a salute to the dawn

Sometime in November The Fox took our cockerel. We like to think he was protecting his ladies, he always did fuss about; circling them and running over when one called and clucked. He would stand guard over any food or tasty morsel and call until they came running - letting them eat before he did. He crowed in the mornings, a strange moaning sort of crow, not anything sprightly or 'normal' sounding, but still, he had character and we all enjoyed his oddities and strutting body. He stuck his neck out one to many times, apparently though, and met his fatal end. The fox then picked off the ladies one by one until with only three hens left (one grown chick from our summer breeding session and two mothers) we finally locked them up in their smaller run.



Yesterday we brought home a new Cock. He is splendidly handsome and massive, with large black tail feathers and a rich green-petrol sheen. He is utterly hen-pecked. He had to leave his last home as every hen and duck in the place tried to kill him (weird... and why?). So although he looks brutish he is very timid. He seems to think he is human rather than a bird and spent the day running from the hen-run and skiting down to huddle near the front door. After two months Cock-less (ha, sorry, couldn't resist) I totally forgot that they wake you up rather early with their crowing. Wow. This Man has the most amazing trill. A proper throaty crow. I sat up in the half-dark-morning light and listened enraptured for a minute and lay back down, turned over and sighed back into sleep, smiling. Um, or tried to. He just continued to crow non stop ALL DAY and put an end to more sleep for me. Maybe he feels lost or something but, whoa, he is NOISY.



I do so like the Life Force that moves such a creature to salute the dawn like this so. So thoroughly each and every day. To feel the pull of the sun, the forces of life, the earthly-day stirring and to raise one's head to sing out. Tr, la la. I'd do so too (in theory) only I like my bed far too much to get out of it.

My dh is always well and truly up by the time the cock crows, in fact as we all rose today he was in London. I find these sorts of feats quite astonishing on his behalf. Where? I ask into the phone all fuzzy headed still at 10am with PJ's on.... London you say? Or Scotland? Really? It's like he is telling me he is on the moon or something. I'd scratch my head and mumble so all the same if he did. London seems about as far away and foreign as the moon sometimes to me, here, mired in mud and thinking about soup, play-dough and hens.... although obviously it's just a quick train ride away... or something like that, I never quite know..... I'll ask The Man when he finishes chopping wood... and don't I just love that too! That one minute he has on a suit and has a mobile in his hand and other such nonsense that I know little about and the next he is wearing work boots and has an axe in hand. Lovely. Amazingly though this time of year he is rarely at home in daylight hours, which means I had to actually show him a photo of the new Cockerel. Which is kind of odd. Still after the weekend no doubt they will be on intimate terms.



Inspired by this cuteness here and here I made The Beauty a little suitcase filled with play-dough tools and a new chunk of turquoise play-dough. I love making play-dough, it makes me feel like I am a Good Parent (at least for the five minutes of making anyway). She certainly likes the importance of having everything assembled in one place rather than us trawling through the play kitchen and real kitchen for all the bits she usually requires. I am going to keep my eyes open for bits and pieces in charity shops such as costume jewellery and belt buckles and other odds and ends to add in too.





As you can see I have also been painting up lots more tiny dolly's. They are very nice to hold, a good weight and smooth texture. What can I say other than I can be easily satisfied (which is a Very Good Thing no doubt). They are just like these I made earlier (and now I sound like a Blue Peter host). I now need to sew more little pocket/bed wraps for them. This is the sort of thing I think even adult females would like to have. I certainly pop them in and out and arrange them often enough. But probably I am just weird.



Inspired by the artful parent I cut random holes in several sheets of paper, some tiny circles, some rectangles, some off centre squares (took me about 30 seconds in total for all) with the idea of drawing to incorporate the hole somehow. The boys took to it straight away.





The Beauty and a friend threaded some monkey nuts for the birds.



At our friend's house there are some lovely views, we go each week nearly and I love looking at their 'treasures' outside on a table.


















Indoors I attempt the impossible - trying to read with a girl on my knee... :)