Painting, a Christmas quilt and young families

Here we are and husband is still up a ladder....we tried the blue paint around the cornice but it was too bright, so now we are going for grey....then the paint wouldn't stick..... but we triumphed in papering the ceiling using husband and ladder and me with a clean mop providing the support act for the paper from ground level.... and that's the best way I can describe the morning!

All this reminded me that I have other responsibilities with houses. There is another house which I own and it is sadly neglected. In fact it is in a state of ruin and needs extensive repair, updating and redecoration! For a long time it has been situated in an undesirable and isolated location ( the attic). A 1950's detached villa, it would suit a family who can see it's potential...

1950's detached villa in need of a new roof

                            

Over the next week I am going to supervise repairs and decorate and it's going to be such fun! I can't wait to choose the wall paper and the ceiling will be easy to paint too!

In the sewing room, I have started a Christmas quilt for Alex who is three years old. Here are the four corner star blocks:

Green Star Quilts Christmas star blocks

Here are the log cabin blocks for the bottom of the quilt:

Green Star Quilts Christmas Log Cabin blocks

In the middle there will be Santa on his sleigh and snowmen, also parcels, holly and stockings. I will show you as the other blocks are finished and then put together over the next two weeks.

In the garden and on the river bank, families are growing and babies are leaving home. We found this little chap under the apple tree yesterday.

Baby hedgehog in a Lincoln garden

I thought he would like a raspberry as I have seen them eating fallen fruit before, but he wasn't keen and much preferred sausage meat, a few worms and hard boiled egg which he wolfed down with a little clicking noise from his tiny teeth, then a drink of water and when I looked again he was gone, off on his travels around the compost heap. 

On my cycle into town along the river, here were the cygnets, all grey and fluffy, getting bigger and so sweet to see.... incredibly untidy about their pulled out downy feathers like teenagers who don't put their dirty clothes in the laundry basket.

Cygnets and mum on The Witham river bank

                           

The Mallard duck locals look deeply unimpressed! In our Bay tree this morning, five wrens were all shouting 'Peep' in very fierce tones as I got too near, so I think we have a nest there too.

I expect your gardens are full of new families too, so have a lovely week wildlife watching too,

Kind regards,

Sue