Daily photo challenge round-up (13)

The end of another month, the end of Summer and the start of looking into things to do around the house and hobbies to take up once more as the darker nights draw in - I'M NOT READY! Hopefully I will find another photo-a-day challenge to take part in, it helps so much.

Anyway, here are the last of August's prompts and photographs; I hope you like xx

 Day 25 - round

The monkey bar rings at a local playground.

 Day 26 - wall

Street art in buzzing Belfast city. Art and a history lesson! 

Day 26 - wall (2)

For the non- history lovers...a big face

 Day 27 - on the ground

Water mains cover 🤗

Day 28 - silence

Quiet please; Toby is sleeping 😪

 Day 29 - a pair

A pair of magical unicorns 🦄

 Day 30 - yes!

I always say yes to travel and adventure!

Day 31 - red

An abandoned telephone box out the countryside.

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I'm off to root around the house and do some much needed tidying, maybe start to cut Toby's hair and practise yoga. I am currently reading 'Mrs Dalloway' by Virginia Woolf too - it's good stuff.

LOVE AND HUGS for the weekend

Carrie

National Dogs' Day

To celebrate National Dogs' Day I thought I would share some photographs of yesterday's hike from Ballynure to Ballyboley Forest and back with Andrew and TOBY!

Having completed this actually ticks the Antrim Hills off our Ulster Way Walk and thus tips us over the half way mark of the Ulster Way in total - yippee! And who cares about the absolute agony it had me in - I am crushing the Way under my very sore back and blistered foot *insert maniacal laughter here*

So, the photographs...

 the mid way point and finally the sun comes out - hurrah! This was our view, our wee country isn't so bad, right? we had walked from the lowest point in the valley to here, all up hill!

 Collages of some of the beautiful scenes I captured on the way back down 

My beautiful boy - he loves walking in the long grass verges

My best wishes for a happy Bank Holiday Monday. We are hoping to go hiking again - crazy I know, but you only live once 😉

Hugs Carrie x

Daily Photo Challenge - round up (12)

It really needs no introduction....here are this weeks daily photo challenges from the fabulous Fat Mum Slim community. Oh there are some fantastic photos under the group hashtags for each day - really, there is a rather inspiring collection of people are out there!

Day 18 - white on white

(On white) 3 whites; a painted wall, a window frame and a lace curtain with a very pale cloudy day outside.

Day 19 - trust

Great excuse to get out my old school dictionary.

Day 20 -  nature macro

The stunning intricacy of a humble spider's web with lite drizzle upon it.

Day 21 - Wild

Out in the wild countryside of the Antrim Hills walking the Ulster Way with my hubby. We both loved this old mossy wall and tree.

Day 22 - kisses

Birthday kisses on my recent birthday cards which were taken down today. I am loved 🤗

 Day 23 - brightly coloured

A wee look back a couple of months to those blistering hot days and being by the beach....

Day 24 - nine

9 nines! Yay! 

I do hope you enjoy and maybe, like me, you are already considering hobbies to keep you occupied and creative into the darker months; if so I highly recommend a little daily challenge like this, it's fun!

Though for now, enjoy these brighter days while they last and may your weekend be glorious xx

Hugs

Your Carrie

Allotment harvest!

"On Saturday we visited the allotment for the afternooon".
"What? Finally!" I hear you say and I simply blush in return.

Evidence - exhibit 1 😊

What a neglected little plot we've have this year, but you know what, it was thriving away without us! Okay, a good deal of our produce has been taken by the birds this year (especially those super pesky pheasants) and the heat destroyed our blueberries but we have managed to get away with a lot, much more than we expected and certainly more than we deserve!

We were there to see what we could harvest and what (inevitably) needed to be lifted and composted.  Andrew brought the petrol strimmer with him and got the paths all cut back around the place and I just brought my camera and a 'can do attitude'. On a lucky note we also got the very last tray of purple sprouting broccoli plug plans from the garden centre to bring down with us.

This was the plot when we arrived

I'll just give you a moment here to be shocked and dismayed at the weed situation... *blush*

There followed a heck of a lot of weeding, sweating, drinking water, walking into things and getting exceptionally dirty fingernails (my gloves are falling apart). It all ended with exhaustion and the strong desire, no it was a NEED for an allotment curry. Nothing else would do to placate our overwhelming plot pride!

Just look at those lovely sweetcorn stalks and all the cobs this year; look at the marigolds that Flighty sent me (I only grew a few but I love them and there are a few sunflowers in there too) and the squashes, all that simply were not in existence the last time I was there.. yippee! Look too at our baby leeks (now that you can see them without all those weeds!)

I am happy to announce that we also have courgettes coming faster than we know what to do with them and a great many runner beans, scallions, beetroot and broad beans coming. The chard has mainly bolted but there are still two plants that are fine and the string beans give a good crop on Saturday but I'm not sure about them.... Lastly, I took all the apples I could and emptied the last bucket of potatoes

Oh just look at the produce...

Plus we get to take Toby home :)

Hugs and love
Carrie xx

Ulster-American Folk Park

Friday the 17th was a dark and dreary day to wake up to, only at the same time, it wasn't. It was my birthday and as we had had the usual midnight celebrations with bubbles, a cupcake and present opening, I was sleepy but feeling special :) Having slept in just a little we then dropped Toby at his granny's for the day = Massive squeeze for Mamma G for her beautiful gifts and for being so awesome.

After a visit to a favourite Belfast cafe of ours, we drove to the Ulster-American Folk Park in Omagh, Co. Tyrone. We enjoyed a few hours of loveliness, despite the rain, totally skipped the educational indoor museum (my day, my rules) and just seeing the fab buildings.

Photos of some favourites

 This single room cabin of a landless, poor, family was moved stone by stone from the slopes of the Sperrin Mountains. The house dates from the date 1700s, the windows and door only added in 1845. Before this date animal skins or bushes would have blocked entrances.

The blacksmith's forge is typical of that found in the countryside from the 1800s. The blacksmiths not only shod the horses but would have made valuable all sorts tools for farming and the home.

 The weaver's home is a great example of how most people homes would have workplaces as well. The man of the house would have spent long evenings weaving in a special room made to house the loom, the wife would have pun the flax, that the children carded, and turned it into yarn. Linen and tweed would both have been produced. 

This small farmhouse and land around it is standing on it's original site! A Tom Mellon was born here in 1813 and emigrated to America in 1818. In the first photograph the lady of the house is baking soda bread by the fire and the subsequent ones show a few of there farm animals and extra buildings.

  This is the sort of farmhouse (built in 1786) is an indication of the difference in farmhouses when you own your own land and rent out a considerable amount to others The Campbell's who lived in this house had 12 children! 2 of which moved to America.

In America now, in Pennsylvania where, beside a log cabin we saw a very familiar arrangement of growing the squashes and sweetcorn together. The crop here was doing excellently though it was scary just how many adults didn't know what the crops were! We loved the fence here too.

 The Pennsylvania Log farmhouse here is a replica of the one Tom Mellon (mentioned before) lived in when he arrived in America; the original still stands today in Export, Pennsylvania. There are many more rooms in the main house and many more lovely outbuildings and a huge barn. (My favourite)

A tie for favourite, I think, but maybe that was simply due to the sunflowers and the fact that they cheered the place up. This is a late 1800's Western Pennsylvania style log house with a very common American architectural feature of the porch front :)

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After more coffee to warm us and perk us up we headed back to Belfast. It was time for dinner and we had a date with a new restaurant... Buba. We loved it!

With love and hugs
Carrie (now a year older)
xx

Daily photo round-up (11)

What a week it's been - all the birthdays:
On the 14th - Toby was 2 and boy did he have a lovely time with all the cuddles and no grooming, even though he needed it! For dinner he had a fancy pate from the posh section in the supermarket and loved it!
On the 15th it was 2 lady friend's birthdays
On the 16th it was Uncle Jim's Birthday
and today, the 17th it was mine!
and tomorrow the 18th, is another friends - WOW Leo's are cool right now, hahaha.

For me, my birthday was lovely and I was spoilt rotten and had the most fab time at the Ulster-American Folk park, even though it was raining. Andrew and I smiled a lot and giggled as we ran from house to house and had a gorgeous dinner out. Toby was at his granny's stealing rich tea biscuits, aha. But anyway, it was also simply a Friday and thus photo-a-day round up day (with Fat Mum Slim...)

 Day 11 - Cheeky

A cheeky As treat of an apple and cinnamon scone with butter AND jam. Naughty.

 Day 12 - upside down

Reflections on the water blur the line of whats up and whats down

 Day 13 - eyes

The beautiful simple lines of Japanese style eyes on a kokeshi doll.

Day 14 - edge

Her Majesty the Queen balancing on a pound coin on the edge my notebook and the edge of the coffee table. Thrill seeker!

 Day 15 - animal

Met this darling donkey a few months ago, he melted my heart.

 Day 16 - toppings

If you ask me, a good flat cap is the most excellent of toppings to one's head!

Day 17 - something warm

A traditional Irish cottage open peat fire on a dreich day - nothing more inviting or instantly warming as we found out today.

LOVED IT TODAY

Hope you had a great Friday too and a very merry weekend to you all

Carrie xxxx

Toby celebrates

love
Toby xx

Daily photo challenge round up (10)

Hi, another week has gone by in a blur of detachment and hopelessness. I haven't been anywhere near the allotment, I haven't gone for a hike, I haven't practised ecotherapy and I feel like life isn't worth the hassle. That's the truth of the matter and I am not going to pretend otherwise - sometimes, I feel, you just got to be brutally honest and stop the being fake, to stop from going mad.

So everyday, as I said last time, it has been good to have a wee photo challenge to shake my perception and force me to do something I do still find fun (though I think I'm crap at it - where did my self esteem go?).

As usual for the month I am working off Fat Mum Slim's prompt cheat....

Day 4 - weekend vibes

Still in my dressing gown with a good book, lists being made, coffee and chocolate on the go, lovely hand cream..

Day 5 - sunshine

here's the sunshine of my life..we're under a massive cloud today and it's miserable so cuddles are the way to go 💞🐕

Day 5 - sunshine (part 2)

The clouds are parting and we are getting little windows of sun! Mix that with yellow flowers = joy!

Day 6 - ink

Pretty obvious; this is one of my tattoos 🤗 Such a rebel, haha. Namasté all xx

Day 7 - flying

I thought this prompt was hard. How to be original? Well my handmade bird sort of flying (don't you tell him otherwise 😉) 

Day 8 - citrus

I'm a day late!! Made a mess of cutting this lime but had to use it anyway...🤗

Day 9 - purple

My yoga stuff! My purple room, mat and hand towel, calming new candle and lucky elephant.

Day 10 - hearts

It's amazing how a little rummage can uncover so many little hearts in your study.

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I hope you are all well and aren't anywhere the doldrums! Enjoy your weekend my dears and may the sun shine on all of you. Happiness lives out there somewhere :)

* What are you doing to stay happy everyday?
* What exciting plans do you have for the weekend?
* Anyone else obsessed with jigsaws at the moment?

Hugs

Carrie