The Easter Bunny says Boo!

Dahlings how are you? Feeling a bit sick? No, I agree, it couldn't have been the large Easter egg, it was definitely the side salad that was a smidge too far..

Here I have been looking after my neighbour's rabbit. A rabbit! Over Easter!  See what a happening kinda person I am!

I was totally the right person for the job:

I've seen Fatal Attraction few times.

I have this suspiciously soft furry jacket*.

And I have this useful bunny care manual.

I propped it up and changed the pages each day, to keep bunny amused.


Bunny was very cute.

Also smart - this is her reaction when she first saw me.

Bye bye Bunny, it was nice to meet you and remember, if you can't see your food bowl, it's probably because you have your hind legs in it...

In other news, I have set up a tweet gizmo at the side of this blog.  Don't miss my profound insights on life and retweets of stuff that makes me laugh. Yep, Blighty, at the cutting edge of technology, five years later...


*Relax, it's faux fur!

Summer Washout

After tantalising us with one week of tropical goodness (sunburnt shoulders from coffee date at garden centre, I live on the edge) the weather here has gone completely to pot - cold, rainy, windy....blaaaaah.

The pond has returned to the road, but this time I have to report that Mrs Mallard , single mother, is no longer in residence.  She valiantly sat on her eggs day and night for about 4 weeks, only leaving occasionally to eat out (she spurned my offerings of water and lettuce which is apparently what you should give ducks - I had a lovely chat with the Protection of Birds lady).  I had cardboard boxes ready to transport Mama Duck and chicks to local pond.   A bit like having your bag ready for the hospital.

Then one morning Ma and the eggs were gone - they appeared to have hatched - so I guess she marched them off in the early hours herself.  I really hope they got there safely.  Mama Duck had plenty of time to observe my skills at getting Boys 1 and 2 out of the door, so probably decided she had better get on with it herself, without letting an amateur in troop movements intervene. Wise old bird.

I do miss her, I got used to peeking at her every time I left and returned to the house.  Should I be worried that my most important emotional attachment recently was to a duck? Don't answer that.

Here's video of a duck rescue.

In other news, before I went to Paris (did I mention I went to Paris?) I had a little scoot round the old Happy Valleys Shoppe Centre .

Silk dress by  French Connection, made me feel cold just looking at it

French Connection

Brrrrr, not warm enough for these

Loved the navy sequined jumper - Whistles

Whistles

Hobbs - loved this on the mannequin

NW3 - younger sister brand of Hobbs

NW3

 Snuck into changing rooms to play dress up. Noooo,  I look like a deckchair

Hobbs

NW3

NW3

All about NW3 here.  I liked these dresses but with the navy one priced at £99 I resisted temptation, back in the day you could get that sort of look at TopShop for a lot less, of course now Toppers has gone all micro mini and frilly...
Anyway, enough of dresses, the only sensible attire right now is raincoat and wellies..and possibly waders for visiting ducks..

Raining Cats and Ducks

Oh me poor pansies!

Dahlings, as those of you in the UK know only too well, it has been raining and raining here.  A Lot.
We had the highest rainfall in April since records began in 1068* and May is no less damp.

Do you remember Miss Smilla's Feeling For Snow, where it mentions that the Inuits have numerous distinct words for different kinds of snow?




I wonder whether we shouldn't come up with similar, for rain.  How about:

•  piffdown
•  damplateral
•  drenchlette
•  moistler
•  blurge

No, I give up, it's too depressing.  What do you suggest? Bet you can come up with better! Come on Linda in Chile, you are brilliant at this kind of thing!

All this rain is confusing the local flora and fauna:  a temporary pond develops now and again on the road opposite our house and ducks have been swimming in it, happily oblivious to the schoolrun mothers in their 4x4s hurtling by.

The other day in a fit of "bad conscience" gardening I was hacking away at the overgrown shrubs outside our front door and found a nest, with big white eggs in it. The next day I peered in at the nest to find a Mama Duck peering out at me.

Mama

I must admit to feeling rather anxious about it all - I checked up the old interweb (ha, ha) : Mr Mallard leaves Mrs Mallard once she is sitting on the eggs and goes off to find a new mate.  I just knew he was a cad and a bounder, with his green silken cravat, very flash. 




Cad and bounder

So poor single mother, coping all on her own.  She has to sit there for 28 days, and she is very steadfast, I have only seen the nest left once...(in fact I was a bit upset, I thought she had abandoned the nest and there was no sign of the eggs - does anyone know if she would have buried the eggs deep within the nest?? or do I have a tragic phantom egg situation?)

My biggest worry is what will happen when/if the eggs hatch.  She needs to get the ducklings to water but there is no pond nearby at all...surely she can't have been fooled by the temporary road puddle??

Anyone out there who can advise - that would be most welcome.  From my research it seems one either interferes completely or leaves it alone and lets nature take its course - I am going for the latter, as I am sure Mama Duck knows better than me how to look after her offspring..

Anyway, I am hoping to hear the patter of tiny webbed feet soon.
I'll keep you posted.




*ok, I completely made that up. But it's my blog, so there.