Obese Courgettes!

Yes they really are courgettes.

My green-fingered mother-in-law grew them. They're a new variety apparently. They're also delicious...quite unlike those bland supermarket ones.

We've been in Ireland this week. We don't get across nearly enough because Bob's business takes up almost all of his time.

But earlier this year my father had a suspected heart-attack, then one of our neighbours went out to work one morning and had a real heart-attack and never came home. He was only our age. It shocked us both a bit. We were suddenly confronted with the idea that our parents (and friends) are not going to be around forever and we'd better treasure them while we can.

So Bob worked like mad to get everything up-to-date so he could take a few days off during the school hols. Our friends in Wales (Bob's best mate from school and his wife) had been on at us to visit them so we thought we'd combine the two visits.

H would move to Ireland tomorrow if he could. Well...he'd move in with Granny, who has an impossibly amazing home for your average eight-year-old: huge (and I mean HUGE) garden, a pony, chickens, and pick-your-own fruit and veg plus fences to climb and gates to open and swing on! And cows...well, the cows aren't hers but Henry thinks they are and who am I to ruin his imaginings.