Tuesday, April 10, 2012
Monday, April 9, 2012
best friends
Our journey with animals has been a long and lovely one, yes we have suffered the losses too but a lifetime of companionship is worth the pain. Our most recent animal family members are Zoe and her son LB (Little Bear). Zoe is a Boxer mix and was handed in to kennels 3 says off giving birth to 7 boy puppies. We brought her to our home with her boys 6 weeks ago and finally on Saturday the last puppy was rehomed to a family in Prato. We loved having a troop of mini boxers but it was pretty tiring for everyone. So now we are just us again, Zoe and LB are now our dogs and I just have to change over the documents for her finally. The love Zoe gives us is truly immense and we are so lucky to have her and of course LB who at 3 months is a pickle yet calm and happy. Now I have to go and pick up poo and try and make the garden look less like a warzone as these fantastic new dogs are skilled in the fine art of mining for jewels and our garden is booby trapped with holes and trenches... Ah what fun x
Sunday, April 8, 2012
April Antics
Already we are in April, how I don’t know. So much has been happening and the time is
literally flying past in front of our eyes.
In the last few weeks we have had the usual ups and downs plus a few
worries. TT with bronchitis, antibiotics,
steroids then a trip to hospital after accidentally taking the dog’s medicine.
Yep, bad mother award heading my way!
The bottles really did look the same, honestly. We have had a lovely start to summer with
Grandma staying with us from England. The girl was so lucky to have her Nonna here
when she was poorly as she managed to spend time curled up on the sofa under a
duvet learning Sudoku, being taught how to do crosswords, enjoying puzzle books
galore, watching old films, listening to music and relaxing with the puppies.
Grandma also showed us how to French Knit and inspired me to
continue knitting again. Knitting hates
me, it tangles me up and messes with my brain, I so want to be OK at it but
really it’s like Algebra to be, logarithms with wool an fact.
We managed to finally re-home Ted the last of the puppies we
were fostering so now we can concentrate on Zoe (Mummy) dog and LB (Little
Bear), he had his very first walk on the lead today and would only move from
the doormat when bribed with biscuits which we had to throw every few feet, he
looked very cute out in the big wide world though.
There’s been Rugby Matches, Trips to Medieval Towns,
Picnics, Ice creams, Homemade Hot Cross Buns, Chocolate Cakes, Fruit Bread,
Seed Loaves, Organic Wine, Pot Roast, Artisan Cheese bought in the optician
(love Italy’s random finds), Gardening, Dog Walks, Lots of Reading, Creating an
Easter Table (well windowsill really), painting eggs, making cards, lego,
glitter and paints. A few evenings by
the woodburner, phone calls to older relatives, lunch with family, lots of sun
kissed views of Tuscany
and time to restore and revive.
In the garden we have:
Asparagus, Tomatoes, Peppers, Aubergines, Mange Tout, Yellow Beans,
Green Beans, Peas, Zuchini, Cucumbers, Lettuces, Onions, Leeks, Strawberries,
Quince, Pomegranate, Plums, Cherries, Figs, Apples, Walnuts, Peach, Apricots,
not to mention Olives. In the old wooden
barrels we have basil, fennel, tarragon, thyme, parsley, purple basil and many
more herbs on the way.
Everything is growing thanks to the recent rain but our
garden looks like The Somme according to my DH as it has been ransacked by
puppies and Zoe Dog who have dug trenches, bunkers, hides and dens and
completely annihilated my original herb spiral!
This week I hope to make flapjacks, muffins, soup and even
the occasional crumble. The freezer is
well stocked and we have several tubs of delicious rich Chianti fuelled Ragu to
have with Polenta, Rice or Pasta. For
now though my thoughts are all about making sure TT gets rid of her cough and
being there to help the boy get through his exams at school. I am consciously trying to be more tolerant,
accepting and above all read the signs all around me and hear, really hear what
my loved ones have to tell me. x
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