Best made plans of mice and men . . .

 I had planned to go to the Quilt Festival at Malvern this week - today in fact.  Then I read that the new Covid variant (F.L.i.R.T.) is really taking off and it didn't seem like a good idea, as Keith is so vulnerable.  I decided not to go. Disappointment is so common here, I can cope with it easily.  There will be another time.  So I am buying fabrics on line - I'm at the planning stage of Gabby's Christmas present, as she has asked for a new quilt.  She's not keen on the traditional patchwork patterns, so I am trying to find something that might appeal to her.  A simple zigzag is a possible, and there's a triangles one which would be nice (but all those points!)  I just want something trouble free!  I was planning to see Tam and Rosie on Saturday, but have a very slight cold (and "I" is unfortunately coughing) so that is probably off too.  Tam is desperate for a nap as Rosie being very demanding and won't sleep in her cot in the day.

Triangles:

This couldn't be simpler - just two dark/light strips sewn together . . .  What could possibly go wrong?!!! Favourite so far.

Bars - a bit boring after doing the curtains, but it would be quickish.  This is my least favourite option.

More bars - and I prefer the layout.  This would be simple too, and as I have ordered a jelly roll of fabric, I could scoot through this as well.  Not too "patchworky" looking for Gabs.

Here's a rag doll I definitely WON'T be making - I should think it would scare most kids witless!  Gives ME the creeps!  It was in a copy of Primitive Quilts magazine I have. 

A useful Alphabets in x-stitch book I treated myself to this week - many of the themed letters could be used individually as a gift.

I had a walk up to my friend Chris's yesterday, and made a fuss of her horses and Whippets, and a cup of tea, and came home relaxed.    Now Keith has wound me up good and proper, as he needs a-b's again but won't let me order them as he knows he will have to have thickened drinks then . . .  The replacement air mattress is too hard and his pressure sores worsening.  D. Nurse coming out tomorrow but I think I need some advice today.  Off for a walk . . .

No internet again

 It kept falling out last week and then died completely on Friday.  Fortunately Openreach DID come and fix it this morning and so we are back in the land of the living again, just in time to check out beautiful photos of wee Rosie having found her smile!  I wish I could share, but Tam doesn't want me to share without asking.  You will have to make do with a photo of Pippi instead.  She was hiding in here because Shadow was lurking.  Normally it's no holds barred if she or Lulu spot him . . .  They absolutely LOATHE and detest him.

The sunshine has been wonderful but definitely too hot for me when I visited Wigmore Castle on Saturday.  It was quite a plod (uphill much of it) from where you have to park at the village hall.  On the way I recognized a house we had had sale details for, many years back now.  It was lovely but right by a main road, so that struck it off the possibles immediately.  We still had to wait many years to sell anyway, because of being next to the Dairy Farm. Here it is.

A lovely house.

I'll do a write up about Wigmore Castle tomorrow.

Itchy sewing fingers . . .

 

My dear friend Gay sent me this book 30 years ago, when my kids were small.  I never did get around to making it, but when I found it in my craft book stash recently, my fingers began to itch to get to work on it.  Hope to start the central block today.  When I went to the dentist in Llandovery yesterday, I found some pretty fabrics in the wool/patchwork shop there, which will suit. The narrow bias binding is for mending the ties on a duvet - I'll need to zigzag stitch down the middle to hold the strips together.  

I gave myself a lunch treat after the dentist - I had three tiny fillings replaced which were by the gums so as long gas I didn't eat on that side, I could eat straight away.  I had a good sausage roll and lovely raspberry and white chocolate muffin from the bakery there, and bought a lovely crusty brown Harvest loaf - so tasty.  How people eat this cheap white sliced pap is beyond me.

Despite the dentist appt, it almost seemed like a day out - it's about 25 miles away, and the route goes through hill country and the road has a beautiful woodland-edging.  It was so good to see all the trees (bar the Ash) sporting leaves in varying hues of green.  When I used to walk up our old valley along the Cothi, the view across to the wooded slopes there showed as 50 shades of green in May.  I even saw a Hare - first I've seen since we first moved to Wales, so they aren't that common.  Last week I saw a Curlew up on the Eppynts, and that was a joy too - it was right beside the road.  The Swifts have arrived, and have been flying above our hill, feeding, and on occasion, shrieking too. The sound of summer.

I was busy in the garden at 6 a.m. yesterday.  I woke early and went out to work before it got hot.  I got a few more boughten plants in, did lots of weeding, and am trying to reclaim the edges of the area at the top of the garden which is covered in large golden gravel and now totally reclaimed by Foxgloves, so I am going to add other boughten plants here and make it into another bed.  First the Tormentil, Buttercups, Plantain and Nettles had to go though!  Not to mention the foot or so of grass which had colonised the edges.  Photos later.

Today I am going to sort out the raised beds and put fresh compost and farmyard manure in them to top them up and then get the bean poles and runner beans in. That gives me some more room in the greenhouse to get some tall perennial seeds started - some of the ones I gave Tam for Christmas which came from Old Bladbean Stud gardens.  If you have Facebook, do look them up. They put up daily photographs throughout the summer. The plantings are amazing - such a beautiful garden and all done from scratch.  I need to pot on various things in the greenhouse too.  

Keith is struggling with the Air bed as it is so hard and he says making his bedsores worse.  SALT are coming again today and he will trial the Tablet-style way of communicating.  Since having pneumonia, his speech is a huge struggle for him, sadly.

The Officious One from the OT team has decreed Keith is not allowed to use their shower board (across the bath) as she deems him too much of a risk (this on seeing him once and NOT using it at the time!) and has also demanded the toilet support be taken away too - lest we be tempted to use that as well, instead of the commode. She got right up my nose (and Keith's) when we met her and if she never darkens our doors again, it will be too soon.  You can do without people like that.  Fortunately the other professionals we have met are more facilitating and helpful.  We have NEVER had a problem using the shower board - there are two of us to help Keith if he needs it, and he only "stands up", supported by Danny, just a few inches off of it so I can wash his nether regions (sorry if TMI).  They told me, we could buy our own, so we have . . .  Obviously worried about being sued . . .

Right, off to the raised beds . . .

The day my son really became a man . .

 . . . by having to get to grips with 3 interconnected blocked drains.  One had fat in it (NOT me - I always scrupulously wipe any fat off before washing pan or tray), but the others were not draining at all and overflowing onto the stones.  He had to take the cover off the front reservoir (not done this before).  Full to the gunnels, and bits of forgotten-and-then-washed paper hankies and then rod it.  He had it wonderfully empty and clean - but there is still a blockage and drain-away is slow after the washing machine's been in use or someone's had a shower . . .

I, meanwhile, managed to get three plants in.  One, which I bought yesterday, was a well-grown Borage.  That went in the little square of lawn up the steps from our front yard.  I had to edge the grass along there (all the lawn needs edging, come to that) and take out a swerve of lawn which didn't look right.  More to do in that area (edging and weeding).  Then I went up on the bank and dug mightily where Danny had removed two Willow saplings.  This area had been where the bridge into the house had been (to the Door to Nowhere) and there was rubble in the soil, which made digging a deepish hole for the Vinca a struggle.  Then I began weeding away from it and have a LOT to do up there.  The Peony I planted earlier has started showing growth, so that has become established.  

It will grow . . .

Then it was time to get to grips with digging a home for my new rose, a rambler called Blush Noisette which is a repeat flowerer with a lovely musk rose perfume.  That was my proper TREAT (David Austin £32.99), along with some bedding plants (Antirrhinum, Verbena and 10 week Stocks).  I spent a lot at the garden centre (it was the expensive one) but I had to go there as they don't sell trellis at Penybont.  I bought 2 more sacks of good compost, a big sack of bark chippings, 2 expanding willow trellises for growing Clematis up, and a huge pot of Growmore.  Most of the spend was on essentials.

I hope you all had a good Bank Holiday weekend - or just weekend if you aren't in UK.

Now for a "day of rest!"

 Which means once I've unpacked, I will be gardening.  However, I do intend to go to the Garden Centre as I need trellising for a couple of Clematis.  I  am going to buy another rose - possibly a rambler - to go outside the gate against the Ivy Wall.  I worked jolly hard over the weekend - my stall was BIG and it was hard to be at both ends at once, when customers were clamouring for attention.  Saturday was VERY busy indeed - an worthwhile.  I wore a mask all day and am wearing a mask when up in Keith's room, just in case.  The Nigerian Bau currency bracelets finally found a home with a lovely Swiss gentleman.  He said he was about to go off down to the New Forest where he had a time share apartment (not a good investment because of the grounds maintenance charges).  We talked about the places I knew (give my love to the Rhinefield Ornamental Drive I told him) and after he had gone, more memories of childhood "drives out" on a Sunday came to mind.

Then yesterday another customer began talking about the New Forest and to my horror I felt my eyes well up with tears and I had to turn away for a moment.  They are filling up again now just thinking of those happy carefree days.

Here's a photo of part of my stand, to give you an idea (yes, "old friends" there, but some of them went to new homes this weekend).  

I am doing a little gardening before Keith has a shower and then I will have to unload the car before I can go anywhere. 

Shadow-cat (Emma's pussum) has had a happy pill, dug another hole in the bottom step stair carpet (beyond redemption now) and was desperate to come out.  He walked confidently into the Library and then across to the far end, not noticing that Lulu was sat on a chair.  She gave a low growl, he growled back but laid down!  She shut up, she had the advantage of height and they both knew it :) and he then hid beneath the little settle in there.  He's been upstairs since, now come back down again.  Perhaps the combination of having a beating from Pippi last week and the happy pill (it's based on mother cat milk) have knocked some sense into him.

Back later with photos of Wot I have Dun in the garden . . .

Galloping through . . .

 I am sat here surrounded by stickers, labels, unopened letters, a glass display case and stock, and eating my pancake and strawberries breakfast (thanks Danny).  I went on a foray into the attic yesterday - oh my goodness, more boxes of pre-Covid stock that I have no room for on my stand - but I did liberate a carrier bag of old horsey book illustrations (hunting and point to pointing and some floral ones) which I bought in 1979 (horsey ones) and which I had intended to get framed and never did.  Time to pass them on.  Such things cost 25p in those days - coloured ones 50p.  Pretty well all by Lionel Edwards.  I shall probably be bringing them all home with me! 

No chance to visit the bluebell woods at Crickhowell this year . . .

I have been busy repricing old stock, needing to clear it, and will do "good deals" on everything.  The weather is looking rainy today and a chance of some sunshine and being drier tomorrow.  Currently contemplating the quick buff up with Briwax of a "Penny Chair"* which has turned up at the back of the stables.  Don't need it . . . (*One with a round seat).

I'll try and get some photos of my stand to include later.

I like an adventure!

 Time is at a premium here.  I really WILL try and answer recent comments (I did start) but life has been so hectic.  Yesterday I had phone call to Dr, from Dr, visit from District Nurse, OT's, trip to Hospital in the morning (my blemish ISN'T skin cancer or even anything to worry about at all, thank heavens), two school runs, trip to surgery to pick up prescription, then to Boots, then to Co-op and I rounded the day off nicely with a trip to Carmarthen and back in the evening to pick up Emma as Danny's car still at garage.  Of course, the problem it has isn't covered by the 1 year warranty . . .

Then I had a message from Tam, on Weds (it is now 5 a.m. Weds and I can't sleep - another 3 hours short on sleeping), could I go to Brecon to pick up a rug she'd bought?  Turns out it's at a holiday cottage in the middle of blardy nowhere, TRULY, between the river Usk and the Eppynts.  Oh I'll have great fun finding that as I don't have a satnav. . .  At least I have followed the last few miles on Google Earth - single track (barely) lane and I have a Brecon Beacons map.  It's the time as much as anything as I am still TRYING to prepare for the Fair and Gabby is here tomorrow, but I shall rope her in.

Danny is picking up the slack on Keith's care but I hate not being here for him. 

So, if everything goes very quiet on here - I can't post at weekend, sorry - don't worry.  I am just turning myself inside out!  Back to bed now, with a lovely dawn chorus to lull me off (I hope)