LOCATION: Housesitting in Meonstoke, Hampshire, England

WEATHER: Crisp and sunny. High 50

We awoke to a cool morning….condensation on the windows and views of smoke floating out of neighbors’ chimneys. Love it!

Buttons and I walked around the yard taking pictures of the house in the sunlight…

The backyard has a bocce ball court…

Buttons is the best behaved dog! She has been taught to sit at the front door until a human gets a towel for her. Then, she enters the house, stands on the towel, and waits for a human to dry off her muddy paws. Amazing!

Once inside, she loves to play a game we call “Chase Buttons with the Chew Toy”. She can do this for hours!

We took Buttons on a long walk on a trail that used to be a railway line. Others had the same idea as we did – perfect day for being outside. There were other dog-walkers, hikers, bikers, and lots of people riding horses. So English!

There are footpaths everywhere here. I think this area is a popular place for Londoners to come on a weekend to hike and enjoy the beautiful scenery.

We didn’t go to a pub today. Being Sunday, many of the nearby pubs serve “Sunday Roast”. It is a more formal set-up and quite popular for people from out-of-town to come visit. Many of these pubs announce that they have won contests for best roast. So, we will have a pint at home instead!

In the evening, we lit a fire in the fireplace and relaxed……with a pint.

DINNER: Curried lentils over couscous. My brother sent me the recipe, and I tried it for the first time. Really tasty, easy, and inexpensive. If you want the recipe, send me an email at reidkarm@gmail.com.

BBC after dinner – with my favorite show of all time — “Call the Midwife”. We are finally over jetlag, so can sleep regular hours now.

BOOK: I finished a really good one – “Where the Crawdads Sing” by Delia Owens. 5 stars out of 5. It is a story of a girl growing up alone in the North Carolina marshlands.

Smashing day!