The end of June is always a busy time, here particularly as the water system suffered some blockages and a general slow down of the flow rate meaning that all fleece washing stopped, washing the pots was a once a day routine and showers.... Well let's just say you wouldn't want to stand too close to me. Water on the smallholding is vital and particularly when running a soap business, with livestock all needing a drink and then there's the hanging baskets and polytunnel! To top that all off the heater for the water also for the last few months has been getting hot, and not the bit in the water but the plug. Clearly a fire risk I had to stop using hot water all together unless I boiled the kettle inside the house.
Thankfully after undertaking a quick fix that our trusted electrician suggested, and after me reporting to him that "nope the plug was still super hot" and I was turning it all off he came down super quick with a new part and it was fitted with an instant impact. With me having spent what felt like hours sorting our system out I'm now flush with water and hot water as and when I need it. Phew!
It's shown just how important it is for me to stay on top of those daily little jobs like washing the dog bowls after their dinner, washing up properly for myself and washing the dog beds. Every little job done adds to the overall appearance of our home and frankly my comfort inside it. So needless to say within a day of having everything running properly I was back to my normal organised self.
The daily trips to check the sheep has resulted in us finding the little shetlands, two in particular finding two small holes several days apart. They have ended out on another part of the landlady's land where they shouldn't be. As we do our regular head count and they were found missing but quickly and gently herded back up to where they should be. Those holes have been filled and Steven even got a little video of the cheeky ones heading back to the hole they had found. Thankfully Steven had filled it so it's funny to watch them casually walking over only to be stumped they can't pass through.
This week we also have family staying in the caravan accommodation for a whole week, they've thrown themselves into helping out weeding and clearing the garden for me which is a massive helping hand, well 6 hands all working at once which is giving me time to get back on the computer occasionally to play catch up on lots of stuff, which of course also includes this post.
Theres been an explosion of fruit in the Kitchen Garden which the visitors are helping to pick, to make sure we don't waste it every bit is being frozen for now
And Cathy..... Well she's doing great, unfortunately for her she's loosing a big piece of skin off her belly and half or her udder has turned black, died and is in the process of falling off. It doesn't look great, but the edges are clean and healing, the fresh stuff underneath is being regularly sprayed with Cyclo Spray for those who know what that is. She'll be staying at home for her full recovery period which will be long and she'll never produce any lambs again so I've already made the decision to keep both her lambs. I'll be needing to sort names out next as well as the others who will be staying.
So this publication is a short one, rest assured I'm busy making soap, finishing off some much needed jobs, and of course washing fleece now. The gardening has been ramped up and I'd be daft not to use the extra hands this week and get the whole place straight. With their help this week we I'll also be marking out the base for the new goat barn, as now we have water that's another job that can start very soon!!! We have also welcomed four people over the last few weekends for a course on Keeping Dairy Goats, both days went well with one couple choosing to stay over at the caravan for two nights. They loved it but why don't I share directly with you what they said about their stay;
We would both like to thank you again for your fabulous hospitality over the weekend we spent at your gorgeous smallholding. It was everything we wanted and then some. The accommodation was beautiful and all the little extra touches just made it so comfy and homely whilst being very stylish, I may have gotten a couple of ideas for my own shepherd's huts from you! Breakfast sitting on the patio looking over the mountains was just incredible. We did of course come to do the Dairy Goats Course, not just enjoy the view and relax. What a fabulous day we had on Saturday, we loved every second of it. We gained so much insight and knowledge from you both and you were very patient with making sure you answered every question we threw you way whilst also giving us hands on goat husbandry lessons. The course booklet is fantastic and we have read it thoroughly and made extra notes in preparation for getting our own goats. The wealth of knowledge and experience you enthusiastically shared with us about your own smallholding journey had us very excited to start out own and we are in fact getting our keys this weekend! We will certainly be staying in touch and I'm sure you will get a few panicked calls from us in the future. Thank you again for a very special weekend. To anyone thinking of doing a course with Emma, book now, you will love every minute!
I've also managed to grab a few hours to visit Mark and Jonathan at Brook Cottage Shepherds Huts to interview them about their interior design skills, something that has propelled their business into the multi award winning business it is today. So the next issue going live on the 15th July is where we explore the skills and considerations for a well designed room. You'll have an explore of their huts where I explain how and why they work so well. I'll also be exploring the outside space also, talking about some of the techniques you can employ for your own space to get the most out of it. It'll be a good explore some of the bones of how to put together beautiful spaces for you to enjoy with your family over summer. For those who also want to launch businesses when they move to a more rural life then this little dive into their business might just be for you also.
You'll hopefully see that the content will always be about our smallholding however I'm going to enjoy mixing that up with other businesses who perhaps can inspire someone else to jump into something similar. So if you know anyone who wants this lifestyle and fancies doing as the couple above are doing, getting a smallholding and building a business around that then send them the link to this publication. I'm going to very much enjoy returning to my designer roots and digging about in the depths of style, colour and light as well as showing you some wonderful tips for your own spaces. Don't forget smallholding is about the animals as much as it is about the lifestyle you can create around that move.
Join me on the 15th for an interior and exterior design exploration.
Emma
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