Overcast.

Each day it has taken a little longer for the grey skies to clear and today it was overcast for the whole day. I even thought it was going to rain at one point which was worrying as our duvet cover was hanging on the line. Luckily it stayed dry and the freshly ironed cover is back on our duvet on the bed. 

I've had a busy day. The first job was to finish putting in the screws to hold down the shed roof. Next I cleared the shed and using an old pallet and bricks made a platform to stack the logs on. Although the shed has a concrete floor it does get damp so I needed to keep the logs off the floor. Then it was time to stack ..... and stack...... and stack. I didn't think the job would ever end but eventually the last log went in the shed which I think we can officially call the wood shed now. I was feeling pleased with myself until I remembered that there a still a couple of barrow loads of logs in the garden and a whole pile of branches outside the conservatory. They are small enough to cut with the circular saw but that's not an urgent job. I still want to have a good tidy up of the space outside the shed which I plan to do soon.

Sunny.

If it wasn't for the sharp wind today could have been mistaken for high summer. But the wind was good for drying the sheets out on the line so I'm not complaining.

The last 5 days have been wonderful, Vytas has been home, the weather great, lots of heavy work done and superb meals eaten. It was only sad that Peter was suffering so much with his arthritis attack and Sally wasn't well enough to visit.

Here is Vytas making a few sandwiches to eat on the train to Portsmouth. Once I had driven him to the station I went into town to do a bit of shopping. I found myself a pair of shorts to wear when we go out walking, only 3 sizes smaller than last year's shorts. 

Once home I got started on the shed roof. I was a bit disappointed to find that the roofing sheets were flimsier that the ones we had before but I had picked the cheaper version. I've put up the sheets but I still need to put in lots more of the special screws to hold them securely in place.

A Little Cooler.

The first stage of Operation Sunshine was completed today when Vytas took down one more tree. It was quite an awkward one with lots of branches overhanging the stream but the lad did well. He cut up most of the tree into logs small enough for aged parents to handle. I was up on the hillside weeding the London Pride and it was quite a funny scene. Vytas was completely out of sight down in the stream but every now and then logs would come flying over the bank. His lumberjack activities were finally halted when he ran out of fuel.

After such a strenuous day Vytas still had the energy to go for a run so we returned to Woolacombe. While Vytas ran all the way to Puts and back I sat on a bench reading a book. The sea was almost flat today. Not good for the surfers but ideal for the paddle boarders. The wind was colder today so I was glad that I had a fleece as well as a body warmer.

Today I noticed that the tiny strip of grass next to the yard is home not only to daisies and dandelions but to wood violets as well. They are a bit of a nuisance in the flower beds but I don't mind them in the grass.

Sunny Again.

Summer feels just around the corner with another day of bright sunshine. I saw the first swallow inspecting the outbuildings yesterday and the trees are only days away from opening their leaves, in fact I can see some patches of lime green almost glowing in the boundary hedge.

Vytas has been cutting down the smaller stuff growing from the bank today and the difference is amazing. There was so much evening sun that it has burnt out part of the solitary tree in the above photo and most of the same tree in the photo below.  

The pile of logs by the shed grows ever larger leading to thoughts of warm winter fires. 

Later in the afternoon I took Vytas down to Woolacombe so that he run on the beach, Puts and back of course.  

I sat on a bench (the one this couple below were occupying)  and enjoyed the feel of the sun and the crash of the waves as I read my book. I had ventured out in shorts and flip-flops though I was glad that I was also wearing a bodywarmer. I really need to get some new shorts as my 'good enough to wear out' shorts are a little bit too big for me now.

I would be happy to spend hours in such lovely surroundings but we had a potato, cabbage, cheese and bacon casserole waiting for us at home. I may succumb and have a little though I have actually got a salad waiting for me.

Bright and Breezy.

The wind is still blowing down from the cold north  but it's been bright and sunny. We worked outside as a family, with Peter as technical adviser, Vytas as chainsawer and myself as general carrying away person. Today's main achievement was to take down the tallest tree in the above photo safely. The one next to it is not in a good position to get down but hopefully we'll get some of the others down. Already the view is opening up into the field and woodland next door and I'm looking forward to more sun in the garden.

It's a good thing that Peter has had a lot of experience in tree cutting. Even so this mother's heart was worrying about possible accidents. But I kept my worries to myself and everything went to plan.  

I spent most of my time clearing brush and wheeling barrow loads of wood over to our temporary wood pile. I also did some work to the pond. Since last summer when it didn't rain for a long time the water level tends to drop quite quickly. The pond was simply dug into the clay soil and I presume that the clay cracked enough to let water out. Today I took advantage of the drop in water level to get in there to pull out the unwanted grass. Then I had a good stomp around the sloping sides to 'puddle' the clay. That might work. 

Later, after some mowing I went up to see the foal and had my first finger suck from his little bony gums. So cute.

Chainsaw Day.

Poor Vytas comes down to visit his parents and we set him to work with the chainsaw. While he cut up the trees I carried/wheelbarrowed all the logs over to the shed. It would have been more logical to sort the shed out first so that the logs could be stacked in there straight away but there is a weather front moving in and the priority was to get the logs cut. If it stays dry then Vytas will cut down some more trees. Then we can look forward to more wood fires next winter. We didn't have much wood this winter so we saved it in case of a cold spell in January or February but it never did get that cold. So we've been having the occasional wood fire in the evenings anyway. 

It has got quite a bit colder thanks to the winds that are blowing down from the north. I drove over to Ilfracombe this morning and there was the odd drop or two of rain but luckily it held off for the rest of the day. 

Sunny.

He's finally home, after 18 months of wandering. Poor Sally is still suffering with something she picked up while they were away so she's stayed in Portsmouth with her parents. I collected Vytas from the station in the afternoon. I had to meet 2 trains because although he got on the right train it was only the front carriages going to Exeter and he was on the bit that would be heading for Bristol. Luckily he realised that the train had split and got off before going off in the wrong direction but that meant him arriving an hour later. That might have been a good time for me to have my mobile phone on me instead of which I had to use the call box to phone home. I so rarely need to use my mobile phone that it is often left at home. I just went and had a wander around Tescos which is next to the station anyway.

We came home through Muddiford so that I could show Vytas the Dalek in the garden on the left hand side of the photo. 

We couldn't decide if this was an original from the series or a very good copy. 

It was such a hot day that we left the car doors open to let it cool off. Unfortunately the forecast is for colder wetter weather which is a shame after such a lovely day. I did get some pressure washing done up by the scree garden before I went off to get Vytas. Vytas has been out for a run and soon it will be time for supper and tales of his travels.