Early May Days in St André

They say that as you get older time passes faster and I think that must be what's happening - it seems like only yesterday that I wrote the last entry on this blog yet it was twelve days ago.

It's been a difficult month for the family as my oldest son moved into his first house and my daughter and grandson moved into a rented flat.  I hope they will all settle down happily.

At the very end of last month I joined a new Book Group - the previous group I had attended finished last Autumn.  We had been reading The Miniaturist by Jessie Burton and the five of us had quite a good discussion about it. 

I already knew two of the members but two were new to me and we all seemed to get on well - the next meeting will be at my house when we will discuss How to Build a Girl by Caitlin Moran.  Meantime I   answered an advert for free books and got about 300-400!  Some were not my bag so I readvertised them immediately and the following day the three grocery boxes were collected by another happy reader along with empty jars for her to make pickles etc.

Amongst the books was one recommended to me only a couple days before - Tuesdays with Morrie by Mitch Albom.  

It has only just over 200 pages and I read it out in the garden in the sunshine we've had this week.  It's about a Professor with a terminal illness who is visited by an old student on Tuesday afternoons and how his view of things changes as his life ebbs away.  One paragraph in particular took me back to sitting with my father as he died in hospital and reading it reduced me to sobbing as I found it so moving. 

 

For One More Day is another book in those I collected which is by the same author and I have just started that.  I hope I can collect all of his writings as I really enjoy his style.

I couldn't go to Writers' Group this month as I had fencers here, surrounding my raised veggie beds so that I could let the sheep graze in a larger area without eating my produce.  A friend's son who is waiting to join army training came and did lots of heavy work for me and while he was working I sowed seeds and cleared beds ready for planting once the danger of frost has passed.   Here in Brittany it is customary not to put out tender plants until after tomorrow, 13 May, when the Ice Saints days have passed. 

    

This is a name given to St. Mamertus, St. Pancras, and St. Servatius in France and other European countries. They are so named because their feast days fall on the days of 11, 12 and 13 May respectively, known as "the black-thorn winter".

My runner bean plants are already about 30cm high and looking strong and ready to be placed in their deep dug, composted, bed to climb up the wires on their frame.

Back at the beginning of April I met up for the first time in 39 years with my bridesmaid from 1966.  One the places we went to was Le Pelinec in Canihuel for dinner.   We're booked in again for this coming Friday evening.  This was our first meal there.

 Unbelievably, yesterday she and her husband were able to be here again having had to make a trip back to the UK for a family funeral.  We had organised them being here to stay on Friday but the weather was so lovely yesterday that they came over and we sat talking endlessly in the sunshine in the garden before going to the Auberge de Guerledan for dinner.   I wish they lived here permanently, they're very good company. 

My lovely goats, Basil and Betsy have left St André.  They were getting older and I was worried that when one died I would have to buy in another for company for the remaining goat. 

 Also grass is in short supply with the sheep and new lambs.  A woman who already had sheep came and picked them up a couple of weeks ago - I miss them.

I am awaiting the hatching of several eggs being sat on by a little grey bantam hen in the barn.  If I am right the chicks should be arriving in the next 1-3 days - I can't wait.

The garden is looking beautiful with everything growing so fast and coming into flower.

 This apple blossom is in my neighbour’s garden as is the stream full of watercress which I pick regularly.

On Sunday and this morning my cats brought in a different swallow they had caught.  Each time I was able to release it after about twenty minutes of lying still in my warm hands and it flew away strongly.

Three things I like:

1.   Being able to read outside in the warm sunshine.

2.   The amazing growth that has happened with the plants in my garden and veggie patch.

3.   Spending time with good friends.

Catching up with April's happenings

I know I haven't written for ages but I was more than a little disheartened by the loss of my rabbits and then the loss of my chicks whilst in their own house and run in the old rabbit area.  Presumably the same predator took both lots of animals and I will no longer have animals in the garden run.

I visited Cornwall at the beginning of April, stayed with family and friends and celebrated my 68th birthday several times while I was there.  It was great catching up with family and friends.  My granddaughter, Mia, has now got a pretty wide vocabulary and it was lovely hearing her talking.  Here she is with her Daddy.

My grandson seems to have shot up in height again and is a lovely lad. I spent one afternoon first walking up on the top of St Austell with him, his Mum and friend, Philippa

and later down in Charlestown overlooking the harbour and beach.  Here is Libby with Charlie.

We seemed to find our way to the local, Rashleigh Arms, several times but I also arrived at the Polgooth Inn with my son, Matthew and friend, Brett, for a late lunch in the sunshine.

While I was away my New Zealand house/pet carers were looking after things in St André. Brett was a three times sheep shearing champion in NZ and took care of my five adult sheep.  As we have no electricity on the field each sheep had to be transported in the back of the Land Rover to the garage where their fleeces were removed with electric sheep shears which I had, luckily, bought second hand last year.  

I don't think the blades were the sharpest but I took them back to the UK with me and had them sharpened there ready for next year.   Maybe I'll be lucky and Brett and Di will be around this part of Europe when shearing time comes around next year.

We travelled up for a day on the north coast on Easter Monday where there was a display of ceramic pigs promoted by the artists and pig breeders.  

The day started out with quite a stiff breeze but got much, much hotter and while Brett and Di went for a walk in the afternoon I sat sunbathing with my Kindle on the beach.

The following day we went down to the south coast around Benodet and Concarneau.

The garden changed so much in the six days I was away.  It was very hot and the wisteria and tulips were all out to welcome me home.  

The cats accompanied me on my first trip up to the field to see the animals.  Always good to come home.

I have just finished reading this book by Nick Thorpe which I enjoyed.

On my way to collect a friend's son to work for me I saw this "pilgrim" walking down from Brittany all the way to Santiago de Campostele in Spain.  I stopped the car and spoke to him for a few minutes - I hope the weather is kind to them both.

Three things I like:

1.  Coming home, the Land Rover laden with 500 litres of compost to start the growing season here.

2.  Having my New Zealand house/pet carers from homecarers.com, who were such lovely people.

3.  Doing the first egg collection of the day on the morning of my return.