A photo every day for a year! 24th - 30th May! Week 22 of #Project365

Happy Sunday!! I hope you are all having a good weekend! We have had a great one even though we haven't been up to much. Yesterday was a lazy day after having a night out on the town with Stu. Last night we watched the Britain's Got Talent final and tonight we have wrestling to watch. It's on at a sensible time as it's live from Italy!

We have had a fantastic week with Ellie being off college for her half term break. We have fitted in a couple of fun outings, had some downtime and she has been off out with friends. The weather has been lovely, which was a real bonus, a little too hot at the start of the week but cooling off as the week has gone on to a comfortable 22C yesterday.

Now for a photo every day!

144/365 24th May

I watched sport all day on Sunday and it was all brilliant. We had the last day of the Premier League and the Canadian Grand Prix was on at 9pm, so we could watch it live and that was fun! When nothing exciting happened for a few minutes, Ellie jinxed it by saying she was going to the loo and of course just as she left the living room, something happened. George Russell's car broke down.

145/365 25th May

We were out in the garden giving it a good tidy on the hottest day of the year at the time. The next day was even hotter. We were sensible though, drinking plenty and spending time in the shade. It didn't stop Stu getting burned though. He forgot to put sun cream on. Oops. He lived up to the meme that had been doing the rounds, the bottom of his arms red and the top white, he looked just like those Squashies sweets.

146/365 26th May

The girls and I went to see a Moomins exhibition in Hull. The girls didn't see the attraction but I thought it was fantastic! I loved The Moomins when I was a child! It did make me chuckle that some of the exhibition was aimed at little kids who haven't a clue who the Moomins are. lol

147/365 27th May

Stu had a fun afternoon at work with the Samsung reps visiting and showing off all their new products. There's always freebies to be had and Stu came home with this big cup which Ellie has already claimed. She loves a big cup!

148/365 28th May

Ellie went to town and visited the Asian food store and came back with these treats. The Pocky sticks were good even though I am not usually one for matcha but the bottle of lemonade just tasted like fizzy water. She liked it though.

149/365 29th May

I feel so out of touch with the younger generation. Twobicles are a thing. In a bar in town there was a cubical in the bathroom with two toilets. It's a shame it looked like it needed a really good clean and a couple of repairs but I thought it was fascinating.

150/365 30th May

This is new, to me anyway. My family all use the Lynx spray and this has appeared, Peach Infusion and it smells pretty good. It is a real summer scent!

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This week my Word of the Week is: Hot!! #WotW

This week my Word of the Week is:

This week has passed in a blur but in a really good way. I have been busy every day this week and I know by today I will want to just sit and do nothing productive at all, especially since Stu and I were out last night. It wasn't going to be a late one as he has work today but who knows? We always lose track of time when we are out enjoying ourselves. Eek!

We had a quiet weekend. I spent it mostly watching sport. Seeing Hull getting promoted into the Premier League and then watching the final day of the Premiership and the Canadian Grand Prix. It was all very tense but very exciting too.

We have had a proper little mini heatwave here in the UK this week and I don't think any of us really knew how to cope with it. One minute everyone was complaining about the rain and grey skies and then suddenly we were all melting and acting shocked that summer had arrived but a little bit early!

Monday was all about trying to stay cool while we were out in the garden tidying it up! It was madness being outside on the first hottest day of the year but we took it easy and kept having breaks in the shade. We had a lot of fun just pottering around and getting jobs done. The best thing about the day was coming inside and having the coldest shower I have ever had. Ellie got in after me and hadn't changed the dial or checked the water. I heard her scream from upstairs. lol

On Tuesday, I convinced Becky not to be boring by tidying her bedroom and come out on a little adventure with me and Ellie. We went for a little trip to Hull mostly to see a Moomins exhibition in Ferens Art Gallery, which was full of nostalgia for me. Becky can sort of remember them and Ellie couldn't understand what was so good about the fat hippo things. Eesh! I love how something from my childhood can instantly take me back. Seeing all the Moomins things reminded me of being little and watching it on TV. I don't think Becky and Ellie understood why I was so excited but I didn't care.

We had an hour to kill before Stu finished work so we nipped into Wetherspoons for something nice to drink. We ended up getting a cocktail pitcher and went and sat in the beer garden. I've never been up there on the roof before but it was a sun trap and a lovely place to spend some time. The cocktail pitcher probably wasn't the most sensible idea in the middle of the afternoon but it felt like a mini-holiday moment sitting up on the rooftop in the sunshine.

I could easily have sat on my backside all day on Wednesday. I was still aching from doing the weeding but I had the housework to do and there was plenty which kept me busy. Becky was sleeping for work and Ellie was out with her college friends, so it was nice to have some time alone.

We decided, as we had plans for yesterday, we would go and see my dad on Thursday. It was a nice surprise for him as he wasn't expecting us and Stu was off work, so him turning up was an even bigger surprise. My dad loves Stu and loves showing off what he has been working on even more. Stu had a lot of catching up to do. There were his vintage cars to see, a new shed he is building, trees have been removed and random other things.

How has your week been? I hope you have had a good one! I am of course linking up with Anne who blogs at Raisie Bay to join in with her Word of the Week linky!

What I have loved this week! Week 22. #FridayFavourites

Happy Friday! I hope you’ve had a good week. We've had a great one. It feels like I haven't stopped but in a good way, with lots of fun things happening. I am of course linking up with Erika and Andrea to share the things that I have loved over the last week.

The Canadian Grand Prix!

Oh my goodness, what a race!! I think that was one of the most exciting races I have watched in such a long time. It had everything. Drama, chaos, rain, confusion, stress, people sliding about everywhere and everyone panicking over tyres. The weather made everything so much more exciting because nobody really knew what tyres were the right choice. George Russell was throwing bits of his car on the track when it broke down and was given a fine. Formula 1 really does love adding extra drama when it’s not needed but the best thing about it was that it started at 9pm so I could watch it live as it was happening!

The Wonders of Moominvalley!

Earlier in the week, the girls and I had a little outing to Hull. We had a few bits to do there anyway and ended up going to an art gallery because they had just opened a Moomins exhibition. I don’t think I realised quite how nostalgic it would make me feel until we got there. Ellie had absolutely no idea who the Moomins even were, which made me feel about a hundred years old. Becky vaguely remembered them from when she was younger but I used to watch them all the time when I was a child. The exhibition was lovely. There was artwork, sketches and information about the stories and characters. Even the girls enjoyed it more than they expected.

Getting lots done in the garden!

On Monday, which was the first the hottest day of the year so far, I decided it would be a brilliant idea to do some gardening. I started pulling weeds and moving pots around. I dragged Stu and Ellie out and he cut the grass while Ellie was sweeping and tidying up. We'd work for 10 minutes, then we'd go into the shade to cool down a little, then get back to it. The grass in the back garden finally looks nice again instead of the jungle it was. We got rid of loads of weeds, tidied bits and pieces and made everything look much more presentable. I also moved some of my plants into bigger pots and now all the ones which were on the kitchen windowsill are in the little greenhouses.

Ranch sauce!

I know ranch dressing is a massive thing in America but here in England it’s never really been something even seen in the shops or even tried, until now! I finally bought a bottle to try and now I completely understand why people are obsessed with it. I have been putting it on everything! Chips, wraps, chicken, random snacks and have even been using it as a dip! To me, it tastes like garlic mayonnaise mixed with tartar sauce with a little something extra thrown in.

Hot weather!

When I say we’ve had hot weather this week, I mean proper hot weather, which is not normal for May! We had the hottest day ever in May and then the record was broken again the next day when it went just over 35C! (95f) We are not built for this kind of heat but I've enjoyed the excitement of it all. We’ve spent loads of time in the garden, eaten far too many ice lollies and ice cream. Even my eldest, who normally refuses to show her legs, wore shorts this week. I think everyone looks a bit healthier after some sunshine too, we’re all slightly less pale. It has cooled down now, which I am happy about as I can sleep properly again but it was nice while it lasted.

This photo of me and my girls.

It does make me chuckle though, we are the sunglasses squad. lol

Stu's afternoon off work.

I love hearing about my fellas' work, sometimes it sounds chaotic but a lot of fun! He works for a phone company and every few months, Samsung come in to show off their new phones and products and for him and most of the staff it's just an afternoon off work. This time they got free ice cream. Stu ended up with two as his friend didn't want theirs and a fancy Samsung-branded Stanley Cup. It had better be better than the fan he got last year which worked for about 10 minutes and then gave up. lol There was a photo booth and everyone got lots of photos with their work besties! It was nice to finally put some faces to the names I keep hearing.

What have you loved over the past week?

Things I pretend I understand about gardening!

There are lots of things about gardening that I nod along to, smile about and pretend to understand. I love gardening, I really do. I like getting my hands dirty, buying plants with lots of hope and then watching to see what survives but there is so much that I don't understand. Today I thought I’d share the things I pretend I understand about gardening.

Soil types!

Clay, loam, sandy, chalky. People say these words with confidence, like they were born knowing what’s under their lawn. Me, I dig a hole and think, yep, that’s dirt! Apparently, soil type affects drainage, nutrients and plant happiness. I get the idea but when someone says, "This won’t do well in a certain soil," I nod like I’ve tested mine in a lab rather than poked it with a spade and shrugged.

Pruning!

Pruning is one of those gardening skills that sounds very serious. There are rules, seasons, angles and words like "node" and "deadheading" get thrown around and I smile politely. In reality, my pruning style is best described as chopping it and seeing what happens. If it looks messy, it gets cut, if it’s poking me in the eye, it definitely gets cut and if it hasn’t done anything exciting for months, snip. I know you’re meant to prune at the right time, or you risk ruining next year’s flowers. I pretend I know when that is but half the time I’m stood there with secateurs thinking this feels like the right moment. Sometimes it works and sometimes the plant dies and I pretend that was part of the plan.

Annuals vs Perennials!

I always think I know the difference between annuals and perennials. Then spring rolls around and I’m standing in the garden centre thinking, will this come back next year or am I committing to buying this again? Annuals are for one season, gone forever and perennials come back every year. Simple! Then every single year I forget!

Feeding plants!

Plants need food. That makes sense but the advice around feeding is wild. Feed weekly, feed monthly, don’t overfeed but also don’t forget. There's liquid feed, slow release and tomato feed for everything. I pretend I have a system. I do not! What I actually have is a vague memory that I fed something recently and a fear that I might burn the roots if I do it again. Sometimes I stand there holding a bottle of feed thinking you look hungry, which is probably not how it works. Other times I forget completely and then panic feed everything at once!

Latin plant names!

I love plants, I love flowers and I love a walk around the garden centre, but the Latin names are not for me. I admire people who casually drop them into conversation. "Oh yes, my Lavandula angustifolia is doing well." All while I am saying things like I like, the purple smelly one! I pretend I recognise the names when reading labels but really I’m scanning for pictures and the words “easy care. If a plant needs me to remember a complicated name and keep it alive, that’s asking a lot.

Companion planting!

Companion planting is fascinating. Did you know that some plants help others grow, some keep pests away and some don’t get along? It’s all the garden friendship drama! I love the idea of planting things strategically so they support each other. I pretend I understand which plants should be neighbours but in reality, I just plant things where there’s space and hope they sort it out themselves.

Knowing when something is established!

People say things like "Once it’s established, it’ll be fine." When is that exactly? A week, a month, a year? I pretend I know when a plant has crossed the line into being self-sufficient. What actually happens is I either water it forever out of fear or forget about it entirely because it looked okay last time. Sometimes a plant survives despite me and other times it clearly needs more attention and I apologise to it quietly while pulling it out.

Garden tools!

There are so many tools. Apparently, each one has a specific purpose and makes life easier. I pretend I know which one to use when. Half the time, I grab whatever is closest and make it work. I own tools I’ve used once and tools I use for everything they were never designed for. I only found out a little while ago that there is a difference between a spade and a shovel!

Pests and beneficial insects!

I know we’re meant to welcome certain insects into the garden. They’re helpful, they keep things balanced and I get it and I support it from a distance. When someone points out the benefits of insects, I pretend I know what they're on about but in my head I think, as long as you’re not eating everything, we’re fine! Me and slugs are not friends. I’ve tried to be calm and nature loving about it but when they eat something I’ve been proud of, I am ready to fight!

Gardening for me is less about knowing everything and more about just having a go. I pretend I understand a lot because that’s half the fun. I learn as I go, make mistakes and laugh at myself a lot.

What don't you understand about gardening?