Muddy hands and a smile on my face.

 I was finally able to get out in the garden today.  A tiny bit of sunshine (though that soon faded), and no rain.  I started clearing the long perennials border, and finally got the last of the Alliums planted, without needing a snorkel to do so!  I pruned my tall Bathsheba rose and when Danny & co got home, he helped me lower the wooden obelisk into place whilst I fed the rose up into it.  Just one broken branch.  Earlier I had moved the metal support from Bathsheba and put it up on the bank around Jude the Obscure.

We have since struggled mightily with a solid wood (Birch) Victorian chest of drawers, trying to get it upstairs, but no luck.  TWICE Pippi insisted on "helping", and nearly got crushed between it and the wall, as we didn't notice her slip past us.  Little horror - trying to extricate her was a struggle too.  Anyway, we couldn't turn it on the half landing so it had to come back downstairs again and is now in the kitchen, and my old Arts & Crafts sewing table has gone up into "I" 's bedroom.  I ideally need to sell it anyway . . .  If only I had that Unit . . . but no word.  I will phone on Monday.  

OK, Lizzy D asked about my Arts and Crafts sewing table, so here it is.  I bought it from auction a good few years ago, and it was our phone table in the hall at Ynyswen or many years.  The central bit lifts up and you can put your threads etc in it when sewing.  Originally it may have had the sewing machine set in that area.  It's solid oak and I just  love the X on the bottom.

Below is the lovely Birch Victorian chest of drawers we laboured to get up the stairs - and failed.  It divides the room in two anyway (it's an L-shaped room).  I'm going to get some pine colour Briwax tomorrow at Malvern to make it pretty again.  

        I will be early to bed tonight, as I have a 5 a.m. start in the morning.  Weather doesn't look too bad at Malvern but it will be cold to start with.

        Some more quilt blocks sewn today.  They work up quickly if I have no interruptions, but sadly there are plenty of those, one way and another.  That's when mistakes get made!  I have to watch the white fabric, as I've got it back to front a couple of times as it's a white on white pattern!

        Danny & Co have really gotten into life in Builth, and "I" goes swimming (starts lessons next week) each week and Danny has Gym membership.  They have joint swimming membership too.  "I"  has joined the Library and goes to the Lego club weekly too, and tonight they've all gone to the Cinema and we're all having fish and chips for tea tonight for a change. Someone recommended the best pub for Danny to check out the music in and there is also a mother and toddler group to join.  I should be able to go to talks with the Local History Society again too - stopped after having Covid, and then Keith had to go up to bed before the talks ended.  I may join a patchwork group in Garth too, now I have "cover".  

        Hope you are all enjoying your weekend.

Finally cracked it

 

It's not as dark a pink as it looks on the right.  I have tried to make the hand-stitching of the central picture as invisible as possible.  A little bit of perfectionist-Jennie coming out.  NOW I can carry on, especially as the 5" pink blocks I bought from Ebay arrived today.  Pretty they are - though some of them I definitely wouldn't use in this quilt as the wrong designs.

Just in case my Chocolate Cosmos has perished, I bought another and to make it better value for money (two for £5), I bought the Dahlia too.

I was hoping to share a photo I took of  steps planted up SO beautifully on a Gardening Magics site on Instagram.  I have JUST the steps, though perhaps they have not sufficient light.  Will have to give it a whirl and see what grows.  Oh, I bought seeds today too, when Emma and I were in the Health Food Shop in Llandod - an outside Cucumber Tanja, and Tomato Green Zebra.  Can't wait to get things started in my greenhouse now.  Praying that when the glass comes in a week's time, it is UNBROKEN. 

Tomorrow I am off to the garden centre to see if they still have big ceramic planters half price (hope so), as Keith gave me some money to treat myself.  Rain seems to be replacing the threatened snow.

Scrambled eggs and blueberries . . .

 This is what Keith nearly got for breakfast this morning!  He normally has porridge but I had egg yolks to use up today, so did him scrambled eggs, and as they were cooking, put his bowl in to heat, with two spoonfuls of cooked blueberries - for porridge.  Fortunately I noticed before combining the two!

A sort of Log Cabin star spotted in one of my quilting mags recently.  I think I will pass on this one . . .

I am glad to say Keith is slowly recovering from his Covid jab, which always stops his medications working properly and makes mobility a  real struggle.  Without Danny here, I don't know how I would have coped as he had to practically carry him part of the way to bed.  

Dan's just gone off into a filthy wet pitch black night to drive all the way to Carmarthen and back to pick up Emma.  His first real test of night-time driving, so I won't rest until they are safely home.  He got "I" fed and into bed before he went and she was soundo when I popped up just now.

"I" was good today, a little blip about 2 p.m. but she was missing her mum and went up with Danny for a bit and sat on the bed with some of her books and then we did some dinosaur jigsaws together.  I have been up to my ears in washing - still getting through their hoard of stored clothing which was smelling musty from the damp flat they had.  Oh my goodness, I'd forgotten how long it takes to straighten up and hang out eleventy-dozen tiny socks - not one of them seemingly a pair!

The sewing machine has now decided to play up. Tension problems, but I'd just put a freshly-loaded bobbin in, so suspect it's to do with that.  Will have a look in the morning.  Too tired tonight.

I had a brainwave about the centre patches for the quilt and have ordered some 5" blocks in pretty pink prints from Ebay.  I will use those to make standardising the size simple, and then applique the central design in place. 

Meanwhile, off to rest and make the most of a quiet evening.  We will soon establish a routine and I am happy to balance a couple of days of childcare against the support I am having from Danny and Emma.  

A full-on Day!!

 E is working a couple of days and of course D works from home, so I have been in Granny mode today - doing jigsaws with "I" this morning, and we baked this afternoon.  I can guarantee nothing keeps a 4 year old more absorbed than letting it loose with sprinkles and small  tubes of rainbow icing! We made Cat's Tongues - I got D a vintage 12 bay eclair  tray for Christmas - we used to make Cat's Tongues together when he was young, and now "I" is enjoying doing the same!  He and Emma bought me a lovely book of cat-themed baking recipes last year, and this recipe was in there, but we didn't put paws and whiskers on them - just melted some chocolate and then "I" decorated them as I washed up.

I had thawed out a tub of stewed apple last week and it needed using, so I cracked on and made our favourite Apple Gingerbread cake.

Now I am absolutely weary - she's been as good as gold but giving a child all your attention for 9 hours is hard going when you've had a break of a good few years!! Tomorrow we have a re-run, without baking!  It's just a temporary situation until E can set up her business here.  D is brilliant with the little one - he never had anything to do with any children until he and E met.  He has taken to being the father figure like a duck to water.  We're very proud of him.  It helps that E has brought her daughter up nicely - she has her melt-downs, as do all little ones when they are tired, but has always been good here.  D's just put her to bed with a story and peace and quiet reigns.

The forecast is for heavy snow on Thursday night, so I am going to add a few essentials in a quick shop before then.  Don't want to run out of milk or cat bics. Plus Pippi's had a bit of an upset tummy so I've got some stuff from the vet - which she hates and I have to plaster it round her chops!  I will get a change of cat food for her as got some mixed recipe Felix and I think it was that that affected her.  

Forget the quilt - sewed one block this morning - spotted a huge error - so more unpicking and I will get back to it when I am not looking after "I"!!

Free massage . . .

 Emma has just given me a treatment on my back and shoulders.  Oh my goodness - my shoulder muscles had been tied in knots so long, and were popping when she massaged me.  It's what she's done for a living and has trained long and hard for, plus being a Yoga Teacher, and doing various other Holistic treatments like Indian Head Massage etc.  She treated my stiff hips and sciatic problems too and I have to say, that felt as bad as childbirth as she has to press near the nerve!  Now I MUST get back to my Yoga again and walk more and further.   I have been told to drink lots of water to help prevent tomorrow's soreness in the muscles.

First two block attempts - top one unpicked as it was an inch taller than it was wide.

Below, a rehash with a Peter Rabbit pic, and the central block now measures accurately, though looking closely I can see the right hand strip next to Peter widens at the bottom.  Will have to remeasure and unpick half a strip and resew.  It's been 3 years since I've sewn anything.  Need to get my brain on the ball again.

T & J  will be here in an hour or so, as their short break is over.  I'm looking to finding out which churches they visited.  I need to wash my hair and have lunch, what an exciting prospect!

Need to get my brain back . . .

 

Leave a box around, however small, and it's a cat magnet . . . isn't it Pippi?

. . . It's gone walkabout.  Not helped by having to get figures  and details for means testing form for Council - great fun that was! Then I need a technical rethink on the quilt blocks.  i.e. I need to make a little window template for the centre of the block as each of the little designs is different.  Don't think I can use the thinner ones at all due to the spacing of the designs on the fabric. . . . . attempt one aborted.  Plan B . . .

I could go for a walk to clear my head, except my legs don't want to work AT ALL.  D, E & I sampling the delights of Llandod.  Keith reading the paper and feeling a bit Lurch because he had his Covid jab yesterday.  It's affected his balance of course, but at least he has coverage for a few months now.

On the positive side the 2nd pair of shoes (new) I ordered from Ebay arrived this morning.  They are Hotter Instinct and cost me about £16 inc postage (instead of £59).  Good around the house shoes and short walks in summer.  I love the memory foam inserts.

A relief that if I need help with Keith, I have it now, and I am looking forward to an afternoon off soon.  I think I shall go to the Priory at Abergavenny and look at the Jesse Tree again.  Perhaps go and have some lunch there too (I NEVER do that -just grab a boughten sandwich/meal deal.)  

Have a lovely weekend all.

I need to be cloned

Pippi choosing quilt fabrics for me . . .

 T & J are here tonight - hurray- a pit-stop on their way to a short pre-baby break in Herefordshire, in a quirky place with character.  I am envious.  Oh how I wish I could have a break, but no chance.  I treated myself to a book about Devon Churches last week - I am still trying to work my way through it but there aren't enough hours in the day.  The daily paper seems to get read the day after it's been printed now, books - well, a couple of pages at bedtime if I can stay awake long enough. My family history mag might take me a week to get through. I've been trying to fill out the form for carers for the last fortnight, and keep getting stuck having to go and search for the necessary paperwork and figures they require (it's means-tested). I hear about folk who work in the morning, and then the rest of the day is theirs.  I always seem to have worked all day!!!

 

I have been fielding phone calls from various NHS departments, who wish to help Keith with his infirmities, which is wonderful, but all the phone calls and appointments take up time, especially the ones going to Llandod - perish the thought about the Hereford ones, which seem to take all day.  

One mealtime here seems to drift into the next one and afternoon is the only time I might have some "free" time.  I made a start on a crawler quilt for the baby yesterday - just a test patch to see if what I had in mind would work.  Just as well I tested it as I realized the central block (it's a log cabin) was taller than it was wide but I hadn't noticed that and of course it was "out" at the end. Many of the other motifs for the central design were wider so I will have to make myself a "window" to centre the pattern up before I cut.  I can see once Danny & co are home, I shall have to set the alarm so I can get up early each morning to work on it before everything gets extra busy.

Looking smug!!

I have a very stressed cat guest upstairs too - he smells our cats and becomes SO anxious, not helped by the fact he is in a strange house and his people have disappeared (they're back from Pembrokeshire tomorrow). Yesterday Pippi managed to get past me and up the stairs and straight into his room, where he was in instant kill mode and I had to fling him on the bed as I made a leap to rescue Pippi.  That reduced my nerves to shreds.  Last night, when I came to bed he came into my bedroom and I made a fuss of him, but then he was sniffing around the bed, and his tail was whipping from side to side and at one point he looked at me and a subterranean growl came from him and I could tell he was about to have me.  Since I was divulged of my clothing at that point, on the way to bed, I swiftly grabbed my dressing gown as I knew I would come off very much the worse if he launched himself at me!  He settled down next to me later, purring and then went off to his room, but today I have ordered a Feliway plug in and some drops which smell like the mother's milk and calm anxiety.  Let's hope they work - and quickly.  I have also ordered a medium size pet playpen, a sort of cat-tent.  So if he needs to be contained, he might feel safer in there?  He's a big lad and the last thing I want is a set-to between cats (Ghengis, Pippi or Lulu wouldn't stand a chance).  I cannot prevent our cats going upstairs once D &  co are back, as "I" will be upstairs and downstairs and doors left open.

I am still working on the form (will get Tam to help tonight, as she's good with that sort of thing), and I managed to somehow bake Chocolate Raspberry Brownies (procedure a bit at a time as I did other things like hanging another load of washing up and did washing up). Keith has some for pudding through the week.  I even got outside and topped up/filled the outside planters (staggered across the yard with the one I had to fill, the only ceramic one too!) and they finally have some spring bulbs very belatedly put in.  Just two lots of big Alliums to put in the main long bed now. I hauled out grass around an overlooked rose on the bank and gave it a good tub of muck heap.  Many more to see to though, and prune.

Right, now to finish making the curry for T&J tonight (I began it after breakfast but didn't add the cooked meat - that soon reduces to shreds so I want to put it in once the sauce is heated up then minimal cooking.  Don't know what I am eating.  I seem to be on 2 meals a day now (breakfast becomes lunch) and have got into the 10st something region again.  Need to lose a couple of stone more, ideally. 

So good to hear from Danette this morning - your call cheered me up no end!