Magnolia in March

Most days on our walk, scoot, ride to school we pass a magnolia tree.

I love the fuzzy buds, protected from the dreary frost.

They look so soft, I want to pet them.

A few weeks on, and the buds drop their furry coats and the white petals peek out at the hint of spring.

A week or two after that and it is on like donkey kong.

That's right, spring has sprung, bitches!

Thoughtful

On the eve of the three year anniversary of my father's death, this amazing bouquet arrived. I was astonished and bewildered as to who might have sent it. I read the card which revealed what I might have guessed.

There is no one more thoughtful than you, Babette.

Michael's Parachute Homework

The 10th Doctor.

Dominic joined in the fun and needed some assistance to achieve the right altitude for launch.

 

Windrush

In March, when Mike was working in Amsterdam I took Ron Weasley and Harry Potter for a walk in the Windrush Valley in the Cotswolds.

First order of business: find sticks...

and transform them into wizards' wands.

The walk took us from the tiny village of Windrush to the equally tiny Little Barrington, then to eat at the Fox Inn, and back to Windrush.

Little did I know our path actually led us straight to Azkaban, the infamous wizard prison...

and then to the Leaky Cauldron where Harry and Ron enjoyed hearty plates of sausage and mash and fish and chips.

We happened upon a Womping Willow...

Little Barrington

Solution for a chilly boy.

Surprise!

and another Womping Willow.

The Victorian Genius

Another dream to come true, worshipping at the altar of Beatrix Potter. What a woman!

She bought a farm in the Lake District town of Far Sawrey. We tried to drive up from the south end of Lake Windermere, very tricky and car sickness inducing.

It is remarkable how few signs there are to lead tourists to her home.

The town of Far Sawrey

This is part of her property.

It took us so long to find Hilltop Farm we decided to hold off until the next morning.

It is a super place to visit!! She ordered the preservation and presentation of her home. In every room there are lovely, kind, helpful, enthusiastic folks ready to tell stories about her and to show the real life inspirations for some of her stories.

The boys really enjoyed it.

Hilltop is still a working farm.

Trying William's trick.

Beatrix Potter Heelis bred and raised Herdwick sheep, the indigenous fell sheep, soon after acquiring Hill Top Farm. In 1923 she bought a former deer park and vast sheep farm in the Troutbeck Valley called Troutbeck Park Farm, restoring its land, its thousands of Herdwick sheep, and establishing her as one of the major Herdwick sheep farmers in the area. She was admired by her shepherds and farm managers for her willingness to experiment with the latest biological remedies for the common diseases of sheep, and for her employment of the best shepherds, sheep breeders, and farm managers. Wikipedia

By the late 1920s Potter and her Hill Top farm manager Tom Storey had made a name for their prize-winning Herdwick flock. As a Herdwick breeder she won many prizes at the local agricultural shows and was frequently asked to serve as a judge. In 1942 she was named President-elect of The Herdwick Sheepbreeders’ Association, the first time a woman had ever been elected to that office, but died before taking office. Wikipedia

There are small guidebooks for purchase at the entrance printed in only two languages, English and Japanese.

On our way home from the Lake District, we drove past Longton...frighteningly ugly.

Michael, inspired by Miss Potter