My favourite sound

I was listening to a discussion on breakfast television yesterday about the recording of sounds for historical interest.  It was a fascinating discussion which made me appreciate that the sounds I hear today may not be the sounds that future generations will hear.  To illustrate this point they played a recording of Florence Nightingale talking which I had never heard before and which I thought absolutely amazing.  Here was the voice of this incredible nurse who I learned about at school but who seemed so far in the past.  Hearing her voice brought her into the present; it made her real in a way.

Of course it isn't just about human voices but also the sounds of daily living; sounds that we often take for granted but which may die out one day.  It's hard to imagine but the chances are that the world will be a very different place in 100 years time and this will have an impact on how we live and what we hear.  Look at how life has changed in the past 100 years alone.  Scientific and technological progress has transformed our lives so much that the sounds we hear now are very different to our grandparents' day.  The high street my grandmother walked along was very different to the one I know today and no doubt it will change again for my children's children.  Imagine if we recorded the sounds of our high street as it is now and what it would be like for future generations to hear how we lived.

Of course, even in my lifetime, some sounds have changed.  The dawn chorus for example, one of my most favourite childhood sounds, is not what it used to be.  No longer am I treated to a cacophony of bird sound that used to be so loud that, as a child, I could never sleep.  I didn't appreciate the sound at the time but 30 years later I often think back to how lucky I was to hear such amazing birdsong.  Nowadays the town that I live in is taken up by modern housing estates.  The fields have gone and so have the birds and other animals.  Maybe one day we can rectify this situation but for the time being recordings like the one below are a happy reminder of my childhood. 

Recycling furniture and helping charity

A few weeks ago a flier appealing for donated furniture landed on my doormat.  It was from the housing charity Shelter who were looking for donations to sell in their local shop.  I though it was a great opportunity to have a clear-out whilst helping a charity at the same time so I organised for them to collect our old dining table and bed frame.  A few days later they came and collected our furniture and I signed the relevant paperwork and gift aid declaration form.  I then forgot about it until this morning when a letter from the charity arrived informing me that the goods I had donated had raised £100.00.  I was really pleased to hear that they had raised some money and delighted that someone would benefit from our furmiture.

It reminded me of our lean years when we had to rely on family hand me downs and charity buys.  One particular memory was of a green settee which my mum and dad no longer wanted.  It was a bit outdated but I modernised it with cushions and a throw and loved it for years until my husband spotted it during an episode of The Royal Family one Christmas.  How we laughed but secretly I was appalled that my beloved settee appeared on one of the nation's favourite television programmes.  It made me realise how dated it had become.  Fortunately my mum was getting rid of another settee (what is it with my mum and settees?) so we took that one and passed our old one to someone else.

Then there was the gate-leg table that was passed to us from my husband's parents.  It was a very well used table having circulated around much of the family but it still worked as a table as long as you covered it with a tablecloth to hide the damage inflicted by decades of use (the table had been used by three generations!).  We couldn't afford chairs so we hunted around junk shops for a suitable match and eventually found six dining chairs that I suspected came from a house clearance.  They lasted for years. 

We were also passed some bedroom furniture.  I was expecting our second child at the time and we needed to move our daughter from the box room (which was being used as a nursery) to another bedroom.  We didn't have the money to equip the room so we gladly accepted the offer of furniture.  It was far from perfect though.  The furniture (a chest of drawers and wardrobe) was a dark mahogany colour and far too heavy for a little girl's bedroom so I decided to strip it down, paint it lilac and stencil flowers around the edge.  It was a big job as I was heavily pregnant at the time but I was determined that my toddler daughter would have a lovely girly room and she did.  That lilac themed room lasted years!

These days we are not so dependent on hand me downs.  We have a bit more money and are starting to be able to buy new furniture for ourselves.  It means we can recycle our old furniture and hopefully help other people set up home in the same way that we were helped.

Stratford Upon Avon

Oh my gosh a month has passed without me writing about anything.  In truth I haven't had a lot to say.  January has been such a dull month that I've lacked the enthusiasm to write.  The weather hasn't helped either; it has been so wet and overcast that it has been difficult to even find inspiration outdoors.  However today has been a good day.  The sun came out!  Yes that yellow orb that once graced our skies decided to pay us a visit and so eager to grab this rare opportunity of fine weather we headed for Stratford upon Avon.

Stratford, as you probably know, is famous due to it being the birthplace of English poet and playwright William Shakespeare.  It is also home to the Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) who reside in the Royal Shakespeare Theatre along the River Avon.  These attractions bring in many thousands of tourists and as a result it can feel a bit too touristy at times particularly during the height of summer.  However if you pick a quiet time, preferably out of season, Stratford is a lovely place to visit.  The town itself has many interesting buildings to look at including some timber-framed buildings that date back hundreds of years. There is also the garden and river area that is a popular place for people to enjoy river activities, picnics and street entertainers.  I always enjoy this part of the town as there is always something going on plus it's nice to be able to walk along the River Avon and admire the swans who live along its banks.

Today however it was quieter than usual.  The recent heavy rain had caused some flooding and most of the coffee barges were shut.  This didn't bother us; we still enjoyed a leisurely walk along the river and up to the weir which was so flooded that the path simply petered out under the water.  From there we retraced our steps back to the car but not before I took this panoramic picture.  If you are unfamiliar with Stratford, the bridge on the far right leads into the town, the building in the centre of the picture (the one with the tower next to it) is the Royal Shakespeare Theatre and to the left is the boathouse.

I'm rather pleased with the picture.  I took it with my new camera phone so I was keen to try out the panoramic feature on it and actually I think it's quite affective.  It  captures our trip to Stratford very well but note that blue sky, how glorious that is.  I just hope we get some more very soon!

Deb

xx

A watery walk

In between the storms (and wow what storms they've been) we went on a walk to a local ford that is known to flood.  I know, I know, amidst all the warnings to be careful about flood water Mr Fluffy Socks and I go out to have a peep but with all this dramatic weather I think its worth having a look at how our weather changes our landscape, albeit from a safe distance. 

We donned boots and rain macs and took a very squelchy walk across fields and down lanes till we got to the ford.  The ford sits on a river that normally trickles across a country lane.  In severe weather the ford floods very easily making it impassable for cars and sometimes for pedestrians if the water goes over the footbridge.  Fortunately the water had gone down by the time we got there and we could get over the footbridge very easily but if you look at the photographs you can see where the water did get to by the debris on the road.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The building in the picture is an eighteenth century mill that is now a private residence.  I don't know the history of the place but I reckon from the unpredictable levels of water in the area that the mill wasn't as productive as it could be plus it was overtaken by more modern forms of energy production.  However, it is still an attractive building that was listed during the 1940s.  I just wish the current owners did something to it and the grounds it stands in; it feels a bit unloved to me.  Saying that though, it is winter time and this area always has a rather depressing feel during bad weather.  Still it was nice to get out, have some fresh air and shake away some of those January blues!


Deb x

Hello 2014!

I hope you all enjoyed the festive season.  I had a lovely time, free from the worries of work, schools and special needs.  It was good not to have to think about these things and to enjoy time with my family.  We didn't do much; we lounged around, enjoyed some lovely food, played games and watched television.  It was all very low-key but that is how we like it because it works for our children and as the saying goes, if your children are happy then so are you.  Very true, I find.     

Now it's the New Year and uncertainty is in the air as we contemplate the return to school and work.  Change is difficult for my children and this time of year is no exception.  From the excitement of  Christmas to the return to everyday routines can be a bit of a emotional roller coaster, something that always causes me some stress.  For now though we have a few more days before normality kicks in so I'm taking advantage of this and enjoying a bit of 'me' time.     

I treated myself to Nicki Trench's Cute and Easy Crocheted With Flowers book for Christmas (I know very self indulgent but my family are so tired of my wool addiction that they refuse to buy me any more craft books).  Sigh; what can a girl do but to buy herself the book and so I have and it's a dream.  I love her designs and I hope to have a go at some of her patterns in the future but for now I'm working on the springtime throw and the Mrs Mittens purse from her other book Cute and Easy Crochet.  Both are coming along quite well though the springtime throw is just growing and growing.  I decided (foolishly I think) that I would make it big enough to go over our bed but our bed is king size and the blanket needs many more squares than the pattern states.  It's quite a job, quite laborious at times because the squares are so small but the overall effect is very pretty.  Here is a picture of work in progress.

I hasten to add that this is only one half of it.  It was becoming so heavy that I'm now doing it in two parts.  I'm not sure if this is the right way to assemble crocheted squares but it's working for me.  You will also see that I've only joined the squares in one direction, I still have to join them up the other way plus crochet an edging.  Still a lot of work to do but its a joy to do when  the colours are so pretty. 

Oh, for those of you who are interested the wool I am using is Stylecraft Life DK which retails at about £3.00 per 100g ball.  There are a wide range of colours available in this wool (44 I think) which made choosing a bit tricky but I finally went for  Fern, Rose, Daffodil, Heather, Cobalt, Melon and White.  These are quite similar colours to the pattern in the book but as a beginner I wanted to stick with a proven colour scheme rather than venture out on my own.  I'm glad I did because I like the effect; it's a real pick me up on drab winter days.

And with that, it's time to go.  I have a million and one jobs to do today including packing away the Christmas decorations!

Bye for now.

Debbie x

Summer holidays so far....

Well we're half way through the summer holidays and things are not going too badly, all things considering, which means that with two autistic children who struggle to leave the house life can be quite difficult at times.  In the early days I used to feel quite sorry for myself and wonder why we couldn't have a 'normal' family life like everyone else but I've now learnt to take each day as it comes and enjoy the simpler things in life.  And so it is that this summer, like many before, has been spent at home, chilling out and generally doing what we want. 

The weather has helped of course.  The glorious hot sunshine in July meant that we could throw open the patio doors and use our garden as another room, a much needed space to relax, play or simply potter about.  This space has become important to us as we often feel on top of one another inside our house and that isn't always a good thing for my children who dislike being close to other people.  And so our garden, all 100ft of it, has proven to be a much needed and welcome refuge.

For my children. the garden has given them an opportunity to enjoy their guinea pigs and the neighbours' rabbits who have found a way of escaping into our garden.  They don't go beyond our garden and happily hop back to their home whenever they feel like it.  We used to try and catch them but the task of trying to catch two very active (and very large) bunnies was too difficult, particularly when they would squeeze behind the dilapidated garden shed.  And so these free-range bunnies, as I've come to call them, are delighting my children as they scamper around the lawn though I can't say I'm as delighted when I catch them nibbling my strawberries.  Never mind though, the pleasure of seeing my children's smiles more than make up for some missing berries.

One of our much loved guinea pigs.  They are only a few months old but
they have already enchanted us with their antics.

For me, my garden is a place to escape the house and the demands of parenting though I am never far away from my children and my ears are always tuned in to the slightest sounds of mischief making.  Still I've been able to sneak in some 'me' time this holiday and enjoy a spot of reading and gardening (and even some crochet) but it's never for long because there's always something to sort out.  Total relaxation just doesn't happen when there are people to look after and a ton of household tasks to do. 
 
On the not so nice days we've spent inside either watching television, playing computer games or cooking.  So far we've cooked cake (lots of cake) and summer fruit meringues.  The meringues were a particular hit with my daughter.  She loved the process of turning runny egg whites into stiff white peaks and cooking them until they emerged slightly bronzed and crispy from the oven.  Even better was using the fruit from our garden to create a gorgeous summer pudding.  Unfortunately I don't have a picture of these beauties as they didn't last long so you'll just have to imagine the combination of crunchy meringue, juicy berries, cream and a sweet raspberry sauce drizzled on top.  .

With that delicious thought, I shall say goodbye for now but I'll pop back soon to share my latest crocheting project.

Deb x

In bloom...

Summer has arrived and at long last I have colour in my garden.  The climbing rose that I planted last year is thriving; it has dozens of roses of varying shades of yellow and cream and is proving to be a welcome sight against the red brick wall.  Also clamouring for attention are the pink and purple spires of the foxgloves, the lime haze from the lady's mantel and the hardy geraniums that spill out on to my garden path.  Then there are the patio containers and hanging baskets that I potted up a few months ago.  After weeks of not doing a lot, the pots and baskets have suddenly filled out and are bursting with primary colour.  It's such a delight seeing my garden come into bloom.  It certainly makes standing in front of the kitchen sink a lot less tedious now that I have something pretty to look out at.