Hobbies and Crafts

Hello Ann, glad you're back home safely. No doubt you will be busy washing today?

Vera, I think neither of us like fluttering or dead birds to deal with, but sometimes needs must. I am glad yesterday wasn't necessary, and the dove was just stunned.

Jane, can you direct a few interesting birds towards Yorkshire please, as we don't have anything very different from our usual ones, although Hubby and I both spotted a small robin in the front garden shrubbery yesterday. A real joy for us both to see.

AN EARLY REMINDER FOR EVERYONE
British Summer Time ends this weekend,clocks go backwards 1 hr Saturday night!!

We are home, and already missing the sun and heat.

We had a very turbulent flight home yesterday, it was very windy and the plane was tossed around a bit. We landed at Luton at midnight, the luggage took half an hour to come off and then it took us over 2 hours to drive home. We got home at 3am this morning so you can imagine how we feel now. T did very well driving so late at night when we were tired, we don't drive at night much at all. It was surprising how many cars there were on the road as well as lorries, that time of the morning. We had an owl fly out and only just miss the car, then we just spotted a small deer eating on the verge at the side of the road.

This morning we had to clear up a skeleton and feathers of a collard dove, somebody's cat didn't need a meal that day, and T also found another bird's remains, he wasn't sure if it was a blackbird or a starling. :-(

Glad you didn't have any corpses to deal with Kandj. I think you and I are two of a kind when it comes to picking up birds. When OH was away and I found a dead pigeon in the garden I had to get a neighbour to come in.

A really good day for birds here. There seem to be a lot of collared doves around at the moment and they seem to line up to take turns in our bird bath. There are also plenty of starlings and blackbirds around.

But today we have had robins, blue tits, goldfinches and, for the first time since we moved here two years ago, a greenfinch. :-D

OH also saw a small bird that he didn't recognise fly in, have a quick peck at the seeds and fly off again. He said it was an indeterminate colour, about wren size but without the "square" end to the tail and it had a pointed beak. That was 2 hours ago and I keep looking out of the window in the hopes it will come back but I haven't seen it.

Isn't it strange how you get a lot of different birds one day and then the garden is a bird free zone for a few days? Perhaps they will come more regularly as it gets more wintry.

This morning I was in the kitchen but facing away from the window and I heard a thud and dreaded to think what type of bird had flown into the glass. A dove was sitting on the wall and I went to look outside (with collywobbles in my stomach). I fully expected to find a dead dove on the drive but there wasn't anything there. The dove flew off the wall when it saw me, and so I think maybe this was the bird that had thudded into the kitchen window and it was sat on the wall getting it's breath back??

I was hugely relieved not to have a dead bird to get rid of this morning!

It has turned much colder and gets dark earlier too. I hope Ann and family are enjoying their family holiday still.......... anyone remember when Ann gets back?

Oh Kandj I hate it when they do that .Especially if they have been eating Berries :-| :-|
My window feeder is busy .Mainly Gt Tits and Chaffinch at the moment.
It is a dark old day here and not very nice.It makes me feel like not doing much at all.
So I won't :-D.

Hello All

Lots of usual birds today, hedge sparrows, collard doves, pigeons and starlings........ somebody has left poo on the lounge and kitchen windows..... not a happy bunny!!

Maryanna ,they thought my daughter was going to be a bit on the big side for me to deliver plus she was breech ,so I had a C Section.She was in fact only 7lb 10..But I was really pleased I had the section as I was so scared of giving birth.I had a C Section with my son too. Both by epidural so I was at least awake for the events :-D
My poor Sister had her son who was a whopping 10lb and Breech !!!!OUCH
i'm sure your daughter will be fine and especially with them keeping an eye on her until the time comes.

Kandj Thomas is in much earlier these nights(thank goodness) and is waking later in the mornings.Around 6am.I know when he hasn't caught much as he will eat a couple of pouches of food.I was greeted this morning with a little gift on the patio.I heard him Miaowing and thought he wanted to come in ,but I think he was just calling me so he could show me my pressie .How kind of him (not). :-S

I spotted some kind of Hawk sitting on the Trellis post and rushed to get the camera,but I think it saw me and took flight.I hope it isn't going to hang around here.

A beautiful baby Maryanna and good news that your daughter is being cared for so well.

Congratulations Ann, to your Grandson and his fiance, how lovely to plan this occasion so you all are together.

Vera, it looks like you will need more fat cake for the Starlings. They are indeed very greedy and aggressive birds. They eat everything on the window and ground feeder!

Jane, your Thomas is a real killer cat. Perhaps the cold weather and dark nights will keep him inside more and then he won't be turning his nose up at fish meals.

Nothing any different here, just the usual same type of birds around as always.

Apparently so, but she went to see the Midwife today who has expressed concern that the little man might be a wee bit in the small side.

Having said that she said he will be about the same size as his sister, maybe a bit bigger. Well she was nearly 9 lbs, which was plenty big enough for my size 8 five feet one daughter !! I can't see how they can call that small.

She has actually lost weight due to her very restricted diet. They will keep a very close eye on them both during labour. Babies born to mothers with gestational diabetes tend to have a higher chance of developing diabetes when older and my daughter will have to have check ups regularly.

It's a shame, she was just one point over their limit, nobody else in the family has and they only tested her because she said that she thought my father in law, her grandad had it. He didn't.

Yes the photo is of Son and daughter in Law's baby, one week old tomorrow, having our first cuddle.

M.

Maryanna ,is the pic of beautiful baby the latest arrival? Gorgeous :-D :-D
That is good news for your other daughter.Am I right in thinking that babies with Diabetic Mums tend to be big babies?

That's exciting news Ann, another wedding to look forward to !!

We had some good new yesterday, daughter went to see the consultant. They are so pleased with the way she is managing her diabetes they are going to leave baby now until his due date and not induce her before then. The only thing is they said it could take up to 48 hours to work..............

Lots of Geese flying over, mornings and evenings, Winter must be on it's way.

M.

Oh that was a nice celbration then Ann :-D.Congratulations to your Grandson and Fiancee .
I can't see that Thomas is being fed by anyone down our road.No-one likes cats :-S,so he must be catching his own grub.He has just gone off again now !!I saw him disappearing into the big Yew hedge.I think there are lots of mice in there :-)

Yes I saw that the Sean's were arriving early too Jane. Wonder who is feeding Thomas? Walking round by the sea today we saw a young white Egret which stayed very close to people and didn't seem at all bothered by them.
Shame the animals were dopey Vera, must have been siesta time.

Our third grandson got engaged while staying here last week.

Maybe the big Animals were having a siesta when you were there Vera :-D.Bath is a lovely place isn't it.It is years since I was last there.
My OH said today he heard that the Buick Swans are arriving at Slimbridge....a month earlier than normal !!!!!

About an hour ago I saw loads and loads of Crows(I think they were Crows) all flying up really high in the sky in large groups.I wondered what the noise was !!! What was that all about I wonder??

Ann it must be nice to see some different types of birds where you are.My Window feeder is very busy att he moment .I think they are all coming for supper :-D

This cat of mine has not eaten anything here for 2 days now !!!!.I even cooked some plaice for him and he has just looked at the dish and walked away.He MUST be eating something somewhere.Wildlife no doubt :-S

We have been staying near Bath for a long weekend - got home last night. We saw plenty of wildlife, though not of the domestic variety, as we went to Longleat. We enjoyed the house and the Animal Kingdom area, particularly the meerkats but we were both a bit disappointed with the Safari Drive. Perhaps we were just unlucky. We saw a fair number of the animals but from a distance and they were mostly just lying down in the grass so quiet that I began to wonder if they had been drugged!

Perhaps I expected too much as a couple of years ago we went to Woburn Safari Park and saw a lot of the animals really close up and active.

We saw plenty of red kites on the journey to and from Bath.

Before we went I had made sure feeders were filled but it doesn't look as if the wild bird seed, the Niger seeds or the peanuts have been touched but the big fat cake had completely gone. I put out some fat balls this morning and within seconds the starlings appeared. Looks like they are back with a vengeance. I don't mind them but I wish they weren't quite so greedy. They don't leave much for any of the other birds. :-(

They are such squabbly birds aren't they? We have lots of tinyvtwittery birds here that are either canaries (not the yellow cage variety) or similar to blue tits but not as blue and yellow.

Not sure what is going on with the Magpies here but they are kicking up a right old racket :-S :-S.They suddenly seem to have appeared again.

Maryanna, you will be kept busy traveling from Hampshire and Somerset getting lots of cuddles with your grandchildren. Hope all goes well for you daughter and her baby

Jane, we also have the same birds as usual. Lots of starling here again today!
Is Thomas behaving himself and leaving your garden birds alone lately?

Are you enjoying retirement Maryanna? :-D..Bet you are :-D
My Sister is retiring at Christmas and is counting the days down now.She has had enough of working for the NHS so is going early.

Bit quite here bird wise.Just the usual visitors and my one legged Sparrow :-D

Hi kandj, no, our daughter lives in Hampshire and our son in Somerset so our time will be split between the two .

Although we live mainly in Somerset now, one of our sons still lives in the other house so we will just go backwards and forwards as usual.

Thank goodness we don't have to go to work any more.

Not much happening bird wise here. Just the usual Gulls although there were five Buzzards circling over our sons house this afternoon.

M.