I can’t tell if the three apple trees that I planted at the end of last month are dead or just not responding to spring’s gentle call yet. I’ve been tempted to cut into one of the branches to see if its still alive but have so far resisted. This is more than can be said of my urge to lift up one of the paving slabs on the steps to see if the concrete had dried. It nearly had, but now it’s not actually sticking the slab down anymore. Bugger.
I am, however, happy to report that the sunflower seeds that Amy and I planted in the front garden at around the same time are now going like the clappers and will need to be transferred to bigger pots soon.
Amy enjoys surfing the net as much as anyone. Here’s a few of her favorite sites.
Amy’s interest in babies borders on the obsessional. If allowed she would look at pictures and videos of random babies for hours on end. Hopefully this fascination bodes well for her reaction to her upcoming brother or sister but I’m not naive enough to take this for a given.
Cbeebies provides good quality, educational, and fun TV programs and the website pretty much continues those themes. I’d stay away from the message boards though, they get a bit fanatical about their kids TV and it sometimes gets a bit scary.
I often wonder what parents did in the days when children’s television was only broadcast at specific times of the day. I can even remember a time during my own childhood when all three of the stations completely shut down for two hours during the afternoon, leaving only the test card to keep the nation amused. We generally limit how much TV Amy watches, around a couple of hours a day is the norm. It’s very useful to have it on tap, however, especially for times when having a two year old clinging to your legs and demanding to be carried hampers your ability to do more complicated tasks - like walk or concentrate for more than one minute.
On a completely different note the Bob Dylan song Positively 4th Street has a bell playing in it that sounds uncannily like the timer on our vegetable steamer. It’s taken me three unnecessary and puzzling trips to the kitchen to uncover this piece of trivia.
The term Wendy Houses originates from the book Peter Pan. Wendy kept house for Peter and the lost boys and so the name was born. Knowing this kind of useless information is all very well, but it doesn’t help you build one of the damned things. My list of Things to Do in the garden has grown even longer with this morning’s delivery of one of Walton Garden Building’s fine Daisy Dens. Not only does this mean I’m going to have to lay a concrete base (which in itself may be beyond my DIY capabilities - the concrete I used to mortar in my steps two days ago still hasn’t set), but I’m also going to have to level the ground, buy a load of topsoil and drag it up the hill in buckets, and sow a new lawn. I’m hoping that I can convince my dad to give me a hand actually erecting the house, as any attempt to do it on my own would very likely turn into a Laurel and Hardy skit.
I apologise that this blog has started to turn into a cut price Ground Force, but the garden looms large in my consciousness at the moment. I’ve got five days off coming up soon and I’m planning on spending at least a couple of them in the garden. That’s if the concrete on the steps dries and I can actually get in.
Bryn came back today from a three night stay at the vets. One of the cliché’s I occasionally resort to when I’m at work is “A crisis is often also a great opportunity for changeâ€. This particular crisis will ensure that we no longer leave nappies where bloody stupid dogs can eat them. Thankfully he’s insured so the various prodding and poking he’s been subjected to isn’t going to force us into bankruptcy. Reading between the lines I think he’s lucky to be still around, he’s certainly is lucky not to have been operated on. He still looks a little mopey but he’s going to be O.K.
Amy was a little concerned about Bryns whereabouts but seemed satisfied with the explanation that he was staying with the dog doctor. We recently bought her a toy doctor’s kit and so making poorly people better is quite topical for her at the moment. As a trained professional I feel qualified to say that her stethoscope technique is rather impressive. All those panic tinged trips to the doctors with concerns about her chest seem to have paid off.
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