Springtime Whirlwinds

Woody and I witnessed something a bit magical on Sunday.  It was warm enough to work in t-shirts and there hadn't been any rain over the last week or so.  A playful breeze kept the air fresh and shifted the dry brittle leaves that had collected under the trees.

We were working away with the bolt cutters clearing a section of four strand barbed wire from the trees when Woody shouted to look up at the top triangle.  From where we were stood some 400m further down the field it looked like two dozen brown butterflies fluttering about in the sun but its too early in the year, they must be birds?  We stood watching them twirl round only to realise they were just dry leaves in a whirlwind going 10ft up, they were so beautiful and so alive!  I should have gone for my camera but I didn't want to break the spell, sometimes you just have to watch and take in the moment.

So we are still clearing wire and the fencing is still not complete due to a million other things going on but we feel like we just have not stopped.  We cannot wait for a long hot summer!  We are ready to enjoy this now, truly, we just want to stop with the graft for a bit!

Yet another barrow load of rusty barbed wire.  There are bluebells sprouting all along this treeline.

However spring is now with us meaning everything will start growing again so we cant relax just yet (if at all!).  The 2.5 acre pony paddock needs harrowing but we may just put the ponies on their first to graze off the old dead grass so that the new stuff can break through in a month or so, but first the fencing.

I have also been looking at what to plant for the future and found a good website kissmygrass.co.uk that stocks both wild meadow flowers and bulbs.  I will wait to see how many bluebells and spring flowers come up over the next months, make a note, take photos and plan my seed bank purchase! 

We have had allot on; family stuff, vehicle stuff, work stuff with trips away then I add on three new ponies we are maxed out, in a good way, they are all good problems to have (we try to remember how lucky we are) but it's been a whirlwind!