Visiting family

During my recent visit to DerbyshireDaughter and family we enjoyed a seasonal lantern parade round a few streets in Hadfield. This is the bee lantern made by DD and the boys, M & H. When I told Toad about the lantern he expressed scepticism about the appropriateness of a bee lantern in December. I said: "ivy bee". He didn't know about ivy bees, it seems (neither did I until recently). It might not be a good ivy bee portrait but with some artistic licence and the requirements of such lanterns, it was just fine! The parade was fun and there were lots of impressive lanterns.

DD and family are very fond of board games and have some excellent ones old and new. This board is one of the new ones, Photosynthesis.

While in Derbyshire I started a temari. I haven't made one for a while so was relearning a few of the nifty ideas I'd acquired when I made them more often, such as how great circles work in thread. This design, called Phoenix by Diana Vandervoort in her book, Temari Traditions: more techniques for Japanese thread balls, does not work too well on the size of ball I was using. Well, I say 'doesn't work' but the whole ball will work when I've finished my adaptations.

Temari 2018

I thoroughly enjoyed the boys' school rendering of the Nativity play. M's part was that of a cool dude angel with tinsil-edged wings and M was a happy shepherd.

My train journey to the house where I grew up, where my mum and my youngest brother (her carer now she is old and frail) still live, was straightforward. As always the mosses and liverworts on the back garden paths were amazing. The picture shows a small part near the back door.

When I left to come back to Scotland the rising sun was glorious.

sunrise in N Lancs 13 December 2018

Bryophytes and sunlight to punctuate a two day stay during which a highlight was a visit from my eldest brother and his wife. We are a spread out family so it's good to meet up when we can. When middle brother saw the photo below he sent some of recent chill in upstate New York where he lives. See below.

mum, eldest bro, me, youngest bro, sister-in-law

Finally, on my train journey back up north (even norther, I should say) I found myself within uncomfortable hearing distance of an unconscious sniffer 😣. One learns from experience: I now travel with earplugs! In they went. They weren't needed for long as he got off at the first stop. Phew.

A February visit to the Derbyshire family

Toadlet's Argyll school half-term holiday week coincided this time with that of my elder grandson's Derbyshire school. The same week contained my younger grandson's third birthday so Toadlet and I went south a-visiting. The following day was cold but bright so we headed out for a welly walk in Swallows Wood nature reserve.

                         

                          Found a bench, took a mug shot.

one poser ;)

two posers

Spotted some Water Figwort in the mud

A view looking back

We tramped up a hill well-trodden by cattle and horses. Just as well it was such a cold day and the ground a little frozen or we'd probably have lost a welly or two.

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The next day was 'Piglet's' birthday. Toadlet was on cake decoration duty. Piglet had asked for a blue chocolate cake with a reindeer, at least that was DerbyshireDaughter's interpretation of his specifications! It tasted good.

There was more cake baking the following day as some of us felt in need of a grown-ups' cake. DD made this blueberry cake from Kymmy's Kitchen on Facebook. She used a mixture of berries and I think she used a different cream cheese icing recipe. 'Moo' (elder grandson, age six) took me on a walk in the drizzle through ginnels and back ways to the nearest icing-sugar shop as DD had run out of it. He instructed me in my first use of a self-checkout and then, on the way home, tested me on whether I'd been listening to him on the way! At one point Toadlet answered a question. He said: "Don't tell her!" My 'creative' sense of direction is a family joke. I keep pointing out that I get unlost as often as I get lost.

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On the last day of our visit the weather was fine again so we went for a day out to Tatton Park. That is a brave pose by Moo on the wooden pig as he'd already tried and fallen off with quite a bump! His dad was making sure of no further falls when I took this photo.

A noticeable fungus on an old tree

With DD and Toadlet both giving directions, the latter from the satnav on her iPhone, and the former saying "Follow the road signs!" (Daddy and the boys went in a separate car as neither vehicle would hold us all) I made no wrong turns, the car didn't choose any extra-circuitous scenic routes on the way back. Just around the corner from where DD lives, we stopped to take in the last of the day's light.

Yesterday Toadlet and I came home. Rain and strong winds from the South Lakes to the Boggy Brae in Argyll and it's still pouring. It has been a wet winter even by wet western Britain standards.

Visit to Chatsworth, Derbyshire

Even the stable block at Chatsworth is overwhelmingly opulent. I always want to be a time-travelling 'fly on the wall' and see such places in action during their heyday. Failing that, I decided to concentrate on details and let the excessive opulence wash over me.






I enjoyed the "Do not sit on the chairs" signs everywhere:

There were also modern seats one was allowed to sit on.

Zigzag chair

Chair made of US half dollars

This chaise longue was behind a rope barrier in a room where the curtains were drawn, presumably to prevent further fading of the bed clothes. The curtains, sorry, drapes, were lavish everywhere.

Really rather OTT for my taste

Toadlet liked the chandeliers.

I liked floor details.

We both liked the library 

and various other bits and bobs, if "bits and bobs" can ever be applied to such richesse!

Nice pot

Nice flag

Nice wee teapot and fan plates

Nice carpet

Nice fence

Nice slate path

All terribly 'nice' but I wouldn't like to live in such a place now. Admittedly I probably wouldn't have minded back in the day when the alternative was abject poverty!