The Gruffalo

Jackie spent this pleasantly sunny morning completing a line of granite setts edging the lawn. I carried a few down from the back drive, so I know how heavy they were.

Here is the work in progress;

and here, the completed job, and finally the semi-circle around the gazebo planted up. The penultimate image offers Where’s Jackie? (9)

Danni and Ella came to lunch, which, as the wind was becoming furious, we ate inside. This included a birthday cake Danni had brought for me along with a good bottle of Barolo, and a card containing drawings of monsters by Ella. Because Danni had been pinged by Track and Trace they had been isolating on the actual date.

As usual, Ella made a beeline for her toys and was soon

reading a book with sound effects on the sofa with her mother.

Then, phone in hand, she demonstrated that she has begun to pose when a camera is trained on her.

After lunch we watched

on BBC iPlayer.

Our great-niece has reached the bossy stage, so adults in turn were led off “to school” in the library. She has a few older friends who are already attending school and would like to join them. This is perhaps the next best thing.

Elizabeth had joined us after lunch and was given a tour of the garden by her granddaughter. GeeMa, as the grandmother is known, and I were in turn sent off to replenish the duck irrigator as Ella watered flowers and replenished the fountain standing in the Rose Garden beside rose Twice in a Blue Moon which had been given to us by Becky for the Anniversary of our second wedding. Lady Emma Hamilton rose and very tall sweetly scented lilies are also blooming well.

Neither Ella nor GeeMa was permitted a peaceful rest because they were being chased around by “a big pile of poo”.

Eventually the windspeed escalated enough to start blowing things over and smashing them, so we were forced to take the normal battening down the hatches precautions – somewhat late.

Our visitors left at about 4.30 and Ella, who had refused to say goodbye, was asleep before reaching Pennington.

This evening we dined on our second helpings of Red Chilli takeaway food with which Jackie drank more of the rosé and I drank Recital Languedoc Montpéroux 2018