Time for a little privacy please as I take stock of my situation

The fresh, new growth of bright green leaves budding from the trees and shrubs makes a dramatic backdrop and, suddenly, everywhere there are thousands of dandelion.

Between these flowers are delicate little plants such as heartsease, cinquefoil and allseed in a variety of colours.

Hedgehogs suddenly seem prolific. At night, on the roads, I have had to take care not to hit the little creatures. I do like hedgehogs or fuzzy pegs, as I always knew them. Up here, all of them seem to be a light cinnamon colour, but down in the dale, they are the more normal muted brown shades.

The four geese have gone to a super home where they cannot attack visitors.

The turkeys have been busy and they are spending a lot of time down in the undergrowth of the mire.

I let the dogs out for a run and they were chasing round for ages. I noticed Boo had picked up what I thought was an old marrowbone. When I called her in, it was a warm turkey egg, undamaged. I had to go find where it had come from and finally discovered the nest and replaced it while the turkey hen watched me.

All week, a string of walkers have toiled past my gate heading up to the moor. I see them pause and point out my lambs gambolling in the field.

My sheep are mainly rare breeds of various colours and are a bit unusual for round here. I shall have to get them clipped a bit early this year. I caught a couple of them and bagged them out and handfuls of fleece came off with a gentle tug.

I still have no hot water or proper cooking facilities but hopefully that will be sorted after the holiday weekend.

The chap who sold me the Rayburn has more than met me half-way and it is gratifying to know that there are some honest businessmen out there.

He doesn’t want anyone to think he is going soft but it is good sense to have a satisfied customer.

I support the charity West Yorkshire Animals in Need, who do great work. I do not run it and over the last week, I have had several requests to help re-home animals.

Not only does the plight of these animals distress me, I cannot do it.

Please don’t ask me to. I am already over-burdened with animals.

Life is very busy at the moment and I am afraid I do not always have the time to talk to unexpected visitors either.

I have made some difficult decisions over the last couple of weeks and just at the moment I need my space.

I meet all sorts of lovely people and like to chat but I have so many things I must do.

It doesn’t help that the dogs have a definite idea that I should get up at first light. I saw my duvet disappearing down the stairs the other morning with two dogs pulling it.

That was the end of my lie-in. It was as late as 6.30.

I do like to get up and see the countryside emerging and listen to the birds before the start of the chores for the day – but not every morning.

The swallows are back in some numbers and flit in and out of the barn. At night, they are replaced by the bats.

I was out and about the other evening and saw a doe with her youngster at her heels in the woods beside the road.

Everywhere there is new life. I suspect that soon I will have turkey chicks hatched and running around.

Down in the mire I spotted some tiny frogs. So did a couple of birds of prey who have been hunting regularly over the mire. I saw one getting a young rat, which I applauded.

Brillo likes them though. She spends ages trying to dig them and the moles out of the ground, and then she heads straight upstairs to rub the dirt off my duvet.

Duvets don’t last long at my place.