Basking.....

This photo was taken at 0550 a.m! Or Tea Time as we know it at Rectory Reserve.... with this view from our bedroom window..... how could a person not wake up and be happy?

We never thought, in the middle of the coldest winter ever, that we'd now be basking in what could turn out to be the warmest and driest spring since records began.

And it's beautiful.

The flowers that were held back by the chill of January benefited from an unusually warm February, accelerated through a calm and sunny March and burst into glorious abundance this month. Daffodils, narcissus, primroses, violets, bluebells, pear and damson blossom and much more - all appeared on show together. Now in the orchard the cherry blossom is out, apple blossom is just starting to show itself; rapeseed in nearby fields is already yellow with flower and the swallows have arrived.

It's as if someone's waved a magic wand and suddenly jolted the world awake after its dark, wintry slumbers.

Delila's not-so-little Clarissa's are thriving on copious quantities of Vitamin D. Daily they amuse us with their antics; meeting and greeting visitors as they come down the drive (causes a little consternation and we do get just a tad weary of hearing "Did you know there are piglets loose on your drive?") and running all over the estate. They spent most of yesterday afternoon trotting around the stable yard, playing with ducks, gawping at chickens (never seen those before) and visiting with Grandma Ginger and Grandad Mangal only returning home to mum when they saw the tea trolley going round...... As a result of which she's kept them firmly 'at home' today allowing them only to go out in the immediate vicinity of the pen! Very firm is our Delila when needs be....

Not getting wet during dog exercise has been a pleasure too. Both Pilot and Gunner are enjoying flushing the wildlife - we are surrounded by an abundance of hare and rabbit; partridge and pheasant are already on the their nests whilst Lapwings "Pee wit" high above us warning against approaching their eggs and the heavens are full of skylarks gliding ever higher, almost deafening us with their glorious song. It makes one feel glad to be alive.

Occasionally we just sit, stare, bask ... before returning to the rest of the day's tasks. Sometimes the Bestest Gundog and I sneak off on our own, drive down to the river on the other side of

town to deliberately get wet - "practising our retrieving from and over water" skills. Thanks to the numerous ducks also splashing around, Gunner has rapidly developed his swimming ability and confidence, able now to go paddle hundreds of yards yet still return on the whistle! He never ceases to amaze: one moment he's madly trying to flush ducks off the water and the next he's happy to turn and retrieve a dummy. Spring is the carefree season for exercising dogs: all too soon the heat, nettles and seeds will make it uncomfortable and dangerous to cavort through the undergrowth. We will not waste these balmy, dry days.

But dry is not altogether good. It was the driest March in England for 50 years with only 0.78 inches of rain and Lincolnshire, with just 0.18 inches, had its driest March ever. The above average hours of sunshine further exacerbated the dryness - a feature which has continued into April. Apart from one damp night we have had no rain at all and we remain basking under high pressure with no foreseeable change in sight. Already the grass has stopped growing. Soon farmers will start to mutter bad tidings.........

But for now, with Easter just around the corner and a Royal Wedding to follow, we're just going to keep on basking----- be it in sunlight or moonlight...... there'll be time enough to worry about the worries.......................