British weather..................

Yesterday was hot , great for painting the back wall, Sarah is doing a brilliant job, & Ruby helped me paint the new wooden arbour. Most of the paint went on the wood, but some on her feet which she decided to paint green!
Today, no chance of painting, rain all day. apart from the garden and allotment heaving a sigh of relief at getting a drink at last, it has been a miserable day. But I was very tired so a rest was probably a good thing.

Backtracking to Scotland & the Lake District

The long awaited trip to a very wet North, not ventured into since teanage years. 4 nights in the lake Driatrict, stayed in youth hostels at Ambleside & Keswick. two very different hostels, Ambleside was cheery but Keswick a bit gloomy, never mind spent all day travelling round the area.
Plotted a route to see stone circles mostly also taking in anything that looked interesting on the way.

Swindale circle, on top of a hill, lonley, windswept, very atmospheric, noone else there, just mee & sheep. Long walk to get there all uphill & knackered me. I took loads of photos and waited ages for a sunny spell to move my way but it fizzeled out so pics are a bit gloomy.

The stones are all angles but still in there origonal places and lovely lichen patterns on some.

Next stop was a look at the sea. Very empty, and the water was CCCCCold.

Great selection of pebbles , collectes a load  and carried them in my socks. Patterns in the sand never fail to facinate me.

To be continued......

Sunday Sunday Sun Day..... Windy Day......Clouds!! what happened.

Sunny again, windy too, what to do? Garden a mess, lawn half scarified, jasmine snipped, all on the ground waiting to be cleared, then the lawn can be finished, well not actually finished, cleared of the moss, cut, fed, never ending, why have a lawn at all, too much bother, leave it to become a wildlife meadow? Oh yes that's what it is anyway, any chance of getting a good lawn is a dream. But the new scarifier is great, yanks all the moss out (then I have to clear it up, ugh). Maybe I'll just go out today and leave the mess till tomorrow, and the planting of all the plants I bought yesterday that won't actually fit into the garden, No cure for a plantoholic is there?

I think insanity has set in............... I was going for a river picnic but now it looks c****y

The day before tomorrow

Here we go again, decide to go on holiday and leave all the arrangements to the last moment, typical, I never learn. This time a mad rush to get truffle spayed before the cattery will have her, helps to have a friendly vet, so a few strings pulled. she is sitting curled up next to me on the sofa with no idea what tomorrow will bring............. sorry  Truff.

The week before Easter

Easter is a way point in the year, it's time to let rip for the summer, been doing that already really this year as Easter is so late. The sun has shown with voracity for ages now, so we could be in for a shock when it breaks. The garden & allotment are gasping for a drink (as I am, but mine is for a cool Chardonnay). After an exhausting morning at the allotment Sarah, Ruby & I spent the rest of the afternoon having a lazy lunch in the 'woodland' at the end of the garden, with a bottle of rose. Lets hope for more lazy times like that.

This is the woodland,taken a little while ago, the table is now on he decking for the summer,  bit of a misnomer as only a border under the apple tree, now have a summerhouse just to the right. The old dinghy was rescued from the sailing club bonfire and now has a blackbird nesting inside, the base will have a log pile for beasties to live in.

Our blackbirds, taken by shoving the camera up under the  deck, while mum was away.

Silly faces!

Truffle in the jungle, first time she has been at the end of the garden, still very wary.

Later today Tanya & Seb are coming for lunch, forgot to go shopping so it will be a scrap / out of tins meal .... oooops, better get inventing quick.

It's that sunny Sunday feeling again.

Wow, an amazingly hot week, even got a bit sunburnt on the allotment, but Sunday was sailing day, OK taking photos of other people sailing, went to BASC at Saltford to watch the CVRDA meeting, not much action but lots of lovely reflections. met a few old friends, had a nice lunch, bit of a chat, best way to unwind after a hard week gardening, and a day shopping for baby stuff with Tango on Saturday.

Couple of old Dutch barges came past causing havoc ,boats that have engines & go in straight lines don't have a clue that dinghies with wind power have to tack, result..... interesting. Actually the old barges were OK  it was the hired narrowboats post lunch at the pub next door that caused all the problems, 3 set off at once right down the middle of the river, Rules say 'keep to th right'.

Link to more pics here......  http://s673.photobucket.com/albums/vv96/Meryl1cat_album/CVRDA%20at%20BASC%202011/?albumview=slideshow

Will backtrack later on the allotment progress when I put some stuff onto photobucket.

Shorts and sandels!

First time that my legs & toes came out today, it got so hot pulling up the rampaging  ivy. Even got the solar pond pump going, have to keep moving the solar panel as the sun ducks behind the trees.
So my pond and patio are going to be the in lunch spot for this year, sound of trickling water and a glimpse of the hardy dozen fish that survived the horrible winter, (grizzly task of hoicking out dead fish, ugh).
Will get some photos loaded soon, all the flowers are starting to peep out, saw the first hardy geranium yesterday, some tulips, the Chaenomeles is the only red note, a sign of summer to come.

It has been a fantastic bright day, topped off with a midge infested trip to the river for some early season pics, then a dose of appalachian dancing.

Had an interesting and surprising phone call from someone I haven't seen or spoken to since 1974!!!! wanted some contacts from college days.

Saturday will be baby shopping with Tango and Little Squirt, exciting, looking forward to that.

First rainy day for ages

Rain, drizzle wind yuk yuk, but good for all the plants that went in a few days ago, it seemed ridiculous to be watering in March!!
Time to sow some seeds indoors today.

Fingers crossed for Tango on Friday, she is having a test for downs syndrome, one very worried mum (both of us) & dad.

Sunny Thursday this time.

Unbelivable beautiful weather, the allotment is ready for planting, & the pond dug, just have to find some carpet & liner then introduce the frogspawn in the hope that  the frogs will reduce the slugs this year.


Sarah went off to take Ruby to play school & said she would get sandwiches on the way so  we could carry on longer..... but she only got one for herself forgot to get me one, so we had to share, bit of a mini lunch, did add some chives & marche to it though.


Clog stepping tonight, see how much I can remember from 4 weeks ago.

Little Squirt ( Wasn't me who calls him/her that!)

This is my first grandchild, 12 week scan and it looks amazing, can't wait  for August, so looking forward to it. mum very tired at the moment with sore legs.

Wow Yet Another SUNNY SUNDAY

Can't belive it is again a beautiful Sunday, have to be outdoors & do something.

Had a session at the sailing club getting all the dinghies out of storage then a look at a friend's new aquisition, an 18ft. yacht, may get to go on a trip to the Isle of Wight  with them soon, ferrry dodging in the Solent.... fun.

Rest of the  day in the garden MORE WEEDS, but looking better now, I have bought masses of plants for all the new re dug areas.  Met a lovely man with a  Vdub camper van which broke down by my house, turns out he does garden work & tree work, so now going to cut down my sorry dead mimosa dealbata, very sorry to loose it but 2 bad winters did their work.

Yesterday super as well, went to see the Painswick Rococco Gardens, bit bare as yet, snowdrops over by  now & waiting for the next flush of growth. Finished the day with Tango & Seb & Little Squirt (now 15 weeks I think) mum definatly looks pregnant now.

Phew I'm knackered, slow day tomorrow, I think not.

This little munchkin was in a tree at the Coutts last week, just downloaded from the camers so popped her in here.

Sunny Sunday Again

Spring feels really here now spent Sunday morning helping fix new seats into the 'Banana' boat, (its yellow,)  then went for a canoe paddle, keeping fingers crossed that it was stable as I didn't fancy a cold dunking.
The rest of the day I went to the Courts garden, some changes since I was last there, trying out a new lens on my camera, haven't looked at the results yet.
Great  sunny day here today (Monday) so out in the garden for weed demolition (ugh) until a monster rose thorn got me and ripped my thumb. Very painful!!!!*****!!

Sunny Sunday

Wow ... so cold this morning, couldn't even think of doing the conservatory clearing, so went out to a garden centre for lunch, fatal move really as several plants jumped into my basket & demanded to be taken home. By the time I got back the sun had warmed the world so it was demolition time for the dogwoods (Mike Farr eat your heart out, cut to  the ground - nearly) then massacred the ivy on the fence... ooops I think it was holding it up!! Another attack on the moss in the lawn, hard work that one. I have a scarifer in the garage, almost forgot it, must put it together as it is still in the box!! not much good there is it?.

Friday was absolutly beautiful, clear & sunny so I spent 5 hours on the allotment, cleared all the grass from around the rasberries so looks good now. Didn't think I would be able to walk the next day, totally shattered!!!

End of February, and a horrible wet day, no enthusiasm, feeling drained after  day in Bristol docks dancing. We were in front of this pub on the dock side, very close to a long drop, so we decided to put our boards down among the tables as no one felt like falling in! Other groups were braver.

Back to today, the sun is now out but everything toooo soggy outside, and windy suddenly, so maybe I will get a move on with clearing out the conservatory ready for seed sowing. Aided by small furry dynamo I expect. At least she cleans out the cobwebs from the corners.

Allotment progress

It's mid a February and Sarah and I have had several digging sessions to get the beds ready.

Some stuff has survived the snow and cold, amazingly the coriandar is OK, well just, but alive and sprouting. The broad beans are sparse, so much for planting in autumn, rhubarb coming on, so looking good so far.

Have to do a plan for 2011 planting then get the seeds going.Rollon many good warm days.

LEAVES

Finally getting round to clearing the Autumn leaves, OK it is the end of January but didn't have the stamina to do it at the right time. Unfortunatly the new grass seed that I put down last year has been smothered and may not recover, so do I re sow or lay paving in the shady areas?

Investigated the old bags of leaf mold, from a year or 2 back, looking good, so I will spread out on the borders soon, it looks lovely and decomposed, OK so I get excited about compost!

I am getting my feet nibbled as I  write this, and it's painfull, ouch!! Truffle is in mad kitty mode just now, I love the way she goes from sparked out mitty to bonkers moggy in a few seconds. Loads of toys and it's my feet she goes for.

2011 and all that...........

Another year and a new challenge, I decided to invite a new lodger in, small fluffy and cute. Enter Truffle a 9 week old little lady moggy.

The rugs are chewed, electric cables chomped, sofa is an olympic assult course.

She is beautiful and a nut case.