We love looking for shapes in the clouds and this morning the lovely Mr S spotted a long tailed bird, a Bird of Paradise perhaps. There’s actually a name for this habit, pareidolia, another splendid word.
Bird in the clouds
The poppies are glorious and the bees love them.
They love the Daisies too.
On our walk this morning, we spotted a little blue butterfly which I think was a Common Blue. When I was a kid we used to see clouds of these lovely creatures when on a coastal walk. There seem to be far fewer about now. This is the first I have seen this year.
Common Blue
It was LiveWire No 2’s turn to Skype-bake with me this afternoon and he chose to make Sausage Rolls. It was so lovely to spend some special time together when we haven’t seen the family since New Year except for Family sessions each Saturday. We also had some delicious Sausage Rolls to eat!
J’s Sausage Rolls
Another trade took place today. Our friend and neighbour, N, was in touch last week when the call finally came that we are to wear face masks when shopping, “Could I please make her some?” Of course! I finished them off this morning and, as N is a Well being consultant for Weleda, traded the masks for the wonderful muscle soak that so helps my cranky and painful ankles.
Haven’t stopped today! Gardening, sewing masks, joining in Claire’s Singing Workshop at the No Pressure online Festival and then reading stories over Skype to Twin LiveWires 5 and 6 who are three years old. No 1 LiveWire always listens in too even though she is 12 and she loves Super Worm and Peppa Pig as much as they do.
Claire and her lovely daughters
Our garden is full of colour and is a great comfort to us. 
For other lovely gardens to check out, call in on The Propagator where you will also find a participants’ guide.
It is the birth date of Paul Robeson whose singing I love. Check out here for why and a recording of The Ballad of Joe Hill.
Gwennap is the village where my Dad based one of his novels, inspired by a gravestone in the Churchyard. Today we drove down there, parked outside the church and walked some of the route of the novel, alongside the stream, where, in the novel, “Jeremy Visick”, Matthew’s father washed his car, up the lane at the side of the Churchyard where Matthew picked blackberries, beside the avenue of yew trees and it was such a lovely walk. It was almost silent apart from the hum of bees and the gurgling of the little stream – the most peaceful walk we have had in months meeting not another soul. Join us along that walk and into the little village.
A Thrush kept us company along the start of our walk today as he was gathering for for his fledglings.
I love this pretty wreath of Hydrangea, Lavender and greenery which we saw on a front door along our walk on the way up to The Great Flat Lode. 
We were given some beetroot on Tuesday so I made Chocolate Beetroot Cake which is one of the lovely Mr S’s favourites. There wasn’t quite enough beetroot for the recipe so I made up the weight with raspberries and it is totally scrumptious! You’ll find the recipe by clicking on the red link. 
Last night’s sunset was spectacular and the colour was caught in the windows across the road from us. My Dear SIL, with whom I share a love of special words (like petrichor and serendipity) sent me a beautiful new word a few weeks ago and today I can use it to describe that lovely colour caught in the windows – enrosadira. It is used in the Dolomites where at sunrise and sunset, the rocky cliffs take on hues that vary from light yellow to bright red, to different shades of pink and violet, until the mountains disappear in the dark of night. Enrosadira is a ladin term literally meaning “turning pink” (Ladin is the ancient language of the inhabitants of the Dolomites). We get the same beautiful effect here in Cornwall!
What beautiful colouring on this bee and how glorious he looks as he searches for nectar in the Eryngium flower.
As the New Year started, work began on our local Fish’n’chip shop, just around the corner. Everything stopped during lockdown, building continued recently and today they opened so that was tea sorted! As an English teacher, the sign pleased me with its apostrophe, a little fish, in the right place!
Our walk each morning around part of the Great Flat Lode sees us dodging stray brambles (I take my pruners most days) rampant Bracken encroaching onto the paths and various brown items. This one turned out to be most benign, a Common Toad whose scientific name is the delightful Bufo Bufo.
We visited some very dear friends this afternoon and took a big bouquet of flowers from our garden. At the end of a lovely afternoon, we left with much produce from their garden.
We pass this gateway on our walk and I wonder what the sign at the bottom of the left hand post means. Does anyone know?
I love the golden sunny faces of these Poppies – Eschscholzia californica, the California poppy, golden poppy, California sunlight or cup of gold – what lovely names!
I was reminded by a dear friend of this thoughtful poem this morning and thought I would share it again. I last shared it in 2014 – it’s kind of the rationale for my blog.
Leisure by William Henry Davies
What is this life if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare.No time to stand beneath the boughs
And stare as long as sheep or cows.No time to see, when woods we pass,
Where squirrels hide their nuts in grass.No time to see, in broad daylight,
Streams full of stars, like skies at night.No time to turn at Beauty’s glance,
And watch her feet, how they can dance.No time to wait till her mouth can
Enrich that smile her eyes began.A poor life this is if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare.
The scent of the mown hay as we walked along the side of the field in the lane was just lovely, so evocative of summertime. We met the farmer just around the corner who told us that he would be rolling it after a couple of days more of sunshine and then it would feed the (zebra) ponies though the winter.
There have been very few contrails though lockdown but today there was a sky kiss for all to see.
Lunch today was very pretty – and tasty, of course!
Lentil and Tomato salad with fried Halloumi, decorated with Basil leaves and Borage flowers on a bed of home grown lettuce.
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