Green Lane Friday

Yes we managed to get through this gate!

A wonderful view of the lane ahead

Interesting sign on one of the gates just before we saw a barn owl



Lunch break




Overgrown and locked!




A Byway with a very small gate!



Lower Shuckburgh Church



Lower Shuckburgh Stocks



After getting stuck in the rut!



Part of our route around Northamptonshire



Chris opening a gate

Friday was a beautiful sunny day so Chris and I set off to drive the Byways around Northamptonshire. This is a wonderful way to see the countryside and appreciate the County we live in.

Chris does almost all the driving, but on occasion I do some, and it was while I was driving I got the car stuck in a very deep rut, so deep Chris could not get out of the car to help drive it out of the rut. Eventually I manged to 'fall' out of myside, which was high off the ground and he crawled over the cubby box to perform his magic and get us out of the rut. Needless to say both me and the car were covered in mud! What fun we have.  Thank goodness we had already passed the stocks at Lower Shuckburgh or I might have found myself in them!
A number of the Byways that should be open we found locked which was a shame and Chris will contact the council about them.

Main gate locked and barbwired!

IAM 6th June

Jenny Dorn and Shirley

Maureen Clare and Ann



Purse Day



Another great IAM day spent making purses.
Everyone worked really hard to complete their purse amid much bantering and laughter..
Show and tell [ should have taken photos!] after lunch was a real mix of items, from wonderful crocheted cushions to Jenny's star quilt. Clare had made a lovely Linus quilt and we all loved the Lucy Attwell backing.  I showed two bags I had recently made plus a pair of socks I had won at Curves for loosing 4.2lbs in the past 4 weeks ;-)

Memory

I can so relate to this, can you?

May Challenge update

This was my May challenge, and I did quite well but not everything got completed.
8 bookmarks need machining.. NOT DONE

3 cushion fronts need backing.. ALL COMPLETED AND MADE INTO CUSHIONS

2 bags need making.. BOTH MADE

1 Linus quilt needs some work.. TOP COMPLETED BUT STILL NEEDS QUILTING AND BINDING

3 Postcards need machining.. DONE, PLUS 4 MORE MADE

1 ME exchange block need a lot of work to make into a quilt.. COMPLETED AND HANGING ON WALL.

Total items 18 some easy some not so easy.  

Sewing with the Flaxton's

Olivia

Jenny

At the last school holiday Jenny and graddaughter Olivia come and started making the top of a quilt with me.

This school holiday another visit and they managed to sew on the borders, and using a fleece backing quilt the tops and put on the binding.

Some homework is required to finish everything but well done both of you.

Snuggling with Grandad

Anyone would think we only had one chair in the house?
But then Grandad is always there for a snuggle!

This is the end of a busy day and getting ready to watch TV for a while.

The fish pond

Using the nets

Grandad in the pond

 Thursday was  "Clean out the Pond" day. Not a great job at the best of times, and usually only tackled about once every 5 or 6 years.

The girls were excited as I had bought them nets to catch the fish and move them to the paddling pool we had set up on the lawn.

Moved to the paddling pool

Moving back home

While I cleaned out the baskets of water lilies, and plants the girls and Grandad moved 29 fish 4 or 5 newts and a few frogs and tadpoles to the paddling pool.


We were quite excited to find we had a rare crested newt.

Towards the end of the session Abigail 9yrs fell into the paddling pool and was soaked to the waist, after the shock and finding she was OK we managed to sort out some clothes and a pair of my boots [ miles too big] for her to wear! She was soon outside helping again.

• The water in the paddling pool was put back into the pond next day together with a top up from the waterbutts and some tap water.  The fish and other's all seem happy in their new home.

Sewing Afternoon

Abigail and Eleanor are staying with us for a couple of days. Rain has stopped play so we had a sewing afternoon, and they cut out designs, applied Heat-n-Bond to make new pictures for their bedrooms.

Sue's Workshop

Sue and Annette



Busy sewing






Two bags



Yesterday was spent in Bedford at Sue's workshop.
A pretty bird picture and a bag were on offer, but as I did not have time to get ready for either I worked on two bags I had already done the machine embroidery for. 
Both patterns the frog and boot are favorites of mine.
It was a great day with lots of chat and sharing of ideas, plus some sewing!

Back home

Wales was such a wonderful trip I did not want to come home. The peace and quiet, the wonderful scenery and the incredible views on our off road trips made it very special.
BUT... look what awaited us on our return, the garden had suddenly burst into flower.

Wisteria above the raspberry bed

The red Rhodedendron

The minature Acers over the pond

A week in Wales

18th to 25th May Chris and I spent in a mobile home on a farm miles from anywhere. The weather was great, only one day of rain/hail. The trip was planned around Green Laneing, and Chris has researched lots of routes for us to follow... some VERY scary but all with magnificant views. This is our holiday in photos.

18th A brief stop at a lake

18th The Land Rover starts off clean!

18th A bird tried to fly into the LR!

18th A pretty waterfall



19th we walk to the nearby reservior




19th Ty-Drain Holiday home for the week



19th Sun on the patio

19th The view down "our" lane



20th The first of many gates





20th 60p to cross this bridge [my eyes closed!]



21st Outside our window

22nd Breathe in!

22ndA flock of sheep bar the way



22nd A pretty bluebell wood



22nd I've openned too many gates, it's Chris's turn



22ndA really narrow bridge



22nd Can they get any narrower?



23rd Trusty old Featherweight sees some action



24th A narrow gap in the wall

24th entering the forest on a muddy track



24th we pass a Ghost village in the middle of nowhere



New Me !

Curves Gym

Eat Clean

Rhododendron



Flowers

 Well at last things are moving in the garden, my two large Rhododendron bushes are starting to burst into flower, the white one has cowslips growing under it.
I am trying to "sort out" my body! My knees are really bad and although I joined Curves gym over a year ago, which has helped a lot , I have done little about my eating habits. Having been told about the Eat Clean way of eating [ I don't think of it as a diet] I am trying to change my eating habits. In the past two weeks I have managed to loose 4 lbs and already feel a lot better. The two litres of water a day are a real challenge.

BQLPC

Time for the June birthday postcards to be made and posted.

The yahoo group BQLPC hold regular swaps, and I signed up for the 2013 birthday swap, so each month I like to prepare the cards for the following month.
I really like the 3 bird PC's that will be going to Irene in Scotland, Joanne in France and Marion in England for their June birthdays.