Day 4

Saturday May 28

About our accommodations : Ruby Lucy Hotel is located in a very convenient place for us.  It has been great to just walk about.  The manager and staff are very friendly and helpful. A pleasure. The decor is cute. Our room looks modern, especially the glass box shower/bathroom  (I should have taken a photo). The only complaint: not a single drawer or even shelves in the room.  Got to live out of the suitcase. The best thing: this coffee/tea station across from the elevator along the hallway with instant boiling hot water and recyclable cups which you can hold without burning your hands. We used the same the whole time before throwing them away when we left. Super!

When we were basically done packing we wondered about breakfast. Yes, on weekends they seem to have a breakfast buffet. Not cheap but very nice.

And off we go to Waterloo Station around the corner.

We bought tickets at a ticket office not from a machine. Electronicly we could see which train we should take. We had to wait a little until it showed which platform to go to.

Every where around us were young people dressed up. With us waited a group of young men in roman togas, gold olive head bands etc.

Opposite in the train this couple was a meermaid and a deep sea diver. They told us that they were all going to a special rugby game in Twickenham. There were a several stops and the train ended up crammed full especially just at the doors. 

The train ended were we wanted to go: Windsor & Eton Riverside Station, perfectly on time at 12:13 pm. Public transport is so easy here.

It was easy to pull the suitcases to Jane's house but as expected she wasn't there yet. We couldn't make the door lock key box work so we left a note saying: in one of the two pubs. 

Anybody in the family would know what that means. We decided to take the suit cases with us as it wasn't far and just around the corner. 

Vansittart Arms has improved their garden setting very much since we were here last. James has gone inside to get us a beer. 

We had just sat down when two young men arrived. One took a photo of the other at the tree next to us with Union Jack buntings and I asked whether they would like a photo of both of them. Well, that started a long chat. They pulled chairs to our table and we laughed a lot. Another friend of theirs arrived. They insisted of buying another drink for us and we all had fun. 

Time went fast until Jane arrived and sat down with us. More friends of theirs arrived and they gathered at another table. When we left we said good-bye and well-wishes and took a group photo. The young man on the right they called Ari had a birthday today and said he was starting chapter 43. 

Ben next to him (39) said life was about meeting people like us. He was worried about the world at the moment. He could be pulled into millitary service if worst comes to worst.

Jane had to make a stop so gave us the key. Arrived!

Jane told us about her walk in Wales with all the steep ups and downs. Like magic she produced lunch and dinner. Most important: she knows how much we like rhubarb which she had just plucked in her garden while we watched. 

Rhubarb compote with hot custard. We have arrived in England! Thank you, Jane! You know me.

What a week

This has been a very very busy week. Monday was especially terrific. We had a visit from friends we got to know when we lived in Paducah, Kentucky. They had moved to California and we had moved to Singapore. They just moved to the Cleveland, Ohio, area and we are now in Virginia. FaceBook helps to keep us in touch. 

Cal and Mary (and Molly) are now retired too and decided to travel with their RV and visit fully vaccinated long-time friends. They arrived shortly after 11 am and left around 5 pm. Time went very fast. We talked and talked and laughed when we remembered things.

We spent the whole time on the back patio because the weather was exceptional that day. Molly wanted to go inside at one point to take a rest.

And we did eat lunch too. I had made a chicken pot pie. It's a recipe from Sarah and Wade's wedding favor cookbook. Ha-ha, I had forgotten that Mary has this too because they came to Sarah's wedding.

This day showed me again how important it is to stay in touch with friends. We had such a very good time. Being vaccinated is so great. There is hope of normalcy. Eventually.

Saying good-bye in the drive way and almost stepped on ....

... this guy. Can you see it in the above photo?

I had forgotten that we also made an effort to see the three boys across the river play soccer the Saturday before. The twins played at 10 am in a younger group. Owen has the jersey with the number 1 and Colin with the number 2. Here they are in action. Caleb plays in an older group at 11 am. I don’t have a photo from that though because there was no real photo opportunity. All three scored. Caleb also got to be goalie (goalkeeper) for a little while. The younger ones don’t have one. 

We took the twins home with us to give Caleb some special time with his parents. They were spending the night. We "worked" with the train tracks and played a lot with the magnetic darts. We decided to tie two card tables together because Omi is not so good crawling on the floor any more. It worked very well.

After the weekend the weather got better. We decided that there was no danger of frost any more and started planting things in the planters. Just a visit to the garden shop makes you feel better already.

We just love walking around the property and look what is happening there. The rhododendrons will be gorgeous this year. Fertilizer might have something to do with it.

Amazing what you can see when you ripped out some ugly bushes.

Thought this sign from FaceBook was such a good reminder what matters in life.

And ... today ... we harvested! We pulled two of the rhubarb stalks to try it. Stewed with custard! 

Oh, yes!!! Just enough for dessert for the two of us. Yummy!

To off-set sitting too much at the computer because helping out in the church office (which just was vacated) and also doing the monthly newsletter we started to take walks again. It helps that the weather is more cooperative now too.

Step-count:  before this just pitiful but

Tuesday 10403

Wednesday 10025

Thursday 10939

Friday 10476

and today 10526

Gosh, it makes us feel good. Health is improving too. I have been very careful with my back and are so much better. LIFE IS GOOD!

Flower Power

Yesterday the weather was so lovely that we just HAD TO visit our Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden. It's a 12 minute drive from us. You have to get tickets online so they can control the number of people in it, but that is no problem of course. We are members so its free for us. We like memberships because you don't feel like we have to spend all day to "get our money's worth". And we like to go at the spur of the moment for just a little bit.

Yes, and even outdoors masks are required. Ha-ha, during this pollen-time not a bad thing anyway.

I have never been good at taking selfies. My arms seem to be too short and I forget to take the stick (a gift from Sarah) with me. So I had to take another photo so that more of the background can be seen.

Isn't this just lovely?

Instead of taking a paper map I just took a photo of it. Have to be mindful that not too many trees have to be cut down.

First of course we have to go to the big greenhouse to see the orchids. Oh my, I can't believe I took only one photo? So much gorgeousness. 

These vines are lovely too.

Most of the daffodils are gone but there were still plenty of cute pansies.

There were also plenty of bluebells everywhere where there was shade. Just loved them. But ... they only bloom for about 2 weeks and they are poisonous to dogs. We have grand-dogs!

And we do enjoy our own garden. Every day I "make the round" a couple of times. This must be one of the very last camellias for this season. The little new ones which we planted last fall have done very well. They are late winter / early spring bloomers. Surely I have shared photos of our late fall / early winter blooming pink one. Last fall we also ordered the same kind for a different spot in our garden. It was mail-order and very small. No blooms yet but it seems to be doing well and we can looking forward to fall. 

No more space. Our camellias are complete!

And there is still the story about our rhubarb. I was so worried that I had wrecked my chances to have a little harvest this year by cutting the flower down. 

But ... hurray ... there seems to be something happening!

For retired people somehow we seem to be very busy. Trying to keep up with this blog and the quilt one too (see tab on top). I didn't even sew much this past year. There are still several Chrismon possibilities in my head. But quilting and lacemaking is pulling me. Here is a project in the making for a while which seems to get attention again. The pattern is called "Lone Star". The big one is a 34" square and the small one about 9".

And now I better get back on working on next month's newsletter for our church. 

This and That

So much going on. I don't understand people who complain about being bored. I consider saying that is a sin.

Of course before Easter a lot was going on anyway. Sarah unfortunately had nanny issues and we were needed (yeah!). The twins don't have school on Fridays so we had them for the day. We took them to Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden which was fun. 

In the big greenhouse the orchids were in full bloom. Oh, how I got homesick for Singapore. Wonderful memories.

Uh uh, places like this are so tempting for our little adventurers but they also mind very well.

This was interesting. I thought rock cairns were only an artistic fun thing. But there is more to it.

James actually found this sign. The fern had not started growing yet. Of course tatting is one of the things I do too so I looked it up on the computer. The tatting fern's fronds really do look like something tatted. Might be nice to have one in our garden but none are available to buy in our area.

Have to brag about our William. He tested on March 26 and now has a red belt in Taekwondo. So proud of him.

Good Friday all three (from "over the river") were out of school and Sarah thought it might be better if we had one of them. Caleb spent the night from Thursday to Friday. He is such a busy boy. He wants to help. Cutting the dead daffodil heads off seem to be a treat. Then he insisted on pulling some weeds.

He also came with the wish to sew a pillow for Tuffy. He reminded me that he had sewed a blanket for Tuffy several months ago. He really did do all the sewing on my good Bernina (were I can slow the speed down). He did a super job. Picked out the fabric himself.

After Easter was spring break for the boys. Sarah was off work on Monday and Tuesday. For Tuesday she had planned to take the boys to a pottery place for each to paint a project. Of course she liked for a second adult to come along. No problem.

Things going on in our the garden too. Years ago I had planted a rhubarb which never did well where it was. When we were preparing for our patio/walkway project that flower bed had to go. I could not part with the rhubarb and relocated it. I could see right away and for the rest of the year that it liked the new place. And this spring it is coming up strongly. 

Unfortunately suddenly I saw something strange developing. I took a photo and sent it to my sister Ute in Germany which has rhubarb galore in her garden. She called to tell me it was making a flower. What? I want to harvest this year!

After much searching on the internet (Ute called it "Dr Google") I decided to fertilize the plant and cut the flower off. Please, keep your fingers crossed. I really hoped that at least one Rhubarb Crumble was in our not too distant future. 

For a short time each spring the creeping phlox makes a red carpet and looks gorgeous. But ... most likely it has to come out ... for the sake of the rest of the year.

Last Saturday we ventured to the South of the James Farmers Market which had been relocated to the Bryan Park close to us for now because of the pandemic. We had never been but I really like this new place. Of course right now there are not that many veggies to buy but all sorts of other things. 

On the way back to the car I said to James that I regretted not having bought something I had seen. Dear James volunteered right away to get it. I continued to the car because the very slow walk had started to hurt my back. Had forgotten to take pictures. This shows the nice park but not the booths much.

Gosh, how I love him.

And this is it. I had never had Elderberry Syrup. "Holunder" in Germany. My sister makes syrup from the flowers every year. Got to try it!

And this is today's effort ... just because. Got an email from a lace friend, looked at the link and had to try it. An origami heart. 

Seen on Facebook :

I think though that our age definitely has its perks too. Yeah, I am happy.