A sociable Saturday!

I had arranged to go out for breakfast with friends Andrea, Fiona and Lynda this morning, and had volunteered to drive to The Wavendon Arms, near Milton Keynes, where we had a 10:00am booking.

We all met at Lynda's house in Cogenhoe, and it only took about half an hour to get to the pub. It was a gorgeous day, but too chilly to sit outside! We took our seats inside and, while we waited for Andrea to arrive, ordered coffee and tea.

Once Andrea was seated and we had ordered more drinks (another flat white for me, as it was a tiny serving!), we had a good look at the breakfast menu. I chose the traditional full English, Lynda opted for the vegetarian version, and Andrea and Fiona ordered combinations of scrambled or poached eggs, toast, bacon, and smoked salmon.

We had a great chat, and it was lovely to see everyone again and hear their news. The food was good and plentiful, and the pub was pleasantly busy with early diners. We paid the bill, a reasonable £25 each, and said goodbye to Andrea before returning to Cogenhoe the same way. The weather was still glorious, and the countryside was looking beautiful.

I said goodbye to Lynda and Fiona and drove home. I couldn't believe my eyes when I turned left at the Holcot roundabout to head down to the village, as there was one long continuous line of cars and vans leaving the car boot sale. Anyone caught up in it would have been severely delayed!

Sophie was ready and waiting for me when I arrived home for our planned visit to Homesense in Northampton. I wanted to get two new lampshades for the living room, another bottle of white for tonight's wine do at Michelle's, and a small gift for her.

The traffic leading to the St James retail park was horrendous, so we decided to abandon our trip. It's much better if I can go on a Wednesday, and a lot quieter! Sophie hadn't had any lunch, so we drove to a Subway outlet on Brackmills, and she bought herself a chicken salad and some cookies to enjoy at home later. She had pre-ordered the meal, and while we sat and waited, we watched a crowd of boys on BMX bikes take over a large part of the car park with their bikes. They were all wearing big, bulky helmets, so they were being sensible, at least!

Sophie ate her salad while I drove to White's Farm Shop near Earls Barton, where I hoped to buy another bottle of white wine and some chocolates or flowers. I spotted a bottle of French Chardonnay with a pencil-drawn picture of rustic barns, which appealed, and also bought Michelle a set of three pretty candles. We'd spotted a homewares shop when we parked, so we had a quick look at the lovely, quirky shop, and I treated myself to a bar of honey soap. It smelled gorgeous!

Back home, we relaxed, and I had a nap before our evening out. We both freshened up, and I wrapped our two bottles of white wine in foil to disguise them. Keith was looking forward to his fish and chips and an evening of sport!

We walked to Michelle and Richard's house at 7:00pm, and were closely followed by Paul and Sharon. There was a flurry of greetings, and we congregated in the kitchen for a glass of fizz and Chambord with an added raspberry. The two cats, Hector and Lily, eyed us a bit warily!

We decided to start the wines with one of Paul and Sharon's rosés, followed by our two whites, then the second rosé and, lastly, Michelle and Richard's two reds. After nibbling on crisps, we sat down at the dining room table and enjoyed a chicken lasagne with salad and garlic bread.

The foil-wrapped rosé was brought to the table, and we all loved the delicate pink colour. Paul asked about how rosés were made, and I explained that you can make white wine from red grapes, but not red wine from white grapes! We all said the rosé was delicious, and it was revealed as Kylie Minogue's wine! Richard then kept score of both the label and the wine to see which would be the winner, which was noisy and hilarious as we all gave our scores and reasons.

Next up was the French Chardonnay that Sophie and I had bought today. I could hardly detect any aroma on the nose, and the taste wasn't much better, either! It cost £12.89, so I was very disappointed and said so. It certainly wasn't typical of a creamy Chardonnay. 

After the Chardonnay, we tried the Gary Barlow Sauvignon Blanc, and I began to think I had lost my sense of smell and taste, as this was bland as well! Everyone laughed when we revealed the label and Richard pointed out the piano keys on the label, which were G and B. A bit narcissistic! 

The least liked label - Gary Barlow - and the best

I was very disappointed with both wines, which amounted to £20... we should have just taken a Vouvray and a New Zealand Pinot Gris!

The second rosé was slightly dry and one I wouldn't rush to buy, but it was in a gorgeous bottle that we all loved handling. By now, Michelle had served a lemon cheesecake, which was delicious. 

We then poured the first of the reds, an Italian Montepulciano, which was too tannic and dry for me. Sharon wasn't keen either, and I had to persuade her to at least try the wine. B y now, it was noisy, and there was a lot of laughter around the table as we all chatted and enjoyed the evening. Lily had made an appearance and kept brushing against my legs, bless her, so Michelle picked her up, and we had a cuddle.

The last red was a Portuguese, and both Sophie and I loved it. Michelle and Richard said they hated the label, but we thought it was beautiful! It came from Aldi and was priced at about £6.50. This is one we will ask Keith to get the next time he's in the supermarket!

Richard added up the scores, and Gary Barlow's label was awarded the worst, with the Italian the best. Kylie's rosé was the most popular wine! I was astounded to see it was almost 1:00am, so we said our goodbyes and walked the very short distance home. Sophie then had a terrible job of getting Gomez in. He was out with Cora, Lynn's cat, and it took all of her powers of persuasion to finally entice him into the house for bed!

A quiet Friday

I drove myself to work this morning, and as the emails are not coming in quite so thick and fast, I was able to complete other jobs, such as putting on the May playscheme places, an NPLQ course and tidying up all the cinema box office returns spreadsheets. I also wrote a list of Frequently Asked Questions for BOB, who is returning to work soon and will have a different role!

Our small suite of offices was deserted today, as Nicola had taken a day off and Sara had gone home early. None of the senior management team was in, so it was blissfully quiet! I sped home at 4:00pm and relaxed until Sophie arrived about forty-five minutes later. We opened the bottle of Greasy Fingers to go with the chilli. I'd read Michelle's message properly and realised we had to take two bottles of white wine tomorrow night... one of a label we liked, and one of a label that didn't appeal! It was a good job that I checked!

The red was delicious, and despite its unappealing name, we'll certainly buy it again! Our film choice for tonight was Definitely, Maybe starring Ryan Reynolds and Rachel Weisz. It was perfect for our Friday evening!

After a delicious chilli con carne, we watched two episodes of Alan and Amanda in Sicily. Bring on the weekend!

FOMO and Bill

Keith took me to work this morning, and I had another busy shift dealing with emails. The phone calls have definitely lessened, and it's noticeably quieter, which is a bit of a worry. 

At 2pm, Keith collected me, and I dropped him off at home before going to see my Mum. She seemed OK today, but was a little tearful at the end of my visit and said she missed going out. I suggested going out for a cup of tea next Wednesday, but then she didn't seem keen. I do worry about going out with her as she is so unsteady on her feet, and I dread her having a bad fall and ending up in the hospital. It made me feel guilty but also a little sad that we can't go out and enjoy tea and cakes as we used to.

Back home, we didn't have any supper to sort out, as it was fishcakes and mash, so it was a relaxed evening, playing cards and chatting around the kitchen island. Sophie and I shared a bottle of French wine that was a hybrid of an orange and a Rosé. It was perfect for our fishy supper!

Later in the evening, we renamed the cats... Mooney is now FOMO (fear of missing out) while Gomez is (Baldie) Bill. Gomez has patches of baldness under his chin and on his legs, and he came in at the same time as Mooney went out to have a cuddle with us. We then saw Mooney staring at us from the door of the conservatory, and it was obvious he wanted to come back in, for fear of missing out! They are indeed a special pair!

Pottering about!

I didn't have any plans today, so it was lovely to potter about, doing small but necessary jobs. I wanted to get the en-suite shower cubicle cleaned, and another exciting job: cleaning out the fluff from the tumble dryer filter. Yes... I know how to enjoy myself!

There was satisfaction in finally doing the jobs that I'd been putting off, and I put out some feelers for help with replacing the under-cupboard lights in the kitchen and cleaning the oven. The last time I cleaned the oven, I burned my arms with the corrosive substance I used, and we have to virtually lie on the floor to get the bottom oven cleaned properly, so I refuse to do it again. 

So, I pottered about, Keith made me eggs on toast for lunch, and I just took my time and crossed off a lot of chores. I also did the usual Wednesday jobs, such as the shopping list, lunch and breakfast for work tomorrow.

Keith had already prepared the onion and pepper for tonight's meatballs and pasta, which Sophie had agreed to cook when she got home from work. Keith refuses to eat meatballs, so he had bought himself a beef pie for dinner.

Before Sophie ventured into the kitchen, we watched the first episode of Missed Call starring Joanna Scanlan, who had been sitting at the next table to us in Fischer's restaurant, London, back in January.  

The plot sounded promising: a 17-year-old girl on a French exchange visit goes missing after calling her Mum (Joanna Scanlan) in the middle of the night. We persevered, but after about half an hour, we gave up. We both agreed that the acting wasn't very good and it all seemed a bit unrealistic! I was disappointed, to be honest, but never mind!

Before dinner, we had a sudden, torrential downpour of rain and gusty winds, and we managed to get Mooney in, who must have been sheltering under one of the cars, as he wasn't that wet, bless him. Sophie started the dinner, and I opened the kitchen door to let some fresh air in, and heard a lot of sirens outside, something that is very unusual for our area. I then smelt burning, and realised that Sophie had put Keith's pie in the oven, but had turned on the grill by mistake! The top was completely black! We had to scrape all the burnt bits off and then put it back in the oven! I later found out that the sirens were from fire engines attending a fire in a field between Walgrave and Hannington. Drama indeed! 

After dinner, Keith and I caught up with another episode of The Capture, and that seems to be going a little far-fetched as well!

The wormy ones...

Keith took me to work today, and I stopped off on the way to treat myself to a Tesco meal deal lunch, as we had almost nothing at home. I bought myself a sandwich and a bag of Easy Peelers to enjoy as well.

I was dreading Nicola coming into work, and at first, she had a coughing fit so bad that I thought she was going to make herself sick! I disappeared to the kitchen to make myself a cup of coffee, and thought back longingly to the afternoon when Sophie and I sat outside the Whispering Pines house and read our books in peace and quiet. Unfortunately, I need to work to afford things like this!

Luckily, she wasn't so bad for the rest of the morning, and then took a half day in the afternoon. Sara and I concentrated on the cancellation emails and managed to get them down to just over 200. The light at the end of the tunnel is in sight!

At 4:00pm, I rejoined Keith, and we drove home in heavy traffic. The schools are well and truly back now, and Easter is just a distant memory.

Sophie was overjoyed to find Gomez on her bed when she got home, and unusually, he stayed upstairs until after we had eaten. Sophie asked us to be quiet as she didn't want to wake the beast, but he came downstairs just as Keith and I were watching The Capture, which was very noisy (Frank Napier was using awful sounds to torture the new commander of SO15!).

Sophie then noticed that Gomez had worms... just what she needed this evening. She refused to let him out, and we had to catch him and make sure we applied the worm treatment to the back of his neck. After we'd applied it, he jumped off the barstool and shot us a look of pure loathing. And I mean, loathing! It was almost as if he'd spoken to us!

She then fretted about getting Mooney in and spent most of her evening up and down the stairs instead of relaxing. She hadn't gone to the gym this morning because she'd pulled a muscle in her leg, so that didn't help! Keith and I were riveted to the television, watching The Capture, so we weren't much help, either!

Mooney came in and had the same treatment, with the same results! He refused to come near us and ran off! I wish I could make them understand that it's for their benefit!

Irritations!

I had a real "ugh" feeling when Sophie woke me at 6:00am, but I know for a fact that Friday will come around again very quickly!

I took myself to work and chatted with Sara, who had returned after a couple of days off last week. We both believe that the emails are finally slowing down now, and today was the first day that we would really be able to tell how busy the phones would be, as the children are (mostly) back at school.

Nicola was exceptionally noisy today, and I really had a hard time working with the background of hacking coughs, sniffs, sneezing and loud yawns. As she now sits just behind me, the irritation was immense. Thankfully, I could use my loop earplugs to block out a lot of the noise, but why not just use a tissue? She's an adult woman, for heaven's sake, not a toddler! It was bliss to leave at 4:00pm and escape to the quiet of my car!

Keith had prepared dinner tonight and chopped up all the vegetables for the bubble and squeak. We cooked the Yorkshire puddings separately, and he carved the chicken. Before we ate, we played cards with our new Ypres playing cards. They are different to the ones we normally use, with V for Jacks, D for Queens and R for Kings. The aces are also marked as "1"!

After dinner, Keith and I indulged in a new episode of The Capture from series 3, which ended last night. It looks very promising!

Busy Sunday!

After coffee and a Wordle-off, I tackled a job I'd been meaning to do for ages - sort out our bed linen and store it all in a chest of drawers we have in the bedroom, rather than in the bed divan drawers where it is now. I hadn't got a clue what bed linen we had, so I sorted it all out and then transferred it to the chest of drawers, where it's more easily accessible. Several photograph albums took the place of the linen, as I don't get those out every week!

I found these two loose photos:

Mum and I - I'm about 19

Mum and I on a boat trip in Spain - I'm 12

Once this job had been done and I'd hoovered upstairs, we put the curtains back in the living room. While we were doing this, Sophie was preparing the vegetables for lunch. She'd asked if we could have roast chicken today, and Keith was more than happy to agree. Me, not so much!

Putting the curtains back wasn't as much of a chore as I'd imagined, and they smelt lovely from the laundry detergent! By about 12pm, everything was prepared, and the chicken went into the oven, stuffed with a lemon! Sophie cracked open a bottle of Cremant d'Alsace, and we had a pre-lunch aperitif. Now this, I did enjoy!

We sat down to eat at 3:00pm after a lot of hard work in the kitchen, and we all contributed. As well as the roast chicken, we had roast spuds, red cabbage, Brussels and bacon, roast parsnips, cauliflower and broccoli cheese, stuffing, Yorkshire puddings and bacon-wrapped chipolatas. Phew! The meal was delicious, and there was enough for squeaky bubble tomorrow and the other half of the chicken.

After clearing away, washing up and loading the dishwasher, Sophie and I relaxed in the conservatory with Mooney. We read our books and revelled in the warm sunshine streaming through the windows. Bliss! We even nodded off at one point. I loved looking up to see the fluffy, white clouds lazily drifting past.

In the evening, we watched Beyond Paradise, and it was a great end to a busy weekend! Back to work tomorrow!