01/01/2022 Happy New Year

 The maximum temperature here today is 15C, minimum 9⁰C. Blue skies but with quite a lot of clouds. Wind 16km/h South-Easterly winds with gusts up to 30 km/h.  Dry at present but rain is forecast from tomorrow for the rest of the week.  Thursday morning we measured 46mm overnight!

Some more recent photos, eventually I will get back to all the photos that I have not had time to edit from last year!!

Watching France see the New Year in on TV at Chantilly last night.

A bit of Christmas cheer amongst the potplants.

Friends who could not travel to the UK at the last minute, because of COVID, joined us for Christmas dinner so the table was laid for four.  

The two of us on Christmas day.

27/12/21 a tough rose hanging on in winter.

30/12/21 Top : Viburnum tinus and cotoneaster berries.
Bottom : Calendula and another surviving rose that amazes me.
The centre tree is a Ginkgo biloba,

31/12/21 Calendula.

I think this is one of the Blackbird (Turdus merula) youngsters being bombed by a chaffinch!

European robin (Erithacus rubecula).

The last sunset of 2021

Take care everybody, keep well and please stay safe in these difficult times.

My local list of wildflowers. (91 Species 02/12/2021).

See also my

 Bird blog

Joining up with My Corner of the World. 

16/12/2018 Happy Christmas

Maximum temperature today 12C, minimum 6C (we had -2C yesterday).  11mm rain measured this morning; 29km/h South-westerly winds 15 km/h with gusts up to 39 km/h.   

Total rain so far this year of 987mm. Last years total rain for the year was 739 mm!  We will miss the next two weeks of rainfall but I am sure it is going to be well over 1000mm for this year.

Photos through the year that were some of my favourites.  

January -Early lambs.

February - Great tit (Parus major).

March - Japanese quince blossom

April - Tulip.

May - Dragonfly (Broad-body Chaser) on the sage.

June - Common Wall Lizard (podarcis muralis).

July - Dragonfly - Scarlet Darter.

August - Californian poppy and hoverfly.

September - A Common Blue butterfly that took a liking to Nigel.

October - Cosmos and bumble bee.

November - Sunset.

December - European robin (Erithacus rubecula).

I would like to wish all my followers who celebrate Christmas the very best over the holidays!

We are away as from tomorrow until the beginning of February.  If I have time to take photos and also blog I will, but I have my doubts, meanwhile...

Take care everyone; see you all after the holidays

Joyeux Noel

Happy Christmas 

Gesëende Kersfees

Nginifisela inhlanhla ne mpumelelo e nyakeni

Nadolig Llawen

Nollaig Shona Dhuit

Nollaig Chridheil agus Bliadhna Mhath Ur

Buone Feste Natalizie

Feliz Natal

Feliz Navidad!

God Jul and (Och) Ett Gott Nytt Ar

Kung His Hsin Nien bing Chu Shen Tan

 Gun Tso Sun Tan'Gung Haw Sun

 Kung Ho Hsin Hsi. Ching Chi Shen Tan

Shinnen omedeto. Kurisumasu Omedeto

Sawadee Pee Mai

Gajan Kristnaskon

Froehliche Weihnachten

Kala Christouyenna!

Mo'adim Lesimkha. Chena tova.

สุขสันต์วันหยุด

Selamat bercuti.

节日快乐

I am sure that I have omitted many languages, but I have tried :)

I have updated my bird blog HERE.

07/12/2018 This and that!

Maximum temperature today 12C, minimum 6C.  5mm rain measured this morning and it is still raining; 29km/h North-westerly winds gusting up to 69 km/h.   

Total so far this year of 964mm. Last years total rain for the year was 739 mm!

Autumn colours in the next hamlet to us...

and a little further down the road.

The shop windows in Intermarche supermarket...

as above.

Back home in the garden, a wet calendula...

and berries on the Cotoneaster.

'Our' Red-legged partridge (Alectoris rufa) is still around...

I first saw it on 8 November and it has been around ever since.  It waits under the cherry tree in the mornings for me to go out and feed the birds. What a pleasure.

I have updated my bird blog HERE.

03/12/2018 The daily diary has almost become the weekly diary, but there is not a lot to take daily photos of!!

Maximum temperature today 15C, minimum 11C.  36mm rain measured this morning and it is still raining; 27km/h North-westerly winds gusting up to 61 km/h.   

In the last two days, we have had 51 mm of rain, and a total so far this year of 935mm despite having had one of our driest ever summers.  Last years total rain for the year was 739 mm!

Christmas in France only arrives in December, not like so many places that seem to start decorating in October - Our local supermarket with animated bears.

I saw this in a shop window in our local town...

This was in the next door window, inverted coffee and tea plastic mugs, very clever I thought.

The Mairie (Mayor's office) in Chasseneuil.

Choisya ternata, taken through the window in the rain...

Hydrangea in the rain

This morning's drive to the Physio for my back in the rain and mist, trying to get a shot of autumn colours...

As above.  Sadly this is my last visit, she is returning to the UK at the end of this month and there is nobody else in France who does the same spinal work as she does 😒. 

Peekaboo, I see you... Red-legged Partridge (Electorus rufa)...

The Owl and the Pussycat Partridge. 

House Sparrow (Passer domesticus), Female.

Common Blackbird (Turdus merula).

European robin (Erithacus rubecula).

House Sparrow (Passer domesticus), Male.

I have updated my bird blog HERE.

25/12/2017 Happy Christmas and one of my all time most interesting photos.

Minimum 8C, Maximum 11C.  As I type this we are having very heavy rain and strong winds.

Looking across the hills of Wiltshire driving to lunch...

As above...

As above.

Waggon and Horses.

Interesting info about the pub.

Inside.

As above

FIL, Leonard (96) and Nigel

and FIL with myself.

A chattering or murmuration of Starlings

Driving home I got what I think was my most interesting shot of the day. Literally a drive by shot out of the side window of the car. I have never seen so many starlings and consider myself very lucky to have got the camera ready in seconds.

Loving having your comments but I will only get back to replying when we get home in January 😊