Alone on Halloween!

Keith and I took Mike to college this morning and then returned home for breakfast with Sophie who was working away in the conservatory. She has so much work to do at the moment but is certainly getting on with it and being very disciplined!

I spent a lot of the morning searching for a nice venue for afternoon tea with my Mum and Sophie next Sunday, as it's my Mum's birthday soon. I would love to have gone back to Fawsley Hall but I was disappointed with our experience last time. We were seated in a cold, bare room which wasn't what I'd had in mind as I'd pictured us sitting by a roaring fire in the main hall! I googled afternoon tea venues with log fires and looked as far afield as the Cotswolds! However, a hotel in Woburn sounded lovely, so I might choose that as the village is a lovely place to walk around and have a browse in the shops.

At work, it was so much easier finding things for the children to do and we could see exactly what we had to put out. We put lots of games and activities out, including a chessboard which kept us busy for the session. It was great talking to one of the girls who had just returned from Orlando and Naples and she loved talking about her holiday.

Most of the children were gone by 5.30pm and they were all very excited as most of them were going trick or treating. I returned home to find the house opposite decorated even more! There was a screen in the front window displaying scary pictures, a ghost by the front door and little red eyes peeping over the fence. It looked brilliant!

Keith and I enjoyed our dinner of jacket potatoes and then he took Sophie to a friend's house in Moulton as she was out for the night. He was going to the football and Mike was also out with his mates so I was in the house on my own. We had a few trick or treaters but there seemed less than last year for some reason and by 8pm it was all over. I can't say I enjoyed my night in on my own and I was very glad when Keith returned!

Getting things done!

I met Lisa at the school this morning and along with her daughter, we cleared out the toy cupboard which was in a huge mess. It was so bad we couldn't even walk into the small space and when we finally took everything out she found things she hadn't seen for years!

We sorted all the toys and put them into different boxes and by the time I left at 12.30pm, it was unbelievable how much better it looked. We now know exactly what we've got for the children to play with and all the games and toys that were broken or had bits missing have now been thrown away. With the dark nights coming up it was vital to sort it all out so the children have something to do in the three hour session.

I picked Keith and Sophie up from home and we took Soph to uni. After we dropped her off we popped to the Weston Favell Centre and came across my parents having a coffee. After a quick chat we went to do some shopping and we bought loads of sweets for tomorrow night. When we'd finished it was time to collect Sophie and on the way home we called into the tip to take some of the rubbish from the school.

Back home we had lunch and then I caught up with various car-related chores. Keith went to get Mike from college so it was great not to have to go out again in the evening. Tomorrow night is (hopefully) going to be busy with Sophie out with friends, Keith off to football and Mike probably ut as well. I just hope we get lots of trick or treaters!

Very lazy Sunday!

It's been lovely to have no plans for today and a very lazy start to Sunday! The clocks went back last night so we all had an extra hour this morning...fab!

The weather today has also been a bonus - blue skies and sunshine, although it's been slightly colder than of late.

I made some banana and walnut muffins in the afternoon and Sophie and I took Monty for a walk to see the horses. We took them some carrots which were much appreciated!

It was great to get out into the late afternoon fresh air, even if for just a little while and Sophie managed to get quite a bit of work done. I wrote a few more words of my novel, so all in all a very productive day!

At 6pm we went to collect Mike from work and it was very dark indeed. There were no lights in the car park outside the cafe where he works so it was quite creepy! I'm glad Keith was there with me!

House of Horrors!

I was at work from 8.30am until 4pm today and there was just me and another member of staff manning the phones. Thankfully, it wasn't too busy!

Mike had already gone off to a Halloween party in Brixworth (dressed as a pirate this time) so it was just the three of us for dinner. We picked Sophie up from work and then collected a Chinese takeaway from the van that we'd ordered earlier. The plan was to have a drink at home for half an hour before eating but Sophie and I were really hungry so we ate barely fifteen minutes after getting home - a bit different to last night!

Over the road, a neighbour's house had been decked out in Halloween decorations for a party they were holding (we hadn't been invited 😕) and I was quite envious! The dining room had cobwebs and ghosty things hanging in the windows and they must have installed some kind of screen on an upstairs wall as there were spooky figures moving across it, which looked really good!

Overhead we had a perfect half moon and with the clouds scudding across it, the sky looked very Halloweeny!

Lunch in the sun!

It's been another gorgeous day today and after we dropped Sophie off at work, Keith made the most of it and went for a walk. It was a good job I didn't go with him as Mike's work texted him and asked him to go in a bit earlier, at 11am.

I spent the rest of the morning pottering about and at 1pm we both picked up Sophie from work. I was glad she was only working half a day today as it meant we could pop over to Beckworth Emporium where we had some lunch. We chose the chicken burger and it was far bigger than I anticipated, but it was delicious! We asked to be seated in the conservatory and it was wonderful to look up and see the blue sky and sunshine. What a treat at this time of year!

After eating we meandered around the Christmas Emporium and we bought a little china gonk to go on our Scandinavian tree. I also bought some foodie treats and a pumpkin for Halloween.

Sophie trying on spooky glasses!

On the way home I washed my filthy car at the garage and then finished it off when I got home. The machine never does the wheels properly!

Keith went to the pub and Sophie and I collected Mike from work. I really didn't fancy much dinner in the evening...no surprise after my big lunch!

A better day.

As usual, I was dreading going into work today but it's been much better. Perhaps I'm getting the hang of it?

I was finished at 2pm and Keith and I drove over to Kettering to get some diesel. We took a different route to normal and I drove on roads I hadn't been on for ages. Once home I had some lunch and as I'd been sitting down for most of the day I went out to sweep up loads of leaves that had gathered in the garden. Monty kept me company and after I'd finished we sat in the garden for a little while. The weather has been dry and overcast today but still very mild.

In the evening I went out with Fiona and Lynda to Akasaka, the Japanese restaurant I'd visited with Sophie and Mike back in September. I picked Lynda up from her home and we drove into Northampton where I found it very difficult to park. In the end we found a space in the Albion Place car park opposite Derngate and walked the short distance to the restaurant.

Fiona was already waiting and even before we looked at the menu, Lynda showed us some risque photos on her phone! She's found a new lease of life by online dating and regaled us with her stories, some of which were a bit shocking! She's lost over three stone in weight which is brilliant and I could definitely see a difference. I think both Fiona and I were a bit shocked by what she was telling us, but good luck to her! I just hope she finds someone genuine and trustworthy.

We had a good meal but I think I made the wrong choices. I started with chicken skewers served in a soy sauce which were delicious, if a bit salty. For my main course I opted (after a great deal of thought) for the Teriyaki chicken served with beansprouts and boiled rice. Again, it was very salty but certainly filling. I'm not sure either Fiona or Lynda really enjoyed their meals so maybe we won't be going back to this particular restaurant again!

After the meal we suddenly remembered that it's the start of Come Dine With Me season and I confessed to not being that enthusiastic about it this year. When I said that my theme was going to be Scotland, Lynda went a bit white as she hates haggis and whisky, both of which featured heavily in my dinner! Fiona then asked if we could give it a miss this year and I was filled with relief. Although we've had fun in the past with the different themes, last year was all a bit too much as we seemed to cram the evenings into a very short amount of time and I felt guilty about dragging Keith out to pick me up. Fiona said that it was proximity to Christmas that was the problem, so even though Andrea was unable to make it this evening we decided to postpone all the meals until some time next year but go out on Lynda's evening in December to a good restaurant to celebrate Christmas.

Back home (I was much earlier than normal) I told Keith and Sophie of the demise of Come Dine With Me this year. Yippeee!

Catching up!

Today has been an absolutely gorgeous day with plenty of sunshine, blue skies and warm temperatures. Summer is still here!

We dropped Sophie off at uni and then returned home where I caught up with some housework. Before it was time to go and get Sophie I wrote some more of my novel which I am really enjoying. Oh, to be able to do this full time and make a living from it!

In the afternoon Sophie and I went into town as we were meeting Gill from the CAB at 3pm, but I wanted to go in a bit earlier to say hello to Frank who I hadn't seen since about May. We called for a sneaky, naughty lunch at McDonald's and watched the hordes of people walking past the restaurant. Half term is in full swing and everyone seemed to be taking advantage of the good weather.

We had a great chat with Frank before going to Costa for a good old chinwag. Gill had just returned from a holiday in Tenerife and it was really good to catch up with her and hear her news.

On the way home we collected Mike and his friend Natasha from Brixworth. he'd been out since yesterday lunchtime so it was really time he was home!

Girls' night in!

I had today off, which was great and had a bit of a lie-in as I haven't been sleeping very well lately. After a quick coffee, I made a start on the housework as it desperately needed doing thoroughly! Keith cleaned the bathrooms for me while I gave the downstairs of the house a good clean, pulling all the furniture out in the living room and opening all the windows to get some fresh air in.

It's been very mild lately but today has been grey and overcast again. For some reason the lack of sun and blue skies is really affecting me at the moment and whenever it's grey and horrible I feel miserable myself! Maybe I should move to Florida permanently!

I finished the housework at 1pm and had a quick shower as Sophie was going into uni and Mike was seeing friends in Brixworth. Once we'd dropped Sophie off we popped to the Weston Favell Centre and bought food for tonight and Wednesday's meals. I treated us to a Flat White each in Costa first, though!

Before we went home we drove to see my parents to look at installing a motion sensor light on their driveway, something they really need now that the nights are drawing in. We didn't stay for a cup of tea as they were about to go out, but Keith did make a plan for where the light can go and will speak to his old chum Ian tonight when he goes to the football.

Back home, after a noodly lunch, Sophie knuckled down to some more work while Keith and I relaxed. My daughter is working extremely hard at the moment and is doing really well at uni. It's hard to believe that her three years will come to an end next May!

Mike stayed overnight with his mates and Keith went to see Sileby play so Sophie and I had a girls' night in, something that hasn't happened for ages. We had what I call "nursery" food - mashed potatoes, breaded chicken escalopes and spaghetti hoops! For dessert we had a delicious cheesecake that I'd bought in the Co-op. Lovely!

Monty was being a pain in the bum tonight; he is now allowed back into the house as long as he stays on his bed in the conservatory, but has started taking advantage of the situation and being naughty. I'm sure he was on one of the beds earlier in the day as I heard a bump upstairs and then he came running down the stairs. Tonight, he just wouldn't settle and hissed at us both when we picked him to put him on his bed. He went out rather smartly after that, I can tell you!

Moany Monday!

I really wish I could write something positive about today, but I'm finding it difficult! I was at work at 8am this morning and as it was half-term we were very busy on the phones. This had only been hinted at by the other staff but when I left at 2pm we had taken over two hundred calls, and there was really only myself and another girl manning the phones. It didn't help that we'd had a fire alarm mid-morning and my phone had been playing up as well!

When I finally emerged at about 2.15pm Keith was waiting for me and plans to go to the Weston Favell Centre were abandoned as there'd be an evacuation there as well! The whole place was chaos so we headed for Morrisons to get some bits we needed for tonight's meal. I wanted to go to Waitrose and I sincerely wish we had, as the cafe at the supermarket was one of the most depressing places I'd been to in a long time!

It appeared there were only a couple of staff about as the tables were covered in dirty plates, trays and cutlery and there was a long queue just to get hot drinks and snacks. I waited for ages and was faced with very little choice of food and stained teapots and mugs. Customers seemed to be waiting ages for their food orders, so as soon as we'd had our snack we did our little bit of shopping and left. The weather hasn't help today: it's been grey and overcast with showers and not a hint of sun at all!

We collected Sophie from work and then it was home to relax. As an antidote to our awful British weather, Keith and I watched about five episodes of Neighbours!

A trip down south.

Today I drove down to see my Aunt Pat with my parents and Sophie. The weather has been beautiful again and the high winds of yesterday have lessened a little. We set off at 9am and made really good time down to Worthing on the south coast.

My Aunt was much changed, which was very sad to see. Since her husband died almost three years ago, she's found it very hard to live life without him and when she came to the door to greet us, we were all shocked by how much weight she'd lost. The last time we'd seen her was last January (2016) and she'd lost weight then, but now she was much thinner and frailer. She was also quite deaf which made conversation very difficult. I think Sophie regretted coming with me but she was brilliant as she helped make lunch with my Dad. I was definitely glad she'd come along!

We stayed until about 3pm as the journey down took us almost three hours and I didn't want to be too late home. It was really sad to say goodbye to her and I had a horrible feeling that it would be the last time I'd see her. She's deliberating about whether to sell her lovely home and go and live nearer her daughter, but I think it's a bad idea. The stress and upheaval would be a bad thing, in my opinion.

The journey home was not so smooth and we were held up time and time again on the M25 because of the heavy traffic. It did give us an opportunity to watch the planes taking off at Heathrow, though, and I so wished I was on one and going off to the sun!

Storm Brian...

The weather has certainly been interesting today with high winds from Storm Brian, but we did get plenty of sunshine, though. It's been a lot better than I expected!

We dropped Sophie off at work and then I spent the rest of the day doing very little as my stomach still hurts and it was great to just be able to relax. Now that I'm busier during the week, it's lovely to have the weekends off!

Mike was also at work today and Keith went to see Sileby play so I had the house to myself in the afternoon. I've started writing again and am planning on finishing a novel I started way back in 2003. It definitely needs updating to bring it more relevant to the way we live now and I'm really enjoying it. It takes my mind off the jobs I'm doing at the moment!

Mike wanted to be picked up early so we collected him and then drove to get Sophie. After dinner all of us were at home, something that's quite rare these days as Mike goes to one or other of the villages a lot to see friends. It made a nice change!

Three day re-cap!

The last three days have been uneventful to say the least, so there's no point me trying to write about each day individually! On Wednesday I arrived at the school to find a photographer in residence in the hall! I'd forgotten that I was going to have my photo taken for the gallery in the reception area!

I joined the queue of children and when all the sibling photos had been taken, it was my turn. He took three and thankfully, didn't break the camera! Until he had cleared away all his equipment, we took the children outside to play. It seems hard to believe that once we return from half-term, we'll only have a limited amount of daylight.

I worked both Thursday and Friday in the contact centre, and to be honest, I'm struggling with the job. Not in being able to work my way through the different screens, but from listening to the queries on the phone and understanding what the customers are saying. I much prefer working with people face-to-face and some of the accents I listen to are very difficult to understand!

I woke up on Thursday morning with a terrible tummy ache and I just hope that I haven't pulled my stomach muscles again. I spent yesterday afternoon picking up a lot of toys in the playground and playing with a little girl who wanted to use the ten pin bowling game. so there was a lot of bending down involved!

On Friday Keith took me to work and when he arrived to pick me up, Mike was in the car wearing a surgeon's mask and cap...I wondered who on earth it was at first! He was off to a party in the evening and it was Fancy Dress so he'd been with Keith to buy a costume.

As it was the last day of school for a week, we only had a few children in and they were all gone by 5.30pm. I now have a week off the after-school club but I'm going in with Lisa on the 30th during the day to sort out the toy cupboard which is in an almighty mess, with most of the toys and games missing vital parts.

I drove home and fell asleep on the sofa for five minutes as last night I slept very badly indeed! I drove Keith to the pub, dropped Mike off in Brixworth at a friend's house and then went to get Sophie from work.

Just as we were finishing dinner, the phone rang and it was my Mum to say that she'd heard someone knocking on both the doors of the house and she was really scared. My Dad was out at his aeroplane club meeting so we dashed over to her house to investigate. There was no-one about but I did tell her it was a good idea to get an alarm fitted so she would feel safer whenever she was alone, which isn't that often, thankfully.

Back home, we washed up and then I snoozed on the sofa until it was time to pick Mike up from his party at midnight. By the time we finally got home, I was shattered!

More annoyance!

As usual for a Tuesday, we had a busy morning doing some shopping for the rest of the week and running other errands. It was still a bit breezy but the sun was out and the sky was blue, so it was all good!

After having some lunch I swept up mounds of leaves from our back door - the storm of yesterday had swirled them around and as usual, we had loads and next door had none! When I got to work I discovered that the children had had an assembly in our hall which involved cooking food from around the world and inviting their parents in to help them eat it. The hall was a complete mess with several tables covered in food, used plates and bowls and cups of water everywhere. I assumed that Lisa and I would take the children into the library, but no...we were expected to help clear it up before we could start our session.

To say that I was furious was an understatement! Lisa was angry as well because the teacher who had arranged it all should have been the one to clear it all up, with the help of the children. She had disappeared back to her classroom leaving three pupils to help, but they were obviously disinterested in getting their hands dirty so I piled up all the mucky plates and bowls on the table nearest the door and started sweeping up. I was so mad!

Our poor children had to sit and wait for the session to begin and I was glad we only had a handful in today as there would have been a riot with our usual number! They kept asking what was happening and why they had to sit on the benches, poor things! Lisa did say to another teacher that it wasn't fair on us and that the assembly had been held too late in the day to make clearing up someone else's responsibility.

We escaped out into the playground and spent the majority of the session there, as the weather was dry and breezy. Tonight was a drop-in session for parents' evening so we had a fair few people wandering about...not the usual quiet school we normally have!

A red sun!

I have to be honest in that I was dreading today at work, but it was actually better than I thought. Sara was back and sat behind me so if I had any queries, I could ask her. Apart from one extremely moany parent whinging about swimming lessons (first world problems!) the morning passed very well and at 2pm I left to pick up Sophie from uni.

When I emerged into the early afternoon, the sky was a very strange colour with a peachy, pinky haze. Sophie jumped into the car and asked if I'd seen the sun...it was red! The strange sky was due to ex-Hurricane Ophelia picking up dust from the Sahara and smoke from fires on the Iberian peninsula and throwing them high up in the atmosphere, changing the hue of the sun and making everything that weird colour!

It was a windy afternoon with leaves being blown about everywhere and at school, despite the weather, we went out into the playground. I took a photo of the sun, but it wasn't brilliant!

While the children were out playing, the skies suddenly cleared and our lovely sun reverted back to normal, i.e. yellow and so bright we could no longer look at it! The sky turned back to blue but the wind continued to strengthen and it was a real Autumnal day.

We finished our after school session in the cosy library playing cards and by 5.30pm all the children had gone. We had far fewer than normal as some of the children are on holiday and it's a gradual wind-down for half-term next week.

We had pizza for dinner before going off to the cinema again to see Wind River. It was a great film but the mumbling from the main actor, Jeremy Renner, was a pain and I'll look forward to seeing it again with subtitles!

Another day, another film!

After a lazyish start we popped to my Mum and Dad's for coffee and admired the decorating they'd done in their cloakroom. The weather today has been really disappointing - instead of the blue skies and sunshine I'd been expecting, we had drizzle and grey skies and as the morning wore it, it became more misty.

Sophie and I went to the cinema in the afternoon to see The Mountain Between Us, starring Idris Elba and Kate Winslet. We'd booked to see the film at the Errol Flynn and before the film started we had a very leisurely drink in John Franklin's bar. Weirdly enough, the couple that sat opposite us in the bar were next to us in the cinema!

The film was great and we both enjoyed it - we thought the dog was the star, though! Afterwards we drove to Brixworth to pick up Mike and it brought it home to me how dark the evenings are now. It's almost fully night by 7pm, and of course, in a couple of weeks, the clocks go back. Summer really will be over then!

Leaves galore!

Today has been lovely, despite dire weather forecasts saying we were in for a horrible Saturday! I was determined to get out and enjoy the sunshine so I decided to tackle the front garden once both Sophie and Mike had been dropped off at work.

I cut the front verge and then pulled out all the weeds growing in between our shrubs. I must have looked a bit dishevelled when I emerged as I had bits of twigs and leaves in my hair! When the sun was out it was really quite warm so what a bonus this has been! I also swept up half a wheelie bin of leaves and tried not to listen to the little voice in my head that said ex-hurricane Ophelia was due to strike the British Isles on Monday!

I was going to wash my car but decided not to in the end - no doubt it would have started raining the minute I finished!

Keith and I went to pick up Mike from work and we had to wait half an hour for him to finish, which was very annoying, especially as we had to pick Sophie up straight afterwards! Both of them had been busy at work so it was great to finally get home and enjoy dinner!

Feeling annoyed!

I arrived at work this morning and was the first in the office so I went back to reception and chatted with the girl there (the same one I worked with on Monday) until another member of staff arrived. She had been roped into doing some training earlier in the week and she agreed with me about the amount of stuff there is to learn when you're answering the phones. She said she'd found it quite daunting as well - and she's a lot younger than me and has worked for the company for a number of years!

As I feared I was left to answer the phones myself this morning and although there were two other members of staff nearby I felt that I wasn't quite ready to go it alone, especially as I still had so much to learn. The last thing I wanted was to be constantly asking for help when they were busy as well! I think that Sheila realised I wasn't very happy as she asked one of the women to stop taking calls and be available to help me out.

Some of the phone calls I was able to deal with on my own, but I was very annoyed that I'd been thrown in at the deep end without any proper training. I had hoped I'd be shadowing someone for at least a couple of days before taking calls! Again, we had quite a few complicated queries, and the most popular subject seems to be moving children from one swimming lesson to another. I hadn't been given the log in for this particular part of the computer which made the job a little harder!

Sheila then gave me another load of stuff to learn as she showed me how to access my own personal email and the way I needed to record the hours I'd worked. Each part of the system needed a different password and these could change after 30 days, 60 days or longer. Argh!

I was hugely relieved when 2pm came and I could escape! The manager had arrived in a huge flurry at midday and had had the loudest coughing fit I'd ever heard. Plus, she had an extremely loud voice and with the other woman working on the phone, who was also very vocal (on the phone and off), it hadn't been the most enjoyable of mornings!

Of course, Keith really did not want to hear me moaning on about the job so we had an uncomfortable journey home where I hurriedly made myself a sandwich before going to my other job. This was a quiet session and we only had five children booked, and two of them belonged to Lisa! We went outside to make the most of the lovely weather and spent the last hour in the library looking at all the different books.

I popped home after the session ended and Keith and I went to get Sophie from work together. He had thawed a bit towards me, but I gave Sophie the full account of my time so he heard it all over again, but in a bit more detail!

Dinner tonight was very easy - fish and chips from Broughton - and it was great not to have to go and pick Keith up from the pub as he was abstaining from alcohol again. He had bought me a bottle of Russian Standard Vodka, plus some delicious Fever Tree Mediterranean tonic so I was more than happy...for now anyway!

Feeling a little overwhelmed!

I had an early start this morning as I was due to begin work at 8am...horrible! Keith offered to drive me because we weren't sure how busy the car park would be, even though it was very early. I have to confess to not being overjoyed at working in an office but I said I would give it a go, much to my husband's relief!

I met Sheila who I was to work with on Reception and after getting a coffee (I had to pay for it!) we went into the office and she showed me where I'd be sitting. She went through an awful lot of information about logging onto the computer and then we spent the morning taking calls. I listened and was overwhelmed by how much information I needed to remember as we take lots of enquiries and some of them involved booking classes or swimming lessons, with several of the calls being long and complicated!

By midday she encouraged me to answer calls myself and although I had to ask for advice on every single one of them, I did enjoy talking to people and trying to help them. A couple of times I found it difficult to make out names and what the callers actually wanted but I'm hoping I'll find this easier!

At 2pm I dashed off and gobbled a sandwich on the way home. I had about twenty minutes at home before I was off to work again but at least at the after-school club I have a good idea of what I'm doing! We had seventeen children this afternoon but due to the nice weather we were able to go outside for most of the session.

I was due to pick up Sophie from uni at 6pm but she finished early so Keith went to get her after collecting Mike from work. We were very late leaving as one Dad had forgotten to pick up his daughter!

Cat rescue!

After taking Sophie to uni this morning I had a lot of little jobs to catch up with - it was lovely to have a bit of a breather!

On the way back from collecting her from uni she spotted a little grey Siamese cat lying by the side of the road just as we came into the village. I hadn't seen anything but we turned around and drove back. Looking over I feared the little animal was actually dead but as we got near her ears flicked and we realised she was quite badly hurt. I carefully picked her up and we went to the nearest house as we both thought that the cat lived there and we'd always seen Siamese cats around whenever we've walked past.

There was no-one home so we went next door and luckily a couple answered the door to us. The little cat kept crying and there was blood around her mouth so we were really worried she was badly injured. Sophie thought that she'd hurt her leg and I can only assume she'd been run over. The couple confirmed she was next door's cat and said they would contact the owners and take her to the vet. I gingerly put her in a laundry basket lined with a towel and we asked if we could be told what had happened to her. Sophie was very upset and we both hoped that she would be OK. We dashed home where I changed my top because the poor little thing had bled on me!

Later in the evening the owner very kindly called us and said that her lungs were in a bad way and that she would be spending the next few days at the vets. He was very hopeful she would pull through and we both kept our fingers crossed that she would!

A bit of a shock...

We've had another very busy day as we'd decided to go and look for a new car for Sophie and Keith to share, but there was just one hitch...it has to be an automatic!

We dropped Mike off at college and then popped to Tesco to get dinner for tonight and Wednesday. I also bought a box of biscuits for the guys at Majestic to say thanks for recommending the wine we had on Saturday night. From Tesco we drove down to the carwash near the train station and Keith paid £15 to have little Jim valeted properly. I can't remember the last time we washed the car and hoovered it out and it was badly in need of some TLC! When we got back in after it had been thoroughly washed it looked, and smelled, beautiful!

We popped into Majestic very briefly and then drove to the Hyundai dealership on Riverside. Sophie and I had already looked at the cars online and knew there was a good deal on buying a new car. We spoke to a salesman and the first thing we told him was that we needed an automatic. We sat down with him and he said that we could get a 17 plate i10 with hardly any miles on the clock for about £100 a month as he would take Jim in part exchange. Sophie was pleased about this as she could afford that amount every month, so he started to do the sums and we asked whether he could print out the details for us. Sophie then said to him, "this is for an automatic, isn't it?" and he went pale. He'd forgotten the most important part of our request, which was for an automatic car!

This meant that he could only get us a brand new 67 plate so he had to do the figures all over again and this time the monthly cost came out at about £130, a bit more than Sophie wanted to pay. However, with a bit of jigging about with deposits, she was happier. He then took us out for a drive and I was impressed with the car - it was very nippy and comfortable and felt really solid, not like a small car at all.

I think he wanted us to sign on the dotted line there and then but Keith was having none of it. We wanted time to think about it and also look at insurance so we took the amended details and drove home to have lunch. After I'd eaten I had a look at insurance and we were shocked to discover that Keith's insurance would go up to around £500 a year with Sophie as a learner driver but that it might go beyond £1000 a year once she'd passed her test! Keith called his insurance company and they quoted him an extra £884 on top of the £200 he currently pays for him and me but couldn't quote for Sophie once she'd thrown away her L plates! I honestly thought, that as Sophie is now 21, her insurance wouldn't be that high. How wrong am I!

In light of this we have decided to delay getting the new car until Sophie has passed her test. She's due to take it late in November and this is also a great time for buying a new car, as most people are not interested in shelling out then due to Christmas looming on the horizon. She wasn't at all disappointed and was, I think, as shocked by the insurance quote as I was.

I went to work and today a lot of the children were very naughty, for some reason. I have no idea why - maybe it was the wind or the fact that half term is getting nearer and they'd had enough of school! One boy had to be sent to the deputy headmaster's office and a few of the other children were rude and badly behaved. It was not the most enjoyable session!

I dashed home from work at 6pm and Keith, Sophie and I had a quick supper of pate and toast as we were off to the cinema to see Detroit. Mike disappeared to the village and didn't want anything to eat but came back just before we left at 7pm. Sophie was able to get the tickets for free because of her job and we went to the Lings Forum cinema, which only I had ever been to. It must have been refurbished recently as the chairs and carpet looked new and it was a very enjoyable evening.

The film was very interesting and starred Will Poulter who we had seen in London on my birthday (in the pub). His character wasn't very nice, I'm afraid (a lot different to the part he played in The Revenant) but although not a cheerful movie, it was fascinating to learn about the race riots and the murder of three young black men in Detroit in 1967.

It was also great to go out as a family with no alcohol involved!

New week, new job...

Today, all my poor husband has done has been to ferry all of us about! I was due to start my new part-time job today at Lings Forum at 8am, working in the contact centre and answering telephone calls. However, the woman who was going to be showing me the ropes had to take today off due to a family illness so I was asked to go in at 10am instead. Because of this we dropped Mike off at college and then drove to the Weston Favell Centre before Keith waved me goodbye and returned home, the arrangement being that he would pick me up at 2pm.

Sophie was supposed to have been having a driving lesson at 10am but this didn't happen, which annoyed her intensely, especially as she'd been up since 8am in readiness! Keith then took her to uni at 11.30am and went back home to sort out the washing and ironing before he left again to pick me up at 2pm. We then collected Sophie from uni and took her to work where she was going to stay until 6pm when I would collect her after my after-school job...phew!

Minutes after taking Sophie to work she called us to say that she wasn't needed, so could we go back and pick her up?! We went back to collect her and then headed home where I had ten minutes to finish the sandwich I'd been eating in the car before going back out to work again!

Keith then had to go and get Mike from college at 4pm! What a day! My new job was OK, but I was on Reception for the whole time, working - ironically - with a girl I'd employed when we had the business! I enjoyed meeting people and learning how the system worked and I even had a chat with my friend Lynda who attends the gym every day. She has managed to lose weight, bless her, and looked a lot slimmer. I'm hoping though, that when I return on Thursday and Friday I'll be in the office. I found the reception desk quite depressing and wasn't able to see outside at all, something I find quite hard to deal with. I like to know what's happening with the weather!

It was lovely at after-school club to be outside with the children for nearly the whole session and we had an enjoyable afternoon. The year 6 children are starting to make decisions about what secondary school they'll be going to and one particular girl was very worried about the choices she was having to make. She needs to be...the decision will affect the next seven years of her life!

Keith and Sophie walked up to meet me but we didn't go into the pub tonight. We're all trying to have an alcohol-free week although if my life continues to be this manic I might just give in and have a glass of wine before Friday!

A spot of culture...

Keith and I managed a lie-in this morning and didn't wake up until 9am! I haven't done that for a while! Mike was already up, which was highly unusual, and wanted me to take him to Brixworth as soon as possible. One of his friends was starting work with him today and they were going to go in together.

Sophie and I took him to Brixworth and then drove over to my Mum and Dad's with our paste table. My Dad is decorating their cloakroom and wanted to use the table we'd originally bought for the garage sale back in May. We had a quick coffee with them and then sped home to get ready to go to the Althorp Literary Festival in the afternoon.

Luckily, as we had grounds passes, the weather was gorgeous with beautiful blue skies and plenty of sunshine. We parked in a grassy field and walked the short distance to the house. First up was a cup of tea and a sandwich and then we had a quick look around before finding the south drawing room where we were going to a presentation on Independent Publishing with Amazon's Kindle.

Although there were lots of authors at the festival, I didn't really fancy seeing any of them so we had just booked for the free presentation. It was very informative and three authors who had taken the route of publishing independently were also there to tell us their experience of the process. One author had sold over a million books! And although they had all published their novels on e-readers, they had also sold them as hardback books as well. I was very impressed!

After the presentation we had a lovely chat with a man who runs falconry displays. He had an American Bald Eagle with him which was enormous! At first the bird was wearing a hood over his head but after he'd flown him, the hood came off and we could see his lovely intelligent face. He kept flapping his wings and they brushed the top of my head!

We decided to go and have a delicious ice-cream sundae at Gallone's in Kingsthorpe and took the scenic route, which was lovely. Back home we relaxed in the conservatory until it was time to collect Mike from Brixworth at 7pm, slightly later than normal as he'd walked back to his mate's house after work.

Dinner tonight was pulled pork which had been cooking slowly in the oven all day. It was delicious!

A trip through the Mediterranean.

After dropping Sophie off at work, and then taking Mike (he's doing an extra shift today) I knuckled down to some housework! I stripped my bed completely (I even took the valance off) and while it was all washing, I tackled the kitchen drawers which badly needed some TLC!

It felt good to do something that would last longer than a few hours, which is what happens when I do normal housework! I washed all the cutlery and the tray (filthy) and carried on with the rest of the drawers, including the dreaded bottom one which holds everything we don't know what to do with including curtain hooks, safety pins, batteries, shoe laces and a host of other bits and bobs. Now it's all tidy, an immensely satisfying feeling!

Before putting all the bedding back Keith and I pulled our big heavy bed away from the wall and I gasped in shock at all the dust and cobwebs that had gathered behind it! I am so slovenly! I hoovered the bed itself and the carpet and put fresh bedding on...wonderful! It smelt lovely! I then hoovered all through the house before rewarding myself with a bath as we are out tonight at Sue and Paul's for the wine night - a trip through the Mediterranean.

I went to get Mike and Sophie and the threatened rain arrived. Before picking up Soph I bought Sue some flowers and chocolates and while I was out Keith drove to the village to pick up a takeaway from the van for the kids.

As soon as we were home I dashed off to get ready while Soph and Mike ate their dinner, which smelt delicious! I have to say I was a bit envious but I was looking forward to going out for the evening.

We were the first to arrive although I had told Sue we might be late as Sophie doesn't usually finish work until 6.30pm. The dogs were in a boisterous mood and Sue and Paul chuckled about the "beer for dogs"! Richard and Michelle arrived and we were given glasses of Prosecco to drink before our starter of cold meats, prawn cocktail and olives served with rustic bread.

We started on our whites and we all preferred the more expensive Viognier although I couldn't really tell the difference between the two. Our main course was lasagne, served with salad and roasted potatoes and we drank two bottles of Italian Rose wine that Sue and Paul had chosen. One was a deeper colour than the other but other than that there really wasn't much difference!

We finished with the Riojas that Richard and Michelle had brought with them and we all definitely preferred the wine from Waitrose rather than the Aldi offering. It was a lovely evening with lots of chat and laughter and our meal ended with a choice of either lemon torte or profiteroles served with cream. I didn't want to have too much to drink as Sophie and I are off to Althorp tomorrow for the Literary Festival and I certainly didn't want to have a sore head!

A wine search!

We had an hour to kill between dropping Mike off at college and taking Sophie to work so we had a coffee at Costa and then popped into Waitrose to look at wine. We need to buy two wines from a Mediterranean country with a price difference between them of least £5 for an upcoming evening at Sue and Paul's house.

We were going to go with a different country - one out of the ordinary - but in the end we decided to choose a French, Spanish or Italian wine. After dropping Sophie off at work we headed to Majestic and had a great chat with James who helped us choose. We settled on two Viogniers from France but we had briefly considered a Sancerre and a lesser Sauvignon Blanc from another region of the country.

While we were in the shop it would have been rude not to have taken advantage of their mix six discount so we bought three bottles of the Ned Pinot Grigio and a bottle of Californian Zinfandel which was on tasting!

Before heading home we drove around Brackmills and we were astonished at how big the new Stanley Black and Decker warehouse was. Back in 2012 the original warehouse was demolished and for ages the land stood empty. Now, however, it has a brand new building standing on it and I urged Keith to contact someone who still works there that he knows, so he can have a tour.

It's been a gorgeous day today with sunny skies and fluffy white clouds - a Florida sky, which is a bonus so late in the year. Our film at work this afternoon was Homeward Bound 2 and I set it up for Lisa as there was a presentation going on in the playground to name the new pirate ship that the children love playing on. It was given the name "The Treasure Hunter" and there were cake stalls where the parents and children could buy cakes. Every single child that came to film night (and there were only six of them) came in with a little cake!

After the film finished we all went out into the playground but the weather had taken a turn for the worse and the sky was shrouded in thick cloud. There was a chilly little wind blowing as well! I got away at 6pm and dashed off to get Sophie from work. Keith had driven me today because of the presentation so he drove down in my car and left it in the pub car park. I popped in to get the keys and then sped off to collect my daughter.

Dinner tonight was very simple - jacket potatoes for Keith and I and Tesco curries for the children. It made my job a lot easier when I got home!

Traffic hold-ups!

Keith and I took Sophie to uni this morning and then went to do our shopping. It's been a bright but very breezy day with some areas of the UK having a warning for high winds.

We did all our shopping and then returned to find Mike ready to go out to Brixworth. Maybe we should start him with driving lessons as well, but I dread to think what the insurance would be!

As today has been so lovely the children spent a lot of time in the playground and they even had their snack outside as well. It's great to make the most of the dry and sunny weather when we can! After work I sped off to get Sophie from uni while Keith went to collect Mike from Brixworth. The traffic was terrible and I kept being held up by parked cars on my side of the road. I never had any of this while we were in the US! To be honest, driving today has been a pain, as this morning we had tractors, cyclists, walkers and even horse-riders sharing the road, all of whom managed to delay my journey! In Moulton we were all held up by a giant lorry that was obviously lost. How he managed to negotiate the narrow streets I'll never know!

Imagine my shock when Sophie and I encountered him on the way home as well, this time trying to reverse into a narrow field gateway! Every time he tried to reverse he ended up on the verge and he must have made about ten attempts before getting out of his cab. Behind me a long queue of cars had built up and no doubt there were lots coming the other way as well! Eventually he managed to manoeuvre the huge lorry into the gateway so we could all move again. My glass of wine was very welcome when we eventually arrived home!

Plastic cup pyramids!

Overnight I changed my mind about going for the interview at the estate agents and I emailed the manager as soon as I got up to let him know. As it's been almost a month since I applied for the job I think he understood!

Keith took Mike for a hair cut this morning while I ran Sophie to uni. When I returned there was a message on the answer phone from my friend Lynda and this sort of set the tone for the day because we had loads of phone calls, when we really don't get that many! We had more calls today than we normally do in a week!

Keith didn't get home until almost midday as he went straight from the barber shop in Kettering to take Mike into Northampton, so I pottered about and did some jobs and then we had an early lunch. Sophie had asked me to pick her up from uni at 2pm and an hour before this, Keith's friend Dave called to ask Keith for a lift to the garage to pick up his car. I knew he would never make it home in time so luckily he went to collect Mike from town while I went to get Sophie. Phew! I will be mightily glad when Sophie has passed her test and she can drive herself. What will I do with all my spare time?

The afternoon at the after-school club was a bit chaotic as the older girls wanted to build pyramids out of plastic cups. Lisa had to go and find some more and then there were the usual fights as all the children wanted to have a go so there were cups everywhere as one by one they all collapsed, whether by accident or deliberately! Today the weather hasn't been that nice, with dull, overcast skies and a cold wind so we spent most of the afternoon inside. The mess in the hall was a sight to behold at the end of the session and it always amazes me that we can get it cleared up quickly by about 5.30pm when the children start to leave!

Keith and Sophie walked up to meet me again but tonight we didn't go to the pub...it mustn't turn into a nightly habit!

Two job offers!

I checked my emails this morning and was astonished to find a message from an estate agents in Northampton regarding a job I'd applied for almost a month ago! They wanted me to contact them about the position so I can only assume that they took someone on and it didn't work out! I didn't have time to call them as I was just on my way out to pick up my Mum as Sophie and I were taking her shopping to Rushden Lakes again. I needed some new jeans and was hoping to buy some in M&S. The weather today has been beautiful but it's still a bit blustery. The warm weather has certainly disappeared!

We decided to have coffee in M&S and I ordered their Flat White, which I have to say is not a patch on Costa's! When we finished we had a great mooch about in the store but I didn't see any jeans I liked. I did buy a pair of black trousers, though! They might come in useful for an interview!

We looked around House of Fraser, New Look and River Island but Sophie wasn't really in the mood to do any shopping so at 12pm we called it a day and returned home. Although we all like Rushden Lakes we've decided it will never replace Milton Keynes in our affections! There's just so much choice and the shops have a far bigger range. Perhaps this is why John Lewis pulled out of Rushden Lakes, although I think the store would have been a huge draw.

We popped into the Co-op and Sophie bought some food for lunch. After we'd eaten I called the estate agents and spoke to the manager and we arranged to have a chat tomorrow morning. Although I was flattered they'd considered me I started to have a few doubts about the job. It's in the middle of town for a start so there's the problem of parking and the telephone job is still on the cards, as I'd had a text this morning to say that all my paperwork was with their HR department and someone would be in touch about a starting date.

There was a nice atmosphere at the after-school club this afternoon and after playing some games with the children they went outside to run about as it was dry and sunny. I was a little late leaving this evening and had to rush off and get Sophie from uni. We enjoyed dinner before settling down to watch the last two episodes of Doctor Foster. They were riveting!

Rude noises!

Keith took Mike to college this morning as he had to pick up one of his mates from a garage where his car had gone for some repairs. Sophie had a driving lesson at 10am and as soon as she returned home we left to take her to uni. She was more than ready to go back after being off since May!

Keith and I dropped her off and went to the Weston Favell Centre to get the rest of the week's shopping. I also bought two more pots of the "Parp putty" for the children at the after school club. There were just the two pots left so I wonder if some of the parents had bought it for their offspring over the weekend!

I gave the pots to the two girls in the afternoon and they were thrilled with it, making lots of rude noises throughout the session! We left on time and I met up with Sophie and Keith in the pub car park. Keith suggested a drink...of course! We spent a very pleasant hour sitting at the bar and having a chat before we returned home and cooked dinner of a beef casserole. It was delicious and perfect for the windy, Autumnal day we'd had!

Somewhere a bit different!

As Sundays have been designated "Fundays" Sophie and I had a discussion about what we were going to do today. She is back at uni tomorrow so she deliberately kept today free to do something fun.

After a bit of wrangling we decided to go to the interesting bar we'd spotted in Derngate in Northampton and then head off to Homesense as I needed a new bedsheet and I wanted to look at storage boxes.

First of all, though, I asked her to help me put the colour on my hair and while that was doing its work I tried out a new facepack I'd bought in Boots. I looked like Hannibal Lecter with it on, as it was a white face mask that was supposed to "smooth away tiny lines and hydrate the skin"...hmmm! I went around the house jumping out on Mike and Keith who were not impressed!

Once I'd showered and dried my hair (no grey!) I took Mike to work with Keith and then returned home to find Sophie all ready as well. We drove into Northampton and parked in St John's before walking the short distance to Foodies Rocks, a cocktail bar/restaurant specialising in street food from around the world.

We were the only ones in there at first and we were seated by a very pretty waitress who told us to order 2-3 dishes, write our choices down on a little card and then go to the bar to pay. We chose two portions of the Korean Sriracha double fried chicken served with mooli, the Edamame Hummus and the Pork Gyoza. We also enjoyed a small glass of wine each and although it was a bit expensive - about £6 for each dish - the food was out of this world! The chicken, in particular, was delicious and perhaps the best I've ever tasted as it was sticky and moist and served with a "mooli" which turned out to be white radish, almost like a coleslaw and utterly gorgeous!

I chose the hummus which was served with small slices of fried bread and covered with chilli flakes, wakame seaweed and sesame seeds. Sophie's other dish consisted of pork dumplings served with a delicious soy dip. We found room for dessert and ordered Portuguese custard tarts served with berries and sublime churros accompanied by a hazelnut and chocolate sauce.

The bill came to just over £40 for the two of us which I didn't think was bad for lunch with a glass of wine, and we were certainly full when we left. Other people had come in as we ate so I was glad to see the place a bit busier. Downstairs they have an art gallery and table football and they put on lots of live events. We will definitely be back!

We returned to the car and drove to Homesense which was busier than I expected! Maybe it was because of the large Halloween display and the Christmas stuff creeping in as well? There's no escaping either celebration! I found a sheet for our bed and looked at the storage boxes but I really wanted a file where we could store important papers. Sophie bought a badge for her denim jacket and I also put a loaf tin in our basket as the one we currently have is very manky!

Sophie and I have decided that instead of pushing on with collecting hearts for the conservatory, we will collect naff sayings to put on the walls of the cloakroom. We have four hearts for this year but we haven't been able to decide on where to display them and we didn't want it to start looking tacky. There was nothing we liked at Homesense so we drove to the garden centre at Harlestone and had a look there. We visited the fish area first and I became a little too interested in a sad-looking puffer fish that kept staring at me. His eyes followed me and I was almost on the brink of buying an aquarium just for him! However, I don't like any animals, birds or fish kept in a confined environment so I said goodbye and tore myself away from his sad little face.

We had a quick look in the pets' section and spotted this:

Beer and wine for dogs and cats! Is there no end to the madness? However, I couldn't resist buying a bottle of the beer for Sue and Paul's dogs, Bailey and Archie, as we are around there for dinner soon and it might cause a giggle.

Unfortunately we didn't see any naff sayings (Live.Love.Laugh or whatever will have to be the first!) so we headed home and relaxed in the conservatory while Keith watched Newcastle play.

When we went to pick up Mike the weather had taken a turn for the worse and it had become very windy. Apparently ex-Hurricane Maria is going to pay us a visit over the next couple of days!