And Very Briefly......

 

Hello everyone,

Just popping in to give a brief summary of today`s happenings.

1)  My `cold` is more like laryngitis and my voice is gradually leaving me, apart from an increased capacity for coughing I`ve been almost silent all day...lol!!

2)  A parakeet returned to the Magnolia to eat almost half the contents of a bird feeder, greedy feathered creature!

3)  There are a pair of blue tits in the nesting box on our garden wall. It`s taken four years for it to be put to use but better late than never.

4)  Roman is STILL calling me Sandra, despite our distracting him and chanting Nanna, Nanna , Nanna hoping that he`ll copy us.  No such luck, he just laughs and shouts `Sandra!` at the top of his voice...I give up!

That`s all for now, I`ll leave you with a photo of Little Man with his new `hat` on. :o)

 

`The beauty of life is, while we cannot undo what is done,
we can see it, understand it, learn from it and change.
So that every new moment is spent not in regret, guilt, fear or anger,
but in wisdom, understanding and love.`

Jennifer Edwards

 

 

 

The Morning After The Night Before

Hello everyone,

Welcome to a miserable wet Sunday afternoon. We`ve had so much rain just lately that I`m surprised that we haven`t yet been washed away. Surely there can`t be much more left to fall on us.  It`s even more miserable because I DID`NT go out last night after all, I was just too tired and nauseated and I had to cancel at the eleventh hour and very disappointed I am too. I had got as far as the end of the road when I told Jim I just wasn`t able to go through with it and we turned back home again. I still made him go however as I wanted him to enjoy it even if I couldn`t.  And he did too, I hear I missed a great evening though I would secretly have felt better if it hadn`t...lol!  Oh well, it couldn`t be helped so I watched Dancing on Ice on TV then I watched two episodes of Waking The Dead which I really enjoyed, then it was to bed with my book and I was asleep by 11.30....Jim was home by 2.30 so I definitely made the right decision, I could never have stayed the course the way I feel at the moment. AND for good measure I have the beginnings of a cold and I`m coughing and sneezing already...huh...just what I need!

 Last night Danny and Slava had a night out with friends in Leicester Square, London. They went to a nightclub there and wer`n`t home until about 4 this morning. At the moment Dan is in bed nursing a king-sized hangover....I feel no sympathy as it was self-inflicted.  What a hard hearted mother I am...lol!

I actually felt a lot better this morning which was good because I had a basket of iron to tackle, though Jim DID iron his own t-shirts, all seven of them.  I`d rather have done the t-shirts and left the rest of the ironing to him...lol!  Have any of you seen that TV advert about the mushrooms, stilton cheese and Palma ham?  Well I decidied to have a go at making them and even if I say so myself they were delicious. For those of you who don`t know what I`m talking about you take a large mushroom, place a large slice of stilton cheese on the top, wrap it up in a slice of Parma ham, stick it in the oven and there you have it, a nice starter or a light lunch. Why not give it a try, it`s very tasty.

 The little chaffinch who has been visiting my garden brought along Mrs chaffinch today though she didn`t stay as long as he did because she didn`t seem to be quite as hungry.  Also I saw a goldfinch for the first time in my garden, or at least the first time I`ve seen one that is. Jim says it would be interesting if we had a video camera set up in the tree to see which birds visit and when.

 I think I just heard out son and heir stirring, or was it moaning?  I`m not too sure...lol!  Either way I have to get the dinner on now so I`m say farewell to you all.  Enjoy what`s left of your Suday and I hope to be back during the week. :o)

 

"The greatest achievement is selflessness.
The greatest worth is self-mastery.
The greatest quality is seeking to serve others.
The greatest precept is continual awareness.
The greatest medicine is the emptiness of everything.
The greatest action is not conforming with the worlds ways.
The greatest magic is transmuting the passions.
The greatest generosity is non-attachment.
The greatest goodness is a peaceful mind.
The greatest patience is humility.
The greatest effort is not concerned with results.
The greatest meditation is a mind that lets go.
The greatest wisdom is seeing through appearances."

Atisha

 

An Explaination

 

Hello everyone,

I was going to do an entry today but after the comments you left yesterday I thought I`d explain further. The Indian ring-necked parakeets DO live wild and are most certianly not anyone`s missing pets so please don`t worry.  They originally hail from a part of India where in Winter it gets very cold indeed so our English winters don`t bother them at all.  One reason that I read about was that they were used for a film in Shepperton studios in the 40`s or 50`s, then released into the wild to fend for themselves, whether it`s true or not I`m really not sure.  What I do know is that they`ve formed several large colonies in the London area and have migrated South East to Kent where my SIL now lives.  They nest in nearby Upton Park where we often walk Jake and they are unfazed at having their photo taken at close quarters. Jim has spoken to a local woman who said they visit her garden quite often though we haven`t had a visit ourselves...until yesterday that is.  Like I said I hope they come back again, they make a dull day seem bright with their red beaks and bright green plummage.  They seem not to have any serious preditors because they are larger than the average British bird, except of course for crows etc. who DO chase them away but are unlikely to catch them because they fly very fast.  Talking of birds, this morning Jim called me to the window and there on the bird table was a little chaffinch, he has been visiting us for about a week now but is very shy and hasn`t stayed very long so far.  He`s obviously decided it`s ok to stay longer and eat as much as he can and he`s very welcome too.  Considering chaffinches are our most common finch they don`t visit gardens very often, at least not here in Berkshire.  Anyway my friends, I have to go, we`re going to a posh dinner and dance this evening and are leaving at 6.30, that leaves me just two and a half hours to get ready. NOT very long for a disorganised and pretty tired person like me...lol!  I hope you all have a great weekend. Bye Bye for now. :o)

 

I Don`t Believe it!

 

Look what I saw in the magnolia tree in my back garden.....three Indian ring-necked parakeets (the third is in the top right hand corner) , I couldn`t believe my eyes so I jumped out of the shower, grabbed a towel and my camera and took some photos.  I really hope they come back again. :o)

Deep in Thought..............

Hello everyone,

 I wanted to do a nice upbeat entry but the headache I`m nursing keeps reminding me of what happened yesterday.  Upbeat is NOT exactly what I`m feeling right now.  I decided a visit to the doctor was in order so I phoned the surgery but couldn`t get an appointment for another week, instead I had a visit to the practice nurse who listened to my symptoms, looked at my notes and then at my eyes and then told me I`m very anaemic.  Not just anaemic but that I must likely have pernicious anaemia, not something I really wanted to hear but there you are.  She took three lots of blood, gave me an ECG and a doctors appointment for next Thursday.  The thing is I`ve been feeling really tired recently, not that I was worried, we all get tired.  Then I started getting breathless after climbing the stairs, NOT something that has happened before, then there is the lost of taste and smell, the headaches, then the chest pains and that was it, I HAD to see someone as I knew something was wrong.  Anyway, I was told that Pernicious Anaemia was fatal up until the 1920`s before they discovered vitamin B12 controlled the condition, that was when the penny dropped.........I`d been given vitamin B12 injections in 2004, and very painful they were I might add!  The point is that my doctor should have had my blood tested 3 mths later to see if the levels were stable, she didn`t and now I might have some permanent damage because of it....I am not impressed I can tell you.  If it is Pernicious Anaemia I will have to have a course of injections every three months for the rest of my life, if it`s not I`ll have to have a lot more tests...I`ll find out next week so please think of me on Thursday 1st March, I must admit to being a bit nervous to say the least.

 Work has been ok though I think after the Summer I`ll be looking for another job.  I don`t think I fit in with the other staff as they`ve known each other for years and I`m still very much the intruder in their little clique. Everyone is polite but there is an atmosphere, I`m sure you know what I mean by that. Things may change but somehow I doubt it.

 This afternoon I went to Tesco straight from work to do the weekly shopping. Jim and I have this arrangement whereby he shops when he is on late shift and I shop when he is on earlies.  I really don`t mind but today I was exhausted and I forgot loads of things on the list he gave me...probably because of the way I`m feeling at the moment .  I did however buy.......wait for it...........an orchid in the sale for £3....I couldn`t resist it because although the existing flowers were dying off I could see a new shoot coming from one of the spikes.  Hmmm, they obviously don`t know very much about orchids or they would only sold it for half price, even then it would have been a bargain. When I got home and Jim saw the orchid he just laughed, he`s given up complaining about them....lol!

 Anyway, my friends, I will say goodbye and go and read some journals before it gets too late or I fall asleep on my keyboard, whichever comes first...lol! Good night.:o)

 

 

Saturday Snippets

Hello Everybody,

 Welcome to a bright and sunny Saturday, at least it was before it got dark...lol!  No really, it has been a lovely day, so nice in fact that my washing has dried on the line instead of in the tumble drier, it smells so nice and fresh after an outside airing.

 Kerry and Slava came round at 10 this morning to book all our flights for our visit to Russia in June, we had them all arranged in no time so that`s one less thing to worry about, now we have to apply for our visas but we can`t do that until May because they won`t issue them before that.  It`s going to be fun all five of us travelling together and Jim is going to see if we can be upgraded in business class, if not all of us at least me and Kerry can travel the four hours in comfort and we`ll let the men sit at the back...lol!

 With a house full this morning I didn`t get any housework done until this afternoon and didn`t have as much time in the garden as I`d hoped.  I did however find time to put together my new mini greenhouse that I bought yesterday, along with another orchid...yes I know....you don`t have to say a word. I think I have seven now, three resting and four in flower and  I have plans for another one when I get paid...lol!   The greenhouse is something I`ve wanted for some time, it`s only small but big enough for what I want it for and it didn`t cost very much.  It has five wide shelves that can be moved around depending on the plants you want to house in it.  I`ll be using it for my summer bedding plants to give them time to grow before I plant them out.  I have major plans for the garden this year and I intend to do it myself too. I`m in the perfect position to choose the right plants for the right place in my garden and I intend to take full advantage too.

  I was brushing Jake this afternoon when he gave me quite a shock. As I lifted up his chin to brush I noticed that his muzzle has turned really grey. How had I not noticed it before?  I suppose it`s just been a gradual process but he`s not four until March 12th.  Oh well, I suppose in human years he`s somewhere in his mid-twenties and Jim also started to go grey then...lol!

 I hope you like the new photos I took of Roman this morning and also the  two that Jim took yesterday.  This morning while Jim was sorting out the flights Roman followed me into the bedroom where I was drying my hair. He decided that he wanted to brush his own newly cut hair and disappeared with my blow dry brush.  He also took the phone off the hook and kept shouting `Hello`, and then disappeared with that too...lol!  Jake and Roman are best friends and follow each other around, when Jake isn`t there he always asks` Where`s Jake?`  At the moment Jim is his favourite person of all, even more than Mum or Dad and as for me, I`m not even Nanna anymore.....I`m Sandra!  The first thing Roman says when he arrives is `Grandad!` which is fine when he`s on early shift and home in the afternoon, but when he`s on lates like this week I have to give him a guided tour of the house so he realises that he`s not in the house. That means, cupboards, wardrobes and even the fridge freezer....lol!  He`s so grown up now he`s hardly a baby at all...bless him.

  Now I have to say goodbye and go and read some journals. I don`t want to get too far behind or I`ll never catch up with your news.  I hope you`re all having a great weekend, take care and Cheerio for now. :o)

 

 

A Lovely Valentine`s Day

Hello Everyone,

Welcome to a lovely sunny day. Maybe we`re in for an early spring, I really hope so.  We`ve been quite busy at work this week, the nicer weather has brought the customers in for their Spring plants and bulbs, also it`s the time to sow seeds for flowers and vegetables so it`ll get really busy before too long.  It`s so nice to see the flowers ready for the new season and the customers are giving me lots of ideas for my own planting and I can`t wait to get started, even though there`s a lot of work to do out there. Jim bought me a climbing red rose for Valentines Day, so thoughtful and just what I wanted.  It`s highly fragranced and flowers over and over again and I can`t wait to seeing it start to grow, it`s just well pruned sticks at the moment and certainly not much to look at. I also bought a Sarcococca, a plant I`d never heard of before but it has the most divine scent from it`s tiny white flowers. It also has beautiful glossy dark green leaves, and if it does well I`ll buy a couple more as I adore scented flowers.

                               

Jim and I bought each other Valentine cards and I gave him some Thorntons chocolate hearts. We don`t usually buy presents but as I said he bought me the rose which was a lovely surprise, something that he never fails to do. This morning when walking Jake in Black Park he collected some rotten wood compost from the woodland floor so I can use it for planting the Sarcococca, now that was a very thoughtful thing to do. How many other men do you know that would bring home a bag of compost for their wives....lol!

                                

Last weekend Danny`s girlfriend Salina has gone away with her family to visit family on the other side of the world, she`ll be gone a month and Danny is missing her already.  He`s been unwell since Sunday, some sort of virus I think, and went back to work today despite not feeling 100%. I asked him to stay home but he said he`d rather keep busy, he`s a bit like his dad in that respect, `a good work ethic` as my late dad used to call it.  Not listening to Mother is what I call it...lol!

                                      

Our roof is now repaired, not by a roofer or a handy man, no it was Jim and his mate Steve who did it between them. They went up in the loft and fitted the tile back in place...it took then just five minutes and saved Jim £50. That was on Sunday afternoon and that evening and the whole of Monday it poured with rain, that what I call good timing.  Anyway, I must run now. Kerry will be here with Roman any minute now.  I hope you`ve all had lovely Valentines cards and maybe even pressies. Bye for now. :o)

 

What Lurks Inside The Fridge!

Hello Everyone,

Welcome to a dull and dreary Saturday morning. What a miserable day it is too, the snow has all but disappeared ( we had loads of it on Thursday) and what`s left is grey and slushy. If only the sun would show it`s face, it might seem a much more cheerful day.

 Like I said, on Thursday morning we woke up to find that a blanket of snow had fallen overnight making everything bright and cheery, until of course I had to drive to work and that changed things a little. I decided to clear the snow from my car with a house broom and it took me all of a couple of mins. My neighbours on the other hand were using little ice scrapers and it seemed to take them forever, that`s men for you, forever impractical.  I know, I know, you can`t all be that bad...lol!  After a slow crawl into work I drove into the car park and it was more like a ski slope. My poor little car went everywhere apart from where I was steering it. Eventually I brought it to a halt and hoped and prayed that I`d be able to drive away again when I finished at 2pm.  I think in the course of the day I served just four customers who were brave enough to venture out. I can`t for the life of me imagine what one would need from a garden centre that can`t wait until the roads were safer, it certainly wasn`t a day any sane person would be gardening. I did manage to drive out though it wasn`t very easy and I must admit to being tempted to do a `wheelie` or two in the snow. I thought better of it in case I got stuck and couldn`t get out again, with my luck that would happen!

 Jim`s cold has gone and I think I haven`t caught it either, my throat was a bit scratchy but nothing came of it so I think I managed to miss out again.  I mentioned on Wednesday that I hadn`t seen the rat, well I still haven`t but I think Jake has. Each morning when I let him out he runs behind the shed and barks frantically. When I call him inside he`s very reluctant t come in again, not like him at all. I know he`s found something but I`ve no desire to investigate, I`ll leave that to Jim....that is man`s work...lol!

 This morning I did my usual Saturday morning housework and decided it was time I gave the fridge an extra clean. I always thought I cleaned everything well but I had a shock coming. As I took one of the shelves apart I couldn`t believe the dirt that had got inside it, worse than that it smelled awful.  I took the whole fridge apart and scrubbed and cleaned everything twice. I even used cotton buds to get into the most awkward places to make sure I didn`t miss the tiniest bit. Once verythig was clean, dry and back in place I felt so much better. I realise now it must have been where some milk had been spilled and not cleared away properly, though I wonder why there was no smell until I took the edges off the shelf.   Also it`s a wonder none of us has had food poisoning.....

 I`ve been waiting for a roofer to come and fix the tile this morning, the other bloke didn`t get back to us so he couldn`t have needed the work that badly. This new one hasn`t come either and I`m wondering does anyone want to fix it for us. Jim would do it hiself but he doesn`t have the right ladders for the job. I just hope the roof doesn`t leak with the rain and snow that we`ve had. Jim has fixed it temporarily but it won`t hold forever.

 Jim`s at a fishing show today and goodness knows what rubbish he`ll bring home. He doesn`t need any more fishing gear but you can bet he`ll find something he just has to have...a bit like me and my new jacket I suppose...lol! The only difference being that my jacket was expensive and it doesn`t take up too much room. One day I`ll take all his gear and sell it as a job lot on eBay, I`d make a fortune...lol!

I`ve just noticed a cheeky little robin on the bird table outside my kitchen window. He`s been visiting for over a week nowand he seems almost tame. He looks right at me then carries on eating as if I`m not there. I think he must like me because after he`s finished eating he sits in a nearby tree and sings his little heart out. That`s what I call singing for your supper...lol!

 Anyway, that`s it from me for today. I have lots of journals to read today so I`d better get on with it.  Have a great weekend. :o)