FLOWERS THAT BLOOM IN THE SPRING, TRA LA

 

Never worry about the Red Cardinal Garden of Neglect..

It survived our long absence, and really did not appear to care at all....

The Annual General Daffodil has appeared.

It would be nice if we got a second one this year, but you can't be too particular...

Lavender is coming into flower ..

and the day after we returned, we went to the Garden Centre for some potted colour..

carefully inserting these mad little fluttering Canadian geese I brought home:

The naughty cockatoos hate them, which is a win for us..

The friendly kookaburras just laugh about it all....

While I recovered from my virus, we went for a country drive to see the Elderflower Farm

The orange vine was magnificent - I forget its name, although my mother had one at her house...

Sweet Peas never fail to charm..

I always loved Poppies...

and brought home a large bunch, including buds.  They lasted over a week..

We visited our daughter's local Garden Centre while we were in Ottawa.

Loved the birdhouses!

Introducing Decoy Duck, our new pet...

I found him at a yard sale in Canada, for the princely sum of $5...

Carefully packed him in bubble wrap and lots of clothing, and brought him back to Australia.  We do not see them here.  Duck hunting, while something my father did when young, is not such a big thing here but apparently is popular in Canada, the land of thousands of lakes...

The day after we came home, the tiny twins came over to help launch him into the swimming pool.

And there he is, delighting me every day with his stoic floating about, and startling the neighbours and occasional visitors.

'There's a duck in your pool', I hear...

Sure is....

XXXX

WELCOME TO 2023

 

Hello Dear Readers..

2023 has arrived, a baby New Year as full of promise as the tiny pink buds on my favourite rose bush.

At the Red Cardinal nest, we no longer stay up until midnight to welcome the new year, but had a very pleasant roast chicken dinner with champagne accompaniment.  It was followed by an assortment of unusual chocolates kindly bestowed on us by our children for Christmas.

As other bloggers have commented, I too cherish the week after Christmas as a special quiet time, a time to regroup and recover.

Our Christmas was very special, a beautiful lunch at the home of one of our sons, enjoying the company of our three youngest grandchildren and our other son and his family.  The twins, who are two, really enjoyed the whole Christmas period, with a visit to Santa Claus,  decorating a Christmas tree, and the placing of a Nativity scene.  They loved all their gifts and had a generally fabulous time.

Due to a lot of heavy lifting during Christmas prep, we both acquired sore joints and knees after Christmas Day, and have had a very quiet time recovering.

After a few days, we starting on the Garden of Neglect, and a lot of weeding and pruning, and planting of herbs has been going on.

Every year I report on my efforts to keep my pansies flowering from our mid-year Winter (best time to plant Spring flowers), until my birthday in November, or better still, Christmas.

Well this year, I have triumphed!  For the first time I reached the New Year, and still have a pot of blooms:

Will they survive another heatwave?

Tomorrow is predicted to be a 37 c. 'scorcher'.

Come on little flowers, you can do it...

I have been walking as much as possible.

Sometimes I take the road past these beautiful horses:

They are so friendly to a passer-by...

This week we have been not once, but twice, to the movies.

This is noteworthy as since the global pandemic began we have only been once to a movie theatre.  We went in the morning to a small local theatre with a very small audience.  And wore masks.

We love history, and loved 'The Lost King'.

Perhaps you might remember this true story: the movie is about the discovery in 2012 of the remains of English King Richard III by Philippa Langley, a British writer and researcher.  I was fascinated at how she became interested in the fact that Britain's last warrior king, defeated and killed at the Battle of Bosworth Field in 1485, had no known final resting place.  Using her astonishing research skills she came to a reasonable conclusion that a certain area in the City of Leicester was worth investigating, and she was right.

I came home, downloaded Philippa's book on my Kindle and am engrossed in finding out more details than the film could cover.

Our film festival continued a few days later with this one:

'The Banshees of Inisherin' is set on a remote island off the coast of Ireland in the early 20th century.  Both comical and tragic, the story of the breakdown of a friendship is told against the background of the Civil War.  The photography is magnificent and I think this one could be Oscar material for 2023.

Trillium, the floral emblem of Ontario, Canada

Our big plan for 2023 is a trip to Canada to visit our daughter and her family in Ontario.  We have made our reservations and in a few months will be flying across the Pacific, the first time since 2019.  I can't wait to see a beautiful Canadian Spring once again.

Happy New Year everybody!

XXXX

Canadian Lilacs

CHRISTMAS IS A'COMING

 Christmas approaches, and traditional rituals are being observed...

perhaps a little less of this or that, as we grow older....

The pansies are still in bloom.  It appears this year I have won my competition with myself to keep them going until Christmas.

Despite a few short burst of intense heat, the weather has remained relatively pleasant lately, with temperatures hovering around 30c.

The pile of presents for our children and grandchildren is growing beside the Pink Christmas Tree...

I put on my ancient Red Cardinal apron, and made a hasty Christmas cake.  This recipe is for non-cooks like me who left it until the last minute.  

1kg mixed dried fruit

2 1/4 cups apple juice

2 cups self-raising flour

Boil mixed fruit and apple juice for three minutes.

Leave to cool to room temperature.

Add 2 cups flour.

Bake 2 hours at 160 c.  

Naturally I decided to add variety, and put in some cherries and flaked nuts, plus cinnamon and nutmeg.

The cake is moist and delicious, and probably will not last very long.

We will sing carols at church, celebrating the First Christmas..

I made this cross-stitch about 20 years ago, when my eyesight was much keener :)

My dear friend V made this little pink paper Christmas house for our pink tree..

Isn't it gorgeous?

On Saturday I will be baking a leg of ham, a family favourite.

The glaze is made with ginger marmalade, brown sugar, mustard, and ginger ale.

It is decadently delicious as part of Christmas lunch with our family...

Looking forward to a visit from the grandies on Saturday..

They are such fun to have around.

I hope your preparations are going well.

Remember the reason for the season...

XXXX