Scenes from the Weekend... Part 4

We enjoyed a very pleasant evening at The Queen's Head... There were only a few people around this time, either chatting to friends, having a meal, reading newspapers or just relaxing at the end of their weekends. It was nice to catch up with a few of our friends and find out about the things that they had been doing over the course of the weekend - Sarah and Mark had been gliding, and Roger and Maureen had been busy in the garden and windsurfing.

Here's an image of the main fireplace at the Queen's...




This is one view from the table we sat at to eat our meal. There probably aren't too many pubs even in this country with the Coat of Arms of the United Kingdom on the wall... England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are each represented on this Coat of Arms. If you look at the top right hand image in the collage, then you can probably get a better impression...



And here's the other view from our table, looking through into the bar area itself. Roger and Maureen are seated to the left.



And here's the view from the other side of the bar, with Jerry doing his stuff behind the bar - he's an excellent bar manager. We're standing and chatting to Sarah and Mark who had just come in as we were finishing our meals...



They decided to eat also so we sat down with them whilst they enjoyed their meal. Here's a close up view of the beer engines behind the bar, taken from the table just near the fireplace.



and a final view of that wonderful fireplace with the wood burning down at the end of a very pleasant evening.



Thanks for joining us and I hope you enjoyed yourself as much as we did. Warm wishes, Vxx

Scenes from the weekend... Part 2

Palm Sunday morning; gorgeous blue sky and some real warmth in the air. This morning we're off to our local community centre where a few members of the village cricket team are gathering to do some preparatory work for the coming season. The pitch has to be marked out, the grass mowed and rolled. The practice nets need to be checked and mended. The grass where last year's Guy Fawkes bonfire was situated also needs some work to it before it can be played on.


It's not a 'serious' team but they enjoy quite a few social matches and we all chip in to do our bit. I don't play but my husband does and I thought it a perfect opportunity to snap a few photos for my blog!


The first thing we saw when we drove into the carpark was this hot air balloon - not sure if it had a 'learner driver' at the controls but it seemed to be having some problems with sufficient lift. By the time we'd parked and I'd managed to grab my camera and scramble out of the car, it had gained some height...




only for it to skew off to the side a little when it then lost all height and dropped into the field... that it wasn't supposed to land in! It dragged along for probably 100 metres or so and then started to climb once more... no doubt the basket removed quite a lot of the crop as it dragged along the ground!



Fortunately, it regained good height and headed off to wherever these things head off to... but I rather suspect that the passengers got a little more excitement than they bargained for.

The guys got stuck into the area of grass that needed to be repaired from the bonfire. Although new turf had been laid here, the heavy winter rains had done a bit of damage to the soil levels and it needed to be levelled out a little to make it safe for all.



I thought I'd leave them all to it and take the opportunity to see what was hiding in the 'outfield' or the rough grass. Maybe head over to one of the benches whilst I watched them all working - what a treat! When I reached the first bench, I decided that there wasn't quite enough sun to enjoy so started to walk on by. And that was when I noticed that it was not actually the nice quiet little spot I'd originally thought it might be...




It's one of those compressed air bird scarer guns and it was only about 30 or so feet away from the bench! Mind you, I guess it would be pretty peaceful after you'd had your heart attack.



A sweet little violet blossoming in the shelter under some trees and below a photo of some leaf bursting through on a horse chestnut tree... and clearly an angel had brushed by this branch.



Meanwhile, the guys were starting to get a little serious with their work, so I decided to wander back and take a some photos of their efforts. Discussions were held about the correct area to mow - or was that about the correct way to mow the area?



Some manpower went into the cutting and the rolling...



then more cutting whilst some fertiliser was spread over the cut grass...



and the batting practice nets were mended...



But clearly they enjoyed themselves and a lot of fun was had by all.



Time to have a little chat about this and that before we all headed back to our homes, lunch and whatever other plans we had in place for the rest of the day.... for us, a little more work in the garden, a lazy lunch in the sun and then later on we were heading off to the Queen's Head for a nice, relaxed evening meal. Hope you can join us! Warm wishes, Vxx

Scenes from the weekend... Part 1

The Saturday before Easter and the weather is superb today. Whilst the air temperature is not exactly on the cosy side, the sunshine is wonderful and, if you can get out of the cool breeze that's blowing, then there is definite warmth in the sun! We had an exciting morning visiting one of the local supermarkets (I know, I know) and then headed off to an agricultural supplier to get some more grit and various bits and bobs for the new hens. More of them later. Then back home and a few chores around the home before heading into the garden... lots and lots of chores to be done there at this time of the year.

In tune with Easter, a bunch of (mostly!) yellow flowers, some from the supermarket visit earlier this morning whilst the daffodils are from our garden. Just in an old white jug and placed in the hall...

I love these two green crystal bowls you can see here - they are old but I don't know how old they are. However, I think the etching is charming. I expect that they are the type of bowls that would have been placed on a dining table, ready for the dregs a wine glass to be emptied into when a new wine was to be served...

In keeping with the yellow theme, some freesias with their delicious perfume wafting through the kitchen. Fortunately, you can't really define the dead ceanothus through the window - it didn't survive this last winter even with the protection of the house close to it, so this weekend it's going to go!

More on the theme of yellow - this time some self sown cowslips in the garden underneath one of the pear trees. There are masses in this area of the grass but these are the first to show their faces.

Just behind the cowslips are these deep blue grape hyacinths or muscari - these are pretty little things and as with the cowslips we seem to have thousands scattered around the garden. Even my bulb digging hens don't seem to be able to destroy these. Thank goodness!



And some white hyacinths just by the old well in front of the house. The bulbs are planted in the grass so happily my little darlings are not able to scratch these pretty flowers out of the ground.



The grass had its first cut for the season. This area of 'lawn' has been ravaged by a mole (and the hens) so we have some serious work cut out for us in order to firstly deal with dear little Moley, and then to get the lawn into shape again. Irritatingly, the ride-on mower decided that it is still on winter holidays, so refused to start. An acre or so of unkempt winter grass is a pain to cut with an normal mower!



Reward for effort!! The sun is now well over the yardarm (it's about 6.15pm) and so I made a cool, refreshing gin and tonic for each of us. Delicious!



A few more things to be done outside, tools to be cleaned and put away, the hens to be bedded down for the night and safely secured in their runs. By now, it's cold outside, the light is going from the day and it's time to light a fire in the wood burning stove in the Snug. Time also to turn some lights on inside the house and to think about preparing the evening meal.



If you were coming to share a meal with us tonight, you'd see this view of our front door...



before being welcomed into our little entrance hall where we like to have lots of candles burning, no matter what the season or weather...



perhaps you'd care for a glass of chilled white wine before your meal?



I hope you enjoyed your Saturday as much as we enjoyed ours! Warm wishes, Vxx

Stonecross

Sometime ago, I mentioned the remains of an old stone cross just down the hill from our home. I've been waiting for some sunshine to take a photo but eventually I decided that if I wait for the sun, then maybe I won't be able to take the photo to include the daffodils that flower around the old stone base. The cross itself was removed centuries ago, probably when Henry VIII sacked the Abbey... there is a strong rumour that the cross was buried in what was then a field but is now the grounds of one of the local homes...there is an even stronger rumour that it was recently dug up and then hastily re-buried...




The stone cross has now lent its name to the hamlet of homes that surround it... Stonecross Green...



Here, the road leads further to the south of our home. If you read my post about the Queen's Head pub, then all you have to do is follow this road and in about 5 minutes, you would be at the pub...



I was parked in Robin and Becky's drive so if you pull out of their drive and head along the road to the north of the cross, past Herringbone Cottage (sorry you can't see the absolutely stunning herringbone pattern brickwork to the front of the house... another time perhaps!), round the bend in the road, cross the bridge and then continue up the hill, we're the first house on the left. Pull in the drive, park your car and welcome to our home!

Have a great weekend! Warm wishes, V xx

Roses, Sunshine and Spring...

The sun is finally shining today after a cold, misty start. It's true to say that the sun even has some genuine warmth to it and I have been pootling around the garden, chatting to the new hens. They're doing well, and have begun to venture a little further afield from their little coop.

All my rose bushes are beginning to develop new leaves, new shoots and before (too) long, I hope to see the first flush of flowers. But in the meantime, I can enjoy some lovely roses in my house...



The paintings are quite old, and we were blessed to inherit them a few years ago from a very dear friend. I love these paintings and sometimes the 'right' roses are in bloom together in my garden and then I am able to recreate these pictures in reality on my dining table or other places around the house.

I think this next one is my favourite - well it is today! I dither between them but I guess who really cares which is 'better' - they're all lovely and a joy to look at when winter is here and all is grey outside.

Wishing you a lovely sunny week and weekend to come! Vxx

Sunday, Sunshine and Spring...

Isn't it amazing how our spirits lift when the sun shines! Yesterday was a beautifully sunny day here, and today looks as though it's going to be at least as good. The first of our daffodils have begun to open their blooms so it really does appear as though Spring has begun in earnest. It's been a difficult week as dear old Bear has not been so well. Yesterday however, she was able to lie in the sunshine and that seemed to perk her up quite a bit.



Finally the ground seems to be drying out from all the rains and snow. The mud is almost gone - hooray! So it's time to get out into the garden and sort a few things out before we are inundated with all the new growth. The gardening day started with the planting of a new section of Yew hedge along the road side of the property. This is the second hedge we've planted here - the first was a Pyracantha hedge which died back after a few years or so. But first things first... barrow loads of horse manure needed to be dug in to enrich the soil.



After a long day in the garden, we headed to one of our local pubs for a bite to eat. It's a beautiful old country pub which sadly is not located here in our village (or maybe that's a good thing!) but it's less than 5 minutes by car so we still take advantage of its proximity to our home.

When we made the reservation on Friday night, we had thought the pub would be pretty much empty, but on arrival we found it was busy with locals. Of course, everyone had enjoyed the first real day of Spring and so wanted to continue their day and weekend for as long as possible! We decided on a Beef Rogan Josh curry for me and my husband chose a pizza for his meal. A glass of chilled white wine for me and a pint of beer for him. It was delicious!



Here a couple of images of the little room we chose to eat our meal in... it has a fireplace and it was warm in there. The day might have been sunny and warm but the night air brought a chill to it. However the main reason we chose this room was because I could take some decent images - too many people in the other rooms to be able to do so... after all, who wants to have their photo taken on a Sunday evening when all you want to do is relax and be comfortable! The pub is called The Queen's Head - nothing at all to do with the stuffed boar's head on the wall though!



Here's a photo of that all important fire... the pub has another fireplace which is wonderfully impressive but it's very much a prime location and had a crowd gathered in front of it. Perhaps I'll be able to get an image for you on another occasion... ah, the lengths I'm prepared to go to for my blogging friends....



I hope you have all enjoyed your weekend and the coming week is good to you.