Corran and the glen

The last full day of the holiday started a little dull, but steadily picked up over the day. There was some slothful mooching about in the cottage in the morning (fully justified by the step count of the day before) but by three we were set to head off again. This time we drove upContinue reading “Corran and the glen”

The neverending road

On the next day of our holiday we all inexplicably got up rather early. Possibly Lyra’s extensive demonstration of bed jumping helped, but who can say. It was warm but not boiling and the consensus was to take the walk around the fish farm. Each of us remembered it from previous holidays, but it becameContinue reading “The neverending road”

It’s not the pram in the hall

That gets in the way of women novelists and artists – it’s the bloody ironing. There is satisfaction in raising a child – on the whole I rather like mine. Admittedly there have been moments when I could cheerfully have sought out the returns label, but those were fleeting (and the logistics in any caseContinue reading “It’s not the pram in the hall”

Mists and mellow fruitfulness

The seasonal cart is over the top of the hill and starting to pick up speed in its roll down to autumn. We have had a few misty mornings and evenings of late. Not cold at all, but the air very fresh and moist. The scent of the wild camomile on the air has contributedContinue reading “Mists and mellow fruitfulness”

Who is the fluffiest of them all?

The boys are off for long awaited haircuts today so Lyra and I have the afternoon to ourselves. It has been hot and sultry all day. Yesterday’s rain has not dried up, leaving puddles in the tractor tracks to be jumped, and there is a gently steaming feeling in the air. We skirt the smallContinue reading “Who is the fluffiest of them all?”

Harvest music

Lachlan and Keith volunteered to reassemble the Plough marquee yesterday in anticipation of reopening (hopefully before too long as we have missed it sorely). I was deemed surplus to requirements and had settled down to a snack with a view to some weeding after when the call came through to “take Lyra for a walkContinue reading “Harvest music”

Pick of the crop

Harvest time is in full swing on the Ruthven homestead. We have moved on from Lavender to soft fruit. The strawberries were lovely but we (and Squirrel Nutkin) simply scoffed them all. Our gooseberries were somewhat underwhelming – only enough for 6 fools (I shan’t name them – it would be unkind). Luckily, Anne nextContinue reading “Pick of the crop”

Potions and notions

I fear that I may need to hit the turmeric latte – given I have now told you all twice about my rose petal pot pourri endeavours (the perils of finishing a blog after dinner and a few glasses of wine). However, in for a penny and all that, I am still at it andContinue reading “Potions and notions”

Midsummer madness

It has been a hectic few days. After all the rain and dreary weather last week the sun came out again. The forecast for each day promised that after a sunny morning things would decline, so I had a variety of indoor projects all lined up. However, the sun stayed out and so did I.Continue reading “Midsummer madness”