Loving being outside again

We all loved the warmer weather this past weekend.  

 

 Alice had a great time watering all the plants.  The tulips got A LOT of water before we persuaded her to move on to some of the flower pots ;)

 The thing that struck us most is the fact that she's grown up so much since last summer. Before she would have just tipped the watering can upside down but now she actually waters things properly.

 We also have a fairly large step up to the grass area in our back garden. Last summer we had to help her get up on to the grass and get down again.  Not any more - she climbs up on her own and then makes her way down carefully.

 Megan wasn't sure what was going on when we went outside but soon realised it was quite pleasant being in the sunshine.  She was so relaxed and happy and fell asleep in the warmth.

Despite telling you how much she's grown up, this photo reminds me that she is still just a little girl :)

One of the cutest things that day was Alice saying "I love being outside" and "I'm so happy!"
Looking forward to some more warm weather again this week.

xx

Seriously ?????

 Last week we got a touch of Spring :)  I sat outside for lunch on Tuesday and, providing the wind wasn't blowing, it was lovely and warm in the sun.

 Today we woke to a dusting of snow on the ground but by 9am it looked like this!!  It has hardly stopped since then.

 Looking out our back window towards the Forest Way path the trees looked almost like silhouettes.

And  the plants look like this!

We're back in bitterly cold weather - truly icy!!  Temps this morning started at 1C but soon dropped to -1C and that wasn't taking into account the wind chill factor.

Deb and Carrie, let's hope it's warmed up again by the time you get here otherwise you'll notice a bit of a difference temperature wise ;)

I'm now going to have a cup of coffee to warm up ;)

xx

The snow has arrived

I know I kept mentioning how mild our winter had been and that we needed some cold weather to kill off the bugs etc. etc.  Well, that cold weather has certainly arrived and yesterday morning when we woke the temperature was -7C.

We started getting some very light snow in the afternoon but yesterday evening it was coming down steadily and Jon called us up to the bedroom to have a look at it starting to settle on the ground.

 Taken at 7.45pm last night



 Taken at 11.45pm

By the time I was getting ready to go to bed it was about an inch thick and I took a couple more photos.

 11.53pm

This morning when I woke up I knew we'd had a fairly decent snowfall before even getting out of bed.  It was quiet in a muffled way, with hardly any bird noise.

 These next photos were taken at 08.50am today :o)

 Love the trees with their snow blankets

 A little bit later and the neighbours children were having some fun in the snow

 You can see the depth of the snow on the table in this one -and look at all the little paw prints ;o)

Our back garden.

Emily was hoping we'd have more snow today and then perhaps she'd have a snow day tomorrow but the weather is not obliging at the moment and I have a feeling school will be open tomorrow.  Craig has offered to bring Claire and Alice round here tomorrow morning because I don't know if I'll get my car out (unless it clears a bit) and Claire will walk to work from here. 

I hate to admit that I am not one for going out for long walks in the snow, I much prefer to stay indoors - nice and warm - and look at it from here.  Speaking to Norma on Skype this morning she was saying it's been really  hot over in South Africa and they've had the aircon on to try and cool things down a bit.  I think I prefer what we've got here, at least we can add layers and sit under a blanket to keep warm but there's a limit to how much you can take off to try and cool down.

What's the weather like where you are today?

xx

Day 3

Yesterday we woke to very strong blustery winds and heavy squally rain. Looking outside we could see that a large section of the covering on the roof of the shed had been blown off but fortunately nothing worse than that. Mum phoned shortly afterwards to say their side fence had blown down and they were trying to prop it up again. The afternoon was a bit brighter but still had heavy showers from time to time.

Yesterday afternoon also saw the Christmas tree and decorations come down and be packed away. With Emily going back to school tomorrow, it felt like the right time to pack away the Christmas things. On with the new year now :)

xx

We've been ....

Loving the warmer weather and getting our first barbecues in

 Enjoying the blossom on our tree, while it lasts.

 Watching Alice grow and start tasting more and more flavours.

 Not always so sure about them 

 Getting messy in the process (though she still looks quite clean here!)

Too cute!

 We're loving the school holidays and being able to sit outside and read

 We took Alice's crib outside so she could sleep in the shade :o)

 Mummy kisses xx

 Wondering why Grandma has a big black object/camera in front of her face so often

 Realising I am behind said object/camera

 Playing Peek a Boo

And making progress with sitting up.

All in all, things have been very relaxed around here, we're just enjoying Emily's time off school and being able to sit outside and enjoy the weather.  Needless to say, we're also loving watching Alice as she learns new things day by day. She's such a happy little girl who gives out lots of smiles but the time is certainly going fast - a few more weeks and she'll be six months!!

I hope you're also enjoying the weather and getting a chance to go out and enjoy it. 

Happy Easter 

xx