Where is everyone?

Aj is here with me, so we are watching Nadal vs Djokovic in the final of the Artois championship (tennis, not beer-drinking!)
The wise money is on Nadal as he is the better player.
It's good when life is that simple.
I do like to see players in WHITE, not green/grey Lycra with matching headband.
AJ tells me that Wimbledon still has white - you can perhaps imagine the conversation here - a bit "retirement home".
How did the race go, William?
G is still in Le Mans - these 24 hour races take quite a while!

AJ & I did Kenilworth, Knowle & Solihull yesterday, before dropping in at Thomas's birthday party for a cuddle & a piece of cake.
We stayed in & ate salmon & salad, strawberries & cream, in the evening, forgoing the wine tasting at Laithwaites.
AJ is a slave to her digestive tract!
We had a lie-in this morning as I had an 11.00 o'clock service to take at Whitacre.
We have just had lunch in the lounge as it is overcast, 14 degrees & this will not tempt AJ to leave the TV/tennis.
I'll put on a picture following "Big William's" comment on "text".
That's insecurity for you.

Nadal is 1 -3 down!
Perhaps life isn't that simple after all.

Queen's Club - Artois championship.

Le Mans 2008. G is top right, third row, third in!

A short break at the sea-side.

A text early on Thursday morning asked me to babysit on Friday..... in Bournemouth.
I set off on Thursday lunchtime, in G's car, with Sat Nav, & arrived two & a half hours later.
Beat that!
I've had a lovely time, looking after Oscar; we have been on the beach each afternoon, with a trip to the park this morning.
G looks great, the twins will arrive on Tuesday morning.

I drove home this evening.
All went well until I let the Sat Nav take me off the M40 at the A46 & then did a tour of Coventry. I can't believe how far I went, having faith that it knew a better route than I did, before resetting it & coming home.
I must set it on "Go Home" & find out in which corner of Coventry this device feels "at home".

AJ is here for an action packed weekend (I will wake her up in a moment, & send her to bed).
She had the dinner on the table & the wine open by the time I arrived - it was Joan Collins who said that what she needed was a "good wife",

after four husbands (I think)

G is sunning himself in Le Mans.

Lee has it!

Second blog attempt tonight.
I signed in to take W's advice regarding Html, only to find that the toolbar had returned of its own accord.
I started my blog only to get a 4 minute warning that "windows was shutting down", taking my blog with it.
I then went to the Church Council meeting, arriving home at 8.30pm to prepare dinner &, highlight of the week, watch the final of "The apprentice".
I, like aj, thought Alex had it.
Claire's too "gobby"
Helene's a winging backstabber.
Lee's a self-promoting liar.
Alex was supportive & quite sweet (only 24!)
He did the bulk of the work on the perfume & the other team loused up with the gambling connection.
I note that they have all lost weight over the 12 weeks, so I am applying for next year!
I am encouraging G to do likewise.
Perhaps we could both be in the final.
This could, of course, cause marital disharmony!

How about Gordon's "moral compass"?
Does this now embrace bribery of Unionist & Labour MPs?

I have been at Granville School today.
Hard work, especially the two lessons supporting a student science teacher - lamentable.
I filled the tank (£1.28 per litre), came home & slept it off.
I can do spellcheck now I have a toolbar back, although it rarely finds anything.

Picture catch up:

Hedgehog in the garden on Saturday.

Thrushes in the honeysuckle - now flown, but parents remain, perhaps we'll have a second clutch.

Tuesday is Thomas day!

I was at the gym at 8.00am this morning & then on to Paula's for 10.30am where five rather well-spoken burly men were tree pruning.
The garden is now a great deal lighter so that A will be able to see well enough to garden in the evenings, after work.
Thomas & I played, slept, gardened & went for a walk to the park to go on the swings & baby-slide, in bright sunshine.
We did a tour of the "golden half-mile", including shopping at the greengrocers & M&S Food.
The greengrocers is much cheaper, but limited in choice.
On returning home, there were three phone messages: G, saying fill up with fuel (tanker drivers' strike on Friday),Granville School asking me to go in tomorrow & Peter T, to arrange a get-together.
Yes, yes, yes.
We have been to The George in the Tree at Balsall Common for a meal - OK, but not great.
It starts with a high score as I didn't have to buy, cook or clear up anything.
There is a moral here: when in a steak house, eat steak.
This page has lost it's top bit with spellcheck, etc.
Any suggestions?

Whew!. Another scorcher.

G forgot to take his phone to work on Friday, so I spruced up a bit, took it to work & then drove on to Knowle & Solihull to shop, in the sunshine, in the lotus.
I drove home, cleaned the cars & gardened.
B & E came to dinner, stayed over & flew to Belfast on Saturday morning, leaving Tim & KP with us for the weekend.
G did the airport run.
The day proper began at 6.50am with Tim's first conversation/question session of the day, followed shortly afterwards by KP.
We went to Ash End House Farm to see the animals & climb on things.
KP wasn't too sure about the former.
The pigs were very smelly!
P, Jessie & Thomas came to lunch, then Tim & Jessie played in & out of the tent & did miles on the tractor & "bike with no pedals"; imaginative play.
Jessie - "I have to go to the dentist on the way to work, for a filling"
Tim - "What would you like for dinner, my darling".
Tea, goat feeding, bath & bed.
On Sunday we played in the garden,without P & Jessie, I had to do the imaginative play in & out of the tent bit which was er fun.
We cleaned the V40, went for a walk, cooked, cleared up pruned branches after Grandad & Steve spent ages introducing Tim to insects, goats & cows.
Tim's highlight of the day was when the rice pudding for dinner slid out of the oven & spilled all over the floor. Yuk!
During the afternoon G cut about 8 feet off the top of the ley landii.When he came down the ladder Tim popped out to say "Grandad, Granny & I are glad that you've come down as we were worried about you" I don't know how he knew that I was!
After dinner, when the family had left, we cleared up the mess (from the ley landii), building a vast bonfire in the field.
Two hours later I climbed into the bath & fell asleep.
A great weekend.
Today, I have rested

what a scorcher!

Well, pretty warm anyway.
I officially opened the conservatory doors for the summer today, put washing on the line in the sunshine & then spent the rest of the day gardening - clearing the borders of weeds & bluebells, ready for bedding plants.
I still have quite a lot to do, but I am pleased with the results co far.
On the ornithology front, the thrushes have flown safely; the wrens have a nest in one of the hanging baskets & both parents are very busy taking in food. It is fascinating to watch their skill in flying around the hanging basket to enter the tiny entrance near the wall.

Question Time is a bit dull, David Milliband comes over very well though. He is too bright to want to be party leader in the present climate, we're told.
Apparently, I am one of the losers in the changes in tax thresholds.
Shucks!

Thanks for the comments.

Back to school.

Yesterday's blog had no photos as they wouldn't load - I'll try again today.
Nobody felt it worthy of comment so I had better find some tatty goods to offer for sale, bicycle wheels & the like.
I do have four Edwardian bedroom chairs - two with caned seats & backs, two with painted backs, in need of the seats re-reeding.I could go into great detail as to how uncomfortable they are & no good at all for standing on to reach the top of the wardrobe.
How's that for sales technique, W?

This week seemed a little self-indulgent as I had nothing planned for the remainder of the week. I could "set my own agenda", as G says.
I intended to garden today, then Granville School phoned at 7.00am, so off I went for a day at school - 3 french, 1 maths & 1 english lesson.
Maths was the hardest work. Monsters!
I stopped at JS & M&S in Ventura Park on the way home to take on some victuals, then home for a cup of tea & a toasted teacake.
Tomorrow, I shall garden!

Monsters - there were more than this!

This was yesterday's "rainy day" picture.

Two more wedding photos: