Sunday, May 24, 2009

23rd May 2009, Jim Returns, Gardening Days

Jim came back tonight at 12.30am. I was out in the garden having a bonfire until about 12.15!

I'd been getting fed up with my hair lately. It's so long that I always had it up in a pony tail, so this morning I attacked it with a pair of scissors!! Actually it's not too bad. Jim noticed it through the window and was a bit surprised but thought it looked ok. I'll get him to take some photos tomorrow.


You can see it reasonably well from this one, which I took. Don't enlarge it, the wrinkles look dreadful.








Saved myself about £50 too!

I spent this morning inside tidying up for Jim. The snug looked particularly clean, so I took a sort of 'joiner' photo of it!It's a bit of a muddle. I popped a photo of the desk at the bottom as you can only see it's side in the main photo! The window on the right will become the doorway into the sun lounge, so our tiny sitting room will become a huge room but divided in half. I also took one of the fireplace in the snug:
It's all a bit wiggly, I didn't make the best job of it, but you get the general idea, I'm sure. The wicker chair is from the old conservatory so won't live in here when the work's done. But the dog sleeps on those chairs. The other one is in the kitchen/diner. He's asleep on it right now!

This morning it was raining hard but by the afternoon the sun was shining. I had to go outside of course. I've spent the afternoon clearing up the piles of garden rubbish I've made in the past few days to start with. Then I moved to the bottom of the fairy hill and did some serious weeding of stinging nettles, brambles, buttercups and sticky bob!! It was all round the back of the sleeping shed and I managed to get right along almost to the end! It was hard work pulling and cutting.
It's intended as a semi natural area but I don't want it overtaken by brambles and nettles in particular or it becomes impassable.

I did find time to take some photos of course. I hope you enjoy them:



BlackJack hiding behind the long grass on the Fairy Hill. The new phormium is behind him and doing well










Sandy on the bench at the top of the Fairy Hill













I moved in closer and he'd turned around











Then Sandy decided to move into the long grass ready for some serious hunting












This gorgeous broom has come out in the last day or so. It's at the top of the Fairy Hill too and when we first arrived was hidden under brambles and blackthorn








It stands above this lovely spirea and a perennial fuchsia bush. The contrasting colours are so pretty












I couldn't resist just one more










You can see this hawthorn behind the photo of Sandy on the bench. It's dripping with flowers















The laburnum has also just come out. I have never seen it so laden with flowers. Just think, when the barn has gone, (see the rusty red roof) I'll be able to see all this from my room. It's so exciting!












Aren't the flowers long?












The onion flowers are just coming out too
















The iris are about to burst - I love their clean lines at this stage










I went in to feed Buster and when I came out again, the sun was low in the sky and bathed the laburnum in a soft glowing light:







It is a little dark though















The magnolia has stopped flowering but the green is still pretty and contrasts well with the red acer behind. Jim's first job will be grass cutting!











Buster must have got bored waiting for me - this was a little brown teddy!






I walked up to the gate where the sun was still showing over the horizon and took this photo of Lough Graney, across Martin the farmer's field full of buttercups:


It is very small, so please take the time to click on it to enlarge it.

It's only 3 days until my new Granddaughter Kitty is born! As Sam is booked for a cesarean on that day, unless she goes into labour early. Her feet are all swollen up now, poor thing. Then I go and stay for a week from July 4th. I can't wait to see what she looks like.

Jim keeps ruffling my hair every time he walks past!!





This is Joe, admiring his work on the sun room wall. He's a master plasterer and it shows. They may be slow but their work is super










This is the sun room through the snug window, which will be the door into it.








Both gable ends are now rendered and finished in a 'stipple' effect. It's fabulous. The long wall will take them half a day so they need a good sunny day next week to finish it. The electrician was supposed to come on Friday. Guess what? He didn't turn up.

I think that's about it. Jim brought me back an enormous bar of Cadbury's Chocolate! It's 1kg. Then he told me I have to make it last. I told him that took away all the pleasure of eating it!! He also bought some begonia corms and some more seeds, so he's going to be busy too.

I made some bread pudding while Jim was away. It's a recipe given to me by Sam's mum Rene and it's just delicious. Even Jim liked it and he's not over keen on spices. I don't suppose it's very slimming though! Thanks Rene.

13 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hello! Your hair is so pretty. The new cut looks like it will be easy to care for and as busy as you stay in the garden and with the new home addition, that's a good thing! I love your garden pictures. I have a broom that is yellow. Yours is so much prettier; I love the color. BlackJack and Sandy sure are cute helpers in the garden!
It's nice to see inside your lovely home. That is a great mirror over the fireplace. You and Jim are going to enjoy the new addition so much. Love all the windows and what fabulous views you will have!
I know you are excited about Kitty's arrival.

marianne said...

Your hair looks good, wish I had those curls!
That buster with the Teddy LOL!
Your are always working dear......

soulbrush said...

the hair is magic girl. i love your garden, can i come and spend a week just taking in the beauty?? and as for that teddy...rip dear teddy. hugs xxx

Rachel Green said...

Love the lough!

Heather said...

The new hairstyle looks great. You have lovely 'wild' hair like my daughters, but they hate it. What a wonderful habitat Black Jack and Sandy have and those distant views are beautiful too. Gorgeous Broom - it wont grow on our soil and your iris is just like the one in our garden. We had a lovely laburnum some years ago which flowered it's socks of one year and then died. Poor Teddy.

Bea said...

Well, don't you look cute Ms curly locks! lolol Excellent job of hair management.
Your garden looks wonderful and that vista picture is a postcard waiting to be made.
Broom is beautiful and don't you love those onion flowers?
So, you call what we call a family room or living room a snug? I like that.
Where you snuggle, right? lol Have a great day and thanks for sharing. :)Bea

aims said...

Love the hair Gina. You did a great job!

Why do you have your fireplace covered? I had to search for it and figured that it was hiding behind that piece of material.

And I remember you loving one bear I made in particular. It wouldn't have lasted long with Buster around.

Did you see my latest pic btw? Could easily be Buster....

The Weaver of Grass said...

You look to me to have the sort of hair that you can snip at and make it look fabulous. Mine is far too wispy to even try! Laughed at Buster's Teddy - Tess has had a few like that - she is fantastic at disembowelling kapok. Love your garden photos - I get all the pleasure of the garden without the hard work.

Jason said...

Hi mum,

Good hair cut. Have you eaten all the chocolate yet. I have some Galaxy as we speak!

Kitty is going mad in Sam belly currently. Doing exercises I think.

See you soon. x

soulbrush said...

i'vejust done your meme (at last!)

BT said...

Thank you Mildred, I quite like it! It makes a change. We have 2 yellow brooms as well and they smell wonderful. BlackJack and Sandy seem to follow us everywhere lately!!
Thanks for the comments about inside our home too. 72 hours until Kitty's arrival!!

Hi Marianne. Curls do make life a bit easier I think. I used to hate them at school, love them now.

soulbrush, of course you can come and stay! You can sit in the sun room when it's finished!!

Thanks Rachel, it came out well I thought.

Hello Heather, I hope our broom doesn't die next year!! Hopefully not, although one has died that was on the allotment. My hair is easy to cut and even if it's not perfect it looks ok with the curls. The girls should be grateful for their curls.

Ha ha, well thank you Bea!! A snug is usually a small sitting room, often an extra one but ours is our only one!! It just seemed so appropriate being so small! And snug!

Thanks aims. The fireplace isn't used and I just put that material there one day and liked it! We're not sure whether to take it out all together as it's rather large for the room. Replace it with a smaller one. We'll see.

Oh, I must go and see your blog. A pic of Buster???

Weaver, you are quite right about my hair. I have often hacked at it in the past and it usually looks ok! Hairdressers are so expensive and I mostly don't like the result! Glad you're enjoying the garden. I'm worn out after today.

Hi Jason, glad you like the hair. As I always had it in a pony tail and it didn't look great like that, I thought I couldn't lose! Kitty is ready to leap out!

I'll pop over Soulbrush!

DK said...

Love the hair! ~bounce~

Can't wait to see Kitty pics in a few days, I'm getting excited too ~grin~

The laburnum looks amazing!

BT said...

Glad you like the hair! I do too! 72 hours until Kitty!! So Sam says. I won't see her until June 4th, when I go up.
xx