Wednesday, 12.12.12

I'm finding it hard to believe that a week ago today we were on our way back from visiting Gerd on his birthday - fond memories of that day always.  It was Annie's birthday yesterday - she was very happy with her  "hare"  -

and tomorrow is my friend Petra's birthday, belated and early birthday wishes to both!  Also remembering my sister-in-law Shirley's birthday today.

Yesterday was a sunny cold day until the early afternoon when it turned very foggy:

That fog was still there when we drove to Ibstock for Luncheon Club duty this morning, and it had frozen to all the branches and twigs of the trees making them look wonderfully pretty and magical.  I hadn't got the camera with me, so after we got back home I took it out in expectation to take lots of pictures of beautiful, frosty trees, something like this photo from years ago:




But the trees all around our garden and field were nothing like the ones we'd seen on our drive home, it must be because we live "in a hole" here.  The frostiest pictures I managed were these:

The ducks were all hanging around the big pond, as usual, they seem happiest spending nearly all their time there and just coming up to the house for food and at 4 to go to bed.  After we've broken up the ice on the pond they seem to melt most of it during the day by their activities in the water.

       

On my way back to the house I thought the wild, attacking rose looked very pretty, and then I could see cat Lucy rolling around on the icy ground - she got up quick and went off when she saw me:

Some of our lovely ducks are still laying, especially the new girls as well as Billie-Jean and Gertie.  This morning I found EIGHT eggs in their hut, and there are only SIX girls in there - two little learner eggs must have been hidden in the bedding since yesterday: