A day at home

Days at home are relatively infrequent at the moment, but I managed to spend most of the day busy doing things here, and enjoying the lovely weather into the bargain!

(image from apps.rhs.org.uk)

UJ came over to the lunch club and brought his tree loppers with him, so I was able to use them to cut back my lavender hedge this afternoon, in the sun, which was beautiful.  I thought that the smell of the lavender might make me drowsy but I managed to stay awake and get it some of it done.  I filled the brown wheely bin, and both of my compost bins with the clippings, so I left the front hedge to do in a couple of weeks when the brown bin has been emptied!  My lavender is rather overgrown, like this in the RHS picture above, so it needed quite a drastic haircut.  I have cut the sides, and now I have to trim the thinner top section with the secateurs.  I hope it works, as the other option will only be to remove the whole lot and start again; I really don't want to go that far!

All day I felt like I was rebooting the washing machine, and I took advantage of the weather to change my bedsheets a few days ahead of schedule but the fragrance of outdoor line dried linen is well worth it.

I did spend a little time at the desk, filling in forms and sending emails to enter 20 gymnasts into a competition, and then catching up with a couple of friends who had emailed.

This afternoon, the FH and UJ sat outside and had a chinwag and I joined them for a cup of tea, then UJ came and helped me to find and repair a breach in the chook runs where a couple of breeding GPOs had escaped in to the general melee.  We sorted that out, and I collected the eggs - 19 from today's laying.  Making a cake for UJ to take home and one for tea used up 8, but we still have three trays to sell, so I am going to have to put a sign out on the gate tomorrow.

Tonight we had a Governors' meeting and I had a lovely surprise in that the Head and the office manager gave me a lovely plant arrangement - they are kind - they said it was in recognition of the way I have continued to support the school throughout the upheavals and problems we have had at home this year.  It was such a surprise I was almost speechless, but it makes a very pretty addition to my kitchen windowsill, and I shall endeavour to keep it alive with love and water.....

Final job of the day was to pick up the EFG from Guides and drop off some old magazines to a friend as she wants them for a craft project.  All that done, I am enjoying a glass of home made sloe gin and celebrating staying out of the shops today!