In The Garden

We had the bird bath outside and in position for quite a while before we had any visitors.  This little sparrow seemed to be enjoying it though.  It is quite deep for small birds, so we added a strategic rock close to the centre and they seem to like it.  The water level had gone down a bit too, which probably helped.  The sparrow was able to hop off the rock, splash about and then hop back on.  

It always makes me smile when I watch them enjoying a bath - they are like small children, as there is lots of splashing!

Elsewhere in the garden, we planted our first shrub.  There is little evidence that there has ever been anything planted in this garden, even though the house is 50 years' old.  We chose to plant Ilex 'Blue Prince'.  We would have added a princess, but they were out of stock, so it is on our list for next year.

 As the woman at the garden centre said when I spoke to her on the phone, 'We have a few boys, but we are out of girls!'

To The Orchard

Not long after we moved here, I discovered that there is a local orchard where the public can go and pick apples in season.  I made a mental note to add this to our 'things to do' after we talked to the woman at the fruit stand about the varieties they grow and when they are available to pick.  I was excited to learn that they grow my favourite eating apple, Cox's Orange Pippins, and Mr Candytuft's favourite, Golden Russets.

Like many things these days, the planned trip was postponed until the end of the month and we finally made it there on the last day of public picking.  We got directions and headed off to pick Golden Russets.  

At first, it seemed like the trees had all been picked over and there wasn't much fruit, but we found that if we walked further along the row of trees, there were still lots of apples.

We soon had quite a collection from these trees, though the upper boughs were laden, as they were completely out of reach (the public can only pick at ground level).

The yellow-gold foliage shimmered in the sunlight.

Sadly, there were no Cox's to pick.  It seems that they only have four trees and they were finished.  We were directed to the Cortland apple trees, after being informed that they are good for eating and also for baking.

These ruby red apples stood out in sharp contrast to the orange-gold foliage.  Many windfalls lay beneath the trees and the air was heady with the aroma of apples.

I don't think that I had ever tried Cortlands before, but they are less crisp than a Cox's and not as tart.

The orchard supplied the little red carts for harvesting, which certainly made the job easier and we quickly filled the bushel baskets.

On the way out of the orchard, we stopped for this photo opportunity.  The trees along the drive were dotted with similar characters, including a unicorn but, as the drive was narrow, I didn't have a chance to take any other photos.

Once home, I set to work and baked an apple crumble, which was delicious, as evidenced by the fact that it wasn't around long enough to take a photo!

Blocking

I posted about this knitting project some time ago, but never managed to finish this post and it sat in my draft posts for ages.  The knitting is done and the final process in completing my shawl involved blocking, a process of washing the wool, then pinning it out to the right size and allowing it to dry.

I had the idea of taking a photo of my shawl down on the boardwalk, but the day that we took these photos was extremely windy.  Instead of an ‘on location’ photo shoot, it turned into a battle to hang onto the shawl and to keep my hair out of my eyes.  So much for knitting model glamour!

Chocolate Meringue Pie

Last week was Hallowe’en.  We don’t really celebrate it, but we do participate to the extent that we buy some sweet treats for callers.  Thankfully, there weren’t that many of them (around 20) and it was all over by 7.30.  

In fact, it started with the doorbell ringing, followed by loud hammering until I opened it, to find two ‘trick or treaters’ who just stood there holding their bags out - this before it was even dark - it was 5.20.  I suppose that they wanted to beat the rush and get the best pickings.  What concerned me the most is that these young boys (who looked about 8 or 9) appeared to be unaccompanied and were visiting the houses of complete strangers.  What were the parents thinking?  Did they even know that their offspring were walking the streets?

Anyway, it seemed only fitting that they shouldn’t be the only ones enjoying some chocolate at Hallowe’en, so I saved the good chocolate for us and baked a chocolate meringue pie with Green and Black’s 70% dark chocolate.  It was absolutely delicious.

Thought For The Day - Part One

‘Perhaps, the beginning is to say that nice things are going to happen

Until you make them happen.’

Frances Hodgson Burnett

The Secret Garden

Friendship Park

A chance remark about a park in town led us to discover this little gem.

We were there just before the strong winds and rain brought down many of the leaves and berries.

The last colours of autumn were still visible on the trees,  The path offered shelter from some fairly strong winds.

We found a bird table and saw evidence of seed left to feed them.

The canopy looked glorious in the sunshine.

We saw less wildlife than on our usual walks along the boardwalk.

I was glad of the protection from the trees, as it was far too blustery to be on the more exposed path along the shore.  We will likely be back on those windier days, although Mr Candytuft prefers the other route!

Home Sweet Home

 

This a little project for birthday gifts. 

 

Although the knitting didn't take long, the finishing took most of the afternoon.

By which time, I had three little house key rings.