Spring has Sprung

At last it feels as if Spring has actually come. We were actually able to sit out in the garden Tues afternoon for a cup of tea although the wind was still a bit cold. However the cold wind has disappeared at last and hurrah! it's actually been warm at times today although showery.

I love this time of year and there's just a day or two when all the willow catkins are out so that the trees look positively golden. I was out the other morning and the swans who live on our stretch of the canal were performing their elaborate courtship ritual but typically I didn't have the camera and of course by the time I'd dashed in the house and got it they'd decided they'd had enough and were getting off the water and settling themselves on the bank.

One of the advantages of taking leave and being at home is that I actually get to enjoy the house, garden and having time to do things like bake. We're going off to Cornwall for a week tomorrow and a holdiay tradition we have is that I bake a cake to take along. When you're doing a decent walk there's nothing like a hot drink and piece of cake to give you that extra bit of energy when you're flagging. I tried a new recipe for an apple cake today and was so pleased with the result.

I just hope it tastes as good as it looks. I'm sure the cat already knows we're going away and he's going to be abandoned for the week - well not really. A work colleague is coming in to feed him, for some reason he really likes her and the feeling is mutual so he'll get lots of fuss.

I was hoping to have heard from my SP before I left and am getting a little worried since I haven't heard anything since early/mid March when my 2nd package arrived. From reading other blogs a couple of the participants are going through rough patches so there's always the possibility that my upstream SP could be one of those. On the other hand having been let down in the Holiday SP round it almost feels as if history is repeating itself. However I've been very lucky in having fantastic downstream SPs and the two packages I have received have been great. I'll just wait until I'm back.

I'd better get to bed, been really busy today, cleaning, cooking, packing etc etc and I'm like a kid when I'm going away - I'll be up and around at some ridiculous time in the morning.