Pound Farm........ — Steve Chivers Photography

For my regular readers you will have seen a recurring theme….Family. Mrs. C and I have always made family a priority, especially when we lived overseas. All our holidays were spent either with family and friends visiting us or in us traveling back to Uk or Spain. With our children growing up in an expatriate environment, we always felt it was important to keep them grounded, to make sure they retained a sense of belonging to the UK and above all, ensure they spent time with family.

One of the ways we have tried to achieve this togetherness is, on an annual basis, to bring as much of the family together as possible at a particular location. We have tried a few but for the past few years we have chosen the wonderful Pound Farm.

Situated a 5 minute walk from the sleepy Somerset village of Bishops Lydeard and located in the foothills of the Quantocks, this beautiful farm house sleeps 18, has all mod-cons, but above all, has a dining table that seats 18 and which is the focal point of our family holidays. I love to sit back and see everybody sitting around the dinner table, eating, drinking, chatting and laughing.

This year we had full attendance and as the last of the clan arrived and were hugging and saying their hellos in the family kitchen, I was already welling up with tears of happiness.

The “young people” have finally arrived.

This was also to be a special visit to Pound Farm. Our Matriarch, “Mother”, had broken her hip over the Christmas period and had experienced a very tough time during rehab. Thankfully all went well and this was an opportunity to focus on something positive and joyous and surround her with the people she loves.

From previous blogs the reader will be aware that between Mrs. C and Aunty Sarah, everything is managed and organized with military precision. As a result nothing is left to chance, everything has its place and everyone has a role:

Grandad Robert: Our Patriarch and actually believes he is in charge.

Mother: She is actually in charge.

Mrs. C: Logistics, baking and providing me with regular “advice and guidance”.

Alice: Alpha female.

Eleanor and Anna: Trainee Alpha Females

Mark, Kevin & Matthew: Eating and drinking as much as possible.

Simon & Joe: I.T.

Mike: Our resident “Twitcher”.

Kitty: Our resident “Horse Whisperer”.

Eleise: All things interior design & fashion.

Maggie: being cute and cuddly at all times.

Aunty Sarah: Aunty Sarah retains her role in charge of family hydration and always ensures there is plenty of grog to go around.

Uncle Chunkle: All matters photographic.

For this visit I was anticipating the possibility of precipitation. So, I brought the Leica SL2 with the Leica 24-90mm Zoom (both are weather sealed), as well as the 50mmm Noctilux F0.95 which I manually adapt.

What I love about Pound Farm is the light and shadows, particularly when using the Noctilux.

Big Ted in his usual place in the window at the top of the stairs.

Grandad Robert’s 2023 Curried Pear Chutney - An excellent Vintage.

Ofcourse, regular readers will be familiar with our 4th generation, the wonderful Maggie. She filled the house with laughter and giggles and for Uncle Chunkle (that’s me) the camera loves her and she loves the camera. So I make no apologies for sharing lots of images of her whenever possible.

A family tradition is that every year our Patriarch calls for a family meeting, to be held at the nearby Quantock Brewery Tap Room. Needless to say there is always 100% attendance.

This year I was delighted to sample one of the stouts, “Pleasant Pheasant”. Lets say it was really good and lets agree that I might have over-sampled. Perhaps that is why, even with auto-focus, my “hit-rate” declined after the the third pint!

All filled with that beautiful nectar, brewed from that special water that flows down from the Quantocks.

Mark - Our expert on all matters pertaining to Beer, seen sampling a cheeky little IPA.

Us older folk could not keep up with the young people so as the beer haze descended we headed back though the village and across the fields for an afternoon snooze.

Bishops Lydeard - Centre of the Village.

I am old enough to remember when these contained telephones.

Busted! - Aunty Sarah and Mike having a sneaky hot tub.

The “Young People” maximizing use of the facilities.

Another highlight of this years visit was the celebration of a number of significant birthdays. Joe and Kitty were turning 30. Grandad Robert was about to hit 90 and after 20 years at the age of 39 Mrs. C has final become a women of a certain age.

As we actually celebrated these significant events on my birthday, I was allowed to blow out the candles. I must also thank everybody for all the cards and wonderful presents.

I also use our annual get together to update family portraits:

Grandma and Grandad with all the young People.

It is fair to say that we had all detoxed from the hustle and bustle of everyday life and everybody disappeared to do their own thing. Some took to the hot tub, some took the opportunity for an afternoon snooze, others went off for some pitch and put and some of us headed off across the fields to soak up the beautiful Somerset countryside.

So there we have it; a year in the planning and over in a flash. This is why I write my blog, to record wonderful memories in both pictures and words.

As even the young people get older our all consuming lifestyles increasingly get in the way of the important things in life. Our family is our rock, its who we can rely upon in times of trouble and who we can love and enjoy at every opportunity. So lets all make the effort to ensure we keep this tradition going, wherever and whenever possible.

I love you all and look forward to our next gathering in June at Somerset Cricket Club Taunton.

With warmest regards from Plymouth.