A difficult weekend

Morning everyone.

It has been a difficult weekend.  My MIL was rushed into hospital on Saturday.  Yesterday she had surgery my husband was told that the risks were high. She did make it through but is in intensive care at the moment.  We are all hoping and praying she makes a good and speedy recovery.

Helenxx

Early on a Monday Morning

Good morning everyone - well, here we are at the beginning of a new week.  I was up very bright and early this morning (5.30am!) and decided to hang the washing out as it was already very sunny (quite nippy though).  And as I walked in and out of the house with the washing I looked up and spotted the moon - well, how could I not grab my camera?!

The sky is so clear this morning, and with the zoom on full throttle I could even spot the craters on the moon's surface - and yes, I was Moonstruck!!

A few other things caught my eye in the garden too, I had bought a few plants at the Open Gardens event on Saturday... a pot of basil...

Liquorice mint - quite unusual flavour but very refreshing...

and a Sedum plant - we used to call these Ice Plants, due to the sparkly appearance when water droplets catch on the leaves - the butterflies love the pink flowers in the Autumn when these are at their best...

Can you spot the bee busy amongst these blossoms?

And finally I couldn't help taking this photo of our olive tree, branches swaying against the blue sky - could almost imagine that I was in Spain...

Well, must away as the household is starting to stir, and there is a long, busy week ahead.  Hope you have a great Monday!

Helenxx

In English Country Gardens

Morning everyone, hope you are having a lovely weekend.

Yesterday, my bestest and our DDs went along to an Open Garden Afternoon in one of our local villages in the Charnwood Forest.  I usually miss the event due to this and that, but this year things worked out just perfectly.  The weather was super, sunny, warm but not too hot - just as well really as we walked a lot and it was very hilly in places! There were plant sales, and one house opened up it's garden as an impromptu café - the lady there made delicious cakes, Sue and I had pineapple fruit cake and our daughters had the rich chocolate cake - very scrummy indeed.

So, on to the gardens but I must give Due Warning - this will be a very photo heavy post!

The first garden we visited was owned by a sweet couple who had founded the Open Gardens Event almost 30 years ago...

This sweet little chap kept an eye on the proceedings...

The next garden was long and narrow and full of the most lovely things...

And of course, everywhere we visited there were wonderful flowers...

I was delighted to find that one lovely old cottage on one of our walking routes was open to visit - we often peek over the hedge and say "wouldn't it be lovely to visit that garden?"

Summer fruit and vegetables...

flowers, birdhouses and lanterns decorates the borders...

All in all, it was a lovely afternoon.  At the moment we are in the middle of a major "re-furb" of our garden, we have built a new shed and have almost finished replacing the fences.  So now we are almost ready to start planting anew, although there are some old shrubs to be tackled before that can happen.  But looking around these beautifully tended gardens certainly was inspirational, and gave some food for thought!

Hope you get some time to spend in your garden today!

Helenxx

At the Grand Old House

Morning everyone, the sun is shining (so far) it is very breezy, so the washing is looking as if it will dry nice and quickly on the line.  A common thread of this little blog is the hectic work life I lead.  And last week was very much in the same vein.  I had been very busy preparing to deliver a review and planning day for the project I lead.  Lots of data to analyse and present.  Powerpoint to do.  Group activities to plan.  Important guests accepted the invitation.  You get the picture.  I was really excited and looking forward to it, but also quite nervous too - what if I wasted a whole day of the guest's time?  What if it came across as a bit, well, amateurish?  What if I had a question I couldn't answer?  And where to hold the event? 

 

Those who have followed my ramblings writings for a while will probably have seen some photos of what I call the Grand Old House, which is set in beautiful grounds near to where I live.  It is used to hold teacher training events, conferences etc.  How pleased was I when my boss told me to book a conference room there for the day!!!!

 

The room we used was the one behind the window on the right of this photo of the façade...

Looking out of the window, once I had set everything up with the help of my wonderful assistant, I surveyed the sweeping drive that leads up to the hall...

I jokingly said that I wished I was the Lady of the Manor!!

The hall is a local landmark, only available to be visited on a couple of guided tours per year, or by booking one of the monthly Sunday lunches they hold there.  I could recommend that as each time I go there (and this week was no exception) the food is fabulous and the service meticulous.  The hall is a Victorian building, owned by a local family, until it was requisitioned in the Second World War by the government.  It then became one of several listening posts feeding into Bletchley Park. Much of the old outbuildings, air raid shelters etc are preserved for local school children to visit.  A lovely time of year to be there on a conference is near Christmas time, when there is a huge Christmas tree in the hallway and if any school children are there visiting the teachers usher them to sing carols to us at coffee break.

Thankfully the day went better than I dared have hoped for, everyone fully participated, no unanswerable questions were asked and everyone declared it a thorough success - phew!

So this morning I am taking things a bit steadily, but hopefully out later with my bestest, and both of our DD's to a local event.

Have a lovely Saturday, Helenxx

The British Quilt and Stitch Village 2015

Hello everyone.  I was going through my photo album on my phone and suddenly realised that I hadn't posted about the trip my bestest friend Sue and I made to the Quilt and Stich Village at the end of April - so, better late than never...

 

 

It is held at Uttoxeter Race course, the weather was lovely...

 

 

The standard of entries to the embroidery competition was higher than ever...

 

 

Had to include a football theme here ;)...

 

 

Loved the colours used on this piece...

But the real reason for our trip was to see Sue's entries...aren't they amazing...

A crown to mark the reign of Queen Elizabeth II and a clock, the skill and hours of work that went into these cannot be truly measured...

She very deservedly won first prize in two categories!!  Well done Sue, I am so pleased that your beautiful work has won recognition for the second year in a row. 

We also had the chance to stock up on some craft supplies, there is a really nice collection of stalls with lots of goodies on offer.  I really look forward to attending this show, I have been to each one so far.

Hope you are having a lovely week!

Helenxx