Sunset from Hill House, Mount Helen. February 2024

Monday, July 27, 2015

Tramlines and Trams

It was the annual Tramlines music festival in Sheffield this weekend just gone.

The Builder and I did not go.  Instead we followed our practice of recent years and had Cally with us while her father worked in the Green Room and Tabitha went out carousing.

First, though, I had Friday off work.  We didn't do all that much, a bit of shopping, a bit of pottering and quite a lot of cherry tree pruning.  We have pruned quite hard two of the three sweet cherries. The Under Gardener wants to leave the third one for now, just in case we have killed off the other two, although I don't think we have.  We will probably prune the plum, the sour cherry and the peach trees but at the moment the plum and sour cherry trees have quite a lot of fruit on, and (very excitingly) even the peach tree has some fruit, although the peaches are very hard to see unless you are standing right underneath them and looking directly up.  I hope this means the blackbirds will find it equally difficult to see them!

While we were chopping at the cherry trees, we became aware that the lady from the new single storey house next door at the bottom of the garden was holding a small boy up to peer over the fence. He wanted to see the ducks and couldn't quite.  So she and her daughter and two small, small boys came around and down into our garden so they could see the ducks and the chickens - and feed them some red currants. The chickens and the ducks like red currants and can't now reach any that are left on the bushes.  Harry (about 3) and Luke (a bit under 2) were happy to help out!

Anyway.  Back to the weekend.  On Saturday we dropped around to Freyja and Simon's new place and took them off to Costco for a little light (!) shopping.  We did some light shopping too.  Our freezer and store cupboards and pantry are now absolutely groaning.  No more light shopping for us for a while!  We stopped in the Costco cafe for some breakfast/second breakfast/cup of tea before taking them back and then heading just up the road to Cally's place and picking her up.  She was quite excited about going on an adventure with us but not at all excited about having to come to our place all on her own.  Fortunately the lure of adventure and ice cream overcame the reluctance to venture out overnight without taking mummy or daddy with her!

We took her to the Tram Museum in Crich (near Matlock).




We have taken her there before but she was only about 2 and she didn't remember it.  She had a great time though.

We had ice cream, as promised.

Cally doesn't seem to have enjoyed her ice cream at all!

We went for a ride downstairs on a tram which had a roof,



and upstairs on a tram without a roof.

Sitting upstairs on the open-topped tram

We looked at trams in their big, big house.

We did some colouring in in the information centre.



 And we went to play in the play centre.



And it didn't rain, although it did get a bit chilly when the sun went to rest behind some big big clouds from time to time.

We all had a lovely time


And then we went back to Tupton and watched films and played games and ate home made chips and then it was time for Cally to go to bed and soon after it was time for us to go to bed.  I think Cally had forgotten about mummy and daddy not being there!

And on Sunday morning she was all excited because daddy was coming to have an early lunch (or brunch, really) and then she and he were going to a birthday party.   After they left, The Builder watched the Grand Prix and I did a few useful things. All in all, a good weekend.

Stella caused me a bit of consternation on Sunday morning, though.  It was getting close to the time when I usually speak with Tony, and then after him with Stella on Skype.  I was a bit disconcerted when my phone rang and informed me that Stella wanted a FaceTime conversation with me.  Really? Why?  What has happened to Tony?  This is most unusual!!!  Fortunately, all was well.  Tony was out at a soiree at the church and not available for Skyping, so Stella thought she would ring me herself.  Tony Skyped in some time later when he got back.  We spoke to Austin and Tatsuki as well. But not at the same time as Stella or Tony, obviously!

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