[dyedinthewool]

Yesterday my grandchildren went sledging in the snow - today it's all gone but it's not stopped raining  and there has been a  bitterly cold windmaking it feel raw.

The chickens rushed around first thing, glad to have their pen back to full size - but they soon became bedraggled their feathers parting in the middle, by lunch time they where glad to be ushered back into the house with a handful of corn strewn in the shavings to have a good scratch about to warm them up and dry out.
The ewe's  roamed about their paddock eating this strange 'green' stuff that had suddenly appeared overnight - though most of it is now a yellowy colour, they also were happy to come into their shed for some shelter and dry hay to munch.
I know the snow has been a trial but at least it was dry, mostly sunny and no wind - today it's been horrible with the thaw making the ground slippy with mud.  The water buckets are not frozen - but one of the outside water pipes has a leak in it... so I'll still be carrying water from the kitchen until it's fixed.
Hopefully we can get on with some building works now - it's all been on hold for the last few weeks.
Hows it going for the rest of you

[faith0504]

the thaw has started in Buckie, everything is starting to drip. the water to the barn works again, forgotten what it is like to turn a tap out there and get water  but that yucky thing called mud is starting to rear its ugly head again, the weather has been quiet pleasant here today just white cloud and 2 degrees, which felt quiet warm after very low minus temps. There is still alto of snow to go but its definitely shrinking

[Rosemary]

We're thawing! Woke this morning to the sound of snow slipping of the roof. It's not all gone and it's a bit slippy - hope it all goes before the next freeze.

[Brucklay]

Thawing here - East Aberdeenshire but still a foot of  heavy stuff in the fields so still feeding the sheep - but the water butt is working so everyone is topped up with 'butt water', spent the day making slight modifications before the next onslaught!!! At the end of the day everyone/beast safe and sound - good day xx

[ellied]

Partly thawing in Fife - fields still white, yard now a mix of white and grey ice covered in slush which is lethal

Roof is dripping all along the length of the rhones, not sure if they're blocked, overflowing, damaged or what and there are huge dirty puddles wherever the thaw meets the blocks of ice and can't spread further

I managed to free the ballcock of one of the field troughs yesterday and it has thawed enough in the pipe to have refilled this morning, tho what's in there is a mix of solid ice and dirty water so it all needs cleaned out asap   The other trough has a 3" casing of ice all around the edges but water in the middle that I am bucketing from a working outside tap as the ballcock is encased in a solid block of ice about the size of it's entire area, tho i managed to get one tiny bit melted with kettles it isn't enough and I can't see that thawing for days

One pony at the hill has injured a hind leg somewhere in the slipping and is hobbling - the roads are clear but the single track section of lane to their field (just under a mile) is sheet ice and no way can I get her out yet.  Not that I have a plan for her here other than what's left of the barn and hope the side beams hold if there are gales or she heals up quickly   There are 7 ponies up there to bring home by Friday and currently no plan but I'm working on permutations of walking the younger ones over farmland to get to near the main road and leaving the lame one with company and a round bale so she's at least moving less until the lane is ok, or trying to get a farmer with a tractor to tow a livestock trailer up the lane for her and one other to come home in that

I've not met a real person since going into a local shop last Friday morning (Dec 24) and I have 2 people want to come and see me this week and both can only make tomorrow at the same time but in different places   My Hogmanay 48 hour holiday is pretty much cancelled as tho I have an animal feeder it isn't fair to leave someone with water to cart over ice, sick ponies, newly moved ponies integrating and feeding 3x a day instead of 2   Besides, I'm now used to my solo routine and a bit nervous about meeting/talking to folk again

[bamford6]

i carnt see eney cold for at least the 6 th januarey .......soon as some think comes il let the members no

[morri2]

Certainly thawing nicely here in Wales.  Same problems as everyone else though.  Wet, very slippy and dirty, very foggy too.  Some grass starting to  appear in patches so hopefully the hay consumption will go down and enable us to make out hay stores last out a bit longer.  To be honest, I think I preferred the ice and snow to the damp, misty depressing scenes we have here at the moment!!

[little blue]

its "warmer" in Derbyshire - we have had wet fog all day, the snow is kind of slushy but with treacherous ice still underneath.  Its very damp, but more fog than falling rain.
  so next comes the mud I guess!

[plumseverywhere]

Worcestershire is nice and slushy. I slid down the goats hill today but not on ice, on slush.  its falling off the rooves of the house which is quite funny (now I've got used to it) first lot to avalanche off scared the life out of me!!

[sabrina]

Started to thaw here as well thank goodness, yesterday we had a trip out to Stirling Village near Peterhead to visit my eldest son and his family as i have been going stir crazy. A few days blocked in is ok but its been over a month now and I have had enough 

[manian]

i see green stuff out the window
yay

[Helencus]

I see mud in Leicestershire and lots of it :-(

[northfifeduckling]

I actually did manage to shovel the car out yesterday (after over 4 weeks), just to get my daughter to the sale, what joy  . Not sure if I would not have preferred to be snowed in 

[sheardale]

Its thawing here in sunny Dollar,  but the fields and some parts of the roads are flooded.
cheers Helen

[little blue]

foggy again here for the third day - abit clearer everyday.
but getting colder again too ...