Sorry (again and again and again and . . .). If anything, this week has been busier than either of the previous two. It seems like we’ve been busier than a one-armed wallpaper hanger, as my brother Steph said once upon a time. We’ve thoroughly enjoyed our all-too-brief visit with our good friend Miles and his wife, Kathryn, we’ve been frantically preparing for the village garden competition (yesterday) and for the Open Gardens (later today). Hopefully, it will stay (mostly) dry and perhaps we could enjoy a little bit less wind than we’ve had the last few days? Oh, and we also celebrated Penny’s and Jessie’s birthdays on Wednesday and we’ve welcomed Penny’s sister Judi who arrived from Toronto on Friday. Whew!
This was our first time meeting Kathryn and she was an absolute delight, as was Miles as he always is. (I know they’re reading this so I have to be discrete with what I say – contact me privately if you want more details). The weather was reasonably kind and we had some lovely walks across the countryside with Miss Daisy. We also dragged them out to Blenheim Palace for a stroll through the gardens and a wander through the palace – always glitteringly stunning. There’s also an interesting Churchill exhibition at Blenheim with a number of anecdotes and paraphernalia, even if we did come in through the exit and see the whole presentation backwards, from his funeral to his birth at Blenheim and everything in between. Incredible.
Not surprisingly, we also had the occasional decent meal or several. For their arrival Penny prepared a feast of her usual outstanding culinary quality (One Pan Tuscan Salmon – recipe available in the Recipes section!) and we also enjoyed tasty meals at The Plough in Everdon and at The Slaughters Manor House in beautiful Lower Slaughter where they went when they left us. They came to us from Paris, they went on to Lower Slaughter in Gloucestershire for a couple of days and then on to London. And now, they’re off to Florence. Oh those jet-setters!
On Wednesday we had more cause for celebration – it was Penny’s birthday! Thankfully, she had previously given me a large and obvious hint about what sort of present she might enjoy receiving. Most of the time I’m not very good at picking up hints nor at remembering the hints I do manage to pick up. On this occasion, however, I did get the hint, remembered it and managed to acquire it in time! And I remembered to give it to her on her birthday! A smaller, lighter fork (for digging, not eating). I’m told it was the perfect gift.
Wednesday, of course, was also Jessie’s birthday – nine years old! We had a video chat with her and the rest of the family – they’re in Bali at the moment as part of their adventure with the girls in southeast Asia and are having a great time. We still miss them though.
Friday – even more excitement! Penny’s sister Judi came from Toronto for a visit. Daisy went absolutely ballistic – so many visitors in such a short space of time. J’s not been since before Covid so it’s a real treat to see her again. She’s always the most welcome house guest (and I know that she reads this too so again, contact me privately for all the details.)
Yesterday we had the Moreton Pinkney Garden Club Summer Garden competition. It’s a fun “competition” and a chance to see lots of really lovely gardens in the village and enjoy a glass of wine or seven afterwards. I’m writing this on Friday so I will share details next time. In the meantime, here are some photos of Penny’s marvellous, marvellous garden!
If she doesn’t win a prize or two I am going to hire Rudy Giuliani to contest the competition immediately.
Meanwhile, keep breathing, keep happy, keep smiling, keep exercising, be good, be careful, and keep safe. And be gentle to wasps and bees – we need all the pollinators we can get.
Lots of love to you all,
Greg