April - icy winds, torrential rain, brilliant sunshine, hail storms and the odd front of hot flushes coming in off the Atlantic - and that's just in one day!
That's Rocco - a rather naughty race horse
This month I have been mostly:-
Arty farty with a pair of scissors and a pritt stick
Buying a pair of comfy clogs and a very stretchy denim skirt - oh yeah....All hail elastane.
Watching an explosion on Neighbours!
Helping my fellow Bungalow Girl with her new gardening business
Singing in Romsey Abbey
Going to Bournemouth Jazz Festival and eating fish and chips at Harry Ramsdens
Putting the log basket away in the garage and getting the summer linen out - ready to waft, ready to waft....
Spring cleaning and washing walls with sugar soap (my new favourite household item)
Our amaryllis came to life - good job! I nearly threw it away, no patience.
We have gardened until we were soaked through to our underwear and also endured driving hailstones.
Moi - mowing a customers lawn. What a woman!
These two just snuggle in the warm
It was lovely to sing in Romsey Abbey with some of our old singing buddies
Of course a visit to the pub was involved
We made the annual trip to see the bluebells.
Grovely Woods
and met up with our friend and old neighbour Chantal and her boys
April = layering. Cold, hot, cold, hot - agh!
Talking of cold. It was freezing the evening we went to Bournemouth Jazz Festival
Bournemouth
I loved the Bourne Valley Jemz. Much jiggling about to keep warm.
Oooh, purchase of the month - spied in Melksham by my charity shopping partner in crime, Hayley -
My very own hostess trolley! We use it all the time.
I'm probably not going to be making so much soup now but this one was nice -
Jamie Oliver recipe from 'Jamie's America'
Rustic tortilla soup
This cake was yummy -
Recipe from 'The Middle Eastern Vegetarian Cookbook' by Salma Hage.
Cardamom banana bread
We are appreciating the longer evenings, despite the unpredictable weather.
Big Dog enjoying a dip in between showers
Cowslips in the front garden
Bluebells
We narrowly averted an explosion one night when we discovered that one of Sarah's beer barrels was convex on the bottom rather than concave and was making a rather disturbing hissing noise! It had got too warm and the pressure was causing it to leak from the seams of the barrel. Luckily we managed to release the pressure and decant it to another barrel. Phew...
This was the guilty culprit in it's infancy ('Festival Golden Stag') being transferred to the barrel
The cows have been let out from the barn and are once more staring at us over the fence
Pink bluebells in the back garden
Snake's-head fritillary - I adore these
Tulips
We also have six race horses behind the bungalow again - carrots on the shopping list
Beauties
Big Dog lolloping home
Rain on the way
Sarah's little babies are covering every window sill
It is so good to see colour in the garden again.
Blue Iris
Ranunculus
It's warming up now. Supposed to be 21 degrees by the weekend! I'm soooo excited - quick get the barbie out!!!
