Hobbies and Crafts

No sign so far of the Bees.I just hope that when it really warms up and they wake they won't make their way back to us.

Message from Kandj.......Her Husband is now well enough to return home on Sunday,where hopefully he will continue to get better.I think that is just wonderful news :-D
Kandj thanks everyone once again for thinking and praying for them as it has helped her over these past difficult weeks. <3

Off to London later to meet my daughter and go to the British Museum to see the Vikings Exhibition then a nice meal out this evening .I will stay with her tonight then home tomorrow.OH can be on watch for any sign of return of the Bees :-D
I think it is going to be a bit too warm for me at the Museum :-S,so am taking a tiny little paper fan (from a Xmas Cracker) :-D :-D.

Getting a bit concerned for my starlings. There were 4 babies, yesterday I only saw 3 and today there are only 2 following Mum around.

Good news about Kandj's OH. Hope he continues to improve.

Enjoy your trip Jane

Thanks Jane, that is good news re Kandj's other half, i hope his progress continues.

Hope you had a god couple of days at the museum and with your daughter Jane.

Hope the bees have packed their bags and left for good. :-D

Well I only got as far as Bedford on the train .There had been a fatality on the line.So all trains into St Pancras halted.So I have missed the exhibition again :-S.
But I am hoping the trains will be back on track so I can get the 6.15 one back to London.At least I should get to go with Hannah for our Greek Meal.Luckily I heard an announcement while standing with the crowds on the platform that my train was returning back to my town so I hopped back on .Otherwise I might very well still be waiting for a bus to ferry passengers to another station.I have had a nice cup of tea and am recharging my phone and keeping an eye on the updates on the live departure
site.It is looking hopeful,so fingers crossed for my second attempt :-D :-D
Iv'e got a right old headache brewing now so will take a couple of pills and chill for the next half an hour before setting off again .Poor OH ,took me to the station,then had to pick me up and now take me again ,and he has been trying to get loads of plants in.

Oh Jane you are fated not to get to that exhibition. I do hope you got back to London for your meal.

No Ann ,I am still at home.Just seeing that the 2 trains before the one I was hoping to get had been cancelled made me realise that it would be packed like sardines with everyone desperately trying to get to London ,and I couldn't bare the thought of maybe having to stand the whole journey squashed up against other people .It would be too hot and sweaty and just not worth it.I have had a couple of nice chilled glasses of wine :-D..well I need something to help me over the disappointment :-D ;-)
I will not try again to go to the exhibition .Twice is enough and the loss of money for those tickets plus train tickets makes a big hole in the wallet :-S
At least I am at home to make sure my birds are fed tonight and tomorrow ,as no-one else would bother :-S
There was a huge Wood Pidgeon trying to land on the window feeder just now.Thankfully it was too big to get to the food
:-D.I'm surprised it didn't knock the feeder off the window with it's weight. :-S

Aaw a shame but better to stay home really, i expect your daughter is disappointed too.

I wonder what the fatality was, some poor soul.

Oh Jane, what a shame.

Maybe another time.

M.

Maryanna I was so disappointed to miss that exhibition and the evening out with my Daughter ,but it was just not meant to be :-(
We have had a lovely time here though .Yesterday right until 11 last night sitting out on the patio eating and drinking and lots of chatting :-D One of her friends came with her 12 year old Staffie Sam.He was a lovely dog and as good as gold.It was so nice to have a dog here again as I lost my dear old Chester last year.
It has been even hotter here today.I have the fans all on the go now :-D.OH took Hannah back to London this afternoon with the car boot full of plants.She shares a house with 3 other girls and she is determined to get the garden looking pretty :-D

I just heard a great clattering noise and looked up to see a big Pidgeon sitting on the top of the window feeder.Shame I didn't have the camera nearby.

We have just been to abbotsbury tropical gardens, we have been before but they are so beautiful that we couldn't resist going again. The view from the top over Chesil beach is glorious and today, although a few hazy clouds,the sun has shone again for us. At the top of the garden where we could look over to Chesil beach there were a couple of pheasants. I managed to photograph the male so when I get back hopefully I can put it on the blog

We had a picnic lunch overlooking fields and watching a buzzard chased by a crow, then there were a couple if Jays so we were well entertained.

OH is just going to golf it has clouded over and thunder storms promised for this evening so I hope they can beat that.

I love it there Ann.We went about 3 years ago when we were on holiday down there.It wasn't the best time to go as a lot of the flowers had finished or were just going over.
Are the Kookaburras still there?.I think there were 2 and I thought they were fascinating but very strange looking birds.Also they were much smaller than I had expected. Ah Chesil Beach :-D.I spent a couple of hours sat there when OH went off on one of his walks.I made a hollow in the shingle and settled with my book.The sun was shining and it was just so nice.Then on the waters edge were several fishermen waiting for a Shoal of Mackerel that they heard were coming that way.I saw the fish arrive and it was quite something to see :-D

We saw one Kookaburra but I think there are two. I will put a photo up after we get home. Yes we love it too, this must have been our fourth visit.

I think when we were in Dorset you were also there at the same time at West Bay?or we may have just crossed over.I can't remember.(nothing new there lol)
Hopefully we will visit Dorset again one day.But if we do we will have to make sure there is nothing major going on as we were stuck in traffic for ages last time.I think it was a big Traction Engine fair,plus some other event and it took us several hours longer to get there than planned :-S

I have a family of Long Tailed Tits on the feeder :-D.One of them has the longest tail I have seen !!

Lovely birds long tailed tits. Looks like rain for us tomorrow,hoping to go to Lyme Regis so fingers crossed.

We were definitely here in May 2011 and September 2012 plus a couple of other times.

We have one heck of a thunderstorm going on at the moment.

Ann we had nothing but tonight looks like it could be pretty awful.It is feeling quite muggy now and plenty of the wet stuff is forecast :-S
OH and I have spent a lovely afternoon having lunch with our friend who lives down the lane in a converted barn.Sitting on the back terrace watching the Swifts flitting and swooping around and lots of Sparrows up in the guttering under the eaves.Also there was a lot of activity in a bird box with Blue Tits going in and out.it is quite a large box with 3 holes.Would that mean there are 3 separate compartments?There was quite a squabble at one point when one bird went into one hole and got chased off by another that was inside.

Have been thinking of Kandj and hoping that her OH came home on Sunday as planned.It will be so much better to be back in his own surroundings and to be with Kandj again <3

The tray from the window feeder was on the ground this morning :-S Must be that pesky squirrel or possibly the Wood Pigeon .I have just had to chase it off again :-|

Not sure about bluetits, maybe it does have three compartments yes.
Sounds as though the was an idyllic afternoon.

Yes I hope Kandj's OH is home ok.

Our day today. Drove to Abbotsbury down the very scenic coast road,the sun was shining and the views were glorious, looking right down along Chesil Beach. We arrived at the swannery at about 10am and started the day with a coffee before making our way down to see the swans. There were still a lot sitting on unhatched eggs which was a surprise but also a lot of babies, one pair had eight babies and one had only one, she looked a very small young swan so that was probably why. Luckily there were no patients in the casualty pen but there were a pair and quite a few babies in the 'foster' pen. There were also moorhens with babies, these they had to keep away from the swans who will attack them if they go near the cygnets.
A lot of the nests were on the paths and we had to be careful walking past these as the cob could get aggressive if he thought we were too close. It was a lovely day to be there with the sun shining on the Fleet and the white of the birds sparkling in the sunlight.
Sadly the February storms had caused a lot of damage which is slowly being rebuilt. The sea apparently flooded right over the Fleet and into the swannery and across the fields twice, a week apart. We walked back to the car, deciding not to wait to watch the feeding having seen it twice before. Stopped to look at the model of the bouncing bomb.
Had coffee and crisps in the car then walked down the lane to the children's farm in St Peter's Abbey grounds. Looked at the huge barn now a big play centre then walked around taking photos of the animals. Walked back to the car and drove to West Bay (Broadchurch on TV) for fish and chips by the quay. They were delicious as usual. We walked out along the pier to take photos and sit in the sun.

What a smashing day you have had Ann ,and Fish and chips to top it off.Just lovely :-D
I'm still waiting for the timer on the oven to ping for dinner :-S.I would much prefer Fish and Chips :-D..They don't use Newspaper any more do they to wrap?

Our Dawn Chorus is getting beyond a joke these days.We are woken at about 4.20 and it just seems to get louder and louder each morning.I do love it but if they could just move a little further away from the bedroom window I would be very grateful lol

Happy holidays Ann, this week you are in my ancestors part of the country they were from Rockbeare...before our 3 were of school age we were happily feeding swans when they turned on us hissing like crazy, I grabbed 2 tots and luckily a complete strangers grabbed our 3rd :-D

Thinking of you kandj and sending lots of <3 <3 <3

Lesley x