Carol Home & Craft

 Also, time to learn about growing flowers from seeds, starting with Sweet Peas. I think I am going to follow the advice here.  https://youtu.be/0fphcmBmkmE I've planted four varieties of sweet peas, five seeds to each tube, seven in the black pot and eight in the green. This might be slightly too many for the pits but we'll see.

 Went to Blackpool to stay with Mum so she could have some company and I could do a few odd jobs. She seems to be doing really well, coping on her own and keeping busy and occupied. She has been practising walking around the house and surprised me with her vigour and speed when we walked up to the shops. We went twice over the week and this us her only real opportunity for fresh air and exercise.  On Friday, before I left, I fitted the emergency fall monitor which puts all our minds at rest as we know she can raise the alarm should she have any problems. From the golf club to the river The bridge at Penwortham  Across the field to the old tennis courts Took my new flask and cake and enjoyed the wintry views.

 Bulbs sweetpeas soil

 Cold overnight and great patterns left on spiders webs and the pond.  Spot the mouse!!

 What a downpour we have had on Wednesday and Thursday, bottom end of the garden got a bit swamped. Didn't get out on Wednesday and just went to the Spar on Thursday for milk, fruit and veg. Did get a delivery from Wilton and had a rearrange in the kitchen to include some new fruit. Tried the dried apples on my porridge and having rehydrated them over night I have to say they were delicious.  Spent an hour in the garage painting as I want to finish the job started before Christmas. So just a bit more wall and the ceiling to finish. Also did a bit of baking.

 A lovely day, but the river too high for fishing and me being a bit limited with my walking route as I had a webinar booked at 13:30 for Slow Ways, we decided to work in the garden. I have reduced the height of the Rose's and taken up lots of dead leaves and died back perennial growth.  This has given a better view of the evergreen plants and those that have some structure in the winter.  Mike took out another fence panel and shaved the edge of the new panel and then with the bins and ladders in place we have managed to replace our second panel. Six more to go, but growing in confidence that we can do this yeah!! Slow Ways - a project Mike found and we signed up to, which us trying to record and map walking routes from one local place to another. Ultimately these routes would become a network across the country. Work gas been put on hold because of Covid and lockdown rules but we are hoping to get involved as soon as possible. 

 I have found this wonderful magazine. It is available in print, but I have come across it on RB digital and am busy reading the back issues.

 Fishing allowed again. So our walk today was to the fishing shop for click and collect bait. Just over 4 miles and needed full wet weather gear as it was windy and raining.  Viewpoint at the top of Avenham Park. The photo below shows how strong and high the river must have been to deposit the trunk on the bridge pier.

 OK, thought we would try and put in one of the fence panels. We chose the easiest to remove existing panel and Mike took that out piece by piece. Then, after some thought and discussion, we moved the bins close to the fence along with 2 pairs of ladders. We  able to lift a panel onto the bins and lean it against the concrete posts. Once we climbed the ladders, we lifted the panel again and managed to put it at the top of the slot, however the problem was that it was slightly too big. We had to take the panel down and Mike had to saw a sliver off all along one edge. What hard work!! We then lifted it back up and with a bit more jiggling and sawing we managed to get it in. Hurrah - only 7 more to go.

 Today we cycled to the allotment to take our food waste to the compost heap and move some manure onto our plot. Doing this meant that we were out for about an hour and a half so I am keeping up my target so far. When we got home, just after lunch, I ordered some new fence panels. We have been talking about this for a while and thought it was something we could get on with over the next week or so. We couldn't believe it when a couple of hours later there was a knock on the door and the guys from BG Fencing were here with the 8 panels. It took Mike and myself about 20 minutes to move them from the front to back ready for when we can start replacing them.

Freezing overnight, -3, very frosty this morning. Keeping up with spending at least an hour outside everyday, today we walked down to the allotment. The ground is too frozen to dig but there has been lots of manure delivered and so we moved 2 barrow loads into our compost bins. We then walked onto Booths, past the frozen pond in the park, to buy some fruit and veg. Probably walked 2 1/2 miles today.

 I had a really busy day yesterday. We did the walk by the river, but I also made bread, scones and oat biscuits and cooked sweet potato and lentil curry for tea. So this morning I wasn't quite sure what to do and Mike was out so we had no joint plans. Housework always beckons, so first job was the bathrooms. Then a call to Mum, just to check she was OK. Now thinking about where to walk, same as yesterday in reverse or somewhere different? I decided to walk down to the docks. I was surprised how icy the footpaths were making it difficult to have a brisk walk but nevertheless it was good to be out. More people than I thought on the guild wheel section on the way out, much quieter on the way home. Just over 4 miles today I think. Had a lovely long chat with Steven when I got home.

 New year, new lockdown!!!! Whoopee doo!!! As I don't get out much when Mum is staying with us, my plan now is to make sure I get out every day for at least an hour. This can be a walk, a cycle ride, working on the allotment or in the garden, it fits in with the lockdown rules which allow outdoor exercise once a day but without a time limit. Today Mike and I gave walked down by the river. We went along the main road and then down Howick Moor Lane to the river, I think about 5 miles today. It was icier than I thought, but the sky was blue and the river was calm so it was all quite beautiful. We saw cormorants, blacked-backed gulls and possibly lapwings. We think the walk was about 5 miles.

 Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. Mum came to stay from the 21st December through to the 4th January as we wanted to spend the first birthday, Christmas and New Year without Dad together. I certainly felt that having to spend Christmas differently because of the Covid rules helped with the absence of Dad. It seemed like the world was acknowledging his passing and our loss and sadness and that all the celebrations were more subdued because of it. Mum and I coped well, I think, we had some sad moments but in the main we were happy, taking part in present swapping in  the park, virtual present opening and the family Skype quiz.