Spring Fling Fever

Very excited that next weekend is the Spring Fling and from the Tweeting going on I'd say I'm not the only one! Hannah McAndrew, Phil Macnemenny, Leeming and Patterson, Cordelia Galley and Katie Russell (to name but a few) have all been Tweeting about the big build up.


The marketing team have done a sterling job and the build up has generated a lot of interest. There certainly seems to be loads on offer.


The bumph on the Spring Fling website says:
2012 is an exciting year for Spring Fling - it's our 10th Birthday!

From 2-5 June 2012, 76 professional artists, makers and designers will throw open the doors of their studios, inviting visitors to discover where and how they create their work; many artists will host demonstrations and every artist will be selling their work. You can discover the region on theSpring Fling bus, as part of the official Spring Fling cycle ride, or with the Spring Fling Sunday morning walking tour. For evening entertainment Spring Fling presents the ever popular ceilidh and hog roast, and for the first time in 2012 we will host an exclusive wine tasting event - free for Friends. In 2012 Spring Fling will launch a web shop and a map based smartphone applicationto help tech savvy visitors navigate the studios, which after the event will become a year round art guide. 

The cheeky 2012 Spring Fling logo: Source courtesy of http://www.spring-fling.co.uk/event

We are planning a 'grand tour' catching up with some old favorites and hopefully discovering some one new. For me the real buzz is getting to talk to the artists themselves and, in a lot of cases, actually seeing where the creative spark is generated. (That and a coffee and cake!)

For all things Spring Fling go to: http://www.spring-fling.co.uk/

Good Luck to all the artists and crafts people taking part, I know a tremendous amount of work goes into the preparation. See you all soon!

We will post about our experiences next week.

When the cats are away, the mice play....

... and it's certainly true when you have a holiday lodge or holiday cottage. However, I would not call it playing, unless you count donning pinny and rubber gloves and wielding a mop playing? (Dressing up, maybe?) The quieter times of the year, when the cats are away,  have to be seized upon by we, little mice, (well perhaps not so little as I would like to be in some areas?) for those essential maintenance jobs or the big Spring clean. 

We usually do the big Spring Clean just after Xmas as when the weather is not to be relied on as much, the indoor jobs are ideal. So, in addition to the good clean that the lodge gets between each changeover: every rug, pillow, cushion, mattress topper and duvet gets Spring cleaned, the kitchen and bathroom are scrubbed and sanitized to within an inch of it's life and the stove gets a good black leading; Every nook and cranny is scrubbed, dusted or polished; All electrical equipment is checked, new batteries go in the smoke alarms and clocks; and any repairs or refurbishment is carried out. It's a time to update the DVD collection, refresh the book selection, replace things that have got damaged or worn as a result of ongoing use or just ring the changes with a new cushion, throw or picture. (I just can't resist!)

The outside jobs have to wait till the weather is more reliable so I usually grab the opportunity just after Easter. This is why this last week has seen me on my knees (Groan!) sanding the balcony and giving it a fresh new coat of Old English Green (Sorry, they did not do an Old Scottish Green) deck paint. I've also mown the lawns, cleaned and painted the gutters, trimmed back the more enthusiastic shrubs and declared war on the brambles (ouch!).  So yes, I guess I deserve a sit down, a slice of cake and a cup of coffee.

On the less onerous side, I've been out and bought new Geraniums, my favourite bloom, for the planters and stocked up on all the eco friendly cleaning materials and supplies. I love the bright fresh colours of the Geraniums and their earthy scent, they have such a distinctive leaf and really look great in planters. In keeping with the 'Little House on the Prairie' inspiration I use for the lodge we use galvanised pails for planters. I like to think of it as a contemporary take on Homstead charm. The theme is continued in jaunty, checked curtains, rag rugs, cream iron bedsteads, an antique pine linen press, willow baskets and stripped wood floorboards.

These wonderful Violas looked lovely on the deck at Riverview Lodge last year and the galvanised pail planters are in keeping with the 'Little House on the Prarie' homestead feel of the cedar cabin.

In keeping with the sustainability and eco friendliness of a timber lodge we now use all eco-friendly cleaning products and washing up liquid such as Ecover wherever possible. The only thing I can't find is an eco-friendly  washing powder in tablet form so we supply non-bio washing tabs for our guests. If anyone knows of an eco friendly version I would live to hear from them.


My next task is to give the wooden deck a scrub and an antifungal treatment to keep it it top top condition. There is a Cherry tree at the end of the deck which provides dappled shade in summer, cherries for the birds and wildlife in Autumn and has glorious blossom in spring, however it drops its pits and stalks on the deck so I have to go around and scrape out all the grooves before I start scrubbing. This is why this week I look like I am doing an impersonation of the Hunchback of Notre Dame and feel about 20 years older!

How I look forward to a hot bath at the end of the day!

It's blooming well Spring!

After a stressful day of thrashing around Tescos and crashing away at my poor computer I felt I deserved a treat so around 17.30 donned my walking boots, scooped up Murphy the Wonder Dog and parked up at Colvend Village Hall car park.


The air was balmy, the sky blue and the sun dipping towards the West. With a wag of an enthusiastic Collie tail we set off along the track to the Eastern end of Dalbeattie Forest that runs alongside White Loch and on to Clonyard Loch. 


Not a Crossbill in sight which was unusual but the Green Woodpeckers were making thier presence known with their distinctive Yaffle (call). There seem to be a good number about this year, I've heard them in Kippford, Sandyhills and Colvend this week. Far more around than usual - a very good sign!


As it was late we kept it short and looped around Smithland Hill and back to the car park.


The whole walk was a joy, due to the display of Spring flowers we spotted along the way... hope you enjoy them too.

Ended with Blossom back at Colvend Village Hall

Living the dream...

As anyone who watches Kirsty and Phil as they relocate city folks to the country will know, it seems everyone dreams of a rural idyll where they can keep hens. We were no exception and started our little flock about three years ago. Keeping hens was something I had always fancied despite having an illogical and  weird fear of birds ( Could it have been seeing the  the movie 'The Birds' at an impressionable age that brought it on?) so it was perhaps, an strange decision. 

But not so, there has been a huge surge in demand for locally produced food; after all, what could be more natural than keeping your own chickens and collecting their eggs? So for us at Millbrae House running a B&B it seemed like the right decision. After all Bed & Breakfast is synonymous with fresh, home reared eggs.

"Henkeeping - Inspiration and practical advice for would be smallholders" from Country Living and the National Trust.

A friend bought me a copy of a brilliant little book "Henkeeping - Inspiration and practical advice for would be smallholders". This quirky little book with old fashioned illustrations  advises on all aspects of chicken keeping, from advice on the full range of breeds available, choosing and buying the right chickens for you, to feeding and naming them and finally housing and caring for them. I devoured it, and spent ages choosing my 'dream 'team. 

Friends urged me to rehome battery hens which from a humanitarian angle appealed to me and I was sorely tempted but, having avidly devoured  the pages of Country Living Magazine I wanted 'fluffy' hens.

Within a day our first three hens Madge, Muffin and T2 ? ( dont ask ) were eating out of our hands and following us around the field. Their curious nature gets the better of them, even when I'm cleaning the hen house they pop in and out just in case they are missing out on something and give your cleaning work a quick inspection to check standards are kept high.

Our first Black Orpington, Bramble (with her wide berth and ungainly gait) looks like a aircraft carrier struggling down the runway - attempting to take off but never quite making it. Her first eggs never made it to the kitchen as she would lay pale almost opaque small eggs and promptly stomp on them as she rose from the nesting box. I always felt she was saying "you are not having that one". She's obviously got the hang of it now as she now leaves them intact.

 

Our two latest hens (brought by Santa) have settled in well though naturally at the bottom of the pecking order being the latest to join our increasing flock. Their vast size is at odds with their soft docile nature being a Buff Orpington and a Speckled Sussex named Butterball and Myrtle. Each hen, has as the books say, have  a different personality and having seven different colours and breeds. it's lovely to watch them forage around the field. 

I never tire of the joy of collecting the different array of eggs all individually coloured and sized almost like there own signature. Its like finding little individual gifts.

A bowl of fresh Millbrae House home produced, free range eggs. 'Little gifts' courtesy of Myrtle, Butterball, Autumn, T2,  Bramble, Magorious and friends. (You can tell the kids named them!)

After a scarcity of eggs over the Winter months Spring has arrived here at Millbrae House and we are up to four eggs a day so our own fresh, free range, golden yolked beauties are back on the menu. Longer days and more sunshine mean more and more eggs for our guests – pass the frying pan.

31 March - 15 April: D&G Wildlife Festival - Great for a budget family holiday

It might be hard to believe it's come around again so quickly but between 31 March and 15 April is the ninth Dumfries and Galloway Wildlife Festival - two weeks jam packed with wildlife inspired events and activities. It's great for folks of all ages but especially families with young children as the events are fun as well as educational, not all events require booking and unless otherwise indicated,  all events are free to attend. It's a great way to keep the youngsters happy and entertained on a budget.

Photo courtesy of www.wildlifefestival.org.uk/

Peter Norman, Dumfries & Galloway Biodiversity Officer says, of this years event:

"This year there are more than 80 events over two weeks with some new exciting additions to the festival. Look out for the new exhibition about ferns at Logan Botanic Gardens, "Pteridomania" running for the whole festiva;l or the Wild Food Forage in Langholm with a cooking demonstration and free lunch! Another event with a difference this year is making a Tattie bogle (or scarecrow to you and me) at Cairnsmore of Fleet NNR. Popular activities held again this year include the Stars and Stripes badger watches at WWT Caerlaverock, the hatchery open days by both Galloway Fisheries Trust and the Nith Catchment Fishery Trust and a whole range of Family activities for Easter. Events across the whole of Dumfries and Galloway with something for everyone to enjoy!"

Our particular favourite activity is 'Dusk on the Dunes', an evening walk to the high dune at RSPB Mersehead where you will be able to watch geese heading to the sand flats to roost.

You can find out more information on the website: http://www.wildlifefestival.org.uk/

Accommodation:
B&B Rockcliffe: Millbrae House (4 Star)

Self catering Colvend: Loch View Cottage (Sleeps 4, double and twin, dogs welcome)

Self catering Kippford: Riverview Lodge (Sleeps 4, double and twin, log stove, sea views, dogs welcome)

Self catering Rockcliffe: Craig Roan Garden Apartment (Sleeps 4, double and twin)

Drumburn Studio Apartment (Sleeps 2, dogs welcome)