An award!

Tonight after work I went to give blood and was surprised to be given my Silver Award for 25 donations! I'm annoyed with myself because it would have been a lot more if I'd continued to give blood when I was in my early 20s, but when I went off to Nepal I had to stop for a year because of the hepatitis risk and I just got out of the habit.

Sophie came with me (for the biscuits, she told me) and it all went very smoothly and quickly, which was great. It meant we were home a lot earlier than I'd planned and as I was cooking dinner tonight, that was good with me!

Tuesday 30 August - back to work!

It was a bit of a shock this morning when I was back at work, but all good things must come to an end! Mum and Dad are having some time off at the moment so I had Keith and the children in with me which helped. I have to admit I was dreading today but by 4pm, when I went home, I had to say that my first day back wasn't too bad at all!

I now I keep harping on about it, but it looks as if Autumn is here with a vengeance. Keith and I went for a short walk when we got home and there was definitely a nip in the air and it was dark at just after 8pm. It's amazing to see how quickly we lose our daylight hours but I honestly don't mind. For me, every season has its own benefits and I do like feeling cooler and being all cosy in the house at night!

Monday 29 August - last day of the holidays...

...Well, for me anyway! The children have one more week and will return to school next Tuesday. I spent my last day catching up with little jobs around the house and garden as the weather was grey and gloomy, not like August at all. It seems that all the seasons are coming early this year and it feels so much like Autumn already. Last night I even suggested putting the heating on but Keith wouldn't hear of it!

So my week's holiday is almost over and it's back to work tomorrow. To say the week has gone quickly is the understatement of the year!

Sunday 28 August - a day in Kent

Mum, Soph and me went off to Kent today to see Nan and take her shopping for some new bras. We called into the M&S at Thurrock services on the way and bought ourselves some lunch (which was delicious, by the way!) and after we'd eaten we drove off to Bexleyheath.

We spent an enjoyable couple of hours shopping so there was no time to do any grave-hunting today. I'll have to leave that for another day! The journey home was pretty good considering it was a Sunday afternoon and we went via the Blackwall Tunnel so mum could see the O2 and the Olympic park which looks like it's almost finished.

Back home we had a delicious supper of cheese and biscuits and a very good Californian red that I bought in M&S!

All finished!

Keith and I were up at 6am this morning and by 8am we had made a start on the second coat of emulsion. We used a colour called White Cotton which was lovely and fresh and clean. Luckily, the second coat covered the patchy first coat and I glossed one door before turning my attention to the contents of the cabinet. I washed all the glasses, plates and cups that we store in the cupboard and wiped the shelves so everything was lovely and clean. When the walls had dried Keith put up some pictures for me, the ones that had originally been in our bedroom, as they no longer matched the new colour scheme in there. By 4pm I'd glossed the other two doors, moved all the books back and tidied everything up so we were all finished and I was delighted with how it looked! There's not a huge change as the colour of the walls was quite pale before but we now know it's very clean and fresh which is all that matters!

Next job is the living room and that's something I'm not looking forward to!

Friday 26 August - yet more decorating!

Yesterday we started on our dining room/study that was probably the most neglected room of the house. I was disgusted with my house cleaning skills when we pulled out the cabinet that stands against the wall - there were papers behind it, old envelopes and a lot of dust! I spent the first half of the day giving the room a really good clean, took down the curtains to wash (and nearly died of shame as to how dirty they were) and then I started to emulsion the walls. I didn't realise that the paint we had was Matt, so when I went to pick Sophie up from work (she'd been called in, poor thing, because of the heavy rain) I called into Homebase to buy some silk emulsion and some more quick drying gloss for the skirting boards and doors.

We moved everything into the conservatory and the downstairs of the house was in uproar with all the mess. The children couldn't believe what a state it was in but I was hoping to get the furniture moved back before the evening as our dinner table was covered with glasses and crockery from inside the cabinet. Unfortunately, when Keith started to apply the emulsion paint it was pretty obvious we were going to need another coat of paint on top as it wasn't covering the pale pink underneath. I moved everything onto the floor so we could eat dinner at the table and just hoped that by Saturday evening everything would be back to normal!

Exam results!

Sophie had to go into school today to pick up some exam results. I wasn't aware of how important they were (probably a good thing!) as the seven she has done so far will count against her final exams next year. She was a bit nervous and I really felt for her as she got back into the car and opened the envelope. She was ecstatic to see that she scored an A* in History, the exam she had to re-sit. Her other marks were also very good, all As and Bs so we were extremely proud of her and what she's acheived so far.

After we picked up the results we drove into town so I could go to the main post office and renew my driving licence photo which expires at the end of September. I had my photo taken, parted with almost £25 for the pleasure (my photo looked awful) and treated the children to a MacDonald's lunch, although we were a bit miffed to find that they weren't doing MacFlurries which is why we'd gone in the first place!

Back home I sorted out our rubbish and put our recycling boxes into the car to take to the tip as we'd left it too late to put them out yesterday and they were overflowing with bottles, paper and cardboard. We drove to the local tip to find them closed so I ended up doing a round trip of 25 miles to the one in Northampton, which sort of beats the idea of saving the earth, but I was desperate to be rid of the rubbish. Taking the stuff to the big containers was a bit hairy as they were open grids and I could see through them to the ground below. I hate to admit I had a bit of a female moment and started shrieking so the staff very kindly took the rest of the stuff from me and emptied it on my behalf!

For dinner tonight we had Chicken Pierrot - a dish inspired by a meal we had in France in 2009 and named after the restaurant that served it. We sliced potatoes, added garlic and some olive oil and placed chicken breasts on top then cooked them in the oven until the potatoes were all crispy and the chicken cooked. Delicious with garden peas, carrots and a glass of very good red!

Wednesday 24 August - a day in London.

We'd had so many arguments about where we were going to go today...the suggestions ranged from the North Yorkshire coast, to Brighton in the south and even re-visiting Sandwich and Deal from when we went there last year. Eventually, however, we came up with the idea of going to see the Thames barrier and then a film at the O2.

We left home at a reasonable hour and had a good journey down. We drove through the Blackwall Tunnel and then followed signs for the Thames barrier but promptly lost them! In a way it was good as we found a car-park about a mile away which was right next to the Thames path. I was amazed to see a sign saying that Dartford was 13 miles away and one day I'd like to go back and cycle there.

On the way up to see the barrier, we passed the Woolwich Ferry which apparently is free to travel on. There's also a foot tunnel for pedestrians but although I was tempted, we'll leave that for another day! The weather improved drastically, going from cool and overcast to warm and sunny and we had fantastic views over the river to Docklands, the O2 and the barrier which was a lot smaller than I imagined, blending into the towering background and losing some of the impact I'd anticipated.

We couldn't walk right up to it, but we did have great views so we took lots of photos (well, Sophie did...I forgot my camera again) and then we had a slow walk back.

On the way we had a small squabble about which showing of Cowboys and Aliens we were going to see. Soph and I wanted to see the later showing but Mikey and Keith thought it was best to go to the 3pm show and then head home. As we were on holiday and there was no rush to get back, Sophie and I won so we returned to the car and then headed to Greenwich as I thought it would be good to show the children the Royal Observatory and to tell them about Greenwich Mean Time.

We got very lost in Greenwich. Ages ago, when I was a child, I'd gone to the town with my grandparents and I vaguely remembered a big statue in a park and this is where I wanted to go. We needed to park the car and have a snack and a drink, but I became lost in the maze of streets until I remembered I'd brought my little map of London with me. We quickly found where we needed to go and before long I saw the statue I remembered and we were parking the car in beautiful Greenwich Park.

Luckily there was a great little tea shop selling sandwiches and snacks so we had something to eat and drink before going to see the incredible views over London, Docklands, the O2 and the Thames. It was very busy with tourists of all nationalities and the children were able to stand on the Meridian Line as Keith and I tried to explain what it all meant!

 

We had an amble around the grounds of the Royal Observatory and a quick peek in one of the buildings where the children touched a meteor that was four and a half billion years old!

It was a gorgeous afternoon and Greenwich Park is a lovely place for a walk with lots of space and an avenue of trees that were just beginning to turn into their Autumnal colours. I'll definitely come back again, with maybe Mum and Nan as it's not at all far from Dartford.

As the time was getting on, we drive back to the O2 and parked the car. We thought it was a good idea to get our cinema tickets and then have a drink before the showing. This is when Keith paid an outrageous £8.95 for a glass of Pinot Grigio for me which was unbelievable seeing as I can get a decent bottle for that price!

Probably the most expensive glass of wine I've ever drunk!

Cowboys and Aliens was a great film and we all really enjoyed it. It was a different take on the usual Western and Daniel Craig was brilliant in his part. The cinema was great with big comfy seats and very good sound. Just before we went in, we picked up Sophie and Mikey's snacks which we'd pre-ordered...!

Only joking, kids! We actually didn't have any popcorn as we went to eat at Las Iguanas when the film finished, much to Sophie's delight as she was able to have her beloved Fajitas. We devoured (and I mean devoured) a plate of nachos to start and then had very enjoyable main meals (chicken, burger and chilli). We staggered out, feeling very full and a bit tired and had a great journey home on mainly quiet roads. Needless to say we all went straight to bed after a long, but very enjoyable day!

Uniform buying in Milton Keynes

Well, the weather forecast was certainly right today as we woke up to cloudy grey skies and by 9am it was raining. The plan was to go to Milton Keynes to get new school uniform for Mikey as he needed a blazer, new trousers and new shirts. I'm sure the rest of the population of Buckinghamshire and Northamptonshire were also in John Lewis with exactly the same idea!

Still, it was good to get the job done and Mikey didn't make too much of a fuss as I hustled him into the changing rooms to try on his shirts and trousers. He's at the stage now where any parental attention is deeply mortifying and I wasn't allowed to stay inside the changing room with him as he was "perfectly able to get undressed and dressed on my own, MUM!"

After buying all we needed, we met Sophie at the YooMoo stand, only to be told they had none of the chocolate frozen yoghurt as it was up by "the beach" outside John Lewis... So off we traipsed again to the big open area outside the department store which had been turned into an impromptu beach complete with sand, deckchairs and a crazy golf course. As you can imagine on a wet day in the school holidays it was heaving with mums and their hordes of children (no dogs today, though!). We were told by the YooMoo lady that she didn't have any chocolate frozen yoghurt as that was available on their main stand! I nearly exploded when she said that and told her, through gritted teeth, that we'd just been sent to the beach outlet as they'd said exactly the same thing on the other stand! I was mollified a bit, though, by my tub of vanilla yoghurt adorned with strawberries which was delicious and the children got over their addiction to the chocolate flavour so everyone was happy in the end!

We did a bit more shopping and then went home where we had a very relaxing evening doing very little - I think I may have had a nap at some point!

Stanwick Lakes

Today we went off for a walk to Stanwick Lakes which is about half an hour away from us. The weather was beautiful so we were joined by hordes of other people (mainly mums and their children and loads of dogs) and it reminded me very much of being at work, only outside!

We took a walk but the map wasn't brilliant and there was no information as to how long the walks were, or even where they were, so it was a bit confusing. We found an assault course that the children enjoyed but to be honest, I was less than impressed with the place. Maybe it was intentional but the place looked scruffy, with lots of overgrown weeds everywhere and even around the assault course there were nettles that really should have been cut back. We had a snack in the cafe which had a lovely terrace overlooking one of the lakes. I should have liked it, but I didn't and think that we'll stick to Pitsford in future or even Grafham Water a bit further afield.

Here are a few photographs. I remembered my camera today!:

We treated the children to an ice-cream and then left to go and do some shopping in a wonderfully quiet Waitrose just down the road. I bought a bottle of wine for dad to thank him for helping us decorate and some pizzas for dinner tonight as Sue was coming around for a drink. Waitrose was lovely and I'm just glad it's a bit too far from us to do our shopping every week otherwise I'd be there all the time!

When we got home I did a bit more research into my family tree and I've definitely come to the conclusion that my dad's side of the family were gypsies. I've had a look at a Gypsy and Romany family history site and the name Collins was a common gypsy name in the south of England in the 19th century. I'm not 100% sure but it would explain a few things so I sent for a book on family history from the website which may help a bit further.

Sue came around for a glass of wine in the evening and we had a good chat as we haven't seen each other since the middle of June and it was great to catch up with some gossip!

Sunday 21 August - a day at the coast

The day trip to Great Yarmouth was probably doomed first thing in the morning when I visited Trip Advisor to find out the post codes of car parks in the seaside resort. Someone posted a review stating that as Great Yarmouth was one of the lowest lying towns on the coast, the rising sea levels would eventually wipe it out, which would be the best thing to happen to the resort... Hmmm! I suspected that Great Yarmouth would be one of those English seaside places where the Amusement Arcade rules supreme, but Keith was determined to go. One of his mates had said that it had changed considerably since Keith last visited over 30 years ago, so I kept quiet, knowing that if we really hated it, there were other places to see on the Norfolk coast.

At least the journey over to the east coast was a good one, with dual carriageways for the majority of the route which meant we were parking on the sea front at 11am. The weather, which was forecast to be hot and sunny, was warm and overcast and it stayed that way for most of the day, the sun only breaking through the cloud as we made our way home!

First stop was a cup of coffee at a little cafe right on the seafront. They were doing a brisk trade and it was very pleasant sitting outside in the warmth. Ahead of us was the Britannia Pier with its theatre (some big names appearing), pub and amusement arcade at the very end. We quickly realised that Great Yarmouth was very adept at parting people from their money. The children wanted to go on the dodgem cars so they had to go and buy some tokens which were £1 each. To ride the dodgem cars was 3 tokens for each car and of course my competitive two had to have their own dodgem! Whilst we waited for them to finish whizzing around and hitting each other, we looked at the other amusements and I have to admit it was a sad little place. There was a ghost train, a log ride and loads and loads of grabber machines with flourescent cuddly toys. The pub looked seedy and I shuddered to think what it would be like to spend a week here. However, for parents with very young children the beach was fantastic - miles of sand and dunes and if the weather's good, what more would you need? The resort is not for me but there were plenty of people enjoying themselves.

After the children finished on the dodgems, we walked further into the resort where the aim to part visitors from their money started in earnest. The whole of the front was a gaudy line of amusement arcades, restaurants and hotels. On the beach side were more attractions (Joyland), an American diner surrounded by vintage cars and the Pirates Cove miniature golf. We took the little train that runs down to the Pleasure Beach, just over a mile away, and we passed a Sealife centre and a miniature model village so there's plenty to do and see if you're into that sort of thing. We also passed a long line of horses and carriages who were busy ferrying people up and down the coast road.

We decided to have a game of miniature golf before lunch so we spent an enjoyable couple of hours on the 18 hole course. It wasn't cheap (£24 for the four of us) but it was fun and there had been a lot of thought in the design with landscaped gardens and little notices telling us all about pirates, which were useful to read when we were in a queue and waiting to take our shots!

We were amazed to find, when we finished, that the parking ticket on the car was due to run out so we sped back without having lunch in the resort. We'd planned on having fish and chips (no shortage of places to choose from) but decided to push on to Caister just up the coast. This proved to be very quiet so we drove on to Hemsby which promised to be a little larger. Unfortunately, it was one of the worst places I've ever had the misfortune to visit in my beautiful country, stuffed full of tacky arcades, awful holiday chalets on the outskirts with the incongruous name of "Bel Air" and row upon row of cheap bars, cafes and gift shops.

We quickly made an escape and feeling very hungry by now, drove onto Winterton-on-Sea which was wonderful. Winterton is just a small village but has a gorgeous beach backed with sand dunes, a large car park and a lovely little cafe selling sandwiches, soup and cakes. We had a sandwich and then the children paddled in the sea while Keith and I sat on the dunes and watched. The children came back to us, excited that they'd seen seals in the sea and indeed, there is a seal colony just up the coast. There were lots of families on the beach all enjoying a day by the sea and the whole character of the place was completely different to loud and brash Great Yarmouth just down the coast!

After an ice-cream we headed back and called into the pub for a quick drink before going home. It had been a great day but I'm not sure any of us would head back to Yarmouth again!

Winterton-on-Sea

A family tree disappointment...

Today, mum and dad very kindly came over to help us decorate one wall of our bedroom. We supplied bacon and sausage baps and lots of coffee before we started the wallpapering. It went very well and I'm delighted with how the room looks now. It's so much cleaner and fresher and I'm really pleased with how it's turned out.

While we were beavering away, the post arrived, and with it the Birth certificate of my supposed Great Great Uncle. I've been trying to trace this side of the family tree (on my dad's side) but I've hit what is commonly known as a "brick wall". I have no birth certificate for my Great Great Grandfather who was born in Kingston Upon Thames in 1851 so I sent off for his brother's (or thought I did) who was born in Woolwich in 1863. Well, it's definitely not him as the one thing I do know is that my Great Great Grandfather's father's name was John and on the birth certificate I received, the father's name was Richard... I was so disappointed and felt very frustated that it wasn't him as I was 99% sure I'd found the right Edward Collins who was brother to John. I would then have had the mother's maiden name and could trace back that side.

I've come to the conclusion that this side of the family were travellers who moved about from place to place as I can't find any record of a John Collins on the 1861 census when he would have been about 9 or 10. From this I could have traced back the parents but I've searched and searched and found nothing. My grandmother always did say that there were Irish gypsies on her side of the family and it's looking more and more likely! It would explain why there was no record of them - maybe they wanted to evade the census and didn't bother with getting the births registered. It was also about the time of the potato famine so they may have come over from Ireland and just didn't bother with any legalities!

In the afternoon, Sophie and me went out to buy some tie-backs for my new curtains and I treated myself to a new laundry hamper for the bathroom. I glossed the paintwork in our bathroom this morning so now everything else is looking really shabby and needs to be decorated!

I'm going to pray I win the lottery tonight!

Friday 19 August

Some photos from the other day...

Walgrave church

Thursday 18 August

Today the weather has been horrendous and more like an early winter's day rather than late summer. It rained all day but it was cold as well - the top temperature was just 12 degrees! Brrr! As a result, we were busy at work but at least we had extra staff in so we weren't rushed off our feet like we were last week!

I managed to escape at 4pm and went home and by now it had stopped raining but the skies were dark grey and lumpy. We all went off for a walk at 5pm, but this time we went somewhere different for a change, and drove to a local bridleway. There were huge puddles everywhere and all the vegetation was dripping wet but it was great to be out in the fresh air and looking at a different view. We walked to the end of the bridleway and then returned to the car just as the local church bells were chiming six o'clock and the heavens opened again!

Back home it was a quick game of cards and then a very hot and spicy chilli con carne for dinner which certainly warmed us all up!

Wednesday 17 August

After work we all went for a walk and I took my camera because I could hear the farmers harvesting the wheat in the fields next to our house. There were clouds of dust being thrown up and I did wonder whether we'd be able to take our normal route, but when we arrived at the start of our walk, we could see they hadn't begun yet, although they were harvesting the oats in the bottom field. There was a huge combine harvester type thing and a tractor with two trailers and it was just like he was mowing the field, but on a huge scale! I took a couple of photos which I'll post later.

Back home Keith and I relaxed in the conservatory with a drink. The beautiful blue skies gave way to lumpy grey cloud and there was a distinct chill in the air. It's now dark at 9pm and it's amazing how quickly the nights draw in, seeing as we all went for a walk at this time only a couple of weeks ago.

I enjoyed another episode of Who Do You Think You Are? with J.K.Rowling who became very emotional when she tracked down her relatives, one of whom won a bravery award for fighting in the First World War. It was quite poignant when she went to visit his grave and it was an unmarked, common grave. I know how she felt!

Tuesday 16 August

It was back to work today which was a bit of a shock but the consolation is I have a short week this week, no work at all next week and another short week the week after!

After work Sophie and I went for a walk over the fields and this time the horses came over to say hello so we fed them some carrots. They weren't keen on my Polo mints so Sophie and I ate them as we walked! We met our neighbour who was out walking Max and we had a chat about her holiday in the US. The time has flown by over the last few weeks and I can't  believe they've been and gone! We're over half way through the summer holidays and before we know it, it'll be Autumn, the signs of which I'm seeing already in the hedgerows. I've spotted blackberries, sloes and one of the trees was shedding its leaves already!

Back home I had a glass of wine, as I saw an article in the paper which was slightly worrying. It said that a lot of people were giving up alcohol during the week and then drinking at the weekend but this seemed to alter the rhythms of the heart, making some people susceptible to a heart attack or stroke. I have to admit I do go a bit mad at the weekend and have more than I should so from now on, rather than have my weekly allowance over Friday, Saturday and Sunday, I'm going to go for a daily tipple!

Monday 15 August - our Wedding Anniversary!

Monday was a lovely day, made even more special by having time off work! Keith and I were up early again and I had a very relaxing start to the day by watching Glorious 39, a film I'd recorded from the night before. The sun was shining, the sky was blue and mum and dad popped in on their way to work with a card and a Homebase gift voucher which will come in very handy at the moment!

Keith had an appointment with the doctor at 9am and while he was gone I painted the two doors in our bedroom so we could sit and enjoy breakfast when he got home. We opened the cards from the children and had a delicious cooked breakfast with lots of coffee.

Leaving the wee ones at home, Keith and I went over to Weedon to see if we could get handles for our Le Creuset saucepans which are over 20 years old. The handles are wooden so they've got a bit burnt over the years and now twist dangerously when we pick them up. The woman in the cookshop was very helpful and gave us a Le Creuset brochure so we could contact the company and see if they do replacement handles. We saw a set of new saucepans for £278 so we're hoping we can get the new handles as the saucepans themselves will outlive us! While we were there we bought some wonderful little corn on the cob holders which the children will love when they have their corn!

From Weedon we went to Tesco and picked up dinner for the evening. We treated ourselves to Tesco's Finest range as neither of us wanted to cook a big dinner and we didn't fancy going out either. Tesco have some really fabulous ready prepared meals available now and we chose a different dish for each of us, with some vegetables and gorgeous puds.

Our last stop before we went home was Homebase where we bought the wallpaper we need and which we will put up on Saturday, with the help of my dad. All the decorating in the room will then be finished and I'll just need to buy some new pictures, cushions and maybe a throw for the bed! Done!

The afternoon was spent lazing about and we had a delicious dinner accompanied by a bottle of beautiful Argentinian Malbec. The children disappeared upstairs so Keith and I watched North by Northwest starring one of my favourite actors, Cary Grant. It was a great day but tomorrow we are back on the very straight and narrow!

A spot of painting!

Keith and I both had an early start this morning, all ready for the painting we'd planned to do. We managed to accomplish most of it by around 2pm but I'd run out of white gloss paint. I'd chosen a Dulux Satinwood paint in Cotton White but when I applied it to a skirting board it resembled coloured water! Keith found me a tin of quick dry gloss in brilliant white in the garage so I used that instead. The fact that it's dry after 30 minutes is wonderful as we don't have to put barriers around doors and scream at the children if they go within touching distance of any painted surfaces!

I had a quick shower and then Keith and I went off to Tesco to buy some beer (he's off the wagon too!) and then we went to B&Q to buy some more paint. I treated myself to a new lampshade and two new shades for our bedside lamps, all in a duck egg blue colour which match the paint and the new curtains. It's all coming together very nicely! My dad is going to help us wallpaper the wall behind our bed next weekend so it will all be finished then and I'm delighted that finally the last room in the house to be decorated has been done!

Blitzing the house!

I was up nice and early this morning, ready to do all the chores I'd planned. Tomorrow we're going to start on the painting in our bedroom, but first of all we gave the room a really good clean, and did it need it! Behind the bed and behind the chest of drawers were particularly bad...I'm such a slut!

We offloaded my mum and dad's carpet shampoo machine from Keith's car and connected it all up, only to find it sprayed us with water as soon as we turned it on! Keith and I were both soon soaked to the skin and I uttered a few choice swear words but we learned to control the water (with a cloth wrapped around the connection) and eventually, after a lot of mess and very hard work, we managed to get them all done. They're cream throughout and have been done for ten years now, but they weren't that bad (we have cleaned them before!) but I just wanted to have our bedroom carpet clean before we decorated so it was just a natural step to do the whole house...

I took down the curtains in our room and handwashed them, but one of the eyelets came away which was a pain! However, it was a perfect excuse to go out and buy some new curtains which would go with the new colour scheme in our bedroom. Sophie's friend Susie was coming for a sleepover and they had decided to eat at Pizza Hut so I dropped them off and then drove over to Wellingborough to a store called Dunelm which specialises in household goods. After a good while deciding on which curtains to buy I finally made a choice, went home and was called out ten minutes later to pick the girls up!

Needless to say, when I finally got home, I had a well-earned glass of wine!

Friday 12 August

Friday was another busy day at work and I have to admit that the constant noise and mess really got to me today. Sometimes I manage to block it out, but today we had loads of spills again, a child was sick all over the floor and the screaming children really took their toll! Our customers seem to take delight in making as much mess as possible and I do wonder if they let their children get away with it at home...do they really let them grind biscuits into the floor and throw juice everywhere?

Grrrr! Rant over! It was heaven to get home, have a long soak in the bath and then relax with a delicious dinner. My diet has gone by the wayside this week so after our wedding anniversary on Monday it'll be back on the straight and narrow!

Thursday 11 August - Dad's Birthday

We had a little celebration for Dad this morning when he arrived at work with a cake, balloons and a banner. My present to him was a canvas photograph of Jakey-lad which made him a bit emotional as they both miss their little cat immensely. However, now they'll have a constant reminder of him so Dad was very pleased.

After work, Mum and Dad came around to our house for a glass of wine and a slice of the cake and we had a good laugh. It was lovely to relax after a day at work. When they went home, the children and I went for a quick walk to see the horses in the fields nearby and to give them a couple of apples but they ignored us! It's typical, isn't it? Next time we go we'll be empty handed and they'll be over at the gate and wanting a titbit!

Wednesday 10 August

Another steady day at work so it was out for a walk for Keith, Mikey and me when I got home in the evening. We did the "round" in reverse...to the village first and then over the fields. It was wonderful to be so peaceful and quiet. The news is still full of the rioting over the last few days but I think the police and the Government have decided to be a bit more harsh in their tactics otherwise who knows what'll happen?

I enjoyed the new series of Who Do You Think You Are? on BBC1 in the evening but didn't pick up any hints and tips to help me with my own family research. The featured celebrity was June Brown from the television soap Eastenders and I can only assume she had an army of people working on her very fascinating background as they made it look ridiculously easy! Oh, how I wish I had the time and resources to do the same!

Tuesday 9 August

I'm behind again with this blog, so another smacked wrist for me!

Tuesday (from what I can remember of it) was a fairly uneventful day. Keith and the children decided to walk to the nearest shop in the morning, not realising it was almost 8 miles there and back! When I got home from work wanting to go out for a walk they refused! I really don't blame them!

Monday 8 August

Monday was another pleasant day weatherwise and the forecast rain didn't arrive until I was driving home. It was a short-lived affair, though, so I went out and mowed our lawn and tidied everything up, a task that was long overdue. It all looked so much better when I'd finished and I was really pleased that I'd been out to do it. We haven't spent a great deal of time in the garden this summer and I'll be the first to admit I've neglected things a bit. There will be some culling to do in the Autumn!

Keith and I watched in shock, later in the evening, the terrible riots happening in London. I couldn't believe what I was seeing, to be honest, and wondered what on earth has happened to this country. I think it's time to crack down hard on these people who have destroyed homes and businesses but I'm not sure this will happen, despite the public calling for tough measures. At times I feel like we put up with the fear they instil in all of us as it's the easy option and what we could with is a tough leader who doesn't put up with any nonsense!

Sunday 7 August

Keith and I walked around Pitsford again in the morning, but this time on our own. I must admit to finding it hard to begin with as my right leg ached for some reason and then I caught my arm on a stile, so I was Mrs Grumpy for the first half hour. We went a different way this week, starting the other way around and leaving the shores of the reservoir to walk over the fields so it was a bit more interesting. We had to cross a field of bullocks which was slightly scary but they were all lying down and although they glanced at us with curiosity, they didn't get up and come and investigate which was a huge relief. A man in one of our local villages was trampled a while back by a herd of cows and his dog killed so I'm always a bit worried when we have to cross a field with them!

The second half of the walk was great as my leg stopped aching and it was a beautiful day, with a lovely breeze and the sun shining out of a gorgeous sky, flecked with puffy white clouds. We were home by 11.30am and had a well-earned cup of coffee and some lunch. In the afternoon, Sophie and I went off to Homebase and I was delighted to find an offer on for Dulux paint so I bought the gloss and emulsion for our bedroom and had a tester made up of a darker colour for one of the walls. However, after trying it out it was way too dark and wouldn't have gone with the room, which I'm hoping will be sort of an antique French decor...let's hope so anyway!

Saturday 6 August

Although I was up early we had a lovely lazy start to the day. I was hoping to sit out in the garden with my cup of coffee, but the weather was disappointing so I stayed inside!

I decided to try out the paint I bought (a month ago!!) this morning and it looks great, I really like the colour so when I'm off for a week this month I think I'll be decorating our bedroom, at long last...we've only been in this house for 10 years! Laid back? Yes I am!

In the afternoon, Soph and I ventured over to Market Harborough for some shopping. First stop was Duncan's shop where I tasted a couple of his wines and bought some more, one of which is for my dad's birthday on Thursday. He loves Merlot so I chose a bottle of that, plus some South American wine, in preparation for the next wine tasting. We then mooched about the shops and hired a couple of DVDs for the evening. Getting out of Market Harborough proved a bit tricky as the High Street was closed and I had to make a long detour. I was beginning to think we'd never get home and would have to go via Leicester!

Friday 5 August

It's amazing how much we're affected by the weather at work! Today as it was drier and brighter we were quieter than yesterday but Sophie did come in and help out over lunchtime.

I had both children in with me so we left just after 3pm and did very little when we got home! I felt very tired and all I wanted to do was curl up on the sofa and watch television, which is what I did! Thank goodness it's Friday!

Thursday 4 August

Thursday was not a pleasant day and the early finishes I'd had all week came back to bite me! It was dull and cloudy when I went to work and then it started raining, and it didn't stop all day. Mum and I had to go to the Wholesaler to get a heavy load of drinks and I ended up loading the car in the pouring rain. Lovely!

When we got back to work we were manic and Sophie came in to help while mum, dad and me cleared tables and washed up. I think everyone who came in spilled something as the floor was awash with squash, melted ice-cream and a little girl had a wee accident in the toilets...! As well as all this, the drain in our kitchen overflowed as the rain was coming down so hard and it's lucky we have a machine to suck all the water up otherwise we'd have been wading in it! I was at work with Soph until 6pm and as soon as I got home I went straight into the bath while all my sweaty work clothes went straight into the laundry bin!

Wednesday 3 August - we go stormchasing!

Wednesday was another hot day and I was home by 3pm. On the way, the sky turned a very stormy dark grey so Keith and I sat out in the garden hoping that we'd hear some thunder and see some lightening, which we did, although it was a good way away. Mikey got into trouble by taking part in a water fight with a group of other lads, but who could blame them when the temperatures were near 30 degrees?

As we hadn't seen much of the storm we decided to get into the car and try and find it! It was moving a lot faster than we thought and it didn't help that the roads we were on weren't going straight! We splashed through villages that were drenched by rain and eventually managed to catch up with the very edge of it near Corby. As it was now getting near rush hour we turned back for home which was still as dry as a bone!

It was still too hot to go for a walk in the early evening so we set off at 9pm again and walked into the village first. It was a touch cooler, but not much! The sunset was beautiful and Sophie took lots of pictures of the gorgeous sapphire sky touched with pink clouds - fantastic!

Scorcher!

Today has been hot! OK, maybe compared to some parts of the world it could only be classed as warm, but it felt very hot to me! The temperature in the car said 30 degrees and it was hotter inside our building at work because of the glass roof. I'm amazed people came in today!

Mum and I finished at 3pm again and I jumped straight into a lovely tepid bath to freshen up before we ventured out for a walk at 5pm. We'd planned on going at 9pm again but I'm glad we didn't as storm clouds gathered overhead and as I write it's pouring down like a tropical storm.

It was hot walking but very enjoyable and the hill was conquered without a murmur despite the temperatures!

Summer has arrived!

Well, today has been hot so we were very quiet at work, which was only to be expected, but I managed to stay busy until I left at 3pm. The weather is forecast to be hot and sunny up until Wednesday and then it will cool down later in the week, with a chance of thunderstorms. Now a really good storm is just what we need! The more intense the better!