A Mid Week Walk in the Park

I didn't feel well after getting the 'flu jab on Tuesday, but a walk in the park and a visit to the library to return a book that was on hold for someone else did me good especially as there's a lot happening in the walled garden.   

It was a gloomy sort of day, but the colourful flowers and changes that are taking place in the different areas of the garden were cheering to see.

There's a new pergola over a place for sitting down in one corner near the rose garden.

The wall that had been rendered and painted orangey-red on one side by the gardeners' quarters has been stripped and built up.  There's a barrier along the path so I shall have to go back and take a closer look.  The volunteers were out in force as usual digging, sweeping up leaves and generally doing garden maintenance work.

There's a new structure in the kitchen garden area and the cosmos, fuschias and other flowers are still in bloom because of the shelter from the high walls.

The shed wall has been decorated with a pretty mural.  Surely the garden will attract all sorts of  creatures especially in the warmer weather.

Work continues on the area around the stable block which is going to be converted into a community hub and refreshment area.  Again there were barriers, but it looks as if there's a ramp for wheelchairs and visitors will be able to access the community facilities from the walled garden or vice versa.

I'm fascinated by the pattern and colours of the trunks of this eucalyptus tree especially where the bark has peeled off and fallen to the ground.

Edmund de Waal's non fiction book has my attention at the moment.  It's rich in descriptions of a house and an era that interests the writer because of personal connections.   It's written in the form of letters to someone he calls 'a friend'.

The Cover Blurb:-

Dear Friend,   As you may have guessed by now I am not in your house by accident.  I know your house rather well.

Count Moise de Camondo lived a few doors away from Edmund de Waal's forebears, the Ephrussi, first encountered in his bestselling memoir The Hare With Amber Eyes.  Like the Ephrussi the Camondos were also targets of anti-semetism.  Camondo created a spectacular house and filled it with the greatest collection of French eighteenth century art for his son to inherit.  But when Nissim was killed in the First World War it became a memorial and, on the Count's death, was bequeathed to France.  The Musee Nissim de Camondo has remained unchanged since 1936.  Edmund de Waal explores the lavish rooms and detailed archives and uncovers new layers to the family story.  In a haunting series of letters he writes to the Count who journeyed from Constantinople and became a French citizen before all that was gained was torn away. 

It's a thought-provoking read.

We haven't really thought too much about Christmas yet, but these Christmas-themed doughnuts were brought to us on Sunday by our granddaughter and boyfriend for us to enjoy with our espresso coffee.  There was one left  in the takeaway box for our daughter M when she came around in the afternoon for a cup of tea.  

Happy Thanksgiving to all of my friends who celebrate this day!  

An Advent candle will be lit each day until Christmas.  We're looking forward to seeing Daughter D when she comes to stay for our Christmas family gatherings. 

It's something to look forward to next month. 

Thank you for your visit.  Have a lovely weekend!

Five On Friday: Our Week

Today started out chilly, but dry, much as it has been all week during the day.  This meant that Mr P could get out into the garden and prune the lower branches of the fig tree that he could reach.  He's feeling a lot better although still has a bit of a cough.  We managed to get an appointment for another referral chest x-ray for mid November and I have a followup hospital appointment at the end of this month as it's five years since I had surgery for breast cancer.  We're hoping to go down to Berkshire next month depending on our health and the fuel situation for the car).  It's over two years since we went down to see the family.  They try to come to visit us, but we haven't seen the grandsons for a very long time.  Grandson No 5 and his girlfriend are going to visit us at the end of the month on their way back from visiting the other grandmother who lives in York and we're looking forward to that.

Every day this week Mr P has been chopping up those fig tree branches.   As the tree sheds its leaves there will be sweeping up to do. 😒

 

The pots of avocado, pomegranates and citrus trees will have to be brought into the covered yard to protect them from the frost.

I've been making more apple crumbles and gathering the tomatoes that are continuing to ripen in the yard.

The grapes still need more sunshine to finish ripening them off.  Mr P is thinking of making some wine with them, probably enough to fill a small bottle. 😊 The birds will probably get there first, but that's all right.

This is all for now.  Thank you for visiting.  Have a lovely weekend.  

Thankfulness

Thank you for your kind comments in response to my last blog mentioning that Mr P was not doing so well because of a health issue.  I'm now happy to say that we received a phone call on behalf of our general medical doctor to say that the lung CT scan didn't show anything serious, but breathing needs to be monitored regularly.  Last week Mr P was prescribed antibiotics for a chest infection which he has now finished and he's feeling more comfortable.  We still do not have face-to-face medical consultations with our National Health Service general practitioner (GP) so communication can be difficult and there's a long waiting list for hospital appointments.  I know from family and friends who work in the NHS that all departments are doing their best under extreme pressure.  Mr P will need to take care due to vulnerability to chest infections and will need another chest x-ray in eight weeks time, but we are very relieved that the health situation is not worse and we can continue to live our quiet life in as normal a way as possible. 

Yesterday our granddaughter had the day off work and she took us out for the day.  (Photos above of the restaurant where we had our lunch outside on the terrace and a view of the lake where we sat and had a cool drink afterwards). 

As I said before our Summer days seem like a dream.  Above is our spot by the Water Cascade in Chatsworth House Gardens where daughter D and I sat and had our picnic halfway around our walk in the grounds.  We've certainly chosen some good weather days when we've gone out for the day and we enjoyed watching other visitors who had been drawn to the fountains and water as it flowed down the hill.

I'll continue to share more of Chatsworth and other places of interest in my next few blogs.  Meanwhile thank you for your visits, kind messages, thoughts and prayers,

Linda.

Back on track

It's almost a month since my last blog post and those warmer Summer days now seem like a dream.  I'm so grateful that I have lovely memories to look back on of our times out and about with our family as recently we've had to stay at home and concentrate on garden activities.  Mr P is not too well at the moment.  We're waiting for more detailed information on the results of a chest x-ray which was then followed by a lung CT scan.  There's also a meeting today by a specialist team at the hospital to discuss how this health issue can be monitored and managed.  Mr P finds satisfaction in his gardening activities and venturing out in the fresh air on warmer days benefits his wellbeing.  Although the days are getting colder and cloudier we've recently had some beautiful dry days.  We're also grateful for the covered area and the greenhouse that retain the warmth and where most of the gardening is done at the moment.  When Mr P had more energy he took out the individual trees that make up the cypress hedge next to the greenhouse.  Now there's more light and the sun can shine all morning into the greenhouse.  Another time I'll show more of the garden in September and also blog about that walk in Chatsworth Gardens as I took many photos and I'm sure you would be interested.

On Sunday afternoon we went to visit our local daughter for a change of scene and, of course, enjoyed seeing her garden where we sat for a while.  The roses are still a mass of blooms, but there are also signs of Autumn too.

 

Mugs of tea and cheese scones were very welcome after Mr P pruned a few of the rose bushes and took some of the leaves off the grape vines so that sunlight can continue to ripen the fruit.  Let's hope that the sun will shine during these September days.

Thank you for your comments on my last blog post and also for coming by. 

All the best, Linda.