A Cold Late Spring / F.D.Roosevelt & his First Ladies / Retirement

The central heating has been going on & off this spring. Most of March brought cold easterlies from the continent keeping temperatures well below their seasonal norms. Snowdrops bravely flowered for weeks while the daffodils cowered in leaf - even now we have some daffodils still in bloom

& this was when our young chickens arrived...

Books advised us not to name our chickens but needless to say we did! We toyed with British Isles legendary queens & heroines but after a visit from our US friends, Alex & Lucy, we settled on American First Ladies;

Bess Truman, Mamie Eisenhower, Barbara Bush, Michelle Obama, 

Nancy Regan & Eleanor Roosevelt.

Here is Eleanor in the snow,

More Eleanor news to follow...

From Michelle's first egg

to a Helter Skelter of mixed eggs!

Meanwhile Fritz & Mitsy kept on top of paper work & Orla was back jumping with Clare

On the 2nd April Colin finally hung up his stethoscope & closed the gas circuit, along with his colleague Anne

Work!

Anne & Colin

A lovely pressie from a nursing colleague