June things

As June comes to an end, here are some of the best things that have occurred this month. 

Peonies, always a flower season to look forward to! I love how they turn from tight buds, curled like little fists, into the most over the top, blowsy blooms.

There has been lots of action in the garden this month. A new sofa for the garden arrived and it has transformed the space and how we use it. 

It makes this corner of the garden feel like a room and the kids go out there loads to read which I love. We have just ordered a cover because, while the cushions are shower proof, this is the UK and we get a lot of rain.....

I love how Ziggy is sat in his bed watching Bella. 

I have been much better at watering the garden this year and consequently my pots and window boxes are looking healthy. I have gone for a lot of pink. 

The blackcurrants are ripening day by day. I regularly go out there and check on them, and pick the ripe ones - I want to get there before the birds eat them all. 

The redcurrants are not far behind. I don't like them much, so I will make a jar of redcurrant jelly which I will enjoy much more than the fruit - too sharp and bitty.

I've been picking the smallest of posies from the garden; roses, sweet peas, lavender and dahlias. Sweet peas are the best bedside table flower for their delicious scent, and the bedside pile of books continues to teeter. I have just finished the top one, a collection of short stories which is one of the best collections I have read in years. Such incredibly lyrical, deft writing.

In the kitchen it's variations of pasta and salads. This new recipe was a win - you roast the cherry tomatoes with a block of feta, garlic, shallots, herbs. 

Then you stir cooked pasta through the melted mixture and it is delicious. Sorry about the photo - too excited to get eating!

 

Rainbow salad is always fun to put together and popular with the children.

I am crocheting sunflowers. I have the idea of making a top but it is just an idea at the moment. They're fun to make though.

The children are making me happy and proud lately. Working hard at school, dealing with the pressures of early GCSEs, mocks, assessments and always trying their best. 

Bella usually does our ironing to top up her allowance, but she hasn't lately as she's either revising or reading. I will be glad when the mocks are over so that she starts doing this job again.

This four legged friend/fiend (depending on my mood) will be five next month. I can't imagine not having him in our family. He loves to steal slippers. He doesn't chew them, but carries them around with them and cuddles them, sometimes sticking his nose right inside.

Out and about, everything is blooming. I keep seeing such gorgeous hollyhocks everywhere, I would like to grow more in the garden.

That's my round up. Work is busy but the end of term is in sight, the end of the academic year, my first as a teacher. Just a few more weeks to go and then the holidays are here and I can cook, crochet, sew, garden and potter to my heart's content.