Serve hot or cold, with a swirl of cream on top

There is one another live chick but I had to remove four dead chicks this morning. I think the heat is the culprit.

Mrs Silkie has two so far but she is less willing to show them.

Some of the barley fields have not yet been harvested. Yields will be down because of the drought.

We stopped in the country park and ate some apples from the trees.

Mrs Silkie continues to sit on her eggs. One hatched yesterday but it was stillborn and I removed it this morning. Perfect but eyes closed

Before I left for London this morning I let the hens and geese out of their houses. In the poultry ark, where a hen has been sitting for three weeks, I heard a tiny “cheep, cheep”. One egg had hatched and mother continues to sit on four more eggs. When I returned from The City I popped over to see our friends and neighbours. Their Silkie hen had been sitting on some eggs from The Gables. They now have five fluffy pale yellow chicks and one dark chick. Very cute.

We sat outside to eat our supper and kept Nigel in the kitchen whilst we ate. If he is allowed out when we are eating he jumps onto the table and tries to join us! When we finished our red currant ice cream there was a small amount left in the pot so we allowed Nigel to come outside and lick the broken (disposable) container clean.

After supper I fancied stretching my legs and went for a stroll along Mill Road. I reached the turn off to Channels End and turned around and returned home.

As I walked, pain free and without a limp, I thought back to my first efforts at rehab after my hip surgery in February. Every day Jeremy took me by the arm and I took a crutch in my other hand. He encouraged me, reassured me and made me walk a little further week by week. At the time I never thought I would walk properly again. Now, over five months later, I stride out with my walking groups, garden, cook for hours on end and run up and down stairs without a twinge. Quite miraculous and I thank the surgeon, the nurses, my village friend and physio, Kate, and my patient husband who cared for me so brilliantly.