What a good day to pick elderflowers ................ after days of showers today has blue skies and warmth. We are desperate to pick elderflowers for our Whitsun cake, curds and preserves. we make them into a thick cordial and use when we want to, they do not last very long on the tree before turning brown.  If we could package the view, sounds and weather this morning and sell it we would make a fortune, we went riding about 8.00am and it was beautiful the sun shining through the trees in the woods and not a sound except the birds and pheasants, we saw a deer who just stood and looked at us, and then we went passed  a pot bellied pig and  gone was the peaceful morning as my mare decided it was the most scary thing in the world and it was obviously going to follow her, needless to say may daughter and I swopped horses and me (now of an age to collect travel tokens) went on the more sensible of the two horses.  Then this afternoon was baking time, we bake most days and managed to bake 32 cakes to our standard recipes, but tomorrow we experiment, I am going to try a coconut and lime drizzle cake and perfect the chocolate fudge cake, make an elderflower and something curd. My daughter will bake the Whitsun Cake for us all to try.  Now its time to go it is 20.10hrs and the chicken need to be shut up and the ferrel cat needs feeding, with a last look around the stables to make sure all are safe.  I'll take Chloe (Old English Sheepdog) and Carrot (Parsons Jack Russell) with me but they will go out again later. That's it really -  the end of the weekend. Bye for now...Caroline

A  much needed rainy day. The fields that we keep for hay have already flowered and will be seeding before it can be cut.  The foals are getting their first taste of  rain and the dogs have now been shut in, Chloe the Old English Sheepdog and Carrott the Parsons Jack Russell.  Chloe is not the type of farm dog to have as she rolls in the hay and her coat is impossible to keep clean; the Jack Russell is just a pain continually pushing the boundaries of acceptable behaviour - but the best guard dog ever.   The elderflowers are out now and as soon as we have a dry day they will be picked for Elderflower and Lemon Curd and made into a strong cordial for future use.  If anyone wants us to try a recipe with elderflowers, now is the time as they have a very short life .. a quick blog today as we need to get cooking !  Watch this space for more 'life on the farm....'  Caroline