Keith and I went to Tesco today to order our turkey. I always have this dread that something will happen and we'll end up turkey-less on Christmas Day and as we're going to Berlin just before the big event, I wanted to make sure it was all sorted.
We ordered a Tesco Finest Bronze turkey crown to be collected on the 23rd December which Mum will have to pick up for us. We also bought a Christmas pudding so I feel like I'm getting organised a bit early this year! We only really went into the store to get some garlic bread for tonight and a newspaper and ended up buying rather more than we expected! Keith suggested trying a Chateauneuf-du-Pape which had been reduced from £14 to £8 so we bought a bottle of that. It's been such a long time since we've drunk any wine from the Cotes du Rhone area of France as the prices have just gone silly.
Back home we set about the chores - Keith ironed and prepared dinner while I hoovered and tidied up. We have nothing really planned for this week and I'm debating whether to take the plunge and decorate the living room before we put up our Christmas tree...
Mum and Dad popped around in the afternoon as I had some emails to show them while Keith went off to pick up Sophie from uni. The little monkey managed to persuade her Dad to take her to McDonald's on the way home and she treated me to a McFlurry which was lovely. To try and walk off some of our indulgence we took Monty for a walk around the estate and it was still very windy indeed. Monty had a great time sniffing and looking at everything and it was great to get out and have some fresh air!
Monday 30 November 2015
Sunday 29 November 2015
Storm Clodagh
I was awake at 3am this morning and doing a lot of coughing so I got up as Keith was having (at last) a good night's sleep. Downstairs I watched half an hour of a silly Christmas film called Jingle All the Way 2 before taking some cough medicine and going back to bed.
I woke up again, with a shock, at 9.40am and had to have a quick cup of coffee as I was meeting Lynda, Fiona and Andrea at Jones's after dropping Sophie off at work! Again, I could really have stayed at home and curled up on the sofa but I didn't want to let my friends down as I had a card for the wholesaler's and I hoped that after a shower and the coffee, I'd feel better.
The day started off with a hint of sunshine and maybe the slightest glimpse of blue skies and I really hoped that it would stay dry and mild. When I arrived at Jones's the car parks were packed with people trying to park and I could see it was going to be very busy. Even Jones's had jumped on the "Black Friday" bandwagon and were advertising discounts on various items!
The girls were waiting for me outside and I explained that I had a horrible cough and cold so they were very sympathetic. Lynda then produced a card of her own that she'd had for ages so that certainly took the pressure off me to stay with them to get them through the checkouts with the card. I said I was going to get a few bits for myself and then go home and they completely understood. I grabbed a hair colour and some moisturiser and then beat a hasty retreat!
Back home I cocooned myself into the warmth and cosiness of the conservatory (with Archie on the sofa) and stayed there for the remainder of the day! I did the crosswords in the paper, caught up with stuff on the internet and listened to the wind blowing outside. We now have Storm Clodagh passing over the British Isles and we have weather warnings out for today and tomorrow for wind. I then noticed that a trellis with our Jasmine growing over it had collapsed and fallen forward so Keith and I spent a very blustery ten minutes sorting that out!
Mum and Dad popped around later in the afternoon after going to see the new owners of their house. They met in the pub for coffee and said they got on with them really well. They still have some stuff to pick up but with the weather so bad today they'll have to leave it until another day. I really didn't fancy going out in the wind and rain and helping them load stuff into my car!
I woke up again, with a shock, at 9.40am and had to have a quick cup of coffee as I was meeting Lynda, Fiona and Andrea at Jones's after dropping Sophie off at work! Again, I could really have stayed at home and curled up on the sofa but I didn't want to let my friends down as I had a card for the wholesaler's and I hoped that after a shower and the coffee, I'd feel better.
The day started off with a hint of sunshine and maybe the slightest glimpse of blue skies and I really hoped that it would stay dry and mild. When I arrived at Jones's the car parks were packed with people trying to park and I could see it was going to be very busy. Even Jones's had jumped on the "Black Friday" bandwagon and were advertising discounts on various items!
The girls were waiting for me outside and I explained that I had a horrible cough and cold so they were very sympathetic. Lynda then produced a card of her own that she'd had for ages so that certainly took the pressure off me to stay with them to get them through the checkouts with the card. I said I was going to get a few bits for myself and then go home and they completely understood. I grabbed a hair colour and some moisturiser and then beat a hasty retreat!
Back home I cocooned myself into the warmth and cosiness of the conservatory (with Archie on the sofa) and stayed there for the remainder of the day! I did the crosswords in the paper, caught up with stuff on the internet and listened to the wind blowing outside. We now have Storm Clodagh passing over the British Isles and we have weather warnings out for today and tomorrow for wind. I then noticed that a trellis with our Jasmine growing over it had collapsed and fallen forward so Keith and I spent a very blustery ten minutes sorting that out!
Mum and Dad popped around later in the afternoon after going to see the new owners of their house. They met in the pub for coffee and said they got on with them really well. They still have some stuff to pick up but with the weather so bad today they'll have to leave it until another day. I really didn't fancy going out in the wind and rain and helping them load stuff into my car!
Saturday 28 November 2015
Christmas festivities
I had agreed to help Mum and Dad today with a table they'd rented at the village Christmas fayre, held in our local church. The morning dawned bright and sunny but by the time I'd taken Sophie to work and picked up Mum on the way home, the weather had turned overcast and grey, with strong winds and rain forecast for later in the day.
Mum and I drove home and put all the boxes of things they were going to sell in my car. To be honest I really didn't feel like going out today as my voice is really hoarse and all I wanted to do was curl up on the sofa with a good film!
We had a cup of tea and then headed to the church which was locked. The woman organising the fayre had said we could arrive any time after 10am so we managed to find her phone number and called her to say we needed to get into the church to set up.
Luckily she arrived within a few minutes and we were shown to our allotted table. There were quite a few stalls already set up, including one with beautiful Christmas cards, another laden with candles, a jewellery table and some reserved for games.
The church was very dimly lit and a bit chilly but unloading all the stuff from the car and carrying it in helped keep us warm! We arranged everything as nicely as we could and then left to go and get some change from a nearby shop and a chocolate bar to keep up our energy levels!
Back home I made my Mum some lunch and then Dad arrived. He'd been back at the house to see a man about the TV satellite dish so managed to get out of all the preparations! At 2.45pm we set off for the church and parked near to the pub. I only hoped we'd be able to shift some of the stuff as it was a fair distance to carry it all back again!
The fayre was lovely and in between us leaving and coming back someone had turned on more lights and lit up a string of fairy lights over the beautifully decorated Christmas tree. Although it wasn't quite 3pm there were people arriving and we'd already sold two items from the table to other stall-holders!
The fayre went on until 5pm and we managed to sell quite a bit, which was a relief! Dad bought us a cup of mulled wine each which went down very well! By 4.45pm we were packing up and everything we had left went into two boxes which we carried back to the car. These were put into our garage again and Mum and Dad left to go home. I sank thankfully onto the sofa and waited for Keith to come home from his football match. By now it was raining heavily and the wind was getting up. Apparently our next storm is called Clodagh!
After dinner we sat and watched Taken 3 which was good, but still not as good as the original!
Mum and I drove home and put all the boxes of things they were going to sell in my car. To be honest I really didn't feel like going out today as my voice is really hoarse and all I wanted to do was curl up on the sofa with a good film!
We had a cup of tea and then headed to the church which was locked. The woman organising the fayre had said we could arrive any time after 10am so we managed to find her phone number and called her to say we needed to get into the church to set up.
Luckily she arrived within a few minutes and we were shown to our allotted table. There were quite a few stalls already set up, including one with beautiful Christmas cards, another laden with candles, a jewellery table and some reserved for games.
The church was very dimly lit and a bit chilly but unloading all the stuff from the car and carrying it in helped keep us warm! We arranged everything as nicely as we could and then left to go and get some change from a nearby shop and a chocolate bar to keep up our energy levels!
Back home I made my Mum some lunch and then Dad arrived. He'd been back at the house to see a man about the TV satellite dish so managed to get out of all the preparations! At 2.45pm we set off for the church and parked near to the pub. I only hoped we'd be able to shift some of the stuff as it was a fair distance to carry it all back again!
The fayre was lovely and in between us leaving and coming back someone had turned on more lights and lit up a string of fairy lights over the beautifully decorated Christmas tree. Although it wasn't quite 3pm there were people arriving and we'd already sold two items from the table to other stall-holders!
 |
| Father Christmas arriving to see the children |
The fayre went on until 5pm and we managed to sell quite a bit, which was a relief! Dad bought us a cup of mulled wine each which went down very well! By 4.45pm we were packing up and everything we had left went into two boxes which we carried back to the car. These were put into our garage again and Mum and Dad left to go home. I sank thankfully onto the sofa and waited for Keith to come home from his football match. By now it was raining heavily and the wind was getting up. Apparently our next storm is called Clodagh!
After dinner we sat and watched Taken 3 which was good, but still not as good as the original!
Friday 27 November 2015
Out with the old...
I had hoped that today would be quiet but I was wrong! Keith still felt horrible with his cold so he stayed in bed while I took the kids off to school and uni. I spent the morning catching up with things I needed to do and by lunchtime Keith felt a lot better for having some extra sleep.
We'd ordered a new TV for Mike yesterday and that was due to be delivered at midday so we couldn't go out anywhere. I was told a delivery slot of 11.51-12.51 and it arrived bang on 11.51! Brilliant! Keith set it all up and then we had fun trying to connect his PS3 and PS4 to it...I couldn't stand Mike's messy room so I fetched the hoover and vacuumed his room and all of the upstairs while Keith fiddled about with it. We were successful (phew!) so that was a relief. I know that if Mikey had arrived home and it wasn't working the sparks would fly!
When it was all connected Keith and I went to the tip (recycling centre) with our old fridge freezer and the two old televisions that had been in Mikey's room. We just about managed to get the fridge freezer in my poor car but as we were driving through Scaldwell, the boot flew open and a piece of polystyrene fell out onto the road...ooops!
We stopped the car and Keith managed to secure the boot shut so we carried on our way to the tip hoping that the polystyrene would still be intact on the way back home when we'd pick it up. When we took the appliances out of my car the back seats and boot area were covered in dust and dirt. As well as the outside being covered in thick mud, my car looked in a very sorry state!
Luckily, the polystyrene was lying on the grass verge in Scaldwell so we picked it up and sped off home. I dread to think what would have happened if it had been run over and all the little white bits had gone everywhere!
Back home I carried on hoovering and Mum and Dad popped around for a cup of tea as we had a box in our garage that should have gone to the rented house. When they left I carried on cleaning and then it was time to go and pick Sophie up from uni. Keith decided to leave going to the pub this evening as the cough medicine he's on is not compatible with alcohol!
We'd ordered a new TV for Mike yesterday and that was due to be delivered at midday so we couldn't go out anywhere. I was told a delivery slot of 11.51-12.51 and it arrived bang on 11.51! Brilliant! Keith set it all up and then we had fun trying to connect his PS3 and PS4 to it...I couldn't stand Mike's messy room so I fetched the hoover and vacuumed his room and all of the upstairs while Keith fiddled about with it. We were successful (phew!) so that was a relief. I know that if Mikey had arrived home and it wasn't working the sparks would fly!
When it was all connected Keith and I went to the tip (recycling centre) with our old fridge freezer and the two old televisions that had been in Mikey's room. We just about managed to get the fridge freezer in my poor car but as we were driving through Scaldwell, the boot flew open and a piece of polystyrene fell out onto the road...ooops!
We stopped the car and Keith managed to secure the boot shut so we carried on our way to the tip hoping that the polystyrene would still be intact on the way back home when we'd pick it up. When we took the appliances out of my car the back seats and boot area were covered in dust and dirt. As well as the outside being covered in thick mud, my car looked in a very sorry state!
Luckily, the polystyrene was lying on the grass verge in Scaldwell so we picked it up and sped off home. I dread to think what would have happened if it had been run over and all the little white bits had gone everywhere!
Back home I carried on hoovering and Mum and Dad popped around for a cup of tea as we had a box in our garage that should have gone to the rented house. When they left I carried on cleaning and then it was time to go and pick Sophie up from uni. Keith decided to leave going to the pub this evening as the cough medicine he's on is not compatible with alcohol!
Thursday 26 November 2015
Getting straight
Mum and Dad stayed in a hotel last night as the rented house was in such chaos and it was a nice treat for them to go somewhere they could relax and have a meal. I'd booked them into a Holiday Inn in Northampton and they were upgraded to an executive room which went down very well!
Sophie and I called to see them on the way to Riverside and I was amazed to see that they'd already sorted out the living room and made it very cosy. We didn't stay long and went off to Costa in Next for a Flat White and a chocolate Twist pastry, Delicious!
After our refreshment we had a look at all the things on offer in Next and I managed to resist buying anything! After seeing all the stuff that Mum and Dad have accumulated over the years I do wonder whether it's a good idea to surround ourselves with unnecessary clutter! Yes, some things have huge sentimental value but so many of the things we have are just pointless!
Sophie bought some perfume and a ring in Next and then we walked to Boots as I needed some shampoo and Sophie wanted to get more make-up. All the stores here are gearing up for "Black Friday" which is beginning to annoy me intensely as it's an American import! You can't open the paper or go onto the internet without seeing all the retailers struggling to get our attention!
After we'd been to Boots I called into Virgin to book an eyebrow shape. We both agreed we missed going to the gym very much and wished there was just a swim and spa membership we could take out as we loved going and wallowing in the jacuzzi!
I dropped Sophie off at uni and then went to see Mum and Dad. There wasn't much room for my car again so I parked it way down the road and was horrified to see how muddy and dirty it was. We'd also trailed mud into the car as well so it will need a really good clean!
Dad and I decided to head back to their old house to collect their hoover and pick up some things they'd left in the shed and garage. When we arrived there was an enormous removals van blocking the entire entrance so we had to get the attention of one of their removal men who brought the new owner out to see us. She was lovely (her husband wasn't there) and we explained we still had a few bits to collect. Doing it today was obviously not a good idea so she found us the hoover and we took that back to the house so Mum could clean the floors. They've arranged to meet up for coffee in the pub on Sunday so I can help get the last few bits then.
I took Dad back to the house and the decided to try and get my car cleaned at the garage but for some reason it was closed. I headed home, filled my car up with Mum and Dad's rubbish for the tip and Keith and I went there to drop it all off. At least I cleared some space in my garage!
From the tip we collected Sophie from uni and then it was home for a quick sandwich. Phew! Today has flown by! I walked to the post box outside our estate and took Monty with me who ran about sniffing everything and scuttling about in the undergrowth when I was looking at the noticeboard!
It was a damp and very chill afternoon and we seem to lose the light so quickly these days. Back home I relaxed in a lovely bath and then fell asleep on the bed watching Flog It! I now have a cold as well but I was still looking forward to going out this evening with Sue to Sage and Brooke.
Sue very kindly drove and we were soon arriving in the gorgeous village of Grafton Underwood. The restaurant looked much busier than the last time we were here so that was good. We were given our menus and I sipped on a chilled Pinot Grigio while deciding what I was going to have. Sue went for the goat's cheese again while I opted for mussels this time, served in a cream and garlic sauce with crusty bread. For the mains Sue chose a beefburger while I decided on the supreme of chicken served on a bed of mash with buttered kale and a tarragon and madeira sauce. The food was absolutely delicious and my white wine complemented the chicken very well.
This time we found room for dessert and I chose the chocolate and orange cheesecake while Sue went for the sticky toffee pudding. Sublime! We had a good natter and it was lovely to be out and dressed up for the occasion!
Sophie and I called to see them on the way to Riverside and I was amazed to see that they'd already sorted out the living room and made it very cosy. We didn't stay long and went off to Costa in Next for a Flat White and a chocolate Twist pastry, Delicious!
After our refreshment we had a look at all the things on offer in Next and I managed to resist buying anything! After seeing all the stuff that Mum and Dad have accumulated over the years I do wonder whether it's a good idea to surround ourselves with unnecessary clutter! Yes, some things have huge sentimental value but so many of the things we have are just pointless!
Sophie bought some perfume and a ring in Next and then we walked to Boots as I needed some shampoo and Sophie wanted to get more make-up. All the stores here are gearing up for "Black Friday" which is beginning to annoy me intensely as it's an American import! You can't open the paper or go onto the internet without seeing all the retailers struggling to get our attention!
After we'd been to Boots I called into Virgin to book an eyebrow shape. We both agreed we missed going to the gym very much and wished there was just a swim and spa membership we could take out as we loved going and wallowing in the jacuzzi!
I dropped Sophie off at uni and then went to see Mum and Dad. There wasn't much room for my car again so I parked it way down the road and was horrified to see how muddy and dirty it was. We'd also trailed mud into the car as well so it will need a really good clean!
Dad and I decided to head back to their old house to collect their hoover and pick up some things they'd left in the shed and garage. When we arrived there was an enormous removals van blocking the entire entrance so we had to get the attention of one of their removal men who brought the new owner out to see us. She was lovely (her husband wasn't there) and we explained we still had a few bits to collect. Doing it today was obviously not a good idea so she found us the hoover and we took that back to the house so Mum could clean the floors. They've arranged to meet up for coffee in the pub on Sunday so I can help get the last few bits then.
I took Dad back to the house and the decided to try and get my car cleaned at the garage but for some reason it was closed. I headed home, filled my car up with Mum and Dad's rubbish for the tip and Keith and I went there to drop it all off. At least I cleared some space in my garage!
From the tip we collected Sophie from uni and then it was home for a quick sandwich. Phew! Today has flown by! I walked to the post box outside our estate and took Monty with me who ran about sniffing everything and scuttling about in the undergrowth when I was looking at the noticeboard!
It was a damp and very chill afternoon and we seem to lose the light so quickly these days. Back home I relaxed in a lovely bath and then fell asleep on the bed watching Flog It! I now have a cold as well but I was still looking forward to going out this evening with Sue to Sage and Brooke.
Sue very kindly drove and we were soon arriving in the gorgeous village of Grafton Underwood. The restaurant looked much busier than the last time we were here so that was good. We were given our menus and I sipped on a chilled Pinot Grigio while deciding what I was going to have. Sue went for the goat's cheese again while I opted for mussels this time, served in a cream and garlic sauce with crusty bread. For the mains Sue chose a beefburger while I decided on the supreme of chicken served on a bed of mash with buttered kale and a tarragon and madeira sauce. The food was absolutely delicious and my white wine complemented the chicken very well.
This time we found room for dessert and I chose the chocolate and orange cheesecake while Sue went for the sticky toffee pudding. Sublime! We had a good natter and it was lovely to be out and dressed up for the occasion!
Wednesday 25 November 2015
Completion date
This morning, after dropping Mike off at school and Sophie off at work (she's working all day today) Keith and I drove to Mum and Dad's house to help them with the big move.
The removals men were already there and making good progress with the furniture and all the boxes. I put some fragile boxes in my car and at 11am Mum and Dad drove into Northampton to collect the keys of the house they're renting. Luckily it was a beautiful day with sunshine and blue skies so that was a relief. It would have been terrible if it had been raining!
While Mum and Dad went off Keith and I stayed behind to clean and pack up some more boxes. I found some bits in their kitchen drawers and cupboards so I cleaned them all out and hoovered upstairs. I'd already dismantled the computer for them and put it into boxes so the top half of the house was now completely empty.
At about 11.30am I received a call from Mum saying they had the keys and could we meet them at the house in Moulton. The removals men took Mum and Dad's fridge freezer around to our house (they already have one at the new house) and then we drove to Moulton.
The house they're renting is brand new and is right on the edge of a building site so the road was like a river of mud. I parked the car opposite and was immediately accosted by one of the burly builders (I think he might have been the boss) saying that the road was very busy and implying that my car would be in the way. He was quite dishy so I smiled and assured him I'd only be there a few minutes to unload the car which seemed to keep him happy.
We ended up passing the boxes and other items through the kitchen window as the house was in total chaos. It was a lot smaller than I'd expected so I think Mum and Dad will have to move more stuff into storage than they anticipated. They have a small front bedroom with an en-suite, a smaller spare bedroom, also with an en-suite a living room and a kitchen with a cloakroom in between, and that's it! Still, it will be fine for them until their new house is built and they'll have to use the spare room as a dumping ground.
After we'd emptied my car I headed back to their old house with Keith and my Mum. I dropped Keith off on the way as he needed to go to Tesco and do some chores around the house. Mum and I packed some more stuff up and called Dad to come out as there was still a lot to be packed up and the removals men wouldn't be coming back now to take any more things!
Leaving Dad in their old house we headed back to Moulton once again and discovered that there simply wasn't room for the dining room table and chairs in the rented house. We had to ask the men to take the furniture to the Lok 'n' Store unit which they very kindly did. They were now finished and the house was full of boxes and furniture. It looked total chaos!
Mum and I unloaded some more boxes from my car and then called into the Co-op to buy some sandwiches for lunch. We drove back to their old house and had something to eat before starting on more packing up and cleaning.
I was very glad that Sophie was at work today and Mike was off to see his girlfriend after school as I didn't have to worry about going off to collect them. I put yet more boxes in my car and Keith came around to help Mum and Dad get some stuff from their loft which they had forgotten about. It turned out to be boxes of old vinyl LPs and photographs so we decided to store the stuff in our garage as they couldn't possibly take any more boxes in the rented house.
By 3.30pm we were all finished and I dreaded the new owners appearing before we'd moved out completely. That happened to Keith and I when we moved from our little cottage in Walgrave...we'd been moving stuff to our rented house (while this one was being built) and we arrived back to find the new owners already in!
I left Mum and Dad to say goodbye to their house and went home to have a lovely hot bath before it was time to pick the kids up. Keith had prepared a lovely curry so that was very welcome after our long day!
The removals men were already there and making good progress with the furniture and all the boxes. I put some fragile boxes in my car and at 11am Mum and Dad drove into Northampton to collect the keys of the house they're renting. Luckily it was a beautiful day with sunshine and blue skies so that was a relief. It would have been terrible if it had been raining!
While Mum and Dad went off Keith and I stayed behind to clean and pack up some more boxes. I found some bits in their kitchen drawers and cupboards so I cleaned them all out and hoovered upstairs. I'd already dismantled the computer for them and put it into boxes so the top half of the house was now completely empty.
At about 11.30am I received a call from Mum saying they had the keys and could we meet them at the house in Moulton. The removals men took Mum and Dad's fridge freezer around to our house (they already have one at the new house) and then we drove to Moulton.
The house they're renting is brand new and is right on the edge of a building site so the road was like a river of mud. I parked the car opposite and was immediately accosted by one of the burly builders (I think he might have been the boss) saying that the road was very busy and implying that my car would be in the way. He was quite dishy so I smiled and assured him I'd only be there a few minutes to unload the car which seemed to keep him happy.
We ended up passing the boxes and other items through the kitchen window as the house was in total chaos. It was a lot smaller than I'd expected so I think Mum and Dad will have to move more stuff into storage than they anticipated. They have a small front bedroom with an en-suite, a smaller spare bedroom, also with an en-suite a living room and a kitchen with a cloakroom in between, and that's it! Still, it will be fine for them until their new house is built and they'll have to use the spare room as a dumping ground.
After we'd emptied my car I headed back to their old house with Keith and my Mum. I dropped Keith off on the way as he needed to go to Tesco and do some chores around the house. Mum and I packed some more stuff up and called Dad to come out as there was still a lot to be packed up and the removals men wouldn't be coming back now to take any more things!
Leaving Dad in their old house we headed back to Moulton once again and discovered that there simply wasn't room for the dining room table and chairs in the rented house. We had to ask the men to take the furniture to the Lok 'n' Store unit which they very kindly did. They were now finished and the house was full of boxes and furniture. It looked total chaos!
Mum and I unloaded some more boxes from my car and then called into the Co-op to buy some sandwiches for lunch. We drove back to their old house and had something to eat before starting on more packing up and cleaning.
I was very glad that Sophie was at work today and Mike was off to see his girlfriend after school as I didn't have to worry about going off to collect them. I put yet more boxes in my car and Keith came around to help Mum and Dad get some stuff from their loft which they had forgotten about. It turned out to be boxes of old vinyl LPs and photographs so we decided to store the stuff in our garage as they couldn't possibly take any more boxes in the rented house.
By 3.30pm we were all finished and I dreaded the new owners appearing before we'd moved out completely. That happened to Keith and I when we moved from our little cottage in Walgrave...we'd been moving stuff to our rented house (while this one was being built) and we arrived back to find the new owners already in!
I left Mum and Dad to say goodbye to their house and went home to have a lovely hot bath before it was time to pick the kids up. Keith had prepared a lovely curry so that was very welcome after our long day!
Tuesday 24 November 2015
Lots of stuff!
A lot of Mum and Dad's stuff was being moved into storage today so their drive was blocked by the removal vans. They asked me to take some boxes to store in our garage as this Saturday there's a Christmas Fayre being held in the church so they're going to try and sell some more of their bits and pieces on a table they've rented.
It was a good job that I'd emptied out garage out last week as it's rapidly being re-filled with Mum and Dad's boxes! I'm so glad my CDWM evening wasn't this Friday. I would have been very busy indeed!
The removal men had finished by lunchtime so Keith and I headed home for something to eat and then it was time to go and pick Sophie up from uni. It's been an overcast and dark day today but the very cold weather seems to have disappeared for the time being. When we arrived home I saw Sue and we chatted about our forthcoming meal out on Thursday night. I'm looking forward to going out and dressing up a bit for a change!
It was a good job that I'd emptied out garage out last week as it's rapidly being re-filled with Mum and Dad's boxes! I'm so glad my CDWM evening wasn't this Friday. I would have been very busy indeed!
The removal men had finished by lunchtime so Keith and I headed home for something to eat and then it was time to go and pick Sophie up from uni. It's been an overcast and dark day today but the very cold weather seems to have disappeared for the time being. When we arrived home I saw Sue and we chatted about our forthcoming meal out on Thursday night. I'm looking forward to going out and dressing up a bit for a change!
Monday 23 November 2015
Moving on...
I had probably one of the worst night's sleep last night and was awake from around 1am until 6am. Keith woke up as well, and started coughing, so he went downstairs and I tried vainly to get back to sleep. In the end I got up as he'd come back to bed and was coughing again!
I watched a bit of "Holiday Inn" and at 6am went back to bed as I felt cold and very tired. I was annoyed as I'd promised Mum and Dad I'd help them move some stuff into storage today, but after getting up at 7am I didn't feel quite as exhausted.
Keith and I went to their house to see a huge white transit van parked on their drive. Dad had already started putting his model aeroplanes and some shelving into it but I took some boxes home in my car as Mum and Dad are having a stall at the Christmas fair in the village at the weekend and wanted me to store their items until then.
We went back and put their lawnmower in the van and I followed Dad to our house so we could store it in our garage. The garage, so bare and tidy after the weekend, was beginning to look very cluttered again!
Dad drove very gingerly to the Lok 'n' Store at Riverside and I was impressed with how the facility worked. He backed the van up to the large entrance, signed in and then we loaded the stuff we had onto a trolley. We then used a goods lift to transport everything up to the second floor where their unit was situated, unlocked the door, put it all away and that was it!
Dad has rented a much smaller unit to store the stuff from his garage and his planes fitted nicely on the rack. They have also rented a large unit for a lot of their furniture and their huge super-king bed so that will be moved over tomorrow by their removal firm.
Keith and I went back to Mum's and loaded the car up a second time but before we drove back to the storage unit we had some lunch and chatted to Sophie who was off today because one of her lecturers was ill. She was doing lots of work in the conservatory so at least she was still studying!
We went off again after having a sandwich and then I filled my car up with diesel and we popped to the doctor's surgery to get a prescription for Keith that will, hopefully, clear up his troublesome cough!
I watched a bit of "Holiday Inn" and at 6am went back to bed as I felt cold and very tired. I was annoyed as I'd promised Mum and Dad I'd help them move some stuff into storage today, but after getting up at 7am I didn't feel quite as exhausted.
Keith and I went to their house to see a huge white transit van parked on their drive. Dad had already started putting his model aeroplanes and some shelving into it but I took some boxes home in my car as Mum and Dad are having a stall at the Christmas fair in the village at the weekend and wanted me to store their items until then.
We went back and put their lawnmower in the van and I followed Dad to our house so we could store it in our garage. The garage, so bare and tidy after the weekend, was beginning to look very cluttered again!
Dad drove very gingerly to the Lok 'n' Store at Riverside and I was impressed with how the facility worked. He backed the van up to the large entrance, signed in and then we loaded the stuff we had onto a trolley. We then used a goods lift to transport everything up to the second floor where their unit was situated, unlocked the door, put it all away and that was it!
Dad has rented a much smaller unit to store the stuff from his garage and his planes fitted nicely on the rack. They have also rented a large unit for a lot of their furniture and their huge super-king bed so that will be moved over tomorrow by their removal firm.
Keith and I went back to Mum's and loaded the car up a second time but before we drove back to the storage unit we had some lunch and chatted to Sophie who was off today because one of her lecturers was ill. She was doing lots of work in the conservatory so at least she was still studying!
We went off again after having a sandwich and then I filled my car up with diesel and we popped to the doctor's surgery to get a prescription for Keith that will, hopefully, clear up his troublesome cough!
Sunday 22 November 2015
Chilling out!
It's been another cold day today so perfect for staying indoors and doing very little!
I took Mike to Moulton this morning and picked him up again at 6pm so that was my only trip of the day as Sophie worked yesterday and didn't feel like going out anywhere today. It was sheer bliss to keep warm and sit in our conservatory where I caught up with the papers in the week that I hadn't read, and had a good look at the Sunday newspapers.
By 3.30pm it was getting dark so we lit the candles and the little lamps and stayed put! It was very cosy and we let Monty come in for a little while, to get out of the cold. Brrr!
I took Mike to Moulton this morning and picked him up again at 6pm so that was my only trip of the day as Sophie worked yesterday and didn't feel like going out anywhere today. It was sheer bliss to keep warm and sit in our conservatory where I caught up with the papers in the week that I hadn't read, and had a good look at the Sunday newspapers.
By 3.30pm it was getting dark so we lit the candles and the little lamps and stayed put! It was very cosy and we let Monty come in for a little while, to get out of the cold. Brrr!
Saturday 21 November 2015
Season of goodwill?
I awoke at 8.30am today and felt fine, just very tired. Keith was already up and said that it had been snowing a bit at 4am this morning. It was still very cold and the wind was bitter but we had plenty of sunshine and the skies were blue so that was good. I do like it when it's cold and sunny!
We had to take Sophie into work at 9.30am and on the way home Keith called into the chemist to buy some cough medicine. His cold is still as bad as ever despite him keeping warm and drinking plenty of water.
We ventured out later in the morning as I needed to take a bra back to M&S. Looking back it would have been far better if I'd posted it back via the little post office in Walgrave as the store was busy with people doing their Christmas shopping and being very irritated. I waited for ages at the Click and Collect counter and listened as a woman lost her temper with the assistant. The people working on the desk seemed very fed-up and when one of the women went off to collect an order, a whole host of people behind me shouted out that they had orders to collect as well.
"I can only carry one thing at a time," she retorted which sounded ridiculous as she could at least have seen what was ordered and decided whether she could carry it or not! I was then asked if I was collecting anything but I was returning an item and discovered I was in the wrong place! All that waiting for nothing and I never did hear the end of the woman's complaint and how she demanded to speak to a manager!
From M&S Keith and I went to Lidl as they had very cleverly inserted a beautifully produced magazine in with the weekend newspapers and I saw a recipe for an "After Dark" Mojito. As Sophie loves Mojitos and I wanted to thank her for all her hard work yesterday, we went into the supermarket and I bought limes, mint, soda water and dark rum to make her one when she got home from work. The Lidl magazine was full of tempting goodies for Christmas and was very professional, I thought. I also bought a box of mince pies and a bottle of Gluhwein so their marketing department certainly know how to sell their produce!
Back home it was time to do very little (except write this as I was seriously late) and keep warm!
We had to take Sophie into work at 9.30am and on the way home Keith called into the chemist to buy some cough medicine. His cold is still as bad as ever despite him keeping warm and drinking plenty of water.
We ventured out later in the morning as I needed to take a bra back to M&S. Looking back it would have been far better if I'd posted it back via the little post office in Walgrave as the store was busy with people doing their Christmas shopping and being very irritated. I waited for ages at the Click and Collect counter and listened as a woman lost her temper with the assistant. The people working on the desk seemed very fed-up and when one of the women went off to collect an order, a whole host of people behind me shouted out that they had orders to collect as well.
"I can only carry one thing at a time," she retorted which sounded ridiculous as she could at least have seen what was ordered and decided whether she could carry it or not! I was then asked if I was collecting anything but I was returning an item and discovered I was in the wrong place! All that waiting for nothing and I never did hear the end of the woman's complaint and how she demanded to speak to a manager!
From M&S Keith and I went to Lidl as they had very cleverly inserted a beautifully produced magazine in with the weekend newspapers and I saw a recipe for an "After Dark" Mojito. As Sophie loves Mojitos and I wanted to thank her for all her hard work yesterday, we went into the supermarket and I bought limes, mint, soda water and dark rum to make her one when she got home from work. The Lidl magazine was full of tempting goodies for Christmas and was very professional, I thought. I also bought a box of mince pies and a bottle of Gluhwein so their marketing department certainly know how to sell their produce!
Back home it was time to do very little (except write this as I was seriously late) and keep warm!
Friday 20 November 2015
Back to the 1940s!
I had a very long and busy day ahead of me today but first thing I needed to do was go back to Jones's as I hadn't bought enough black card to cover up the window in the garage door! We dropped the kids off and then discovered that Jones's doesn't open until 9am! As I also needed to get some coffee and camomile tea we went off to Waitrose and had a very nice chat with a neighbour who was also in there shopping.
We made a quick dash to Jones's, bought what I needed and then it was home to commence my cooking. I was so glad I'd tidied and cleaned the garage yesterday as it took me all day to prepare my dishes, sort out the table and clean the downstairs of the house.
I made the hotpot first and browned the cubes of lamb in hot lard. I then sauteed two onions, four carrots and two leeks and mixed them all together with some stock and two herby stock cubes. It smelt delicious!
After making the hotpot I peeled what seemed like hundreds of onions for the soup and put that on to simmer. I was going to heat it up later and add the crusty bread and cheese just before I served it. After cooking I set the table and banished Archie from the sofa in the conservatory. Monty was also banned from the garage so he was not at all happy and spent most of the day yowling at the back door, much to my extreme annoyance!
Much of today was spent preparing stuff so I didn't have to do too much later when Lynda, Andrea and Fiona arrived. I opened two bottles of Claret and poured them into my decanter before trying the sherry I'd bought. It was quite sweet and I didn't think it would go too well with my nibbles - baked potato skins. I decided to serve a dry white wine instead and save the sherry for my trifle.
Before going to collect Sophie from Uni I made the basis of my trifle and started to worry as I'd never made a trifle before and it looked like it was going to be a disaster! However, I persevered and planned on serving ice-cream if it looked like it was going to be inedible!
When Sophie and I returned home I shredded a whole white cabbage as I was going to cook it slowly with an onion and some bacon lardons. I put the hotpot in the oven at 6.30pm and then went and had a quick bath and washed my hair.
Sophie wasn't in the best of moods this evening so I was a bit fearful about my victory rolls. However, she did an absolutely fantastic job and by 7.15pm I was dressed and ready and looking very much like a wartime housewife! I put the finishing touches to my meal and went to welcome the girls who arrived in a burst of noise and laughter!
Lynda and Andrea were dressed as land-girls while Fiona was a very elegantly dressed lady from the 1940s. They bought flowers and lots of wine and Andrea even had a genuine gasmask with her! They admired all the little bits I'd put out (ration books, identity cards etc) and very soon we were nibbling on my baked potato skins and sipping white wine.
The meal went down very well and I was extremely pleased how the soup and hotpot turned out. Everyone had seconds and the lamb was beautiful and tender so I was relieved! After we'd eaten the main course I turned on my Hudl and played the video of the air raid siren and told everyone to go outside to the "shelter". I'd put a heater out there and it had been working for four hours but it was still quite chilly as the night was much colder than of late. We sat in there and I lit the candles and turned on the little lamps and it was lovely. If it had been warmer I would have been quite happy to have stayed there a bit longer!
Back in the conservatory we played a game I'd bought "True or False?" and then we enjoyed my raspberry sherry trifle which turned out to be delicious, thank goodness!
We drank some more wine and then I made tea for everyone and the girls finally left in a taxi at 1.30am! Phew! Sophie had done all the washing up and clearing away and I was so thankful for her help as there was only the wine glasses and dessert bowls to wash up. She came downstairs and I was amazed to see her as I thought everyone was in bed. By 2am I'd tidied everything away, turned all the lights out and was more than ready for my bed!
We made a quick dash to Jones's, bought what I needed and then it was home to commence my cooking. I was so glad I'd tidied and cleaned the garage yesterday as it took me all day to prepare my dishes, sort out the table and clean the downstairs of the house.
I made the hotpot first and browned the cubes of lamb in hot lard. I then sauteed two onions, four carrots and two leeks and mixed them all together with some stock and two herby stock cubes. It smelt delicious!
After making the hotpot I peeled what seemed like hundreds of onions for the soup and put that on to simmer. I was going to heat it up later and add the crusty bread and cheese just before I served it. After cooking I set the table and banished Archie from the sofa in the conservatory. Monty was also banned from the garage so he was not at all happy and spent most of the day yowling at the back door, much to my extreme annoyance!
Much of today was spent preparing stuff so I didn't have to do too much later when Lynda, Andrea and Fiona arrived. I opened two bottles of Claret and poured them into my decanter before trying the sherry I'd bought. It was quite sweet and I didn't think it would go too well with my nibbles - baked potato skins. I decided to serve a dry white wine instead and save the sherry for my trifle.
Before going to collect Sophie from Uni I made the basis of my trifle and started to worry as I'd never made a trifle before and it looked like it was going to be a disaster! However, I persevered and planned on serving ice-cream if it looked like it was going to be inedible!
When Sophie and I returned home I shredded a whole white cabbage as I was going to cook it slowly with an onion and some bacon lardons. I put the hotpot in the oven at 6.30pm and then went and had a quick bath and washed my hair.
Sophie wasn't in the best of moods this evening so I was a bit fearful about my victory rolls. However, she did an absolutely fantastic job and by 7.15pm I was dressed and ready and looking very much like a wartime housewife! I put the finishing touches to my meal and went to welcome the girls who arrived in a burst of noise and laughter!
Lynda and Andrea were dressed as land-girls while Fiona was a very elegantly dressed lady from the 1940s. They bought flowers and lots of wine and Andrea even had a genuine gasmask with her! They admired all the little bits I'd put out (ration books, identity cards etc) and very soon we were nibbling on my baked potato skins and sipping white wine.
The meal went down very well and I was extremely pleased how the soup and hotpot turned out. Everyone had seconds and the lamb was beautiful and tender so I was relieved! After we'd eaten the main course I turned on my Hudl and played the video of the air raid siren and told everyone to go outside to the "shelter". I'd put a heater out there and it had been working for four hours but it was still quite chilly as the night was much colder than of late. We sat in there and I lit the candles and turned on the little lamps and it was lovely. If it had been warmer I would have been quite happy to have stayed there a bit longer!
Back in the conservatory we played a game I'd bought "True or False?" and then we enjoyed my raspberry sherry trifle which turned out to be delicious, thank goodness!
We drank some more wine and then I made tea for everyone and the girls finally left in a taxi at 1.30am! Phew! Sophie had done all the washing up and clearing away and I was so thankful for her help as there was only the wine glasses and dessert bowls to wash up. She came downstairs and I was amazed to see her as I thought everyone was in bed. By 2am I'd tidied everything away, turned all the lights out and was more than ready for my bed!
Thursday 19 November 2015
Getting ready
This morning, Keith took Mike to school while I made a start on the garage. I didn't know what to do first, to be honest, but by the time he returned I'd swept up all the leaves and put quite a bit of rubbish in my car to be taken to the tip.
It was a dry day and not too cold so ideal for working outside. Monty was very bemused when I re-arranged the sofa and chair we have in there and I'm not sure he was too happy about being ousted from his bed! By 11am it was looking so much tidier (and cleaner!) and Keith put some stuff up in the eaves and used some wood to make me a little shelf where I'll put some candles and lamps on Friday evening.
We went off to the tip with the car fully loaded and then it was back home to decide what we were going to eat for the rest of the week. I thought Sophie was in at Uni at 1pm today, but just as I was heading for the shower she said she was going in for 12pm as she was meeting some friends to discuss a presentation! Luckily, Keith was all ready to go so he dropped her off while I showered.
I was not looking forward to going shopping at all. I think the novelty has most definitely worn off now! We made the mistake of trying to shop for us and also my CDWM evening but we quickly realised that we were giving ourselves a lot of stress doing it this way! Aldi was busy with people all dithering about and as the aisles are narrow it was extremely annoying! We took my trolley back and concentrated on the stuff we needed for the coming week. It meant that when we'd finished we had to put our shopping in the car and go back in to get mine, but it made it a lot less stressful!
I bought the wine, sherry, cream, butter and onions from Aldi but I had difficulty finding out where the jam was and there were no tinned raspberries at all so I bought the rest of the stuff I needed in Tesco. Keith also bought the bulk of our shopping in there (we're gradually sliding back to the store) including all the meat we needed for meals. I went and asked at the butchery counter about lamb for my hotpot and the very knowledgeable lady there recommended neck of lamb rather than the steaks I'd bought previously. The meat itself came to just over £16 but I still thought that was good value as it would feed five of us (Keith was going to share the meal but eat in the living room!).
We loaded all our shopping in the car and went very thankfully home to put it all away and have lunch, which we felt we most definitely deserved!
Dad popped around in the afternoon as he's hired a transit van on Monday to transport all of the stuff in his garage. He had to scan and email a copy of his driving licence so he needed my help. I sometimes do wonder what happens to people who can't (or don't have) access to a computer or the internet? So much today is reliant on being able to upload or scan things and not everyone has the necessary skills to do it!
Talking of which, I posted a photo of our little rocking horse onto our local Facebook page as we no longer needed it and I wanted to give it away free to a good home. Within minutes a lady living in the village responded and we arranged for her to come and see the toy on her way home. She was thrilled with it and said her granddaughter would love to have it. A good home then!
Sophie came out of uni early and was standing waiting for me in the cold, poor thing. The weather has definitely become much cooler than of late and they've forecast snow flurries for the weekend. Brrr!
It was a dry day and not too cold so ideal for working outside. Monty was very bemused when I re-arranged the sofa and chair we have in there and I'm not sure he was too happy about being ousted from his bed! By 11am it was looking so much tidier (and cleaner!) and Keith put some stuff up in the eaves and used some wood to make me a little shelf where I'll put some candles and lamps on Friday evening.
We went off to the tip with the car fully loaded and then it was back home to decide what we were going to eat for the rest of the week. I thought Sophie was in at Uni at 1pm today, but just as I was heading for the shower she said she was going in for 12pm as she was meeting some friends to discuss a presentation! Luckily, Keith was all ready to go so he dropped her off while I showered.
I was not looking forward to going shopping at all. I think the novelty has most definitely worn off now! We made the mistake of trying to shop for us and also my CDWM evening but we quickly realised that we were giving ourselves a lot of stress doing it this way! Aldi was busy with people all dithering about and as the aisles are narrow it was extremely annoying! We took my trolley back and concentrated on the stuff we needed for the coming week. It meant that when we'd finished we had to put our shopping in the car and go back in to get mine, but it made it a lot less stressful!
I bought the wine, sherry, cream, butter and onions from Aldi but I had difficulty finding out where the jam was and there were no tinned raspberries at all so I bought the rest of the stuff I needed in Tesco. Keith also bought the bulk of our shopping in there (we're gradually sliding back to the store) including all the meat we needed for meals. I went and asked at the butchery counter about lamb for my hotpot and the very knowledgeable lady there recommended neck of lamb rather than the steaks I'd bought previously. The meat itself came to just over £16 but I still thought that was good value as it would feed five of us (Keith was going to share the meal but eat in the living room!).
We loaded all our shopping in the car and went very thankfully home to put it all away and have lunch, which we felt we most definitely deserved!
Dad popped around in the afternoon as he's hired a transit van on Monday to transport all of the stuff in his garage. He had to scan and email a copy of his driving licence so he needed my help. I sometimes do wonder what happens to people who can't (or don't have) access to a computer or the internet? So much today is reliant on being able to upload or scan things and not everyone has the necessary skills to do it!
Talking of which, I posted a photo of our little rocking horse onto our local Facebook page as we no longer needed it and I wanted to give it away free to a good home. Within minutes a lady living in the village responded and we arranged for her to come and see the toy on her way home. She was thrilled with it and said her granddaughter would love to have it. A good home then!
Sophie came out of uni early and was standing waiting for me in the cold, poor thing. The weather has definitely become much cooler than of late and they've forecast snow flurries for the weekend. Brrr!
Wednesday 18 November 2015
Out and about!
This morning Sophie and I went off to Jones's and Homesense to get a few bits we needed. As Keith has been up coughing in the night, he's woken me as well so I felt a bit weary this morning. My enthusiasm for my CDWM evening is wearing a bit thin, if I'm honest!
I bought candles, lovely little battery-powered lanterns and November's heart in Jones's which was busy with people shopping for Christmas. In Homesense Sophie bought a beautiful box to keep her treasured mementoes and a journal for our trip to Berlin (I think I forgot to mention that on Sunday, completely out of the blue, we booked to go to Berlin for three nights in December!).
I also bought some small, very elegant, glasses for the sherry on Friday evening and did my best to resist buying any Christmas decorations. They have some beautiful things in there at the moment!
Back home Sophie sat in the conservatory and worked all afternoon while I typed up my menu and kept her company!
I bought candles, lovely little battery-powered lanterns and November's heart in Jones's which was busy with people shopping for Christmas. In Homesense Sophie bought a beautiful box to keep her treasured mementoes and a journal for our trip to Berlin (I think I forgot to mention that on Sunday, completely out of the blue, we booked to go to Berlin for three nights in December!).
I also bought some small, very elegant, glasses for the sherry on Friday evening and did my best to resist buying any Christmas decorations. They have some beautiful things in there at the moment!
Back home Sophie sat in the conservatory and worked all afternoon while I typed up my menu and kept her company!
Tuesday 17 November 2015
Storm Barney
It was back to normal for Sophie today and, again, I took both kids to school and uni while Keith stayed at home in the warm. He's no better at all today so I said I'd go out and buy him some medicine.
I called my Mum and she came out with me to Kettering. We went to B&M first as I was looking for candles and sherry for my forthcoming Come Dine With Me evening on Friday. It's been a bleak horrible day today with mist and rain. However, it's still very mild for this time of year, so that, at least, is some consolation!
I didn't see any candles in B&M, or Sherry, but I did buy a bottle of white wine to go in my onion soup and a much smaller bottle to use when I cook my Pasta Carbonara tomorrow. I also bought some medicine for Keith and two advent calendars for the kids.
From B&M we went to Aldi and I bought a few essentials before we headed to Tesco. Mum very kindly treated me to a Flat White in Costa before I did a little bit more shopping. Keith wanted some ham and Pease Pudding for lunch and I had a real job tracking the tinned stuff down!
Sophie called me to pick her up early from Uni which was good as the two children and I had a dentist appointment later in the afternoon. The earlier mist and rain had given way to clear skies and an increasingly strong wind - Storm Barney was sweeping in and we'd been given a weather warning for our part of the country for wind!
Of course, Mike was home later than usual from school so he had literally five minutes to get ready to go out again. Just enough time to eat one of the desserts I bought in Aldi! We braved the wind and half way on our journey something hit the car windscreen which gave us all a start. I think it may have been a twig or stone, but thankfully there was no damage. All along the road, though, we twigs and small branches brought down by the gales.
At the dentist, Mike was treated to a small filling while Sophie and I had a scale and polish...horrible! I could feel myself really tensing up even though the treatment was over in a matter of minutes! On the way back home the wind seemed even stronger and I wished heartily that Mike didn't have to go to Army Cadets later. It was the perfect night to draw the curtains, light a fire and shut the weather out!
Keith was supposed to have been going to the football tonight, but because of his cold, he didn't go. It didn't stop Sophie and I having a bit of a girls' night in, though, and after we'd eaten we watched some of the film Unknown until it was time for Keith and I to go and collect Mike. During the course of the evening, Sue and Paul's bin went crashing to the ground because of the wind so I ran out to put it back upright and try and shelter it. People who had put their recycling boxes out for collection the next day were a bit foolish as there were bottles and papers flying about all over the place. Phew!
I called my Mum and she came out with me to Kettering. We went to B&M first as I was looking for candles and sherry for my forthcoming Come Dine With Me evening on Friday. It's been a bleak horrible day today with mist and rain. However, it's still very mild for this time of year, so that, at least, is some consolation!
I didn't see any candles in B&M, or Sherry, but I did buy a bottle of white wine to go in my onion soup and a much smaller bottle to use when I cook my Pasta Carbonara tomorrow. I also bought some medicine for Keith and two advent calendars for the kids.
From B&M we went to Aldi and I bought a few essentials before we headed to Tesco. Mum very kindly treated me to a Flat White in Costa before I did a little bit more shopping. Keith wanted some ham and Pease Pudding for lunch and I had a real job tracking the tinned stuff down!
Sophie called me to pick her up early from Uni which was good as the two children and I had a dentist appointment later in the afternoon. The earlier mist and rain had given way to clear skies and an increasingly strong wind - Storm Barney was sweeping in and we'd been given a weather warning for our part of the country for wind!
Of course, Mike was home later than usual from school so he had literally five minutes to get ready to go out again. Just enough time to eat one of the desserts I bought in Aldi! We braved the wind and half way on our journey something hit the car windscreen which gave us all a start. I think it may have been a twig or stone, but thankfully there was no damage. All along the road, though, we twigs and small branches brought down by the gales.
At the dentist, Mike was treated to a small filling while Sophie and I had a scale and polish...horrible! I could feel myself really tensing up even though the treatment was over in a matter of minutes! On the way back home the wind seemed even stronger and I wished heartily that Mike didn't have to go to Army Cadets later. It was the perfect night to draw the curtains, light a fire and shut the weather out!
Keith was supposed to have been going to the football tonight, but because of his cold, he didn't go. It didn't stop Sophie and I having a bit of a girls' night in, though, and after we'd eaten we watched some of the film Unknown until it was time for Keith and I to go and collect Mike. During the course of the evening, Sue and Paul's bin went crashing to the ground because of the wind so I ran out to put it back upright and try and shelter it. People who had put their recycling boxes out for collection the next day were a bit foolish as there were bottles and papers flying about all over the place. Phew!
Monday 16 November 2015
Memories!
Today has been spent uploading more video footage to YouTube so I now have lots of old films to look at on the website. I still find it amazing that I can take a 19 year old video and look at it on my phone!
Sophie wasn't at university today so we only had to take Mike to school. Keith has a really bad cold at the moment so I drove Mikey which was a bit stressful. I'm sure a lot of people leave their brains behind when they get behind the wheel of a car!
After school he brought his girlfriend, Heather, home and she was lovely - very pleasant, bubbly and charming. As Keith felt so horrible with his cough and cold he stayed at home and didn't go to the pub! I cooked dinner of nachos with cheese and chicken and it went a bit better than I expected. Sophie - a real aficionado of nachos and cheese - said it was almost as good as the dish she has in Las Iguanas. Praise indeed!
After dinner it was time for University Challenge and Sophie made us almost helpless with laughter when she put her blue rubber gloves on her feet and then waved them about in the air...Hmmm!
Sophie wasn't at university today so we only had to take Mike to school. Keith has a really bad cold at the moment so I drove Mikey which was a bit stressful. I'm sure a lot of people leave their brains behind when they get behind the wheel of a car!
After school he brought his girlfriend, Heather, home and she was lovely - very pleasant, bubbly and charming. As Keith felt so horrible with his cough and cold he stayed at home and didn't go to the pub! I cooked dinner of nachos with cheese and chicken and it went a bit better than I expected. Sophie - a real aficionado of nachos and cheese - said it was almost as good as the dish she has in Las Iguanas. Praise indeed!
After dinner it was time for University Challenge and Sophie made us almost helpless with laughter when she put her blue rubber gloves on her feet and then waved them about in the air...Hmmm!
Sunday 15 November 2015
It's beginning to smell a lot like Christmas...
After taking Sophie to work this morning I made my Christmas cake. On the way home I called into the garage to buy the Sunday papers and met Mum and Dad who were returning from a table-top sale in Northampton where they'd taken their bits and pieces to sell. Luckily they had more luck this week and managed to make some money!
I put my filthy car through the car wash and went home to cook! I'd already greased and lined my cake tin and taken the butter out of the fridge to soften a bit so as soon as I got home I prepared all the ingredients and it was done. I even made a mini Christmas cake for Keith to enjoy as the main one will need to be kept for the New Year and "fed" with brandy or Port until then.
After all the cooking I treated myself to a steaming glass of Gluhwein. Perfect!
In the afternoon I made a start on transferring my camcorder tapes onto the computer, using the software I'd bought a few months ago. As I hadn't any blank DVDs at home I just uploaded them straight to YouTube and then showed Keith what I'd done by accessing the site on my phone. I find it totally amazing that an old camcorder cassette from 19 years ago (Sophie was just a 9 week old baby) can now be found anywhere I can access YouTube!
I put my filthy car through the car wash and went home to cook! I'd already greased and lined my cake tin and taken the butter out of the fridge to soften a bit so as soon as I got home I prepared all the ingredients and it was done. I even made a mini Christmas cake for Keith to enjoy as the main one will need to be kept for the New Year and "fed" with brandy or Port until then.
After all the cooking I treated myself to a steaming glass of Gluhwein. Perfect!
In the afternoon I made a start on transferring my camcorder tapes onto the computer, using the software I'd bought a few months ago. As I hadn't any blank DVDs at home I just uploaded them straight to YouTube and then showed Keith what I'd done by accessing the site on my phone. I find it totally amazing that an old camcorder cassette from 19 years ago (Sophie was just a 9 week old baby) can now be found anywhere I can access YouTube!
Saturday 14 November 2015
Crowds!
It's been a horrible, wet and windy day today and I should have known that going to one of the large retail parks on the outskirts of Northampton was a mistake!
Sophie wanted to go to Homesense, so, after a morning spent doing very little, we left home at 2pm and battled our way through the traffic. The traffic was just horrendous - huge lines of cars moving very slowly and all headed for the shops, just as we were! We arrived in the car park to find it jammed and after a couple of fruitless circuits I decided to give up, saying to Sophie that we can now visit in the week when it's a bit quieter!
I needed to get some diesel desperately so I did that and then we drove to Abington Park and the cafe there, somewhere we'd never been to before. I should think on a lovely summer's day it's a wonderful place to sit and enjoy a coffee or ice-cream in the sunshine, but on a dismal and chilly Saturday it was a different story!
The doors to the outside terrace were wide open so the cafe itself was cold. We both liked the place, though, and Sophie chose a baked potato with cheese as she said her "stomach was eating itself." I had a mug of tea and a Snickers bar and we sat at the far end, as far away from the open doors as we could!
There were a few people having drinks and snacks and I should think in the summer the place is packed. Sophie's potato was not the best, I'm afraid - the bottom of it was black so she ate what she could and left all the lovely salad it had been served with!
We left the cafe and wandered past the bird cages, looking at a couple of peacocks and lots of budgies. By now it was getting dark and it was chilly and damp and the path that we took back to the road was a little creepy as the trees were huge with low-hanging branches. I certainly didn't want to hang around! So we got back into the car and drove to Wyevale where I wanted to look at the Christmas decorations and twinkly lights.
As it was now past 4pm the place was quiet so we were able to wander around looking for our November heart and seeing some lovely little decorations. I bought a little wooden house that lights up and a wooden cabin that would look great on our Scandinavian tree. We searched for a suitable heart for November but they were all too Christmassy - we need to get one like that in December!
On the way home we picked Mike up from Moulton and then it was back for a glass of Gluhwein and the prospect of a hot curry for dinner!
Sophie wanted to go to Homesense, so, after a morning spent doing very little, we left home at 2pm and battled our way through the traffic. The traffic was just horrendous - huge lines of cars moving very slowly and all headed for the shops, just as we were! We arrived in the car park to find it jammed and after a couple of fruitless circuits I decided to give up, saying to Sophie that we can now visit in the week when it's a bit quieter!
I needed to get some diesel desperately so I did that and then we drove to Abington Park and the cafe there, somewhere we'd never been to before. I should think on a lovely summer's day it's a wonderful place to sit and enjoy a coffee or ice-cream in the sunshine, but on a dismal and chilly Saturday it was a different story!
The doors to the outside terrace were wide open so the cafe itself was cold. We both liked the place, though, and Sophie chose a baked potato with cheese as she said her "stomach was eating itself." I had a mug of tea and a Snickers bar and we sat at the far end, as far away from the open doors as we could!
There were a few people having drinks and snacks and I should think in the summer the place is packed. Sophie's potato was not the best, I'm afraid - the bottom of it was black so she ate what she could and left all the lovely salad it had been served with!
We left the cafe and wandered past the bird cages, looking at a couple of peacocks and lots of budgies. By now it was getting dark and it was chilly and damp and the path that we took back to the road was a little creepy as the trees were huge with low-hanging branches. I certainly didn't want to hang around! So we got back into the car and drove to Wyevale where I wanted to look at the Christmas decorations and twinkly lights.
As it was now past 4pm the place was quiet so we were able to wander around looking for our November heart and seeing some lovely little decorations. I bought a little wooden house that lights up and a wooden cabin that would look great on our Scandinavian tree. We searched for a suitable heart for November but they were all too Christmassy - we need to get one like that in December!
On the way home we picked Mike up from Moulton and then it was back for a glass of Gluhwein and the prospect of a hot curry for dinner!
Friday 13 November 2015
Supermarket snoopers!
After a bright start the weather clouded over and we had some squally showers and wind. Keith went for a walk (mad thing) while I went home and changed our bedding.
By the time he arrived home the weather had cleared and we were treated to blue skies and sunshine. Keith suggested we drive over to Rushden to see the brand new Lidl that had just opened to much acclaim. Apparently they're trying to take on the likes of Waitrose so we thought we'd go and have a look to see how they compare.
We took a long route to Rushden and had a few minutes trouble finding the store. However, we soon spotted the sign and went in to see how it compared to other supermarkets. At first, I wasn't impressed but after having a good look at the products on offer, I changed my mind. It was a bit like being in a foreign (German?) supermarket and they had some lovely looking Christmas food and drink on offer. It definitely seemed that they were trying to be more "up-market" but they have a long way to go before they can favourably compare to Waitrose, especially when it comes to wines and spirits.
I was impressed with the fresh bakery section as they had some lovely looking continental rolls that I've only ever seen in our Berlin hotel. Keith treated me to a bottle of "Gluhwein" so I'll look forward to drinking that later today!
It might be worth driving over again, especially for Christmas goodies, but I don't think we'll be doing our weekly shop there!
Back home I popped over to see Mum and Dad and helped them send an attachment on an email. They are making real progress with packing up the house and the walls looked really bare. It's all change!
By the time he arrived home the weather had cleared and we were treated to blue skies and sunshine. Keith suggested we drive over to Rushden to see the brand new Lidl that had just opened to much acclaim. Apparently they're trying to take on the likes of Waitrose so we thought we'd go and have a look to see how they compare.
We took a long route to Rushden and had a few minutes trouble finding the store. However, we soon spotted the sign and went in to see how it compared to other supermarkets. At first, I wasn't impressed but after having a good look at the products on offer, I changed my mind. It was a bit like being in a foreign (German?) supermarket and they had some lovely looking Christmas food and drink on offer. It definitely seemed that they were trying to be more "up-market" but they have a long way to go before they can favourably compare to Waitrose, especially when it comes to wines and spirits.
I was impressed with the fresh bakery section as they had some lovely looking continental rolls that I've only ever seen in our Berlin hotel. Keith treated me to a bottle of "Gluhwein" so I'll look forward to drinking that later today!
It might be worth driving over again, especially for Christmas goodies, but I don't think we'll be doing our weekly shop there!
Back home I popped over to see Mum and Dad and helped them send an attachment on an email. They are making real progress with packing up the house and the walls looked really bare. It's all change!
Thursday 12 November 2015
Balmy days!
It's certainly been a very mild November and in the newspaper the other day there were stories of lambs being born!
I took some photos of our summer bedding plants still flowering in the middle of November:
The daytime temperatures are about 14-15c and they don't go down very much at night. The north of the UK is set to be affected by Storm Abigail over the next few days and then it's supposed to get a bit colder.
It's been the usual chores today - Keith took Mike to the Orthodontist this morning and when he arrived back I'd already written out the week's menu and made a shopping list. I then cleaned the house and we took Sophie to uni at 1pm before going shopping. Another week is almost over!
I took some photos of our summer bedding plants still flowering in the middle of November:
The daytime temperatures are about 14-15c and they don't go down very much at night. The north of the UK is set to be affected by Storm Abigail over the next few days and then it's supposed to get a bit colder.
It's been the usual chores today - Keith took Mike to the Orthodontist this morning and when he arrived back I'd already written out the week's menu and made a shopping list. I then cleaned the house and we took Sophie to uni at 1pm before going shopping. Another week is almost over!
Wednesday 11 November 2015
Scouting for pubs...
I spent most of the morning vainly trying to sweep up the thousands of leaves that had gathered around our back door, on the driveway and in front of our house. Why I even tried, I'll never know because as soon as I swept up one heap more leaves descended, blown by the wind!
I stuck it for a couple of hours and then went in for a shower as Keith wanted to go to have his hair cut and Sophie needed to get her phone upgraded at Tesco. We dropped Keith off and drove to the supermarket right next door and parked the car. When we got out I noticed a man in a car nearby and it looked like he was dead...We stood and looked at him for a while but his head had fallen forward and he wasn't moving at all. Sophie said she'd go and bang on the window but I said we'd go and see security. Just as we went to move away he looked around at us so we fled into the store giggling!
Sophie spoke to a very well-informed woman in the phone shop who told her that to get the amount of memory she needed for all her music and photos (and apps) she'd have to have an iPhone 6. We went away for a while to think about it because now Sophie will be responsible for the payments and will have to sign up for a two year contract. We bought some garlic bread and a newspaper and she decided that she definitely wanted that phone. There was no contest really, even though I'd asked the assistant to compare various phones!
Keith appeared as we filled out all the paperwork and very soon Sophie was walking out of the store with a brand new phone. We drove to collect Keith's car from Pitsford, dropped Sophie off at home so she could play with her new toy and went over to the village of Cranford near Kettering, to The Red Lion pub.
I'd seen it advertised in a local free guide and the write up seemed promising. We were looking for somewhere to go to eat on Christmas Eve and I hoped that the pub would be a good choice. As soon as we drew up outside (a large Carlsberg lorry was delivering so had blocked the entrance to the car park) I was not convinced...
Inside, to the right, was a large dining room while the bar looked out over the road and the rest of the village. It immediately felt cold even though there was a definite hint of woodsmoke in the air. The lounge had just one other occupant, a man sitting with a paper and a pint so we sat at the bar and Keith ordered a pint and a half of Hobgoblin.
The room itself was modern and had obviously been refurbished but it didn't feel welcoming at all. I sat and felt very chilly indeed despite a large open fire in front of me. The girl behind the bar checked that the heating was on (the other man must have said something), which it was but said that the landlord refused to light the fire...Brrrrr!
We asked to see a menu even though by now I knew we probably wouldn't ever come back. The menu was on a printed sheet of paper and we were incredulous at the prices and the various dishes. There was absolutely nothing that the kids would have eaten and even I would have struggled to find something I liked. We were intrigued by a "Beef Hanger"...what's that? It was also very expensive (if you check out the menu on the website it has changed!) so that was the final nail in the coffin of The Red Lion for Christmas!
I stuck it for a couple of hours and then went in for a shower as Keith wanted to go to have his hair cut and Sophie needed to get her phone upgraded at Tesco. We dropped Keith off and drove to the supermarket right next door and parked the car. When we got out I noticed a man in a car nearby and it looked like he was dead...We stood and looked at him for a while but his head had fallen forward and he wasn't moving at all. Sophie said she'd go and bang on the window but I said we'd go and see security. Just as we went to move away he looked around at us so we fled into the store giggling!
Sophie spoke to a very well-informed woman in the phone shop who told her that to get the amount of memory she needed for all her music and photos (and apps) she'd have to have an iPhone 6. We went away for a while to think about it because now Sophie will be responsible for the payments and will have to sign up for a two year contract. We bought some garlic bread and a newspaper and she decided that she definitely wanted that phone. There was no contest really, even though I'd asked the assistant to compare various phones!
Keith appeared as we filled out all the paperwork and very soon Sophie was walking out of the store with a brand new phone. We drove to collect Keith's car from Pitsford, dropped Sophie off at home so she could play with her new toy and went over to the village of Cranford near Kettering, to The Red Lion pub.
I'd seen it advertised in a local free guide and the write up seemed promising. We were looking for somewhere to go to eat on Christmas Eve and I hoped that the pub would be a good choice. As soon as we drew up outside (a large Carlsberg lorry was delivering so had blocked the entrance to the car park) I was not convinced...
Inside, to the right, was a large dining room while the bar looked out over the road and the rest of the village. It immediately felt cold even though there was a definite hint of woodsmoke in the air. The lounge had just one other occupant, a man sitting with a paper and a pint so we sat at the bar and Keith ordered a pint and a half of Hobgoblin.
The room itself was modern and had obviously been refurbished but it didn't feel welcoming at all. I sat and felt very chilly indeed despite a large open fire in front of me. The girl behind the bar checked that the heating was on (the other man must have said something), which it was but said that the landlord refused to light the fire...Brrrrr!
We asked to see a menu even though by now I knew we probably wouldn't ever come back. The menu was on a printed sheet of paper and we were incredulous at the prices and the various dishes. There was absolutely nothing that the kids would have eaten and even I would have struggled to find something I liked. We were intrigued by a "Beef Hanger"...what's that? It was also very expensive (if you check out the menu on the website it has changed!) so that was the final nail in the coffin of The Red Lion for Christmas!
Tuesday 10 November 2015
Jam packed!
Keith persuaded me to go for a walk with him this morning even though I didn't feel that enthusiastic! We dropped the kids off at school and uni and saw our ex-next door neighbour, Gill, who is a lecturer at the university. She was surprised to see us but waved at us madly, so that was nice!
On the way through Moulton we became embroiled in a traffic jam between two buses. The streets in Moulton are very narrow and they just can't accommodate the huge buses that transport children to school and students to the agricultural college. One bus wanted to turn right into our road but the bus in front of me was going left and they became jammed.
The driver of the bus in front of us got out of his vehicle to help but there was no way the other bus could make it around the corner without taking out someone's wall or becoming very stuck so it had to abandon the idea and carry on through the village. The situation is becoming a real nightmare in the morning with all the cars and buses on the road. And now there's another development being built on the edge of the village, which will only add more cars to the roads!
We carried on and turned off the road at the bridleway. It was very mild indeed and the sun was trying to come out from behind the clouds so I tied my fleece around my waist and just had a tee-shirt on. It's hard to believe it's almost the middle of November!
We had a lovely walk but I did feel tired for some reason this morning. We walked down the track to the nature reserve and along the shores of the reservoir and saw a new hide Anglian Water has built for bird-watchers.
The door was open so we went inside and had a look over the water. If you're into that sort of thing, it must be lovely to sit and look at all the birds about!
We saw plenty of birds ourselves today - pheasants and what I think were quail - all of them panicking as soon as we neared them and flying off with a loud squawking! We also saw a hare and squirrels and Keith did see a little Muntjac deer at the water's edge but of course, I missed it!
Rather than walk home today we doubled back and returned to the car. We then sped home as I needed to be at Mum's house by 11am as she was expecting a man from a removals company and wanted me to be there as my Dad was going flying. I quickly showered and dressed and went up only to find my Dad still there...grrrr! I was a bit annoyed!
I helped them pack up all the stuff we'd put out for the garage sale and then went home where Keith made me a delicious breakfast of eggs on toast washed down with a mug of tea! Delicious!
In the evening, Mum, Sophie and I went to the Derngate Theatre in Northampton to see Rebecca. I was really looking forward to the production as I love the film and couldn't wait to see it on the stage. We arrived in good time and had a drink before going into the theatre. We had terrific seats, just four rows back from the stage so we had a brilliant view.
When the play started I was a bit unsure as it was a very different take on the film! At first I thought it was going to be a musical as there were people singing on stage and playing instruments, all dressed like Cornish fishermen! However, the stage set was fantastic and a boat was lowered from a height which made the central piece of the set. Underneath was a model of a dead body (Rebecca).
Sophie hadn't seen the film or read the book so we quietly explained what was going on. I thoroughly enjoyed the production as there was lots of Cornish ditties and music and the cast seemed to be really enjoying themselves. The cast played lots of different characters and there was even a puppet dog who provided lots of laughs. In fact, at times the play was a real comedy but there was also frightening bits as well. It was excellent entertainment and I felt I could go and see it all over again!
On the way through Moulton we became embroiled in a traffic jam between two buses. The streets in Moulton are very narrow and they just can't accommodate the huge buses that transport children to school and students to the agricultural college. One bus wanted to turn right into our road but the bus in front of me was going left and they became jammed.
The driver of the bus in front of us got out of his vehicle to help but there was no way the other bus could make it around the corner without taking out someone's wall or becoming very stuck so it had to abandon the idea and carry on through the village. The situation is becoming a real nightmare in the morning with all the cars and buses on the road. And now there's another development being built on the edge of the village, which will only add more cars to the roads!
We carried on and turned off the road at the bridleway. It was very mild indeed and the sun was trying to come out from behind the clouds so I tied my fleece around my waist and just had a tee-shirt on. It's hard to believe it's almost the middle of November!
We had a lovely walk but I did feel tired for some reason this morning. We walked down the track to the nature reserve and along the shores of the reservoir and saw a new hide Anglian Water has built for bird-watchers.
The door was open so we went inside and had a look over the water. If you're into that sort of thing, it must be lovely to sit and look at all the birds about!
We saw plenty of birds ourselves today - pheasants and what I think were quail - all of them panicking as soon as we neared them and flying off with a loud squawking! We also saw a hare and squirrels and Keith did see a little Muntjac deer at the water's edge but of course, I missed it!
Rather than walk home today we doubled back and returned to the car. We then sped home as I needed to be at Mum's house by 11am as she was expecting a man from a removals company and wanted me to be there as my Dad was going flying. I quickly showered and dressed and went up only to find my Dad still there...grrrr! I was a bit annoyed!
I helped them pack up all the stuff we'd put out for the garage sale and then went home where Keith made me a delicious breakfast of eggs on toast washed down with a mug of tea! Delicious!
In the evening, Mum, Sophie and I went to the Derngate Theatre in Northampton to see Rebecca. I was really looking forward to the production as I love the film and couldn't wait to see it on the stage. We arrived in good time and had a drink before going into the theatre. We had terrific seats, just four rows back from the stage so we had a brilliant view.
When the play started I was a bit unsure as it was a very different take on the film! At first I thought it was going to be a musical as there were people singing on stage and playing instruments, all dressed like Cornish fishermen! However, the stage set was fantastic and a boat was lowered from a height which made the central piece of the set. Underneath was a model of a dead body (Rebecca).
Sophie hadn't seen the film or read the book so we quietly explained what was going on. I thoroughly enjoyed the production as there was lots of Cornish ditties and music and the cast seemed to be really enjoying themselves. The cast played lots of different characters and there was even a puppet dog who provided lots of laughs. In fact, at times the play was a real comedy but there was also frightening bits as well. It was excellent entertainment and I felt I could go and see it all over again!
Monday 9 November 2015
Busy Monday
It's been another busy start to the week - I do wonder how I ever found the time to work!
On the way to taking the kids to school and uni I dropped Keith off at the bridleway and incurred his wrath as I drove straight into a deep pothole. I was not popular! When I eventually arrived home it was bliss to sit with a cup of coffee and watch the ending of the last Downton Abbey episode! It was a moment of relaxation though, because as soon as Keith got home from his walk, we both had showers and drove over to Kettering to do some shopping.
On the way we called to see how Mum and Dad's house is getting on...
We were really pleased to see that the scaffolding had come down and most of the windows were in. At least it looks like it's weather tight now, which is good considering we have the worst of the winter to come.
We did some shopping at Aldi and some more in Tesco and then went home to have a quick lunch before heading over to Mum's house to help them with some paperwork for the house they're going to rent. It's brand new and in Moulton which is ironic as they originally looked at the development as a place to live!
We helped them with the forms then went home to do some chores. Keith prepared dinner and made an apple pie while I gave the downstairs of the house a good clean and set the table as it's Mum's birthday today and my parents are coming around for dinner this evening.
I'd barely finished before it was time to collect Sophie and go and buy some flowers for my mum, from my Dad...! He'd given me the money so we went to the florist's at the Weston Favell centre and I picked out a gorgeous bouquet for her.
Mike went to see his girlfriend (yes, it's now official) in Moulton so at 6pm Keith and I went to get him before finally getting home and preparing spaghetti bolognese for dinner (it's my Mum's favourite). My parents arrived at 7pm and Mum opened her presents and cards and was thrilled with her flowers.
We had a lovely evening and the food went down very well with everyone. My parents left at about 9.30pm so we just had time to sit and relax before bed. Phew!
On the way to taking the kids to school and uni I dropped Keith off at the bridleway and incurred his wrath as I drove straight into a deep pothole. I was not popular! When I eventually arrived home it was bliss to sit with a cup of coffee and watch the ending of the last Downton Abbey episode! It was a moment of relaxation though, because as soon as Keith got home from his walk, we both had showers and drove over to Kettering to do some shopping.
On the way we called to see how Mum and Dad's house is getting on...
We were really pleased to see that the scaffolding had come down and most of the windows were in. At least it looks like it's weather tight now, which is good considering we have the worst of the winter to come.
We did some shopping at Aldi and some more in Tesco and then went home to have a quick lunch before heading over to Mum's house to help them with some paperwork for the house they're going to rent. It's brand new and in Moulton which is ironic as they originally looked at the development as a place to live!
We helped them with the forms then went home to do some chores. Keith prepared dinner and made an apple pie while I gave the downstairs of the house a good clean and set the table as it's Mum's birthday today and my parents are coming around for dinner this evening.
I'd barely finished before it was time to collect Sophie and go and buy some flowers for my mum, from my Dad...! He'd given me the money so we went to the florist's at the Weston Favell centre and I picked out a gorgeous bouquet for her.
Mike went to see his girlfriend (yes, it's now official) in Moulton so at 6pm Keith and I went to get him before finally getting home and preparing spaghetti bolognese for dinner (it's my Mum's favourite). My parents arrived at 7pm and Mum opened her presents and cards and was thrilled with her flowers.
We had a lovely evening and the food went down very well with everyone. My parents left at about 9.30pm so we just had time to sit and relax before bed. Phew!
Sunday 8 November 2015
Garage no-sale...
I was up early this morning and at Mum's by 8am. We took all the things she had to sell out to the garage where Dad had set up two tables covered in a paper tablecloth. We priced everything up and I added some clothes, shoes and CDs to the array of goods to sell.
Sophie and Keith arrived at 9.30am. Keith had already been out to take Mike to a Remembrance Day Parade in Northampton and after dropping Sophie off with me he went home to have some breakfast and hoover the downstairs of the house...yipppee!
We were hoping for lots of people to come and had advertised the sale on the village's Facebook page and by putting wooden signs outside the house for the past week. The weather was dull and grey and then it started tp rain so we had to make sure that everything was under cover. Why couldn't it have been like last Sunday?
At just after 10am two men who were working in the farm units opposite came over and one of them bought my Dad's bike. We also had a couple turn up and they bought a few CDs and some Wii games, but that was it! So much for selling everything! We mooched about in the kitchen watching the Remembrance Parade on television and eating biscuits washed down with lots of coffee. We kept hoping more people would turn up but nobody came. It was a real shame and I felt very disappointed.
Sophie and I went home at 1pm and Mum said she would leave everything until tomorrow but it means we have to pack all the stuff back up and either try and sell it again or put it into storage. I'm hoping that we'll have another table-top sale in the village next May but it's a real pain to have to think about putting it all away again!
Sophie and Keith arrived at 9.30am. Keith had already been out to take Mike to a Remembrance Day Parade in Northampton and after dropping Sophie off with me he went home to have some breakfast and hoover the downstairs of the house...yipppee!
We were hoping for lots of people to come and had advertised the sale on the village's Facebook page and by putting wooden signs outside the house for the past week. The weather was dull and grey and then it started tp rain so we had to make sure that everything was under cover. Why couldn't it have been like last Sunday?
At just after 10am two men who were working in the farm units opposite came over and one of them bought my Dad's bike. We also had a couple turn up and they bought a few CDs and some Wii games, but that was it! So much for selling everything! We mooched about in the kitchen watching the Remembrance Parade on television and eating biscuits washed down with lots of coffee. We kept hoping more people would turn up but nobody came. It was a real shame and I felt very disappointed.
Sophie and I went home at 1pm and Mum said she would leave everything until tomorrow but it means we have to pack all the stuff back up and either try and sell it again or put it into storage. I'm hoping that we'll have another table-top sale in the village next May but it's a real pain to have to think about putting it all away again!
Saturday 7 November 2015
Plans thwarted!
Today has been mostly spent driving about which I am getting a little fed up with lately. I dread to think how many miles Keith and I drive every week!
I dropped Sophie off at work, and Mike in Moulton before heading home to a late breakfast with Keith. He was planning on going to see his local football team play in the afternoon but the game was postponed due to a water-logged pitch (the weather has been atrocious today). He called Ian and they agreed to go to another game which also turned out to be cancelled because of the heavy rain. Finally, they found another match on nearby but it started at 2pm so Keith sped off while I settled down to watch a recorded programme on TV and have a lovely bubbly bath. The bliss of being home alone for a little while! As a bonus the sun came out this afternoon and there was blue sky for the rest of the day. Lovely!
As Keith's football match started earlier than we'd anticipated, it meant that he couldn't pick Mike up on his way home as planned so he returned home and we both went out again after barely half an hour. We collected Mike, drove home and he went for a run before he had a quick bite to eat. He was going to a bonfire party in the evening so we said we'd pick Sophie up, take him to his party and order a takeaway from the van as a treat.
Sophie had to stay at work a little longer which suited us fine. She was waiting outside for us when we arrived and said she'd had a really busy day. Another girl, Laura, was waiting with her and was all set to walk home on her own when I offered her a lift, poor thing! We dropped her off, took Mike to his party, went and ordered the Chinese, dropped Sophie off at home and went to the pub for an hour. Ahhhh! Relax!
It was great to sit and have a drink and Keith and I chatted to one of the regulars at the bar before managing to grab a seat in the window. We could hear fireworks going off in the distance and I'm sure people were glad that the weather had stayed dry. In fact, as we went to collect our dinner I saw the sky covered in stars. I'm hoping that tomorrow will be dry for my Mum and Dad's garage sale!
After dinner we settled down to watch "American Sniper" and Mike called us just after 10.30pm to ask us to pick him up. Thank goodness my taxi duties were now over for the day!
I dropped Sophie off at work, and Mike in Moulton before heading home to a late breakfast with Keith. He was planning on going to see his local football team play in the afternoon but the game was postponed due to a water-logged pitch (the weather has been atrocious today). He called Ian and they agreed to go to another game which also turned out to be cancelled because of the heavy rain. Finally, they found another match on nearby but it started at 2pm so Keith sped off while I settled down to watch a recorded programme on TV and have a lovely bubbly bath. The bliss of being home alone for a little while! As a bonus the sun came out this afternoon and there was blue sky for the rest of the day. Lovely!
As Keith's football match started earlier than we'd anticipated, it meant that he couldn't pick Mike up on his way home as planned so he returned home and we both went out again after barely half an hour. We collected Mike, drove home and he went for a run before he had a quick bite to eat. He was going to a bonfire party in the evening so we said we'd pick Sophie up, take him to his party and order a takeaway from the van as a treat.
Sophie had to stay at work a little longer which suited us fine. She was waiting outside for us when we arrived and said she'd had a really busy day. Another girl, Laura, was waiting with her and was all set to walk home on her own when I offered her a lift, poor thing! We dropped her off, took Mike to his party, went and ordered the Chinese, dropped Sophie off at home and went to the pub for an hour. Ahhhh! Relax!
It was great to sit and have a drink and Keith and I chatted to one of the regulars at the bar before managing to grab a seat in the window. We could hear fireworks going off in the distance and I'm sure people were glad that the weather had stayed dry. In fact, as we went to collect our dinner I saw the sky covered in stars. I'm hoping that tomorrow will be dry for my Mum and Dad's garage sale!
After dinner we settled down to watch "American Sniper" and Mike called us just after 10.30pm to ask us to pick him up. Thank goodness my taxi duties were now over for the day!
Friday 6 November 2015
Packing up!
Today has been a dreadful day, weatherwise, with winds and almost constant rain. It's still very mild though, with temperatures climbing to an astonishing 17c in the afternoon!
Sophie stayed at home today as she had a migraine, poor thing. I packed her off to bed and took Mike to school in the pouring rain. Not pleasant at all! Ian came around this morning to collect Keith as the two of them were going up to Mum's house to take down two intricate light fittings that they were taking to the new house. I followed them up in my car with all the step-ladders and other stuff they needed.
This morning I helped Mum empty one of her cabinets which was full of glass. She decided which glasses she was going to sell and which were going to go into storage while they rent for a few months. We wrapped all her crystal in bubble wrap and stored them safely in boxes. I took several home with me as we are always short of tumblers and tall glasses, so that was a bonus!
We worked all morning, had lunch with Mum and Dad and then went home to see how Sophie was. She was feeling a bit better but we drove over to the Co-op in Brixworth to get some stronger pills and some lunch. On the way we saw a little silver car balanced on top of a hedge...how it had got there, we'll never know, but it had "Police Aware" stickers all over it so it had obviously happened some time ago!
As soon as Mike came home from school Keith and I took him to have his hair cut and after a short shop in Tesco, Keith treated me to a decaffeinated Flat White in Costa. We sat and watched all the shoppers walk past and it was interesting to see what people had in their trolleys. I'm so nosy!
Mike appeared with very short back and sides and we drove home through torrential rain and mist. I'm so glad we weren't going to a firework display tonight!
Part 3 of our account of a short break in France in 1999 is posted!
Sophie stayed at home today as she had a migraine, poor thing. I packed her off to bed and took Mike to school in the pouring rain. Not pleasant at all! Ian came around this morning to collect Keith as the two of them were going up to Mum's house to take down two intricate light fittings that they were taking to the new house. I followed them up in my car with all the step-ladders and other stuff they needed.
This morning I helped Mum empty one of her cabinets which was full of glass. She decided which glasses she was going to sell and which were going to go into storage while they rent for a few months. We wrapped all her crystal in bubble wrap and stored them safely in boxes. I took several home with me as we are always short of tumblers and tall glasses, so that was a bonus!
We worked all morning, had lunch with Mum and Dad and then went home to see how Sophie was. She was feeling a bit better but we drove over to the Co-op in Brixworth to get some stronger pills and some lunch. On the way we saw a little silver car balanced on top of a hedge...how it had got there, we'll never know, but it had "Police Aware" stickers all over it so it had obviously happened some time ago!
As soon as Mike came home from school Keith and I took him to have his hair cut and after a short shop in Tesco, Keith treated me to a decaffeinated Flat White in Costa. We sat and watched all the shoppers walk past and it was interesting to see what people had in their trolleys. I'm so nosy!
Mike appeared with very short back and sides and we drove home through torrential rain and mist. I'm so glad we weren't going to a firework display tonight!
Part 3 of our account of a short break in France in 1999 is posted!
Thursday 5 November 2015
Remember, remember!
The weather today has been horrible - wet and windy and very, very mild.
Mum called me first thing to ask me to take her to the dentist as she had terrible toothache and Dad had to wait in for a mattress to be delivered. I said we would take her and then go to Jones's with Sophie before dropping her off at university.
Driving today was not at all pleasant! Everywhere we tried to go had obstacles in the way - parked cars, people dithering about at traffic lights when the light changed to green, horses in the road, you name it...It was extremely stressful! There was so much traffic on the road today!
We dropped Mum off at home and very naughtily, decided to go to the pub for a swift half. Eleven weeks ago I finished work and I can't believe that the time has gone so fast!
We eventually arrived home but I just had time to eat a sandwich before going back out to collect Sophie from university. Keith had arranged with Mike to take him for a hair cut in Kettering and had told him he would wait in the entrance to the estate ("on the corner") as Mike got off the school bus.
I grabbed the opportunity to have a bath and then the phone rang...it was Michael asking where Keith was as he hadn't come to pick him up in Moulton! Sophie had to run to the entrance of the estate and tell Keith that Mike wouldn't be on the bus and that he now had to drive all the way to Moulton to pick him up. I hardly dare think about what Keith must have said when he heard the news!
It came as no surprise that they postponed their trip to the barber's and came home instead as we were planning on going to the village bonfire at 6pm. Although it had rained heavily in the afternoon by the evening it was just a light drizzle so we donned coats and scarves and walked into the village along with quite a few other people. Keith stayed at home to prepare a dinner of baked potatoes and various fillings - perfect for Bonfire Night!
The entrance to the field was in a different place this year and we had to walk to the outskirts of the village to get there. Already people were arriving and parking all along the road and it was very dark! Maybe it was a good thing as the field was extremely muddy after all the rain and damp we've had this week!
I treated the kids to a burger and some soup and we watched as the bonfire was lit. I then enjoyed a cup of mulled wine and the fireworks started. They were beautiful but quite loud this year with lots of bangs and whistles.
As always there was a good atmosphere and it was great to see Mike and Sophie enjoying themselves. As soon as the display finished we walked home in the dark with crowds of other people and enjoyed our baked potato supper very much!
Part 2 of our French trip from 1999 has been posted!
Mum called me first thing to ask me to take her to the dentist as she had terrible toothache and Dad had to wait in for a mattress to be delivered. I said we would take her and then go to Jones's with Sophie before dropping her off at university.
Driving today was not at all pleasant! Everywhere we tried to go had obstacles in the way - parked cars, people dithering about at traffic lights when the light changed to green, horses in the road, you name it...It was extremely stressful! There was so much traffic on the road today!
We dropped Mum off at home and very naughtily, decided to go to the pub for a swift half. Eleven weeks ago I finished work and I can't believe that the time has gone so fast!
We eventually arrived home but I just had time to eat a sandwich before going back out to collect Sophie from university. Keith had arranged with Mike to take him for a hair cut in Kettering and had told him he would wait in the entrance to the estate ("on the corner") as Mike got off the school bus.
I grabbed the opportunity to have a bath and then the phone rang...it was Michael asking where Keith was as he hadn't come to pick him up in Moulton! Sophie had to run to the entrance of the estate and tell Keith that Mike wouldn't be on the bus and that he now had to drive all the way to Moulton to pick him up. I hardly dare think about what Keith must have said when he heard the news!
It came as no surprise that they postponed their trip to the barber's and came home instead as we were planning on going to the village bonfire at 6pm. Although it had rained heavily in the afternoon by the evening it was just a light drizzle so we donned coats and scarves and walked into the village along with quite a few other people. Keith stayed at home to prepare a dinner of baked potatoes and various fillings - perfect for Bonfire Night!
The entrance to the field was in a different place this year and we had to walk to the outskirts of the village to get there. Already people were arriving and parking all along the road and it was very dark! Maybe it was a good thing as the field was extremely muddy after all the rain and damp we've had this week!
I treated the kids to a burger and some soup and we watched as the bonfire was lit. I then enjoyed a cup of mulled wine and the fireworks started. They were beautiful but quite loud this year with lots of bangs and whistles.
As always there was a good atmosphere and it was great to see Mike and Sophie enjoying themselves. As soon as the display finished we walked home in the dark with crowds of other people and enjoyed our baked potato supper very much!
Part 2 of our French trip from 1999 has been posted!
Wednesday 4 November 2015
Little treats!
Late in the afternoon Sophie and I went into Northampton as I needed to buy my Mum a birthday present. The idea was to go to BHS and maybe Homesense and then drive to Riverside as we'd been invited to Costa Coffee's festive launch at 6pm.
The traffic into town was very busy and we crawled most of the way to the retail park. Surprisingly the shops were quiet and we had a good mooch about BHS looking at all the Christmas decorations and resisting temptation!
I bought my Mum a voucher as she loves the store and she can go in and spend the money on whatever she wants (maybe even something for her new house). We had a brief look in Brantano and I tried a pair of ankle boots on but I wasn't impressed with the leather on them as there were quite a few scuff marks. I tend to wear boots until they fall apart so they need to stand up to some rough treatment!
We decided to head for Riverside as there's another Brantano there and by now I could see the traffic building up. Well, I'm glad we left when we did as it took us almost an hour to drive the short distance across town in the heavy traffic. It was horrendous!
We parked outside Costa and hurriedly sped off to Brantano's but the choice was awful in there for ladies who have slightly bigger feet than the norm! After we finished looking it was time for our Costa treats so we went in and ordered two hot chocolates.
Now, I expected a really festive array of new products and lots of things happening but all there was were some plates of cut up cakes on a table...and that was it! I picked out some cake but I was very aware of Keith cooking dinner at home and I didn't want to spoil my appetite especially as we were having liver and bacon!
Sophie returned to the table after a long wait with two large hot chocolates covered in cream (the barista had got the order wrong, apparently!) and went off to get herself some more cake! I told her that we had more than enough and as it happened I ended up taking three bits for Mike who was seeing a friend in Moulton.
The new cakes were nice but there was no information telling us what they were and the staff seemed very rushed and certainly not in a festive mood! We waddled out after drinking about a gallon each of hot chocolate and went to pick up Mike. He gobbled the cake down and was very appreciative!
The traffic into town was very busy and we crawled most of the way to the retail park. Surprisingly the shops were quiet and we had a good mooch about BHS looking at all the Christmas decorations and resisting temptation!
I bought my Mum a voucher as she loves the store and she can go in and spend the money on whatever she wants (maybe even something for her new house). We had a brief look in Brantano and I tried a pair of ankle boots on but I wasn't impressed with the leather on them as there were quite a few scuff marks. I tend to wear boots until they fall apart so they need to stand up to some rough treatment!
We decided to head for Riverside as there's another Brantano there and by now I could see the traffic building up. Well, I'm glad we left when we did as it took us almost an hour to drive the short distance across town in the heavy traffic. It was horrendous!
We parked outside Costa and hurriedly sped off to Brantano's but the choice was awful in there for ladies who have slightly bigger feet than the norm! After we finished looking it was time for our Costa treats so we went in and ordered two hot chocolates.
Now, I expected a really festive array of new products and lots of things happening but all there was were some plates of cut up cakes on a table...and that was it! I picked out some cake but I was very aware of Keith cooking dinner at home and I didn't want to spoil my appetite especially as we were having liver and bacon!
Sophie returned to the table after a long wait with two large hot chocolates covered in cream (the barista had got the order wrong, apparently!) and went off to get herself some more cake! I told her that we had more than enough and as it happened I ended up taking three bits for Mike who was seeing a friend in Moulton.
The new cakes were nice but there was no information telling us what they were and the staff seemed very rushed and certainly not in a festive mood! We waddled out after drinking about a gallon each of hot chocolate and went to pick up Mike. He gobbled the cake down and was very appreciative!
Loire valley memories
I've just added a post about a trip I made to the Loire in 1999 to this blog. It's an account of a short break I enjoyed with my parents and Sophie when we visited the town of Chinon. Dad and I had given each other a row of vines as a Christmas present and we travelled down to the area to taste the wine and bring some home. Here is the link:
http://janiesjottings.blogspot.co.uk/1999/05/france-loire-valley-may-20-23-1999-part.html
I hope you enjoy! Part 2 will follow soon.
http://janiesjottings.blogspot.co.uk/1999/05/france-loire-valley-may-20-23-1999-part.html
I hope you enjoy! Part 2 will follow soon.
Tuesday 3 November 2015
A misty walk
Today has been another grey day and although the fog has lifted a bit, it still remained overcast and horrible. Keith went off for a walk this morning and I dropped him off on the way back from taking the children. I would have loved to have gone with him but we were expecting a parcel and I had another to be collected so I headed home and made a start on the ironing. I watched a programme on BBC 1 about the Battle of Britain which was very moving especially when they took a very old lady up in a Tiger Moth, an aeroplane she learned to fly during wartime.
After Keith returned home we bumbled about the house doing various jobs and Sophie called me to pick her up from uni early. I suggested we walk up to Mum's house in the late afternoon as she wanted to book us Pantomime tickets for a Christmas treat. First, though, we had to ask Mike if he wanted to go this year so we waited until he returned from school before walking up.
He dithered about going but in the end he said no, which didn't surprise me. Cinderella isn't really his thing but I think it's still nice to go at Christmas, a tradition we've been upholding since the children were very little.
Keith, Sophie and I donned coats and scarves as it was now quite chilly and walked up in the gathering gloom. Mum made us a cup of tea and we booked our seats for Boxing Day so that's something to look forward to!
Walking home was dark and very misty and I wished we were able to call into the pub for a swift half but it was Army Cadet night so we headed home to prepare dinner instead!
After Keith returned home we bumbled about the house doing various jobs and Sophie called me to pick her up from uni early. I suggested we walk up to Mum's house in the late afternoon as she wanted to book us Pantomime tickets for a Christmas treat. First, though, we had to ask Mike if he wanted to go this year so we waited until he returned from school before walking up.
He dithered about going but in the end he said no, which didn't surprise me. Cinderella isn't really his thing but I think it's still nice to go at Christmas, a tradition we've been upholding since the children were very little.
Keith, Sophie and I donned coats and scarves as it was now quite chilly and walked up in the gathering gloom. Mum made us a cup of tea and we booked our seats for Boxing Day so that's something to look forward to!
Walking home was dark and very misty and I wished we were able to call into the pub for a swift half but it was Army Cadet night so we headed home to prepare dinner instead!
Monday 2 November 2015
The Fog!
Last night the clear blue skies gave way to swirling mist - just before I went to bed I stood at Sophie's window and we saw the fog coming down and winding its way around the lamp post over the road. It looked very eery!
Our area has a weather warning out for dense fog but it wasn't that bad when I took the kids to school and uni this morning. We had to wait in today for the washing machine repair man who came early but had a hard job of fixing our washer. However, by lunchtime it was done and we were able to get some washing done! Yippeee!
I went to see Mum and Dad and helped them download Microsoft Office onto their computer. I also sorted out my car insurance and did lots of other little boring jobs that needed to be done.
The fog never lifted all day, unfortunately, so it's been a bit grey and dreary!
Our area has a weather warning out for dense fog but it wasn't that bad when I took the kids to school and uni this morning. We had to wait in today for the washing machine repair man who came early but had a hard job of fixing our washer. However, by lunchtime it was done and we were able to get some washing done! Yippeee!
I went to see Mum and Dad and helped them download Microsoft Office onto their computer. I also sorted out my car insurance and did lots of other little boring jobs that needed to be done.
The fog never lifted all day, unfortunately, so it's been a bit grey and dreary!
Sunday 1 November 2015
Autumn beauty
It's been an absolutely gorgeous day today with record temperatures in Mid-Wales, apparently! 22c!
It was a real shame that Sophie had to go to work as we could have gone somewhere for the day, but we took her in at 11am and she texted me an hour later to say that it was very quiet indeed. I could easily believe her as we saw lots of people out walking and children on bikes, all making the most of the wonderful weather.
I washed Jazzy Jim (inside and out) and after having a shower, Keith and I walked up to the pub for a quick drink. It would definitely have been possible to have sat in the garden today as it was lovely and mild.
We enjoyed a drink or two and then walked home for lunch. I decided to pop to the carwash to take mine through and took Mike with me. With the promise of an ice-cream my son was only too happy to accompany me!
As the day wore on the sky became a mix of blues and pinks and when I went to collect Sophie at 5.30pm the sky was a bright orange from where the sun had set an hour earlier. In the news it said that November is set to be mild and sunny and I only hope that it's accurate! Maybe we can delay the snow until December!
It was a real shame that Sophie had to go to work as we could have gone somewhere for the day, but we took her in at 11am and she texted me an hour later to say that it was very quiet indeed. I could easily believe her as we saw lots of people out walking and children on bikes, all making the most of the wonderful weather.
I washed Jazzy Jim (inside and out) and after having a shower, Keith and I walked up to the pub for a quick drink. It would definitely have been possible to have sat in the garden today as it was lovely and mild.
We enjoyed a drink or two and then walked home for lunch. I decided to pop to the carwash to take mine through and took Mike with me. With the promise of an ice-cream my son was only too happy to accompany me!
As the day wore on the sky became a mix of blues and pinks and when I went to collect Sophie at 5.30pm the sky was a bright orange from where the sun had set an hour earlier. In the news it said that November is set to be mild and sunny and I only hope that it's accurate! Maybe we can delay the snow until December!
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