Yesterday

The weather forecast for yesterday was dry all day, ...

 ... but looking at the dark clouds at 10am I'm not so sure!

 Forever hungry chicks outside the hatch!

 Surprise, surprise - it did stay dry and sunny all day albeit with a chilly wind ...

 ... and a stunning sunset just after 9pm.

We're watching the Diamond Jubilee Concert on BBC and have pinched these pictures ...

 Gary Barlow's new single 'Sing' sung by singers from all over the Commonwealth - fantastic -over 200 people on the stage here...

... and apparently about 20,000 in the audience - this is Sir Paul McCartney finishing the concert.  You should also be able to see the backs of Sir Cliff, Robbie Williams, Shirley Bassey, Annie Lennox, Tom Jones, Sir Elton, etc

 Gary Barlow escorts the Queen and the Duchess of Cornwall ...

... to the stage ...

 ... where Prince Charles gives rather a witty commemoration to his mum ...

 ... who is trying very hard not to lol (laugh out load)!

Paul will be 70 this month! Unbelievable!

 The Queen lights the first Jubilee Beacon ...

... so I take a look out of the window but can only see the moon rising - lovely sight at 22:45!

 And then the pyrotechnics start ...

 ... and the VIP’s are impressed ...

 ... coooo ...

 ... stunning!

What a fabulous concert, absolutely superb!

The Jubilee Beacon at Largs, North Ayrshire sent by my daughter Sharon at 22:15 last night - she also reported that she could see the beacon on Arran too - marvellous!

Says I - God Bless the Queen and long may she reign.

Narrowboats on the Thames

We've spent a lovely afternoon watching the telly - from where these pictures were taken ...

 The inspiration for the Diamond Jubilee celebration ...

 and the organisers interpretation ...

 The finale - The London Philharmonic were wonderful ...

 The Royals thoroughly enjoyed the rendition of the Sailers Hornpipe - bobbing up and down...

 ... as they sang in the rain ...

 ... and finally singing the anthem ...

... the family singing along - a tear jerking moment indeed.

Life between bridges 99 and 100

With another full tank of water, we left our mooring in Braunston and returned to the Oxford Canal between bridges 99 and 100 ...

 ... where we soon had our first visitors - mum and ten little ones and a quarrelsome 3-some. I had no bread so I tried them with crunchy nut cornflakes - they loved them - even the ducklings were chasing off the three interlopers away from their breakfast!

 Beautiful pink hawthorne ...

 ... and poppies growing along the verge ...

We winded (turned) on the way down to enable the 'other' side of RnR to be washed and polished and now we're nicely tucked in in front of bridge 100.

 We can see for miles and miles

 Boat traffic has been fairly light - one coming from bridge 99 ...

 ... and one from 100 ...

... who pass us by with hardly a ripple.

 I'm sure that someone out there can tell me what this is!

For me the day was just right - about 20 degrees C and overcast (George is wearing a lightweight fleece) as we sat out on the towpath for lunch and a read.  When it's hot (to me anyway) and sunny I use loads of factor 30; today we there was no sun, so therefore no sun cream - and I burned my arms and the back of my neck whilst we sat!  Will I never learn!!

This morning it's raining and chilly but we've plenty of jobs to get on with inside for the next few days. 

I've nearly finished the spring cleaning, all curtains washed and ironed, ceilings all washed and most of the walls too.  Winter stuff has been put away and the summer clothes ironed and hung up in the wardrobe.  Today I'm going to do some sewing - new cushion covers I'm thinking.