whats happened lately.....

message of the day...from the minibar!

Mandy pops over and gets a noseful of my sweatpeas

and a few glasses of wine & giggles

my last day at work so i treat everyone to Krsipy Kremes

and they buy me some pressies and flowers

making strawberry rum ice lollies

manage to spill a fair bit down the counter (of course i licked it!)

ready to take to the outdoor cinema

with Noreen & Michael at Somerset House

me and Judy enjoying drinks and eats...

waiting for the film to begin...

shame the first film was a BIG disappointment ...but the 2nd one of the Chemical Brothers in concert was a great chance to bop...hands in the air, with the crowd

the sun's been out a few times...briefly

Carnival came and went....

i popped to my brother's for a party (and made it home in one piece, slightly worse for wear, on my bike!)

great seeing old friends and making new...Ollie the barman was a big hit!

they're heeeeeere

not sure how many...but one popped up to say hello!

garden update

as the jubilations and celebrations come to an end (apart from the Paralympics!) i finally bought something patriotic.  picked up this fab deckchair on sale in Argos (£17.99) today and spent a few hours in the garden reading in the sun...till it started raining...here we go again.  its good for the flowers tho.....

my Borage plants, grown from seed, are coming along nicely and i picked some of the lovely blue flowers today and popped them in an ice cube tray - apparantly they have a cucumber flavour so should be perfect for gin & tonics later!

couldn't resist a spoonful

and while the rain drizzled i ran inside to whip up a rhubarb and ginger sort of soft crumbly cake, which i'm looking forward to eating after my bowl of mussels. tonight i am rather spoiling myself it seems!

finally using [yet another useless thing i tend to buy] the silver mussel grabber!

weekend update

love my blackboard paint mini-bar

decided to do some more work on the mini-bar i found ....

BEFORE

AFTER

fab new knobs from anthropologie

meanwhile....still waiting for the kittens to arrive....

please have your kittens here (box went in thesummerhouse)

looking slightly fed up...but still growing!

kitty-watch

sweet little black stray....and the new pink bowl i bought her

i have, of late, become rather fond of a little stray black cat that has been turning up in the garden.  i have been feeding her on and off and watched her belly grow as i soon realised she is having kittens.

she gets a little box, lined with some old clothes

which then gets moved into the summerhouse...and another lodger moves in!

 i've progressed from just feeding, to making up a wee box for her to lie in under the summerhouse awning, to moving the box into the summerhouse....and tonight she actually came indoors and let me stroke her.

a bit of rain outside brings her into the flat and, against all reason, she takes up residence under the rocker (ouch!)

 i am totally being suckered in - she is so sweet and tiny and i secretly can't wait for the kittens to arrive (hopefully in the box provided!).  once they are born i will find homes and might even keep one (and mum) and will have to tackle deworming, the fleas and getting her spayed.  being a die hard dog lover this is causing some difficult feelings - i never saw myself as, or wanted to be, a cat-lady (i am quite allergic - but this doesn't stop me wanting to stroke any friendly cat i meet!) - but i just think our friendship is meant to be.  this brilliant illustration by Lizzy Smith sums it up perfectly: