Fourty eight hours of much needed sunshine...

Since the clocks changed we've tried to get out for a walk most days, 

even though some of the days it has been very cold. 

The sunshine at the weekend was not to be wasted.

 We started with a walk, setting off from our house, we walked to the canal.

 Having our first chippy picnic of the year.

 Great excitement- a real life ugly duckling. 

Reuben and Rosanna love the ugly duckling since seeing the story on cbeebies. The Northern ballet company are touring the country with the show, sadly the shows near us are sold out, but we may try and catch the show later in the year. There are also some great resources to go with the ugly duckling story on the bbc website.

 

 On we walked to the country park.

 

 smart walking attire

 

 time to play by the stream

 The orange colouration on the rocks is from the old mines.

 On to the reservoir

Feeding time for the owls at Wigfield farm.

 

 Back home for birthday cake.

 Sunday we were brave and ventured into the garden to tackle the weeds.

 These are flower beds, there is no lawned areas in the garden, 

but this doesn't stop weedy grass sprouting up everywhere.

 

 

 This year we are putting down weed guard to divide the vegetable beds.

 

Rosanna and Geoff plant some plodders (broad beans).

 Finished off with a bonfire and a tub of Ben & Jerry phish food ice cream.

Looking forward to more Sunny days.

First camping trip of 2013!

I find weekends tricky. On one hand I want to spend time with Geoff and the kids, but at the same time it's nice to have time by myself. We had a family day out to Edale on Saturday and then on Sunday Geoff took the kids up to the big garden. Off they went with the tent, sleeping bags, cream crackers, jam, chestnuts and other random bits and bobs. It was several hours before I saw them again...

 making toast

 Enjoying toast

cooking chestnuts and bananas wrapped in foil.

 Geoff had saved some old lead from when we had the kitchen roof done,
they used the footpump to intensify the fire and melted the lead.  When the raked it out of the ashes it was shiny again!

The good thing about camping in the garden, you can come back into the warm house when it gets cold.

The good life?

After several months of neglect the garden was in a bad state. We've been busy doing jobs in the house, so jobs that should have been done in the garden through Autumn and winter got left.
When we finally ventured into the over grown wilderness, we really didn't know where to begin!
We both thought we could no longer continue with the garden,
but after a cup of tea, and a wonder around the garden, the tools came out and we started weeding here and there.

And after an hours weeding a day, for the past ten days, I've just about weeded the first bed. I've been digging up the grass and weeds and re-planting tubers and bulbs.
My favourite pretty pink flowers!
Geoff has started on the veg patches, potatoes are chitting in the conservatory

and young cucumber plants!
Can you remember our hens, Lady Gaga, Posh, Katie Price. Well, just before Christmas it turned very windy, so Geoff, put the hens in the poly tunnel.
and that's the last time we saw the hens!
Would have made a great headline for the News of the world!
A fox took all the hens in one go. But it didn't stop there it returned many time, ripping many holes in the poly tunnel :(
So hopefully soon, our garden will look like this again,
and we'll be well fed again!

So the good life is good, not perfect, but good!

Although I do know of one family, where the good life is perfect...

Perfectly well behaved children
well behaved pets
and perfectly cooked eggs.

Sometimes I wish my address was 5302 Grande Mansion, Playmobil World, but thankfully not that often!

xxx

Good Morning Garden

by Geoff and Rosanna

Most mornings Rosanna gets me up at about 6.30 am

and before I even get a chance for a cup of tea

she is organising my shoes and her coat ready for a trip up the garden.

As we climb up the steps we find that everything is covered in gold!

We fill up the chicken feeder

which hangs up in the polytunnel overnight to avoid attracting rats.

Then we say 'morning' to the hens.

Sometimes we go into the run for a bit

and Rosie points to the hens in turn

for me to pick them up so she can give them a stroke.

We check for any early eggs then go round and check the vegetables.

Maybe cut a few sticks of rhubarb for yet another delicious crumble.

Is the new grape vine making any progress?

I've been advised not to let it fruit this year so it spreads more quickly

but I'm not sure if I can resist leaving a few.

Runner beans ready to plant out but why are the top leaves on the tomatoes curling up?

A peep over into the field to see if the horses are about:

Hmm maybe I'll pop over later and collect some fresh horse manure

to speed up the compost heaps.

There isn't usually time to play

but Daddy has to make a quick check of the water butts system:

Rain please so I can set up all the syphons!

and admire his handiwork on the gate as we head back to make the porridge.

Not much manure left to shift but plenty of reclaimed bricks for future projects.

Dandelions, dandelions and more dandelions.

Today we hit the garden for a spot of weeding, almost 2 hours later I had cleared a small patch!
I've been trying to do some weeding each week, it's usually on a Sunday afternoon. A couple of hours in the garden and I feel so chilled and fully revived for the following week. But suddenly the Dandelions have taken off in a big way. I'm sure that for every dandelion I remove, ten more grow!

 But it's not all doom and gloom in the garden, so much it's sprouting and we have loads of Spring flowers too.

 Onion sets

 Veg patch and Rhubarb. We have so much Rhubarb, we are eating it every day!

 Gooseberry bushes

 View from the top of the garden into the horses field.

Isn't Springtime FAB!