Summer time

Summer has finally come to Fareham, we turned off the heating this week

It's always me who keeps it on, we don't require it in the evening, but I do hate to shower in a cold bathroom, but I insist we leave the bathroom window open, thought we had a lay in until ten this morning so the bathroom was filled with warm sunshine.

We both have had the day off, so I pottered around in the garden, went to the village with Fliss where we chatted over coffee and cake. With Monday being a Bank holiday this is a really long weekend for us. Kev has a real bad tummy bug, so he has stayed near the house all day.


My cushion front is coming along well, I have added another pattern, I took it from an American patchwork book, I have stitched it before as a miniature rug for Somerset house.
The hardest part of this cushion is deciding what pattern goes next and what shade of red I should use. Once I have decided on the pattern I then have to go through my stock of silks. I am trying to use the same shades in more than one block to help tie it all together. I have to do 10 blocks across and down. I will have them diagonal across the cushion. I have finished 14 blocks, with 86 to go. Am I mad or what?

Yesterday I had my second small operation, it was much smaller and I was out on the same day, which suits me. I am feeling fine and have no problems with my arm, I hope to be able to do some sewing tonight and plan to sew alot over the weekend.

Most of the garden is done, Kev is only allowing me light duties, I want to sow some veg seeds in a small area on Sunday, just salad items with carrots. My tomato plants are coming along well, my 94 year old neighbour gave me two tomato plants as well, we should have loads, I feel a chutney session coming on later this year. I have 4 sunflower plants for the garden, Josh has 2 to take home, and we have 10 plants for Josh to take to school for their garden.

Sunday we are out to lunch with friends, just six of us, in the morning Kev will be off to golf, so I can have a bath and pamper morning. I brought some new nail varnish for my toes, there are some great bright colours this year, Sunday I am going purple!

Monday we have no plans, it would be good to get out on the bike, we went out on Tuesday and ended at Portsmouth sea front eating Pizza on a terrace overlooking the beach and a great sunset. The best part was it was unplanned.

Show and Tell

My sister has been staying for the weekend, we have been shopping and sat in the garden taken in the sun. Below is my new handbag, I normally just rave about shoe's but this bag just called to me, and it would have been rude to ignore it. It's red leather and feels wonderful.

I have not done much cross stitch, it's been a tiring week, I went back to work and was lazy most evenings.

I still have loads of flower left

My Orchid is blooming

Flowers in the garden are in full bloom

With my flower pots man on guard.

Josh's flower is doing well.

These I planted today in the new garden.

My results from the hospital were mixed, I was disappointed to hear I would require another operation in early June, but a much smaller op this time. The rest of the results were positive and soon I hope to get the all clear.

We are planning a week away in the south of France with Su and Gav, who are getting married in August, that's later in May, we will have the decorators in to finish painting the down stair area.

I have ordered the silk for Su's wedding dress, it should be here next week, I hope to start making in it early June. I am glad Fliss is feeling and looking better, we saw her, Steve and Josh yesterday, Josh has coloured us a Wiggles picture for our office wall, he is a clever little boy.

Fingers crossed

Today I am off to the hospital, to get the results of my recent operation.

My wounds are healing I have two, I have some discomfort with swelling under my left arm.

But I now need a lucky break, Kev will be with me, so fingers crossed.

Castles and sunshine

Today has been the perfect finish to the weekend,
we had a phone call from Josh asking us to a picnic at Portchester castle
and he would share his home made jam tarts.

We met at 12 and all shared a glorious picnic, we sat in the sunshine together.

Josh had great fun with his frisbee

The castle grounds were busy, loads of people had the same idea, and the grounds were full of families eating and playing sports. We were sheltered from any breeze by the castle walls.

Above is inside the walls and below is the water front outside.

Josh made great jam tarts and scones which we all shared, later friends popped in for a drink, and I had my 1st pimms of the season, sat on our back decking in still more sunshine.

I have not done any cross stitch in the past two days spending all my time out in the garden, I am very pleased with how the garden is progressing, I have plants coming along in my small green house and the shrubs I planted in my new garden are growing well, Kev set up our water feature, it's a simple rock and waterfall but looks and sounds great.

Friday morning updates

I have been off work all this week and because of limited use of my left arm, I have been resting, but not doing nothing. Below is the start of the cushion for my spare bed, it is worked over 32hpi, and going to be alot more work than I intended.

The red gingham squares will tumble across the middle of the cushion, I will need ten rows of ten square's per row to make the correct size. each square can take an evening to make. The design is for me to use all shades of red, I did think I would make a second cushion in yellow but that is now unlikely. Below is just a couple weeks work.

Below I thought I would follow Milly's example and show my unfinished work.

These cats are wonderful but takes alot of work, I have had this a couple of years, and every now and then I have another go at it.

This project was for a little girl who is now three years old, no reason for finishing it.

This only needs the back stitch to be finished, that's the part I hate the most.

I have loads of projects never started, but as my taste does not change I know they are in my stash for when I am ready to get going with them.

We are hoping to get some more decorating done in the dining room this week, but the weather forecast is good so the garden will win out, providing Kev will be willing to do the big stuff I can't do at the mo.

Thanks a bunch

This is what I found on my door step when I got home today


The house looks a mess, we are still preparing the walls for painting, we have put up coving in the dining room but not in the sitting room. so it's pretty dull here,
I have to have an operation tomorrow so there is no hope of doing any more inside for a week.
And family and friends thought I would like some colour in my life at this time

So I have a yellow bunch of sunshine and a pink bunch of fizz

Hubby Kev has been great, we have visited our local hospital loads, he has sat through me being prodded, poked and tested ready for this op, Fliss and Su has been there also every step of the way, and boy do you need your family when you are being dealt with with our National Health Service. My biggest problem is though I need this op I do not feel unwell, I have no awful symptoms in fact I feel great.

Sunny afternoon

This afternoon the sun has come out to play, and so I followed into the garden.

I have removed all the coloured stone from this garden and replaced it with bark.

Looking towards the back of the house, my pots look nice, we still have the patio furniture under cover, two nights ago we had heavy hail stones. The "lawn" is a total mess, but we have to take away some of the decking and redo infront of the garage. Then we will replace the lawned area with grass.

I have dug out a garden along the small wall, the rose bushes are yellow and I will fill this area with loads of cottage garden plants, I want a riot of colour here later this year.

Josh's plant is doing well, as is the Acer and behind a daisy.

Keeping busy

As you can imagine we are keeping busy this long weekend, today Kev is having a game of golf, he should be home for a late lunch. Which leaves Grace and I at home.
Su, Fliss, Steve and Josh came for a special Easter dinner yesterday, after which we went for a walk around Portchester Castle. Kev and I were hoping to go out on his bike, but it all dull and overcaste here.

Above is a cushion I brought on Friday, I want to embellish it, I could not find the fabric to make a cushion, we do not have many fabric shops in Fareham. I want to add flowers and colour, using beads, felt and cross stitch, I have asked Fliss if she will crochet a flower for me.
Below is the start of another project, I wanted to stitch the cushion I showed you in a previous blog, but the canvas was large and I prefer to use a 32 count, I love the finer work, so I have designed 10 different blocks, using shades of red and I am going to stitch 10 diagonal blocks across the front of this cushion and then add the other designs, if it works I shall do a second cushion in the same patterns but in yellow, both for the spare bed.

I popped out of my office to get my cup of coffee and Grace thought she should keep my chair warm, so now I'm sat on Kev's chair, Grace is following me around the house and we are having some wonderful cuddles.
To keep ourselves busy we have started putting up the coving in the dining room and we have purchased the wooden flooring, we have decided to do all the work ourselves, which should be fun, I am useless and Kev knows how to do these things but have only once laid a small amount of laminate flooring, we have been told the solid wood floor is better to lay, we have the sitting, dining rooms and the whole length of the hall to do.

In between the showers I have done some gardening, the sink below was in the original kitchen, but it is chipped so I have placed it outside the kitchen door, I was going to make an Alpine garden, Kev chose these plants, not quite what I had in mind but they will fill the sink and have loads of white, pink and red flowers.

I have replanted my bay tree and created a herb corner, this is at the end of our decking. I have a couple of deep vegetable grow bags and I will plant salad items, carrots, beetroot and a few other things. It's not the garden I was looking for, but the house is so perfect I can scale down the plans for a veg garden.

Long night

It's 4.35 on Saturday morning, and I can't sleep, our beloved cat Thomas was poorly on Tuesday, just a bit off colour, Wednesday morning he was still the same, after work we were concerned enough to call the vet. Thursday we took him to the vet and we had to rush him to the animal hospital in Winchester, where we were informed he was gravelly ill.
After piles of test, the vets informed us, he would require major surgery, which if he got through he had a slim chance. We have insurance on both the cat's so cost was not involved, but the vet was worried for him, and Thomas was very unhappy where he was and what they had to do to him. So last night he went to sleep, we were with him. Poor Grace is lost.

This is how we remember him, full of life