Yo-Yo Weekend

Well what a bank holiday weekend is was.  We were certainly kept busy and I'm only really recovering from it now.
It began with me smashing a tooth on a popcorn kernel resulting in emergency dental work.  Only when I arrived at the dentist did I discover that it was not one but two teeth that needed to be rebuilt!!  Oh what a wally am I??

There was a shopping trip to Galway city with the great company of my sister in law.  We bought some lovely fabric and a fantastic skirt sewing pattern and she has agreed to teach me some of her dressmaking tricks.  A beautiful lunch followed, all washed down with a lot of laughter and good hearted natter.  Unfortunately the main reason for the trip was to get my steroid injections.....YUK!

I had a couple of sleepless nights but the upside of that was that i was up for the sunrise and the dawn chorus.  This has to be my most favourite time of the day.  The magic of listening to the birds very slowly waking up, one by one.  As the sun rises, the silence is broken by one little faint birdsong soon multiplies to two and before you know it they are all singing their most beautiful songs with passion.  To me it sounds like they are all saying good morning to each other.

These solitary times at dawn means that I notice things that I may not necessarily notice.  Even though I was in a lot of pain after the horrible injections, I couldn't help but smile at the fresh growth that I was seeing all around me.  Look at these nettles.  Aren't they gorgeous.  The yellow to lime to green together with the shape of the leaves is so inspiring.  I think that it looks like a drop of bleach was tipped onto the centre of each cluster of leaves.

I must be the only person who loves dandelions.  The field behind our house is full of them and they look fantastic.  Actually I have never seen so many dandelions growing in every available space.  Covering all of the bog and the farmlands too.  I love their simplicity and their vibrancy.  Maybe because they are like me,  simple, cheerful but very annoying!!!!

After resting on Saturday, a gentle walk in the forest was what I needed.  And I was really delighted to see it full of life.  The bluebells were open and resembling a large purple carpet on the forest floor.  The ferns still coiled tightly while gathering the strength to open.  I have researched the top flower but have failed to find out what it is.  Would anybody be able to help me with that one?  I'd really love to know.

And Monday was by far the best of all the days.  The sun shone brightly and warmed the day.  We decided to take a visit to Belvedere House and Gardens.  They had a fun fair on for the long weekend and me being the big child that I am, just couldn't resist.  I was probably more excited about going than the kids were!!  After a couple of hours being thrown up and down, round and round on rides, we picked up our picnic and headed to the lakeside for a relaxing lunch.  The day was not yet finished though.  We decided to take a walk along the Narnia trail through the forest and on it's entrance we were greeted by the Oak King.  Isn't he just magnificent?

The trail was beautiful with lots of little statues hidden between the trees for the kids to seek out.

Somehow this guy looks very constipated to me, like he's sitting on the loo concentrating very hard on the matter in hand!!

And last but not least, meet Henry.  We spotted him in the gift shop on the way out and the Hubby thought that he looked very sad, so we decided to buy him and give him a home on our mantelpiece.   I really love him.  He's so well made and is one of my favourite colours too.  He suits the room perfectly.

Anyway I'm off for now.  my studio is coming tonight and hopefully I'll have something about that soon.  Fingers crossed!!
Rosie xx

The Gruffalo Forrest

As we approach the forest that we visit every Sunday afternoon for a walk, Molly the dog sits like a meerkat  in the back of the car and strains her neck to see out of the front window.  Here is a place where she knows that she can run wild and sniff every tree to her hearts content.

As children my parents brought us around this forest in buggies and pottered alongside of us when we were toddlers.  The Sunday walk carried right on through to our teens and as soon as my kids could walk I started up the tradition once more.  Every turn brings back another memory and each special place has a story to tell.  This I love sharing these with my kids and making memories of our own.

This place is teeming with wildlife and it is so beautiful to see it in it's natural environment.  We have seen deers wandering lazily across our path without a care but to Lucy's constant disappointment are always well hidden from view when we get to where they were standing.  Pine martins run along the river hunting for food.  There are squirrels gathering up their acorns for the winter months and in the spring the little pond is so full of frog spawn that the water almost looks like jelly.

But there are two main reasons why my kids love visiting here so much.  Two elusive creatures that we have never seen but found plenty of evidence that they do live here.

The first is the Easter Bunny.  In the centre of the forest there is a clearing under the tree canopy and it is full of rabbit burrows.This is where the Easter Bunny and all his helpers have their egg factory.  Making, wrapping and painting the eggs.  Each Easter Sunday we visit this secret place with our little empty baskets and a great felling of excitement.  It is always a wonderful sight to see the bright multicoloured eggs hanging from branches or lying snugly at the feet of trees.  The kids are always in seventh heaven, running around filling their baskets as fast as they can so that they can sit on the forest floor feasting on chocolate until their bellies are full and swollen.

Also in this magical place is where the Gruffalo and his child live.  They sleep in the deep, dark forest and only come out at night.  But we can see things that they have done when they get up to mischief at night when they come out to play.  Like this tree has to have been knocked down by something strong.  And my kids decided that the Gruffalo when he was chasing some poor woodland creature.  There also was two chairs and a table carved out of tree trunks that we have found hidden away in the forest.

Patrick and Lucy also think that these wild clematis vines would make a great climbing frame for the Gruffalo's child.

Here are some more pictures from this wonderful place.

The trees have toes here and late at night when nobody can see them, they move around.

 The veins are on the outside of the tree.  It'S life force visible to all.

There is a multitude of fungi growing here of all sizes, shapes and colour.  Wonderful to see.

I believe that a childs imagination is like its body.  It needs to be feed and nurtured in order to grow.  And what is a childhood without imagination.

Thanks for calling in and looking around the Gruffalo's Forest with me.  Have you got a magical place to go to, to let your imagination run wild?

Rosie xx

A Farewell To My Summer Garden

It is sad to see the end of my summer garden.  Knowing that from here on in there will only be grey as I look out my kitchen window.  But some of the flowers and plants are giving quite a grand farewell.  How brave they are to bare their heads during the early frosts and the pounding rain.

The ever reliable nasturtiums that always add wild colour to my garden in late summer and to the salad bowl too.  And I'm not the only one to love them.  They are great to attract butterflies and bees to the garden.

I really love the colour of these dwarf lupins.  Even the little furry seed pods are very attractive.  I took some of the seeds this year and put them under our laurel hedge and I hope that they will add some colour to it next year.

I love the way that these ganzias are the colour of fire.  They are reluctant little flowers as they only like to open in the warm weather.  I think that this year they just got tired of waiting and finally despite the cold they flowered in all their glory.

This poor little lone geranium flower is all that is left on the plants that flowered all summer long.

My elderberries have finally ripened.  One month late.  I was beginning to think that these little black beauties would just fall from the tree still red as often happens if the summer has been too wet or cold as it was this summer.  I must have a jam making day soon.  They make wonderful elderberry jelly.

The Japanese maple that sits just outside my kitchen window in all its golden glory is very slowly turning red. Worryingly I must move this tree next year in order to build my studio.  I'm hoping that it will survive the move.  Would you know what is the best time to move it?  Winter or early spring?

And finally the tree at the end of my garden.  I can never remember the name of it but as my mother gave it to us when we first moved in here, we call it Ma's tree.  It is wonderful and changes colour throughout the seasons.  In spring it has vibrant red berries and soft yellow leave in the summer that slowly turn green and then to deep red in the autumn.  Fantastic display.
Well thanks for taking the time to visit my garden with me.
Rosie xx

The Summer Garden

Despite the bad weather, our garden seems to be finally blooming and coming into it's own.  Here are a few of the gorgeous sights in it at the moment.

This is called the Blue Rose for some very odd reason. I got this as a birthday present from my mother a few years ago.  It was badly affected when I neglected and I was not sure if it would be able to recover.  I was so glad to see these, the first blooms on it for three years

These blackberries here were the first things that we planted in the garden when we moved in and a few years ago I planted a climbing rose close by.  Now they are closely intertwined and support each other well.
This year hopefully there seems to be a bumper crop of blackberries on the way for jam making season.  Beautiful with apples from a neighbours orchard.  Yummmmmmm

This little burst of orange gorgeousness was given to me by my sister-in-law.  It will grow absolutely anywhere and the plant doubles in size  in the matter of weeks.  It's brilliant for corners of the garden where nothing else wants to live.  I found that it thrives under trees.  The flowers themselves are on long stems and last ages as cut flowers in the house.

A beautiful visitor today which sadly has now become a rare sight.