Friday Smiles 2023; Week 8

Here we are again, another week into the year and although I haven't been too busy this week, it has still flown by, and I even forgot yesterday was Thursday so I haven't prepared my blog. This morning I have to go out so this will be a quickie and I will fill the gaps in next week's post.

I am taking Leo to the vet, partly because they want to see him and give him a cuddle, but also because his chip is registered in Valencia province and I need it to be in Andalucía, so there is some paper work to be done. He is very lively in the mornings and loves to play out in the fly-free porch where he can watch the birds and chase leaves around. He then sleeps a lot in the afternoons and evenings and has never disturbed us in the night. He lays on my lap between my legs in what I think of as a 'dog pose', and Tango is often on the arm of my chair but they don't bother one another much.

On Saturday it was the village carnival, a very low-brow affair compared with some towns around here, but great fun anyway, and the atmosphere is always warm and full of happiness. Sadly it was a cold day and there were some heavy showers but a bit of rain doesn't put the Spanish off when they are having a good time. I went down to the front of the village to take some photos and then hurried home to stand at our gate with Chris as the procession danced passed us.  Here are just a couple of the photos I took. I have lots more and by next week they will all be in a collage so I will show that then.

We have done some work in the garden this week, well mostly Chris has but I hand him the tools and bag up the rubbish so we can get it out to the bin. The roses have finally been pruned back hard and the last three blooms are in a vase on my table. 

We decoded to dig out one rose that is old and reverting to a wild one, and replaced it with one of our hydrangeas which looks completely dead now, but I have faith that it will shoot again soon. Chris' dad had big hydrangeas all round his front garden and they looked lovely when they were all in flower. Mine have got as big as they can in a pot, but hopefuly now it is planted out, this one may grow again.

There are lots of signs of spring in the garden, but these are my favourites. I bought one pot that were just showing signs of growing, from Lidls a few weeks back. I split it into two clumps and put them in two pots on the front porch and they have produced loads of flowers. They are not usually seen here, so they are a little touch of an English garden.

I also have flowers on a type of lavendar, kalenchoes, crown of thorns, primulas and petunias. Several of these wouldn't normally flower yet but the Winter has been relatively warm and dry so if they have survived the very cold snaps we have had, they think it is time to wake up now.

Even the jasmine that was cut to almost ground level last year, is climbing back up the wall and has lots of buds on it.

We have had a few really pleasant days this week, with a hazy sunshine so the mountains are only just visible, but it was warm enough to eat our lunch out side, and sit in the porch for some lazy afternoons. I have had long video chats with three of our boys. It was Ben's birthday yesterday and his partner bought him a drone, so he is hoping to make videos of the surrounding countryside and write music to go with them. He is a happy man now.

I hope you all enjoyed some pancakes on Tuesday. We did and Chris likes his with lots of lemon juice and sugar (I have to go very easy on the sugar). It was special to be able to go just outside the kitchen door to pick lemons off our tree for the juice. Here is my grand-daughter helping to make hers. It is nice to see the next generation keeping up the traditions.

Now I will quickly link up with Annie's Friday Smiles and when I get back from the vet I will come and visit you all.

Friday Smiles 2023; Week 7

What a grey, cold week we have had, so mostly we have stayed indoors, grateful for a warm fire and hot food; two things that make us much more blessed than many folk right now. Saturday was the Winter "Commercial Day", intended to raise awareness of the many small businesses in the village. As it was such a cold and rather damp evening, and we had no need to buy anything, we opted to stay at home this time, so we will have to double our response to the summer one later. But in the morning we did hear music outside so we went to the front door in time to see the Los Gallardos and Bédar band marching up the road, I think to remind us that there was something happening later in the day.

The marquee remains up on the car park after Christmas until after Día de Andalucía on 28th Feb, so on Saturday the Town Hall organised games and entertainment in there for the children to keep them occupied while their parents shopped. As it was so cold they posted on Facebook that there would be a heater in there, so I guess they were worried that not many folk would turn out for it.

On Monday I went to a new Spanish class - new to me anyway. I had heard what a good teacher they had, and I find that I don't use my Spanish often enough so I am forgetting some of it, so a refresher class seemed like a good idea. I really enjoyed it. Everything was within my capabilities, but the practice is invaluable. I find I can speak adequately and read intuitively, but I still cannot hear when it is spoken to me, so I am hoping this will improve my listening skills.

On Wednesday I went to my sewing group as usual. I managed to sell some of my new marmalade as well as some from previous years. I wanted to sell some of this to make room on my shelves for the new batches, so I sold it off at a reduced price. When it is kept for a year it goes a lot darker and the flavour is more intense. I actually prefer this more mature one, and several of my fellow-crafters seemed to agree. Here is half of the room, with everyone busy knitting, crocheting or sewing quilts etc, and of course having a good old natter too. There is a second table in the other half of the room, and we are almost up to our pre-pandemic numbers now.

Of course there are some more photos of Leo. He has started to share my lap with Tango more and they are getting quite used to one another. Tapping noses is fine, but Tango will flap his tail and of course, to Leo that is a clear signal to play with it - not so good!

I don't know whether there is a visible shutter on my phone camera, but Leo seems to sense when I am trying to photograph him. Instead of turning his head away like the other cats do, he stares into the lens and then 'attacks'. This was just as he was about to leap at it!

He has chosen Dad's crochet Celtic lap blanket as his favourite spot for an afternoon nap. He is nearly camouflaged on it and I think he knows, as when I am looking for him and calling his name, he stays very still and hopes I won't notice him!

Keeping busy in the kitchen with the oven on is always a good way to keep warm so this week I made another batch of marmalade with the second half of the oranges I was given. I know you have seen lots of photos like this, but there is something very satisfying about a stack of freshly bottled marmalade with the sun shining through it. I wish this was a scratch'n'sniff page, because the citrus smell in the kitchen is so good.

I also had a go at making the Oat Loaf that Leeanna shared the recipe for last week. I had to adapt the ingredients a little but it turned out very well. It tastes great but I think next time I will try to grind the flour a little more as my bread was very textured.

I realised the other day that I have never shown my finished mandala that I was making last year. It took me ages to find a suitable hoop but eventually I did manage to buy a wooden one. I had no space to hang it until all the Christmas decorations came down, but a few weeks ago I did get around to stretching it onto its frame and it now hangs on the sitting room wall next to other one I did some time ago. So here it is. It makes a lovely splash or colour in what tends to be a rather dark room.

And finally, a friend posted this on his Facebook page this week and it really made me smile. It is so very true. Much as I hate these cold days, I am also not very keen on the really hot ones. So here's hoping we have a nice long Spring, and an early Autumn with just a little bit of 'too hot' Summer in the middle.

So now I will get ready to link up with Annie's Smiles in the morning, and get back down to the sitting room to light the fire ready for this evening.