Our furry and feathered family members. BrianBunny!

Here's the famous BrianBunny! Isn't he a handsome Bunny! BrianBunny is a Dutch rabbit, and he is a rescued rabbit. He is the elder statesman of our bunny family, being almost 12 years old! This photo shows him enjoying a sunny day in the playrun on the lawn this summer.


Here he is again in his wee blue hoose! Because of his great age he is a housebunny, and just goes outside to play when the weather is warm and dry. I'm not sure whether BrianBunny thinks he's a pussycat or whether Lucy thinks she's a bunny! The birdies just keep themselves aloof from such lowly furry beings!

ConnorBunny.

This comical old man is ConnorBunny! He's a floppy-eared bunny. He's kind and sweet and very loving. He is almost 11 years old, so he needs tender love and care in his old-age.

HeatherBunny.

This bonny wee lassie is HeatherBunny! She is a jet-black dwarf lop-eared rabbit. She was very tiny wee and was just a few weeks old when she came home to live with us. She's an elderly lassie now, she's 8 years old.

SolomonBunny.

Here is SolomonBunny. He is a large, lop-eared rabbit. He is a few years old, still in his prime, and extremely lively, loving and playful. In other words, quite a handful but so adorable! He came to live with us by chance! He "escaped" from a neighbour and was found by another neighbour who knew we had rabbits and he brought him to us thinking he was one of ours. He was soaked through as it had been raining incessantly, and he was hungry and exhausted! We asked his original owner if she was wanting him back and she said she didn't! So he's now in his forever home here with us! Please don't be tempted to give a home to any living creature unless you are as sure as you can be that you are going to want them to live with you forever!

Lucy.

Here is Lucy, our beloved pussycat. Yes, my American friends, we DO call cats pussycats in Scotland without being rude! Lucy is almost 18 years old, the last in a very long line of cats that we have been fortunate to share our family home with. She is in poor health but still active and happy, and we take it one day at a time and enjoy the love she gives us each day.

Golly MacGreencheek.

This cheeky wee laddie is Golly MacGreencheek. He is a green-cheeked conure, the quietest member of the conure family and one of the smallest. He is 7 years old. He came to live with us when he was a wee chick of 6 weeks. He has a vocabulary of about 6 words. We call him a "he", however he surprised us last year by laying eggs! But we cannot refer to Golly as "she" as he has always been and will always continue to be our cheeky wee laddie!

Darling Freddie MacCitron.

This handsome laddie is Darling Freddie MacCitron, we just call him Darling! He is a Citron cockatoo, and is about 12 years old. He is showing his annoyance at the camera flash!

Pepe.

This is Pepe, my African Grey parrot. He came to live with us a few years ago after his first human mummy died. He is 21 years old and never stops talking! He has a large vocabulary and talks in context. Like many parrots, he has his favourite human. He adores my husband and just tolerates my presence!

Scottish humour.

A Scotsman was shipwrecked and finally washed ashore on a small island. As he regains consciousness on the beach, he sees a beautiful unclad nymph standing over him.
She asks, "Would you like some food?" The Scot hoarsely croaks, "Och, lassie, I havnae eaten in a week and ah'm awfy hungry!"
She disappears into the woods and quickly comes back with a heaping helping of haggis. When he has choked it down, she asks, "Would you like something to drink?"
"Och aye! Yon haggis has made me awfy thirsty and I wuid like a drink!" She goes off into the woods again and returns with a bottle of 75-year-old single-malt Scotch whisky.
The Scotsman is beginning to think that he's in heaven when the unclad nymph leans closer and says, "Would you like to play around?""Och, lassie, dinnae tell me ye haff a golf course here too!"

Flowers in my garden.

The photos below are close-up shots of some of the many flowers in my garden. As I have hundreds of different species and varieties of flowering plants and shrubs, I cannot remember off-hand all their names. But if you specifically want a name or to know more, just leave a comment under the corresponding photo and I will try my best to give you an answer.

Scottish recipe - Stovies.

INGREDIENTS:

2 lb potatoes.

1 onion.

1/2 pint of hot water or stock.

Leftover scraps of roast beef or lamb.

2 oz butter and oil, mixed.

Salt and freshly-ground black pepper.

METHOD:

Melt the butter and oil in a pan. Peel and thickly slice the potatoes and onion and add to the pan. Toss in the butter and oil for a few minutes. Add the stock or water, and salt and black pepper to taste. Cover, and bring slowly to the boil. Then simmer gently, stirring occasionally to prevent burning, for 1 hour. Add the scraps of roast meat and cook for a little longer until the potatoes are slightly brown and the meat is hot. Serve and sprinkle with fresh, chopped parsley.

Rhododendrons and azaleas.

The photos below are all close-up pics of some of the many dwarf rhododendrons and azaleas growing in my garden. They are many different species, from the Himalayas, Japan etc. They thrive in the west highlands because our soil is peaty and acidic, and of course they don't like too much hot sun!

Scottish recipe -Tattie Scones.

INGREDIENTS:

1 lb mashed potatoes.
4oz plain flour.
Salt.
Butter for spreading.

METHOD:

Boil, then mash the potatoes until smooth, adding a little salt. Knead with flour to required thickness.
Cut into triangles.
Brown both sides on griddle or in frying pan, pricking with a fork to prevent blistering.
Serve hot, spread with butter.