Marmalade peered round the gate–he’d heard voices but wasn’t sure whose.
He walked into the courtyard and being a ginger, gingerly approached the house.
As he crossed the threshold he discovered it was his people, returned from somewhere after sometime.
“And I’m supposed to be pleased?– well, no doubt they’ll give me some extra food to curry favour which will be good”.
Meredith took him to the vet yesterday, he seemed so low.
Nothing wrong except a bit of a weeping eye.
Tender loving care will do it we’re hoping and a nudge or two from Beau.
Beau behaves as though we never went away and has grown into a young adult cat.
Life goes on fast.
He’s liking the outdoor life and cheerfully comes and goes–discovering strange new shapes…
Yesterday he caught a bird–in spite of the little bell round his neck– scattering the poor thing’s feathers hither and thither–just another toy.
Meredith told him off in no uncertain terms but he showed no shame.
Stalwart Pippa–head cat–was friendlier than is her custom when we return from journeys and freer with her head-butting hugs.
Lucien was nowhere to be seen–nothing new in that.
Dear thing turned up later though–to sleep on the bed.
The garden has suffered from another bout of extreme cold while we were absent.
Things have died or at least been challenged.
Our lemon tree–so prized–we thought was a goner; but cutting back the dead stuff this morning,
Meredith spotted some hopeful signs.
So maybe all is not lost and we arrived in time to catch the almond blossom.
The herald of Spring.
A month is a long time for a garden to be left but what a blessing this fleeting show of beauty always is.
Robin,
Love your cats. Too cute. I have 4 that I rescued. A brother and sister (Frisky & Lora), Sheena, & Lily. Frisky, being my only male cat, is the friendlist, giving me kisses left and right; yet, he’s my biggest scaredy cat. If he here’s a storm 100 miles away, he’s under my bed.
Although I only have 1 child, these 4 are also my babies. Cherish your pets and glad you had a safe trip home. Sincerely, Linda
…. and what a place to come home to…..!
I don’t think I’d ever want to leave.
You are very lucky.
Welcome home!
Beautiful, enjoy the Spring in the Tarn!
It was so good to see you both. Until the next time..
Good to see you both too Steven.
Trips are always lovely and make one appreciate home all the more, especially with special friends to welcome us. Hope Meredith is feeling better.
Lovely photos and narrative!
My “top” cat is a female who looks exactly like Beau, and we have a group of 4-5 of her descendants who come and go in our yard, keeping the rodents under control and occasionally snacking on the unwary bird. Since I developed a cat allergy, they stay mostly outdoors.
What a lovely place to call home! Hope you are nearly rested up from your travels and that Meredith is all well from her cold.
Thanks for sharing the beauty.
“Meredith told him off in no uncertain terms but he showed no shame.”
LOL. Would have loved t have seen that! One thing cat owners learn is that our four legged children have VERY selective hearing. 😉
Thank you for sharing the photos. You live in such a beautiful landscape.
Don’t know why this is suddenly listing me as pah7.(?) Should be Paula Higgins. 😦
sorry if this is a repeat, seem to be having puter probs today. Anyway, trips are always wonderful but they always remind one of how lovely it is to be home, all the more so when special friends are waiting. I love the first photograph 🙂 Hope Meredith is feeling better.
Glad to hear you made it back safe and sound and your home and creatures survived. It was a pleasure to meet you both in LA.
Idyllic setting. Even your lemon tree looks great.
It looks like you have come home to spring bursting out all over. The beginning of the week was so warm and sunny you could be forgiven into thinking it was summer, but to-day the cold is back woollies are back out and the heating back on,so no casting of the clouts yet.Your puss- cats are happy you are back,and
eager to show you you are forgiven for being away.So all is well with the world of the Tarn.Glad you were time to save your lemon tree.
Hope Meredith is feeling better now.
Marmalade looks so much like my dear poor Sophia, whom I lost this year. She went onto the back porch and I have never seen her again. I think that an owl got her. But not sure.
I now have two black and white kittens and have adopted two others who were hanging around the house. One I call Betty, since she reminds me of my mother. But it actually turned out that Betty is a boy, but I still call her Betty in honor of my mother. There is a resemblance!!! (My mother was certainly feminine though!)
But I miss my Sophia tremendously. She was about 14 years old, making her all the more precious to me.
Robin, you are so poetic in your writing. It’s a delight to read! I’ll bet you’re glad to be home again.
Aww…you must be glad to be home! And the cats relieved! Poor Marmalade! Hope you have many happy memories from the trip–we sure do!!
FINALLY got my pictures from New York to work on “Flickr”…Plus one short video of Oreo bunny for your entertainment! Go to http://www.flickr.com/photos/dianneandgene/6884749420/ or if that doesn’t work, just search your name & the 1st pic you’ll see is you sitting at one of those orange tables at Barnes & Nobles. (If Meredith has any more to share, we’d love ’em. I was talking during one picture & messed it up!)
Cheers & hugs & a restful weekend!!
Hi Dianne,
Oreo has definitely similar dribbling abilities like Lionel Messi. I’m sure Barca or Real will pick him up soon ;-). As a kid I had a dwarf rabbit for 11 years but he was more interested in eating dandelions than soccer.
Thanks for sharing !
Cheers Martina
Dear Robin,Ha, Good you arrived well !! Nice to see some fresh pictures of the cats.O, yes like I told before life go’s fast and enjoy it.Hoping you have a lot of sunshine and rest in la douce France, hughs Puske-Puske & Chantal.p.s:By the way Puske-Puske likes the pictures too, for sure when your nice cats are in (lol).
What a lovely piece, and beautiful, peaceful pictures. I agree with the others–you two bring a special peaceful break in our busy days. Enjoy the slower pace of being home.
So nice to read about your welcome committee. My kitty passed away a month ago this coming Monday afternoon. I adopted her from the shelter in Newton Iowa during my junior year of college. We lived in three states together during our 18 years. Tonight I thought I heard her snoring softly next to me on the bed for a moment. I guess it’s the way things go, but I sure do miss her! Glad you’re home safely. Please come visit again soon.
You write so well! –and the photos are superb. It gives all of us a peaceful break from our crazy lives to be able to read your entries. I’ve never seen almond blossoms, but we’d watched the caravans of beehives being brought to California from Montana to pollinate them. So delicate & pretty. Love your cat descriptions. Our 3 were just as different in personality. I’m missing the cats we’ve lost over these years. Enjoy your French spring–and continue to share with all of us.
Good to hear there is some life in the lemon tree! May it survive. Love to you all, especially the crazy Beau and Marmalade with his gloom, we did try to cheer him up! And of course Pippa and Lucien! And the others outside!!
Welcome home, dear Robin and Meredith. There’s no other place in the World like home. So happy to know that your grand tour was a success.
It’s springtime in Tarn. All’ll be well again in the garden. But why is your lemon tree in a tub? Any special reason? Here nowadays people with small gardens tend to grow dwarf varieties stonefruit and citrus trees. They are also most suitable to grow in tubs. There I go again…
Thank you so very much for signing my “Delicious…” My treasure arrived on 9th March. Needless to add I dived immediately into soups. Thank you for sharing and for the lovely photos. It seems to me that Marmalade likes to sit in his favorite spot and observe while Beau likes to explore…
@Dianne P.Thanks for your “Flickr”…bunny with a ball and all…recent nostalgic memories!
Glad to know that you made it home, safely. Just to let you know that I was able to buy the released and updated Making Poldark, from amazon, and it should arrive shortly.
All the best,
Sheila
Happy you had a safe return.
What a lovely home you have. I loved seeing all your animals. I have 12 year old Westie Noel and a Himalayan Persian name April 4 years old. They would love to roam around your ground. Can’t go out where I live. Typical suburban development in Delaware.
Hi Robin,
Thanks for the little cat stories. I see Beau peeping at the cow and he is looking as if he wants to catch her….he has something to learn! Our cat Maupie- 9 months is in our garden for the first time and loves catching flies and looking at the fish in our small pond. She already meets the neighbourcats too, which is … looking at each other for a long time! You know what I mean!
Oh, eh, I will love an Easter breakfast, do you have some nice ideas for us?
Thanks, everyone, for the good wishes on our travels. It is always a bit nerve-wracking with so much flying and tight connections. (High winds almost cancelled our departure from Aspen.)
We’re both happy to be home–though it was a wonderful trip.
Thanks too to all who wished me well with the cold! Your dear comments and support really are encouraging and uplifting! Much appreciated!
Meredith
I have some cat allergy and what i usually do is just take some chlorphenamine to manage the itchiness. ..
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