Hopefully

I’m in, on, and functioning at home. We think we’ve sussed the issue with blogger, and hopefully have sorted it.

Son in law next door, an I.T.  man has previously set up some extra security after hubbys’ run in with a fake Screwfix site which caused all manner of issues. However I do wish to read your lovely ramblings so he’s adjusted a setting that must have popped up after an update run in the background which has been causing the issues, and was trying to protect us from free hosted web sites. Thank goodness for a tech member of the extended household as I’d never have worked it out!

Autumns’ chill has finally arrived and we’re enjoying heat from the woodburner in the evening for heat, and not just for look! In fact the beginning of the storm appears to have begun outside and I can see plants getting whipped about and hear the wind whistling in rather a menacing fashion.

Bother, as I need to go out a little later, my osteopath appointment which I am mildly dreading after last week when the necessary crunching sounds would not materialise. I think I have a better understanding of how my upper back and shoulders have come to be in such a knotted state, it came to me the other night when I could not sleep. As I have been getting the pain my lovely colleagues have taken the slack and offered to be hands on with the patients and I be dirty nurse and do the write-up. Unfortunately in doing this I fear now I have been adding to my woes as the chair I sit on in one clinic will not rise up to the correct height, so in effect I have been doing a lot of typing with my shoulders and upper back taking on a lot of strain. I will be taking a cushion with me to sit on tomorrow and only time will tell if this has indeed been the case. 

Anyway enough doom and gloom, I have become a Grandma again after son and lovely daughter in law became parents to a baby boy. Luckily for him his big sister is smitten!

Our little hog friend is still visiting, although I have stopped leaving out food since after the rain we have had there are lots more slugs and snails which probably are the best thing for them to be eating really.I need to put the camera out again as it remains on the kitchen worktop since I charged the batteries at the weekend.

Here he/she is just before squeezing through the fence into daughter’s garden!

Right, day moving swiftly on and some jobs at least need doing.

I fully intend to light the fire later and have a good bloggy catchup!

Blessings J. x

Still Locked Out of Blogland

Hey…over here, I am here really, but I cannot see you, well I can see the first few lines of your posts, but still cannot click on them to open them successfully.

One day I noticed I could open my own page, but sadly I am rendered invalid again at the moment. All rather frustrating, whatever is going on?

So here I am, ensconced inside with two little boys, an early lunch of cheese and onion toasties has just been enjoyed and now the youngest is fast asleep. His cousin needs a sleep too but is a real fighter! Fun times Grandma.

If youngest wasn't spread eagled out on the sofa I think I could quite possibly be tempted myself.

So has anything exciting happened it this little corner of Blogland, not really, I have managed to turn out one of the chest freezers, youngest daughter’s dog has fared quite well from that! She cooks up veg for her and adds it to meat.

The patio is feeling a little sorry for itself, having several heaps of cuttings and pullings which should have been cleared away but haven’t been for one reason and another.

I may have mentioned having had a poorly back since around March time, well lately it seems to have migrated to my shoulders, especially the left one. It really is quite the something. I should have had an occupational health appointment last week, however it was cancelled, shame they didn’t let me know of the cancellation. I think I’m going to have to seek some help privately. £££ I can see the money leaving my account in swathes.

We have been seeing some hedgehogs in our garden with the help of a trail camera…

There have been at least three different ones we think. It’ll soon be time for them to hibernate and both us and our daughter next door have made houses for them though whether they’ll stay in them remains to be seen.

Anyway, I hope to be back in the land of seeing blog posts soon…hopefully, this really is not on Blogger!

Blessings J. x

Can’t Access My or Your Posts

Well Blogger, you’ve really gone and done it now. I have unfortunately been unable to access my past blogs or your pages. No idea how to fix this, no idea if this will even post.

Is anyone else getting issues, I can see comments when I click on the comment side bar but am unable to replay to any.

What an inconvenience!

Stay safe everyone.

Blessings, J. x

Didn’t We Do Well!

Just a quickie update after my last post.

Hubby entered in the fruit and vegetable classes and did very well indeed, nabbing prizes for all classes except potatoes, and that may have been down to me as I only picked out 3 instead of the required 6…oops, well he could have done it himself,, except he couldn’t as he was too busy helping out! Nearly forgot to mention, I came second (to my eldest daughter) in the Cottage loaf class, that was the only cookery I entered. A couple of prizes for photos and that was me done this year. Guess what, I didn’t take a single picture. Oh and hubby entered the companion set he made for us in the metalwork. Prizes all round too!

I’m happy to report that I successfully enticed hubby away from the event long enough for us to watch another local carnival, well not the carnival so much as the massed pipes and drums they have afterwards. If you want a look, try facebook for Bideford Carnival Massed Pipes and Drums.

Currently debating whether I should have lit a fire, however I’ll soon be off to bed and no it’s not really cold, it would just look nice and cosy.

Anyway, it’s a work night so I’d better be off up the little wooden hill as they say.

Blessings J. x

Summers’ End

Well, we’re well on our way to Autumn now, and I fear those long hot days of sunshine will soon be but a distant memory. OK some were a little too hot for me, but with the warm wind we kept getting it dried the washing beautifully. Less happy were the garden plants, some have not survived, and we have now pulled out much of the wild Crocosmia from under the fruit trees along with some tall shallow rooted Daisies that did not agree with the dry heat one little bit. Now the fruit trees are more mature it’s time to change up to Spring bulbs and some Cyclamen in order to be able to see fallen fruits. A few Honeysuckle plants have also outgrown their welcome, honestly the amount of pruning and pullings taken from our garden has been enormous! 

It’s been a mixed bag for us in other ways, some happiness, some sadness and a lot of keeping on keeping on the work merry go round. I now travel to the bigger town which is further away for many of my shifts, unfortunately this town is quite famous for its bad traffic. I’d dearly love to be able to drop a day, however the mortgage rate rise imminent for us will be a bitter and quite large pill to swallow financially, and I don’t yet know if we could manage, well we would, but my wage pops into the account reliably each month whereas hubby’s is from self employment so has to rely on me getting bills out timely and the customers being able to pay promptly. Catch 22 really. Anyway for now I am trying to put aside the amount each month I would lose by dropping a day and seeing how doable it is in real life.

I’ve been adjusting to life without Wilbur in it, Kitty also kept going out at bedtime to look for him I feel, she never asked to go outside after supper before we lost him, though I did let her see him after the accident.

We have entered a couple local carnivals as The Darling Bus Of May, to promote the Ploughing Match, which is happening as I type this, I have been without hubby each evening the past week as he helped get things ready, eldest daughter and I have not long returned from the venue with produce, cooking  and crafts for the accompanying show. I cut back my entries drastically this year. Although I took the last two days off I have been anxious to preserve some of our garden produce. The larger softer pears have been canned in syrup, one batch of the smaller harder ones also. Tomatoes blitzed and frozen. Runner beans have been dreadful this year, though hubby did still enter them along with the other veg, we’re not expecting high hopes for anything…I’ll add results later! After all if I don’t make time now to write a few lines I fear I never shall. Anyway I digress, the carnival float consisted of orchard scene with grandchildren sat around a table, lots of food and daughters as Mariette and Primrose, eldest daughters’  hubby as Charlie, youngest daughters hubby would rather die than do something so raucous in public, but was happy to support from the sidelines! Hubby was the Brigadier and drove his tractor, I was Edith, anyway the cute factor had people oohing and aching, until they saw behind the screen…Mom & Pop Larkin in the bath! (Friends and Secretary & Committee member of said association), who both deserve bravery medals!! It got lots of laughs and publicity for the Ploughing Match.

The lower photos of of my extravagant purchase, after looking at said pumpkin candle for ages I told myself I did not need it, it was money for nothing and continued on round the store finishing getting what I needed, only to return later and pick it up anyway..it has proven useful, the living room having no damp course begins to smell and feel a little damp this time of year, the fragrance has improved things so it was not after all money for nothing! Well it’s a good enough excuse anyway.

So until later when I return to the show I need to get a little skiddadle on…it felt quite chilly and damp at the show ground an I was glad to be home with a hot cup of tea in my paws.                                               

Blessings, J. x

Absolute Bliss

I have a few days off, and oh it’s so lovely…yesterday we (me and the caveman), ventured across the border into North Cornwall. A trip on the Launceston Steam Train was enjoyed, then back to Homeleigh Garden Centre where we had a generous voucher to spend. And spend we did! 

I have been gardening this morning, and have actually just cut back the lovely (well it was), Coreopsis from under a Plum tree as it was past its best and rather mildewed. It only seems a few days ago I took a picture of it in its’ glory. Aah well, such is gardening.

In the cooler air of the late evening I have been cutting back some not worth their space Honeysuckle plants, one was smothering a Lilac, and another a Pear tree. Though we love Honeysuckle, these plants were just scrubby imitations of our other Honeysuckle plants which are flowering beautifully and well worth keeping.

I’m afraid to say, actually no I’m not, it’s a mere fact, that I have not picked up a duster yet at all this week, nobody has died that I know of, and so I may yet continue in this ilk for the rest of the week.

The wee ones will be breaking up from school next week, so I expect the Atlantic will have something to say on that matter as it quite often does.

One of the littlest boys had just finished podding some of Grumpys’ peas the other weekend, when he disappeared. The little monkey then set about screaming rather alarmingly and gagging. It was a bit of a to do all be said. We quickly discovered he had found a Lords and Ladies plant tucked away behind their Bay tree, and nibbled a berry, obviously thinking he’d found some more peas. Anyway after a night in hospital he seems as good as new. Luckily the berries were green and not red. Initially I was reluctant to remove all our Lords and Ladies plants as I would rather he learn not to pick and eat things willy nilly, however they began to turn red and we really had quite a few of them so they have been pulled and consigned to the bonfire, I’m sure they will re grow next year, and hopefully by then he will have a little more sense. Then again, he is a boy, and has some very silly ideas sometimes. 

And sigh…

 I’ll explain another day!

This morning has been fun, alas self employment jobs wait for no one so this afternoon I’ll find some shade and tap tap away.

Blessings, J. x

The Ironing Pile

Yes, I’ve found something in my life more neglected than this little space!

It sits upon the worktop and stares menacingly at me each time I enter the kitchen. Don’t get me wrong, I do iron regularly, but the bottom of that pile is getting rather past it’s sell by date, perhaps I’ll turn it upside down soon and maybe feel much better about it!

I have however managed to have a good sort out of the pantry cupboard, which incidentally used to be a wardrobe. Having purchased a couple of stick down pull out drawer inserts life has been transformed. Who knew you could lose 4 bags of icing sugar in a cupboard…no, me neither, but it has obviously been entirely possible because I am the proud owner of 5!

Last two top shelves to go…a job for the coming weekend…such a treat.

Anyway who wants to be inside ironing or pantry sorting when the weather is at its glorious best. I spend quite enough time indoors working so every opportunity to be out when home I’m going to grab with both hands.

The garden, well, nature’s good right, I am rather relaxed about the whole thing, hubby would prefer rows and regimented, but I like the floppy about almost overgrown look.

And so from a triplet Dahlia to some rather flattened wild flowers, and a Clematis having far too much fun, some of the garden at the moment, not perfect by a long shot, but home.

Blessings, J. x