7th July

Well that is one week of July gone and still the rain keeps coming. Today has been better. Yesterday was torrential rain until about 4.30pm.  Today we had just one heavy down pour around midday.  The 10 day forecast is showing showers every single day but that is better than what we have had. Simon started up the pump again this evening and the water level has dropped by a foot so far.  It is terribly frustrating for both of us.  He wants to progress on with his garage extension and I am longing for it to be done so that I can get to work on my veg patch.  Not to mention doing away with the 8 muddy paws which have become a fixture of my day.  We keep trying to tell ourselves to just be grateful that we are not in an area where the houses are flooding.

Just a few miles up from us the entire villages are flooded out.  Several feet of water inside the houses.  It must be devastating to have that dirty horrid water inside your home.  Doesn't bare thinking about really.  Yesterday afternoon, after Simon got home from school we went out for a little drive.  We went to Horbling which is about a 15 minute drive from here.  It is where Simon's ancestors came from.  We saw areas of the village that were still flooded but not too badly. However we saw on the news that earlier in the day the village had been impassable and the main road had been under 3 feet of water! 

By the time we went out the rain had stopped and we actually had a nice time.  We wandered around the churchyard and found the old Glenn graves.  They are in a worse state than the last time we visited and we agreed that at some point in the summer holidays we would go out and clean them up.  It feels like an important thing to do. It is so sad to see the graves that have become unreadable through wear and tear and the elements.  Don't want that to happen to Simon's ancestors. 

We also had a wander around another churchyard in the village of Aslackaby. It is just along from us and we thought that maybe there could be some Glenn's there but we didn't find any.  It is interesting though to wander around.

Yesterday was mainly a sewing day for me.  I have started on another one of those wall hangings.  I need to get fabric for some Christmas projects and as I didn't have any I decided to use my fabric scraps to do a wall hanging.  I might put it on Coralie's  Etsy site. She is beginning to sell stuff now.   I also finished another couple of the little owls that I have been making.  I shall put them On Etsy.  This the link to Coralie's Etsy site should you feel inclined to look. http://http://www.etsy.com/shop/EverSewMuchToGive?ref=search_shop_redirect

Today has been a very nice day.  As I said, we only had that one rain shower. Simon has worked in the front garden this morning. He cut back all the shrubs.  He dug out the big roots of the Rosemary bushes that we took out a few months ago.  Laid 2 paving slabs and where the roots came out he extended the flower bed.  This afternoon he put down some grass seed on the bare patch that had been covered by the Rosemary.  It looks much better now. Just have to wait for the grass to grow.  He also seeded that patch at the back that was killed when he was digging out for the garage. 

While he was busy doing that I did a bit of weeding and then some sewing.  We then went down into Bourne as he wanted to get some big bolt that he needed.  He is making  a car part for a friends Hot Rod.  From there we went to a place called Peakirk Wildfowl Trust.  It is totally derelict.  It closed down about 15 years ago and has been in a state of disrepair for the last 10.  However the actual site is still really lovely with grassy areas, trees and ponds. Sam has suggested it as the venue for a family picnic in a few weeks time so we went to check it out.  Of course the heavens opened just as we got there!  We did see enough though to agree that it is a good place for a picnic.  We are having a family picnic on the 22nd of July, weather permitting.

Once we got home we both pottered around for a few hours. Me sewing and Simon in the garage.  He was cutting wood for the top of the wardrobes in our bedroom. Yes, he is getting on with that in between other stuff.  It might actually be totally finished soon!  He also put up 2 of the Chicken signs that we got at the auction last year.  The welcome sign is by the front door and the bell is on the wall just behind the gates into the back garden.  It will be useful if we are outside and don't hear the main door bell. When I took these photos I noticed how badly the underside of the porch needs painting. I doubt that it will get done this year.  Best add it to next years list.

At about 5pm Coralie arrived with the boys, followed shortly by Sam and the girls.  Lisa and John are both at work.  We had a lovely time with them.  They are all so good and Evan and Ellie just adore each other and play really well.  They had all come to dinner. We had sausages, beans and mash followed by strawberries, meringues and ice cream. It went down very well with the little ones!  

Since they went home, at about half seven, Simon has been playing in his garage and pumping water and I have been catching up on blogs.  It has been a very leisurely day.  We had planned to go to Leicester tomorrow to visit Saskia but she has to work.   I guess tomorrow will end up being pretty much the same as today except hopefully if the weather improves Simon may be able to continue spreading hardcore.  We shall see.  I hope you all have a pleasant Sunday.  For those of my Merikan friends in need of rain, I hope you get it. Those of you that have too much sun please send it here.