So long our little Fred ....

Hello to all

This has been another very busy week but also a very sad one.  My regular blog visitors will be well acquainted with the antics of our two Lionhead house rabbits from their regular appearances on the blog.  Bunnies are definitely not just for Easter

This Wednesday night our Fred (the black rabbit) took ill & the daughters & I rushed him to the emergency vets with breathing problems but he passed away in their arms en route.

What a massive shock - we knew he was getting older at nearly 7 years, but were unprepared for his sudden death.   We did the only sensible thing & brought our Fred back to be in the garden he so loved to run around in.

Our Fred came to us to share our home with Vivaldi who came back from university with the daughter. Their story is told here

The rescue advert for our Fred was this:

and what a sweet little boy he was with our Vivaldi ...

Cuddling up

Spending a few days in an animal kennel when we moved - not impressed

Cuddled up on the lawn - gardens are fabulous bunny places

 exploring & getting up to antics by hiding in the bushes & eating the plants

 Mmmm bamboo shoots - our favourite

Stretching their legs

Always loving being outdoors with us

Their favourite garden places

Our two had regular bunny fights too - both too dominant & both too stubborn so for a time they have had to be 'together but apart' due to their scraps & huge vet bills for scraping. But they both had huge car-size runs in the garage with one always in & one always out to run around only. We would always find them lying side by side but without the run, they would have 'words' with each other ....

Just this past week, they were getting on well with supervised time on the kitchen carpet while we cooked & we were hopeful that they could be completely together again  but it was not to be.

 This is how we will always think of our gorgeous Fred

Curious & mischivious  …..

wilful … 'no, I am not getting off the white sofa .....'

loving …..

 energetic ....

handsome ....

trusting ....

and one of a pair of very loved bunnies. 

Vivaldi sniffed her Fred to say goodbye & now she is mourning too as many rabbit sites say they can. She has spent her day on Fred's red towel, hardly moving & she cuddled into my neck & sat with me for ages today. I will have to keep an eye on my girl as she has not been alone for 6 years ...

For those not familiar with house bunnies, they can live in very close contact as ours have done; having the full run of a double garage & scratching to come in to the house as soon as they hear us about so they can share our space & our lives.  They have great personalities & happily engage with people. They can also live for anything up to 10 years so is not a responsibility to be taken on lightly ....

Fred, our handsome lad, binky / jump about freely & thanks for wonderful memories!

Dee ~♥~

You are invited to ....

How things have changed over the last 100 years re wedding invitations. Modern weddings have changed from what used to be quite modest family affairs.

While visiting family, I browsed some very old photos and came across these old wedding initiations which were smaller than a modern day iphone.

The printing was beautifully done with embossed raised detail & cut out shapes.

All three invitations together - modest yet striking

It was very interesting to look back over changes in just the last 100 years.

Thanks for taking the time to leave a comment so I know you have visited my blog
Dee ~♥~

Black & white wedding photos

Hi all

I shared some of the beautiful Shropshire wedding photos I recently did

The lovely bride asked for some to be in black & white & I fully agree with her. As lovely as colour photos are, there is just something so beautiful about black & white images - perhaps it is our nostalgia that makes them so appealing or perhaps it is because the details are so lovely in the monotone.

These are some of the black & white images

Some thing's are definitely more powerful in black & white. Do you like old images?

Thanks for stopping by, I always love to read your comments
Dee ~♥~

The garden needs some attention ....

Hi all

I cannot believe that I have not updated in almost a month, but like buses, too many things come along at once & unfortunately the blog has been neglected while I catch up with other things.

After a very wet Spring, Summer is almost here ...

The garden has suddenly gone from bare to overgrown so it has needed some work to bridge the gap between Winter & Summer

The bird feeder has been given a tidy up & I realise that it need replacing with something a little studier ....

The purple alliums always come into their own  - the tall ball structures are striking when little else is out ...

Our house rose is now almost at the second set of windows - covered in highly scented blooms that are very pretty against the brick wall

The chimnea has had a coat of black paint as it was looking tatty after winter & the garden shed / summer house has been smartened up with another coat of Country cream paint with grey trim.

The bird feeders on the opposite side have also been painted to brighten them up

I have repainted some of the garden stakes which were black. The lighter white paint makes them really stand out. The white Ikea lanterns look just right as well.

I had originally planned to have many more white garden plants but this is still a work in progress, however, while looking at the plants as evening fell, I was struck by how the white plants come into their own in fading light. I am determined to find some other white plants for the garden as I rather like their form in the evening.

Do you have any suggestions of ones that come into their own in poor light?

Thanks for stopping by & taking the time to leave a comment,
Dee ~♥~