Where Does The Time Go?!

I see that I last wrote a Blog Post on the 21st March, and here we are, almost at the end of April.....my goodness, time passes so much more quickly than it used to.  I suppose it must be because everyone seems to lead such busy lives these days.  I’m sure I’m not the only one that would just like to hold back time. So if that Magic Geni with the lamp suddenly appeared in front of me, that would certainly be one of my three wishes. My second wish would be for my mum and dad to return just for a moment in time, so that I could ask them all the questions I never got round to asking when they were still alive - and my third wish?  It would have to be that all my little family would have healthy and contented lives.

I’ve decided to post a few photos of my garden today - all these photos were taken in the last couple of weeks, and you can see that it has suddenly burst into life once again.  Am I the only one to feel really thankful at the start of each new Season?  Thankful that I am still here to see new life appearing everywhere and to take in the beauty of the garden at this time of year.

One thing is for sure - life is very fragile and precious.  You only have to look at the atrocity that occurred in Sri Lanka 🇱🇰 on Easter Sunday.  Easter Sunday of all days.  But then that is why that day was chosen by the terrorists, to cause maximum death and bloodshed with so many people attending  Church Services.  Of course, they also targeted the tourists, which has happened so many times before, elsewhere in the world. Families sitting down for breakfast, and in an instant, half of the family was blown away. These attacks are always indiscriminate- no-one is immune.  I’m thinking here of the Billionaire who lost three of his teenage children.  Wouldn’t he give away every penny, just to be able to hold his children in his arms again?  How do families recover from such terrible losses?  It just doesn’t bear thinking about, does it?

That’s why I always say “I love you” to my children and grandchildren, whenever I see them, or whenever I message them.  You can never say it too often and you can never love them enough.  Never.

I hope you have enjoyed the little snapshot of my garden today, and I’ll be in touch again soon.  Look after yourselves,  wherever you are reading this.

This last image courtesy of Pinterest.com

Whisper it quietly ......

Hallo again everyone!  Yes, whisper it very quietly, but we are in the final week of January.  Yay, I’m doing a happy dance here in deepest Devon.  So on Friday, we will be entering the month of February, and already the mornings and evenings are starting to get a tad lighter.  Primroses are in the garden, and lots of bulbs are peeping through already. My winter flowering pansies are still putting on a good show, but we have been pretty fortunate, in that we have only had a couple of frosty mornings so far.  I have a yellow camellia with around 40 buds on it, so I’m really hoping that we don’t suddenly get a hard frost.  Daffodils are now on sale in the shops, which I always think are a real sign of the Spring yet to come.  This photo was taken last year.  It really is like having a little bowl of sunshine in the house.

I realise that there could  well be people reading this, whose Season might be completely the reverse of what we have over here in England.  It’s a funny old world, isn’t it?!  Even here in the UK, the weather can vary tremendously.  I live right down in the South West of England, next to Cornwall, and Devon and Cornwall are amongst the mildest Counties in the Country.  Our flowers are always a few weeks ahead of everyone else.  

Oh! My life has changed somewhat since I last wrote a Blog Post.  I have a little puppy, and he is the cutest little thing.  I have only had him for six days, but he has settled in so well, and is such a good little pup.  This is a completely new experience for me - I was avidly reading a puppy handbook before he arrived, but, really, SO FAR (!), it has been much better than I could have hoped for.  He is a Cavapoo, and a cross between a King Charles Spaniel and a toy poodle, so he will only be a small dog.  But then, I am only a small person, so we will fit together nicely!  I can’t wait until I can take him out to the beach!  At the moment, he can only go in the garden, until he has had all his injections.  Anyway, here he is! 

Who could not love that cute little face?!

Well, I’ll leave you again for now, hoping that all is well in your little corner of the world.  See you again soon!

I love reading, and have done so since I was a little girl.  I’m sure many of you also love settling down with a good book.  Anyway, I came across this quote on Pinterest, and thought it was rather lovely, so decided to share it with you here today ....

Sunday Snaps...

(The above image is courtesy of Pinterest.com - all other images are my own).

Many moons ago, on my Blog, I used to run a feature called Sunday Snaps, so I thought I would share a few photos that I’ve taken during the past week

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You might notice that I snuck a little Sunday morning treat in with my fresh fruit this morning - and why not?!  It’s looking quite Mediterranean out there, isn’t it, as this wonderful Summer continues, with long days full of unbroken sunshine ☀️ and balmy evenings. It’s certainly going to be a shock to the system when it all ends!

One of the things that is a big plus for me, is that I haven’t had to cut the grass for ages. Usually, at this time of the year, I’m cutting it every five days. 

Mind you, the children break up from school for their six week Summer break at the end of this week, and that’s not usually a good omen, weather wise, if past years are anything to go by. 

Interestingly, the timing of the Summer school  holiday has existed since the 19th Century here in England,  and it is thought that it was so that the children could help in the fields at Harvest time!  Obviously, mechanisation has come a long way since then, and I’m sure many parents (and children) would like the holidays to be a bit earlier, when the days are at their longest. After all, by the beginning of September, the days are really starting to draw in again. 

I’ll close for now with a couple of latest photos of my family, who are such a blessing to me. Look after yourselves and I’ll drop in again soon. 

I’ve finally changed the Featured Post - you might be interested to see our narrow roads here in heavenly Devon!  Just click on the link at the top of the right hand sidebar. 

Garden Colours....

Here in heavenly Devon, Spring is springing up all over the place, and the gardens are suddenly bursting with colour. In my own garden, the very first tulips are appearing - one of my favourite flowers. Yes, it's lovely to receive a bouquet of flowers from time to time, but, if I'm honest, a bunch of tulips will do it for me every time!  Yes, I'm a cheap kind of gal! 

 

 

It's strange, but at this wonderful time of the year, with new life appearing all around me, I sometimes find  that I can feel a little, I don't quite know how to describe it, but a bit under par, I suppose. 

I have a birthday in just a few weeks, and I've noticed that I can feel like this each year,  round about this time.  I spoke to a couple of friends, and it was interesting to hear that they also feel the same way just before their birthdays.  Hopefully I will feel brighter again once the month tips over into my Star sign of Aries, which will occur on the 21st March. 

I know that in certain parts of the world, the clocks have already gone forward an hour, with the promise of lighter evenings. Over here in the U.K. the clocks won't alter until the  26th March, which will also be Mothering Sunday (Mothers Day). 

 

 

 

Photos taken today at Saltram House, a wonderful National Trust property nearby. 

I'll say cheerio again for now, but will see you again soon.  I'll leave you with this little quote, courtesy of Pinterest.com

 

Sunday Solace

 

Image courtesy of Pinterest

Hello again! As I write this, there are only 17 days until Christmas Day. Maths was never my strong point, so you might like to double check that! 

 

Pleased to say, that I'm pretty well prepared. Just the turkey to get and the last minute veggies! The deccies are up, the tree decorated, and sparkling fairy lights everywhere. 

My lovely granddaughter is 22 today. Where did all those years go?  Why does time fly by so fast ?! 

Anyway, my feature for this Sunday Solace is called "Slow Dance" ....

"Have you ever watched kids on a merry-go-round,

or listened to rain slapping the ground?

Ever followed a butterfly's erratic flight,

or gazed at the sun fading into the night?

You better slow down, don't dance so fast.

Time is short, the music won't last. 

Do you run through each day on the fly?

When you ask "how are you?", do you hear the reply?

When the day is done, do you lie in your bed,

with the next hundred chores running through your head?

You better slow down, don't dance so fast.

Time is short, the music won't last.

Ever told your child, we'll do it tomorrow,

and in your haste, not see his sorrow?

Ever lost touch, let a friendship die,

Cause you never had time to call and say "Hi"?

You better slow down, don't dance so fast.

Time is short, the music won't last. 

When you run so fast to get somewhere,

you miss half the fun of getting there.

When you worry and hurry through your day,

it's like an unopened gift, thrown away. 

Life isn't a race, so take it slower,

hear the music before your song is over. 

Yesterday, here in heavenly Devon, we had a glorious, sunny day with clear blue skies, but we had the first frost of the season....

 

 

 

I really can't recommend Verbenas enough for any of you gardeners out there. These have been in flower for over four months, and they are still standing tall after the frost!

 

Thank you for dropping by - see you again soon 💖

Summer Colour In The Garden

Hello again. I can only hope that you enjoyed the first tour of my garden, as I now take you into Summer...

 

Quote courtesy of Pinterest.com

 

 

 

Years ago, I used to spend so much on bedding plants, but for a long time now, I have bought Perrenials which come up year after year. 

 

 

With the size of the garden, I decided to invest in a greenhouse about three years ago, and, really, it was such a good buy. All plants now are bought as tiny little plug plants and then re-potted until they are ready to go into the earth. 

 

 

You might have noticed little statues dotted around. I do like to have lots of little things of interest to catch the eye. If anything ever got rusty, I used to throw it away, but have you noticed when you visit Garden Centres and the like, 'rust' is all the rage now. So I hang on to them and, and find that I actually really like things that have an aged appearance. Bit like me really. Oh! Talking of moi....

 

I look very composed there, don't I?!  They say that the camera never lies, although these days with all the editing tools that are around, that's not quite true!  Anyway, I was bending down trying to take a Selfie whilst trying to get the garden in the right position behind me, when I fell into the plants! My glasses came off and I was ten minutes or so looking for them in amongst the foliage. But...ever the trooper...I managed to get my photo!

 

 

The following photo was taken in the early evening, as the sun was going behind the trees, and it was evening in the next photo as well. I have to say that I love catching the garden in this light. It is so much softer - I just love it!

 

 

Aren't the Lupins glorious?!  I was so pleased with them, as they were only put in earlier this year. As they faded, I took a lot of seeds, and new plants are coming along nicely in the greenhouse, even as we speak.

 

I think, and this is just my personal opinion, that I left the best photo to last. The above photo was taken at dusk and, to me, actually being there, it was absolutely magical. If a couple of little fairies had appeared, I wouldn't have been a bit surprised. The colours of the plants and the sky, the warmth of the air.... or was it the glass of wine in my hand ....  no, no, I'm kidding. There was no glass of wine - just me, nature, and one of those perfect balmy, Summer evenings. 

I do hope you'll pop over again on Sunday, for the second edition of Sunday Solace. Take care ....