Weather has been wet!!!! We have emerged into a drier period of late and all the lakes have gone back to normal size. Boats and waders can be shelved for a while we hope!

Marley (our little stallion) is growing well and will be weaned from Phoebe this month….. should be fun. The other horses are all well despite creaks and groans in Kerrie’s knee and Razzy’s leg. Moses appears to be in second childhood and Mia has recovered well from her operation and is shaping up nicely, in her groundwork. She has finally experienced the joy of jumping without having a heart attack! Mum and daughter shetland ponies have arrived at Craigshield just to add to the fun!

Tups have done the business and despite extremely wet weather expectant mums seem in good condition! Lambing expected in April this year and the extra hands will be welcome.

We are having a possible new arrival in early January as Fly, our ever faithful sheepdog, needs a hand, as she grows ever older. A new pup is expected, and we are all a little nervous about the ensuing chaos! Fly seems blissfully unaware of the impending event.

Hope all our customers past, present and future enjoy the festivities and please send some messages on the blog! Nobody has yet….. at least not one I can publish!

Elsewhere, the lambs are growing well and we are in the middle of shearing. We have also managed to build a significant proportion of our new kitchen which is a minor miracle! We are hoping for more sunshine in the coming weeks and for the wind to keep up the good job of keeping the midges away!

The accommodation season for 2009 is well under way with lots of guests enjoying amazing weather here. We have had some great feedback already, including a gift of some amazing solar mole deterrants to save our lawns from the little terrors. This will be the last season in the lodge as it will close in November and we hope to open the deluxe version in Spring 2010. Claire and Will should move in in December to help the aged with the work.

Phoebe due at the end of the month. Foaling bucket and stable/caravan all ready. Just our nerves to deal with. All the other horses are enjoying the grass and the freedom of the fields. Jess and I hacked Moses and Mia around Blackaburn this week. It was great and Mia was very grown up despite me.

Lewis is busy at Craigshield getting it ready for the new tenants who arrive this month. It is looking very smart with their new garden furniture. Hope they will be happy there.

Looking forward to seeing you all at the farm soon.

Susan and Lewis

Bookings have been brisk this year with many of our regulars returning and lots of new guests visiting for the first time. Thanks to you all for coming and supporting us despite these difficult times. We are having our star rating inspection at the end of the month. Wish us luck!

11 Texel/Mule cross lambs born in February very successfully and our main lambing due on March 27th. We are hoping for about 350 lambs. Nightly checks taking their toll.

Log stove/boiler now installed in our cottage. Quite an experience for all of us. Very warm all around the house and lots of hot water. Chopping logs is very labour intensive, but undoubtedly can relieve some stress, if done with an axe. The dog and cats think we have moved to Bermuda and never leave its side. Sadly Poppy died and missed all the fun and, as you can imagine, she is a miss.

Horses doing quite well, although Razzy has a sore leg and is having to take things easy. Mia is now backed and being ridden and is bravely fighting off a mud fever infection. Phoebe’s foal is due in July!!!

Outside the weather has been long and cold, although we seem to have had less snow than folks down South. We are hoping for a dry Spring, so we can enjoy lambing.

Aidan and Christopher, our stonewalling duo, have been hard at work, since the beginning of November, losing only a few days to the weather. They have completed the 220 metres on the East side of the farm and they have rebuilt the wobbly stone wall behind the farmhouse which finally collapsed with the weight of snow. They will be completing a further 80 metres in April.

Will and Claire have been visiting regularly to help with horses and sheep and to practice living here on a more regular basis. We brought the ewes home today from Craigshield and the outlying fields for dosing, injections and some tlc prior to lambing. They will stay here until their lambs are born.