Wisteria Lane Has Come to The City..

Today, i am ill, i seemed to have caught a summer flu.. Yesterday i was ill and spent most of the day on the sofa sipping Beecham powders, But Monday i was lucky enougth to be able to go out and do a little shopping... I treated myself to a Wisteria plant, its in flower and its a lovely size so i was more than happy to take it home with me.. Its outside the Kitchen window where i hope it will cover the wall and bless me with the wonderful scent and image of this wonderful plant cascading around the kitchen window each Spring.. The weather seems to have got better and looks more like Late Spring out there, not much longer till its the height of summer and we can really enjoy the English countryside..

Like so many of you i was lucky to find the Cath Kidston freebie in the Easy Living Magazine, now I'm not really a fan of her work, but free tote shopping bag that's kinda pretty, that did it for me,love a bargain.. Anyhow, time to wake my boy up for school, do have a wonderful day and enjoy the weather...

Oh, before you go, i need some help.. I would like to invest in a sewing machine, but I'm not sure which one to get, i need one for a beginner and on a tight budget.. Your advice would be really appreciated...

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Brought this on DVD Friday and watched it yesterday evening and its an amazing film, the special effects are beautiful and i wished i could have climbed into the film and wandered this enchanted world.. Its a must for adults as well as children.
Have you seen the weather? Its raining AGAIN! The weather was beautiful yesterday and i thought at last the plants can get much needed sun and start to fill out, but no, Gaia thinks they are in need of more water...

My sister and i finally received out inheritance last week, its only taken them over a year to finalize things, considering they said 6 months at the most.. I don't think it helps when the solicitors are so far away and we have had to deal with matters via the phone, email and snail mail! I'm just glad its all over with now.. I never real knew my father, he left my mother when i was a small girl and she couldn't cope and put us into a home, eventually when i was 18 i met up with my father, but things never worked out and i never saw him again until i was 38..And what a disappointment that was, he was a nasty vindictive man and i choose not to have him in my life, so i was quite shocked and i little surprised that he had left his estate to my sister and i...Anyhow, on a lighter note, im off snail hunting, im sure they are loving the feast that awaits them... Have a wonderful Sunday..

To be inspired

You can check out more of this story here

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1278008/Woman-chops-4ft-9ins-dreadlocks-charity.html

Saw this article and it made me think of when my dreads were to my waist and i always said that when i cut i would do it for Comic Relief, unfortunately, i never and i just cut, now, when i think about it, i should have had more patience and earned some money for the charity.. They do say that we carry our essence within our hair and any negativity gets trapped, i think that's why we all feel a lot lighter when we do cut off our dreads, and I'm not just talking about the weight of them.

This lady had hers for 22 years, so she must feel so much fresher and freer, i know i did, and i only had mine 10 years. She will so miss them and it will take her some time to get used to them, but good on her... My hair is now almost as long as my dreads were and if i do choose to go short i will defiantly do it for charity..

More like winter....

Its cold and I'm sat here with a hot water bottle, mind you the fact that its that dreaded time of the month doesn't help matters.. Greys Anatomy's on and Sage is hanging out with friends... Kitties outside hoping to bag a mouse and Smudgers sat by my feet, i imagine hes trying to bag a bit of warmth as well.. May and its bloody freezing, i wonder if the volcanic ash has had an effect on the weather? I refuse to put the heating on though, iv got plenty of blankets and throws so they will get plenty of use as well as looking pretty on the sofas..So, how about you, is it cold where you are and are you like me and a lover of throws, who loves to snuggle under them on a dreary Sunday evening and catch up on your favorite TV shows?

In an English Country Garden....

So far....

Lettuces
Carrots
Spring Onions
Potatoes
Strawberries
Blueberries
French Beans
Chives
Cosmos
Cornflowers
Nasturtiums
A type of daisy that i can not remember the name

All the climbers so far that i planted to grow up and around the arches are doing well, the honeysuckle loves being in the shade and is thriving.. The white clematis is really rambling up the other arch while the pink one seems a little slower, but come next year there is going to be one beautiful show. The weathers been wet, wet, wet and this had brought out the slugs in their droves, not so many snails iv noticed so maybe theres a hedgehog feasting, wish the birds would do the same on them slugs. I'm still on the look out for some rambling roses but yet to find any that speak to me. Kittie brought in a catch the other day, a tiny little mouse, i was gutted as I'm sure its from the ones at the bottom of the garden, but then hes only doing what comes naturally, but it still a shame, nature is so cruel at times..Anyhow, the weekend is upon us yet again and we should be in the garden soaking up the Spring, but looking out the window and seeing the grey skies and the raindrops falling from the sky has put a dampener on that.. Whatever you choose to do and if your lucky enougth to see the sun, have a wonderful weekend....

A little taste of heaven...

Just a little something for my sofa now that the warmer weather is on its way, i still get a little chilly in the evenings and this is perfect to throw over my lap and snuggle down with Kittie..

The fight continues...

After smoking for almost 25 years and trying to give up on a number of occasions, i finally managed to succeed two years ago today. That's two years of NOT SMOKING!! Yay, i know that i will NEVER put a cigarette into my mouth ever again. Nasty, Nasty habit.. Yes, i have become one of those non smokers that really hates smoking, i hate the way it makes you smell after you have had one, and boy can i smell it now.. I look at the younger generation and i can not believe they still choose to smoke even after they know all about the dangers! Don't get me wrong there is a moment now and then that i do get a whiff of the smoke and think,i would love to have a puff, but i know that i will never do it... So today, I'm gonna congratulate myself and know that I'm truly a non smoker!

Beltane Blessings....

(Image from Google)

Beltaine (also known as Beltane and May Day) falls on 1st May with the evening of 30th April being known as Beltaine Eve or May Eve. It is an ancient fertility festival.

Beltaine is associated with the Celtic God, Bel (also known as Belenus and Balor). Bel is a God of light, fire and the Sun. Fires are an important custom at Beltaine and people would leap over them to ensure their fertility. Cattle were also driven through the ashes or between two fires to ensure a good milk yield.

The Beltaine fire was kindled with Birch twigs and much of the festival was spent with couples frolicking in the woods. A Maypole, representing the phallus and made from Birch wood was erected or was sometimes a living Birch tree and fertility dances were performed around it to ensure good health and abundant crops.

As at Samhain, the veil between our world and the Underworld is considered to be thin at this time and the spirits of our Ancestors can be contacted.

Read more: http://www.spiritofold.co.uk/magick/wheel/beltaine.htm#ixzz0mewYibDp

Blessings to you all, on this wonderful first day of May. The above information was for those that wondered what Beltane meant and where it came from...Personally i celebrate when i see the flowers open on the Hawthorn tree, dont ask me why i do iv always done it that way...

Iv recently come into some money, well i say recently, it was left to me a year ago and iv only just recieved the letter to say they will be releasing the funds as soon as i send back the paper work, so im looking to invest in a sewing machine.. I was wondering if any of you crafty women out there could advise me which one is the best one to get, regarding budget, performance and of course for someone who is a novice, i would really grateful for any advice...Im so tired today, for some reason iv been waking up in the wee hours of the morning and finding it really hard to go back to sleep, so this morning after tossing around in bed for a few hours i got up at the early time of 6, i know later i will creep back into my bed for a cat nap! LOL..The sun seems to be shining, so im going for a gentle potter around the garden.. Have a wonderful first day of May whatever you choose to do

Getting back into work is so hard

Iv joined another organisation that's supposed to help the lone parent back into work. I say another because this is the third one, and I'm hoping that this is third time lucky. It takes up a lot of my time job searching and they have advised me to go to a charity shop and volunteer, which i have done in the past, so i know what to expect. Iv decided to go to the one i like to frequent often to get my bargains, plus i like the ladies in there. So I'm off there in a mo to offer my services. Now this should look good on my CV. The fact that i already have many years in the retail trade doesn't seem to be helping to get me back into work, i seem to get about 3 interviews out of every 10 CV's sent! I'm sure its because i have not worked in the retail outlets for quite some time. My last job was working with animals and until i can afford a car, shop work is the next best thing. Wish me luck and have a wonderful day...

Non paying guests

It seems i have been chosen to accommodate these creatures this summer, but they are squatting right outside the backdoor and i cant have that so close to the house.. We have bees that nest at the side of the house and i refuse to move them due to their numbers dying out, but I'm afraid wasps are another matter, although i wont kill them i will have to get some stuff that deters them, any ideas?

A few years ago they were nesting in my compost bin and since that's at the bottom of the garden i left them to it, the nest was quite small when they left it but I'm sure that there were thousands in there..

Weathers not too great this morning, and we had some rain last night, fingers crossed the sun comes out to play later!

Forget-me-nots

Another wonderful bargain from EBay, can you believe i only paid 99p for my gingham curtains?, mind you i paid £6.95 for postage, but it was still a bargain... Especially when iv seen the same pair for £79.99...

Watching Gardner's world at the moment, missed it last night so watching it on demand, they are talking about long grasses at the moment and that's something iv got to buy for my cottage garden.. I managed to get some great plants at the market yesterday, but because we might get some more frosts I'm going to leave them in the greenhouse until the middle of May... Had to get some tomatoes plants as my seeds for some reason never germinated

Sage seems to be suffering from Hayfever this Spring and iv been told that if i bake some flapjacks with some local honey its suppossed to help with his snuffles.. Have a wonderful Saturday and if your lucky like me, enjoy your garden and the lovley weather..

St.George's Day

Who was St George?

St. George is the patron saint of England. His emblem, a red cross on a white background, is the flag of England, and part of the British flag. St George's emblem was adopted by Richard The Lion Heart and brought to England in the 12th century. The king's soldiers wore it on their tunics to avoid confusion in battle.

Earth Day April 22nd 2010

40th Anniversary of Earth Day, April 22, 2010....
Forty years after the first Earth Day, the world is in greater peril than ever. While climate change is the greatest challenge of our time, it also presents the greatest opportunity – an unprecedented opportunity to build a healthy, prosperous, clean energy economy now and for the future. For more information check out the website below and see where you can do your bit for Earth Day

http://www.earthday.net/earthday2010

It's my one weakness

Do you like my new lampshade? Ebay bargain at £5.50, but it took forever to get here.

Day Dreaming

This chair is to die for! And it can be found at Sweetpea and Willow the link is as follows www.http//sweetpeaandwillow.com

On another note, when i got up this morning i noticed that the cars had a light dusty of volcanic ash on them, almost pinky looking, amazing how its come this far and they reckon theres more to come. The earth is still shaking in Iceland, can't really blame Mother Nature from getting upset now and then can you?

Im off to settle down in that chair and to do some day dreaming..

Lazy Sunday

(Picture from Google images)

Have a wonderful sunday and enjoy the sun.

The Skies are Clear

Volcanic ash cloud forces more UK flight restrictions airports across the UK have been deserted and passengers left stranded.
Restrictions on UK airspace due to the threat posed to planes by the volcanic ash cloud from Iceland have been extended until 0100 BST on Sunday.

To many that live around the airports across the UK this is a blessing, the weather is nice enougth for them to actually open their windows and sit in their gardens and enjoy the peace of the skies not to mention the fresh air that is free from air plane fumes. I wonder how much CO2 levels have gone down in the past few days!

I wish my pictures would load, i managed to find some beautiful plates yesterday in a Charity shop, they are white with pink roses and go nicely with the jug i got last week. I also managed to get a cake stand that has a picture of blackberries and the blackberry flower on, looks great on the dresser and all for a fiver!

I'm trying really hard to buy from charity shops rather than big companies and so far I'm doing great and saving myself a fortune. I noticed on EBay the other night that these plates, cups and jugs are going for a fortune! Much better to take a walk around the local charity shops and bag a bargain and help others at the same time i say..

The weathers been great, so much so iv been in the garden, putting up another arch for some rambling roses and iv planted some white Clematis.. The strawberry plants are doing well and the potatoes are reaching for the sky faster that i can earth them back up! A lot of the seeds i planted in the green house never germinated and so i had to re do a few at the weekend and there seems to be movement now. Fingers crossed.. The Chives i grew from seed last year are flourishing as well as the Lavender, although the French lavender did not make it through the harsh winter, nor did my Passion flower which I'm gutted about.. Anyhow time to get on with the housework, hope you all have a wonderful weekend, and those living next to the airports, enjoy your gardens!

What a Gift

Isn't that the sweetest thing ever? Well iv just entered my first blog giveaway, so fingers crossed. Go and take a look at this lovely blog

http://thecraftytrundler.blogspot.com/

If you have trouble with the link its Clover Cottage over there on the right!

Went to my local Farmers market today and came away with some goodies, i so wish i could upload the pictures because they are beautiful. My main buy was two white clematis's for the archway at the bottom of the garden. I'm still looking for a white rambling rose but for now they will look great. I brought a lovely cream iron heart from the PDSA Charity shop, it has a little bird engraved on it. In another charity shop i managed to get a beautiful white jug with pink and blue flowers on it for only a couple of pounds and it came with a matching bowl The weather has been lovely and at last it feels like Spring is finally here to stay.. The gardens starting to awake and the trees are filling up with the sound of birdsong.

Time to go and feed Smudger, hes starting to dribble over my feet.. Have a wonderful weekend

A day in the life....

A few posts ago i said i was going to feature a blog each month and this one i stumbled upon this morning made me smile. Now i love animals especially wildlife and i get really excited whenever i see i squirrel in my garden so imagine my surprise when i discover that this lovely lady was lucky enougth to have a squirrel as a pet.

This websites mainly his antics but there is a link on this site that will take you to his owner if your interested, so follow the link and put a smile on your face each morning while you follow his daily antics...

http://adayinthelifeofapetsquirrel.blogspot.com/

Easter Bunnies and Chocolate Eggs

wishing you all a very HAPPY EASTER....