Photo Scavenger Hunt 2011–April…

 

:: a church ::

on the Thames

 

:: a cross ::

on the top of the loaf I made on Easter Sunday

 

:: a sculpture ::

my most favourite in the world, photographed by me in 2000

 

:: a set of keys ::

that I couldn’t resist buying from Kew Gardens

 

:: an interesting shop name ::

loved this!

 

:: April showers ::

the only kind my garden saw this April

 

:: breakfast ::

creature of habit that I am, porridge and fruit, all year round

 

:: eggs ::

kindly provided by my girls

 

:: my camera ::

not for this project though!

 

:: something to do with Shakespeare ::

this months’ first day cover

 

:: something to do with St George’s Day

do my patriotic tulips count?

 

:: something yellow ::

buttercups

Five years…

Today is Tom’s fifth Angel Anniversary.
Five years.



Near his grave, there is a horse chestnut tree and each autumn we collect shiny brown conkers and put them under his headstone.  Two years ago, I noticed that there was a tiny tree beginning to grow from one of them after it had lain there for some time.  I brought it home and potted it up.  It now grows in my garden having being given life from a life that has gone.
I have learnt a new phrase: mono no aware.  One that I stumbled upon recently and that resonates with me profoundly.  I think of it each time I look at my tree.



Five years.

Hot flush…

After the delicate, pale first flush comes the hot, zingy second act.

 

 

 

Now I need to find some zing and get up to make hot cross buns for my guests.  I went out to dinner last night and it was such a treat to be cooked for.  Perfect timing too as I have a busy weekend of cooking and entertaining ahead of me.

Kew in April #2…

Kristina and I made our monthly visit to Kew yesterday.  We were hoping for lots of blossom but other than this pompom-like pink stunner, we seemed to have either missed it time wise or walk wise.

 

 

Looking back over my post from April last year, there is a noticeable difference in the blooms this year.  They are much earlier, which is surprising as we had a long, cold winter.

 

 

The rhododendrons were in full bloom and my favourite was this unusual pale lemon one.  I always tend to think of rhododendrons being pink or mauve.  These were  a whole month earlier than last year.

 

 

We also stumbled across this beautiful pale lemon magnolia, still in all its glory while its cousins were dropping all their petals.

 

 

My absolute favourites though, were the tulips.  We didn’t see them like this before, that’s for sure.

 

 

Whether they are parrot tulips in an urn with happy-faced violets underneath…

 

 

…or striking lily-flowered tulips (I’m guessing that this is the type they are because the lily-flowered ones love to open out in the sun), underplanted with white forget-me-nots…

 

 

… or peony-like ones, perfect against the blue forget-me-nots…

 

 

…or stately single tulips with wallflowers…

 

 

… I cannot get enough of them.  Love tulips.

 

 

Making me happy…

The first week of the school holidays has passed in a bit of a blur but it has been good to have No2 at home, even if all he does is sleep, play Xbox and grunt in reply to any attempted conversation.

For the first two days I looked after my two nephews and niece and I have to confess to being stunned at a period of quietness in the house only to discover they were playing… wait for it… a BOARD GAME!  Shock! Horror! No machines!

I have been able to spend 2 days writing and our book progress is steady, thanks to some self-discipline.  It means that I haven’t been able to spend as much time sewing or doing the other things that my busy hands usually like to do but s-l-o-w-l-y I have been making a quilt for my sister.

 

 

Putting together my quilt sandwich was made a whole lot easier after getting some clamps to hold it together on my kitchen table.  Crawling about on my hands and knees on the floor (usually with a nosy four-legged friend with a waggy tail helping getting in the way) was too much for my aching back.

 

(is it just me, or does this clamp remind you of an albatross?!)

As ever, I can’t wait to sew the binding on – maybe this weekend.

 

 

There are other projects in the pipeline too and this wonderful roll-up finally made it onto my work table after spotting it in a little quilt shop in Warwick a couple of weeks ago.

 

 

Look at that saturated colour.  I’d love to have a go at making one of these.

 

 

My front garden continues to make me very happy indeed.

 

 

And with that, I’m off out in the garden.  My back is already grumbling about the digging…

Zoom…

I always forget, so am pleasantly surprised, when I realise that for the months of February and March, if you pay by direct debit, you don’t have to pay for your monthly council tax bill.  Living in London, it is my highest monthly bill, so to get a reprieve is a real bonus.

 

:: baby blue tit ::

So… having a bit of spare cash and spotting a very good deal on Amazon (33% off) I treated myself to a new lens for my camera and I am LOVING it.

 

 

I don’t know all the technical terms for photography (yet… one day… ) but I know that I can get some great shots of the birds visiting the feeders in the garden:

 

 

 

Or helping themselves to the new buds on the blossom tree:

 

 

 

Some nicely captured sunlight on acid green new leaves:

 

 

 

And some more (!) shots of the white blossom at the bottom of the garden:

 

 

Spring…

What a difference a bit of sunshine makes.

 

 

All of a sudden, there is colour to be found in the garden.

 

 

I am so glad I planted more tulips last autumn.  The first ones to flower in the front garden are Christmas Exotic and they are putting on quite a show.

 

 

 

 

Other things that have been making me happy over the last couple of days:

Baby great tits cheeping from the nesting boxes.

 

 

Finding a clump of wild garlic at the bottom of the border. A mystery as I did try to grow some last year in the greenhouse but nothing came of it…

 

 

And, of course, white blossom against beautiful blue sky.

 

 

Yes, we like sitting in the garden.  It is easy to find contentment out there, in the warmth of the sun, and try to take on board the way life is taking us.