Raindrop jewels

It rained in the night (again) leaving mist and ice this morning.  I stayed inside until the worse of it had thawed.  The photo is of the raindrops on the bottlebrush plant in my garden, I thought that it looked pretty and jewel-like.

This afternoon I went for a walk along the two canals and lanes at Lower Frankton (close to where I live).  It was very wet and muddy underfoot so I was glad that I was wearing my wellies.  I walked a route that I rarely take and was aware that the last time I was there there I saw Common Blue butterflies. It was a bit different today! I did hear a great spotted woodpecker drumming which is a very early sign of spring so that was very welcome.