I stayed overnight with Weeza and co, dropped Gus at his childminder’s and was back home with Zerlina by 10 o’clock.  Roses had kindly done some animal feeding and been nice to Eloise cat, who was pleased to see us this morning.  I can’t remember if I told you about the newest chick?

A couple of nights ago, it poured with rain – that’s nothing unusual, it has been very showery recently, with bright sunshine interspersed with sharp showers or drizzle or just dullness.  Anyway, the hen by the fence had chosen an exposed spot, so I’d rigged up a shelter for her, which mostly worked, but she looked a bit damp on one side – sadly, one chick had not survived, having got chilled and never dried out.  However, there was one little black chick looking chirpy.  So I gathered mother, baby and the remaining eggs and put them all into a coop.   Two days later, no other eggs have hatched, so it may be a Mother Hen and Mary situation.

The eggs under the scrap metal pile are likely to start hatching tomorrow.  I think I’ll move her as soon as one hatches, they will be very difficult to catch otherwise.  The remaining hen is in the greenhouse, I’m not sure when she started sitting.

Zerlina went tubing this afternoon, which looked great fun.  It’s sitting in a big inner tube and whizzing down a ski slope, spinning as you go.  Then you plod round to the moving elevator to go up and do it again.  She was with her friends Lizzy and Reuben and I, with Gus, sat with their parents and chatted for an hour.

I ran out of time today to call on the vet or even phone, so that’s a job for tomorrow.  Things are stacking up again, I’ve got a lot of admin to deal with.  I’ve been doing extra jobs and i can’t fit it all in.  And what I don’t fit in tends to be the jobs I don’t want to do, but they’re becoming imperative.  I’ll do at least one of them tomorrow.