Bountiful Crops and Tenacious Gardeners

The baby apple tree has done pretty well this year.  Considering it was rudely uprooted, moved and now lives in two tyres it's done very well.

It's crop was thrice that of the Cherry Tree, which for those of you that read regularly know was a single cherry.  Which wasn't too much of a problem as I don't like cherries, so Lovely Hubby got to eat the whole harvest himself!

 We obviously weren't quick enough with the harvest though as one of them has mysteriously vanished ... so now there are TWO.

That's okay, I like apples and that's one each.

Derby and Joan still dance in Dad's memorial bed, catching my eye each day as I pass to water either the veg or the chickens making me smile and pause a moment.   Although the lovely plants around them are 'deer nibbled' and struggling for existence.  Every now and then a brave bud bursts open and a beautiful flower emerges and I'm reminded once again of the tenacious gardener Dad was and how he never gave up .... so neither do I.

In spite of deer, rabbits, birds, slugs and snails, oh yes and a certain little Pug dog that has been seen chewing thoughtfully on the lettuces when she thinks I'm not looking,  we are still eating from the Veggie Patch.

Sue xx

How Lovely is This?

Found this and just had to share.

Sue xx

Spending to Save

Sometimes it's worth spending a bit of money to save in the long term. 

When refuelling the truck last week Lovely Hubby got a coupon from Mr Sainsb**ys that was for £8 off a £40 shop.  Now at first I thought 'we don't need anything', so I simply tucked it into my purse (I never throw coupons away until their date is up).  Then as we ran out of shower gel on Saturday morning I decided to go and see if there were any brands on special offer and to have a look at what other bargains of things that we actually needed were there.

It's a good job I did, although I had decided not to spend for August I reasoned that this was an opportunity to stock us up on things that would save me money for the next few months.

So now my little stash is bigger, although I did spend £47 pounds of my housekeeping money in the process, (I also got some fresh fruit and veg while I was there).

I've decided that once my 'No Spend' August is out of the way I am going to start 'shopping from home', that is stockpiling bargains whether it be food or household essentials when they are really cheap and then instead of shopping at the shops whenever we need something, shop the stockpile instead.

It will mean a gradual outlay each week for certain things, but then we should manage to save even more money.  And as our new veggies will all be ready for picking at a similar time I will also be able to fill the freezer up and have all our own veggies for Winter already tucked in the deep freeze.

We are very lucky in this little bungalow that the spare room has a HUGE bank of fitted shelves, not pretty to look at but extremely useful for storage.  This is going to gradually become my 'home shopping' area.  For now while I am just beginning this idea it is possible to hide the stash behind pretty baskets of things,  and no-one would ever know that this is Sue's Shop but soon I may be mistaken for a mini mart!!

Do you stockpile ....  and if so what?

Sue xx

The Happiness Revolution - August

I don't always join in with this, but I was reading the lovely Astra's Blog, A Journey to a Dream and she inspired me, it's such a lovely post, she has such a lovely baby bump and they worked so hard to give their baby such a good start they have my utmost admiration.

So here goes..... my Happy List.

The ten things making me happy this month are -

1. My Mum, she's doing so well, I'm so proud of her, the way she is learning to cope with all the things that life throws at you when you're suddenly alone.  I'm so happy that she is taking these huge steps so boldly, and my Dad would be even more proud than me.

2.  My Lovely Hubby, who has bravely just had a tattoo done to match mine, he's been threatening to for years and he finally just went and did it.  Every sailor needs a tattoo and now he's got one!

3.  Feeling like I'm on the start of a brilliant journey to get healthy.  Lots of sleep and rest were what I needed and I'm starting to get that at last.

4.  The sun - at last it's remembered to shine ...and sod the housework I intend to sit and read in it whenever I can!

5.  Sparkling water with ice and a slice .......  mix this with number 4 ........mmmm lovely.

6.   My lovely little doggies Rosy and Suky, wonderful to be with, annoying at times with the constant barking at flys, butterflys, birds in the sky, but I wouldn't be without them for the world.

7.  Cookery books, I'm loving working my way through my books on The Recipe Book Blog.  The one I'm reading now is brilliant.

8.  Blogging Buddies that keep Blog world so alive with tales of their lives, we are all so different and get up to so many different sorts of things and yet when push comes to shove we are all there for each other in so many ways.

9.  My new veggie patch at the front of the house, all the seedlings have taken, not a single death amongst them, at last some successful home veggies on the way.

10.  Life - we all only have the one, we should learn to see the happy side of it whenever we can, why worry about the past or the future .... rejoice in the NOW.

What are your 10 happy things for August, grab the picture at the top and share!!

Sue xx



All's well in Chicken World

The magnificent Caldwell the Second is ruling the roost.  He's gorgeous to look at but is a grumpy little sod.  Make sure you know where he is or you may just find him attacking from the rear!!

He tries to have a go at me at least once a day, but I pick him up and give him a cuddle and he soon stops that, he goes off in a huff and shouts at one of his many wives....... a serious case of 'little man syndrome'!!

The two sizes of Black Marans are lovely to look at, all glossy of feather and strikingly coloured.  Not the cuddly type but friendly enough.

The Gosling have gotten pretty big now.  They protect the flock admirably, stretching to their full height and stretching out those beautiful wings whenever anyone approaches Chicken World.

Usually found together they really are a trio of loveliness.

Harry, Larry or Mo ...... I simply can't tell them apart, they are all equally beautiful.  We're still of the opinion that they are all girls, as boy Chinese Grey Geese have a large hump that develops on the top of their beaks and no sign of that .....for the moment at least. 

We love them no matter what sex they are. They have fitted in so well with all the other birds.

They even recognise Caldwell as the Big Daddy that he thinks he is!

Sue xx

Cats and Weeds

The cats and dogs seem to be sleeping a lot this week, I think they are all as fed up with the weather as we are.  I put Lovely Hubby's hat on the office chair to try to stop the cats sleeping on it, we get ginger fur all over our dark jeans when we sit down if he does..... as you can see that didn't work!!

Yesterday I washed the blanket that is usually on the back seat of the truck for the dogs to lie on, when I brought it in and folded it ready to go back out, I left it for five minutes while I took the other dry washing into the bedroom when I came back there was Archie just getting comfortable.  The blanket is still there today only now Ginger is asleep on it.

I turned my back for a minute and Ginger was back on the chair.  This time he was evicted after all I was halfway through this post!!

The dogs are asleep in the kitchen, sharing Rosy's bed, how do I know..... I hear Suky's snores and the odd warning growl from Rosy as Suky takes up too much room and is told in no uncertain terms to keep away.

I feel like joining them, it is yet another grey morning here in Berkshire, the air is still and warm but the sky is dull.  Where is Summer when you need her?

Another coffee I think and a little tour around Blog World and then I'll get out and do a spot of weeding......it seems the weeds, the slugs and snails are the only ones enjoying this Summer.

Sue xx

Good Morning

My phone is my alarm, so I daren't do this to it, although I am often tempted.

The mornings are not nice at the moment, where is the sunshine that we need at this time of year to make us jump from our beds awake and alive and ready to face another day.  We have dreary grey skies here today.  I was going to put a couple of my tomato plants out in an old tin bath today to make a bit of space in the greenhouse, but I am afraid they may get too cold!!

The plug plants that I planted last week are all surviving up to now.  I have had to resort to a few slug pellets on the bed near the house as when I stepped out the other night there were hundreds of the little slimy pests on the patio and the grass around the house I couldn't believe my eyes.  I would normally put down a beer trap or two and let them drown happy, but I fear the sheer numbers at the party would simply turn it into a rave!!

I don't like killing anything, but sometimes needs must.  I do apologise!!   Does anyone else say sorry as they swat that annoying fly and accidently kill it, or is it just me.

Life's a bit tough at the moment,  I wish I was one of these cygnets, sometimes we all need a soft wing to hide under.

Sue xx