Sunday Sevens #63

It’s Sunday again! Time for a quick Sunday Sevens (devised by Natalie at Threads and Bobbins.)

Earth Hour:
Last night I observed the annual Earth Hour by WWF. For the past seven years I have joined in this world wide movement by turning off my lights between 8.30pm and 9.30pm. Did you take part in the initiative?

Earth Hour 2019

Winter – Ali Smith

Book I’m reading:
I’ve picked up Winter by Ali Smith. Have you read this book? What were your thoughts?

Flowers:
Inspired by the lovely Sharon from Sunshine and Celandines, who shared pictures of wild flowers she had seen on a recent dog walk. I decided to do the same and take some snaps of the flowers I see on my walk to work.

red deadnettle

rapseseed

forget me not

Daisy

Family walks:
This Sunday’s family walk with Riley was a 2.5 mile walk around a spring resplendent Sefton Park.

Eros

Sefton Park

Band Stand

Riley and daffodils

Riley and daffodils

#Walk1000miles:
My miles this week has been 39. Bringing my annual total to 550 miles.

New Friends:
On Tuesday David surprised me with two more friends for the aviary. Helen a female owl finch and Rize a female Lady Gouldian finch. How beautiful are they?

Helen the Owl Finch

Rize the Lady Gouldian Finch

That was my week, how was yours?
Thanks for reading,
Christine xx

Sunday Sevens #62

It’s Sunday! Time for a quick Sunday Sevens!

Aviary:

There’s good and bad news coming from the aviary today. On Thursday David and I welcomed two new friends. Star the star finch and Hero the bengalese finch, both have settled in well.

Star

Hero

R.I.P. Cox

This Sunday, after coming home from a walk, we discovered Cox our female owl finch had passed away. 😦 We hadn’t had her for more than two years. It was a shock!

RSPB Membership: 

On Friday David and I visited yet another RSPB reserve. This time we drove 1.5 hour to RSPB Conwy and spent three hours and four miles walking around the salt marshes and reed beds. We saw several new bird species, among them the curlew and red breasted merganser. We were also very lucky to see the very rare grey phalarope.

In the hide

Curlew

David on the broad walk

Periwinkle

Pony

red breasted merganser

Toads

Grey Phalarope

Family:

This weekend has been all about family. On Saturday we hosted a family meal and get together for birthdays and anniversaries. It was good fun!

Table

Family fun!

Sunday, David and I headed towards Lunt Meadows Nature Reserve. David’s brother, sister-in-law and nephew joined us for a six mile walk, with Riley in tow!

#Walk1000miles:

This week I became a Proclaimer and broke into my first 500 miles! My weekly total is 39 bringing my overall total to 510 miles. Here’s to the next 500!

So, that was my week, how was yours?

Thanks for reading,

Christine x

Sunday Sevens is a series devised by Natalie at Threads and Bobbins!

Sunday Sevens #61

I always love updating you all with a Sunday Sevens! It’s been a busy weekend, so here’s a quick update.

RSPB Membership:

David and I had a few days off work this week, so on Monday we headed towards RSPB Marshside near Southport for a few hours walking while overlooking hundreds of wading birds and gulls.

David

Wigeon

Avocets

Lapwing

Shelduck

We spotted a few species we hadn’t seen before, like the shelduck and wigeon.

Riley in the Lake District:

Tuesday dawned grey with heavy rain, however we decided to continue up the M6 towards the Lake District with Riley and my brother in tow. Our destination was Grizedale Forest. On our journey we were hampered by car crashes and flooded roads. The rain thankfully stopped when we arrived at Grizedale. We then spent the next four hours walking paths that had turned into streams, losing our route and getting very muddy! It was a fun adventure!

Riley

Selfie

Daniel and Riley

Path

David and Riley

#Walk1000miles:

This week, like last, has been hampered by longer days in work and late buses! My miles this week has been a lowly 36, bringing my annual total to 471 miles.

Book I am reading:

I’ve picked up Jeanette Winterson’s The Gap in Time, a retelling of Shakespeare’s Winter’s Tale. Have you read this book? If so what were your thoughts?

The Gap in Time

Macbeth at The Epstein Theatre, Liverpool

The Epstein Theatre, Liverpool

The Epstein Theatre, Liverpool

Theatre:

Staying with Shakespeare, this Saturday David and I went to Liverpool’s Epstein Theatre to see a production of Macbeth (or the Scottish play). I’d not visited the Epstein, formerly the Neptune before. It is one of Liverpool’s smaller theatres and had a tired quaintness to it. I quite enjoyed the play but was not fussed with the actor (Sean Jones) who played Macbeth. I felt his voice wasn’t very strong.

Have you seen this play? What were your thoughts?

Family walks:

I finish this post after taking a fantastic, yet tiring, wind blown, five mile walk around Formby Beach today. Riley looked like he had a wonderful time! We even spotted a starfish or two!

Selfie

David and Riley

David and Riley

Starfish

Riley

So, that was my week, how was yours?

Thanks for reading, Christine x

Sunday Sevens is a series devised by Natalie at Threads and Bobbins!

Sunday Sevens #60

It’s Sunday! Time for a quick Sunday Sevens!

Cinema:

It’s been some time since we’ve been to the cinema. To see the last installment of the How to Train your Dragon trilogy, David and I visited the newly opened Cineworld in Speke. The film was a fitting finale to the trilogy and I’m not ashamed to admit that I shed a tear or too.

Family walks:
Last Sunday we took a four mile walk around Mere Sands Wood nature reserve. Unfortunately the rain put a dampner on any nature sightings but we enjoyed the rain sodden walk anyhow!

At Mere Sands Wood

At Calderstones Park

This Sunday, with the weather no better, we headed towards Liverpool’s Calderstones Park.

#walk1000miles:
Even though David and I have had a few days off work this week, even taking in a two mile walk around The Countess of Chester Country Park. Longer days in work has meant that my miles this week has been down on previous weeks.

David looking for otters

My total for this week is 38, bringing my overall total to 435 miles. If you are participating in the challenge, how are you doing?

RSPB Membership:
On Monday, David and I visited RSPB Leighton Moss, near Morecambe. We spent a leisurely four hours walking the paths and taking lunch with hungry robins, tits and pheasants. Among the highlights of the visit was hand feeding a great tit and robin and seeing a marsh harrier hunting. Have you visited this reserve? What were your impressions?

Feeding a Robin

Marsh Harrier

Ducks

Feeding a Great Tit

David

Feeding Phesants

Lamb

Scarlet Elf Cup

Phesant

Anniversary:

Monday was also our 13th year anniversary!

Book I’m reading:
I’ve picked up The Tattooist of Auschwitz by Heather Morris. I’ll let you know what I think of it! Have you read it? Let me know your thoughts in the comments below.

The Tattooist of Auschwitz

Pie

The Aviary:
On Wednesday David and I said goodbye to Pie our Cut-throat finch. He was five years old and hadn’t shown any signs of illness. It was a shock and a sad loss.

Philharmonic

The Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra

This Saturday David and I attended an eclectic concert at the Liverpool Philharmonic Hall, featuring music from Vaughn-Williams, Tchaikovsky and Villa-Lobos. I enjoyed it very much!

So, that was my week, how was yours?

Thanks for reading, Christine x

Sunday Sevens is a series devised by Natalie at Threads and Bobbins!

Wild Swim/Walks… Anticipation 2019

March has arrived! The old adage of March comes in like a lion, goes out like a lamb, seems to be true as Storm Freya threatens to batter us with high winds. However March also marks the arrival of longer days as the clocks spring forward. It is also a time where I start planning in earnest forthcoming swim/walks.

Over the past three-four years I have made some wonderful wild swim/walk memories. From swimming before giants at Wastwater, beautiful morning swims at Derwentwater and Rydal, to swimming in misty drizzle at Llyn Cau and with fish at Buttermere. I even swam in a Scottish loch or two.

Wastwater

Swimming at Derwentwater

Rydal Water

Swimming in Llyn Cau

Buttermere

Swimming in Loch Lomond

Loch Etive

Each swim/walk has been memorable in its own right. I am excited to see what new swim/walk adventures I get up to in 2019!

Of my many hopes for the new swimming season, I aim to bag the big lakes of the Lake District, Winderemere and Coniston, and maybe, just maybe I’ll get to swim in Llyn Lydaw and Glaslyn of Snowdonia fame?

Windremere

Llyn Lydaw

Coniston

Where would you like to see me swim in 2019?

Thanks for reading,

Christinex