goodbye summer

Haven't the school holidays flown by, I cannot quite believe it's time for winter uniforms and homework diaries again already. We've clung on to last days of Summer by heading off for a dreamy weekend filled with meadows, piglets, campfires, music, blackberries, the chirping of crickets and the hooting of owls.

I do hope you've all enjoyed the summer as much as we all have xx

mist and mellow fruitfulness

So September is upon us, more quickly than I could have ever expected. Flora eagerly went back to school this week and the nip in the air, rusting foliage and ripening nuts and berries are all a definite sign that the summer days are numbered.

This weekend brought dear old friends to visit from Brighton and we made the most of the sunshine with some seasonal strolls.

There were blackberries to be foraged...

woods to explore...

huge rabbit warrens to investigate...


and hungry ducks to be fed...


We rewarded ourselves with a trip to the sweetshop and stocked up with penny sweets galore...

It will be no surprise to you that this is Flora's favourite shop and we frequent it far too often as, I'm ashamed to say, she had to have her first filling at the dentist last week.

Yet another thing to induce crippling Mummy-guilt...
oh well!

Hope you have all been having lovely weekends and hope all your little ones are settling in to school without too many hiccups xxx

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

ps a huge thank you to Jacey over at Coffee & Crochet for passing a blog award on to me this week. Her delightful blog is full of inspirational thrifted finds and chirpy bright craft, so I feel honoured that she thought to mention me.

It's not my intention to be a spoilsport, but I'm going to be incredibly lazy and link back to a previous post for my random things and will be updating my list of favourite blogs over the coming week- so keep your eyes peeled for my choice of recommended blogs!

meanwhile, back in blighty...

Oh the glamour. The highlight of my bank holiday weekend was the rain holding off long enough to catch up on the washing, mow the lawn and get on with a bit more clearing up at Pear Tree Cottage.

I'm afraid my poor hands have suffered a bit- remind me to wear gloves next time!


Today, my dad came round to help out with the gardening and brought with him a mixture of foraged bits and bobs and some potatoes from his friends' allotment. Just watch that greedy little hand creeping in to snatch an apple...


Needless to say she wasn't too impressed when she took a bite! (Don't ask what she's wearing- some sort of medley of dressing up costumes).


The cooking apples were put to good use though and went into a crumble with the blackberries- perfect for a post gardening feast for everyone. I'm afraid by the time I thought to take a picture it was all gone!


Another thrifty gift from my dad was this kitsch-tastic '70s WI preserving book that he had picked up in a charity shop. Whilst most of the recipes are very appetising, there are a few that sound decidedly dubious- mushroom ketchup or marrow and ginger jam, anyone??


It is also full of tips for entering your preserves into shows...

'Clean and polish the outside of the jars or bottles. A cloth moistened with a few drops of methylated spirit, is excellent for giving a sparkling finish to all glass containers. Handle the container carefully after polishing, to prevent finger marking.'

eep!

Whilst I hardly anticipate entering into a jam show any time soon, I used my last little bit of free bank holiday time to boil up some plum jam with the plums at Pear Tree Cottage, leaving a jar on the doorstep for the landlady. Unfortunately my little kitchen is far too poky for a store cupboard, but the shelves are rapidly filling up with our various jams and chutneys. I'm thinking my next preserving venture might be dried apple rings...