Home alone

Frilly columbines, or aquilegia - rather jolly and not appealing to slugs or snails - which I should perhaps drop as such a constant theme.

I'm in the house by myself: Husband is down in Sheffield, collecting Daughter 2's possessions from her student house (though D2 herself is staying down there for another week or two, so will retain some underwear and socks and so on). Daughter 1 and Son-in-Law departed this morning with his parents for a week's holiday to the (wonderful) island of Arran off the west coast of Scotland. Son is visiting his girlfriend and family in a town a bit north of here. And I'm here. Not for long: I spent this morning with my mother and will depart in an hour or so to my book group. But still, it's quite odd.

Quite heady, really, being alone in the house with no one to cook for and no one apart from myself to make a mess - though in fact I seem to have made quite a competent job of this task, repotting plants and stripping beds. I wouldn't like to live alone for ever but I'm quite enjoying the peace for the moment.

D1 and SIL got the keys for their house yesterday. Very exciting - but I'll be sad when they go. The first to leave the nest permanently (and yes, I know, she's nearly 27 so I don't really have anything to complain about. Do you think this'll stop me, though...?)