Wow, what a busy August and first week of September! It's our 20th wedding anniversary today, so to celebrate Mark took me out for a Burger King lunch - with Harry on route to Somerset, romance is lost on him. We took Harry back for his final year at Brymore School. He is now a Senior Prefect, so has some duties of responsibility, which include looking after the new intake of year 9 boys.
We've also been away for a few days to western Ireland, Gallway and the Connemara mountains. That was a beautiful quite place although we did spend a large chunk of one day viewing a marvelous herd of dairy cows! (I'm quite used to it now after spending our honeymoon in Scotland visiting herds).
With all the fine weather over the past few days, it was go, go, go on our farm. Fetching bales of straw, for the winter bedding, stacking them in the barn and when that was full, a huge stack of round bales outside! Using our rather ancient tractors day in, day out, put them under alot of strain - so one broke down on the main road with 24 round bales on the trailer! After clearing the dirty fuel filter, they got it going again, but it highlights how old our Massey Fergusson is. Anyway, the boys are happy that all is "safely gathered in" on this farm for another year.
Last week we (Mark, Harry and me) ventured to the NEC to visit the Livestock and Dairy Event show. We spent most of the day talking to people we already know! Visiting these wonderful stands of pristine milking plants and robots, wonderful new implements to deal with manure or dirty water, ordering 6 new water troughs and getting a quote for a new youngstock shed, was like supermarket shopping for dairy farmers. Harry likes spending money we haven't got so the wish list just got longer and longer. As the event is sponsored by Barclays Bank (our bank) they have the Premier League Cup on display accompanied by two guards! It was good to have a close up look.
After a tiring day out, I drove the hour it took to get home with two sleeping boys! Arrrrrr, they missed their afternoon nap again. I, on the otherhand, had something to eat, then went straight out again to give a talk to Crick WI that night.
It's all started up again this week. Four more talks and two farm walks this week so need to keep going. I've enjoyed having my August break, taking the kids out on their horses competing and seeing old friends. Charlotte and I are Autumn hunting this Saturday too, so another hunting season approaches.
