Young L's choice

Two weeks ago Mr H and Young L had lunch with me at the garden centre, before they looked at the roses and each chose one. They had decided that their choice would be planted outside the window of their room.Apart from telling them that they were to choose a standard rose, rather than a bush or a climber, I tried to leave them to make their own choice.

I needn't have bothered about being circumspect in my advice. They were both quickly and firmly set on which rose. Mr H did toy with the possibility that he should take into account the pink one by the front door, and the colour of Young L's  choice. He wanted a white rose (for York, perhaps, although I doubt he knows his Grandpa's Ricardian tendencies). 

And Young L was not changing from his choice for anyone. When they planted them the next day, with a varying amount of assistance to dig the hole (I had to dig the hole for Young L as the clay was too sticky and dense). Both roses are looking strong and healthy, and have flowered well from the buds which were already present.

Today is Young L's 11th birthday. He had wanted to spend time at the Pasifika festival in Grey Lynn Park, but the weather cancelled that as it rained persistently and at times heavily all morning and into the afternoon. So he opted for a birthday movie; The Grinch. We all went along, and followed the movie with hamburgers. For S and me it was the first hamburger in many years.