Lee on the Solent

 Along the south coast is the small resort of Lee on the Solent, in the past 40 years we have lived in this area it has changed very little, it's a beach loved by families, it feels so safe.

As promised fish and chips for tea, all three love fish, we sat on the beach away from the crowds, much easier for George. 

We all love this photo.

We spent 4 hours with our lovely family, it was warm and sunny, just enough breeze to keep us cool. They went rock hunting, Will found a small fossil, Molly found a fairy stone, a stone with a hole in, George threw countless stones back into the water. Coins were spent in the arcade, Will came home with extra money, we found a machine which was a prize every time for Molly and George. So much laughter and happy children, including our daughter, 

Children went home for a bath, we had a lazy evening, another great memory. We are blessed to live here along the south coast, I will never stop loving this coast, sadly we don't visit often enough. A perfect start to our bank holiday weekend.

Family time

 We had all three children on Tuesday, just a few hours, we decided once mummy got here we would have a BBQ, we don't use it so often, it's too big for just the two of us, the little ones loved it. So many toys and laughter, it was a lovely afternoon, we picked raspberries and tomatoes, the raspberries have all been ate.

To give Will and mummy time together, whilst Molly was at pre-school Wednesday and Thursday we had George on a sleep over, Will can have plenty of him time, doing things which is not possible with his siblings. George as always was so good, he loved sleeping in 'Wills' bed, and slept later. We always have loads of watermelon for them to eat, its a healthy treat, George has been very good with his glasses, I'm hopeful he is going to wear them regularly. 

Will has just been given reading glasses, he does not need them all the time, he will also help George wear his more, having said that George is wearing his when using his tablet, he should be OK wearing them at school. Will chose his own frames, they suit him.

More cut flowers from the garden, the asters are now flowering, my two bags of plants are doing well, the only issue I have is keeping water in the soil, so next year I will use two bags to slow the flow. These blooms last of ages, it has been a success for me. 

It's been a lovely week so far, having so many family times makes us both happy, tired but still happy, whilst allowing daughterto relax as well.

George played outside most of the yesterday with Lilly close by, our cat does love the little ones. We got a small set of goal posts, so lots if football, my poor plants took a few hits, he helped in the garden, so therefore ate most of the ripe raspberries. Today we have very few plans, just ensuring George has a good time.

Our plans for tomorrow, we are all meeting at Lee on the Solent, which is a small resort along the south coast, like most resorts its family friendly, with a pebble beach and a gentle water's edge. We aim to have fish and chips for the adults and probably sausage and chips for the youngsters, its should be loads of fun.

On the move

 This is an important time of the year, jobs which are completed now will make a huge difference next summer, I'm not talking about closing the garden for winter, that is still weeks away. Just general plant care, noting bare patches, overgrown plants which needs cutting back into their space, generally ensuring things are where they should be. It's also a great time to buy another plant and find a space for it, this is my 3rd Gaura, I have fallen in love with them this year 

 

I follow Dave_the_plantman on Instagram, he is very good with tips and plant identification. He suggested to remove the seed heads from agapanthus, something I have never done before, so I have cleared the seed heads from two areas and left the third. It does make sense as I always stop seed heads forming on my spring bulbs. 

I have moved my pomegranate in the big square tub, its now behind my seating area, it has space to grow taller, and provide a green backdrop. The mint has been moved into the lower old water tub, it sits better here now, I have cut it all down, it will grow back, I have also popped my parsley in the pot, it should sit above the mint, I have protected the base of the pot so mint roots can't get inside. Most of the herb pots are beside the back door. 

This corner now has the red rose in this pot, which had the mint in, I have given the pot a good scrub, I have popped a couple low plants in and some spring bulbs. At the moment it is not looking it's best, but next summer should be as I want, the rose behind I will cut back, so it blooms lower again. The new gaura is planted in the back by the wall, with another recent new plant, Snow Blizzard, both white flowers.

We have a water feature, we had both seen it in The Range, but was not sure, later on our local facebook marketplace, this one was for sale at less than half price, the seller had ordered it online and thought it was too small. Initially we were going to find a feature for the other side of the garage door, but we settled on this one, it does look good from our seating area. The water trickles around the sphere and does not spill, there are lights where the water pumps out.

I have not managed to remove any more pots, I know I still have too many, this 4th heat wave is telling on how long it takes me to water the pots. I have no huge plans forming for next year, just a few tweaks, most of which we will sort in the coming months.

My flower beds are full of colour mainly zinnias and asters, the roses are having a second bloom, the fleabane daisies look good, I've cut them back a couple of times to keep them low. The forsythia is looking good after the move, I'm really pleased with my late summer garden, I'm not a fan of dahlias, so I'm always looking for different later flowering plants.

It's been another few lazy days, mainly with cloudy starts, which has helped to keep the temperatures lower and life bearable, later when the sunshine shines through it's nice to sit in the shade, our garden has become our perfect spot. Yesterday we had no sunshine, hopefully the heatwave is behind us.

Quiet time

 Claire's story, she was abducted at the age of 15, and escaped 10 years later, the story follows two time lines, at the beginning and up to date, sounds horrendous but it's told in a positive way, I really enjoyed this book. Leah is a sequel, 3 years has passed, Claire witness a car crash, and saves the children, therefore becoming involved in the unfolding story, it's not as good as the first book, I still enjoyed it. Book's 57 and 58 read this year.

Another new author to me, it was a good plot but I did not truly enjoy, giving someone a special sight took away so much from the plot, it just wasn't great. Book 59 read this year.

A new author for me, I have seen loads of good things said about this book, once I started I was worried it centered around Peter Sutcliffe, The Yorkshire Ripper, but that soon became a backdrop and not the main story. I loved this book ordinary people living their lives, what goes on behind closed doors. A great book I did not want to put it down. Book 60 read this year.

We were given another 6 eggs this week, as a thank you I pulled a cauliflower which was going to seed for her chickens, the ladies enjoyed their treat, it's nice to be able to return kindness.

It's been a lazy week, hubby has worn various monitors this week, so many appointments to apply and remove them, thank you for your comments, his health is always on my mind, but we do try and get on with things, my main worry is to ensure he does not overdo things. I have been aching most of the week, all those lifts and cuddles with small people takes it toll, I'm not young anymore. 

Wednesday stayed cloudy all day, it got very muggy in the afternoon, we had a thunder storm, not much rain, it did not clear the air. Thursday was a cloudy start, then the blue skies returned, later I went to a local WI meeting, we have two groups in our village, I had been on the waiting list for a while, it was an enjoyable evening, first of many.

Friday we popped to The Range, not been there for a while, hubby is looking for an electric water feature, his barrel is OK, but he's not happy, nothing there we liked so the search continues. We had arranged to meet daughter and children at local beach for fish and chip supper, but it was too hot, so we postponed it until next week, in hope it will be cooler, we enjoyed fish and chips at home. Saturday was cloudy all day with a light breeze, so I spent time outside, I have photos in my next post.

Most evenings have been cooler, we do love to sit outside, by the evening we are in natural shade, whilst the sun still shines on the other side of the garden, often we can smell a BBQ or hear music, sometimes raised happy voices, neighbours enjoying their space, we don't have many young children close by, just the occasional sound of grandchildren visiting. 

Winning and losing

 Back in March I got two packets of these bulbs for the back of the square bed, which should have given me 18 plants, sadly I can only see one bulb growing, it's a common issue in my garden, I plant bulbs and they never appear, some of it will be to do with the clay soil, it does rot bulbs.  

On the plus side I found a sprouting walnut in my raised veg bed, I potted it on in hope it would grow, it's really looking healthy, I will keep it in a pot for as long as I can, then I will pass it on locally, I do love free plants.

This is my first time growing butternut squash, I only have one fruit, there were two but one shrivelled and died. It's growing in a big pot, so probably not enough nutrients to grow loads.

These are my first asters from my grown to cut bag along with a few zinnias, both are growing well, I have loads in my flowerbeds which I don't cut.

My tomatoes in the greenhouse have really failed, I do believe it is the compost primarily, but the heat has not helped, my cucumbers got to set a couple of flowers and died as well. My carrots are slow, and a couple cauliflowers have gone to seed. Having the blueberry tub in with the raspberry bed is just too crowded, I already have a spot to move the tub to.

One of the biggest wins this year are soft fruits, strawberries, raspberries and blackberries are huge and juicy. My rhubarb has given us loads, I stopped pulling it early July. My new gooseberry bush is filling out, so I will let the fruit form next year.

Every year there are mixed results in the garden, our changeable weather is always the biggest issue, so every year there are winners and losers, luckily I get enough wins to keep me happy. What are your results.

It's a jolly holiday

Friday we left at lunch time, stopped off for a pub meal with Grandpa and Grandma, sadly the food was not that great, most of us left food, but it did not dampen our spirts. We were pleased with our accommodation, situated on the edge of the park, next to fields, really quiet, with a lockable decking area safe for George, who can be a runner.

My three favourite little people, we spent Saturday morning at the splash pool, all three are waterbabies, they loved it, the sun came out but it was still cool. After a great lunch we spent the hottest part of the day back in our accommodation, later we went to the club house for early evening tots dancing time, which Molly and George  loved.

Sunday was a repeat, time at splash pool and then lunch, later Grandma and Grandpa popped over, we sat inside out of the sun, it was much warmer now, much later we walked to clubhouse for tea, sadly George became overwhelmed, had a meltdown, once we calmed him down he was tired so mummy and Will went back to our accommodation, I stayed longer with Molly so she could take part in the tots dance party.

George has now to wear glasses, here he is happy, but he won't keep them on, which is OK its going to take time, but he does leave them anywhere, these were expensive as is most children's bits, keeping them safe is the priory. He has never worn his hearing aids, he hates them, hopefully he will be happier with glasses.

We were staying less than an hours drive from home, very close to Grandpa and Grandma's house on Hayling Island, so they spent time with us. The accommodation was clean with every modern kitchen items, including airfryer, and a pod coffee machine, we did not do any cooking, eating out so mummy had less to do. The site was a simple style with a larger inside swimming pool, and another outside and the splash pool. I found the food on site to be excellent all fresh ingredients and not overpriced, a perfect venue for families. It was really close to the local pebble beach, we did not leave the site, there was enough to do for our short stay.

The weather was spectacular, blue skies and hot, we returned home before the heatwave, it would have been too hot for the younger two. Mummy rested and we both spent loads of time laughing at our wonderful trio, every evening once the younger two had swapped beds a few times, it was quiet and restful.

We spent Sunday with Grandma and Grandpa, she made a lovely lunch and the children played outside in the shade. It was pleasing to only have a short drive home, I was pleased to be home, exhausted, so a snacky tea, shower and early night. 

Today I did nothing, between the heat and tiredness it has been a lazy day, hubby ensure the garden was watered whilst I was away and was rewarded with loads of raspberries, normally ate before they reach our kitchen, he enjoyed the peace at home. Got a few things happening this week, hubby is having loads of test at local hospital,  he has had heart issues for years, but recently he not been to well. We are not planning to do much for the rest of the week, just a quiet time which we both need.

Hard working

Dave, Northsider was looking at old gardening tools at a boot sale recently, which made me think of my tools, below is a shovel, fork, spades, all belonged to my mum, the shovel and a spade have had new handles. When mum moved out of the family home she gave these to me, my brother had the rest, I've had these for over 20 years. The trowel I have never used, I cherish it, something she used almost every fine day. I don't use these tools very often, in fact I only use the fork when I want to move a bigger plant.

These are my tools, I have predominantly raised beds, so the long handle tools just don't work. Most of these have been purchased in the last few years, often from hubby to me as gifts. These hang just inside the garage, perfect spot.

All my sharps are kept in this drawer, hidden from little hands, I adore my hori hori knife, I'm using it all the time, there is another sharp knife in the green sheaf on the left. My most used secateurs are the pointy set on the right.

These are older hand tools of mine, these live in the greenhouse, and saves me walking to the garage everytime I have a job. These are more for working with seeds and seedlings. The metal tongs are used when dealing with my cactus. 

 

My garden is not hard work, I have gotten on top of weeds, we have lived here for 16 years, its an organic space where I use the no dig approach. Having the correct tools help keep my back in good shape, having the best handle length has been a game changer for me.

My veg beds are small both just under a meter wide and two meters long, the flower beds I have tended for years, adding to the clay soil, enriching it. For me this is now an easy garden to tend, I have moved away from bedding plants, preferring plants and bulbs which return each year.

Everything has evolved, even the refit was something which formed over years. We could not change the raised section at the back, which became the perfect spot for my greenhouse, and the garage was too useful for hubby's motorcycle and storage. The space behind the garage is much better as my working space seen here rather than a shed.

I'm still away with little ones and daughter, it's hectic and fun in equal measures, happy children do make a happy mummy and nanna, photo's next time.

Garden jobs

 My mystery bulb has flowered, its a spider lilly, which is the one I purchased, but it was labled under a different name. I'm not a fan of lillies, this one is pretty so it can stay, there are lots more buds forming, so it should flower for ages. Two views of the same flower.

My grasses behind my pond did not look right, so being me, I swapped two around, the bigger blue/green grass looks much better in front of my wooden raised beds, and the red/brown smaller grass is much nicer infront of the red blood baron grass, which was the same as before the move, but now they are much further back and not falling into the water. All the wildlife you see are resin, sadly still there is nothing much living here.

I'm loving my sink and the pot infront, they were redone last year, I should not need to do anything more to them. The tiny fushia looks right here, its very delicate. 

I have been busy, my leeks are now in the raised veg bed I have sown purple sprouting broccoli, I'm later doing these, hopefully I will get a harvest. My latest sowing of potatoes are growing, I have added more soil, I am picking runner beans, salad bits, raspberries and blackberries. Hubby has trimmed our Magnolia tree, after the tree surgeon cut it back last year, the new growth is very thick, hubby has cut most back by half. I have planted some sweet williams, I still have loads more, I potted into bigger pots foxgloves, aquilegia's and my snowberry plants, these will be useful next year. I have just used the last of my homegrown onions, I think I will use the same type again, I will looks out for the onion sets.

We did go to town on Tuesday, had a nice wonder around and purchased nothing, rather than a meal we went to our favourite cafe, they made the best bacon sandwich. Wednesday morning I did housework, laundry out on the line in warm sunshine, later we popped to huge B&M out of town store, topped up on catfood and cleaning bits, we do have a smaller shop in town, neither of us wanted to carry bulky bits home on the bus.

Today hubby is back in Somerset, staying with my brother, tomorrow is SIL's funeral, I am unable to attend as daughter, the children and I are off for a 4 day break, it's been pre-booked for ages. Hubby will drive back on Friday, and enjoy a few peaceful days with Lilly. The weather forecast is sunny and hot, there are swimming pools and a splash park so the little ones are going to be happy.

Grasslands

 These grasses should fill the back corner behind my pond, and stand out they won't grow too big, I like their sharp pointy stems, they will make a good contrast in the bed.

I always thought Purdy was a nosey cat, Lilly is even noisier, everything has to be checked by her, these have passed after a good sniff.

All in place, I did a good tidy up of this corner, I moved two existing grasses back so they dont flop into the water, for a gardener who did not like grasses I have loads here. I don't grown them elsewhere in the garden. The pond needs a good clean lots of soil fell in, I have a couple of airstones to pop in to help keep it clear.

The forsythia is in the back corner of the square bed, it should shine out against the acer. To balance the back corners I moved the chinese witch hazel still in its pot, it needs acidic soil to thrive, next spring I will need to get a few tall plants for the middle back, I have scattered loads of the big poppy seeds.

A couple smaller pots got moved as well, just to balance this section of the garden, the plant in the middle has started to grow and will fill the space, it's slightly off centre, I have a peony on the right side which needs a bit more space, it's now a case of wait until next spring and see what grows.

We had rain overnight, Monday has been breezy and dull from the start, a day full of showers, nothing as bad as in the north. Daughter came with Will and George, we walked to our local bistro for lunch, a nice treat, it been ages since Will had been there, both boys were good. The afternoon was spent playing inside, Lilly close to George, later I have been reading, I do feel much better today, hopefully the fog is beginning to lift, it's hung around for far too long. Tomorrow hubby and I will take the bus to town, he's taking me out for lunch,  nowhere posh, just a change in routine. 

Joyful blooms

This zinnia has to be the prettiest bloom in my garden, it came from a mixed packet of seeds and only one plant has given this bloom, I am beginning to love zinnias, I grew them for the first time last year, I have some doing well in a grow bag which I use for cut flowers.

Another bloom I am enjoying is this pale pink fuchsia, I grew it from a tiny plug plant, it's full of blooms.

My mum grew dahlias every year, I'm not so keen on them, so for later summer blooms I love begonia's, always grown in a container, most once they die back stay outside, the two blue pots under the olive tree both go back into the greenhouse for the winter months.  

I have this bulb growing in my side bed, I can't remember what I planted, I did get two cheap bulbs back in early summer, but I am sure I put them in the daisy bed, I will just have to wait and see what blooms, if it is the bulb below I can't see any growth of the second one.

These are the other end of their growth cycle, the seeds are forming on my agapanthus, these in the side bed, they tower over all the other plants and still look beautiful. 

For those who like to see anything through to the end, hubby has hung my new sign, it's on the garage wall just at the start of my veg section, we have a selection of signs here, they can't be seen from the seating area.

It's been mainly dull in the past few days, we have had some sunny moments, the recent rain has made everywhere look so good, I have sweet williams to plant out, grown from seed, as yet their space is not empty, so I have potted them on and popped them outside the greenhouse. 

We went on Sunday to a different garden centre, we are lucky there are 4 really good ones close to home, good is measured by plant quality and price. Mud island is more a nursery, they grow loads of their own plants, I got a couple matching grasses for behind my pond, I am going to dig out the forsythia, I have another spot for it. 

Storm Floris is due, I think here along the south coast, we are below the main body of the storm, it's a worry with the high winds expected, normally we only get these in the winter months, with the trees in full leaf I am expecting to see loads of damage in it's path, I hope you are safe from the storm. 

I guess it's what they call the blues.

A new author to me, I'm reading on Kindle and I found book 23 of a series, this is book 1, it was a good believable story set in a small USA town, I like the way the case started small and grew. It very cleverly brought in more people, with a surprise at the end. Book 54 read this year.

I adore Linwood Barclays style of writing,  building stories around ordinary people, who for whatever reason gets tangled in things they don't want. Set back in Promise Falls, just a short story, working out who done it. Book 55 read this year.

Another good read, it led you all over the place, so much confusion, who did it, who do you trust, your own mind playing games with you. Book 56 read this year. 

Hubby gave me this lovely sign, I asked him if he could make a wooden base for it to enhance the sentiment, he found a perfect bit of wood in his 'someday it will come in handy' pile, it will look much better, once it's attached we need to decide where to put it.

I've not done anything outside, the past few days have been overcast at best and raining other days, I do pick raspberries and blackberries each day, I'm watching my butternut squash plant, I have a few fruits growing.

I am still very antisocial, we have not been out much, we did not both going to town this week, we really did not need anything, hubby suggested we pop to our favourite garden centre, but it's too wet to walk around. The house is clean and I'm reading loads, no crafting, too warm to knit or crochet, I have everything here to make hubby's cushions other than the desire to get my sewing machine out, normally when I feel like this I work on my blog book, but I can't be bothered with it.

My brother Martin has said he does not feel up to the 3 hour drive to visit us, he's on his own, I can understand how he feels, my sister now has her elderly FIL living with them, so it's difficult for her to be away for any time. Hubby's family are spread throughout UK, his younger sister in Wales has spent loads of time in Newcastle with their older sister who has recently had a op, his brother in Devon has been offered a break here, but as normal he is not saying much.

Daughter has a busy few days with helping out school parents and their child care, mainly Wills friends, it's never a chore, they all get on well and she loves helping them through summer holidays, as they are helpful to her other times.

Hubby is lovely, he finds things to do, like me he reads loads, we walk to the village, chat to neighbours, I'm happiest when sat in our garden, the space we have created is perfect for us, for me this has been a good summer, but I do know I need to do more, what is the question, firstly I have stopped scrolling on my phone and tablet, it's a small start.

Thursday we had thunder storms and heavy rain most of afternoon and evening, everywhere has had a good soak, I have a couple task to do, but will wait until the ground is not so wet.