Housework Procrastination!!!!!

Just so you all know I don't live in a total pigsty!! I had promised myself that on the good days this week I would 'play' in the garden! I state 'play' because to me its not a chore its fun!!! Then when it rained I would do the 'chores' housework!! So its raining and so far I have tidied and hoovered the lounge and hoovered the stairs, now I'm on here!!!!!!! Dreadful aren't I!!!!!
I did the bathroom yesterday! I'm sure if I didn't live in a house full of 'clutterbucks' I would do more and be more houseproud!
I live in a terraced cottage which basically has 2 large rooms downstairs, a lounge which is split in 2, the TV end with multi fuel stove, TV, sofa etc and then an officy bit with filing cabinet, computer etc! Then the kitchen diner! This is the only part of the house, visitors see and its kept in such a way that if I have visitors, (becuase I live so far out in the sticks they have to phone first to see if I'm in)it will be spotless and sparkling in under 30 minutes!!! For those friends that just drop by, they are prepared to accept me as they find me. Clever huh!!

Right off to do a bit more!

Back now!!!!!!!! Actually 2 hours has passed since that last sentence and I have finished the kitchen diner, even washed the floor!!! 2 hours is along time to clean a kitchen??????? Your right I havent' been a full 2 hours tidying I've been down the greenhouse potting on!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Hopeless case!! Well lets be honest you can't write a blog about housework can you??? But I bet someone has!!!
My lounge...



That red on the walls looks awful in the photo, but its really nice in real life, this is a north facing room and I have most of it painted cream which makes it light but quite cold, I love colour and we needed some warmth added so I decided to add some red! Looks really good at Christmas!!!!!!!
This is my pride and joy ....



When we moved in we had a small wooden fire surround and a very small fire with a back boiler and it was all plastered. All the other cottages had this wonderful fireplace so one day hubby went off to work and when he came back the fire surround had gone and I had chisled a line of plaster off from the bottom left corner up to the arch to see if it was still there! It was and it took us over 6 weeks to get the rest of the plaster off as it had been 'uni-bonded' on. Towards the end hubby was chucking neat acid at it!!! Anyway I think you will all agree it was well worth the hard work!!

Now I am stood in the doorway with my back to the lounge



and the stairs



thats Tori's room at the top of the stairs and this is as far as the tour goes!!!LOL!!!!!! I haven't 'done' upstairs!!!!!!

Now the 2 Red Caster Oil plants have really taken off



look at the roots



so of course they had to be done there and then



I am leaving one in the greenhouse and bringing one back into the house! The begonia's have started sprouting already



have to ask Ruth what I do next? Sweetpeas all over the place...




plus thers another tray, some of these are for my friend S, up the road.

The Baby Brugmansia is looking very poorly and to be honest I don't hold out much hope as the whole of the stem is soft!!



the big one on the other hand has really started going and I haven't repotted it yet! This is taken looking up the main stem



how the heck it will stay in the greenhouse until May I really have no idea? Then we have a couple of trays of tomatoes, chillies and peppers




The succulent in the greenhouse is really starting as well. having been green most of the winter it is starting to blush now...




Maybe thats what succulent do because I bought this plant at Ikea back in January and look at it now, it blushes too!!!

Trying to be Good!!

I am trying very hard to be good!!! I have back problems and after 2 very busy days in the garden it is tottering on the brink!!! So I promised hubby I would be good!!!! It is such a beautiful day and after a stroll around the I think what can I do????? When the phone rang, my friend up the road needed some help..... so into my small 'maroon charger' I got and dashed up the road!!!
Any way having sorted the problem for her I went with her on the dog walk!! Here she is with her dog...



we went down the field past her horse Poe,



her shetland sheep...



right to the top of the hill and this was the view this morning..



her dog enjoying herself



The bungalow next to my freinds is up for sale, it was owned by an elderley gentleman who had a carer living in..



this is the back of it and the view from here is...



and the front..



with this view



if you squint hard you could just about see my cottage!!!! They are looking for offers in excess of £260,000!!!!!!!!!! So if I win the lottery tonight I would make an offer because the potential for this place is amazing!!

Back round to my friends and her little pony



Then after coffee home and a quick pic of my pip challenge plants



Dates above Ginger below!!




So far I have been very good!!!

Continuing the re designing of my garden!!

The picture on todays 'photo a Day' blog shows you that Tango is feeling much better, although we have had to make a trip to the vets and pay another bill!!!!!! This means that he has taken over from Chimarni. We have had alot of trouble from this particular feral cat, and it has cost us hundreds of pounds in vets bills. Although we managed to trap him 2 - 3 years ago and get him neutered, it supposedly stops them being as aggressive (yea! right!!)
I have now phoned the Cats Protection League at least 4 times requesting them to get the lady from the feral dept, to contact me. Has she, has she my big toe!!!!! So I will phone daily this week and then if I get no joy I will have no option but to contact the RSPCA. The difference between the 2 is the Cats Protection League will find the feral cat a new home on a farm quite a distance away, the RSPCA put them down!!!! The bigger problem is I think we may have a new un-neutered feral on the block, I can smell 'tom' round the shed!!!

Yesterday I dug over




these two beds, so they now look like this...




Remember this untidy corner



well I have repotted a few plants and potted up the Camillia and the corner looks like this


I still have to jet wash the patio but there is still plants to move, dig out and replant before I consider jet washing!!!

The chickens where enjoying themselves in the sunshine



and in answer to the question ' will I let them Free Range'? The answer is sort of but not really! Don't get me wrong I love them to pieces, they give me hours of endless amusement and the most beautiful eggs, but I had no idea how destructive they would be, so I let them do this



as you can see I have opened up the chicken fencing which stops them digging up the flower and veg beds. The compost bin is being moved so they will have some more space!

I decided to tackle the area round the shed today, so it started of looking like this...





and after 4 1/2 hours of work it ended up looking like this....



So everything used today was already in the garden. My hobbit (white statue) had been hidden away behind a big bush so I thought I would bring him out and I think he helps draw the eye down the garden!!! I probably need some sort of climber behind him, so will have to see what offers are available! The ferns planted around his feet are my 99p bargains I got last year with the beautiful blue pots!!



I moved the compost bin and now I've looked at the pictures I realise I've moved the wrong bin!!!!! It needed to be moved but it was going to be swapped for the bigger one up the garden!!!! Silly me.



The frame at the end has a cover and I use it for extra tomato plants, I put the cover away in the winter. Here I need more slabs and a water butt. I will see if I can pick some up on Freecycle.

Looking at it now it doesn't look like there was 4 1/2 hrs work there!!!

My back is now very dodgy, so don't tell hubby!!!!! So I shall get out my knitting and sit and watch a dvd!!! and try and be good, until tomorrow! Maybe!!!

What been going on this weekend!!

Very busy day in the garden yesterday. I really must get on as I hope my sister is coming to visit over Easter, so it must be ready for inspection!!lol!!!



Bed one, all the beds had been previously dug over so needed a quick go over again and raking. Here I have put my garlic which has been in pots, around the outside as this is where I want to put carrots and parsnips!



Bed 2. Onions, I wonder if I have put these in to early??? They have been in the greenhouse for ages, as you know, and I have put them outside each day, but I am desperate for space in the greenhouse now, so they have 2 chances!!! I am putting a fleece cloche over them for awhile. If they totally die, I shall pop to Wilkinsons and buy another 'set' because last year these wheren't planted till later!!!

I will tackle bed 3 & 4 today, dig & rake. I still haven't totally decided what to put in them!! I fancy having a go at a 'three sisters bed' sweetcorn, beans and squash! As Carol talked about on Gardeners World on Friday!! I also intend to keep some outdoor tomatoes as well. Still to decide where to go Victorian Climbing Peas, climbing french beans , sweetcorn, gem squash, butternut squash, salads, spring onions, beetroot, potatoes (probably in bags)and Chinese artichokes! I have blackcurrant bushes to go in and a blackberry, strawberries and raspberries already in!

I am not normally a fan of begonias, but Ruth got me thinking so I kept my eye open and spotted these which I quite liked...



I have started them off in the greenhouse!



This corner which is southwest facing is lacking something. Apart from the fact its full of winter rubbishy stuff!!



Anyway Ruth's blog got me going again, (she is going to have a lot to answer for) then on Gardeners World on Friday, Jo planted one up, so on Saturday hubby and I went to good old Wilkinsons and found this



an ideal choice, I think you will agree!!!

After all my hard work in the Garden I was in for a treat, I had bought Tori a recipe book for teenagers, earlier in the week, as I am concerened about her looking after herself if/when she goes to Uni! Anyway after much enthusiastic discussion it has been decided that she will cook all the Saturday evening meals. Take a look at her first go



Chilli Con Carne!! It was lovely! I was really surprised that she would even eat it??



But she did and her response was 'its a bit bland'!!! As she followed the recipe to the book, I think I will get her to repeat the recipe next Saturday and show her how she can improve it, this could be difficult as she likes to do things by the book! So to speak! But we will see!!

Back Later!!

Tango got Tango'd

I've actually done loads in the garden today, but I'll post about that tomorrow, as a rather amusing incident occured this evening!!!

Look what walked in!!!!











We reckon he had a fight or was chased or frightened by something! So what do you do with a mud ball like this??? You wrap him in a towel



and then carry him to the bathroom to give him a shower! He was brilliant, he didn't fight or yowl or anything, this is after the shower!


we then popped him in another towel, to help dry him off, by which time he was purring like a train!! Here he is all lovely and cleanish!!!