Spring's sprung, the grass is ris

Spring's sprung, the grass is ris,
I wonder where them boidies is?
The boidies is on the wing.
Don't be absoid, the wing's on the boid.

I don't remember where I heard that, but it was a very long time ago. But it certainly is a verse that's in harmony with today. The sun has been blazing all day long, and we can now, finally, walk around the field without having to walk on snow. The ladybirds that came in droves last autumn, have now reappeared, basking in the lovely sunshine. So have the cluster flies! Somehow, I don't welcome them with the same amount of eagerness!

The daffy-down-dillies, tulips and snowdrops are pushing their way up through the iron-cold earth, and many of the perennials in the beds are already showing new growth.

My brother, Richard, has hatched 6 goslings, and they are under a heat-lamp in the woodshed. How long does it take a gosling to develop that amazing honk? His little ewe lamb, Minty (short for mint sauce!), is still being pampered in the paddock, being bottle-fed by Naomi, the 10 year-old daughter of Frank and Miriam van Nes, who farm the neighbouring land. We met the van Nes family while we were in England this month: Frank and Miriam, 3 sons, 16, 14, 12, and 10-year old Naomi. We were totally enamoured by the whole family, all of whom, except the younger 2, were closer to 7 feet tall than 6 feet! Frank and Miriam come from Holland, and they now farm 3,000 odd acres of spectacular land in the south of Dorset. We went over for supper one evening a couple of weeks ago, and immediately felt the warmth of their home and family. The 2 older boys play basketball for England! I feel like I've known Miriam all my life, she has a lovely warm character, and I wish we didn't live 6,000 miles apart! Perhaps they'll come and stay...

I have stuffed some fleece into a couple of bird feeders around the place, and the birds are having a great time with them, pulling out long strands to help line their nests. There was a spider in the bath this morning: where on earth did he come from? A couple of ducks flying overhead, quacking joyfully 'We're Back!'

Everywhere we look, evidence of springtime abounds....at last!