Buzz buzz etc

Sorry to have been absent, so much going on just now.
It has been a good summer for the ducks, seven ducklings safely raised. We now have 14 ducks. Two are definitely Drakes but it is looking like all the ducklings are girls. Here's hoping!
On the chicken front, no chicks this year for the first time and we lost one hen. So 11 hens and 3 cockerels. Had a bit of a lean time with eggs but found a couple were laying in the garden. That meant I acquired a mountain. All good though and I used them all. The geese were too young this year but hope next year to have some goslings.
We recently went to see our bee keeping mentor and had a lovely afternoon of instruction. We now know where we are going! We have a nuke booked for next spring that will have a queen to start us off. It will cost us €150! We are going to build a platform in a barn that has a hay window on the east facing side. Perfect for bees. The hive will be sited in the window opening and we will fill the gaps around it leaving a 'door' for them. This will mean the bees will fly above any people. We have to visit the tax office to get our bee keepers number and become registered. Once we are set up we will be visited by the bee inspector from time to time. We have to keep daily records of the temperature inside and outside the hive that the inspector will want to see. The next thing we must do is unpack our hive and put it together.
Next week we are having a day learning how to milk goats and make goats cheese. I am hoping this will make P agree to have a few goats.
I know that to be truly self sufficient I have to get my head around eating our stock. That is very big for me.
Daughter arrives here on 17th October with her husband and dog to start a new life with us. I am so pleased about this.
Also we decided to sell our English house and after just four days it is sold! In 6-8 weeks we will pay off our mortgage and have enough money in the pot to finish the renovations. Happy days!
We still have so much to do but are gradually getting to where we want to be.
Next year I will start on opening our well and using grey water. That is a big project.