De-Stressing!!!!!!!!!!

We have spent a week wondering as to the safety of our Son and a friend who decided to go climbing in the Cairngorms & Ben Nevis. They went on Boxing Day for a week. They have done several climbs but not in the snow.

The first text on Boxing Day said all was well and they were quite content in their tent at minus 10deg We then heard again on Monday evening that all was going well but not entirely to plan. With the severe weather warnings in abundance and no contact again until Wednesday evening life was a little stressful but I am glad to say that he is now back in his home and we can relax.

Thank goodness the alpacas could take our minds of it. They all look well and are getting through the hay in abundance. Vitamin injections for the cria and general check over for them all tomorrow and weather permitting we may do some 'spit offs' too with 'Wellground Scriptwriter'. He has a wonderful presence - walks around his paddock looking like the king of the castle.

We hope to start work on the Alpaca barn before too long which will make life much easier, we also have to learn more about fleece sorting and producing items from it.

Best wishes to everyone for 2010 - we really enjoy the blogs from everyone, it is like catching up with one big 'Alpaca Family'. Hopefully we can meet some of you in Bristol at the meeting soon.

A Healthy & Happy New Year

Our Wish For You in 2010

May peace break into your home and may thieves come to steal your debts;
May the pockets of your jeans become a magnet for £50 notes;
May love stick to your face like Vaseline and may laughter assault your lips;
May happiness slap you across the face and may your tears be that of joy;
May the problems you had forget your home address;

In simple words .....................................

May 2010 be the best year of your life !!!!!!!!!!!!

One Good Thing

It is bitterly cold, extremely icy with a thin layer of snow BUT today is the shortest day so we can at least look forward to a small improvement in daylight hours before too long.

The Alpacas are really tucking into their hay at the moment but they do look content as they sit around together on the chilly ground.

We have been very lucky as regards the snow as we have only had a slight covering but the frosts have been severe so we have had to grit the paths which are like glass.

There only remains one thing left to say: thank you for reading our blog about life at Toad Hall and

May you all have a VERY HAPPY AND PEACEFUL CHRISTMAS AND A TROUBLEFREE 2010. I hope Father Christmas brings you everything you hope for.

With best wishes from Pat and Sid

Pea Soup and Ghostly shapes

It was certainly a pea souper this morning. I leave for work in the dark and this morning with such thick fog as I drove along the local common ghostly shapes appeared out of the mist - it was the cattle crossing the road!!

I don't see much of the Alpacas at the moment as it is dark when I leave and dark when I get home. Sid is in complete charge so he is really busy at the moment. Our two weanlings, Charlie & Chan have been coping well on their own, they are in a paddock next to 'Wellground Scriptwriter' and he seems to enjoy the company. Chan has had a touch of pneumonia so had some Nuflor last weekend but seems to have recovered fully now.

All the Alpacas have big field shelters with gates on. We put in a thick straw bed for them and keep their feeders and hay in there so when the rain comes (which has been most of the time) they are shut in the shelters at night but they all seem really happy.

I don't suppose I shall see too much of the Alpacas this weekend as I had better start Christmas shopping, at least most of the cards have been done.

Thank goodness we live here and Sid does his 'proper job' from here or we would be in a pickle as well as pea soup!!!!!!!!!!!

Back to Normal

Well as normal as we are that is! Hopefully the gremlins have now gone for good and we can catch up.

Today was spent putting fresh straw in the field shelters and filling the hay racks, all the alpacas looked very contented as they sat on their fresh bedding looking out at the rain.

We have been very lucky weather wise - there has been lots of wind and rain but we have escaped the worst of it and no damage experienced I am glad to say.

It was a year last weekend since we moved into our home and when we were both ill it really took the pressure off as we could look out of the window and see all the paddocks.

Before we both succumbed to the gremlins we had taken a trip to the Welsh borders to get two new acquisitions - not Alpacas but more chickens. We collected two Blue Cochin to add to the menagerie, this makes the seventh group of chickens to be dealt with daily!!!

The Gremlins got us!!

Unfortunately both Sid and I have been confined inside this week. Sid has had swine flu and I have got bronchitis so we had to call in reinforcements (Antony our son) to do the feeding and stock checking as we locked out the world.

Over the worst now so onward and upward.

Back next week when life has returned to normal (we hope).

Pat

Purrfick!!!!!!!!

We have been busy over the last couple of weeks trying to get the urgent jobs done before the weather turned.


Firstly we un-planted the garden! Different I know but as soon as were able to in the Spring we managed to plant a small area with some summer flowers and our roses which we transplanted from our previous abode. We were lucky enough to have use of 'Ken the Kubota' so just before the rains we managed to remove the plants and get the ground into better shape ready to restock.
We are now prepared for the cold too. I managed to finish installing the wood burner on Saturday. Hopefully this is the last of the major works before we start building the Alpaca barn in the Spring (but perhaps our Alpacas will be like those on Countryfile last night and will decide to give birth in good weather between 8am and 2pm - it hasn't happened yet!!!)

A welcoming site to come home to!