Monday 16 July 2007

The calm before the storm



A busy weekend - more birthday celebrations, trips to London, School Fetes, and yes, a few hours of sunshine!
On Saturday it was my oldest daughter's school Fair and a chance for us to see her perform in a production of Romeo and Juliet in the woods. It was lovely, I don't know how but I managed to cry both times I saw it. Not just from pride but because all of the kids were so good and the whole production was moving and polished. My youngest, who's just eight, was really moved (not bored) and couldn't wait to go back for more (hoping that maybe Juliet didn't have to die the second time around!).
The sun shone and thankfully they were able to perform amongst the trees in dappled sunlight and Juliet's balcony was perched above a ladder on a tree rather than on a stool in the school hall.


Some time to do a bit of gardening in the afternoon and survey the snail damage. How can they eat so much? An entire lavatera has been stripped, we're talking a big bushy shrub not a sweet little seedling. Am I feeding the entire snail and slug population of Sussex or are mine just particularly greedy? All my seedlings have been eaten too. At least this rain has kept the snails and grass happy. On the other side of the garden which is a bit more open two mallows are blooming, albeit a little windswept from all this rainfall. Some salvia has survived behind the mallow and I've noticed that there's a second flush of buds on the roses, hopefully the wind will leave them alone long enough for us to enjoy this time.


Looking upwards things are better, the apples are really growing and those at the top of the tree are nice and rosy. The figs are enormous but because of the rain are now being swamped by enormous leaves so I think it's time for me to perch precariously on top of the rickety garden chair and lop off some of those leaves to let the sun get to the fruit.
We were woken up during the night on Sunday by thunderstorms. We were going up to London to visit my father for his birthday. I'd taken my camera to take photos from the train window but it was such a grey day and everything looked dreary, even the view crossing the Thames which is usually quite stunning - down to the Tower of London, the millenium bridge, the revamped South Bank and the Globe Theatre. This has to be one of my favourite walks on a summer's evening. Hopefully when we go up again during the school holidays, the sun will be shining and the skies won't be the colours of the old battleships moored along the Thames.

It seemed as if the bad weather was following us and just before the thunderstorms began I managed to photograph this beautiful hydrangea in my father's garden. A beautiful intense pink that really glowed in that strange light you get just before a storm. I love hydrangeas and pick lots from a bush we have in our front garden, I like watching the colours fade in the vase, and they're great dried flowers too.

This morning there was enough sun for me to sit outside and cut some more fabric for a big order of tea cosies that should be finished asap. Why do these things happen just before the school holidays start? Panic is starting to set in, can I really make a cosy a day over the next week? Will the sun shine long enough to dry the fabric I've just dyed? Will my parcel of new fabrics and canvas ever arrive? And, most importantly, will the girls come home just one day this week and not ask me to go into town the following day to buy someone a birthday/leaving/ thank you,or even "well you know how well I did in my school report, do you think I could have that t-shirt" present!?
Hope you all had a good weekend and that the weather didn't spoil any of your plans.

22 comments:

Rowan said...

My husband has been in Horsham watching the cricket over the last few days and he said there was a lot of thunder and lightning as he was leaving yesterday.
If you have all the slugs and snails in Sussex in your garden then I think I have most of the Derbyshire/Yorkshire population in mine. My parsley now consists of a forest of bare stalks. Hope your dad enjoyed his birthday.

AC said...

We have to make the most of the sunshine that we have at the moment. It is good to get back out into the garden if only for short spells.
Hope the order goes well!
Take care,
Alison x

ShabbyInTheCity said...

I wish I could have seen that play in the woods! What a really cool idea.
Your photography is top notch as always!!!

Sophie Honeysuckle said...

I love Romeo and Juliet too! Hope we get a bit more sunshine soon x

Gill said...

Your garden is looking so pretty, it's good to be able to sit out for a while. I don't think the rain has gone away yet so make the most of it.
It's good to hear your tea-cosies are in such demand,I remember reading your first tentative posts, it's such a thrill when people like what you create and you have real talent. Well done!

Berber said...

Lovely photos of those hydrangeas!!
They were in my wedding bouquet!

Anonymous said...

Romeo and Juliet sounds lovely. Good luck with your order.

Marie x

Rubyred said...

That is a beautiful hydrangea! Good luck with your cozies!

The French Nest said...

Romeo and Juliet is one of my favourite plays! I actually went down to the lake the other night woth some of my girlfriends to watch a rendition of it performed by a small theatre group outside, and it was fabulous!

Kate

Anonymous said...

In spite of the rain and slugs and snails, your garden looks marvelous! I'm glad the sun shone for you a bit over the weekend so you could get outside and enjoy it. Your daughter's play sounds like it was a good time for everyone. Good luck with your orders! ♥

Thimbleanna said...

Ahhh, motherhood! What a beautiful garden -- and your father's hydrangeas are spectacular -- they're one of my favorites. And if you make it back to the Thames and it's sunny I hope you'll take some pictures. For us deprived old souls who live so far away. ;-)

Anonymous said...

We are getting a lot of thunder storms this year aren't we? Thanks for stopping by the blog we have left a little thankyou over there for you.

Anonymous said...

Sounds like some wonderful lovely times--and wit a touch of sun, all the better! The color of you hydrangeas are gorgeous--so vibrant! Best wishes & success with your order! ((HUGS))

hannah said...

those hydrangeas are a fantastic colour, I love the light before a storm too. We have given up fighting the snails in the garden, the children have taken some in for pets, and now they have laid eggs in their little bowl of captivity, they must be happy and soon we will have about 50 I think! (I must blog about them sometime). I am tougher on the slugs though, they are not going to be invited in as pets anytime soon!

weirdbunny said...

What a stunning colour on your Fathers hydranga !!!!

meggie said...

I cant get over how intense & beautiful the colour of that pink Hydrangea is! It is beautiful, thanks for the picture.
Love all the other flowers too. The only thing i have to look forward to, is my Daphne, which seems a little late flowering this year.

picperfic said...

a stunning set of photos, that hydrangea is especially gorgeous and I love the full framed one! A very beautfiul post with lovely, readable words!

Heidijayhawk said...

wow. those flowers are glorious!

mollycupcakes said...

Gorgeous photos made me smile, your pink Loom chair is so pretty, I've seen that fabric somewhere before lol Snap I've got it too.

Have a lovely week.

Catherine x

Annie said...

I adore hydrangeas too, and LOVE the pink colour. Your photos are magic. I can only dream of them at the moment as we are in the depths of winter, and I have just pruned my roses. Enjoy the lovely flowers.

dottycookie said...

Wow, I've never seen a hydrangea in such an intense pink - it's absolutely stunning.

We have silly numbers of slugs here too. I was so cross -I had planted and nurtured 25 sunflower seedlings for weeks and the day I took them out
of the mini greenhouse to start hardening them off the slugs stripped the lot. Evil, no other word for it!

Heather ~ Pretty Petals said...

So glad you are getting some sunshine!!! that is wonderful news to hear... and your flowers are gorgeous!

Heather