Bees

 

The beautiful blue ceanothus in Lauren's garden is a magnet for the bees... so busy....

 

 

 

Gym Play

 

We have enjoyed Lauren's photos of Theo at a play gym session and today I was able to visit too!

 

Theo certainly wouldn't want to learn his gym skills from me, but it was great fun.. 

 

Learning to balance on the narrow bar..

 

(I'll spare you the video of me crawling up this inflatable 'running track'!  Talk about a giant baby!!)

 

A Very Special Day

 

Celebrations for Theo's second birthday began on Sunday -while David was still here - with a little party in the garden with James's parents too.

 

Theo is a fan of 'Paw Patrol' and was very pleased with his cake.

 

He also enjoyed the paddling pool and present opening!

 

Much more present opening today of course..

 

- and play too, at home and at the park.. 

 

Then more cake..

 

And finally some wonderful news for all the family...

 

In early December, Theo will have a baby brother or sister.

 

All in all, quite a big day!

Seaside Sunsets

 

Each evening last week when we were staying at Treyarnon Bay, I kept an eye out for a clear sky towards sunset and went down on the beach to photograph it.

 

Some nights the sky was clouded over and there was no visible sunset, but on clearer nights there was a huge range of colour and light, depending on the amount of cloud and reflections on sea and wet sand.

 

This photograph, taken on the first evening that we were there, had an interesting cloud formation that I didn't see at the time of taking it..

 

This composite image shows the range of colours and reflections on different evenings and at different stages of the sunset..

 

Charlecote Park

 

With rain in the forecast and dull skies, we set off mid-morning to walk in Charlecote Park gardens and deer park.

 

The borders and roses were looking lovely..

 

This unusual poppy was very striking - and very apt given that today is Memorial Day in the USA...

 

 

In the formal garden the parterre is beautifully clipped but not planted at present..

 

 

The deer herd seemed to be doing well with lots of youngsters of various sizes..

 

We had a pleasant walk through the fields..

 

One person missed some of the scenery...

 

But made up for it later..

 

And of course as it was a Bank Holiday there was ice-cream..

 

And rain...

 

David had the prize for the most innovative rainwear..

 

All in all a lovely day, if a little damp.

Growing Up

 

It is almost three months since we have seen Theo and of course he has grown and changed so much.

 

He is much more confident on the big slide at the park, just the grandparents hovering anxiously around him...

 

He enjoys watching the tv with Grampy who remembers all the character names on Paw Patrol!

 

He has his own picnic bench in the garden and loves his paddling pool..