Sunshine finally!!

My 5am loo view!!

And what a view!

There has been a huge amount of excitement over the aurora borealis being visible here, over the past couple of nights, due to extreme weather. I did stay up until midnight last night in an attempt to see it but gave up and went to bed. So was chuffed to bits when I went for my early morning loo visit, peeked through the blind and was gifted this fabulous sunrise x

This week has been a very busy week at work. Lots of mock and real exams and clash supervision. Have done 6 days on the run, morning and afternoon. Typically, this week is the week, the sun decides to shine!!

But a fab perk to living so close to work, you can come home between exams and 

sit out in the garden and soak up a few of the warm rays.

Not only has the sun made it's most welcome arrival, 

but so too is the arrival of peonies back in the shops and....

...the alliums at home are in full bloom.

The fields are still fit to bursting with buttercups and dandelions, on my evening walk.

And today we enjoyed lunch out side!!

You have to make the most of it because next week, rain returns. I've loads of exams next week, including a 3 hour Philosophy exam with 45 minutes extra time, plus more clash supervision. So I won't be seeing much of outside anyway. This is when it's hard. You sign up a good couple of months ahead, offering your availability, with no idea what the weather has in store. I just think of the money and our future trips it goes towards. I think September could be hard in the Gallery, if the weather is really nice. You always feel you have to make the most of late September sunshine as you know the good weather is coming to an end! So on that note, I've cooled off a bit, I'm back outside to make the most of this glorious sunshine xx

Another exam week ticked off!

I started the week with a day off. 

The weather wasn't brilliant, in fact it was cold, but......it was dry! 

So, I headed over to the Newt. 

When I went previously, I was made aware that the new four seasons garden had opened, plus there was another pathway I'd not yet walked. So I went to explore. The garden is beautiful, and as time goes on and it becomes more established, it will just get better.

It's all in the detail and over at the Newt, they have it in bucket loads. 

It's just a really beautiful place to spend time at.

Back in for exams on Tuesday and a round-up of the month of April. 

And what a busy month it was too!

A pinch and punch.....hello May!

How are we a third of the way through the year already!?!

The weather has been pretty rubbish! 

The Tor is a good marker every morning, for what weather the day has in store.

The garden is looking very green but all the plants are waiting patiently for some warm sunshine. 

More patiently than me!!! 

Love alliums x
Every year I say we should plant more!

I've not minded being in school whilst the weather is soooo rubbish!

We're still invigilating mocks, year 12 this week, and I've done one 'real' exam!! Things certainly crank up a gear next week and beyond. Year 10 mocks and a peppering of GCSE and A Level. And a bit of chaperoning thrown into the mix, when exam clashes occur. It's all money in the pot!

I was very thankful to have had Saturday off. though.....

....because it was the first day of usable, enjoyable, sit out and make the most of the sunshine, weather!! And that's exactly what I did! By the afternoon, I was back in a fleece! I think for the time being, it's a  case of making the most of the sunshine when we get it, because you never know when we'll see it again. Today is the perfect example....grey, damp, chilly and plain miserable!

It makes such a difference when it's sunny. Everything seems better.

Jeff was back at a reasonable time yesterday afternoon, and spent a few hours pottering in the garden. He discovered a blackbirds nest in the back hedge. Let's hope they do well.

I took myself out for a walk after tea. I've been meaning to start since we got back from Italy but the weather hasn't been the best motivator! It's 8 weeks until we go to Greece, so I'm trying to be super focused, eating healthily and trying to get my steps in!

I'm glad I went. 

The field on my walk is just beautiful.....full of buttercups and dandelions. 

This morning (Sunday) I woke for the loo at 5.55am and had to nip downstairs to get my phone and capture the sunrise. I no longer have to get up early for work, so miss the early morning Tor view. I thought we were in for another lovely day, but no, the damp, mizzily rain moved in!!

As we'll be away for a longer stretch this summer, we've decided not to plant out the sunflowers this year. We may pop some seeds in on our return and hope for the best! Instead we're going to plant out loads of geraniums and sow a few nasturtium seeds. They can tolerate a bit of neglect. It's not so much the watering, but the wind at the front of the house. We have to wire and stake the sunflowers up as they grow taller, or else they'd just fall over. So every time I've been out, I've been buying geraniums!! Do you think I have enough?