Hill Farm Marmalade

It's that time of year again: the Seville oranges are in the shops, I need to make marmalade and today's the day. It's extremely time consuming though - I don't think it's something I'll be trying to earn a living at. I love the amazing smell of the oranges though that permeates the house and it's great to be able to work in a sun filled kitchen. Happy days.

Bullfinches

This pair of bullfinches are dining on the buds of the damson. Hopefully there will be enough for all of us. They earn the right to their share by being so delightful to watch. I see they are supposed to have a 'sad call note', next time I'll have to listen more carefully.

A tiny wren with a loud voice

For such a small bird wrens have, I realise, very loud voices. This one sat on the top of the barn chattering loudly. I think she could see little tabby who was on her way for breakfast. The wren seems to be cohabiting with puss in the dairy - presumably both safely separated from each other. I often see the wren flying in and out through the broken window.

Morning moon

The moon was so bright this morning as I came downstairs to make myself a cup of tea and I couldn't resist going outside to take this photograph clad in a mixture of nightwear, fleece and wellington boots. Just as well it was still dark. It amazes me how powerful the light from the moon is, you can look out across the field and almost see colour on the grass.

Moon halo

Tonight as I get ready for bed I notice that the moon has a halo around it. I woke to an amazing moon and now I'm going to bed with one too.

Sunset

Another distractingly beautiful sunset. I could look at and photograph our amazing skies endlessly. After years of being surrounded by trees the open views are something that constantly have the power to enthral me. Now the days are drawing out and it's still light at after 5.

Window cleaning

Yesterday we had unexpected visitors and when I went to show them round the house I was horrified at the state of my windows so today I spent my morning cleaning them. It is rare to have a still day which is essential so I can open the upstairs windows without creating a tornado through the house. Looking out from Joe's room the old roof tiles on the barn are covered by this fantastic orangey lichen. It reminds me of the houses in St Ives. Later I made good use of the sunshine to continue clearing weeds from the hedge, although the ground is still very frozen with small persistent patches of snow remaining.

Red sky in morning ...

The sunrise this morning was breathtaking and definitely had more of the tropics than the Derbyshire Dales about it. I tried to tiptoe on the frozen lawn to take my photographs.

How many legs does a parsnip have?

I finally prized some parsnips out from the frozen ground for our supper. The first two looked like something from Dr Who! The big one was tasty though with the blemishes only on the outer surface. Sadly there is never a funny vegetable competition when you have the perfect entry.

Leek and potato soup

I managed to harvest some of our leeks now that the snow has almost gone and turned them into soup to have with home made wholemeal rolls - the parsnips though are still frozen firmly in place.