Friday Smiles 2026 # Week 15

Hi all. Having been absent for a couple of weeks I have some catching up to do. I am very happy to tell you that Chris's operation went well. It took four hours instead of the predicted three, but the surgeon was pleased with the result. He has a 12 inch (30cm) scar so it will be a while before he is jogging round the park, but he can walk around and is managing the stairs quite well. He came home last Thursday which seemed a bit too soon but he has a comfy recliner chair and has spent most of his time in that.

Meanwhile life goes on. I did go into the hospital to see him each day but it is two buses and up to an hour and a half travelling time each way, so even a short visit was almost a day out. Fortunately our son Mike works in a school so the second week he was on the Easter break and he collected me some days, or took me both ways, and he did a big monthly shop with me the day Chris came home, so he has been a great help.

On the Sunday Mike took me to the hospital -- no buses on a Sunday -- and then I went back to have dinner at his place. When our son Ben's situation changed, he could no longer care for his cat Bobby so Mike adopted him as a companion for his other cat Splodge. They are the same sort of colouring and apart from Splodges large size, they could be from the same litter. Bobby is very affectionate and came to me for some fuss.

It was Palm Sunday so I went to church before Mike collected me, and we had a lovely service. The church was decorated with palms and we were each given a palm cross.

The bunch of hyacinths I was given back on Mothering Sunday, lasted for well over a week. One stem split and had two heads of flowers on it. They really surprised me at how well they did.

April the first was my granddaughter's 5th birthday. I was told she was into pink and unicorns and anything fairy. I am not used to making 'girly' cards so I went online for some inspiration and chose a pretty little pink image of a little girl hugging a unicorn. I then used the link that Angela sent me after her picture of steampunk doggies, and with AI I put Aislings face onto the little girl. When she opened her card she look at it and said "That's me", so mission accomplished. I am not a huge fan of AI as I want to belive what I see and it is getting increasingly hard to do, but I can see it does have its uses.

I was asked to buy her a bubble machine which I did and she immediately went outside and had some fun with it. I enjoyed watching her, as I must admit I am a sucker for bubbles too.

My arthritis is getting rather worse since we came back to UK, which was to be expected with a damper climate. But I was really struggling to cut things out, and although I have machines which do it very nicely, I do enjoy 'fussy cutting' sometimes. So last week I bought myself a pair of sharp scissors with much larger finger holes, and they are so much easier to use.

On Good Friday, Mike and his partner Lucy took me to a plant sale at Whittington Castle. The stalls were lined up all around the grass area and I did buy a few perennials as well as a blueberry bush and a tayberry bush. 

The castle is a ruin and I used to take my boys there when they were small to run off some energy and have fun climbing the walls. You can just see the start of the ruins on the edge of my photo. In front of it there is a lake where a pair of swans return faithfully each year to raise a family. It is a lovely setting, and even though the day was grey and damp, we enjoyed it.

My garden is coming to life a bit more each day. We have an area of lovely little violets now, as well as bright tulips and several pieris shrubs -- the sort that have white flowers and at the same time the new leaves come red at first. They are very attractive.

We also have life of a different sort too. This great tit came to sit on the fence while I was hanging washing out, and every day a pair of blackbirds take it in turns to come to my dish of food I put out each day. They come so often that I am wondering whether they have a young family to feed already.

Our other visited is this little fellow. It is not a good photo, but he moves so fast,I was lucky to catch him on camera at all.

At first I was worried we had rats but he doesn't have a pointed nose and his coat is smooth. Searching online I think he is a vole. Unfortunately they can do a lot of damage in a garden, eating roots which kills plants, and burrowing under grass so that it collapses, so I will have to get a humane trap and relocate him out in the coutryside.

It is many, many months since I posted a sunset. We see the sun rise from the house but there are a lot of buildings at the back which mostly hide the sunset, but from my craft room, up on the third floor, I did manage to get this one last week.

I am sorry this is such a rambling post, but I am caught up now so it won't be so long next time. Thank you if you have stayed with me to the end.

Friday Smiles 2026 # Week12

Well I hope your week has been as good as mine. Here at least, we have enjoyed some beautiful sunny days, making even a mundane trip to the shops a real pleasure.

Of course Sunday was special for many of us as it was Mothering Sunday. As is traditional in many churches, all the ladies who attended this Sunday were given a litle posy of flowers. This was mine, some daffodils and a sprig of forcythia from someone's garden. They have sat on my mantle all week and all have opened beautifully.

I was also given a bunch of hyacinths by one of my boys. I would never have thought of them as cut flowers, but by Monday they were all sitting up straight, and they still are. I know some folk find their scent a bit overpowering but I love it, and it is still filling the whole house.

Our son Michael invited us for dinner at his house, and as usual he cooked enough food to feed a small army. It was all delicious. His partner Lucy also had invited her mum along, and there were Lucy's two brothers, and one of their partners, plus Lucy's two boys, (Mike's son had gone to his mum's). Then with one of the visitor's lovely dog, a chocolate labrador, along with Mike and Lucy's own dog and two cats, we were quite a crowd.

This photo was taken after dinner had been enjoyed by all, and while we were waiting not very patiently for Mike to clear some of it away and serve desserts.

My contribution was a large strawberry and avocado cheese-cake. It is a combination that works well. The cheese part is a pretty shade of green, and the base is half biscuit crumb and half crushed nuts, held together with coconut oil. It is just a little bit different for a special occasion.

Our son Tom was arriving Sunday evening so Mike dropped us home with a plated roast dinner for him, which he also appreciated.

I spoke to my other boys on Sunday and last night we walked over to Jonathan's house so Tom could meet his newest niece, little Niamh. It was passed her bed time but she was happy to be held and bounced on Uncle Tom's knees, and she is such a smiley little soul, it is always good to have a cuddle. And when she wasn't sure about a new face, daddy soon got her smiling again.

Craftwise this week, the blue hot air balloon is now assembled and is a better shape than the red one. I am still at stage one with the green one, so maybe next week they will all be finished.

I also managed to finish off my scrambled square jacket. It took a while to crochet the sleeve ribbings and the edging all the way round, but I had plenty of wool to do it. I got some reasonable buttons from Amazon and I am pleased with the result.

The rest of my smiles are from the garden. The first sunny morning brought open my first tulips down by the front gate. I planted spring bulbs randomly around the garden, but I realise now that the tulips should have been planted in a group for maximum effect. But they look good and hopefully that will increase over time.

The garden is a learning curve as I slowly discover what is there. I knew one 'clump' was a heather. My dad loved heathers and I thought seeing as I have my Peace rose for mum, I should keep the heather for dad, and I am glad I did. It is suddenly in full flower and makes a lovely mound of purple.

There is a bush in the front garden that has stayed deep red with very small leaves all winter. It now has little buds forming all over it and google lens says it is a berberis.

This one made me smile. It is a bit straggley but has held its leaves all winter and they are veriegated green and cream with purple ones at the end of each stem. I now lnow this is a hebe and it has the wonderful name 'rhubarb and custard'. I think it will benefit from being cut right back and left to reform in a bushier shape.

Tom is now packing his bags ready for a train early this evening. He is staying at his older brother Jim's house in London tonight, and tomorrow he is off on a train to Amsterdam for a work conference. Then back home to Denmark next Thursday. He sure does get around.

Chris's operation is now scheduled for next Thursday so I may not get to post next week, or I may need something to keep me busy! But I won't be far away and I will post again as soon as I can.

 Thank you to all who visited me last week.