Summer time - 20 degrees here in the North East of Scotland - unfortunately for me there is ironing to be done...

The top left hand picture shows my latest bargain, table and two chairs £30 courtesy of Morrisons, my favourite supermarket. Haven't had chance to sit on a chair yet. And don't you just love the sign outside my kitchen?

I have a black tie do to go to this coming Friday. I thought I was being very clever sourcing a posh frock on the internet, no slogging round shops, no overheated changing rooms, so I trawled through loads of web sites and hedging my bets sent off from three of them. Well, never again, one came and looks like a used handkerchief, the other which promised delivery in 14 days now says out of stock and they dont know when they will have any, and the third promised next day delivery, yesterday, and nothing arrived. I emailed to question this and the reply is that they 'hope' it will be delivered by Friday. So guess who is trekking off to the city tomorrow.....

Feeding time, every 40 seconds...

Apologies for quality of picture, but I think you can see those gaping beaks! Mum and Dad now collecting grubs and caterpillars. I have become quite addicted, rather like a 'soap'. Tree sparrows still making the odd attempt to take over the nest. Sharply evicted from the 'doorway'. Mum comes back and sorts all the family out, turning herself upside down to do so - not much different to the human world then!

Hatching!

Two hatched yesterday, they are tucked underneath the duck feathers. Father bird coming every 40 seconds with rather large white grubs. The camera is in the nest box and I view from my t.v.!
Gorgeous sunny and warm here. As it was yesterday when suddenly everything went very dark and we had thunder and lightning and a vicious hail storm. Also had a power cut.... I just didnt know what to do - then I thought I would do some sewing, till I remembered, oh these senior moments increase, that the sewing machine is electric...

The crying sky.

This picture is of Mormond Hill which you can see from the rear of our house. The rain clouds shedding rain created a spooky vision.

I am also shedding 'rain' - my annual bulldozer of a cold has knocked me flat. Boiling hot one minute and teeth chattering the next. Thank goodness we have no guests booked in till Monday when hopefully I will be upright again.

After a week of fabulous weather we have rain teeming down, grey skies, all matching my mood.

Ever optimistic!

My baby grapevine.
I have begun to put outside the hanging baskets and planted flower pots. Mike has been transplanting the vegetables I started in the greenhouse, so there was a bit of room.....
On a down note we lost a duck. In the middle of the night we heard a quack..shot outside.. nothing there, not even a feather. The one night we forgot to put them to bed. The other two are still quite nervy and not laying. So both hen and duck flock depleted. I am on the hunt now for some replacements from the Rescue Centres. And considering buying a gun.

Happy and Sad.

The picture is of some of the members of our Best of Banffshire and Buchan Bed and Breakfasts having had lunch at Kildrummy Castle, one of our familiarisation trips last year.
Sadly, Janice, the lady in red, died suddenly. Yesterday we went to her funeral. There are only two crematoriums in this part of Scotland. A long drive with the sea on our right all the way there. So beautiful. The crematorium was in what had been a small, pretty church. I was struck with the cleverness of transforming, what would have been turned in to goodness knows what, into something still useful to the community at large, Christian or not.
Reminiscences from the back of the car came thick and fast. Talk of other funerals at this church. How one had so many cars parked in and around, brought the comment, "Aye he was way too well known." Not a bad epitaph!

Phoebe is a female!

Phoebe has laid an egg! The one on the left of the picture, to its right a hen egg and on the right a duck egg. We have had Phoebe since she was three months old, which was about 12 years ago. So is parrot puberty the same as human?!

Everything growing - including my hair.

Lots of crops in and out of the greenhouse. Broad and runner beans, mange tout, courgettes, broccoli, tomatoes, and lettuce leaves. Tulips replacing the daffs in the garden, the Rogersii ready to launch its rocket of a flower, and the rhodedendrons just beginning to bloom. Isn't May lovely! At the back of the house all the cherry trees are in bloom, just in time for our first visitors from Japan. Our other visitors are from Belgium . They have the shooting rights for an area nearby. The results of which are a deer corpse hanging in our shed. Although I love venison I am not going to have any of this one......

The final picture of this posting is me all ready for my weekly Rotarian meeting. In early June we have a black tie do, which has totally thrown me as I haven't the faintest idea of what to wear. Any suggestions? My fellow female rotarians have suggested a cocktail dress as I am 'small', what the hell does one of them look like? A Harvey Wallbanger?