We were back at Bishops' house on Saturday morning.  It was our regular shift and we figured we might as well do it, despite the fact that we had been there the Saturday before.  We weren't expecting as many visitors, though.  In fact, we weren't really expecting any visitors.  The weather was atrocious on Saturday morning!  Richard says that I report rain-free days or events as though they are some sort of miracle.  But in my mind, they are a mini-miracle.  There is a reason why England is so green - and it isn't because we get day after day after day of unalloyed sunshine!

We didn't get any visitors until nearly midday.  And then a small form of bedlam ensued.  There was to be a ukulele sing-a-long in the afternoon (which we didn't know about) and from midday people began turning up with ukuleles and/or their singing voices.  The treasurer of the committee turned up.  A wedding couple turned up to meet with the treasurer.  We even got some ordinary visitors.  Then the afternoon shift turned up and we pottered off back home, leaving the wedding couple, the ukulele-ists, the songsters and any stray passing visitors to it.

And the sun came out and we passed a pleasant late afternoon in the garden.

I think if you were to describe Sunday as a day of "sunshine and showers" you would be fairly accurate.  Except that the sunshine was bright and shiny and warm - and the showers were torrential!  We spent little time in the garden. Actually, I spent most of the morning getting ready for our long weekend in Ireland.  We are going on Thursday evening, after I finish work.  Ordinarily I would pack and organise and get ready just before we leave, but I am at my Japanese class on Tuesday evening and won't get back until late.  I am then at a supplementary Japanese class on Wednesday evening (re-scheduled from a class that Sachiko Sensei can't teach at the end of term) and I am leaving straight from work on Thursday, so there isn't much time left to get ready.

The weather has continued its "sunshine and showers" theme.  Lots of nice sunshine.  Some quite interesting showers.  And not one but two spectacular thunderstorms, one of which was accompanied (in Tupton, at least) with rain of positively tropical intensity.  The Builder says he hasn't seen anything like it since the thunderstorm we encountered in Singapore when we were there with Lindsey.  Our guttering is not designed for tropical rain storms! Fortunately, The Builder was at home and the kitchen floor needed washing anyway :-D

It was a public holiday in Australia yesterday.  Matthew, Belinda, Sage and William celebrated by leaping onto an aeroplane, Europe bound.  They get to Dublin this afternoon, where we will meet them on Thursday evening.  It's all very exciting!

In anticipation of their arrival, we have bought an extra picnic bench.  In the sunshine-y bits of the past few days, The Builder has stained it and assembled it.

Now we just need sunshine (and no showers) when all the visitors come for Sunday lunch at the end of the month!!!