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The position with Foot and Mouth remains the same.

I had a bit of a disaster on Wednesday - the digital camera packed up! For some reason or other the lens cap remained open and it stopped me taking any pictures. Luckily it is still under guarantee and I returned it to Jessop's on Saturday. Hopefully it will be repaired in about two weeks. So it's back to the 35mm camera for a while!

On 29th March we celebrated our first year here - where does the time go?

The picture of our daffodil that you are all waiting for is now included!

The barn doors were hung on Friday so, subject to a couple of small 'snags' that require attention, that part of the upgrade of the premises is finished. However, we have a bit of landscaping to undertake and some fencing to erect around the paddock.

The builders have, by and large, finished outside with the exception of pointing the gable wall of the kitchen. The tiling in the shower room is complete, as is the plumbing (boiler will be commissioned this week - hopefully!). The kitchen is coming on. The base units are in as are the cooker, dishwasher, etc.

Manweb should be coming this week to remove the cables from the chimney and re-route them underground. We can then take the cap off the chimney and have the wood burner installed in the kitchen.

We have had a bit of a problem with a sheep which keeps getting through to our property. We spent a wet hour late on Friday afternoon putting barbed wire on a small piece of wall where we thought it was getting over. But the damned thing was back next morning. So we spent another wet hour trying again. So far it hasn't got back in!

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No change in Foot and Mouth and it appears that it won't be under control till late May if the latest reports are correct. The impact on the local economy is dire and many businesses which rely on tourism will be in serious trouble if it goes on that long.

The builders have continued tidying up previous work and the outside of the house is starting to look finished. Unfortunately they were not able to get up the hill on Wednesday because of snow and we had already agreed that they would not to come on Thursday and Friday as they had another job to finish. So not as much was completed as we hoped.

Meanwhile I decided that the position of the cold water and expansion tanks was not very sensible as it was very difficult to get at the ball cocks etc. I've therefore removed all of the old airing cupboard and opened up the void behind it. The tanks can now fit behind the wall giving greater space in the study - the re-plumbing required is quite simple.

Hopefully the builders will get on with the kitchen this week.

We have one daffodil flowering on the bank at the side of the drive leading to the house. This is some achievement as for every year prior to us moving here the bank was eaten short by sheep. All

the others are 'blind' but, hopefully will flower next year. I took a picture but when I looked at it this evening it was out of focus - I'll take another tomorrow. I hope you can contain yourselves until next week!

From Thursday onwards the weather was good and we have been working outside. I've cleared the side of a small mound of bracken so that the ground can be seeded with grass in April. Last summer we cleared a small field of bracken and this mound adjoins that field and will increase the pasture available. It takes quite a long time to regain land from bracken - it has to be cut regularly to weaken it. The animals can't go on it as bracken is poisonous - although the sheep up here are either immune or have an in-built sense not to eat it!

We spent some time adding earth to the paddock in front of the new barn as the bottom part was too low. This week, if the weather's OK, we'll pick up rocks that have come to the surface in anticipation of rolling and seeding the paddock in April.

Finally, we have planted about 180 setts of 'super willow' around the side and front of the new barn to soften its impact on the eye. If the willow grows at the rate it's supposed to then by the end of the year it will be over 8 foot high.

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Not much to report this week. Foot and Mouth is still a huge worry but thankfully no confirmed outbreaks in this area as yet.

I was away for the week working in Birmingham while Sue held the fort. Meanwhile the builders fitted out the shower room - it's difficult to photograph as the wide angle lens on the camera can't get it all in. The shower surround is only fitted temporarily as the walls have yet to be tiled.

The parts of our bedroom floor suffering from woodworm have been replaced and the kitchen prepared for fitting the units.

The builders should have made a good start on the kitchen by the end of this week. They should also have tidied up most of the outstanding jobs outside.

I've included a picture of the back door and new dormer window - just two more doors to go!

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Foot and Mouth still rules our lives. To date there have been no outbreaks in Gwynedd but the position is still dire. We were hopeful that this weekend would see a decrease in the number of infected sites but that is not the case.

The builders have replaced the last three windows - just two doors to go! The re-plumbing has been completed, although the shower, hand basin and toilet in the new shower room have yet to be fitted. Hopefully by the end of this week all the plumbing will be finished and work will start on fitting the kitchen units next week.

Unfortunately the Foot and Mouth

has stopped Manweb coming to renew the supply to the house and the old installation is now getting in the way of building work. We need to re-point the back of the kitchen wall but can't do it as the overhead cables are too close.

We've moved the donkeys and llamas to the back field as the five acre field needs resting. Once the weather is a bit warmer I will roll and chain harrow it. The field has served us well over winter.

The boundary fencing has also been completed. I renewed some of the post alongside the river and put in the gate and two of the main straining posts. We are now sheep proof - hopefully!

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Foot and mouth disease has all but closed down this part of Wales. At present the two nearest infected sites are on Anglesey and near Newtown. Both outbreaks are about one and a half hours drive from us, but we can't be complacent.

The local farmers have put straw saturated with disinfectant in two places on the road through our village and we have done the same in our drive. All we can really do is not travel anywhere near infected areas, disinfect the car's tyres and our footwear, and keep our fingers crossed.

On Monday, as it was Tim's birthday, we all went to Chester for a day out. They went home on Tuesday. We look forward to having Joseph again at Easter.

The builders tried to return on Wednesday but could get up the hill because of the overnight snow. It's been

very cold (-5C overnight), but clear and bright, for the last five days. Although the snow melted quite quickly on Wednesday it has remained on Y Garn and Cader. Relations in Australia E-mailed us on Friday to say in was 32C in Brisbane!

The builders did arrive on Thursday and have plastered the kitchen and the new shower room. The plumbing has also been started.

On Saturday the fence from our new cattle grid to our boundary was put up. It's not finished as the fencing on the other side has yet to be done - hopefully on Saturday. We will then be self-contained and the local sheep won't be able to visit us anymore!

Sue and I spent Sunday clearing some trees cut down by British Telecom when they replaced the telephone poles - this makes it easier to put up the next length of fencing.