Yawn Yawn Wakey Wakey 2025

Good morning all.

Sunny here but I don't think it's frosty.
We catch the ferry at midday, then 4 hour crossing, then about 3 hours drive to the hotel.

It has been busy downstairs, the children had cheese and bacon pancakes for breakfast. Not me who was busy, DIL. I've been having coffee in bed. They've gone to school now.

 

The sun is shining here, but it’s also misty. Very pretty. 7C so a much warmer morning.
No gardening this morning, I’m off to the women’s group for a talk, then OH and I are planning lunch at the whole food shop and a wander round the big garden centre next door. Better get myself ready. Have a good day everyone, safe travels, @Busy-Lizzie.

 

Dry bright and sunny here. Planning to go to the plots, have a good day all.

 

Lovely sunny morning today. No gardening planned, we decided to cut down one of our inherited laurels yesterday and it was quite an undertaking. About 18ft tall and right on the boundary line, it got a bit hairy at times. Anyway neighbours fence, surrounding trees and us all survived intact but OH has requested a relaxing day in return. So we are off to flex our new National Trust membership cards for some relaxing walks around to Calke Abbey and then a pub lunch nearby. We haven’t visited before so will be interesting to see somewhere new.

I love Penstemons but Garnet is the only one that seems reliably hardy here. Also very bushy like yours @lizzie27 I’m planning to take lots of cuttings this year to grow on as a general filler. Probably a bit early yet?

Your good wishes and a days gardening worked a treat @Ladybird4 I was sound asleep by 10pm and slept right through

Safe journey @Busy-Lizzie and hope everyone else has a good day

 

Goodness me @Busy-Lizzie, that is quite a trip but at least the ferry ride is a time to just sit. relax and people watch. I am guessing that you must have to break your journey as you are mentioning a 3 hour drive to the hotel? I have been outside. Retrieved mine and neighbours dustbins and noticed a very keen and cold wind. I am going to wait a little longer before adding more warm clothes and heading out.

 

Sunny here. Been out for a stroll, and now got to find somewhere to plant garlic bulbs, as our entire edible stock has sprouted in the cupboard.
Then I've got oodles of weeding to do!!

 

Morning all. It’s my last day off before two days back in work. There should just be enough time to dry a load of washing and finish a few garden jobs before the rain coming in about 3pm. It’s been a tonic having a few days off but I’ll have the ‘Back to school’ / ‘Sunday night blues’ tonight!

Have a good day all and I hope everyone can have some outside time - gardening, looking at gardens or in a garden centre.

 

Greetings all. Sunny start but a thin layer of clouds has arrived which wil put the mockers on the forecast 17C. CH engineer tomorrow so we've done the weekly shop this morning. OH has gone off to the dump with the mattress and will then, I hope, weed the shallot patch for me - big clumps of grass invading from the edges.

He needs to get a wiggle on if I'm to plant my shallots before I need to get cleaned up for yoga. There's always tomorrow tho. We had rain forecast for late Friday but it's moved to Saturday.

Happy day whatever you're doing - gardening, visiting, planning, working......

 

Back home and relaxing with a cup of tea. A pleasant walk up to the village, and the talk was very interesting. However, by the time I walked back home, the sun had gone in and there was a decidedly chilly wind. However, lunch out was delicious, we shared a ploughman’s with two sorts of cheese, a ‘homemade’ roll and chutney, and a bowl of chips. The coffee was also excellent, but will probably keep me up tonight. Had fun at the garden centre, didn’t buy anything but made a list. Will go back at the weekend, and will choose some birthday presents for myself! Lots of lovely and interesting things, so I shall indulge myself.
I would love some sort of garden statuary, but I’d didn’t see anything at all that appealed to me. If I fancied life size, brightly coloured resin animals, I’d be swamped for choice, the gorilla was quite a sight! Scantily clad grecian style ladies with urns, and a selection of cheery Buddhas were obviously to the liking of the purchasing department, but nothing stylish or interesting. I once visited a house with a square pond in the garden, with a bronze sculpture of the lower half of a swimmer including legs, as if they had just dived into the pond. Loved that!

 

@Ergates OH had a thing about Greek sculptures and pestered me for years to have a half naked Aphrodite. Totally not suited to an informal Belgian country garden planted by a Brit. At my favourite plant fair I found a chap who did giant guinea fowl - not copies but you could tell what they were and baked to resist frosts down to -25C. I persuaded OH to buy me a pair for my birthday but they lost their heads in a -32C at the beginning of 2009. If and when I find some decent glue I'll fix them.

While we were at the sculptor's place I fell in love with an wol and he came home too and has survived all the weather. I also have a little flock of rusty metal guineafowl from Zimbabze and a couple of herons.

I've been down to the polytunnel to water plants and pick a load of limquats which are now being boiled down to make a lemon syrup. OH has weeded my shallot patch, helped by the 3 chooks. Too late to plant now but I can get it done tomorrow. The rain has gone away and is now due on Sunday, by the bucketload.

Have a lovely evening all. I'm off to yoga.

 

Had a productive day of jobs, and going to smooth-out the ‘Sunday blues’ with a shawarma chicken tray bake served with sweet potato wedges and coleslaw.

Crufts starts today, for anyone who likes. I met a competitor the other week, one of the therapy dogs in work, a miniature pinscher called Mini.

Enjoy your evening everyone.

 

Good afternoon all. It has been a lovely day today but picky me would like a few more warmth °Cs. Cricket's food arrived - even the courier said 'A happy cat!' so we are well provided for the next 2 months. @Fourmerkland I planted some garlic cloves a couple of years ago - in a big pot and I am ashamed to say I forgot all about them so I've no idea whether they grew, survived or what?
@Obelix-Vendée and @Ergates I was given a metal kingfisher for C*******s. He is due to go by the pond but I do have to say that he is living happily in my kitchen at the moment. I need to figure out how to fasten him to one of the camellia branches by the pond so that he looks 'normal' as opposed to looking like a kamikaze dive bomber. Good to read that the 'undergardener' has cleared your shallot patch for you @Obelix-Vendée.

 

Signing out for today. Enjoy your evenings - don't overdo it with the yoga @Obelix-Vendée!

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A sad day locally. A biker was killed in an accident this morning. Lots of traffic doing detours and peope grumbling, inappropriately.
We stayed local, having tea and cake in Llanarmon yn Ial, my mum's family's home territory.
Nipped to Lidl (again) for a patio rake and a new kettle for the caravan.
We had the caravan washed and waxed this morning. We are gleaming!
Home tomorrow. Looking forward to seeing how the seeds are doing.

 

Good evening all,
It’s been a lovely day again here and quite warm in the sun. We popped out for lunch at a nearby garden centre and I came home with 2 outdoor lights, one shaped like a mini hot air balloon and the other a watering can with streamers of string lights from its spout to look like water. I will put them out once the weather warms up a bit.
My back is a bit achy today and I can only think it’s due to the bit of weeding I did yesterday. Just a niggle, but it’s annoying me. I had this a few months ago and it developed into a troublesome ache for several weeks - I’m hoping this won’t develop like that .
Nice to see you here @Debs64.