Life is never dull on the farm and the cycle of the seasons always brings something new. Nights are not always so peaceful at the moment. Foxes are out and about and are making a racket as they establish their territories prior to the breeding season. Listen to the
sound they make. As a result, the dogs have been on high alert and have been patrolling and barking their warnings off and on all night. Early this morning was the most busy and I heard at least three different foxes calling to each other (there are probably more). With disturbed sleep (admittedly also partly due to my other half's snoring!) I was up and about well before dawn. Something that is not that uncommon here throughout the year really, but it was Sunday and I had hoped for a little sleep in for once. Being up early though has its benefits, and I was able to watch and enjoy a wonderful sunrise. I took a picture so you could enjoy it with me. Of course that old weather lore rhyme is brought to mind:
'Red sky in morning, shepherd's warning. Red sky at night, shepherd's delight'. As the rhyme predicted, it is windy and raining now.
The Easter holiday weekend has been and gone now. So many people have I am sure enjoyed their break, heading off to the coast or camping with the family or enjoying other holiday pursuits. While it is definitely great to take time out occasionally, holidays on the farm generally mean grabbing the opportunity for a few days of solid work. There are always things that need to be done and even visitors are roped into help. We are building some new chicken pens at the moment to keep our breeding groups and grower flocks better separated. The job for the Easter weekend was to dig holes and put in posts for the fences. Hiring a post hole digger helped a lot, though much of the ground is hard clay and rock so even it had a bit of a problem in some spots. Nice to kick back after a hard days work though with good company and a lovely meal of home grown roast lamb.
