The boy who flew too close to the sun

One thing I didn't get chance to blog about last time was the awfully sad news that all of our chickens were killed by a fox.  Or, the big, bad wolf as Cassia called it.  The fox had them in three separate attacks, the first was early in the morning when it killed about 5, the second one evening when I was a little late shutting them in (around 6.30pm but it had gone dark) and the third attack was again early in the morning when I was actually up and about and saw it happen.  By the time I got to the chickens the fox had killed them all.   

I am tempted to join the hunt again! After the first attack I saw the fox most mornings on the field, waiting for me to slip up and for her chance to get at the chickens.  The fencing guy brought his gun a few mornings but couldn't get a good shot.  So there we have it, no more chickens free ranging on the farm.  We will have to get some more chicks in a few months, but keep them behind electric fencing.  I do miss them, they brighten the place up.

I have also had a quote for the SUDS (sustainable drainage system) - to simply design the bloody thing, not to build it or anything, I have been quoted £3,400.  Hmmmm, let me think about that for a while.  No thank you. Surely it can be done for less than this? I'm back on the phone, ringing around on that one.

The quotes are coming in for the stables and manege.  After some ridiculous quotes ranging from £105k right up to £250k (yes, we are building houses out there, a little estate!) I am taking the reins, so to speak.  Ordering the materials ourselves, project managing it, using local builders, chippies & roofers and reading my book on how to build stables ha and we are getting the cost down a bit.

Anyway, I have a ring bind folder with lots of A4 plastic wallets in, you know the sort I mean, and I have it filled with all the millions of details I need for the build.  I am calling it Project Set Up (PSU) and I have sections on the hedging and soft landscaping, the access track and fencing, the manege, the stables, costings and timescales.  I love doing this, it suits the J part of my preferences - Myers Briggs personality type indicator. I also have a calculator and a hole punch and a soil testing PH kit. I have always loved a job that requires a calculator.

Andy and his team have put in the new 100m of hedging for the access to the road, so we have officially made a start!

The new horse Lexi has settled in beautifully.


The turkeys are laying eggs and one of them has built a little nest. We stepped in and helped her out with the nest building (put in some wooden sides and plenty of straw) and she is now sitting on about 30 eggs.

Luke is now hacking out with me on his pony and we are enjoying long canters. When we canter I want to keep him on the lead rein for now, but Luke is always wanting to go faster and further, faster and further and on his own.  It feels a little bit like the story from Greek mythology, of Icarus, the boy who flew too close to the sun.  Don't go too fast, don't let him gallop too fast I say to a giggling Luke, not that anyone listens to me.