I`m Still Here!

Me at RHS Wisley




On the beach at Boscombe




Roman having fun on a bouncy castle at his cousin Charlie`s birthday party.


Isn`t she gorgeous?



Hello everyone,

I thought I`d better post an entry as it`s been weeks since my last one. I suppose with one thing and another, ie; real life and probably a bit of laziness thrown in has something to do with it.

Anyway, I`m here now so I`ll quickly let you know how we all are.

I`m fine, very busy at work and in my garden. Housework is taking second place to the garden but I`m still managing to get everything done eventually, at the expense of computer time and even watching TV. Jim is also very well. he`s been doing some fishing, including his much awaited sea fishing trip. To my displeasure he gave all the fish he caught to Danny and Slava...hmm...its not as if they didn`t catch anything either...Oh well, its back to fish fingers I suppose...lol!

Roman and Sophie are really thriving. Roman had his last big school visit today and Kerry was introduced to his new teacher Mrs. Andrews. Kerry was relieved that she seemed very nice and was surprised to find Roman had met her previously. It all sounds very grown-up and Roman can`t wait to go. The only downside for him is that his best friend Toby lives in a different catchment area so will be attending another school. Luckily Toby`s mum and Kerry have become friends so they will still see each other regularly. They are inseparable and think the world of each other.

Sophie is 12 weeks old now and is 14lbs. She hasn`t been the easiest baby, temperament-wise but she seems to be settling down a bit more now. Up until recently she cried whoever picked her up, including ME, her devoted grandmother (that never happened with Roman!) Lately though she seems to be mellowing and hopefully will be as laid back as her big brother. I must admit I have enjoyed buying pretty little dresses for her though she grows so quickly I tend to buy cheaper ones now. She is wearing clothes for a size 6-9 month old baby as 3-6 is just too small now. The way shes growing she`ll be bigger than Roman before she`s a year old...lol!

As you will know if you live in the British Isles, many of us have been sweltering in a heatwave the last fortnight. I love Summer, but Oh my goodness, it`s just that bit too hot for me at the moment. A slight breeze would be nice, just to cool things down a degree or too along with some steady overnight rainfall because I`m fed up with carry watering cans up and down the garden night after night. My arms are so long now I`m starting to resemble an Orangutan!

A few weeks ago I had a weeks holiday, if you can call it that. I think I was busier that week than when I`m getting paid for working. On the Monday I went out shopping on my own, a rare treat. I think the best bit was sitting in Starbucks with a cappuchino and some fruit bread, reading a magazine and just relaxing...perfect. That was the last leisurly day though. On Tuesday we took Roman to Boscombe in Dorset for the day. We`d never been there before but I`d read that it was a lovely place but quieter than it`s neighbour Bournemouth. Well we had a wonderful day there. The car park was just a few yards for the beach, which was sandy and very clean. The whole area was very well kept and with the weather also being excellent we couldn`t have had a better day. Roman loved making sand castles and was a very good boy all day. We had a lovely lunch at a nice restaurant overlooking the beach. In fact it was a perfect day for us all.

On the Wednesday Jim and I did some work in the garden, he`s been painting the fences and putting up some new trellis`s for me. We really did work hard all day and I really pleased with the progress in my garden. We have plans to extend the patio and widen and reshape the flower beds. I know once its finished it will look really good, though it will probably take ages to do, which of course is all the fun of gardening. I must admit that evening we DID have rather sore backs though a good night`s sleep took care of that.

On Thursday we visited the Royal Horticultural Gardens at Wisley in Surrey. It was another lovely day though a bit cooler, just the way it should be when there is a lot of walking involved. It was a thoroughly enjoyable day out but very tiring and hard on the legs. They had some lovely plants that I had my eye on but when I visited their plant centre the best ones that I wanted had all sold out...sigh. H-o-w-e-v-e-r....me being me didn`t let a little thing like that stop me from buying a `few` new plants. Oh no, I spent an hour and a half selecting some new specimens to add to my borders. Poor Jim, who was pushing the trolley for me kept reminding me of how long we`d been there. Yes I know his feet DID probably ache...but so did mine but the plants were more important...lol! ;o)

On the Friday it rained so I decided to use that time doing housework, very boring but necessary. It might have been a week of but I was relived to get back to work for a well earned rest...lol!

Do you know, despite not writing for so long I can`t for the life of me think what else has happened over the last few weeks. Well of course I HAVE been watching tennis at Wimbledon and this afternoon watched our own Andy Murray lose to Andy Roddick. I`m disappointed but he`s very talented and only just 22, he`ll be back next year that`s for certain.

Anyway, my friends, if I`ve got any left that is! I hope you`re all well and do have a lovely weekend. Take care. :o)

Happy Days and Lost Chocolate

Make a Smilebox postcard

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Hello Everyone,

I thought I`d pop by and say hello seeing as I haven`t posted for what seems like forever...almost three weeks I think.

I`ve been working longer hours as its the busiest time of year in any garden centre and I must say I`m glad of the extra money too. The only problem being is that by the time I get home and have had some much needed lunch I have to catch up on housework and then I`m out in the garden tending to my plants. I think most evenings I have no more than an hour and a half computer time, not much when I think of the time I`ve spent on here in the past. On Monday we went to Kerry`s for the afternoon when I managed to get home at the usual time. I do enjoy being able to see them because with Roman at school and with them living further away I don`t see them as much as I used to. But then I think it`s not that bad, Roman`s Russian grandparents only see him once a year and in future it`s most likely only going to be every other year, air travel for four doesn`t work out cheap.

Speaking of working late I am always ravinous when I finish and the other day I bought a nice tasty chocolate bar, a Bounty to be exact. I ate one piece straight away and put the other piece on the passenger seat of my car so I could munch on it when I was driving along. As I was turning a corner my beloved Bounty slid onto the floor out of reach and I actually cried out "Oh no!" I waited until there was somewhere I could pull over and quickly retrieved it and ate it before I lost it again. Never has a simple bar of chocolate tasted quite as good as it did then...lol!

Last week my nephew Adam turned 18 and we attended his party in the evening. he`s such a lovely lad, though he`s hardly a lad now. he`s 6ft.5" and still growing and he`s broad with it so he looks much older than 18. I`ve always had a soft spot for him as he has the nicest nature and it was nice to spend the evening with him and the rest of his family. Next year its his younger brother Ryan who is 18 and I`m looking forward to the party already...lol!

Kerry had Sophie weighed today and she`s already 11lbs.4ozs, not bad for 5 weeks old. She is doing really well and some of the clothes she is wearing are size 3-6mths! I was looking at some of Kerry`s baby photos the other day and I was amazed at how alike they were at that age, though Kerry was much daintier than her little girl. Kerry thought that Sophie resembled ME when I was a baby though the only likeness I could see was the thick dark hair that we shared. I suppose different people see different things in one another and of course genes are passed down the generations.

The last time I posted I mentioned Roman`s conjunctivitis. His poorly eyes soon got better much to Kerry`s relief. He didn`t like the eye drops and each time they were due he had to be held down making it very difficult for Kerry, especially as she was still very sore from the caesarean. She is totally recovered now and despite a blip when she was feeling a bit depressed she is doing really well now. She decided it would help her recovery by going for walks each day and walking further afield as she felt better. The women she talks to at the school were amazed how well she was after a difficult birth. I think that she takes after me when it comes to illness or incapacity, neither of us are good patients and will do all we can to recover by any means necessary. The one thing I can`t fight completely are the aches and pains of advancing age, of which I have too many at the moment. :o( Mind you, I do curse them and it seems to help at times...lol!

Talking of ailments I have a mysterious problem. About a week ago I woke up one morning and I couldn`t open my right eye. It wasn`t sticky as with conjunctivitus but it just wouldn`t open until I did it manually. Anyway, it`s the same every morning and I know there can`t be anything too serious because I had my eyes tested the other week and they said they are healthy and they couldn`t see any abnormalities. I have noticed in photos for a couple of years that my eyelid droops a little bit this never happened before. The thing is my eye is fine all day and it only happens when I`ve been asleep. I suppose I`ll have to see the doctor if it continues though I`d rather not. I have to have a cholesteral test in a fortnight so I might just ask the nurse and see what she says.

I`m posting this in ordinary text because I have lost the colour and font change facillities on my journal, has this happened to anyone else? I must have a look at my Facebook because I haven`t been there for ages either, I don`t want to lose touch with everyone.

I really want to thank Antonella and Barb for the beautiful gifts and cards theyhave sent for Sophie, it was very kind and I know Kerry really appreciates them. She was really cynical about me having online friends but the response she has had has changed her mind completely. She thinks its lovely that people she has never met have been so kind and thoughtful....and of course she is right!

Tomorrow Jim is going on his annual sea-fishing trip with his mates from work. Danny is going too but Slava couldn`t get the time off of work this time and he`s disappointed to be missing out. Jim spoke to the captain of the boat and the weather forecast is good. Hopefully I will be able to stock my freezer with some tasty fish tomorrow evening. The one thing that is always at the back of my mind is their safety though I know the captain is a very experienced man and knows the waters like the back of his hand. I`m just glad when I get a phone call to say they`ve had a great days fishing, then I can relax at last.

Anyway, my friends, I`ll say goodbye for now. I promise I won`t leave it so long before I post again. Take care all of you and have a great weekend.


Bye Bye for now. :o)

Aaaaaggghhh!

Many apologies, I was just practising and somehow I didn`t cancel the entry properly, please ignore this silly woman...lol!

Love Sandra xxxx

Photos and Updates

5 days old

With my gorgeous grandchildren

Roman practising his reversing skills

In our garden on Sunday, the weather was really hot and sunny.

Later that evening

Looking over daddy`s shoulder, can you see the likeness with Roman?

Roman "repairing" his car tyre with Jim`s spanner. He has conjunctivitus and his poor eyes are all swollen and sore.

No grandad, I am NOT amused!!! Do you like her pretty little pink dress?



Hello everyone,

I`m sorry I`ve been so long posting another entry, I don`t know where the time goes just lately. If I haven`t been working extra hours I`ve been at Kerry`s or she has been here. I think recently I`ve only had about an hour online per evening. Sophie is doing really well as is Kerry now. Kerry is on iron tablets which have certainly given her a boost and you would never guess she`d had a difficult c-section just 13 days ago. Sophie is getting bigger each time I see her and I can`t believe how different she is from Roman at that age. She is very laid back but so alert, she holds her head up really well and is always looking around to see what`s going on, almost as though if she doesn`t she will miss something important. Kerry is feeding her herself anymore and her midwife agreed. Because Sophie is so big she is very hungry and is now on a special formula for big babies. She sleeps really well at night and only wakes for her feeds and sometimes she sleeps through them too. Kerry is really enjoying motherhood second time around and I`m sure its because she is more relaxed having done it all before. Roman has conjunctivitus and has very sore, swollen eyes at the moment. Kerry tried with drops from the pharmacy but after a couple of days she had to take him to see a doctor who prescribed antibiotics. Getting the eye drops in is almost like a military operation. Roman refuses to let anyone put them in so he has to be held down by Slava while Kerry administers them. Its not that he`s scared of them because he laughs and runs away, its just that he refuses point blank even though he knows they are to make him better. It is just one of the things he has taken to doing since Sophie was born. He really loves her and he doesn`t say anything bad about her but his behaviour has changed towards Kerry and Slava. He`s fine with us and he gets lots of cuddles as always. I think its just an uncertain time for him while he gets used to Sophie being a member of the family after being the centre of attention for so long. He`s a happy little boy usually and I`m sure he`ll get there in the end.

On Sunday evening we took charge of Marshall, a German Shepherd who belongs to friends of ours while they go away for a few days holiday. In the past Roman was a little afraid of him being such a large, if soppy dog. This time however he spent ages playing in the garden with our friends two children and Jake and Marshall following them everywhere. It was lovely to see Roman playing with a couple of older children (9 and 6) who he hardly knows and having a great time....he`s really growing up now.

On Saturday Jim and I visited a garden centre that had been recommended to us. I only wanted to look around and see what their plants were like but, oh dear, I came away with a beautiful Japanese Maple (Acer) which cost a fortune, but I don`t begrudge a penny and will be going back for another when I`ve saved up for it. My philosophy is, I don`t smoke, drink or gamble, I pay my bills and take care of my family so I will spend my money on what makes me happy...and that of course is my garden. Jim has put up a archway across the path near the end of the garden and put heavy-duty trellis on either side cutting off the bottom of the garden from the main area. The point being that the bottom of the garden is where the greenhouse is and where I`ll be growing vegetables. I`ve planted the Acer in front of one side of the trellis and the one I`m going to buy next will go on the other side. I have so many ideas for the garden this Summer that I can`t wait for the good weather. I have so many young plants to go out once it is warm enough and I`m hoping for some beautiful flowers from them all. I`ve planted runner beans and three different types of tomatoes this year and I`m hoping they will all thrive and bear fruit.

Anyway dear friends, I`ll say goodbye for now and hopefully will be back to tell you more of what`s been going on of late. take care and I hope you are all well. Oh yes, and I`m trying to catch up on all your journals too! Bye Bye. :o)

Photos of Sophie Louise

The first photo we took yesterday when she was about 4 hrs old

She was sleeping all the time we were there this afternoon.

Roman sitting and watching his new baby sister.

Thank you so much for all your congratulations and good wishes on the birth of Sophie Louise, our brand new granddaughter. I was thrilled that so many of you have taken so much interest in the new baby, be sure that there will be many updates and photos in the future! Jeannette, I gave your love and congratulations to Kerry and Slava and of course I gave Sophie a big kiss from you...THAT was very easy! Both Kerry and Slava are very grateful to you all for your messages of support.

As you are all aware Kerry was booked into hospital for Friday. I made arrangements to have the day off work but when I arrived home on Wednesday afternoon Jim told me that Kerry had phoned to say her midwife had a cancellation (?) and had changed her appointment for Thursday. I had to change my holiday dates and I decided not to alter my journal entry so that I could surprise you with the birth announcement. It was certainly that.

After an examination the doctors decided that there was no way a natural birth was going to happen so Sophie was born by caesarean section at 11.30 on a rainy Thursday morning, weighing, as you know, 9lbs.15ozs. She`s going to be a champion at Shot Put or perhaps a wrestler laughed Kerry this afternoon, " no one will mess with her," she added...lol!

The section was an ordeal for Kerry this time. It took an hour and she felt very unwell afterwards even though she had an epidural and not a full anaesthetic. Apparently her blood pressure had gone up and her iron levels were down which had contributed to her feeling so poorly yesterday. I must admit I was quite worried about her. Sophie was fit, well and thriving but poor Kerry was completely drained.

Today however was a different matter. Kerry looks much, much better today and is out of bed and walking around. She is on a course of iron tablets and her normal healthy colour has returned for which I am much relieved. Sophie slept well last night as big babies often do. I enjoyed dressing her in her pretty pink and white babygro yesterday and I was amazed her strong she is. The doctors have said she has excellent reflexes and her head and neck are very strong for a newborn.

Roman was a bit shy of his new baby sister but he has come around today and I when he thought no one was looking he kept stroking her face really gently. He told me that she feels "all soft and warm" but he doesn`t like hearing her cry or "her smelly nappies"...lol! Hopefully with care he might not be too jealous but its something that we`ll all watch out for. He`s already told me that she can`t play with his toy cars...lol!

How could I forget to mention how Slava is with his little girl. Kerry said he can`t take his eyes of her and even though he adores Roman it seems the `little girl and her Daddy` scenario has already started. Mind you, her grandad is a sucker for little girls too, just ask my Kerry!

Anyway, after a couple of days of driving up and down motorways and not having a moment to ourselves we most probably won`t be going to the hospital tomorrow. If all is well Kerry will be going home tomorrow so it won`t be as far to drive each time. We will visit her at home tomorrow and most likely will have Sunday off to catch up with some sleep ourselves. Its been a busy few days and I think we need some rest and the little family can spend some quality time together.

Anyway, thank you all again, have a great weekend and I`ll most likely be posting with some more photos very soon! Night Night. :o)

The Big Announcement!

Hello everyone,

Just thought you`d like to know that Sophie Louise arrived this morning at 11.30 by caeasarean section. She weighed in at.........wait for it, 9lbs. 15ozs! and is doing really well. Kerry is very tired and has low iron levels but after some treatment she should feel a lot better. She is an absolute darling and Jim and I have fallen completely in love with her. I tried to post a photo but Blogspot won`t let me. I`ll be back tomorrow with a more detailed posting but for now its` been a long day and I`m tired out. Night Night. :o)

Love and Hugs

Sandra xxxxx

Latest News on Kerry

Hello everyone,

Just a quick few lines to let you know that Kerry saw the consultant today and she is to be admitted to hospital on Friday for a planned caesarean section. I can`t really go into detail why on here but its unlikely that labour will start naturally so this is the only way to go now. We`ll be collecting Roman on Thursday afternoon and bringing him here to stay with us until whenever Slava thinks best. Please think of Kerry on Friday morning as she is very apprehensive as you can expect and so is her mum and dad! I`ll be sure to let you all know when there is good news. Night Night. :o)

Monday Working Hours

I hope you have all had a nice Easter, I must say it`s been just like any other day for me though. Jim has had to work all weekend and I`ve worked Good Friday and today. Not that I`m complaining though, it was so busy at work today that either myself or my colleague were able to leave the tills all the time we were there it was that busy. Luckily the weather improved drastically today after a wet and miserable last few days, which of course meant that peoples thoughts turned to their gardens which was good for us. I eventually left work at 3pm instead of my usual 1pm and to say that Im tired is an understatement. One good thing about the change in the weather has meant that the customers were cheerful which helps when you are so busy and despite it being the 13th today it all went without a hitch. On the way home I sipped at a coffee and I munched on a hot cross bun as I was ravenous. The coffee was the best I`d ever tasted despite being made over half and hour previousand the two day old bun tasted delicious...lol!

There is still no sign of Kerry going into labour so we`ll just have to wait and see what her consultant says tomorrow afternoon. Watch this space for the next update.

I took these two photos of one of the Acers in my garden. This one is over ten years old and would be much bigger if I`d let it. At this time of the year when the foliage is fresh and new it always looks beautiful I think.

By the time the Autumn comes around the leaves will be bright red for a while before they finally fall.

Last night, or should I say the early hours of this morning a house party along the road spilled out into the street and the noise was dreadful. There were girls screaming just for the sake of it and young males shouting and swearing. There was no way we were going to tell them to keep the noise down as we would only have got a mouthful of abuse and next door has got a skip in the drive full of old house bricks, somehow I didn`t want one of them thrown through my window. I decided the only way I was going to get any sleep was to decamp to the spare bedroom on the other side of the house. Hopefully it won`t happen again tonight but you just never know....sigh.

I`ve decided not to take anymore antibiotics as they are making me feel really ill, something that didn`t happen before I started taking them. My stomach has been quite upset the last couple of days and it has been badly affecting my acid reflux causing me a great deal of pain that I just don`t need. I only have a couple of days left to take so I should be okay. My throat is fine and my voice is almost back to normal and hopefully so will my stomach by tomorrow.

I`ll say goodbye now and I think I`ve have just a little piece more of chocolate egg before I read so more journals. Take care. :o)

Good Friday Blues

Hello everyone,

Well the baby still isn`t here and by the look of things she isn`t in any hurry either. She was due on Tuesday and according to Kerry`s midwife is most likely quite happy to stay where she is, warm, fed and comfortable. Of course Kerry is NOT at all comfortable and is thoroughly fed up with her pregnancy and just wants to get it over and done with. The thing is that because of her previous caesarian section she can`t be induced the same as someone who has had a normal delivery. She has been told that if she doesn`t start labour by Tuesday she will see the hospital consultant who will probably recommend another caesarean. I have to say that she is very unhappy about this but I have told her they wouldn`t do this without a very good reason and her health and the baby`s comes first. If they say a section is the way to go then so be it. She wants to experience childbirth the natural way but I reminded her that if she had been born 100 years ago neither she nor Roman would have survived the birth as he was lying acrossways and could never have been born naturally. A terrifying thought but true nonetheless. I must confess that secretly both Jim and I hope that Kerry has the section because even if she does start labour she has been warned she is a high risk and we are both very worried.

We saw Kerry and Roman yesterday and he told us he really missed us and that he hadn`t seen us for ages....actually it was last week but I suppose thats a long time for him. He told me that he "loved me and that I`m his very best friend ever" Mind you last week he said that to Jim too...lol!

Even though its Good Friday I had to work this morning. The weather is wet and a lot cooler than it has been of late, not at all what a garden centre needs on a Bank Holiday. Mind you it hasn`t stopped a lot of people coming out and buying all they need for there gardens. The plants we are selling are especially good this year and many customers having been complimenting us on our stock and the latest layout in the plant area. I always tell them that a great deal of work goes into it to make it as good as it is and its all down to our outdoor staff which numbers no more than more that four on a good day. Most days its just two.

My own gardening efforts are reaping rewards but some of the seeds I planted have failed. We had a sale of plug plants at work and for only 80p I bought lots of them and transferred them into pots when I got home. Now I won`t have to buy any bedding plants and at this rate I`ll have lots left over. At the moment nearly every window ledge in the house, and many shelves have seedlings on them. When its warmer at night they can all go in the greenhouse and I can have my house back again. We have bought some new fence panels, some trellis and a garden arch for the garden as I`m turning the area around the greenhouse into a raised bed for veggies. It won`t be very big but just big enough to grow some nice fresh produce. As it is I`ll be growing my own runner beans this year.

The last fortnight I`ve had a really bad cough and a painful throat. I thought it was just a virus but it just didn`t seem to improve at all and by the 11 day I`d had enough and saw the doctor. He said my throat had become infected from what was most likely a virus to start with. After taking antibiotics for just over forty eight hours I feel so much better and my cough has almost disappeared. My throat doesn`t hurt at all though my voice hasn`t come back properly and is still a little squeaky. I more or less felt alright by day but at night I just couldn`t sleep for coughing so its a relief to sleep easily at last .

Anyway my friends, I hope you all have a very Happy Easter and that the weather is good to you. Take care.

Weekend at Kerry`s

I had a lovely weekend at Kerry`s. She now has just a week to go now and there is no real sign of anything occuring just yet. She has everything prepared, her case is packed ready for the trip to hospital, all the baby things are all ready too. Now all she can do is sit and wait, and wait....and wait. Actually as you can probably guess she`s completely fed up with doing nothing and she`s always glad to get out to collect Roman from school though despite it being just a short walk there and back it takes her twice as long as it used to. Jim and I are on edge all the time now and every time the phone rings we both jump! Anyway, like I said, it was a lovely weekend. On Saturday we went to a local garden centre (oh joy!) because Slava wanted a few plants for his garden. Faced with so many plants I just had to buy some myself and purchased three azalea, a foxglove, a eryngium and some new gardening gloves. There are so many garden centres near to Kerry and I have only visited one of them so far...so many plants and so little time...lol! Roman loves shopping seeing as how he has been shopping with Kerry and I since he was a tiny baby. I suppose he will one day drive some poor girl crazy with his retail therapy! Yesterday afternoon we all went to a pub/restaurant called the Star Inn. It`s in the Hampshire countryside in a village called Highclere. The view from the windows was lovely as was the whole meal and I would happily go there again sometime. What more could you ask than a beautiful day, eat good reasonably priced food with your family in pretty surroundings?

I have to thank everyone for the birthday cards and good wishes that were sent to me. Despite having to work I had a really nice day and was given some lovely presents. Kerry and Slava, Danny and Salina got their heads together and bought me gift cards for the same shop. Now I can buy what I want, when I want...well done kids! Jim bought me a lovely red handbag and Roman also bought me a handbag he chose himself, I was so touched that he chose it just for me. Kerry took me to one side and told me I was lucky because Roman originally liked a bright yellow one but she managed to persuade him that I don`t really like yellow...bless him!

Today is Slava`s 30th birthday and we all clubbed together to buy him a beautiful Emporium Armani watch. I bought him a plastic watering can as a joke seeing as how when watering his garden on Sunday I had to use Roman`s toy one as he doesn`t own a proper one. I still have lots to do in the garden thanks to Jim. He has finished digging out the new bed and now I have lots of space to plant in. Today I bought some more seeds and some summer bulbs that I must get started tomorrow. Now, along with the plants I bought Saturday and the ones I bought today I also have siome that I ordered online yesterday evening. It`s that time of year when I seem to spend a great deal of my wages on plants and anything garden orientated....but it`s all worth it. I just hope we have a good Summer this year to show it off in all its` (I hope) glory.

Anyway, at the moment I`m calling Kerry everyday to see if she`s ok. As soon as I know anything I`ll be sure to let you know. Bye Bye for now. :o)

March Winds a Blowing!

Just a few of my Spring flowers in full bloom. I`m really pleased with them this year and hopefully they will be even better this year. I took a close up of the Magnolia so you can see how pretty each flower actually is, or was. March winds have battered it beyond all recognition now. The Pieris, 3rd pic from top, is the best its ever been though the photo doesn`t do it justice. The flower bed is a bit bare at the moment but all the herbacious plants have come safely through the Winter and will soon be in flower along with any other plant that catches my eye!

Well the false Spring that we all enjoyed has disappeared to be replaced by bitterly cold March winds that are doing their best to batter my garden to bits. As I mentioned above my Magnolia has taken a real beating and I`ve had to cover some of the more delicate plants with bell cloches to prevent them being broken. I know its supposed to be windy in March but I`m bored with bad weather now, I want to get out in my garden and spend my afternoons pottering around. Yesterday Jim started to dig out an extension of the flower bed we started last year. Our lawn is too big and I need more planting space. Once that`s done I`m having a raised bed for planting vegetables, it`ll only be a smallish area but big enough for what I have in mind. I`ve planted all my seeds and am hoping for the best that they all come up. All the tomato seeds that I planted have germinated and there are far two many for me to use, I`ll probably give them away to friends and family. In fact, I have seeds on almost every windowledge in the house. There are some in a heated propergator and some dahlia`s and gladioli in the greenhouse. I must admit that I`ll be glad when they can all go in the greenhouse because at the moment, even with a heater, its still too cold at night.

Kerry has only two more weeks until the baby is due. She had her last appointment with the midwife today and in her fortieth week she`ll see her doctor who will admit her to hospital to be induced, that is of course if nothing happens before then. The midwife said that all is well and the baby is ready now. Now its just a case of waiting. On Friday it`s my birthday and I`m going to spend the weekend at Kerrys. Jims working so he`ll come over on the Sunday when we`ll all go out for lunch. As Kerry doesn`t have a spare bedroom I`ll be taking our fold away bed and will sleep in Roman`s room. He says he`s looking forward to me staying and so am I, I just hope he doesn`t snore too loudly...lol!

The good weather has meant that work has been really, really busy. The majority of the last week I`ve not had a quiet moment and the time has flown by. I know there is supposed to be a economic recession but I`ve yet to see any evidence of it, at least with gardeners. Mind you, perhaps people aren`t going on holidays or buying other expensive luxury items and are spending money on their gardens instead. I always say that as I don`t smoke, drink or gamble I can completely justify what I spend on my garden. Of course there are bills that I pay and grandchildren to buy for ( I say grandchildren because I`ve started buying baby things already though I haven`t bought too much pink just in case the baby turns out to be a boy...lol!

On Mother`s Day both Kerry and Dan gave me bouquets of flowers and lovely cards too. I put all the flowers into a large vase as I wanted to keep them altogether. When I look at them I think of both my children when they were about nine and eleven, the time when they put their pocket money together and bought me a picture which they proudly presented to me on Mother`s Day. It was so sweet of them as they had chosen it specially. The fact that it was probably the last thing I would have bought didn`t matter as the fact that they had got together to buy it, especially for me. I doubt either of them would remember now but even though the picture is long gone, I will never forget their faces when they gave it to me, they looked so happy...and so was I, more than they will ever know.

Anyway my friends, I`ll say goodbye for now and will probably post again when I return from the weekend away. Of course, if there is any news regarding Kerry I promise you will hear about it as soon as I can. Night Night. :o)

Scary Trees and Sculptures - A Weekend in Pictures

An ancient pollarded beech tree Looking up

This tree sculpture is simply amazing

and so are these...mind you, the dogs love them too...lol!

Roman pulling his pretend miserable face

Just look at his gorgeous smile...no wonder his girlfriend Connie wants to marry him...lol!

It`s been a lovely weekend. The weather has been marvellous, very sunny and very warm, just how I like Spring to be. As you can imagine I spent every spare minute in the garden weeding and tidying up. Between us we`ve now cleared all the beds of weeds and I can honestly say that the main heavy work is behind us....well apart from the small matter of digging out a new flower bed and making a raised bed for planting veggies! Never mind, the work is what it`s all about. A garden is a living thing that is never finished, theres always something to do and something that needs changing. Now I can think ahead to what plants I need for the Summer though as I`ve planted lots of seeds I shouldn`t need to spend too much.

The photos above were taken by Jim in Burnham Beeches woods. The beech trees there are very old and the have to have their upper branches removed (pollarded) to keep them from falling over under their weight, also it helps to allow light through to the forest floor. He also took the photos of the tree sculptures there. I think they are amazing and whoever the artist was he or she is very talented. The other photos were taken on Saturday night when we went out for a meal to celebrate Slava`s 30th birthday. It`s not actually his birthday until March 30th but Kerry thought it best to bring it forward in case she didn`t feel up to it then. She has only 3 weeks to go now and is feeling very uncomfortable. The midwife has told her that the baby is laying with her back against Kerry`s spine which will cause her extra pain during labour...very helpful to point that out I`m sure! Then the woman tells her that she will very likely have a long labour as she had a C-section first time around. Something tells me that the midwife wouldn`t win any prizes in tact and diplomacy!

Anyway, I`d better keep it short as I have lots to do ie. read journals, answer emails etc. Take care and bye bye for now. :o)