Garden Smiles: Apples, Garden Guests & Those Bee Bombs Begin To Grow 🐝

Disclaimer: I have not been paid to promote Bee Bombs or any other products in this post. I'm just sharing a few little smiles spotted in the garden 😊


Hi Honeys,
How are you today?  Still warm here and we had the most torrential rain all through last night.  Great for the garden but not so great for anyone's arthritis.

I'm currently in the grip of an arthritis flare. If you're battling a chronic illness too during the current lock-down, please be kind to yourself honeys.  Try to rest, allow yourself the time and space to re-charge energy stores and to feel better.  Easier said than done, I know. Please try 💗

On to today's little smile then 😊  Do you remember the adorable little package of Bee Bombs I planted recently?  I knew, from the information on the pretty card supplied with the Bee Bombs, that I might have to be patient in my wait for the burst of colours I'm hoping to see in their planter.

At their website the makers said the wildflowers that make up the bee bombs are very hardy but can be "slow growers."  Well, imagine my surprise when I noticed lots of little shoots appearing already...

Even seeing these little shoots in a photograph makes me feel better. The first half of this year has been so full of uncertainty for all of us. It's been more than anything consumed by covid-19.  I lost a very dear work friend to this awful virus and I'm still trying to cope with this loss. I've always been a great believer in counting my blessings but these past months, every single day I'm just so thankful for the people who are, and have ever been, a part of my life.

I'm praying that this virus will go away without taking anyone else and I think we'll all be counting our blessings so much more after it's gone.

Apple Blossom gives way to apples 🍏 

In our tiny garden, the birds carry on singing, the bees carry on buzzing around the lavender and the apple blossom gives way to perfect Bramley apples on our little apple tree. 

All of the beautiful sunshine we've been blessed with recently, along with the equally beautiful Scottish rain of course, have been perfect for the apples as you can see...
 

With all of the worry and stress in the world dear ones, the garden just carries on doing exactly what it's always done.

The grass keeps growing, the blueberries (planted as a food source for our precious, feathery garden guests) and the apples have all appeared and Jade is still trying to make friends with the little squirrel who visits every day. 💖

In the autumn, there will be another harvest of lovely apples and I'll set about making yummy apple crumbles or apple turnovers which, I'm praying will be in a post covid world that will let me share these yummy baked goods with our neighbours, just as I did last year.

Till then, I'll watch the garden grow, the bees buzz happily around the lavender at the back door, watch our beautiful feathery garden guests every day from the kitchen window and keep on praying that the world goes back to whatever normal is going to be, sooner rather than later.

Till next time, please stay safe and well dear ones. Sending love and hugs always xx

Easiest Ever, Super Yummy, Use What You Have Frittata...

Hi Honeys

How are you today?  It's another gorgeous day outside ☀ Our furbaby Jade and I are doing laundry while Hubby is upstairs putting up new shelves inside the cupboard in his den/office.

The lock down we've all been observing has taught me so many things honeys and some of them I'll never forget. I'll always appreciate and be so grateful to the wonderful delivery drivers, and the pickers in-store who make up the orders, who've carried us all through these troubling times.  They've all worked so hard in the face of unprecedented demand.

One of the changes we won't forget will be the sudden scarcity of certain products everywhere.  Who will ever forget the great pasta search of spring 2020 😊 When everyday items are suddenly no longer available, well it makes you stop and think honeys. 

When just randomly "popping down the shops" is no longer an option due to a world wide pandemic and you're relying on being lucky enough to find an available delivery slot then you have to make whatever grocery supplies you have on hand count.  This, of course, means having to be a little more creative in the kitchen.

It's been fun actually, throwing ingredients together and hoping for the best 😊  One of my recent successes, which ended in an empty plate and a happy Hubby, was this super yummy frittata...

A frittata, an Italian egg based dish, is a perfect way to use up left-overs honeys and it turns them into the most amazing meal that can be served hot or cold and can be eaten for breakfast, lunch, brunch or dinner.😋

There are quite a few photos in this post dear ones, why not go grab a cuppa (and maybe a cookie or two?) and meet me after the page break for a chat?  See you in a few minutes...