General Chat

I have just corned the chickens and when I went in the garage I could hear baby birds and Jenny making a racket. There are at least two chicks in there and the nest is up in the chisel rack. I had seen it in there but did'nt know she was using it.

I also like Berries and Cherries sugar free from asda and make it very weak.

Its a nice 25 degrees here now but hardly a breath of breeze.Just spied a lot of those tiny leggy spiders so I think tomorrow will be a spider sucking up session. They leave so many dead bodies on the windowsill.

I must pop along to Aldi as I haven't been for a while Mandy. I will look for that drink! Yes I had a nice cuppa just now.What a great selection of fruit for the children. I bet they look forward to seeing what you get.

The men have gone now and got on really well. The boards are all up, the radiator back and higher up which is better, the shower and base are fitted, but not the cabinet and they have made a smaller box to go round the water meter. The flooring man has been and done the floor levelling and it looks like a skating rink. He's back later tomorrow to lay the floor. I've just popped to the Co-op which is nicely air conditioned and fetched more drink squashes and sugar which we don't use much of, but one likes it in his coffee!

That sounded like a good place to sit in the shade AnnG, but a bit hotter than us as it's 29 degrees here now which they forecast. Yes the plants are suffering now it's this hot. We'll be planting cacti outside at this rate.

Meeting went well, we sat out under her veranda which was in the shade and there was a slight breeze. At 5pm here it was 30;degrees. Very hot in the sun. Poor plants..
Guess what, my appointment came through for the dermatology. They talk about one lesion and there are four and the appointment is 22 January 2026. I am not sure what to make of it at the moment

Lovely selection of fruit for the kids Mandy. It still says 26 here but it feels much hotter than that and I am wilting indoors where its much cooler.

Don't feel like doing anything.

We have the tesco orange and mango squash but we also like the aldi summer fruits one too ,we mostly have water with our meals and we also like the floured waters from aldi you can get still or sparkly but we don't buy that very often .
I don't think you can beat a nice cuppa to quench your thirst .

Shopping all done didn't seem to want much on my list but still managed to fill a trolley ,came home with seven bags and there's only the two of us , did have two bags with fruit for the family I always buy them fruit ,this week they have a water melon a crownless pineapple apricots nectarines, apples banana and cherries think that's the lot.

I don't drink squash usually and just have water, but I tried a small glass of the Blackcurrant and Apple and liked it. I'll order some of the Asda sugarfree orange and mango to try as it sounds nice. I've sometimes diluted fresh orange juice or added it to lemonade. I expect BIL was thinkling it would be hotter still on Saturday.

Its 26 here now but feels a lot hotter and BIL is going round the garden on the mower cos he's lost his fly spray, its jumped off the mower somewhere in the garden. He is then going home to do his own grass.

Annx my oh used to like the asda sugar free orange and mango and thats the only one I would drink too. I don't like orange squash as it leaves a funny taste in my mouth but what I do do is have about a third of fresh orange juice and top it up with water and ice.

It's a bit later now and 26 degrees here. It's supposed to reach 29 degrees by 4pm. Far too hot for me and the men need the doors all open so the sun is blazing through the front door. I've just dropped my car windows down a bit to stop the heat building up. The last two days the men have almost got through two bottles of squash you dilute with ice in, so when they finish and the flooring man has been to level off the floor I will go and get some more as OH enjoys Robinsons and it is sugar free as well. I don't mind as they are doing a good job and I can't offer them biscuits as we don't buy them now! I saw your rambling rose on a photo and it is a picture. Nice with a perfume too.

Not sure yet Ann as its so very hot today will see how it works out with BIL here. He could be rushing off after mowing or he could stay and do something else with me. Its 23 here now and pc is telling me temps to drop so lets hope they do and I can get outside and cut some stuff down. I too have a huge rambling rose that needs dead heading and its a really visous one. I need to cut it right back and I won't get many flowers next year if I do. OH used to do it every so often. Its another one that fills the garden with its strong perfume.

BIL is here and he said he was coming on Saturday.

Morning All,

I slept well with just the sheet over me. I've put a very thin top on today and now I'm actually a bit chilly here in the study. I was hot when I was outside watering the pots at 7.00 am but it's overcast just now which will please the men as they are cutting things in the driveway where it was boiling hot yesterday. It's supposed to get very hot this afternoon.

OH set off for a day's National Governance Conference in Birmingham first thing and won't be home till late so, apart from keeping the hot and cold drinks flowing for the workers I can get on without meals to get or many interruptions! I can't put anything in the skip till Monday and when the workmen have finished putting their stuff in. I've set my desk fan up with the frozen water packs. Now I need to decide what to do first.

I hope your chiropodist is on time for you AnnG and that you have a nice meeting and look around the garden of who is holding it this time.

Good idea to get the shopping done early Mandy. My word you did get a lot done yesterday! Dead heading is quite a chore, but it pays off to do it. Unusually, we have had a lot of Peacock butterflies in the garden and I realised why when I went out on the front last night. A self set little Buddlia is flowering and of course they love their flowers.

Will you be in the garden today Mel, or inside making more miniatures?

Morning girls,

Its going to be another hot one today I think its 20 degrees here now and its going to get a lot hotter according to the forcast.

Slept ok had strange dreams I can't remember but I know they were weird.

I must make an appointment with Specsavers in Bideford and get some new glasses.

I also have the foot doctor this week. Hope you have a nice time at the garden meeting this afternoon Anng.

Morning all,

Busy day for you then Anng .

I had a busy day yesterday I dusted and hoovered all the bedrooms gave the upstairs bathroom a good clean ,hoovered the stairs and did a bit of dead heading I started on the white rose and piled up a tub and there's still loads to do I could fill the tub another couple of times at least as there's so much .

Shopping day today so we want to get going early before it heats up just having a cuppa then we'll go.

Ann sounds as if they are getting on well looking forward to seeing it when it's all done.

Hope everyone had a decent night's sleep last night with the heat its not easy .

Good morning all. early and yet already 14 degrees and sunny. I have a sort of tight schedule today. I have an appointment with my chiropodist at 12 o'clock, hoping he is on time so that I can get the bus to get me home by one o'clock. There is a garden meeting this afternoon but it is not at my house this month. My friend will pick me up around 1.45 to get there. No problem if I can't make it, they will go ahead without me of course.

It was very hot last night so sleep was fitful.

I remember Billy Cotton Mel and The Billy Cotton Band Show. Fancy him being a relative of the lady you were walking the dog for. The PC says it's 23 degrees here but it feels hotter. OH has gone to a meeting at Oakham in Rutland tonight so will be home late. I hope we can all manage some sleep tonight. I'm off to try now. :-)

When I was young I used to walk a little sausage dog for a lady who lived up our road, I think dad also did work for her as he was a builder and decorater. One day I walked up to see if I could take Penny out and there was a green MG parked outside. Its number plate was BC 1. It belonged to Billy Cotton and he was visiting Penny owners. Dad told me after that he was a relation to penny's owners. It must have been you talking about Bands that triggered my memory.

Its 23 degrees here now and quite hot outside so I am staying in the house.

Afternoon All,

It's warmed up a lot now, but the gentle breeze is keeping it cool enough at the moment. The men are here on the dot at 8.00am each morning and only have a break for lunch. They are getting on well and have started lining the walls with the boards now. I think the shower base will be in today but we'll see how they get on. I've learned a new phrase from the young chap helping, a 'double bubble' which seems to mean both a hot and a cold drink! The dust is much worse and is the fine stuff today as they were cutting the boards.

Thank you for the photos Mel. How nice to see there is a second brood of the little chicks. It's amazing they start out so weak and vulnerable, but their parents keep them alive and thriving. Good to see the Hedgehog too and the Iris and Rose are lovely. I like seeing Damsel flies in our garden as the metallic blue is beautiful. I bet the carrots and mushrooms look very realistic.

Vera, it sounds like the cleaners have done an excellent job of the conservatory. You have taught me something today as I'd never realised saxaphones and clarinets came in different sizes! That 80 year old sounds a bit of a character.

It would be a nice surprise to find the Garden Centre was cool AnnG as they are usually hotter than most shops. I see you bought some nice plants and tops too. You are right you don't hear big bands on TV anymore and there were so many of them.

Afternoon All,

It's warmed up a lot now, but the gentle breeze is keeping it cool enough at the moment. The men are here on the dot at 8.00am each morning and only have a break for lunch. They are getting on well and have started lining the walls with the boards now. I think the shower base will be in today but we'll see how they get on. I've learned a new phrase from the young chap helping, a 'double bubble' which seems to mean both a hot and a cold drink! The dust is much worse and is the fine stuff today as they were cutting the boards.

Thank you for the photos Mel. How nice to see there is a second brood of the little chicks. It's amazing they start out so weak and vulnerable, but their parents keep them alive and thriving. Good to see the Hedgehog too and the Iris and Rose are lovely. I like seeing Damsel flies in our garden as the metallic blue is beautiful. I bet the carrots and mushrooms look very realistic.

Vera, it sounds like the cleaners have done an excellent job of the conservatory. You have taught me something today as I'd never realised saxaphones and clarinets came in different sizes! That 80 year old sounds a bit of a character.

It would be a nice surprise to find the Garden Centre was cool AnnG as they are usually hotter than most shops. I see you bought some nice plants and tops too. You are right you don't hear big bands on TV anymore and there were so many of them.

I had a good morning at the garden centre, it was cool inside with air con and wehad out coffee outside sitting in the shade. wasps are still a bit of a nuisance. I bought quite a large geranium, a reddish sedum and a begonia and when we got back Karen gave me three coleus that she has grown from seed. I also bought two tops in Edinburgh wool. She drives her new automatic car well (she is the young lady who dislocated her shoulder a year ago and it is still not properly healed. Although she is a fast driver she is very careful. She is lucky as she qualified for a good dicount on the car for being a military pensioner. I didn't know places did that but I think it is good.