Autumn seems to be approaching

This morning there was a subtle shift in the weather and as we approach the end of August I guess we should expect this.  We had a lot of condensation overnight and this was followed by rolling mists this morning as the damp was being burned off by the rising sun.  The sunrise was spectacular and this then heralded another hot day although we had a little more breeze than of late which was very welcome.  It has certainly been a very long hot summer this year.

The slightly cooler nights coupled with the knowledge that we can use aircon if required has led to us having better sleep conditions - it is just a shame that the cats haven't read the brief to actually allow us to take advantage of them!!!  I envy John being able to sleep like a baby - I guess all those years in the Navy sleeping in less than ideal circumstances have made him immune to disturbances!

I had got most of the meal for today ready in advance (this is not my picture).  I had slow roasted some lamb shanks in a minted gravy and was serving with mashed potatoes and veg.  I know it is hot but Mum has had some blood tests which indicates she is severely lacking in Iron (this would explain why she bruises so badly) and because she doesn't want to take more tablets we are trying to address this with her diet which she has admitted is less than satisfactory.  Today we are all embracing broccoli which I have to admit is not one of my favourites but we are in this together - we were having this with peas, carrots and green beans and then followed by a panna-cotta which meant we were ticking the red meat, green veg and dairy boxes which are areas she needs to address.  It reminded me of my childhood when I hated Sunday Lunch but was made to sit at the table as long as it took for me to empty my plate - this sometimes took hours and a lot of tears.  Fortunately that was not the case today and we did relent on the mashed potato because we had given her quite a bit.  How roles have changed - I am now the parent and Mum the child!!!  Still at least if I know I am doing the right thing on a Sunday there is at least one day when her iron intake is increased and that cannot be a bad thing.

Mum returned home safely and we settled down to some TV which must mean that Autumn is on the way!!!!  We plumped for the UK version of Before We Die which is a thriller based around some dodgy drug dealing Croatians.  Someone really needs to have a word with Lesley Sharp who has now lost far too much weight and looks painfully thin and as a result she seems to speak exceptionally slowly like it is all too much effort - other than that two episodes in we are quite enjoying it!!