Please.....

.......can we go and play ball?

This Beautiful Life

I have had a fairly stressful day at work, we are being Ofsteded (okay I know, not good English for an English teacher!).  So far it is going well, but the proof will be in the feedback session tomorrow.  I was on my way home, crossing the reservoir when I had to stop the car and take this photo.  The sunset was so beautiful that it literally took my breath away.  It struck me how beautiful the world is around us and how we take it so much for granted.  Sometimes we need to just stop and look.

Allotment Update

It has been a while since I gave you an allotment update, so here we go....  We are still eating from the allotment - kale, brussels (and tops) cabbages, romanesco, parsnips, carrots, swede and this beauty is one of my favourites .....

....purple sprouting broccoli.

I am also getting ready for the next season, so I have broad beans thriving in pots and the following picture is of the garlic and shallots that I planted last November.  I think I will plant a few more of these in the spring as we need plenty for next winter.

I have potatoes chitting on the windowsill and will sow the celeriac very shortly.  I love that we can eat all year round from the allotment.  Last year we put all the infrastructure in place, which was quite expensive, but this year we should really start reaping the rewards.

With A Little Help.....

I put out a call for help yesterday to all my boys.  Pete had a load of wood delivered on Friday and needed help moving it to the barge.  All three answered, offering their help.  Phil worked last night so couldn't get here til the afternoon, but the other two boys turned up at 1030am ready to work, some feat considering the hangover that Stuart had!

Having shifted the pile of wood, they then helped with a large sheet of ply that was destined for the roof of the 'aft deck companionway'!

I am lucky with all the men in my life!

New Toy

As you probably know, I have been having problems getting a signal recently and it was getting very frustrating.  I like to come home from work, have dinner and settle down to read my favourite blogs and surf for new ones (I am a bit of a blog tart!).  With no signal I have been condemned to black and white war movies, programmes about WW2 and other really obscure programmes (Pete's choice!).  It was time to tackle the problem once and for all.  So I bought myself a new toy......

My phone was due for an upgrade and, with my discount, the iphone and ipad package was about the same as I had been paying previously.  I am not really up with technology, but what a piece of kit this is.  I am so impressed and can see that it is definitely the way forward for the future.  It is easy to use and clear to read (especially when the eyesight is beginning to fade!), although I do find it spooky that my phone, computer and tablet can all talk to one another!  It can also be used like a Kindle and I have been downloading several free books, not just fiction, but recipe books etc.  I am now revisiting Little Women, which I adored as a child and has not lost its charm now I am a little older.  Hopefully now I can blog a bit more often and comment on all my blogging friends posts.  Well, I have to sign off now as I have to go and play! 

Wind and Work

Along with the rest of the country, we have had some serious winds.  There was a mini tornado that whistled through the village causing destruction - starting in the Marina by dumping a brand new 30' Etap into the chandlery and ripping off roller doors from the shed, moving on to the flats and placing a shed on to a car and then a couple of factory roofs wrote off a couple more cars and so on up the village.  I have just been up to the allotment and discovered that my greenhouse is no more.  The damage has actually come from the neighbour's shed that was not secured down properly - very annoying since it was entirely preventable.

The wind stopped work on the extention for a couple of days, but Pete is back to it now and this is how it is looking right now ...

Hopefully, weather permitting, we should have a roof and walls by the end of the day.

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Okay, I know I am a bit late with the Merry Christmas bit, but this is the first time I have had a signal in over a week.  I hope you all had a great time.  I certainly did, spending both Christmas and Boxing days with all my family, you know the score - eating too much, laughing at things that only families can laugh at, playing silly games, remembering Christmases past and those not with us any more etc etc - great times.  However,  boys if you are reading this, I'd quite like some grandchildren to spoil next Christmas!!!

Pete has been really busy over the holiday period building the extension!

This is what we fondly are calling the back porch (what on earth would you call it on a boat?!!).  The extension will have double doors and cupboards for coats and shoes.  The reason for this is so that we can bring the staircase right back to maximise the illusion of space below.  Today (if it stops raining) Pete will be building the wooden frame - more pictures to follow.

I would like to wish everyone a HAPPY NEW YEAR and hope that all your dreams come true xxx