3rd May

First of all a big apology to Jackie and Stan because they were the people who gave me the Jo Malone candle featured in the blog previously and not my mother in law Janet.  Janet gave me Jo Malone body stuff both gifts were lovely but now that I am 60 I just got confused.com

Today is Sunday - I know that to be the case because my laptop tells me so otherwise it really doesn't feel any different to any other day at the moment - not that we are bothered, quite the opposite in fact as we are enjoying being at home and getting jobs done.  When we first moved over here Sundays were a complete day of rest with nothing much open and then supermarkets were only allowed to open on a Sunday during the tourist season so it is much the same now as it was then.

So my first task this morning was to complete the cushion project and it was not without some jiggery pokery because I didn't have enough material and had to sew strips together to make it look half decent.  Anyway VOILA - these are the ones on the sofa and there are two more, one on each of the chairs.

I know I keep saying the garden is looking fabulous but it really is and the piece de resistance is Hadge's memorial rose which this year is an absolute picture.  The flowers are such a vibrant red that if the sun is shining it is almost impossible to take a photograph but today, as it was overcast, I managed to get a snap.

Currently there are nearly 30 buds waiting to burst open and when they do it will be breathtaking to behold.  John took some photographs to send to his Mum.  We don't know why this year it is so good we wonder if it was the feed of the soot from the woodburner stack pipe that did the business.

Our days are now punctuated by food and lots of it.  I shall be so glad to be able to go out for a walk every day now without using up our allowances.  Today we are finishing up John's banana loaf and I used the mugs that Mum gave me for Christmas which have little covers which double up as coasters.

Our main job for today was to get the new wooden archway for the kiwi fruit to attach itself to.

I was on staining duties as I always am but now that we have plenty of disposable gloves I don't mind - that stuff really makes my hands itch.

I didn't cover my feet which was a big mistake because they got covered and I ended up having to soak them in a bowl afterwards because they went a very strange colour.  This archway is going to be much more robust than the one which has collapsed.  Robust but rustic!!

All bar getting a second metal 'boot' for the upright to sit in so it doesn't rot the job has been completed and I am thrilled as it looks fantastic - I do hope the kiwi appreciates all the hard work that has gone into it.

We now have some plans to 'pretty up' my shed which needs softening up - John has ideas but we don't have the materials at the moment.

Sometimes I look around the garden and I cannot believe how much we have achieved and how far it has come since we moved in.  Someone said to me when we first moved in that the best thing to do was to wander around the village to see what grows and they were right - I have made some mistakes buying pretty plants which have just failed.

Mum gave John a planner for Christmas - it is where he writes his To-Do list - he dreams of it being a blank page but it was only like that today because the original page was such a mess we decided to start over.  Our next job is to tackle the railings on the roof terrace but there are some storms forecast before the weather settles so this may not get started tomorrow.

The Ration Book says...
The Football League programme was abandoned at the outbreak of war, and matches were organised on a regional basis.  In London, Arsenal had to share the nearby ground of their great rivals Tottenham Hotspur because their Highbury Stadium was taken over by the military.