Of parties and paperchains

I decided on a tartan theme for the Christmas party we held for a couple of very lovely people that help with Sam.

Paper chains are an easy decoration to make and can be themed for any occasion and topic. I searched for various tartan colours and patterns and got hubby to print these out before cutting into strips.

A bit of glue or (staple them together) and hey presto, a lovely garland to decorate your room. Here I added a few pom-poms in matching colours.

 

Below are some other examples of lovely chains. They could also be made out of other materials too, such as stitched fabric, knitted or crochet wool scraps.

stitchlily.blogspot.co.uk

 from belladia.typepad.com

from spottedcanary.com

We had a fun evening with much laughter, a rather loud rendition of the 12 days of Christmas (goodness knows what the neighbours thought!) and few vociferous rounds of  the game 'Animal, Vegetable or Mineral'!

Santa decorations from the Knickerbocker Glory dessert having a Xmas hug!

Wishing you a lovely Christmas!

xXx

All curled up

As the outdoor temperature just plummeted last night and the first frost of the year appeared, whitening both grass and borders, look who's curled up enjoying the comfort of his favourite chair!

This is our lovely Milo, he is a five year old tabby. He originally came from our local branch of the Cats Protection when he was just 10 weeks old. Milo has always been a character, so loving and easy to be around. Bless him, he even puts up with being regularly nuzzled, knocked over and pounced on by Zaf.

I wonder whether you have a feline friend who makes your home just that little bit extra cozy?

Have a happy weekend....

and the rains continue...

The Brits always have more than their fair share of conversations about the weather, but at the moment it does seem justified. The weather has truly been appalling this year, we have faced many floods already due to heavy downpours and yet the sky is more often than not grey and looming.

According to today's Telegraph, more than 500 flood warnings and alerts were in place yesterday, with the Environment Agency warning home owners in North-East England and North Wales to “remain vigilant” in the face of further heavy rainfall.

Picture: REUTERS/Darren Staples 

Forecasters said up to 2.73in (70mm) of rain, nearly a month’s worth, could fall in the North of England, with temperatures expected to drop sharply by the end of the week. Further persistent rain is predicted in Wales, the North and the East today. Surface water, slow to drain from saturated ground, could prove treacherous when combined with freezing conditions later in the week.

Picture: Robert Timoney / Rex Features

Three people died in flooding over the weekend. A 21-year-old woman was crushed by a falling tree and a 50-year-old man fell into a canal. John McNair, a 77-year-old retired company director, also died after his 4x4 vehicle was wedged under a bridge in a swollen ford following heavy rain in Chew Stoke, Somerset.

Picture: Paul Kingston / NNP

Fire and rescue services have received hundreds of calls to flood incidents, with the AA reporting hundreds more breakdowns as a result of the wet conditions. Many roads were closed or impassible, or downright dangerous to travel on causing hours of delays.

Some residents kayaked down the streets of Malmesbury, Wilts, while some home owners in Williton, Somerset, sealed their homes from 2ft of encroaching water using Plasticine. The RSPCA has reported more than 500 calls from people worried about animals in danger since Thursday. Officers yesterday rescued a horse, sheep and a chihuahua from a cut-off farmhouse, whilst residents in Broadway, Worcestershire, were being warned to boil their tap water amid fears that it could have been contaminated by floods and emergency supplies of bottled water were being distributed to more than 2,000 homes.

Luckily, we haven't as yet been too badly affected by the downpour. Yes, it's not good for the bees, who are totally confined to the hive, but on seeing the occasional blue sky do come out for a quick cleansing flight. Our garden is pretty soggy, and muddy!  Zaf, enjoying the puddles, brings about a kilo of silt into the house each time he is out for a walk! And getting clothes dry is a hopeless task without a tumble drier.

But mostly, having to get up early in the morning when the rain is lashing down from a dark and heavy sky, and it truly should be a 'duvet' day, is really not much fun...

Have a listen to this tune and watch the pitter patter roll down the window pane...

A sunny sunday walk

Whilst BB was at tennis practice, and Sam enjoying some quiet time at home with his Dad, my friend Sara and I took the dogs for a romp around the Sussex countryside. It was a lovely sunny day with far-reaching views.

Sara's dog, Meerka, is also a rescue dog, but from slightly further afield, namely Skiathos, Greece. Zaf and Meerka are great buddies, and although Zaf is much more interested in playing than she is, they get on really well. They both are little monkeys at coming back when called, and each time we are out walking them, as we scout round to find them, we both vow to do more training with them!!

We walked for about 2 and half hours, and sat on an upturned cattle trough, to enjoy coffee and cakes.

In the distance we spotted a family of deer watching us, watching them.

I hope you enjoyed the sunny Autumn day too!

The Autumn Wreath

I like the changing seasons very much, I like the different colours that nature displays, and I like to celebrate how we are moved along the year through the shifting months. Making a seasonal display seems right, a way of bringing nature just a little closer to our home. A wreath takes little artistic talent and can look very homely and inviting hanging on the front door.

First either make a base circle from twigs and stripped branches from any bush or tree which is quite pliable, or in this instance pay a few pounds for a shop bought moss covered base.

Collect lots and lots of plant material from the garden. Believe me, to get it looking dense and cover all the surface takes a surprising amount of greenery, here less is not more! In any case, if you run out, you can always pop outside and top up your supply.

Select stems, seed heads, dried flower heads, even a few fresh flowers that compliment in colour, and tie a selection of these together in bunches using florist wire. Attach to the base by wrapping the wire firmly around it.

Build up the base with lots of small posies, taking a selection of each type of plant material at a time, working in the same direction. You may have to snip the ends of the stems with the leaves and flowerheads, so the bunches sit tidily on the base. Occasionally stand back to check the visual symmetry of the material used.

You can either leave a space to tie a nice ribbon or bow round the wreath, or like me, continue until it is entirely covered with plant material. Shape a little of the florist wire on the reverse of the base to form a loop and hang on the door.

And hey presto, let the sun shine on your creation to welcome friends and strangers alike to your home.

Ha' en dejlig dag!

Passing down the tricks of the trade

Saturday was finally a little drier, and having been to check the honey bee colony at a friends house, where I noticed some discarded offcuts of wood, I suggested to Steve, that while Sam was spending his regular Saturday afternoon with his grandparents, this may be a good time to teach BB how to use a few tools.

I have a honey bee colony in a nuc box in the garden, and now that winter approaches I'd like to get it up and out of draughts. I wanted to be able to place it at a decent height, not just for the bees but also for my back! The stand needed to fit a normal size hive as well as a nuc, and be extremely sturdy.

 

Whilst Dad got all the tools together, BB gave his bike a quick (hrmph, under protests!) clean.

But he nevertheless got his back stuck into it, and sawed and sawed! However, having had a sleep-over at a friends house the night before and got to sleep later than usual, he wasn't exactly full of energy, and took frequent breaks. During these breaks Steve got a few extra screws in the pergola currently under construction. He eventually finished the hive stand, and it's awaiting a coat of preservative to match the hive colour.

I cracked on too and got the greenhouse in tiptop shape in preparation for winter. Even though it's been quite wet and the garden's like a quagmire, it was mild and Zaf had a great time running around (making the quag even more mire-ish!). I gave him a bone to chew hoping to keep him occupied whilst we got on with our work, but he soon devoured it.

Meanwhile Harvey was out in his large run and enjoyed jumping around, whilst Zaf chased around his enclosure!

I gave him some hazel twigs, which he happily started to nibble at.

Later, while the rain pounded down outside (maintaining our quagmire...!), we had a helping of grub from our local Chinese take-away, some chocolate and a big family cuddle on the sofa whilst watching the film 'Mr Deeds'!

I hope your weekend was good too....

Autumn approaches

So it's getting a little chillier, a little wetter, a little darker; the seasons are rolling through their cycle. It's time to feed the bees, make sure there are plenty of stores to keep them safe throughout the winter.

Pumpkins and unusual squashes are beginning to appear in the stores and farm shops. Warming soups and stews are increasingly on the dinner menu.

Honey bees on helenium flowers

It's been incredibly rainy. But interspersed with this inclement weather there has been some lovely sunny spells. The fungi are thriving on the damp woodland floor.

The berries on the Whitebeam shine bright red against the blue sky. And the ivy is in flower, tempting many flower visitors, including the rather pretty Ivy bee.

The gorgeous ivy bee, Colletes hederae, is a species of plasterer bee.

The leaves shine pretty hues of red, yellow and brown.

If you go down to the woods today...I guarantee it'll be pretty peachy!