Quiet - not on your nelly!

My blog may have been quiet this last 2 weeks - but our house hasn't!

I've been kept very busy with one of my boys getting chicken pox, then right after both my boys got colds and nasty ear infections.  To top it of Pappa Bear and I got a cold, and then I had some pretty painful dental work.  Fortunatly, everyone was pretty much on the mend for my eldests birthday party.

We had a fantastic week, we had Nana and Uncle come to stay for a night then a very excited Mr 3 had a Mike the Knight themed party to celebrate turning 4.  Now that he is a little older we played some games, pass the pastel, pin the tail on Galahad and treasure hunt.  We had a wonderful afternoon with friends and family.  And as a bonus, Pappa Bear brought take out after the party so I could have a night off - which ended up being 2 nights with all the left overs.

I had a go a making fondant on a large scale for covering the cake, it turned out really well I think.  All the effort was worth the look on my boys face when he blew out the candles.

The garden is slowly moving along.  All 30 of my broad bean seeds have sprouted and grown well.  Today I added another layer to the 'spider web' to support them as they grow.  The variety I have planted grows to 2 meters tall!  I think I may nip the tops off when they reach the top of the frame at about 1.5 meters.

Broad Beans in a Spider Web

I have also finished one of the paths and have the chickens doing some of the weeding for me.  I'm so glad they eat forget me nots - they are growing like a carpet in some places.  The chickens make very short work of them.  They can clear a 4m square area completely in an afternoon - that would take me nearly 2 hours of digging in the mud and even then I wouldn't be as thorough as the chickens.

I was surprised to see bees working in my garden today.  A few of my sprouting broccoli have gotten away on me and are beginning to flower - which the bees are taking full advantage of.

Water, feed and a nest box - all set for a days work

One path complete - only half a path to go

A little worker braving the cold