Happy Easter

Photo Copyright: Maggie May

Today I am writing this post before my two children and four grandchildren wake up. There is no indication, at present that there are so many people in my house.

Soon it will be a very different story as they get up one by one.

Granddad is the first up. He has already gone downstairs to feed the rabbits.

In the space of just one week, he is such a different person to the suffering man he was last week.

He is not in so much pain now and he seems to be walking much better. Harry is not on strong medication but the first lot of tablets that were prescribed made him feel quite ill. The ones he is taking now, suit him very well.

I am not so scared of him going out by himself and he will soon pop to the newsagent for his paper.

The weather has been just like summer. The temperatures up in the twenties centigrade. Today, we have the possibility of rain, but there is no sign of it so far and the temperature is quite pleasant.

We have had a riot in Bristol that has made the headlines on The National News and in the newspapers..... all to do with a supermarket that was built in an area where the local people did not want it. Well, I wasn't aware of the commotion, though it went on all the night before last

and there must have been the noise of helicopters, sirens and such like passing through. That seems to have calmed down now but there is still strong feeling about the supermarket.

Millie, the youngest grandchild has just got up....... quickly followed by her sister, Amber.

The boys are not so eager to rouse these days. Teens seem to need more sleep and don't go to bed early enough.

I must rescue Granddad. He cannot understand why the whole world doesn't get up at the crack of dawn, though he seems to be struggling to do so himself, these days.

He will be getting the breakfasts for the girls.

Soon, this post will be old hat. However I will not be writing another one this side of Easter. The boys won't be be going home until Sunday.

Schools are on holiday for at least another week and the Royal Wedding on Friday has caused us to have yet another day off...... so the holiday stretches on.

Wishing you all a very Happy Easter.

I will try and catch up with reading blogs and commenting when I get a quiet moment. I am sure there will be some ...... or is that wishful thinking?

A Slice of My Easter.

Photo Copyright: Maggie May

I had a very hectic but lovely Easter because I had all my family come to stay with me. As usual all four grand children got along fine ......... in fact we hardly saw them because they played on the wii in the loft most of the time. As they are aged 5 yrs -14 yrs this seemed remarkable.

Some of the days were really sunny but cool and I managed to walk to a hilly park with my son as I hadn't had much exercise prior to that.

Bristol is a hilly city and it isn't possible to go very far without a steep hill to climb and Brandon Hill is no exception. I was really puffed out by the time I got to the top as my cells are probably not repaired from their last onslaught of chemo. However it is possible to look out all over the city and the views are amazing. What a pity that there are alterations going on and scaffolding and builders equipment lying around.

It was lovely to see the blossom on the trees, though.

On Easter Monday we went to Birmingham to see the grand sons' other nanny and I really enjoyed the visit very much. I came back with a little plant for my garden and with inspiration to do some charity knitting that the other nanny is doing. Of course if I do this, then I will have to send the knitted things to her because I can't find anything similar in Bristol.

Today everyone will be going home and it will be just the two of is again. I shall miss the company and commotion very much but I shall have heaps of washing to do and it won't be long till next Tuesday when I have to have my next chemo session if I am well enough. It comes round so quickly.............. sigh.

Happy Easter Everyone

Photos Copyright: Maggie May

In my last post, I wrote that Harry and I would be going to Church on Good Friday, that is if you waded through my froggy encounter first.

I wrote about collections of miniature crosses and the fact that a friend of mine had made me a lovely model of one, hand crafted out of stained glass and held together with lead and soldering, just like the church windows of old, in a tiny sort of way.

I am writing this after just coming back from The Good Friday Service and our church was decorated with these displays, so it was no surprise to me, to learn that most of the time was spent emphasising The Cross and how Jesus died for me........ and for you too. Forgive me if you are not Christian........ I am not stuffing this down your throat, just telling you of my interpretation of the Good Friday service and the service that will be so different on Easter Sunday.

So during this morning's service, we were invited to come to the front of the church, where there were two baskets of tiny wooden crosses...... each one of them skilfully carved out of a chunk of wood by some one somewhere, unknown to me.

By taking a cross we would have a lasting reminder of the sacrifice Jesus made for us.

When I got home, I wondered if I would have enough crosses of my own to illustrate this post (as I like to use my own photos.) My glass cross will still be on display in church until Sunday when I can collect it. So off I went for a little search about the house and I found a suitable Easter card, a couple of crosses on chains, a letter opener in the shape of a sword that is still a cross, an earring, a minute bible with a cross on it, as well as the tiny wooden cross that I was given today.

I also have my celtic cross on the wall in the garden.

So I am constantly reminded of the message from this morning, but I really didn't need the reminders because the message is in my heart.

There are no bodies on our crosses because the whole point of the cross is.......... that Jesus didn't stay on it, but was put in a tomb and on the third day he rose again, so the Easter Sunday service will be a joyous affair.

There folks....... that is the whole point of Easter but we can also celebrate our rabbits and fluffy lambs and chicks and the chocolate eggs as they all are symbolic of new life.

Which leads me to say, I hope you all have a very Happy Easter, whatever your persuasion of faith or belief.

Lets hope the weather is dry and sunny and that we can all enjoy Springtime at its best.

Definitely my favourite time of the year.

Mystery of the Hidden Eggs

I know it has been Easter and people expect to see all sorts of chocolate eggs about but I have had a mystery in my garden and so far *it* has happened twice!

Not far from here, I was pottering in my garden and I noticed that there had been some disturbance in a pot of chives! Looked like an animal had scraped some of the soil off the top of the pot and had thrown it on the patio. There was a little mound on the edge of the pot and I dug my hand in, hoping it wasn't cat's mess and found an egg! It could have been laid by a bird but it was a brown hen's egg and to make matters worse, there was a sell by stamp on the side of it! I know what you are all thinking. It's a joke! The family are playing a prank on Maggie May!

Well let me tell you, it isn't a joke. I had watered that pot of chives the night before and there was no sign of the egg then. My son and family were on the south coast having a break and although my older grandsons had been here one of the weekends previously, the eldest has an aversion to eggs and certainly wouldn't handle them (one of his autistic traits) and the younger one could never have kept a secret like that. Besides....... no one has been outside the back door but me because of the nesting wrens.

My daughter would have thought it was a waste of an egg and I would have set her off laughing when she saw my puzzled expression if it had been her, so I know it had nothing to do with Deb.

Harry is as mystified as I am and he really isn't good at jokes. What you see in him is what you get..... he couldn't have anything to do with it I am one hundred per cent sure. So my family has been ruled out!

My garden is fairly secure though I suppose anyone could get in anywhere if they really wanted to.

The first time it happened was some weeks ago when I noticed an egg in the gravel by the side of the kitchen, following the underpinning work. It was sucked down tightly into the wet gravel and when I prised it out, it broke. That was also a brown hen's egg with a stamp on the side of the shell.

So it looks like an animal deposited the eggs. What could it be, do you think?

Could a cat have carried one without breaking it? Could a squirrel or a rat? A magpie? A fox?

If they could, why would they do it? Why not eat the eggs? Where did they come from?

All you people who live in exotic places, need not tell me it was a raccoon or a posssum or anything that we don't get here. I want to know what British animal could have done this?

Any ideas gratefully received and it really is not a joke!

In case any of you are wondering why I have a photo of pansies and not chives, well it is raining today and I already had a picture of my pansies but not of chives! Saved me getting wet and I am also a little scared of going out and finding another egg!

Not sure why but my Blogroll gadget didn't show up my last post The Main Attraction on anyone's blog.

Easter Greetings

Happy Easter Everyone.

No matter what Easter means to you, whether it is just a time to relax on holiday, Easter bunnies, flowers and chocolate, or whether you are celebrating the fact that Jesus died for you and rose again ....... may you have a peaceful and happy time.

This post was scheduled to publish itself while I am away on holiday, visiting my daughter on the east coast. We shall be back on Tuesday 14th. She probably has no internet as she is switching her broadband company so will have a lot of catching up to do when I get back!