Catch Up!

How are you all? It's been a while since I visited blog land I know and I have loads and loads of catching up to do! I've missed everyone and I'm going to have look at what you've all be up to. I've been kinda busy, enjoying the good summer we've finally had here in England, the tennis, the World Cup football and working on the house and garden.

Where do I start?

Well, the good weather has enabled us to start major work on the house, replacing all the windows. The middle window here has been knocked out to make way for a front door and porch.

Before fixing the porch Andy thought it would be a good idea to put the new window in above.

Here's the new window from the inside. It was relatively easy to fit and just slotted in to position. We didnt even have to take the curtains down!!
Next, a little old original window was re-fitted and this will be inside the porch to give a bit more light in the living room.

Here's the little window from the inside. The original, original windows with their leaded lights were tiny. It is hard to imagine how dark it must have been inside the house with windows this size.

The timber frame for the porch was then fitted and this will gradually be clad in the brick that took ages and ages for us to find to match the house but eventually we managed to get some from a reclamation yard. Only four more windows to replace now and then the front of the house will be finished. Hooray!!

Rufus has enjoyed the sunshine, playing in the paddling pool but as you can see, the hose goes everywhere except in the actual pool!

The kittens are really growing and one has even been re-homed already. We have found homes for them all and I'm having two and will pick them up on return from my holiday next week.

Aren't they cuties!

Finally, I couldn't go without showing you some of the garden. The roses, peonies and in fact, everything else has done really well this year despite the lack of rain.

I'm off my hols next week to Somerset. Hope you all have a fantastic weekend. See you later!

Susie X

Summer Days

First things first. Congratulations to Mami the winner of my giveaway. Your prize will be winging its way over to Japan very soon. I hope you like it!

Over at my parent’s house, look what we found in the barn! Five gorgeous little kitties!

There are two ginger, two tabby and one tortoiseshell.

Here’s mum. She doesn’t have a name. She is a stray who took it upon herself to visit every day during our horrible winter and of course, my mother took pity on her and started feeding her. She is still very nervous and won’t come in the house and it is difficult to get near her. She has made her home in one of the outbuildings at my parent’s house and that is where she had her kittens. She is gradually gaining our trust and becoming more confident and if you approach her carefully, will now let you stroke her. She is a really good mother and is doing well with her kittens and is very proud of them, purring away when you go to look at them. The kittens get cuter by the day and are just beginning to open their eyes. So far, we have found homes for four of them including mine!

My mum in her greenhouse getting all the geraniums ready to put out in the garden.

It has been a bit of a scorcher this weekend and about time too and with all the warm weather everthing is now beginning to flower in the garden.

This clematis is taking over the hedge that borders the garden but it does look very pretty.

You may remember, last year I bought some alium bulbs at Tatton Park Flower Show and here they are now just out in the flower border.

BBQ time. Making the most of the good weather, on Saturday I went to a BBQ at my brother's place.

Rufus was looking pretty cool in his shades!!

Getting the fire going.

How long does it take to put a two year old's swing together. Most of the afternoon in this case! Time for a cool off in the paddling pool I think!

Hope you all enjoy your your week and the sunshine.

Susie

Oteley Garden

I do so love having a nosey around other people's gardens, so on Sunday I visited Oteley in Ellesmere to have a look around. As it is only four miles from where I live it isn't exactly a treck but is only open for one day a year as part of the National Garden Scheme. The idea is that people can open their private gardens to the paying public and all the money raised goes to charity. Gardens of all shapes and sizes can enter but Oteley is a particularly grand example and certainly gives you lots of inspiration as you walk around.

The house has a huge walled kitchen garden full of vegetables and fruit trees. The spring cabbages are looking good at the moment and...

...the apples trees are in blossom, looking very pretty.

The garden also has a lot of rhododendron's in all colours. This pink one was particulary spectacular.

The one consolation about having such a cold May is that the cherry blossom is still out. Normally by now, it would have long finished but is still going strong.

If you go to the National Garden Scheme's website here you can put in your postcode and see if there are any gardens open near you.

By the way, there's still time to enter my giveaway by clicking here and leaving me a comment.

I hope you all enjoy the rest of your week.

Susie

Walking in the Hills and a Blogiversary Giveaway

Last weekend I decided to be a bit more energetic than usual and went walking on the Lond Mynd, which is part of the Shropshire hills. Long Mynd means Long Mountain.
The town of Church Stretton can be seen in the valley.

From the top you can look over the Shropshire plain.

On the horizon, if you looks closely, you can see a hill. This is the Wrekin and is supposed to have inspired J R R Tolkien to write Lord of the Rings and is said to be the original Mount Doom!

Now to my giveaway! It is twelve months since I started my blog, so to celebrate I am giving away some goodies. When I started my blog, I never thought I would have this many followers and have met so made so lovely people in blog land and this is my way of saying thank you.

On my recent trip to London I brought back some souvenirs. I am giving away this rather retro London landmarks oven glove and a really cute London bus key ring.

I am also giving away some seeds that I bought from the Victoria and Albert Museum.

The packet is a William Morris design which I think is really pretty. If you plant them you should end up with something that looks like an English summer meadow!!

All you have to do to win this group of goodies is leave me a comment.

Good Luck.

Susie