It was the calm before the storm (Storm Dennis) today so I took my big camera out and about – well, mainly to photograph the Minions who were on top form.

Silver

Waffle

Storm

Tiddles

Albie

Newt

Vitamin

Fivla (asleep)

And then a few from the field.

Waffle thinking

Newt thinking

Waffle and Newt thinking

Albie looking for the place to cross the burn.

Newt on his way (I bet he was muttering).

Newt crossing the burn.

It was a slow process.  No one hurried.

I have been struggling to feed the ducks as certain sheep (‘Bert and ‘Ster) have discovered there is different food about and of course they want it.

So, I asked fellow sheep-owners if they had ducks and, if so, what was the best method of keeping them apart from sheep during feeding time.

And this is the answer – the ducks can come and go through the lower bars, that are wider, while sheep cannot. Happy days.

Frances: happy
Ducks = food
Boyzenberries = no duck food

After breakfast, I decided to make the ducky-wuckies a pond out of half an old mussel float.  There is water everywhere but they are not exploring yet.

I submerged it in the ditch that has grown over and built a little ramp of stones for getting on and off.

Edna came over for a drink.

And Madge supervised.

Once filled, I went and herded the ducks towards their new pond.

And they hated it, refusing to even look or give it the time of day.

They went back to sitting by their house – the favourite spot.

I tried a few more attempts at herding.

Look, look, look – I made you a pond.

They walked politely around it with one even managing to fly over it!  Why I bother.

Nope.

So I gave up, went away and did something more constructive.  A little while later I crept down to see Mr Wucky in the pond!!!!

He didn’t like me watching him bathe.

But he had a lovely time and later they all had a dip, one at a time, taking it in turns and queuing politely.

Frances: happy
Ducks: got a duck pond

So now the Ducky-Wuckes are beautiful and clean.

I could watch them for hours.

They are so pretty.

The colours, the patterns.

I am feeling very pleased with myself today. I have achieved.

Every day the Icelandic ladies – Hetja, Lilja and Sóley-the-Foalie – get food. Different diets for different needs.

And every day Lilja eats hers and then thinks she will move quickly onto Sóley’s for more.

Poor Sóley-the-Foalie – she gets agitated and cross and then all training we want to do afterwards goes out of the window as she is all het up and not listening. I can understand that.

So, while Floss goes down to the other field to check on the Minions,  I am left in charge of the Icelandic ladies and I have implemented a new feeding structure.

I stand between the two girls and when Lilja has finished her food (she eats very quickly), I throw one or two barley rings into her bowl, which she finds and wolfs down.  Thus leaving her little sister, Sóley, alone to get on with eating her fair share of food unhassled. I arrive with my right hand coat pocket with two handfuls of barley rings!

My system seems to be working very successfully – so far.  Lilja now understands that if she stays by her bowl magical barley rings will appear from heaven (or my pocket).  Hassle her sister, and she will feel my wrath (and it is Mighty with a capital M!)

Because of this, Sóley is much more approachable and listening to anything Flossie wants to talk to her about and that is all good. I am now guarding Hetja so she can finish her grub away from circling vultures.

I can completely understand that if your big sister is hassling for your food, all future conversation is not going to work.

Floss usually checks and hugs the Minions while I deal with the ladies next door – Hetja, Lilja and Sóley-the-Foalie.  She then walks back up the hill and reports back anything I need to know.

Today, I accompanied her because I have missed my nose-kisses and I wanted to see if anyone had lost an ounce of weight.

I checked and prodded looking for ribs and can happily report that everyone is absoluely 100%, there-is-no-doubt-about-it, doing very well this winter.

There are no ribs.  We don’t know what ribs are, do we Tiddles?

If anyone has lost a smidge of weight, it would be Fivla and, as she was on the fat-side coming out of summer, I am not sorry.  Floss gives her a special daily dose of TurmerAid as she is an old lady and this Shetland winter weather is harsh.  She loves it.  Her own private food.

Today Floss gave it to her in Lambie’s bowl to make it easier and less waste.

Newt got to clean the bowl.

It was good to hug and chat to the Minions.

Albie was doing his best to command all the attention.  He is like a kid in the school photograph – the same one that appears at both ends of the photo!

I think we could safely describe Tiddles as stout!

And Silver was a leg in each corner.

So despite their convincing protestations, this little lot are doing more than fine in their winter field.

Dear little ponies. ❤️ They never fail to make me smile.

The weather is vile – ok, it has stopped blowing but it is cold and wet.  The horses are being very stoical and I love them for that.  Actually apart from the mud, they don’t seem to care.

I took these photos 5 days ago, when Shetland looked its best.  The sun was going down and I was going to the shop.

I could take nothing for today – outside is dismal.

This is my local village – Walls – it is about 4 miles from me.

Known locallly as Waas – which means in Old Norse “sheltered bay” – voes. Apparently the Ordnance Survey (map people) added the extra ll’s as they thought it was a corruption of “walls”.

There is a lovely new marina and a pier (built in the 18th century) and apparently (and I did not know this), Walls was a centre for fish curing.  The boat from Foula docks here.  We have a shop with petrol/diesel pumps, a bakery, 2 churches (Methodist and Church of Scotland) and a Nursery and Primary School.

Addendum: and our own community indoor heated swimming pool!

Anywho, I have also been in my shed most afternoons making my sheeple.  One every day to add to the pile that will hopefully end up at the Jamiesons Knitwear in Lerwick.  There is the usual range of curly or non-curly in a variety of colours.

I am trying hard not to hibernate this winter and have given myself daily tasks that must be accomplished – to put one thing on Ebay a day and to clean and tidy up a drawer somewhere in the house/shed every day!