Company in the shed

This morning we had a visit from the son, his better half and my youngest grandson. They brought me a bunch of flowers, two mothers day cards, two boxes of chocolates and a mug that read "Well done Mum, I'm awesome".  This, as you will have guessed is an early present for Sunday.
After they left I went down to the shed, where I discovered I had some company.

A Shield Bug.

It was a very colourful and handsome looking Shield Bug. It had a wander round the shed before disappearing behind some plastic shelves on the wall.

The garden was quiet even though the sun was shining and it was quite warm. There were a few birds however the usual ones seemed to be missing. There was no sign of any Starlings, Sparrows or Blackbirds. I was pleased to see that the Goldfinches had dropped in, it is a while since I have seen them.

The Goldfinches sharing a feeder.

Looking out for trouble.

I am just so cute.

There is a Jackdaw that has started to sit up in the Sycamore tree watching the garden. When it gets the chance it swoops down and takes some food, if the greedy Magpies don't beat it.

The Jackdaw keeping a beady eye on the garden.

Mrs Squirrel came into the garden, she is looking extremely scruffy. I know she is losing her winter coat but I think she is pulling it out to line the drey with ready for the birth of her babies.

A very scruffy Mrs Squirrel.

However, she still seem's fit enough to fly around the garden when she see's me with the camera.

Flying Squirrel.

I think it's a piece of apple core she has in her mouth, it appears to be her favourite food at the moment.

Tooth update: -  today it is not too bad, the taste is not pleasant but extra strong polo mints help with that. The pain has certainly subsided a lot now the abscess is going. So all being well when I return to the dentist in a couple of weeks that hopefully will be the end of it.

We are keeping our fingers crossed for good weather a week tomorrow because the car boot sales at York racecourse begin again on April 1st and the first one is always worth a visit. So if you are anywhere near York and the weather is dry I recommend a visit. (no it is not an Aprils fool).

Until the next time...

Toothache part 3

Today I had to return to the dentist yet again! I could stand the pain no longer. My face had a slight swelling, the pain had reached up to my nose and under my eye, I had no choice I had to return.
I rang the dentist, who had no appointments, however, I was told to go in at 3 pm and sit and wait til I could be seen. Luckily I only had to wait 5 minutes. Mrs. Dentist asked me what the problem was, I explained that after the antibiotics the infection cleared up and everything seemed ok. Then my gum began to twinge and the tooth next to the one that was removed,(the one I think she broke) began to hurt. So she tapped the bottom of the tooth with a metal object. Did that hurt? she asked. After I lowered myself from the ceiling I gave her a stern look and through clenched teeth said yes just ever so slightly. I think you have an abscess under that tooth she said. We can try and save it with a root canal or we can take it out. As I only have one tooth at the back and two other teeth besides that one left at that side of my mouth I very bravely opted for the root canal. (Or was that stupidly, as it is not guaranteed to work). Mrs. Dentist numbed my gum again sending me up to the ceiling by injecting my gum exactly where the pain was. Then she drilled a hole into the back of the tooth to drain the abscess. She has left the hole open so the abscess can continue to drain, I have to wash my mouth out with warm salt water twice a day and suck on the tooth to encourage it to drain. Doesn't that all sound pleasant? When do I go back for the root canal? April 10th!!! I can't imagine how I am going to keep a hole in the back of a tooth clear of food, it looks like a soup diet for a couple of weeks.

Now for something a little more pleasant.

Mrs. Squirrel is pregnant again.

She was very cheeky when I caught her on the log eating the biscotti spread, she looked at me and stuck out her tongue.

A young male squirrel.

This little squirrel is very polite he say's grace before eating the food left out for him.

The school children are being very generous, they share their toys with the squirrels.

Blue Hoop & Red Hoop in the Sycamore Tree.

Space Hopper in a tree further down the playground.

The Starling looks very dapper.

This starling looks very dapper with his little flick on top of his head.

The Garden Snail.

The garden snails are everywhere in the garden at the moment. I thought this one looked quite nice on the wall, it must have taken it a while to climb up there.

Until the next time...

Toothache part 2

After having my tooth removed almost 4 weeks ago, today I had to return to the dentist.

I just could not stand the pain any longer, my gum was on fire and every so often a pain like electric shock tore through my jaw making me want to cry.

When I rang the dentist this morning I was told my usual dentist was not in today but I could see someone else. I agreed I would have seen the devil himself if it meant my pain would get taken care of. I was given an appointment at 2-15pm, I was there just after 2pm. (Tony stayed outside in the car I don't think he wanted to hear me scream !).

Mr Nicholson the dentist took a look and told me I should have been back at least two weeks earlier, he said he didn't know how I had put up with the pain as long as I had. He had to open my gum to put in some packing with some antiseptic to clean the wound because even though it was trying to heal it had become severely infected. I almost shot through the roof when he touched the gum. I left the dentist with a prescription for some strong antibiotics and a strong reminder that if after the five day course I was still in pain I must return straight away. 

I will be living on a diet of soup, porridge and rice pudding for the next five days.  I have not to go near the wound with my toothbrush or rinse out near the tooth and hardest of all I must not poke it with my tongue. Now we all know that's just impossible don't we?

The garden has been quite lively, the birds are all pairing up, there is a bit of wing waving beginning between the dunnocks. The robins are offering each other snacks, the blackbirds are showing off by dancing, oh and Mrs Squirrel is pregnant again.

The blue tits are going to be upset this year, the nest box they have nested in ever since we have lived here that was on the sycamore tree at the bottom of the garden just over the wall in the school yard has gone. The school caretaker has taken it down! We don't know why or really even when we just noticed over the weekend that it had gone!

I hope they find somewhere close to nest I should hate to lose them from the garden. We are going to put up a nest box in the hope they might nest in our garden, but there are so many cats I am not sure it will really be safe for them.

Until the next time ...