rats!!!

well it was much cloudier to day so we attacked the shed! Surprisingly it didn't take us long, we took everything outt and then discovered yet another hole the rats had chewed through into the shed! We put some slaymore down and Paul blocked it up before we swept out all the straw and debris from the floor, yet another full car load of junk for the tip!
It was lovely this morning being able to walk into the shed without clambering over rubbish. After the all important England game I started on the fabric drawers in the sewing room, I am sorting out complete fat1/4's and refolding them into the small drawers at the top of the chest, larger pieces are folded into colour coded bigger drawers and any thing else is going into a large basket under the Grace frame to be stripped and filed according to width in my new labelled boxes!!! I think this could be a long job! I have an old feed bag to hand for complete rubbish!! I wonder how many bags I will fill.
every time I think I have finished sorting out rubbish I find another little store! Next job will be the old kitchen dresser ( the man and lady drawers and cupboards)! I suspect it will be like painting the Forth bridge, a never ending task, once you have finished its time to start again!

beautiful day

Sadly the table of the garden furniture I had ordered was damaged so now we are waiting for a call to tell us when it will be collected and replaced! It was too warm to do the shed yesterday afternoon and Paul isn't feeling too good at the moment as he is not sleeping because of the pain in his back which they dont seem to be able to sort out!
Never mind another day today, still sunny but very windy, a dangerous combination as you don't realise how hot the sun is! I hve decided not to go to craft group today in favour of serious shed sorting!!! didnt do any sewing room stuff either! After re spraying my fine crop of nettles, ground elder and buttercup I retired to a garden chair in the sun and a good book!!!!!
Must try harder today!

sunny days and hay meadows

Finaly patience rewarded Summer has arrived, clear blue skies and hay meadows! The fields are full of buttercups and cow parsley waving in the breeze. From high on the lonnen ( lane) there is a patchwork quilt of grey dry stone wall, and yellow fields, once they start cutting up here these golden fields will turn lime green which really stands out against the dark green fir trees!
The hedgerowsnt are fabulous at the moment, bee orchids, cow parsley, wild geraniums, alchemilla mollis ( ladies mantle) and white and red clover, I even saw the purple pea flowers of vetch in the grasses this morning. It was so peaceful, just the lapwings calling and the buzz of happy bees! Definitely a good to be alive day! To add to that I weighed in a pound lighter at Slimming World last night and school is finished for this week! I am trying to be patient as I wait in for the new garden furniture to be delivered, then I plan to tackle the shed!! Its due to be dry for the rest of the week so I thought stuff could get left out safely if we don't manage it in one day!!
I am looking forward to lunches on the patio and some outdoor cutting to reduce some of the scraps into usuable strips!

Another Tip Trip!

Yesterday saw yet another carload of extra to requirements hit the tip!! We sorted out the big unit in the study and got rid of old videos which with the advent of DVD are never going to be watched again! This had the knock on effect of emptying the kitchen dresser of boxed games which can now go in the study and ridding the sewing room fabric cupboard of computer paper and sundries!!
Fired with this success I made Paul pass down the stuff on the top shelves of the sewing room cupboard and bookshelves so I could get rid of old school videos, books and lots of saved but useless  bits of assorted wadding from previous projects! I kept usefull pieces but was ruthless with the rest! I even managed to empty old magazine files with cookery magazines which were just collecting dust, thus freeing them up for essential quilting magazines to be filed in some semblance of order. Now when the rest of the school stuff goes back I will have a shelf for the re-organised quilting magazines!!
Now for labels for the boxes for strips and squares, then I will attack the chest of drawers! I intend to have colour coordinated drawers for fat quarters only, everything else will be stripped or squared and put in the appropriate box, then with luck it will actually be seen and used rather than hidden in a drawer! This is a good plan I am not sure if it will succeed but it's good to have a plan!
This morning I am eagerly awaiting the arrival of my new computer desk for the study. This has meant I have had to dismantle the computer, printer, keyboard, mouse, extension drive and web cam and disconnect the internet! I have used colour coded stickers but am hoping desperately to remember where everything goes so I can put it back together again without having to wait for my son Ben to come up from Stoke to sort it out!!! Fingers and toes are firmly crossed!!!
With another busy day scheduled for tomorrow with shopping (56mile drive) counselling ( 22mile drive) then choir ( 22mile drive)! I suspect this will be a no sew week but with the world cup footy on for the next month I should be able to catch up!

Low cloud in June

We cant see across the road, wish our heads were above the clouds!!! Still looking forward to thursday when my new computer desk arrives and completes the 'look' in the study!!! Going to renew library books, buy a birthday present for a friend, then start on the sewing room. I managed to get 10clear shoe boxes with lids at Sams only £1each!! so major strip tidying and labelling to happen!!Also sorting out the next load to go back to school next week and hopefully cut some more star blocks!!
Busy day but productive!

Off to school we go!

It felt very strange getting up early and setting off to school after nearly 6months off sick! It was good to take more stuff back and clear even more room on the shelves. I felt a bit apprehensive but everyone was very supportive and the children seemed pleased to see me. The junior class was a breeze as I only had 6 children, 2 were absent and the one difficult child has left!! Needless to say in the best primary tradition of unexpected events, we had a power cut just as I was about to show a video about Sikhism!!! The children took it all in their strides and we coped!! After assemble and playtime we practised the Fench songs for the International Song Conference they are attending next week.
The day flew by and I managed to leave on time!!! One down just six more to do!
Hopefully this week I should be able to do more on my star quilt and complete the last redwork block so I can layer it up and quilt it!
The stricken plants survived our week away and are showing signs of throwing off the weedkiller and growing again, while I am pleased they are not dead, it doesn't fill me with confidence that it will be effective against the weeds!! I had a lovely time at the garden centre and collected more compost and bedding plants for the pots in the big garden. The small triangle bed outside the front door is beginning to look much better now the ' snow on the mountain' has been ruthlessly dug up! It's lovely but so invasive nothing else stands a chance! maybe if the weather is kind tomorrow I will get some photos to show you.