused to venture out of their little house and when I let the ducks out..........Well see for yourself?????

I hate this weather!

This weekend i decided to make the duck pond bigger! The weather had other ideas though. (Hubby poorly so i wouldnt let him help)

dug the pond out twice as big as it was! ducks all around me waiting for worms to be thrown! emptied out the old plastic liner with really stinky water in onto the veg patch! cue all ducks having a mud diving competition, whilst their pond was empty i filled a kiddies paddling pool for them to have a play in! so................................. just how many muscovies can you get in there?????

Then the liner went in on Sunday!.......cue more heavy rain! pond was filled.........more rain

I roll up my jeans take off wellies and wade in rather than risking sliding into the pond from the edge whilst setting the stones around the edge!

By this point i was muddy anyway so i rolled my sleeves up and started slapping mud around between the stones etc.

Hubby nearly died when he saw the state of me coming through the conservatory. had to jump straight into the shower.

Rushed back to see what they thought of their new pond and this is what i found...........................?

ungrateful little toads!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

anyway it still needs the turf and gravel around the but got home from work today and this was the scene

Im happy now!!

Really excited as me and my little girl are off to the National poultry show in stoneleigh on Sunday. and the 2 muscovy girls are going to live with a dear freind in Bristol too

Hubby had banned me from buying anything else feathered or furred???? Will just have to hatch me some more next year!

November

Its mud, mud, mud here! we have just got back from eurodisney with the kiddies and it seems it has done nothing but rain, rain, rain! Our neighbour did a fantastic job whilst we were away. I was dreading leaving them all, worried something would happen, but all is well.

Been getting used to our new camera, hence the date being wrong? (as i dropped the last one!) so got a few pics of the guys that actually enjoy all this mud and rain.

Little Gracie.

My lovely boy Victor! showing off his little tail curl

Little Dib and Dab the khakis! Dib is the one with the white chest and is a little boy! He is off to live with a lovely couple from yorkshire soon, where he has two wives waiting for him! He is a lovely boy (although not a khaki!) but i just have too many drakes.

Gracie (front) and Lily!

and not forgetting Pato, Gracie and Lily's husband

look how they've grown! the 3 little runners are not so little now!


Pinot! my beautiful silver dorking girl! hoping for white eggies any day now.

Tiny our only girlie quail we hatched who this week has also started laying lovely little eggs.

Dotty strutting her stuff

Cynthia knows she is beautiful!!!!!

October

Fantastic news!!!! we had our 1st blue egg laid by one of our araucana girls on Tuesday (and a 2nd yesterday)!! it is perfect and we are fighting over who gets to eat it, of course i am going to eat it as im the one trudging up the garden in my dressing gown and pink wellies every morning!



We are also down to our last 6 girls that are looking for new homes. 2 beautiful little brahma bantams 2 light sussex, a very pretty double laced barnevelder bantam and our last big girl the buff orpington, who is now POL, Bokky is still looking after her chicks even though they are 10 weeks old now, she hasnt had enough yet. My pretty little laced wyandottes cynthia and Dotty as well as my LF welsummer 'Summer', pheasant fowl 'Dixie' and my little banty salmon faverolle 'Foxy' are all POL too now so fingers crossed we will be getting lots more eggs before Christmas.

Some other news is Violet is actually a Victor!!?? so we have 2 very handsome cayuga boys wandering around the garden (Vic and Bob) will try and get them a girlie each next year perhaps?

September

It has been wonderful this year hearing from happy new hen owners who have bought my babies! one lovely couple came all the way from Yorkshire for, originally, 4 mixed wyandottes and light sussex and left with 6! have heard they are all settling in well. and a lady who came for 2 araucanas over a month ago is back tomorrow for 2 more.
My 3 little runner duckling are now nearly 4 weeks old and they follow bob and Violet, the cayugas, around the garden untill they have had enough and they let themselves into the conservatory (as i found out today when i heard the slap of duckling feet on the dining room floor!)
Still have a buff orpington hen who is currently 12 wks old and 2 gold laced, 2 buff laced and a blue laced wyandotte bantam available! aswell as 1 barnevelder bantam. the brahma bantams are gorgeous! it looks like we have 3 different colour variations but still not sure on their gender?

Where is the time going?

This month aswell as the welsummer bantams and the brahma bantams that have hatched, we had 3 little runner ducklings hatch! and my blackrock, Bokky went broody on the 14th August! (she is a hybrid who is not supposed to go broody!) she is now sitting on 5 khaki campbell duck eggs which which are renowned for being the best duck egg layers you can get! 18 days to go, but we have to turf her off the nest twice a day to eat and poop! but she is not happy about it and grumbles the whole time (and will attack if you get too close!) untill she is back on her eggs.

Bob and Violet the cayugas are growing well, they moved outside the other week as they sprayed dirty water all up my lounge curtains, so i knew they were ready.

here are lots of photos of all the lovely babies! Enjoy

The muscovies enjoying the pond in the sun!

The 3 new little runners having their 1st swim.

Some light sussex bantams.

Spot the duck?

The finished duck house with Ruby checking it out.

Bob and Violet off for a stroll! and to hunt down some mealy worms.