Ten

Hooray it's raining, I know I shouldn't be pleased about it..but I get to play at home today, or rather waste some time at home when I have 5 million jobs to do..Harry has already told me off for being 'immature' today which I found hilarious..bums to being 40 and sensible I say!! I want to be known as the daft one forever.Anyway, before small children start crying and the birdies emigrate early at the sight of my ugly mug...where was I? ah the number 10
I do like the number ten, I do think I'm drawn to that number, nice and even..
TEN.
Maybe it's my lucky number.

My favourite childhood house was a number ten, an old Edwardian, shabby but homely house, forever being renovated, full of animals and other people's kids, the one before, number 55 (5+5= 10) and the one we live in now is also a 10 (although they mostly use house names on our little lane)
So anyway, it may come of no surprise that our 9 feathered ladies have now become a nice and even 10.

'Nine, ten a big fat hen' as the nursery rhyme goes...

This is Elsie #2. A young blue Orpington, complete with frilly pants of the finest, fluffiest ,softest grey feathers. A gentle soul with a nice nature and a friendly face.
The other Orpies, Betty , Bess and Dolly have just accepted her presence but those hooligan chickens from the rough estate and who've spent some time in chicken prison getting beat up and terrorised, haven't.
What bullies they've become. They's right chaarvs they is (that was in a Malvern accent incase you were wondering about my grammar)
Little madams.
I find my fluffy purple duster on a stick breaks up the squabbles and the comedy Benny Hill style chases around the garden.(Imagine the boys as chickens if you click the pink link) I also find that placing the said fluffy purple duster on a stick in the garden at strategic points stops them going anyway near my most precious plants or jumping on my 'early morning cup of tea table' and pooping.I Don't think those ladies like purple much (me neither if I'm honest)

Elsie came from the Malvern Autumn show, Pete and I went a couple of weekends ago (free tickets again..yay!) to drool over yet more vintage caravans (oooh they were very lovely indeedy) and for me to hold that beautiful Bengal Eagle owl again and stroke cute donkeys and doggies and chickens and shop for another garden obelisk from the cheapest obelisk making man on earth. Bliss.
Thing is though,like a numpty, I forgot my camera to show you it all. Oops, sorry about that.

A rare day out..

You may remember last year we were lucky enough to be given some free tickets to the Malvern Spring gardening show by a lovely neighbour.I was only watching Gardeners world and thinking how good it looked again last night and a pity that our nice neighbours had moved, when stinky George produced an envelope with two tickets in for the show." from 'thingy' " he says, "who used to live next door, they called round yesterday" (they have since moved to a new house but still own the house next door)
WHOOPEE !
So off Pete and I trundled in my old truck to visit the show only 10 minutes from our home.
There was definately a bit of a vintage/reclamation theme going on this year if you ask me, maybe I'm wrong,but there were more sellers with antique gardinalia and vintage garden bits and bobs and more lovely show gardens featuring old tools and vintage sheds than last year.Lots of alliums, which I always admire, and plenty of themed colourful gardens, I love the combination of dusky dark leaves and vivid oranges that seemed to be used this year...(sorry,the photos are a bit blurry,oops!)

but then again, I love purple flowers and circles used in the garden too, whether its alliums or box balls..or stone balls!But you can't beat a bit of vintage in my eyes, I just love this cute potting shed, with it's old tin signs and antique tools..This lovely greenhouse was just my cup of tea too!I did manage to get some nice old bits and bobs, only a few plants as I thought they were a bit pricey to be honest.Some much needed planters for my lollipop Bays; which have been crammed into their original pots for far too long and fell over if you sneezed near them! an old enamel bucket in the most delicious shade of blue and some Camassias to plant in them, this bargain of a big galvanised trough (£7!) which will weather down nicelyand yet another bargain item, a rusty metal obelisk for my clematis to climb up.It certainly pays to make an offer to the sellers, especially on the last day! last but not least I had to visit The Allotment shop again where I found this little packet of replica gardening ephemera.. It's just fab! I have no idea what I'll do with it all yet, but what a cute and interesting collection of vintage papers, pamphlets,cigarette cards, posters and seed packets.There's all sorts of bits and bobs in there!

You may like to check out the company that makes them...

www.mempackcompany.com

(I think I might get the seaside holiday one aswell)
So anyway that was a rare day out for us and a really good one, so for now, if you'll excuse me I have some balls of my own to trim...(box ones of course)

Why I love where I live..

When you are practically broke,you have to find entertainment that is free.

No fancy shopping trips and new goodies galore or fancy fairs to visit, no lovely holidays or posh meals out and restaurants to recommend.

Just the simple stuff.

Sometimes it's very easy to take for granted the area that you live in.You see it every day and go around almost blinkered to it.photo borrowed from21 top dog walks

When Malvern was recently voted one of the top nine destinations to take a holiday to in 2009 by AOL we all thought..what Malvern, this Malvern?
Then we remembered what Malvern is all about...

Elgar was inspired by them,The Queen drinks the water from them, people come from all over the world to walk over them and we live two minutes down the road from them.

The Hills.

So today we took a long walk up those big steep,grassy lumps of rock and I thought you might like to see what all the fuss is about... We started off at what is known as 'The Wyche cutting' about half way up and roughly half way along the range of hills known as the Malverns.

Each peak has its own name and we were heading for Jubilee hill.

Once you reach the ridge, one side is Worcestershire, with the town of Great Malvern and the surrounding villages;

..and the other Herefordshire, where you can just see the little village of Colwall. I think I prefer the Hereford side which is more rural and Hilly.On a clear day you can see 5 counties and even the Black mountains of Wales.

This hill is the highest..
but we're not going that way today..my (lack off ) fitness doesn't quite stretch to the climbing the Beacon.


Just over this little one today..... and down the track on the other side.


I think our pennies could just about stretch to a pot of tea at 'The Kettle Sings"

And then it's off back home the easy way..Yep, I think I can see now why I love where I live.

Roll up.. roll up..it's the rest of the show!

Having been so obsessed with the vintage caravans, I realised that the rest of my photos of the Malvern Autumn show where a bit boring and very fuzzy..(a bit like my brain!) I didn't photograph the array of gorgeous doggies,nor the alluring llamas and alpacas, not even the lady who does balancing tricks with her pony but I did take rather a lot of photos of chickens..hmm.. I wonder why! (not that I'm obsessed with chickens or anything of course!)

There were frizzy chickens..MASSIVE chickens..now this chap must have been nearly 3 foot tall!

Chickens that looked like they had huge Afro's and chickens with what looked like fake Santa-beards on..(ooooh that photo will make your eyes squiffy..sorry!)

some were for sale so Pete ushered me away quickly from the pens and onto these lovelies..wooden beach huts and garden rooms..Now that's the green I want my garden gate!(more on that later)

aren't they gorgeous? humongous vegetables...seriously, now why would you want to grow a one-ton pumpkin? or a perfect leek the same size as me?..ok so I'm a bit short but it's still a massive leek! or maybe a cabbage so huge you would need to eat it from a wheelbarrow...(think 'spacehopper' size)

most odd, fascinating, but odd..even odder was the man cutting up his perfect vegetables and putting them in the bin.maybe he was sick of the sight of them or just grumpy cause he didn't win first prize or something...what a waste..he could have made soup!

Anyway,I've been given a garden gate in exchange for making a small roman blind...I've always wanted a gate in a wall..you know, one of those ones you want to know what's behind it and where it leads..it will be a painted pale green gate with a knocker and I was hunting for one the whole day here..then I came across this little one.. I think it fits the bill,looks a bit rusty looking and quite appropriate for a garden entrance..I loved the stall it came from,full of lovely vintagey styled things and cute garden items..even the paper carrier bags are fab and the ration-book flyers! They have an online store if you're interested, which shows their wares far better than my appalling photo!I did get some cheeky union jack paper chains (just like bunting..one of those "It's cheap, I like it and I have to have it" things but I don't know where it's going!)and this handy chalkboard for a reduced price..it was their shop 'welcome' board!which also needs to find its' permanent home, I don't think the stinky boys will see any messages if it's left here on the radiator!
The highlight of the day for me was being able to hold this beautiful chap..meet Merlin..Now I can't remember what type of owl he is but I was very privileged to be able to have him sit on my gloved hand. He's 14 and belongs to a friend of Pete's who could see how mesmerised I was by his beautiful amber eyes (not Pete's friends' eyes..the owls' I might add!!) isn't he stunning?
I have also been very naughty this week..I blame it on the girl hormones, (boys don't argue when girl hormones are to blame) I have had a bit of a spend..
Cute tins..I seem to have a thing for vintage toffee tins at the moment.....particularly ones with cheeky little terriers on..how could I resist that sad little face?

or this one..?He just looks like someone has said "walkies"!

A fire bucket ready for the seasons' promise of open fires,both of us being outdoor workers the fires get lit a bit later here as we don't feel the cold so much! funnily enough all those vintage caravans had one of these too!and some pretty stuff..but I'll save that for another time..
Harry had his op and is wandering around with a distinct 'John Wayne' swagger looking a bit forlorn..bless him.Thanks for all your well wishes.The hospital visit was pretty traumatic for him..more so that his silly mother took a turn for the worse.Of all the times, I really could have done without it that day. I was there for him.Not me!
Pete rushed to the hospital to find one very ill person and one very sore person! (We're both milking it for all it's worth though!...well you have to don't you?)

Have a great weekend x