My Time in the Sunshine

I feel like I'm getting back in the swing of blog writing and have been posting on Instagram regularly, look at me getting all on top of everything! I've noticed I have a couple of new followers, I'd like to say hello (waving), please leave me a comment so I can come back and say hi to you to if you have a blog, and please come and say hi on Instagram too if you have an account

Wow, the weather has been amazing here in our little piece of England, until today when the clouds came. A bit overcast, but perhaps can be welcomed as a break from the intense heat we've had (we're just not used to it). It's due to return by the weekend, though we could really do with some rain, perhaps during the night when we're all in bed.

We've been eating outside and I think salad has become a staple in our diets, it's just been too hot to spend too much time in the kitchen. It helps that we have our own cucumbers from the greenhouse to add to them

I've been spending an hour or two reading in the garden on the days we don't have Zackary (impossible to do on a Zack day, far too much playing for us to do). I'll do a separate post about the books I've been reading recently on another day

A tub of sunshine, these Marigolds are really coming into their own now and are good for keeping little midges at bay as they don't like their scent.

This clump of Californian Poppies are from last year's crop, they just appeared at the side of our pond and look lovely they way they've naturally sprung up next to it. I may have to keep my eye on them next year though, don't want them to take over the area. I love watching how they change through the day, slowly closing in their petals as the day wears on.

The city centre looks quite beautiful in the sunshine too. This photo looks like it has a little statue of a child playing in the fountains, as lovely an idea as I think that would be, it's even better to watch the real children running back and forth and screaming with joy as the fountains change their patterns and soak them.

 There are seats all around too, and I you can see people smiling as they watch and listen to the little ones running about.

It's been so hot that the garden pond has needed topping up as it's level got lower and lower. We use water from the water butt as it's the closest type to what's already in the pond. It's a good job it's only a small pond!

I hope everyone else has been enjoying this glorious weather, I know it can get a bit much at times and we're just not used to it. I have felt sorry for Alfie and Honey with their thick coats (Gary's less dense, smooth white coat means he can enjoy the heat a little more). We put ice cubes in their water to help them keep cool and they sit in the shade away from the hot sun.

Take care
xxx

Garden Flowers

I took a few photos of the garden the other day when I was out there enjoying the sunshine, I'm glad I took them when I did as yesterday rained most of the day and today is very gloomy and overcast (very warm too though, feels very close).

I wanted to show you our beautiful foxgloves and thank everyone who identified them when they first appeared.

Looking quite glorious now, lovely trumpets for the bees to go in and out of.

We have a few tubs around the garden, this one has petunias tumbling out of it (I kept Honey in the photo, she's nice and relaxed in the sunshine).

I'm rather fond of Geraniums, good staples to have in pots providing such vivid colour.

The camellia has finished flowering it's beautiful full pink blooms.

This is a new addition, a Honeysuckle to grow up our pergola. It's in a pot so I'm hoping it still manages to thrive, there are lots of buds waiting to burst into flower.

The rambling rose climbing up the other side of the pergola, also full of buds.

Lupins too,

more Lupins along the back of this raised planter.

 Pretty anemone, closing every evening then waking up each day and stretching open it's petals.

Couple of hanging baskets starting out

Sweet williams and our heuchera.

It's had a lick of paint this year, our tiered planter. Full of trailing petunias, lobelia and some geraniums too. It's just started flowering, so hopefully each tier will grow and reach down to the one below, filling the garden with colour.

Looking over everything are the green men

The vegetables are doing well too, we have lettuces, cauliflowers, peas and brussel sprouts in the trugs and tomatoes and cucumbers in the greenhouse. There are a few things we haven't planted this year such as radishes and potatoes, which I shall miss, if only there were a few more hours in a day (more space would be nice too).

Andrew's watching the rugby so I'm going to go and sit in the conservatory and do some patchwork while the light is still good.

Take care

xxx

A Spot of Sunshine

It didn't last long, but while it was up there not covered in clouds, we made the most of it. We've been spending lots of time in the garden, tidying, painting and some planting. I had hoped today would be nice and I could take a couple of garden photos, but it's been raining on and off for the last few days.

I've been wanting to take little Zackary to our lovely park for a while now. It isn't easy to plan a trip out with our little grandson as he still needs to be in his pushchair and I use a wheelchair and we only have one Andrew to push us! It was such a beautiful sunny day on Friday last week, it was perfect for me to use my brilliant new scooter (the one my parents so generously bought me for my birthday back in February). We reminded Holly and Adam to drop off the pushchair with Zackary in the morning and set off after Zack's lunch. Andrew pushed Zackary and I rode alongside on my scooter, we had a lovely walk around the park then went to see the animals.

They've introduced some new ones since we last went, some gorgeous tiny marmosets, they were so deliciously cute. We also had a cockatoo shouting 'hello' at us as well as all sorts of other feathered friends. The lamas were sunning themselves, watching the people walk by.

 I held Zackary up to see the birds, but he remained unimpressed

There were wallabies, deer, emus and peacocks

It was such a beautiful day and I'm hoping that we shall be spending many hours over the coming weeks and months showing Zack what a wonderful park we have. I think it was quite tiring being pushed around all afternoon.

Though he soon woke up when we came home again, here are Andrew and Zackary having some boy time together.

He is growing so tall, already a big boy for 8 months old. He crawls around so fast, but that's only when there's no furniture (or fingers) to pull himself up on and walk around. We've had to move things and push things away from the edge and those small hands that can't wait to get hold of his nanny's things.

Someone else was enjoying the sunshine last week, I think Gary is looking quite chilled out posing in the sun.

Take care
xxx

Split Tooth

Thank you for all the lovely comments about my bunting and supportive ones about my tooth. I don't know how, but I was complaining about the wrong tooth! It wasn't my baby tooth at all, or even the one next to it, but the one next to that. It broke in half, vertically... I didn't like it! I managed to get through Imogen's performance, Chicago (which was rather fabulous) then took to my bed for an early night. Luckily the emergency dentist fitted me in at 1 the next day, it was very busy there. The dentist was lovely, he said it needed extracting, gave me the necessary injections and pulled out the first (broken) half of my tooth. He then spent a while examining it and decided to give me a temporary filling to tide me over and a prescription for some antibiotics if it starts to get more painful (I haven't needed to take them). As the nerve wasn't exposed, the dentist said we may be able to save the tooth. I have an appointment tomorrow afternoon with my own dentist to have a proper filling, so fingers crossed all will be well.

After the grey skies in my last post, it's back to blue skies and sunshine again. Andy harvested some carrots... not looking forward to peeling the twisty ones.

Our kitchen has been hotter than the conservatory today. I've had a gammon joint roasting away, phew. I'd already taken it out of the freezer yesterday to have for tea today, we had it with boiled potatoes and salad from the garden, so that was rather lovely.

I thought as I showed you it last year, I'd take a photo our lovely Hydrangea bush, it's covered in glorious bright pink blooms and I love it.

The heat isn't bothering the cats. Mitzi has been spending her time curled up asleep on cosy throws and cushions, doesn't she look sweet and oh so very relaxed.

Take care
xxx

More Reading sat in God's Pocket

Hello and welcome to my new followers, please don't be shy and leave a note to say hi. I much preferred it when I could click on the follower, link to their page and say hi back, now it seems we can only do that with followers on google plus, most annoying of google! I do always reply to emails and thank you to those that have sent notes and messages.

The weather here in Yorkshire is absolutely wonderful. After a couple of days with some much needed rain, the sunshine has returned in all it's glory. It's the school half term so we have our lovely Imogen at home for the week (not that I feel we've seen much of her) and it's been lovely to have her come and join me in the garden so we could sit in the beautiful sun and read our books together.

I've read a couple of books and enjoyed them both.The first was The Escape by C. L. Taylor

 I've read a couple by C. L. Taylor before and enjoyed them, perhaps a little more than this one, but I still enjoyed it. The book is about Jo and her young daughter Elise. A stranger turns up professing to know more about Jo's husband and daughter than she should. It's full of twists and turns, sometimes told from the point of anxious Jo and at other times from her frantic husband, Max's view.

I also read The Couple Next Door this week by Shari Lapena.

 A well written book, this was my first experience with this author and I shall definitely be reading her again. It's every parents greatest fear, the couples 6 month baby disappears from her cot. The story takes you through the emotions, doubts and fears the couple experience and how far people will go when pushed to their limits.

I did most of this reading in the garden (I like to read when I go to bed too, though I do suffer from the 'just one more page' syndrome and have to try to discipline myself). I love our little garden so much, it makes me so happy, I feel like I must be sitting in God's pocket! I've taken photos that show how much things have grown since my last lot of pictures... even the fish are growing.

This is our rambling rose, I'm not sure if I should move it to go against a wall rather than try and tame it up the pergola. This was the first time I've bought a rose so I didn't really know which would be the best.

This is the rose on the other side of the pergola, this one is a climber, I think I should have purchased two of these really. Also, it seems to be thornless whereas the rambler is very thorny. The aphids aren't fussy though and both have been covered in greenfly until we sprayed them. I'm hoping we may get some ladybirds to come and gobble them up.

I wasn't sure if we would get any roses this year, but look... lots of buds appearing.

 I so enjoy sitting by our new pond feeding the fish. They must see my shadow appear and they race around coming to the surface to eat their breakfast. The plants in the pond are starting to fill out more now too.

 The alliums have had their moment, perhaps past their best

though I think they look just as stunning as seed heads without their petals still towering above everything else.

I've put a few hanging baskets out, one is full of strawberries so I'm looking forward to some juicy fruit. Some pretty petunias in this one.

You can see the suns' rays shining through from behind the greenhouse.

Carrots and sprouts in one, lettuces and cauliflowers in the other.

Tonights radishes were picked, you can see how big this one is compared to Andy's hand - so delicious too.

I hope you're all able to enjoy some of the lovely weather we've had.

Take care
xxx