Animal update

Posted by Rosie

As promised here is a picture of the new ducklings (thanks to Kay for the photo)

Kay also took photos of our other poultry and you can see how much they have grown. First the turkeys.

..... and then the other ducklings. I can't quite believe these ducklings are only 6 weeks old!!

And look who was down the valley - this young bull calf was born on Friday and as yet is still staying very close to Mum. Altogether now - Ahhhhhhhh!

The Tanks Are In - Now the Rest!

Posted by Simon

I have dug the holes and installed the two fosse septic tanks. The exit pipes have to be the same level so putting the second one in took a little longer, although the hole was more accurately done and will not need so much back filling. One tank is 4000 litres and the other 3000.

Before I can back fill though the tanks have to be filled up and as we are on a water meter the thought of pumping in litres of water at 64 euros per 1000 litres was not one I relish. Therefore we have pumped water from the well which has halve filled the 3000 litre tank. Now the well needs to refill. So I have now rigged up a couple of system to get the rain water directed into the tanks to finish the job. I don't really want it to rain at the moment but when it does I'm hopefully ready.

The next stage is to put in all the pipe work to and for the filtration beds with all the required gravel and sand. So loads of wheelbarrowing for the next few days. Jolly dee! So I'm hoping by the time I've finished the this the tanks will be full and ready to back fill.

Chickens can be so horrible

Posted by Rosie

I'm writing this waiting for friends from the UK to arrive - hopefully they will not get lost with the déviation (diversion) around the next village which I completely forgot to tell them about until I had to go round it earlier today.

Anyway - back to the subject - chickens. Due to the ongoing Fosse Septique works we have had to move the fattening white chicks in with the laying hens and ducks. All was quiet to begin with and then I noticed Fluffy Chick having a right go at one of the white chicks, so much so that she had a bloody comb and was lame. This continued and then a couple of the white chicks moved in on the poor thing such that she was cowering in the corner and now VERY lame. So I have had to move her to separate quarters to recover. Tomorrow I shall put her in a safe pen inside the hen field so the meanies can see but not hurt her and hopefully they'll get used to her. I know pecking orders are normal for hens but so far we have seen very little of this and certainly not to this degree.

But on a happier note we have more ducks - 13 ducklings and Mum to be precise, from friends who have an excess of ducks. I am pleased to say they have settled in very well and I'll try and post up some pictures tomorrow.

Oh dear - I've just had a phone call from my friends and they have spent the last hour heading in the wrong direction out of Le Harvre. Ooops!!

Back on Track - Is This Possible?

Posted by Simon

Yesterday the digger arrived back in working order. A burnt out wire and relay had caused the problem. Also the glo-plugs needed changing. It seems to purr now - if that is possible for a mini-digger.

So this morning I got going again on digging the hole for one of the septic tanks. Now the ground has had some rain on it this job was easier than before the digger broke down. So there was some advantage in this delay.

One slight mistake though - the comedy classic situation. I jumped in the hole to measure the depth and found the hole was definitely deep enough - I couldn't get out! Pride was at stake,calling for help not an option, so I managed to jump up and grab the tracks of the digger and haul myself out.

This afternoon the boys had rugby and we needed to get some other materials so I will be continuing with the septic tanks tomorrow. I really need to get this completed before I can get on back in the gite.

Well the only bit of the digger I'm waiting for now - is the bill.

Tonight's supper ....

Posted by Rosie

..... will be veg curry followed by bread and butter pudding (with added banana). The veg is all home grown, including the fiendishly strong chili pepper I've just added. As for the bread and butter pudding, well ...... Ben's' best friend's father works in a supermarket and on Saturday he gave Simon a large box of bread, artichokes and bananas for the pigs. All were perfectly edible so I decided the pigs wouldn't mind if I took one loaf and a few bananas for us. The chooks are still sulking so I had no eggs but I did a swap of veg for eggs with a friend and together with the milk from the local farmer I made the pudding. It smells lovely and will no doubt taste all the better for being a freebie (almost). That's my kind of supper.

I'm Back ......

Posted by Rosie

...... from what was a very hectic week in England. I've just calculated that I worked with more than 300 children, spent over £%^& (oh dear, my numbers don't seem to be working!!) and saw loads of friends.

The weather was fantastic for running a series of environmental activities out in the school grounds with bright sunshine on most days, warm enough on 2 afternoons to see butterflies. The children seemed to really enjoy themselves and at least one school has already said they'd like to see me back again next year.

Simon had done a sterling job looking after the animals and boys, but understandably had had little time to work in the gite. The dogs were really pleased to see me, as were the boys who were still up, despite the fact I didn't get in until 10.15pm. Well, one late night won't harm and I was so glad to see them too. Simon was shattered but we've had to time to catch up properly today. Strangely my work is one thing I do miss but I have to say overall I was very glad to get back home.

Walks and Photos

Posted by Simon

Well I seem to be getting on fine looking after the place whilst Rosie is away and the weather, although getting colder at night, has been lovely. Yesterday morning was one of those days that is especially great for a walk and taking some photos. It all started on the way back from taking the boys to catch the bus. I went home and got the camera, hoping the cloud would still be in the trees. It was.

So once I'd finished the morning chores I took the dogs out for a walk and took a few snaps on the way round. A very pleasant 90 minutes. The trees are just starting to change colour now so soon we'll get some of those nice autumn days with the reds, yellow and oranges of the leaves.

And I have had some time to work on the gite - although it has been limited this week. I'm slowly progressing upwards with the flue for the wood burner and will hopefully have that finished by this weekend. I have also done a few other jobs, that seem to always need doing.

Well it's off to look at that list again for the next set of chores and the boys return from rugby.

Boy's Rugby Match

Posted by Simon

Tom and Ben had their first mini rugby tournament this Saturday. The matches were against three other clubs. Unfortunately for the under 7s only one of the other teams fielded a team for that age group (of 5 players), but as Flers had 15 players they were divided into 3 teams of 5 players. Each match was a 5 minute each way affair and all the kids had to do was to score a try whilst attempting to stop the opposition from getting their try. All very basic.

Tom made some excellent tackles and scored a couple of trys, whilst Ben also made a good tackle and some runs forward. Ben is not so keen at the moment to get right into the fray - something to do with a wobbly tooth and not wanting it to fall out (I have told him the tooth fairy/mouse will still come even if he loses the tooth) - but he still managed to score a try later on.

We all had a fun afternoon and it was lovely to see them turn out it the team colours.

So much to do before .....

Posted by Rosie

..... I go to England for a week.

The trouble with having animals and a vegetable garden is there is never a good time to have a week away. Animals need looking after daily and there always seems to be something to harvest/plant/dig etc in the veg garden. So I have been busy making sure the animals are all cleaned out, feed tubs are full and there is a plentiful supply of gleaned corn on the cobs and windfall fruit to keep the pigs happy. Things do seem to be slowing down a bit in the garden although that said, I got a big bowlful of raspberries today, loads of plum tomatoes and there are plenty of beans still to be had. I'm picking, cooking, freezing and preserving everything I can.

Not that I'm going to have a quiet time in England. I'm working in schools for 5 days and trying to catch up with friends and buy a few supplies each evening. A French friend wants 400 cake cases as these are much cheaper in the UK and a gingerbread man cutter; we need cheddar and I need a decent pair of walking boots. Oh dear - it looks like I might have to venture into Bluewater Shopping Centre. Wish me luck!!

As for Simon - he'll have to remember to feed all the animals, open and close the polytunnel, collect the boys from the bus stop, help them with their homework, give the boys the preserves for the autumn market, feed himself and the boys (no fish 'n chips here!) etc etc ....... and try and fit in a bit of gite building as well ....... Busy week all round then.

Mmmmmmm .... Fish 'n chips ....... yum!!

Digger - Out of Action

Posted by Simon

Due to continuing problems with the digger the works on the 'fosse septique' has ground to a halt and the digger taken away by a local garage for tests on the wiring. I'm hoping it will not be too long before I have it back as the weather is changing and I really do not want to work in a quagmire.

Whilst these works are on hold I have been doing some stone work in the gite. This included filling a gap between our attic and that of the gite - an old doorway. This meant many trips up and down the ladder with buckets of stone, mortar mix and tools. It was not long before I rigged up a pulley system, which did speed up the job. It still took me all day though but I'm pleased with the results.

I have also started work on the fireplace and chimney - I have every intention of getting a wood burner in before the cold weather comes. This is primarily to keep the building warm for some of the jobs. Lime cannot be worked if the weather is too cold. Secondarily it is to keep me warm - ahhh!

And my stone work cannot be too bad as the builder, who came to collect his cheque, was very impressed and took all the credit for his teaching techniques. Then complained I was putting him out of work (correct - I'm a lot cheaper)!!!!

Busy Doing Nothing

Posted by Simon

This was a week that wasn't. I have achieved absolutely nothing and apart from this afternoon I don't feel as if I've stopped. Having broken the water main the water company then decided to replace our water meter whilst they carried out the repair. They also relocated the meter to our boundary so I have had to replace pipes and fitting from the meter into the house. We were only without water for less than 24 hours so it was not too bad. But I still have to bury the pipes AND then the digger broke down again. Fortunately I had dug out the area where the meter was going.

This time it's something to do with the electrics. So I have, with a friend, been trying to sort that out - with no joy. A new battery and re-doing the wiring has not worked. It is possibly the alternator and a mechanic is coming here to check it out soon. Really frustrating. It's not just the repairing things, it's the chasing around getting the bits and pieces you need that takes the time.

So my new Septic Tanks are still sitting here waiting to be dug in. Having the water meter moved has helped through - apart from I now know where the pipes are - it also is better for connecting up the water to the other buildings without having to take the pipes under the house and they will get better pressure as well. Breaking the pipe maybe a blessing in disguise - I say hopefully.

We also managed to order the doors and windows and some other materials I need for future works but it was definitely a case of ONE STEP FORWARD TWO BACK.

A Close Shave

Posted by Rosie

Walking across the zebra crossing in Aunay-sur-Odon today, Tom, Ben and I were off to renew our library books. Half way across my second sense took over and I saw a car racing towards the crossing, obviously with no intention of stopping. My heart leapt into my mouth and I somehow manged to reach out and grab Tom who was several paces in front of me and yanked him unceremoniously backwards. At the last second the car driver, a young woman, applied the brakes and stopped just inches from where the three of us were standing. I really thought Tom was going to be killed. Had I been less shocked I would have told the woman exactly what I thought of her driving but as it was I just wanted to get off the road and onto the pavement. But then - she had the temerity to blame us before driving off without so much as a backward glance.

I know in France drivers do not always stop to let pedestrians onto a zebra crossing but when we started to cross the car to our left had stopped and this other car was a long way up the street with plenty of stopping time. A street I may add that has two other zebra crossings and 2 side junctions with right of way over the main road. It is NOT a street to race through.

Well, some-one was watching over us today but it shook us all up. When we crossed back to the car I had two small hands very firmly attached to mine.