Lochs - Living the Dream

It was a glorious evening yesterday. Ned and Archie have been staying for a few days, so N and I took them for a final blast on Coll Beach
Hope you like the snaps!

N still in his school uniform!

The sheep moved in next door this morning with their lambs…can hear them shouting as I type

Very sadly Eric passed away yesterday morning.  Poor wee soul was just not strong enough.  D next door tells me (on a more positive note) that 2 new lambs were born overnight……but Eric will be missed

Here he is…….lovely wee soul. He seems to be blind in one eye.  Eric is a twin, he was born on 15April, and his mother stopped caring for him.  So he is living in a cardboard box next door - in the house overnight and in the veg patch during the day.  He is being fed 5 times a day, at 4 hourly intervals

With the lovely sunny days we have been having, lack of cloud cover means that it is not particularly warm - fresh is the word which springs to mind!  This chap is quite skinny.  Because he is on his own, there’s not much motivation to move around much (no pals to gambol with) - this in turn means he gets cold.  However, if he is indoors for too long he won’t toughen up for life on the moor.  So it’s quite a balance between building up his strength and toughening him up.

Anyway, enough gabbing…..meet Eric!

PS - N and I have just been for lovely walk with Ned and Archie on Traigh Mhor, in the sunshine.  Had the beach to ourselves……and guess which muppet didn;t take her camera???  When will I learn?

Thought I’d frighten the life out of you and post 2 days in a row!

I have done a very special thing today…..P the D and I went next door and fed the lamb, Eric.  He is about 6 days old, his mother wasn’t looking after him, and he needs caring for.  P and I were both clucking around him for 15 mins with a bottle of milk.  No wonder the poor soul is struggling - lambs don’t cluck! 

Anyway, I have committed to the lunchtime feed tomorrow - so I’ll be taking my camera with me to get some snaps for the blog.  Eric is a little star - he is still quite weak and wobbly on his legs, so might take him for a walk too, to build him up a bit.  So, photos tomorrow!

I have been nudged and reminded that I have not updated for nearly 3 weeks.  The time has rushed by and yet this is only my first post in April. 

Well, we had 2 weeks of Easter Hols from school.  N and I went back to Cheshire for a week. He spent the week with his Dad, and I spent the week working - 2 days on South Coast near Mum and Dad and the rest working in K’s dining room.  It was lovely to see everyone - didn’t feel as weird to be back as I thought it would.  All the gang are still the same and it felt great to be there

K laid on a fantastic girls afternoon tea…….forgot pictures of girls, but didn’t forget pictures of cake!

We spent the next week off school/work together back in Grimshader, and had a good relaxing time.  Lambing has started, there were lots of children on holiday in the village, and so N was in his element roaming the crofts, wading through muddy ditches and climbing trees. To top it all the weather has been glorious for around 10 days.  This place is beautiful at the worst of times, but in sunny weather it is just unbeatable

Here’s a snap of N, A and E on Grimshader Moor - they spent most of the walk looking for tadpoles in the puddles (and found loads!)

I thought we might have a bit of a “wobble” returning after our first week back in old familiar surroundings, especially N having special time with his Dad.  But we didn’t.  We both grinned at each other as the plan touched down in Stornoway, and enjoyed our few days together before back to school

So, why “My Clever Son”?  latest funny story.  We were in church yesterday morning.  N sits at the front with the other children, and just before they go off to Sunday School the minister speaks to them, and tells a story, or teaches them something.  Yesterday, the minister asked the children,  “How many books are there in the Bible?”.  Up went a few hands, but N was first, so he got to answer “66″ he said.  “Well Done N”, said the minister.  I nearly fell off my pew…..had no idea how N knew the answer.  Anyway, there were a few more questions, and then “How many books are there in the Old Testament?”…..this time only N’s hand went up.  “Come on then N”; pause for baited breath “39″; pause again for baited breath (as I had no idea whether this was the right answer!)…..and it was! 

I sat glowing with pride, nodding sagely as though I knew he’d get the answers right.  Glancing round to check everyone realised he was MY son.  Fiddled with my book of psalms, and popped another aniseed twist happily into my mouth 

Has my gorgeous clever son been here before?  Does he secretly study the Bible after lights out?  As we left church, I hugged him and told him how proud I am of him, and asked how he knew.  “Well Mum, I was sitting next to the lady who runs Sunday School, and she whispered the answers to me”.  At least he was honest!

So life on the island continues to make us smile, and feel glad we are here.  Here are a few more photos

A photo of a Fank, for my friend A……you know who you are! This one is not as clever as yours, but was taken with you in mind

We spent a lovely afternoon on the beach on Saturday with friends from the rough end of the village (!!).  Here are a few snaps…..this one is Dalbeg Beach, about half an hour from here - very very crowded and the water’s filthy, but hey it’s a beach

Building a dam!