August trip to MBG

Our August trip to MBG was a success.  The weather was absolutely perfect.  We got there early and had to wait for it to open!!!  Ben was smiling for once and it set Maggie off giggling, so I missed an opportunity for the perfect photo

The planters outside are absolutely beautiful.  Ben said "oh mum's taking photos already..."

We decided to walk around the opposite way to our usual way.  I found these planters close to the fountain at the entrance.  Mum would say they were nice, but just green!!!  Looking at mum's garden, I can see why she says you need colour

I have always loved this Chupungu statue

Ben, Maggie and I had a competition to take the perfect photo.  I thought this was pretty close

The lily pond was nice and quiet

This is the pond that the dry riverbed runs into

They are renovating the gatekeepers house and doing a fabulous job of it

They have planted the pincushion gardens with succulents instead of the huge plants they usually have in them-this is what they were originally designed to be

The flower borders around the observation tower are lovely this year-need to remember this combination

The Bavarian garden way at the back of the property is hardly ever visited.  Very few people venture back here.

Maggie and Arline posed outside the Bavarian house

We found this statue way, way at the back on the gardens, never been back there before

and there was a tribute to 9/11 back there too

Some of the trees are already starting to turn.  Tried to get an "artistic" photo with the different coloured leaves!!!!

Serenity garden with bridge in the background

Nice bulrushes in a pond in the Japanese garden.  I'm wondering if there would be enough water in our rain garden to support these

Maggie and Ben taking pictures of the bees on the zinnias

No idea what they were talking about here, but it was pretty intense!!!!

Additional trip to MBG

We went to the evening event at MBG last night.  I wanted to go because the Water Garden Society was sponsoring the event and I was hoping that I could get some advice about our rain garden.  There wasn't really anyone there to ask, but we had a great time anyway.

These plants were in a planter by the entrance, I love the little flowers on them

Maggie's water dragons are looking very nice with all the plants around them

I need to get some more hollyhocks for the garden, I love them

Arline's tree, with Sam

The water lilies have been beautiful this year

Very rare pictures of Ben smiling (and sitting on a mushroom!!)

They are both smiling!!!!

Ben took this picture of Maggie, she's lovely.....

Tom's 30th birthday party

Since mum was ill and couldn't go out to dinner, we brought Tom's 30th birthday dinner to mum.  Rhian and Georgie got an incredible amount of food, we would never have eaten it all if we'd been feasting for a week!!!!  Mum had a great time, and she looks really well and happy here, sitting with John

Marie (aka granny) with little Sophie, who managed to sleep through the majority of the party quite successfully

Rich looks very serious here!!!!

Tom and Rhian with dad

Tom and Georgie with dad

Tom and his women!!!!

Tom and me

Birthday cakes

Trip to England August 2016

Ben and I took a quick trip to England to see the family. I had warned him that it wouldn't be a holiday as such and that a lot of the time would be sitting around talking to people, but he insisted that he wanted to come with me.  I'm so glad that he came, I really needed him around for the company.  He was so excited about flying.  We flew to Newark and then on to Birmingham

Ben took this picture out of the window-flying above the clouds

Waiting in Newark for 4 hours before our Atlantic crossing

Ben developed a taste for English coffee

No trip to England would be complete without fish and chips from the local chip shop!!!!

Rich took Ben to see Forest play.  It was a good game-7 goals!!!!

Picture outside the pub

.....and one in the stands

Always got to get a few pictures of mum's beautiful garden

Ben went away with Marie and Co for a couple of days to Gloucestershire.  They went to a crocodile farm while they were there

We stayed with Rob and Teresa while we were there-they have more room than anyone else.  This is the view from their house-I had forgotten how much of the surrounding countryside you can see from their house

We went out for dinner with Marie and John.  Ben had fish and chips and then this yummy chocolate trio for dessert

John had a cheese plate-he looks very happy with it!!!

We spent a lot of time in hospitals.  Ben learned first hand the pluses and minuses of the NHS system!!!!

On our way back home-didn't waste any time getting our first Starbucks!!!!

First day of school, 2016

First day of school was a bust, the power went out during a storm in the night at our house and at the school.  School still opened as usual, they were hoping the power would be back on at 8, but they abandoned the day at 10:30 as still no power.  Ben and Maggie didn't go at all since we were one of the areas affected by the power outage.
So, first day of school started a day later than planned, but turned out to be successful.  Maggie complained about how boring it was ("all we do is sit there and work") and Ben raved about how he saw Ms Rahaman in the hallway and about the dress she wore!!!  Things are back to normal......