Well, thats it we've entered the latter part of the year, Halloween is upon us and I'm grateful that I'm too far out of the way to worry about trick or treaters. In fact if I turn off all the lights no one in the dark would know my little house was up here. It's also been a funny week for weather, well more than a week now. We've been battered by winds and rain over and over again as the warm air rises across Spain and the jet stream drags it across our island. Occasionally when the rain stops the clouds and sunsets and reflected light is stunning, it's a shame its been so infrequent at the moment. A few more dry days and I feel I would have made some really big progress this last week outside with jobs.
My little soap kitchen is slowly ramping up production again. I'm building the stock levels up, stockists are placing orders and finally things are settling down after a complicated autumn chasing some suppliers for the basic ingredients I needed which they didn't have which has left me unable to carry on making some of my varieties! It's been frustrating to put it mildly.
For those who don't know Steves (the hubby) job is transitioning, I wish I could say at the moment we could both work here full time, however we can't so it makes so much more sense that whilst he still enjoys the work he does he progresses and we keep money coming in. I feel very lucky to be in this position where I can carry on building our little business here and we maintain a regular wage. Everyone is worried about the economic situation at the moment, you can see peoples choices changing and evolving when they go shopping. Prices are rising and people are making different decisions, I'm not sure how that will impact me at the moment.
So whilst Steve is working the odd extra day while his job transitions I'm home alone. I read a post on a social platform the other day.... Can I run a smallholding on my own? A individual who was considering taking everything on themselves was asking a wide audience what we all thought. Lots of people said "OF COURSE YOU CAN" which I suspect was more about motivating that individual into what was to be a major life decision and making them feel confident about it as clearly she loved what she had at the moment.
Now don't get me wrong it can be done, but it's hard work, every single day. I'm still trying to recover from COVID, a horrid virus that has on some days has continued to suck the life out of me. So this week while Steve has been away it has become more of a consolidation week for me. Putting things away, cleaning feeders, stacking up spare stuff, the kind of things you store for just incase. Heading about with my drill fixing small things here and there. I've also had time to get into my fleece bags. I've got loads of washed and dried fleece just waiting to be processed into rugs and that image below doesn't even show all of it!
Unfortunately with low energy and a general illness comes the after effects of my muscles disappearing. I feel weak and struggle to carry around what I used to do with out thinking about it. So I've had no choice but to take a slightly slower approach to life and daily chores. I'm trying to manage my energy levels by making sure that I cook proper food and that I eat regular meals. Gone are the days where I could skip breakfast and lunch with a few cups of tea and some biscuits. What makes this lifestyle harder is working on your own. Every job is 'massive' as I told one guest this week. At least with someone else present you are actually getting jobs done in double time. There is also someone else to help, to grab the barrow you left down by the goats or finish off a job while you put the kettle on and let the dogs out. All those minutes add up, and never underestimate the feeling of being overwhelmed by jobs when you look at the vastness of them sometimes. Then chuck in the weather, rain and wind again. It can add up to making you feel very flat, and whilst a friend visited with her family she took a lovely photo of us, to be honest my first reaction was "blimey Emma you're thin!" and not in a good way....
The best solution to improving your mood (which I frequently must also remind myself of.... Pick a nice job that you know you can get done in one go and just do that one thing. Nothing improves the mood better than a job well done whether that's bedding up the goats, cleaning the rubbish out of the way, simply cleaning the kitchen helps.
I've finally had the time to look at window suppliers as we have two questionable windows in the house that I suspect in their current state won't survive another winter and as always I plan ahead. There was the need to shop for Steve and his limited wardrobe which is showing signs of wear on pretty much everything he has. The donkey next door had an appointment with the vet, and after 12 months of helping adjust his diet with the neighbours (his owners) his hooves now look fantastic after what was found to be a prolonged and pre-existing laminitis that had set in this has now halted he was now ready to loose his testicles. The joy of farm life is that when the vet comes you're involved. Intimately, and in my case, right overhead as I held his leg up for the vet after sedation.
The little lad knew nothing about it, he is now free to welcome another friend for life which is wonderful for him. Some of you may know that he was with a Shetland pony for the last few years but a short break in their companionship highlighted the fact that they did not in any shape or form actually like each other.... Patch the shetland I am happy to say is loving life being the centre of attention to his new family and his proud owner who is a 5year old girl. He is her passion and I am thrilled each time we get a little picture update from them. His new 300acre farm certainly has him entertained.
The lonely week finishes Monday morning all I can hope is that I manage to finish all my little projects off by the time Steve arrives home. There's another reason to tidy up, sort things, put things back in their places... the hush hush project starts Tuesday evening and that promises to alter a few things and have me busier than normal for a few months to start with.
So maybe I'll have a bath, put a fire on and sit down and rest, because I'm aiming to fit in some physical training to my routine. Something I always did previously and now feeling so weak as I do I think I need that element back in my life regardless of how weak or tired I feel. So I hope everyone is doing well as we head into winter, look after yourself and take a moment for a little self care and time for you even at the expense of jobs getting done. Sometimes you just have to and I have every plan to put back on me what I have lost this year due to illness.
Emma
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