Moments in May

Taking time to reflect on another month that’s flown by as we approach summer and the midpoint of the year.

As well as our weekly toddler sensory class, I’ve been alternating taking my daughter to softplay and the local playgroup on my midweek day off. We’ve become regulars at Kelvin Hall softplay, which recently reopened, and the little one especially loves thrashing around in the ball pool; though we also like the softplay at our local Dobbies, having finally joined the Dobbies club – something we should have done years ago if only for the discounts on plans, seeds and bulbs. There have also been family (and sometimes just daddy-daughter) swimming trips and it’s great to see how quickly our daughter has come on in just a few weeks. I felt like we missed out on a lot of experiences during the pandemic, but I’ve loved trying different activities together now that she’s a bit older.

Our cat, Mara, gave us a scare earlier this month, having another sudden bout of gastroenteritis. Fortunately the vomiting and diarrhoea passed quickly and we were able to get her to eat a little bit (thanks to cat soup and Dreamies) so she didn’t require veterinary treatment, and 72 hours later she was back to wolfing down her food and whining for treats too. It’s always scary how suddenly Mara can become unwell, and just as surprising how quickly she bounces back to health and her usual affectionate, playful self afterwards.

We had a trip to Finlaystone Country Estate taking a little wander around the gardens before rambling into the woods so our daughter could scramble around the wooden ship and all three of us had a fun on the swings together. The play areas are all very rustic but great for kids to play and explore.

We also visited Pollok Country Park, and had a brisk tour of the newly reopened Burrell Collection. There were lots of interactive and tactile displays to entertain the youngest visitors, and I thought embedding the old arches and windows into the new building was a lovely architectural feature. Afterwards we made our way across the fields to see the Highland cows.

There’s been lots of time in the garden too, chasing our daughter round as she squeals with laughter, tidying up the spaces where the new shed and greenhouse will go, and just gambling on good weather and planting the sunflower and courgette seedlings outside.

May has been another month where we haven’t travelled far or had any big excursions but it’s been a busy and fun-filled time nevertheless, making the most of the amenities nearby. Take care and have a lovely week. X

Windowsills and Shelves

We’ve reached that point of the year when I’ve run out of room on the windowsills as a mismatched collection of plant pots and trays jostle for space. There are courgette and sunflower seedlings, and a tray of lavatera and calendula seedlings that I started inside after the wildflower mix that I sowed in the flowerbeds were mown down by slugs and snails, and even a pot of grass for our housecat, Mara.

The seedlings that I started off inside may be safe from the usual garden pests, but Mara isn’t above taking a nibble out of any leaves in her vicinity, and I lost a whole tray of sweetpeas and a courgette seedling to a curious and over-enthusiastic toddler, then snapped another courgette seedling stem myself when I was repotting it.

May is usually a fair month, but the weather has actually been quite mixed, with some warm and sunny days, some showers, and a lot of cool, overcast days, and most of my seedlings have grown a bit leggy as they stretch and strain to reach the sun which has so often been hiding behind the clouds.

It’s been a few years since I’ve posted about our houseplants and there have been some new arrivals and at least as many departures since then. We currently have seven spider plants (by far the easiest houseplant to care for), six of which are descendents from the original plant, that produced so many spiderettes that I ended up giving them away to family, friends and work colleagues. We also have a string of hearts plant that is hopelessly tangled and coiled around itself to prevent the strings from tickling our heads when we sit on the couch underneath it, but it’s another low-maintenance favourite that I’d love to try propagating.

On the stair windowsill are two burros tail succulents, which are the succulents that I’ve had the most success at keeping alive (as all the echeveria have died off and I’ve no plans to replace them), though I also love the Purple Graptopetalum that I bought at a Cactus and Succulent Sale at the Botanic Gardens a couple of years ago and that I’ve recently had some luck at propagating from fallen leaves.

I do like having a house full of plants, but very much hoping that the weather improves soon so I can start hardening off the seedlings and plant them outside, but in the meantime I’ll continue tending them inside until they’re strong enough to survive the vagaries of Scottish weather. Have a lovely week. X

Springing Out of Hibernation

April is one of my favourite months as cherry blossoms swirl around like confetti in the breeze, tulips burst into flower, the weather (usually) improves and it finally feels like we’ve shaken off another winter.

The first week of April was spent alternatively caring for and entertaining a toddler with chicken pox who was quarantined from nursery, soft play, playdates and play groups. I tried my hand at few sensory activities such as dying dried chickpeas and making pink sand (a big hit but very messy!), and we also made lots of no-bake treats like chocolate rice krispie cakes and rocky road, both easy enough that the little one could get involved with pouring and mixing the ingredients (and licking the spoon afterwards).

Then it was back to nursery, sensory group (just in time for the Easter party) and family swimming trips. We’ve also been going out for walks after dinner, and it really feels like we’re springing out of hibernation after a long, dreary winter.

We had an egg hunt in the garden for the little one at Easter, with eggs that I’d painted and a few mini chocolate eggs too. Our daughter probably got enough chocolate from her grandparents and our neighbours to last her to the end of the year.

We’ve been busy in the garden too. My father-in-law helped us moved one of the square raised beds into the back corner, a slightly shady area which we’ve struggled to fill with anything other than weeds. I treated myself to another climbing rose, James Galway, to fill the back fence alongside Crown Princess Margareta, which is already very well established. Our daughter helped me scatter wildflower seeds in the raised beds, and I’ve started off some sunflowers on the windowsill. I was very excited to see flowers on the plum tree and two of our four apple trees. My husband also found a greenhouse on gumtree, it’s a bit bigger than I had in mind but too good value to turn down.

Even though the garden is only just getting started, it’s been great to spend so much time outside pottering around, a real tonic for the mind and body. Already there are busy bees bumbling, ladybirds and even a couple of butterflies flitting around the garden – but most exciting of all is the return of the hedgehogs in the evening, we’ve counted three so far, and we’ve been leaving cat food out for them. I’m always slightly surprised and delighted by how much wildlife there is to be found in an urban environment and we try to make our garden as wildlife friendly as possible to support it.

We haven’t ventured too far from home lately, but it’s been a lovely month full of picnics and playdates at the park, and lots of fun in the garden. Have a lovely week. X