Well it did put in an appearance on Tuesday (the sun that is)
I have been having problems sitting down to write anything on the Blog since my last entry mainly because I found it very hard dealing with losing Murphy, Some animals just have a bigger impact on your life than others. For several days I didn't want to even go to the llama field, even contemplated giving up the llama walks all together. Steve as always was more philosophical about these matters said that it wasn't the time to make that sort of decision and as we have lots of booking we really would just have to carry on. It is getting better every day but I still think about our gorgeous young llama.
So whats been happening here?, well it has rained a lot!, we have got very wet a lot!, we haven't done much work, we have canceled several llama walks but we are surviving.
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Tiffany |
We have had some good times, the last of our first batch of cria arrive two weeks ago, another girl from Cassini, she is either dark fawn or light brown, sired by Inca Picasso. She weighed in at 9kgs and just like Picassos cria from last year, full of beans with huge legs very big boned but like Cassini's cria last year Choc Ice she isn't growing very fast, it is a worry as she won't take a bottle, just like Choc Ice, she is active but not as much as the other two, feeds from Mum a lot and is already picking at grass she has been named Tiffany. Choc Ice has caught up with the rest of last years crias now, but we probably won't breed Cassini again as there is no point if she isn't going to produce good strong babies and she could pass on her problems.
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Cassini & Tiffany |
We decided to have a couple of days away, go and see my sister in Emsworth and pop up to Hampton Court Show as it was forecast to be raining any way. So looking at the forecast, Thursday seemed to be the obvious day to go, there was a amber weather warning for heavy rain! We both had full days work booked in but if it was wet that would be called off and we could leave after we had feed all the animals. Thursday dawned and there was a strange light in the sky, there was blue bits and a certain glow (think thats called sunshine) so off to work we went and it stayed dry all day, we finally left about 6pm.
Very easy drive, hardly any traffic and we arrived in Emsworth about 3.5 hours later after stopping for something to eat. Friday we went to Hampton Court, it rained but it was very good and we had a lovely day although some of the show gardens looked like they needed a good go with the Strimmer, I think they call them Natural gardens, I call it long grass & weeds!
We went out for a lovely meal in the evening with my sister and brother in law, had a lovely time catching up with family news etc. After a big breakfast we set off for home about 10am we arrived back at 6.15 pm after spending most of the day trying to get through Dorset, we tried Bridport, then Yeovil and then Crewkerne, sat in lots traffic queues which weren't going anywhere, Finally managed to take some small roads across country to Beaminster going through some floods which I am sure we probably shouldn't have and finally getting back on to the A35 and home. Just in time to get changed and go out for Dinner with friends, exhausted.
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Choc Ice |
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Tigerlily |
Last Sunday we took three Alpacas, Choc Ice, Tigerlily and Lalique to our annual Animal Service on the village green, very Vicar of Dibley. Our guests in the holiday cottages came along with their children, they are from Berlin and had a lovely time, afterwards they said to me they thought it was very English. I don't think the Alpacas were as impressed they wanted to get back in the trailer as soon as they could I had to stand on the ramp for a while to keep them in the pen, as soon as the service was over they shot back in. while we had a cream tea and a chat to everyone else who had brought various animals along.
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Olympus |
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Hummingbird |
We have had one of the cottages empty this week which is un usual at this time of the year but it has been so wet, nobody is booking last minute with the forecasts we have been having. I feel so sorry for our German family, they have driven all the from Berlin and all it has done since they arrived is rain. The first thing they asked was where can we buy waterproofs! poor things. The children have been coming out to help feed up in the mornings, which they love and their English is so good, they are 7 & 5 which really puts us to shame.