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I have always wanted one of these. I saw this one the other day in Rottingdean and had to share it with you. A dovecote really appeals to the romantic side of me. The realistic side of me knows that with two cats, the reality would not be as pretty as imagined. Still a girl can dream and while I'm dreaming I would also like this one here
. Of course I would have to spend my days floating around in white linen dresses with a little white dove permanently attached to my finger and my garden would be forever summer but hey ho I could live with it.



One of the real treats of this beautiful, balmy weather we've been experiencing is the wonderful sound of the birdsong in the evenings and mornings. I've sat in the garden a couple of times this week just me and a cuppa and shut my eyes and just listened to the birds. I don't think there is a sound more relaxing or optimistic. I'm always transported back to being a little girl and the long summer holidays, playing in the garden and lying in bed trying desperately to fall asleep whilst it was still light outside, all played against a backdrop of birdsong. In very much the same way I was immediately taken back to my primary school the other day when I walked past a garden crammed with wallflowers. It may have been the sight or the smell of the flowers but it was instant. It's funny how my childhood memories seem to be forever fixed in summer!



Look at this little bluetit sitting at the top of the very highest branch of my apple tree. Doesn't he look like he's having fun amongst the blossom. Sorry the sky is so bleached I had to run and get the camera quickly (perhaps instead of a dove attached permanently to my hand, it would have to be my camera) and point and shoot before he flew off and of course the sun wouldn't move out of the way.



I also spotted this exquisite bird of paradise revising(?) in the garden. Seems like it's all getting a bit too much and a nap and some shade are what's needed.



Listening to the birds on the way to school the other morning I felt inspired to make something for the hall (which is so nearly done, but not quite - I hate painting doors and bannisters), This is the result - my very own little, cat-proof bird house. Well I say it's cat-proof but I caught one of them drooling over the feathers the other day. I'm very happy with it and it looks great on the white walls.



The poor thing has been carried from room to room to find the best place for it. I liked seeing it in the bedroom, M wasn't sure, M liked seeing it downstairs above the hall mirror, I wasn't sure, neither of us could agree which wall it looked best on in the living room, so on the landing it will live. I feel the need to make more - one for the bedroom and one for the living room too as I'm so hopeless at deciding. I've put one in my Etsy shop if any of you would like one as well.




Have a good few days, full of sunshine and beautiful birdsong.

Familiar faces & floral finds

The first weekend in May is marked for us by the beginning of the Brighton Festival and the children's parade that sets the whole thing rolling. Children from schools across the city and beyond take to the streets in fancy dress, accompanied by parents, teachers, samba bands and dancers. A children's carnival that is much as part of the Festival as the Open Houses, theatre, music and literature.
For ten years now we have donned various wigs and costumes and walked through the streets, It's a happy day and, as I said last year, it's a time to catch up with old friends and their children amongst the crowds. Above all it's a time for the children to celebrate and be celebrated.



This weekend seems to be our 'official' start of Spring weekend, coinciding as it does with a Bank Holiday, the desire to garden and the appearance again of some familiar faces in the garden. I can't remember there being a children's parade without a showing from these poppies. Beautiful, fragile, yet strangely dependable these gorgeous golden orbs seem to beckon us into the garden.



Out in the front garden the first peony bloomed for us. It's reappearance is just as breathtaking as it was last year and just as reassuring. I love the way our plants seem to install some sense and order to our lives, however mad, rushed or stressful a time it is, the constancy of the flowers is very calming.



They take their time and bloom when it is right, unhurried and quietly.



My garden beds are slowly filling up and those perennials that have survived the recent snail attack will soon (hopefully) be adding height and structure to the borders.



Some recent floral finds to share with you now. This gorgeous Wedgewood plate was sitting at the bottom of a pile of plates in a charity shop It's got the prettiest lillies and flowers on it.



On Sunday a trawl of the car boot resulted in some very spring-like goodies too. I love this old linen tea cosy with gorgeous trees and floral border. An old crocus biscuit tin, crocheted cloth and bird cups and saucers all look good together.



I seem to be acquiring lots of bird things at the moment - more in the next post.



I also found this lovely old nightie case. I remember at school making a pyjama case in Domestic Science, it was our first attempt with the sewing machine and it seemed to drag on and on and on. But I love this one, not sure what I'll do with it, but I'll let you know. I was lucky enough to find some old lace trim and a book of vintage bird cigarette cards (I said I was getting into the bird theme, didn't I).



The blossom is out on the apple tree and Little Sister is back in her old favourite spot reading. Time to take a deep breath and enjoy the fresh air of May!

Love the irony

The other week when our computer died I had a few days when life seemed a little more insular. Cut off from work emails, friends, and most importantly blogging (!), I took to doing some odd jobs around the place. It's amazing how much time is freed up when the computer's not on.



In our long kitchen table is a drawer stuffed to bursting with tea towels and napkins. One of those drawers that you open quickly, plunge your hand in and grab anything that comes to hand. Well in I went, eyes wide open, took out the whole caboodle and sorted. How many tea towels does a family need? Some are years old, some more recent and, now's the bad bit, some were just too pretty to use. Can you believe, yes I know you can, that I buy tea towels because they're pretty but then can't bear to use them. Now the kitchen seems to be harbouring an alternative fabric stash of its own. All were washed and I made a pledge to use them all (ha we'll see).



The floral ones (of which there are unsurprisingly many) looked so pretty on the airer in the garden that if the weather doesn't come up trumps this year and the snails refuse to surrender I might just have to install them permanently as a flower border. Much easier to care for than the herbaceous kind and they will have at last served a purpose.



Now if I was my mother, the tea towels would have come in freshly aired and promptly ironed. These were not. I loathe ironing (actually tea towel ironing wouldn't be too bad) nearly as much as I hate badly creased clothes. My mother on the other hand, seemed to relish it, I can't remember a day when the ironing board wasn't out and a pile of clothes was waiting to be put away (which was always my job). That's the thing, it's not just the ironing it's the putting away, in the same way as it's not just the supermarket shopping but as your standing at the checkout feeling mildy relieved, you know all of it needs to be put away when it gets home.



The irony of living in what was once a former laundry has not been lost on me. When I saw this delightful frame over at Cowboys and Custard, I knew I had to have it.



Michele makes the most beautiful frames and I know that many of you are familiar with her work - gorgeous. So now, when the Radio 4 play and the scent of my lavender linen water do little to alleviate the tedium of ironing, I have this little beauty to look upon and make me smile.



Mummy, you were a very good teacher but I wasn't a good pupil! If it's any consolation, I love washing. The smell of clean clothes that have spent the day on a washing line, mmmm ...



I got two bunches of flowers this week. M bought me some tulips to cheer me up. There is big tulip love going on around blogland at the moment and I'm adding to it. Love, love, love tulips and so do the squirrels, especially Sir Squigs who has dug most of mine up but will post some photos next week of the ones he left behind.



The lovely Louise presented me with this bunch the other day - thank you. As I mentioned to you Louise, they brought a big smile to my very pale face! Thanks too to everybody for your well wishes, I am starting to feel better and looking forward to being able to enjoy some food very soon.



Have a great weekend and can anyone tell me what happened to April, where did it go?

Enchanted April

Thank you all so much for your lovely, warm and supportive comments on my last post. As you can see from the above photo, Big Sister is back enjoying life again. The exam went well (she thinks) and it's another week of revising but the weekend was fun. Here she is enjoying the freedom at Heaven Farm.



I can't believe that it's a year since we last went for our bluebell walk and the bluebells this year were even better than lasts.



It's a poorly Ragged Roses writing this post, having spent the past 24 hours sleeping and being sick I am trying very hard to muster up the enthusiam to do justice to this magical place.



Acres and acres of blue ribboned land, birdsong and the trickle of streams.



Ancient trees, deer and we're sure the odd fairy or two. Look at this glittery dust we found on a tree,



proof if ever there was ...



It was a grey day when we visited but this seemed to enhance the colour of the bluebells.



What a wonderful colour combination, the fresh vivid blues and vibrant greens and I wish you could have smelt the flowers too. The smell of pure, fresh Spring!
I think I need to have a little rest again now and I'll leave you with some more photos. Sorry if I made any of you shed a tear on the last post I'll be round with some ice cream and mad mum dancing when I'm feeling better. Have a good few days.

Sometimes ...

Sometimes it's very easy to slip into taking things a bit too much for granted. Big Sister has her first GCSE today and an insurmountable number of tests are piling up for her. I am a very lucky lady - my daughters are kind, considerate (to others, if not each other!), polite, well behaved and most days a delight to be around. What I sometimes am in danger of forgetting is just how fragile they are.



These past few weeks have proved a real test for Big Sister in many ways. She has had to confront a lot of her demons, sit in her room and revise whilst outside the sun was shining, learn that as much as she wants to, mum can't stop the inevitable exam timetable from drawing nearer. Sometimes I want to morph into her and do the pesky tests for her but what good would that do? Sometimes, this week in particular, I want to stop the world from crowding in on her and leave her be.



Sometimes she shows me a piece of her writing, like she did yesterday, and I cry because even under pressure she can produce such beauty. Sometimes when she is crying I wish she wasn't so sensitive and hard working and things would be better for her. Sometimes when she is crying the only thing that works is mad mum dancing and I did so much of that last night that I'm surprised I'm still mobile this morning.



Sometimes I am so proud of you Big Sister and forget to tell you. Sometimes the darned clock seems to forget to tick and a school day feels like a life time.
Sometimes it's good to know there's a vat of ice cream in the freezer, a comfy sofa and some more of that dancing waiting at home for you.

What a difference a day makes

Hello! I can't tell you how good it is to be back, looking forward to catching up with all of your news over the next day or so. Before I do, here's the highlights of the past few days. Our weekend was one of two very distinct halves:



SATURDAY - RIVER VIEWS
We took the girls up to London for the day. A day of visiting galleries, walking along the river and eating. It was a good day. Grey but good, as if all the colour had been bleached from the city. The sort of grey that affects all your senses, mutes the noise and softens the sights.



We started off at the Tate where the girls fell in love with all the wonderful Pre Raphaelite paintings, (particularly the very lovely and romantic "April in Love" ) and mooched around the galleries in awe of all the colour and beauty that they contained.



We walked along the embankment and London and the Thames reminded me so much of one of the Whistler paintings I had seen. Grey, soft and quiet. There is nothing like walking around a city to fully appreciate it. No matter how many times you drive around it, it's only when walking that you can appreciate the scale and beauty of its buildings and stumble across hidden treasures that you never knew were there.



This monument commemorating the abolition of slavery in the grounds of Parliament, I had never noticed before.



Big Sister was very excited to find the statue of Emmeline Pankhurst and Little Sister listened (perhaps pretending to be interested) as she told her all about the suffragetes.



Even in busier parts of London and the hot tourist spots, there was time to stop and marvel.



I love the mix of old and new London in this photo.



We carried on walking down the embankment opposite the London Eye towards Somerset House and went to the Courtauld Gallery. This has to be one of my favourite art galleries. When I was at school I remember my art teacher always going on about this place but I think it took me about ten years to finally visit it. If you ever get the chance and haven't been it really is worth the visit. Quiet and out of the way, it houses a wonderful collection of Impressionist , Post-Impressionist and Bloomsbury paintings which for me was the highlight of the trip.
The girls loved it and want to go back for more, I think it was one of our best days in London.

SUNDAY BEST (the one where Miss Blossom finally gets a dress)



A day of colour and unexpected sunshine. An early trip to the car boot where I find a lovely little vintage dress for Miss Blossom (only £1). I've got my eye on it for myself but she is rather more endowed than me and I would feel mean taking it from her now. So out into the garden she came, all dressed up and she held court over my car booty.



This could be mistaken for a spot the difference photo from the last post. I was lucky enough to find candy stripe pillow cases for last week's sheets. Another enamel tub and an old flour pot which is destined to become a flower pot of a different kind.



A couple of apothecary bottles from an old local chemist shop which now sit on the groaning bathroom shelf.



This tea cup and saucer were just too pretty to ignore and they came running home with me. They reminded me of all my floral postcards which came outside to be sorted.



Sssssh I'll let you into a secret, I'm not the only squirrel around.



Meet Sir Squigs the fattest squirrel in town. He spent the afternoon admiring my treasures and, unfortunately, digging up the bulbs but we love him (not as much as the cats do as he provides their only form of exercise).



MONDAY - THE DAY I NEARLY LOST IT ALL

The girls went back to school I sat down to catch up at the computer and within five minutes the smell of burning and the computer had died. I spent the day beside myself. Am I the only one who never backs anything? All my photos. contacts, work details - everything had potentially disappeared. I didn't sleep well. It was a black sort of day.



But hooray M took it to work and the hard drive was retrieved (does that sound right?). The memory board had burnt out (I know the feeling) and we have had to borrow a computer. So a happy ending of sorts.
Right I'm off to catch up with all your lovely news while I can. It may be a grey drizzly kind of day but I'm so so happy to be back. Sorry again for the length of this post - 48 hours without internet access is a long time!

Magpie, butterfly or squirrel?

Yes the birds may sing and the flowers may blossom but one surefire way of knowing that Spring is truly here is the increase in available gorgeousness at the car boots! I found lots of little treasures this week and thought I'd share them with you before they're all squirreled away around the house. Candy striped sheets that remind me of my parents bed when I was little and the babysitter would let me sleep in when my parents went out. A lovely lace bathroom curtain. Pretty floral embroidered tablecloth and a fab old enamel container which will be planted up with some summer flowers (comes complete with rusty drainage holes). None of this lot was more than a couple of pounds.
Do you remember this post here, where I found an old eiderdown for just a few pounds? Well who says lightning never strikes twice in the same place?



This one was £5, a bit whiffy and mucky but has scrubbed up really well. I love the faded, muted colours of its blossoms and it was great to see the pale pink emerge from the murky brown washing water.



M has given up trying to deter me from buying more, yes we're long past the "what do we need another one for", raising his eyebrows and rolling his eyes stage, these days the eiderdowns are greeted with a smile.



So in our bedroom which is fast becoming an eiderdown sanctuary for abandoned quilts I have a wonderful dilemma - what do you prefer?



Muted ?



Or loud?
The jury's out on that one, but I think there's room for both (just).



At the bottom of a pile of goodies I found this toast rack to go with my favourite crockery set.



Two more chocolate boxes and tins - the little tin reminds me of where we go on our disastrous boating trips in the summer and the larger lupin covered box just makes me want to fast forward to summer.



And finally this little box. Its graphics are beautiful but its contents are not. Pins for butterflies (yuk).
I think I'm more of a magpie than a butterfly, filling my nest with treasure. Or maybe a squirrel. I bet Squirrel Nutkin had the odd eiderdown or two.
Anyway apologies for not replying to all of your many and wonderful comments this past week. The girls are still on holiday and not much time is being spent at the computer.



Here are some photos from our walk yesterday.



Beautiful free treasures that any magpie, butterfly or squirrel would enjoy. Perhaps the best kind to find.

Spring in our steps at last

It's been a great start to the Spring school holidays here. We've been lucky enough to meet up with lots of friends, begin the week with snowladies in the garden and end it with a day on the beach. How lovely it is to be back out in the garden again, to hear the girls laughing outside and to feel that the shorter days are behind us. Even my two lazy cats have been smitten. The other day we were all in the garden when one came charging out from the house and straight up the very, very tall ash tree at the back of the garden. For a cat who finds moving from one sofa to another requires the most supreme of efforts, this newfound energy came as quite a surprise to us all. What she hadn't realised was the height of the tree and that of course she needed to get down. Imagine the scene, little sister sobbing on the garden bench, me trying to stay calm sitting on top of the garden shed trying to "talk her down", two teenage girls flapping around and the cat crying. Eventually after much shrieking we decided to try the ladder. Needless to say it took us a good ten minutes to work out how to extend the ladder safely against the tree and when we had we turned round to see the cat sitting smugly next to me on top of the shed! Cats, who'd have 'em!



Yesterday afternoon both daughters were out and I decided to get on with things. I hate to say it but the rug, cupboard hanging or the dreaded hall painting weren't even tackled. I'd bought an old pair of steps from the junk shop a couple of days ago and couldn't wait to use them. They were covered in paint stains and had an old plastic seat cover that was ripped. so I gave them a lick of paint, some of my favourite old fabric and a flourish of ric rac. What do you think? I'm pleased with them and at long last I can reach the top of the bookshelves without climbing on the very wobbly computer chair.



A whole new world opened up for me. Books I hadn't seen in years and cobwebs too. This is such a lovely book. Written in 1952, it's a journey along the Southern coast of England exploring the towns, villages etc beside the English Channel. It has wonderful colour plates by Keith Baynes.



I love this one of Brighton pier



and this one of Dungeness, before the power station. It's a great book and has great stories of villages and towns from Devon to Kent.



It wasn't good enough to just look at the pictures though - today we drove along the coast and spent the day at Rottingdean.



I love this village, the quiet little pebbly beach, the mixture of old beautiful cottages and the grander houses in which people like Rudyard Kipling and the Pre-Raphaelite artist Edward Burne-Jones once lived (this is his house).



So a day on the beach, eating chips beside the sea and doughnuts from the bakers. Coming home with sun kissed and newly freckled faces - lovely.

DIY, WIP and a favour or two

It's funny what can spur us into action, push us into finally doing those little jobs around the house that have been niggling us for such a long time and have been neglected for too long on the 'to do' list. This weekend, before the return of winter on Sunday, it was the wonderful sunshine we had here on Saturday morning. I think I am one of the many who are affected by daylight, the lack of it in winter can drive me crazy and make me incredibly lazy. Yet since the clocks went forward last weekend and that extra hour of daylight I'm feeling galvanized. How lovely to hear the birds singing in the evenings now and feel that the day isn't over at 5pm.



Ayway I popped into town to get some fabric for a project that had been on the "list' for far too long (did you notice the name on that cotton reel? "Frivolous Pink", my kind of a name!) . Along the way I walked past my favourite choc shop Choccywoccydoodah for a quick drool and snapped a couple of their wonderful cakes. These photos don't in any way do them justice, the sun was glaring etc but just to give you a taster of what they offer, but really would you want to eat one of them? (clicking on the photos increases the wow factor).



I would have to place mine under a cloche a la Miss Haversham and just admire from afar (maybe just languidly drag my fingers over that icing when passing).



Back to the fabric - we bought this old cupboard from a car boot about 13 years ago. We painted it and removed some of the dodgy wood panels and replaced them with chicken wire. This was backed with some pink fabric and that's how it remained for years. When we moved (two and a half years ago) we promised Little Sister that it would be prettied up for her ... well finally it got the coat of paint it deserved and some of this lovely fabric. She's very happy with it and so am I and do you know what it took an afternoon to do. Why wait all that time? You just have to be in the mood don't you.



If only the same could be said about the ongoing painting of the hall project. Whatever enthusiasm I mustered at the beginning has all but diminished and I can't help but groan everytime I walk past that tin of paint in the hall. So near to finishing and yet ... Someone who has bounds of energy for any kind of painting is this one



Yes, Little Sister seems to be tackling those walls singlehanded at the moment!



As a "thank you" for all her hard work I've started a new rug for her bedroom. Whilst we loved this house since the moment we stepped into it, the flooring has left a lot to be desired. We have slowly gone from room to room pulling up the really dodgy carpets and painting the floorboards but have, as yet, done Little Sister's room. Just the thought of picking up all those Sylvanians, fairies and Barbie clothes and packing them away whilst we pull up the carpet leaves me cold. So I thought I'd ask you all a favour. Now and again I need a gentle prod and reminder and I thought there would be no better way to push me into finishing the rug and floor than by you reminding me.. So if all goes quiet on the rugging front, please feel free to comment on my blog! Hopefully the sight of this unfinished project on my blog next to the picture of my youngest slaving away in the hall and some comments from you over the next few weeks (maybe months) will do the trick.



Oh and whilst we're at it, how about asking now and again if any of the cupboards that are lying around in the loft or outside loo are actually up on the walls yet? Guilt and shame, such a winning combination in my DIY book!



All of which leads me on to something else I should have done a while ago. A thank you to Alison for this lovely award. Over at Vintage Amethyst blog, Alison has started up her own website selling some lovely goodies, please go and have a look.



Thank you too to greentwinsmummy for this award too. I'm not going to choose bloggers to pass it on to and I know it's going to be breaking the rules. So please all of you take this award and enjoy it as well, but please go and say "hello" to greentwinsmummy.
Right, I'm off to buy some new Sylvanians with Little Sister - I'm thinking wall to wall Sylvanians might just be the floor covering of my dreams (or not).

What Rustle of Spring?

The Rustle of Spring continues

Spring in the garden (but still no sun).



Spring in a cup (but not quite in my step)



Spring blossoms on Miss Blossom (and in my Etsy shop).



I realised when looking back on my blog that it was a year ago that I first started making these



- it's time for some flowers.

The Rustle of Spring

Up until half an hour ago I hadn't a clue what I would write today. Well that's not strictly true, I had planned a post, written it, taken photos and then at the last moment bottled out! Does that happen to you, do you plan your posts, are you completely spontaneous or do you just see what the day brings your way? Anyway I walked away from the computer, popped to the shop, came back and started to tidy up. The batteries on my trusted radio are failing (I have Radio 4 on all day when I'm alone) and the house was still, apart from the birds singing away outside. And then I knew what I needed - some quiet.



Nothing loud, nor bright or too fussy. I was throwing away what was left of my Easter flowers when I rescued this beautiful ranunculus from the vase. I have always been fascinated by the shapes of flowers and plants, as a child I was fascinated by the symmetry of certain plants and now will stop and stare at an artichoke for ages. Not only had this flower survived in bloom for nearly two weeks but its beauty was intact. As delicate as the vintage sheet music she's sitting on. Those beautiful intricate folds of its petals - perfection.



Feeling a little upstaged by the flower, I sensed that Miss Blossom was feeling a little dejected. Here she is sporting her new spring bonnet (well not hers - I bought it for Big Sister who has a thing for hats, and looks gorgeous in all of them, from Niki who was selling a selection of lovely bonnets a few weeks ago).



Some floral brooches added to the spring picture and, in case you think her rather immodest, this being her second outing with no clothes, at one point she was fully clad in a beautiful white vintage dress but, alas, that "ample chest" of hers made it rather too tight a fit. This being a quiet kind of Monday I don't think I would have wanted to hear her sighs and mutterings in the corner as she struggled with her dress.



It's been a hurly burly kind of weekend, lots crammed in and an hour lost to the clocks. However, Little Sister got to meet Jacqueline Wilson at a booksigning, which made her day and more than made up for the three hour wait, Mr Ragged Roses was not a happy man. Big Sister had her dance show and was wonderful. So poised, long legged and graceful it was hard to believe that this was the same little girl who at the age of three had to leave ballet because the music scared her. Watching her on stage I wondered when this transformation came about, I know it was a gradual thing, somewhere along the line my little girl in the pink leotard became this beauty in top hat and jazz shoes!



So perhaps that's why I need my quiet. Some time to sit and think, some time for reflection and to remember how transitory things are and to learn to appreciate them while we can.

Full House!

In my last post I said that it felt more like Christmas than Easter at the weekend and I wasn't wrong. The postman seems to be delivering new goodies to me on almost daily basis this past week! This lovely hare was sent to me by the very kind Lynne who won my giveaway the other week. I had commented on her wonderful blog just how beautiful they were and lo and behold as a "thank you" for my goodies Lynne sent me this gem! Lynne was slightly concerned that I wouldn't be able to control his springiness but, rest assured Lynne, he's settled in very well and has only hopped off his cupboard top twice. Keeping him company on the fireplace is this lovely hare tag that Lynne also sent. My bunnies have taken a while to adjust but they all seem to be getting along nicely.



I sold lots of my spring bunnies on Etsy recently and somebody who bought a bunny bundle was Coralie. It's great to find out where things end up so I was very pleased to receive an email from Coralie thanking me and asking me to take at her blog. There was Mr Bunny showing himself off to some new found French friends, all set to go off on some major Easter egg hunts at the weekend. It was lovely for me to discover a new blog and for all you francophiles out there, it's in French too! Great for polishing up my shamefully rusty French and lots of lovely photos to savour. Coralie also thought she would like to send me a little something and look what I got from her yesterday:



beautiful stamps of the Eiffel Tower. Thanks so much Coralie, "merci beaucoup" - I love Paris and have very fond memories of it. I am still marvelling at the sheer power of blogging to surprise us with its twists and turns and unpredictability. I have come into contact with so many lovely people and followed so many blog trails.



I'm sure that most of you would have read Michele's
lovely blog before and I'm sure most of you would have gathered by now what a warm, humourous and kind person she is. Oh and very talented too. Just before Easter Michele sent the Ragged Roses household a little Easter parcel. A chocolate bunny for me, most importantly, some gifts for the girls, some more of her wonderful badges, Easter decorations and these delightful cards (you see now why I said it's been feeling like Christmas!). Thank you Michele it was such a kind thing to do and we were all really touched that you thought of us. (You may need to click on the photo of Michele's cards to see the badges a little better)



But that's not all! I finished my last Persephone book last week and have been in serious withdrawal ever since. This has been remedied by the arrival this morning of my three new books, all of which, curiously enough, have very similar titles.



"House-bound" by Winifred Peck, a story showing the impact of the war on a household where a woman decides to do without her maid and manage her own house. "A House in the Country" by Jocelyn Playfair, again set during the Second World War but played out in a rural country idyll. "The New House" by Lettice Cooper, set in pre-war Britain and over one day tells the story of a family moving from a large house to a much smaller one. They all sound great and very domestic, don't know where to start.



Of the three previous books I bought from Persephone, the book that, understandably, moved me the most was Cicely Hamilton's "William - An Englishman". Written by Cicely Hamilton while she was working at a hospital and organising concerts at the Front during WW1, this book is one of the most moving I have read in a long time. Two young people, both political activists and idealists, marry and go on honeymoon in 1914 to a remote cottage in Belgium. Secluded from the world for three weeks they emerge one day from a walk in the countryside and literally stumble into the horrors of WW1. This scene has been haunting me since I read it last week. I won't spoil the book for you but by the end of the story William learns that reality has no place for his former idealistic beliefs. William was like so many thousands of men during the war, quiet, without a voice, struggling to make sense of it all. The other day whilst sorting through my old postcard collection I read on the back of one of them a pencil written message from a soldier to his wife, he longs desperately for one of her letters and complains only of the mud that seems to be all around him. When Big Sister went to Ypres the other week I found myself visiting lots of websites to find out more, trying to make sense of it all myself. "William" is a great book.
Anyway my three new books all promise to be of a lighter mood and I'm looking forward to letting you all know how I get on with them. The film of "Miss Pettigrew" seems to be getting great reviews in USA so I'm very excited about seeing that when it opens here.
What a long post, sorry I've been rambling again.

Easter eggs and snowfall

Well that's it, Easter over and instead of gamboling into Spring, the arrival of the holiday weekend brought a return to winter. Perhaps one of the coldest of winter weekends too! Was I alone in feeling that Easter Sunday morning felt more like Christmas than Christmas? As we sat eating breakfast and eyeing up the Easter eggs it was very strange to see the snow falling in the garden. So it was a cold, grey squally weekend here but by no means miserable. The snow not thick enough for outdoor fun but cold enough to make us go into "hibernation mode", which is not such a bad thing when you think about it.



Once we realised that the usual Easter walks and hunts would have to be put on hold for a while the huge pile of chocolate that was amassing in the kitchen brought its own comfort! I had planned to do some much needed gardening but managed only a brief spell outside on Friday between the showers. I managed to plant a couple of shrubs but held back from sowing any seeds as it was just too cold. I'm going to try planting some chard in big pots this year to see how they grow, it might do better in pots away from the snails, slugs and cats. I also bought these poppy seeds in Woolies the other day. I was drawn to their colour and frilliness and it was only when I was paying for them I noticed that they were Laura Ashley seeds! Produced in association with Johnsons seeds admittedly, but still Laura Ashley. Two days earlier I noticed in the Cath Kidston shop that they are now selling their own CK washing up liquid and fabric washing liquid range. I wonder why these companies feel the need to increasingly extend their range of products so much?



Saturday and Sunday were spent rolling around the house, eating chocolate, grandparents visiting us and more, much more, eating of chocolate. Little sister and big sister both insisted on egg hunts with clues which were a lot of fun. Big sister having one of those teenager moments in which she was so adamant that she knew the answer to her clue that she spent 20 minutes in the rain sorting through the recycling boxes looking for her choccie eggs ( a real mix of determination and stubborness and complete dedication to chocolate!) As if we'd be that mean - it was under the lettuce in the fridge of course, but would she listen?!!



Our hibernation ended yesterday when we visited some friends for lunch and more chocolate. They live in one of our favourite parts of the city, on the seafront in one of these gorgeous Regency crescents. A walk along on the beach wasn't on the cards as the weather was cold again by the time we'd finished all that eating. But we couldn't have planned for a nicer day - friends, family and chocolate, all in all a good weekend.



A belated thank you now to Jennie and twiggy who both gave me this award. Thanks to both of you! I am meant to pass the award on - I find it hard to do this part of the award thing, not because I don't want to pass it on but because I don't want to choose from all of you who read this blog. So please consider this award passed on to you all and if you've got time pop over to say hello to Jennie and Twiggy too.

Happy Easter

A bunch of flowers for you this Easter.
Hope you all have a wonderful weekend filled with fun and family. Not much fresh air on the cards for us - the forecast for us is SNOW! (indoor Easter egg hunts here we come).



Nearly as exciting as the prospect of all of these



Enjoy your weekend and Happy Easter!

I can't knit, but I know someone who can ...

I've just got back from town where I bought a blanket for little sister's teacher whose baby is due very soon. I found one I liked, soft cotton, natural, organic and undyed. I'm pleased with it but not as pleased as I would have been if I'd made it myself. But there's the rub, I just can't knit! When I was a little girl my friend who lived next door taught me to knit. We were both left handed and somehow between us we managed to produce long woolly scarves which looked okay(ish) but neither of us had a clue how we had produced them. My grandmother tried to teach me, my mum gave up and it's just one of those things that I can't do. Whenever I look at the illustrations in those "How to" books well, it just doesn't look like how my friend Annabel taught me! To make matters worse all you bloggers are the most fantastic knitters, gorgeous blankets have been crocheted and knitted for me to drool over, there seems to be a legion of you out there making the most fabulous fair isle socks and glamorous corsages and I'm here twiddling my thumbs!



I've been having a sort out (that's what happens when you start to decorate, a whole new can of worms is opened) and in amongst a pile of boo