What a difference a day makes

Hi there everyone 😃

Last Friday I took this photo of the self set poppies in the raised bed …

I took the photo to show my friend, who had kindly donated me some seedlings the year before last. They gave a bit of a paltry show that first year, but last year they did really well and were beautiful.

I saved loads of seeds and sprinkled them all round the garden and did get excited when lots of small seedlings started to show … none came to anything at all though … other than these which self set in their original growing position, I’ve even tried to transplant a few to try and spread them around the garden, but had no luck whatsoever … they have clearly decided they like it where they are.

This has left me with a bit of a quandary. The raised bed they are in was destined for a rebuild last year, but Martin never quite got round to it. It was a definite priority for this year and I’d even relocated all of the strawberry plants and the perennials that were growing in the bed in readiness … well, of course I can’t be emptying it now, not until the poppies have all flowered.

Interestingly I donated a load of strawberry plants to mum and they must have been loaded with poppy seed too as mum now has a bed full just ready to burst into flower.

Having taken my photo on Friday I couldn’t quite believe my eyes when I looked out of the landing window on Saturday morning …

Aren’t they beautiful? If you look closely you may even spot a plump looking buzzy bee investigating. I am hopeful for a fabulous display and will try again with spreading around for next year. I already have a list of friends and family wanting seeds saving so fingers crossed we all have more luck next year.

On the strawberry front it’s not been a good year … they obviously don’t like their new home, and have been very disappointing … I think I may have to move them back once the bed has been rebuilt.

On another note, still of the floral variety, it does look like it could be a good year for the roses … our rhapsody in blue is going a storm …

… and the pink one out the front next door is really doing well …

We still really have to get to grips with the garden this year. We have done a few bits, but there is still a way to go. We need a good run of decent weather ... but not too hot ... while we are at home, so we can get on top of things.

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Exploring :: North Wales #7 … Beaumaris

Hi there everyone 😀

It was Thursday and the last full day of our week's break on the Llyn Peninsular back in March. We opted for a bit of a 'big day out' and were heading for Beaumaris on Anglesey.

Martin and I had visited before, when holidaying on Anglesey back in 2017, and we had really loved it. We were really looking forward to going back for a return visit.

We managed to find a spot to park up on the road and whilst it was a little overcast the view looking back across to the mainland was pretty impressive ...

First stop was to wander back to the pretty pastel coloured cottages that we'd passed on our drive into the village ...

I can never resist a row of pretty coloured cottages and this is the view of them from a bit further along the road looking towards the pier ...

Whilst Beaumaris seems a small village at first glance, there is plenty to do here. There are lots of pretty little shops, full of lovely things and ideal for a good old 'mooch' ...

There is a lovely little café in the High Street, which we couldn't resist visiting again ...

... and a fairly impressive castle ... which we have not actually visited, but is just lovely for a wander around the boundary ...

From the castle we headed across the road and along the front back towards the pier, where we were hoping we might be able to pick up an ice cream as it had warmed up considerably ... we were in luck ...

It was then time for a wander out along the pier ...

... and back again ...

... before heading for home ... taking in the viewpoint to try and get some good shots of the bridge ...

It was then back down the narrow country lanes to The Crossing for our last night in North Wales for a while ...

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Exploring :: North Wales #6 … Abersoch & Pwllheli

Hi there everyone 😀

It was the Wednesday of our week's stay on the Llyn Peninsular, back in March, with mum … and having done plenty of walking so far, we opted for a bit of a drive. Luckily we were in no real hurry as we hit a bit of congestion along the way ...

We started out with a very quick wander around Aberdaron ...

... before heading back for a bit of a slower wander around Abersoch. We had been hoping to walk along the beach, but the tide was pretty well in ...

Mum and I ended up finding a nice spot for Martin to sit in a pub garden, whilst we had a good old mooch up and down the high street.

From Abersoch we made our way back homewards to Pwllheli ...

... where we were aiming for fish and chips for tea, hoping to find a nice bench along the seafront to eat them on. I think we can safely say we achieved that goal ...

It's the second time that we've had fish and chips from Allports in the centre of Pwllheli and both times they have been fabulous ... exactly what you want from seaside fish and chips.

Once we'd finished eating, mum and I decided to head through the dunes and walk back along the beach with Martin picking us up at the other end ...

It really is another fabulous beach and seems to go on for miles ...

It was time to head for home, but not without a quick drive round the harbour first ...

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Exploring :: North Wales #5 … Black Rock Sands & Borth-y-Gest

Hi there everyone 😀

After our day in the mountains, exploring Beddgelert on Monday, we were back to the coast for Tuesday's adventures, starting with a visit to Black Rock Sands.

We'd never been before but had seen on line that you can actually drive onto the beach ... well that sounded like a bit of an adventure not to be missed and it didn't take us long to find ourselves well and truly ... on the beach ...

It was lovely and quiet and we found that you can actually drive a fair way along the beach ...

... and we went as far as we could ...

It was beautiful and mum and I decided we would get out and walk back, leaving Martin to enjoy the driving on the beach bit ...

The whole of the beach is backed by dunes ... beyond which is a massive holiday caravan park, where mum could remember having stayed many years ago ...

Along the beach loads of huge jelly fish had been left on the shore by the receding tide and I think this may have put me off from dipping my toes in the water, but it would definitely be a lovely spot for a day on the beach with kids, with loads of room to run about ...

Mum and I walked pretty much back to the other end of the beach ...

... where we had some great views of the bay and Criccieth Castle in the distance ...

Jumping back into the car to head back off the beach, we carried on along the coast to the tiny village of Borth-y-Gest, where our holiday cottage owners had recommended a nice 'flat' walk, along the coastal path.

We managed to find a spot to park in the side of the road and had a quick look round the small harbour area, which was lined by cheerful coloured cottages …

… and was really pretty …

We weren’t entirely sure how far we were intending to walk but headed off up the narrow street, passing more pretty cottages, towards the coastal path …

… where the views looking back across the bay towards Porthmadog were just lovely …

We headed along the coastal path, which was fairly flat and not too difficult a walk and before long we had views of some lovely little secluded coves ahead …

With still no real clue as to where we were heading or how far we would go we carried on until we reached the bridge ...
… with this as the view out to see as we crossed over …

It really was a beautiful spot and nice across the bridge there were steps taking us down to the beach and we really couldn’t wait to get down and have a closer look …

We weren’t disappointed, it was an absolutely beautiful spot …

We found a nice spot to sit awhile ...

... and I couldn’t resist dipping my feet in the sea … though I have to say I wasn’t in there long as it was absolutely numbingly cold …

It’s a real shame that we didn’t take our picnic with us as it would have been the perfect spot for lunch.

We decided not to carry on any further along the coast but headed back up the steps and back across the bridge …

… and retraced our steps back to where we’d started from …

… where we found a nice spot … with shade for Martin and I, and sun for mum … where we sat and enjoyed our picnic lunch.

Whilst we were over this way we we decided to end our day with a drive on to Harlech, hoping for a good view of the castle … it was pretty impressive, but we didn’t really stop, just took a few photos and headed back for our home for the week …

... saving a proper visit to Harlech for another time 😀

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