Magpie

Victoria came to help us this morning and spent several hours with my husband moving stuff about. Yesterday the kitchen and bathroom lofts were emptied and cleared ready for work on the roof as well as getting ready for modernization of the bathroom and kitchen. I have spent the morning cleaning and sorting stuff that has been in these two lofts for many years; some of it will be going in the rubbish!

Today’s picture is of a Magpie eating from the bird table, with the snow falling all around. Tubby has been today along with three slimmer squirrels and we feel that it might be a pregnant female, rather than a aft squirrel; I am not sure when they give birth, but hopefully not while this weather continues. 

It is bitterly cold today and started to snow around lunchtime. It snowed for about two hours, but fortunately did not settle; now late in the afternoon it is raining.

Snowdrops in the Snow

Some snow overnight, but it started to melt this morning when the sun came out. I filled the bird feeders, topped up their water and filled the squirrel nut box. I was rewarded, almost immediately, with a visit from Tubby as well as three other squirrels at various times throughout the morning.

Some snow has remained where the sun did not manage to melt it and today’s picture shows some Snowdrops in the snow.

Just for information

I have worn my FitBit for the whole of 2014 and today I received notification, by email, of miles, steps, most active and least active days as well as my most active month. To ensure that this information is not lost I am including it here.

Steps - 2,449,896

Miles - 1,033

Most Active Month - March 2014

Most Active Day - 9 April 2014

Least Active Day - 8 July 2014

Winter Coat

The weather has been very strange today with a great many different types. The builders went home earlier than usual, as they have to collect some new windows and doors for us. It is just as well that they had cleared up early, just after they left, it hailed and then it has snowed quite heavily.

Today’s picture is of one of our squirrels, it may be Tubby, but I cannot be sure. He is making sure that he has enough food to keep him warm through the night. I am told that it will be very windy during the night, so we shall see what tomorrow brings.

Pheasant

Today it is quite windy with grey skies as well as torrential rain at times. Today’s picture is of a male Pheasant looking upwards, waiting for the squirrel to drop him some nuts, it was taken through our kitchen windows, which are now cleaner than they have been of late.

A pottering about day, looking at kitchen plans and how everything will fit as well as catching up with ready and knitting; rather a lazy day!

Mallards

Another dull day, but so far it has not rained. Progress continues with floorboards being laid; the rendering on the outside has also been started today. The kitchen design has come through, but it is not correct so the representative is coming out this afternoon. We think we have chosen the kitchen floor tiles as well as those for the bathroom and shower room walls.

It is hard to concentrate on doing much for any length of time as there are disruptions, as to be expected, with people coming in and out. Dougal and Florence are not happy as they are once again shut in the North bedroom; their new bag of Royal Canin arrived today so they had some for lunch.

Today’s picture is of some Mallards, which, now that the pond has thawed have returned to the garden. The picture below is of some Winter Aconites flowering in one of our borders.

Bored

Today’s blip is of Dougal and Florence who are terribly bored; both want to sleep on the same box, despite there being other more suitable places for them to sleep. They are shut in the North bedroom as the builders are taking out windows, putting in new ones as well as bricking up one we no longer require, they are also moving vehicles about, so it is unsafe for them to be loose.

I visited the GP’s surgery early this morning for my asthma check with the nurse. All is going okay and we now go on to a maintenance plan where I reduce the amount of ‘puffs’ over a period of time, to ascertain where the maintenance level is.

A dry, dull day with overcast skies although not particularly cold, it looks as though it might rain later.

Miniature Daffodils

It was frosty first thing, but this disappeared quite quickly to give a dull but dry day.
 
I did some housework this morning as well as cooking a roast for lunch, then I went looking for a blip.
 
Today I have chosen these miniature Daffodils, they are flowering in one of the railway station tubs, so strictly speaking they are part of my one street so they have been added.

Fly Tipping

We went to Homebase and Wickes this morning for some plumbing bits as my husband has to move two radiators so that the new windows and doors can be fitted next week. Once we came home I spent several hours cleaning the bathroom and the larder, under the stairs, ready for the builders to make it messy again on Monday.

Today’s picture is of some rubbish that someone has dumped in the turning space along my One Street; this is called fly tipping. I telephoned the council yesterday to report it and it will be removed sometime next week. We are getting a lot more rubbish dumped along the verges, not just where I live, but in other parts of the village too. I wonder how long it will be before it is removed.

Frozen and Bedraggled

It was so cold overnight that my car would not start this morning; the first time in fifteen years that she has not done so. My daughter picked me up in the railway station car park and we went to Saffron Walden to have our nails done. After that we had coffee at her house, I then walked home.

Today’s blip was taken during this afternoon and shows some frozen and bedraggled Primula; just how I feel. Two windows have been taken out today and are boarded up for the weekend; there is a layer of dust over everything!

The frost has not thawed, in the shade, all day although the sun did shine for a while. This afternoon the car started first time, once the temperature had risen to just above freezing.sun had shone on it.