G'day, folks.
It's now officially spring here but in reality, it's been spring for a few weeks. We woke one day to heatwave temperatures and winter was swept away overnight. We still have cool evenings, sometimes the occasional cold one, but the perfumes of spring are everywhere now. The jasmine can sometimes get fooled into an early flowering, but only if it stays warm enough, does the wisteria bloom as well, it's scent mingling with the jasmine and peach blossom.
I walk outside my back door now and the paving is warm under my bare feet, and the perfume of the jasmine & wisteria is filling the air. We also have a weedy tree (a pest plant) which looks scrubby but has the most amazing orange blossom scent. It'sadding to the mix.
Sharon/LDM, I hope you still get some warm summery weather for you, a while longer. Winter will hang around long enough.
Sharon/WO, I'm glad your first week back was enjoyable for you. Enjoy your movie marathon day.
Stang, my mother used to make grape jam. It tasted a lot like plum jam but she never sieved out the seeds, so I hated it for that reason. It tasted great, but I hated biting into seeds unexpectedly.
For bottling things like jams & chutneys, I use old glass jars that had mayonnaise or other things in them, as long as they have a pop-top lid. You know, the ones with the sort of flat bubble that only pops up when you open the jar? I pour the jam into the sterilised jar while the mix is boiling hot, then tighten the lid down (I have to use hot mitts often) and as the jam cools, the contraction of air insude pulls the pop-top back down. I can then keep the jars of whatever in the cupboard for years.
TM, I hope you have a good repellent for the mozzies.
Linda, sounds like you have a very full day, and undoubtedly an emotionally draining one as well.
We had a busy day today - difficult child 3's fortnightly therapist appointment in near the university which is near enough to difficult child 3's school. So we arrange to meet with teachers on these days. Today difficult child 3 had a lesson with his computers teacher. Plus the schools IT technician put a 'spare' CD ROM RW drive into difficult child 3's easy child we brought in, to see if they could help load a system upgrade into. It's late-ish now, difficult child 3 is working on his now-upgraded computer and trying to load the new software, using a now-functional CD drive.
I met with the Science teacher and collected the next topic of work. In between all of this I sat comfortably in the library and read a book. We left the school in time to rush to the therapist, then after that we dropped in on husband. He had some large glass jars for me, with screwtop plastic lids.
Because I am going to bottle stuff too. I'm going to bottle some Moroccan salted lemons so I can give some to friends for Christmas. I've been finding thta packaging them off into smaller jars is tricky, especailly while the lemons are firm and fresh. To bottle theswe things you need to really squash them into the jars and they're just too fresh to squash down much. So we figured - use big jars, it's easier to pack the lemons in with less air space (because that air space has to be filled with lemon juice).
On the way home we stopped at the mall and did a little grocery shopping. Lemons are cheap at the moment so I bought several dozen of them. I was gonig to begin preparing them tonight but I'm absolutly exhausted (despite my relaxed morning reading in the library).
Meanwhile my good friend who is sewing cravats for the groomsmen in the bridal party, said she needs more thread, and also more red satin. So I sent difficult child 3 down to his sister's (easy child 2/difficult child 2) who was in the process of fitting her sister in law with her bridesmaid's dress, to collect some swatches of fabric and also to deliver a small pillar candle she asked for (to seal the edges of ribbons and fabric). She didn't send back the correct swatches, so I had to rely on difficult child 3's brilliant visual memory. HE chose the thread for me. Thankfully I did have a swatch of the red satin so I was able to match it and buy more.
After all that - we got back in time for difficult child 3 to be dropped straight off to his tennis training, only about half an hour late.
I think I have a fairly free weekend. Of course, it has filled up, but not with anything too formal or too far away. difficult child 3's tennis coach has offered him a job cleaning second hand bricks. We're driving over tomorrow to have a look and to see if difficult child 3 is up to the job. The coach lives in the same street as my other good friend. Then I have to at some stage drop in on my friend sewing the cravats, and take more fabric to her (the purple) and perhaps show her the 'mother of the bride' dress we got on Tuesday.
Sunday is open day for local artists again and with nothing else planned (apart from church) I can relax and enjoy.
It could be the last time for a while - the wedding is in four weeks, exactly.
Enjoy your Friday, everyone. I'm heading to bed for an early night.
Marg
We made it to Friday - although I wish I wasn't up so early....
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