reflection of sky and trees in the mirror lake at Upton House

Project 52 2020 week 28 – mirror lake

Only a week left of home school before it’s the summer holidays. I’ve still got an extra week to work before my first summer holiday week off work. Things are really starting easing now so I can’t really call it lockdown anymore. Although I’m due to still be working from home until at least October, and possibly even longer if social distancing is still required.

Hair dressers, museums and outdoor performances opened up this week (my hair appointment has been booked for early September in the hope social distancing will be over by then). By the end of the week, outdoor pools, team sports at grassroots and outdoor gyms can open. It will be interesting to see whether our local outdoor pool opens, or it will struggle like so many others. It’s all strange how fast things are now opening, with the R value now at just about 1 for England. Fingers crossed cases don’t start rising.

Here’s this week’s Project 52 round up.

Sunday

Sunday was just another day at home. I sorted out all my plastic bags. Since lockdown with food deliveries, I’ve now got stacks of them, where before we didn’t have any. N’s year group are doing a combined card like they always do for their teacher and TA, so N had to do his part of it and send it to the mum organising it.

Monday

Back to work and home school. I made gingerbread at the weekend, and made sure to grab some for myself before it disappeared before my eyes. Both N and the OH liked it, with N saying it’s the best cake ever. It does taste good and I’ll have to write up the recipe at some point.

Tuesday

Our garden was like The Birds film. Not only overtaken by sparrows as normal, but the group of starlings dropped in. The only benefit of starlings is potentially getting a mini murmuration going on and I could attempt to photography it. I need to build myself a little bird hide outside as opening our patio doors encourages the birds to get lost and fly in! We also had loads of house martins flying around and even for the first time, perching on the field gate. I think it must be the babies out learning to fly because there’s so many more than normal.

I also spotted a swallow, which I didn’t expect to see here, but the long tail was very different to the house martins’. I also spotted another greater spotted woodpecker. We’ve stopped putting food in the bird feeder, since they’ started flying in the house this year. Maybe I’ll put it out again in winter – and maybe further out towards the field.

Wednesday

Another work and home school day. I can’t believe it’s so close to the end of school. Work are talking about potentially doing socially distanced team meetings – in the office or in a park. I’m not sure I’m too keen about an indoors thing, but our team’s probably too big, plus lots of people would have to travel a long way just for an hour’s meeting. I had a lovely lunchtime zoom chat with some colleagues. It was so lovely just to chat, and not about work. I do miss seeing my colleagues and friends.

Thursday

A quiet day. There was a guy we’d bought some cows from who was visiting the farm, so the OH went to the pub for food in the evening. Not within the rules as there were 3 households (although his brother is basically in the OH’s bubble given they’ve been working together throughout). He said it was quite busy in there – it’s a small pub so wouldn’t take many to make it look busy and I’m not sure you could really socially distance. It was his first time doing something that wasn’t work since March.

Friday

Friday was a short working day and N got through his school work fast too. He’s worked out this week that doing his longer pieces of work like English writing and topic first means he can whizz through everything else and finish earlier. His school report arrived in the post and it was very complementary.

School have proposed opening for 4 mornings in the first week of the holidays for school years who weren’t in the years going back to school officially. I had got N to agree that it would be a good idea, but the OH has vetoed it totally. It would have been a chance to reinforce some English work, and be in a class with his teacher next year. It might not happen if there’s not enough interest, but if there is and they run it, it wouldn’t be good to miss out.

N’s ENT appointment date came through – for only 2 weeks time, and it’s a virtual appointment. I’m quite relieved about that, not having to trek up the motorway and into a hospital. So we’ll see what happens when we speak to the doctor.

It was also the first group tennis lesson back. It’s changed to a different school which is a little further for us, having to go through town at peak times. But luckily it was quiet with lots of cars still not on the roads. There were only 3 of the boys – 2 of them are back at school, but N fitted right back in with them again which was good. It was lovely to see the coaches, and chat to the other parent as well. Definitely a bit of normality with social distancing working fine for us, and not too badly for the children.

Saturday

I had my first outing since the start of lockdown. After 2 failed attempts, I finally managed to make it to Upton House for a walk around the gardens. I was first in, it was all one way, and apart from 1 older couple who insisted on coming back up the wrong way on one part, and then jumped a barrier to go into the kitchen garden area, there was plenty of space for the few people visiting. It was lovely to spend time doing something a bit normal.

I nipped to the local shop afterwards. While it’s usually quite easy to socially distance in there despite it being small, masks are becoming more normal. I might have to get one for N so he’s prepared.

This week I had chosen the raindrop photo but then my visit to Upton meant I had more reflection shots to choose from. So I’ve included 2 photos to show the week. A picture of the different weather as well.

reflection of sky and trees in the mirror lake at Upton House
raindrops on grass

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20 Comments

  1. What beautiful photo’s, love the reflection in the lake, it really does look like a mirror. I hope it’s only a temporary thing x

  2. Beautiful photo’s, love the reflection in the lake, it really does look like a mirror. My kids go back to swimming next week, but it is not going to be how they know it

  3. Such beautiful photos. I think the time in school sounds good,but my other half would also have said no, because he wants a break for the summer now. We are in a weird lockdown but not limbo here, it’s a strange place to be
    Project365

  4. So pleased tennis lesson went well. I think it does kids good to catch up with other kids. I really like your raindrop picture you captured that beautifully. I have bought all of us masks. But it surprises me how few people wear them, even when the streets are packed.

    1. Thanks. I probably wouldn’t wear one in the open air, but then I’ve not been anywhere crowded. But yes, don’t understand why people wouldn’t and are making such a fuss about it. Hopefully it’s a temporary thing, it’s not life long.

  5. We have the same problem with plastic bags – we always used to get our shopping delivered without them and now we have loads. Glad the gingerbread went down well. Well done N on a good school report and glad you have got an ENT appointment through. How lovely for N to be able to do group tennis lessons again. Glad you finally got to enjoy a day out at Upton and the photos are beautiful. I have very happy memories of the one day I visited there with my girls. #project366

  6. Nice to get out to somewhere like Upton House. I can understand you wanting to send N to school for a little bit – H went for a few hours this week and I think it made a difference to how he feels about going back in September. They didn’t do any school work though – just fun.

    1. Yes, N isn’t worried, but it would have been handy as an interim. Although now he’s ill again, so wouldn’t have been in for probably 3 of the 4 days!

  7. love your rain drop picture, quite stunning.
    Oh dear at OH vetoing the school during the holidays.
    Glad you are managing to get out now and do something a bit nearer normal.

  8. Lovely pictures. OoOOo gingerbread! I love the murmurations of birds. It must be nice having all the birds come to your house. The visit to Upton House sounds like fun

  9. Gorgeous photos, glad you’ve managed to get a hair appointment, go out for the day and enjoy the pub despite the social distancing. Good luck with N’s appointment, hope all goes smoothly

  10. Love the photos!

    Starlings are usually so noisy! My mum sometimes gets them in her garden and the noise!

    Nice that the group tennis lessons have started up again.

  11. It sounds like you are definitely getting a bit of normality back. That must have been lovely for N to get back to tennis and for the OH to go to the pub. My husband went to the pub with his colleagues and the pub were very strict about them only going outside as there were three households.
    That’s great news that N has got his ENT appointment so soon. I really hope he will see an end to the tonsilitis.

  12. Looks like my comment didn’t go through, will try again. I was saying that we’ve also got one zillion bags, as Ocado now delivers all groceries in bags, while in the past I had a bag-free delivery. Love both of your images. The first one could be on the cover of a magazine easily.
    Hope the medical appointment will give you some answers and help.

    1. (For some reason lots of the Project 52 comments go to spam. No idea why, but I do find them!). The bags is all Covid related. Tesco used to do Bags for life but have changed to the cheap ones understandably.

  13. We do seem in some sort of limbo between lockdown and something else.
    We are the same with a huge collection of plastic bags. I don’t want to throw them out as it seems such a waste but I’ll have to find something to do with them.
    That’s great news about getting N’s ENT appointment through! Good luck, I hope it goes well.
    What beautiful photos! The reflection on the water is stunning and the raindrops are amazing x

    1. Thanks Kim. At least we’ve got a plastic bag supply now. I guess I could make some craft stuff with them. A ‘rag’ rug or wreath etc.

  14. I love both the photos – very pretty and artistic. Sounds lovely to be slowly getting back to “normal” with the tennis and the trip to Upton House. It’s great that you get so many different types of birds in the garden. Going back to school for a few days would have been a great way to get back into routine, but it won’t make a whole lot of difference so it’s not worth an argument ! 🙂

    1. That’s true. But just for the social side, and transition to the next class would have been good. I think it’s just for children who’ve been able to get back into school though. We’ll see what they say.

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