Mothering Sunday/ Mother's Day

photo taken last Sunday

The clocks went forward an hour so Mother's Day (Mothering Sunday in the church calendar) started with a quicker cup of tea, toast and marmalade breakfast than on some days!  We had phone calls from the family before we went to church.  It was an uplifting service with songs of worship that touched the heart.  

The children came in from each of their Sunday School groups and handed out bunches of daffodils to all the ladies.

(In the Christian liturgical calendar Mothering Sunday falls within the Lenten period which is a time of reflection before Easter.  The word 'lent' comes from the Anglo-Saxon for the lengthening of daylight hours around about the month of March after the dark days of Winter.  In some churches there's the custom of handing out bunches of Spring flowers at the Mothering Sunday service.  It originates from the days when domestic servants who lived-in were given the time off to return home and they usually took with them a small gift of flowers and maybe the traditional Simnel Cake).

I'm enjoying this bunch of daffodils as they open and, of course, the greetings cards from the children and grandchildren.

I'm also enjoying the flowers that our local daughter organised on behalf of herself and the other  children and their families that live too far away to visit.  (Mr P and I are looking forward to seeing them all during the Easter holiday).

In the afternoon our daughter took us and our grandson for a drive to Wentworth Village which we haven't been to for a while.  It made a change from our normal outings.

Wentworth Parish Church

Yesterday it was much cloudier and colder which is only to be expected as normal for this time of the year.

My week: surprises

It was the perfect Spring day yesterday; sunshine, warmth, blue skies. Even in an ordinary and seemingly unexciting  place such as the car park of a local supermarket  the butterflies were flitting around the blossoming shrubs.  Back home, looking out of the window I saw a butterfly feasting on the nectar of the plum blossom and with camera in hand quickly went out to get a closer look.  By then the butterfly was resting on the cypress hedge.

Indoors I was thrilled to see that the fritillary (fritillaria meleagris) bulbs planted in the Autumn of last year had buds and then flowers. They're fascinating to look at close up. There are also five tulips (Blue Parrot) in the pot that I'm looking forward to seeing in flower in due course.

Taking a look around the garden I was amazed to see this rose in bloom.  Apparently it was one that had been in the covered yard over the Winter months and Mr P had transferred it to a spot by the garage wall and behind a garden seat to give it some shelter.  I'm always getting surprises like that when the plants that he's been nurturing inside are transplanted in the garden or he picks some flowers and puts them in a vase on the kitchen window sill for me to enjoy.

narcissi (Paper white) and (Orangery)

The miniature daffodils are still blooming, the blue, white and yellow polyanthus still looks fresh and the tomato plants are growing with lots more in individual pots on indoor window sills.

 The wallflowers are doing well and the last of the daffodils have survived the windy weather.

The rosemary flowers, hopefully, will attract the butterflies and any bees that should start to come by once the weather gets warmer.

front garden

 Slow progress, but a few more rows around the blanket have been done!

More reading, crocheting and walking in the park to the library and the adjoining walled garden as well as the usual food shopping and household chores continue as part of our daily and weekly routine.

The warmth of yesterday seems to have been a bit of a treat as today we're back to cloudier skies although it's still quite mild and the sun is trying to peep through the clouds every now and again.

Warming comfort food is what I'm cooking. The other evening it was minestrone with lots of different vegetables and legumes in the pot accompanied by a glass of home made wine.

By the River Don, Sheffield

The River Don is one of the five rivers that flows through Sheffield and was an important resource in the early days of manufacturing metal goods. Along the stretch of water in the Neepsend and Kelham Island area the evidence of the metal working industries can still be seen in the old buildings and warehouses. Much has changed in recent years as the diggers have moved in to demolish derelict sites. Some apartments have been built, but the original streets are still there, the museum of industry on Kelham Island remains and is a popular place to visit.  One of the old cutlery works still standing has recently been restored and a new enterprise has moved in.

On Sunday afternoon we went to this former old cutlery works building.  Here, on two floors in the different bays of the building, many independent businesses are selling food and drink based on street food from around the world. 

the cutlery works - a new hospitality enterprise

an old steel works building

One of the food stalls sold supplì (Italian rice balls). She bought us different ones to try - pesto, spinach and cheese, Parmesan.  They were good, but different from the ones Mr P makes.  There was no tomato sauce to flavour the rice or a cube of mozzarella in the middle like the typical ones made in the Rome region.

These ones (above) were different as they were made with pasta tubes, spinach and cheese

and were tasty.

Kelham Island area then and now