Easter Egg Hunt, The First Swallow, Field Work, Tooth Fairy

Yesterday, Easter Monday, we held our annual Easter Egg Hunt which is always popular with friends & family.
Fortunately the weather which had been so threatening all week and was forecast to be horrid on Monday turned out to be kind to us in the end. We very nearly cancelled the whole thing yesterday morning but by lunch-time the skies had cleared and we had a lovely dry and blowy afternoon.
The Farmer had laid a saw-dust trail around the farm and through the woods for everyone to follow with nests of chocolate eggs hidden at strategic points. Some of the nests were in strange places; up ladders in trees,under hedgrows and tucked behind gateposts, but it was the first one which caused a lot of shrieking from teenage girls as they had to canoe to the centre of one of our ponds to a small floating island with a nest of hay upon it and claim their eggs. However, the labradors were also there and being superb water-dogs and food fiends they sniffed out the chocolate eggs too and managed to tip the whole nest in to the water! General hilarity all round.

The teenage boys were sent off with a compass and a map to follow a seperate route devised by the Farmer (who is still a Boy Scout at heart) across the top of the farm, which proved very successful and there has been a request to make it more difficult next year.
After everyone had done the trail, which was a lovely walk for the grown-ups and choc-fest for the children, we repaired to the farmhouse kitchen for tea where the chocolate-filled kids were still able to pack away quantites of iced cake and gingerbread!

There was great amazement on Easter Sunday (4th April) when Elder Son announced that he had seen the first swallow. We have kept a record of when they arrive each year and they usually appear on or around the 10th of April, so this is very early. However, the Farmer says it is a good sign as they will only come when they know there is plentiful food supply, so despite all indications otherwise, temperatures must have risen a little and there must be good swallow food in the form of flying insects, to be found.

Today it is cold and grey but dry and the Farmer is getting on with field work. He is out harrowing the fields that have had the muck out on them for a week or so now and as soon as the weather warms up the grass will begin to grow so any tractor work must be done as soon as is possible.

Having had a house full of family over the weekend ( we were 14 for lunch yesterday), everything is very quiet today. The delightful S. family who are staying in the cottage, on their 8th visit here, have just gone out to visit Kidwelly castle, having joined us all in the jollities yesterday.
It is lovely having people come to stay year after year in the cottage. We have seen their children grow up and this is where their son learnt to ride his bicycle. When they first came their youngest daughter was only 5 months old and yesterday having tea in the kitchen with everyone her second front tooth came out. It was hoped that the Tooth Fairy knew where she was on holiday or maybe there is Welsh Tooth Fairy who looks after holiday-makers.