1st July - full on summer!

Well, it's the first of July - Happy Birthday to my old friend Chrissie back in Blighty - we have known each other since we were 11 years old, were each other's bridesmaid, have supported each other all these years through family illnesses, the joys of children, holidays, and now look forward to growing old disgracefully - but we live so far apart now! So, this evening, I'll be raising a glass of something cold to wish her many happy returns and perhaps another glass to friendship - and we could all do with lots of that...

In the meantime, we are enjoying the summer in our part of France, which traditionally has a damp, hot climate. Perfect for growing lots of grass for all the cows that make Limousin beef so famous. We also have lots of lakes and rivers - great for trout fishing, and forests which feed all our wood burners in the (very) cold winters. We do have great extremes of weather - it's been over 30 degrees C most days for the last half of June, rain for the first. However three weeks ago it was a different matter - we had a hoar frost! And here are just a few photos to prove it...






I just managed to grab the camera before the sun melted the frost - this is taken around 7am and half an hour later, it had all gone, fortunately leaving the geraniums in good condition and no permanent damage done.

Hope you all enjoy the sort of summer you wish for!