Fresh air!

After a grey and murky start, the day turned out to be beautiful and sunny...and warm!

At work, Keith and I tidied up the garden as it was in a real state and I certainly didn't want any customers to go out there and see it like that. Keith cut the grass while I hoed the soil and took out a very dead plant that hadn't survived the winter. By the time we'd finished it looked so much better so if the weather is warm this weekend I won't mind customers going out there!

Sophie and I had a brief session at the gym and then we went home and sat in the garden with Monty. It was a lovely evening and it was great to be able to sit out and get some fresh air at the end of the day!

An evening out!

After a busy day at work, I had a busy evening ahead of me! Sophie was going out for a meal with a friend while Mikey was off to Army Cadets, so I managed to persuade Keith to take me out as well!

We dropped Mikey off and then sped over to the other side of Northampton to take Sophie to the Oriental Paradise in Billing. The car park looked very full so we waited until she'd made sure there was a table free before we left her to go to the Queen Adelaide pub in Kingsthorpe village.

I'd never been here before but it was mentioned in the latest CAMRA magazine as a place for good beer and good food so it was perfect! It was nicely quiet when we arrived and Keith chose a pint of Adnams Broadside while we looked at the menu.

It was very pleasant to sit and chat and be somewhere (at least one of us!) hadn't been before. Keith had suggested our local pub but it was great to try a new pub and see what they had to offer. We chose our meals - steak and kidney pie for Keith, chicken stuffed with Boursin cheese and wrapped in bacon for me - and both dishes were delicious and very well cooked.

At 9.15pm we left to pick up Mikey with the intention of collecting Sophie straight afterwards but tonight, of all nights, Mikey was ten minutes late coming out! He'd been talking about a forthcoming Army Camp and Keith had to go and find him in the end! Typical!

Bucket List for 2014

I've really missed not doing a Bucket List this year. Last year I enjoyed the challenge of trying to do as many as I could, and although I failed at doing several things on my list, it was great to have a goal!

I'm very late in starting but here are eight things I'd love to do this year:

1.  Visit Boughton House near Kettering

2.  Watch Mad Men from the very beginning

3.  Go somewhere I haven't been before, once a month, right up until December.

4.  Write a story!

5.  Grow a vegetable from seed.

6.  Go fishing

7.  Cook something different, once a month, right up until December.

8.  Try my hand at making my own wine.

Here's to the rest of 2014!

Back to normal...

It was back to cleaning at work today, and after my busy weekend I didn't really feel like it at all! However, I didn't actually start until about 2pm as Keith and I went off to two of our suppliers and the bank in the morning and then had lunch, so I think I got away with it quite well!

Sophie and I went to the gym after work even though I really wanted to go home and do nothing. At the moment I feel like I could do with a break from work (and housework) and the thought of going somewhere for a week and just lying in the sun is very tempting!

However, at the gym I did twenty minutes on both the treadmill and the bike and felt loads better. We also managed to fit in a quick swim before going into the spa so I was glad I'd made the effort!

Removing irritations!

This morning I finished off glossing the woodwork in the en-suite so I'm really pleased with the results. Everything looks so much cleaner now!

While I was upstairs I heard a load of hammering from the kitchen so I went down to discover Keith had taken a cupboard door off that had been sticking for years. It's a full sized door and every time we open or close it, it sticks on our floor tiles which has been an irritation for longer than I can remember! I helped him sand the bottom down and after about three attempts, we re-hung the door and it opened and closed beautifully. What a relief! I was delighted!

In the afternoon I went off to Homesense with Mum as she'd bought me a gift voucher. I picked out a new bath mat, some lovely smelly soap and a little notebook that I'll use for all household lists. I'm an avid list writer at work and it really motivates me to get stuff done, so I'll use the notebook to write down things that need doing and then hopefully, I'll get them completed!

We picked up our grumpy daughter from the station at almost 9pm. She was grumpy because she was tired and hungry and had missed dinner, even though she'd told us originally that she'd be catching the 6.30pm train home. We took two of her friends home as well and when we all got in she cooked herself a flatbread with cheese and we looked at her photos. She'd had a brilliant time but was shattered. That's what a city break does for you!

The dreaded decorating...

First thing this morning Keith and I took Sophie and her friend Danni to the station as my daughter will be in London this weekend. With her group of three friends, they're off to see McBusted at the O2 arena tonight, and they're staying at an apartment overlooking Canary Wharf.

Sophie was very excited (and a little nervous, I think!) about being at large in London with her friends. We dropped them off at the train station and then went to a nearby B&Q to buy some paint and a new loo seat for our en-suite bathroom. I chose Natural Hessian for the walls which I hope will go with everything else in there!

We went off home after B&Q, had a quick breakfast and then I started. Keith painted the ceiling and we managed to not get in each others way, quite difficult seeing as our en-suite is not that big! By the middle of the afternoon I'd finished the emulsion and I'd put a coat of gloss on the skirting boards. It was looking so much better and cleaner!

We had planned on walking to our local pub in the evening, but we were both a wee bit weary from our housework exertions so we poured ourselves a well-earned drink and relaxed before dinner!

Memories

Just lately I've been thinking a lot about a trip I made to Nepal in 1987. I flew out on the 12th April so at this time of year I always think about my visit to the mountainous country, and sadly, Nepal has been in the news recently as 16 Sherpas have died on Everest at the start of the climbing season.

I personally don't think that anyone should be climbing Everest any more. Human beings have no right to be there, in my opinion, but I can't ever see that happening as there is so much money to be made from climbing the mountain.

But anyway, I spent most of this evening taking out old photos from an album and scanning them onto my laptop. Here are a few of them:

Kathmandu airport

Our transport to the start of the trek in Pokhara

My trekking companions, Corrie (left) and Matthew

Testing the loads. We had a female porter on our trek who was lovely.

At the Tibetan Refugee village - an ideal opportunity for them to sell us stuff!

Little Nepali girl

Having a breather. Note the heavy load next to Corrie...

Me, after a very steep climb!

Preparing dinner!

The Annapurna range

The mountain I travelled to Nepal to see - Macchhapuchare (The Fish-Tail Mountain)

Our guides Ninja and Dawa

One of the terrifying rope bridges!

Nepalese village house

Several of our porters

Little Nepali boy

I trekked for ten days and then returned to the Kathmandu Guest House before embarking on a seven day river rafting trip down the Trisuli river. Here are some more photos:

Sleeping under the rafts was great until the night it rained!

Riding the rapids was exhilarating!

After the river rafting we visited Chitwan National Park and rode elephants while on the lookout for tigers!

Setting up camp

Stunning scenery

Visiting Nepal on my own when I was 19 was a turning point in my life. I felt like I grew up on that trip. It's certainly a time I look back on with enormous affection and one day (one day!) I'd love to go back!

Easter over...

Tuesday saw the last day of the school holidays arrive and the weather turned horrible and cloudy. As usual, we had no staff expected in, except Sophie, so it was all hands on deck and we were busier than I thought we would be. We managed to get away from work at a reasonable time, though, as I did have visions of us staying until the bitter end!

On Wednesday it was back to school for the children and a return of the dreaded school run. I certainly haven't missed that over the last two weeks! Work returned to being very quiet so I was able to get on with lots of jobs. Keith and I went to Homebase and I picked out some paint testers for our bathroom. Needless to say the store was a lot quieter than Saturday morning!

Keith treated me to a Subway lunch and that place was busy! In the afternoon I picked Sophie up from school early and we went into town to try and get the zip on her bag repaired. It's been ages since we shopped in Northampton town centre and it was very sad looking with quite a few shops closed and up for let. I try and avoid shopping in town, preferring instead to go to Milton Keynes or Market Harborough and I was a bit dismayed to see so many shops empty.

We tried two places to get the bag repaired but neither shop was able to help us, although one leather outlet quoted us £40, which was way more than the bag was worth!

We drove home and I sat in the conservatory and read while Sophie ploughed through an essay she had to write for her mock Business exam. She admitted that she'd been given the work to do before the holidays and it had to be in tomorrow! I said she was silly to not tackle it earlier, especially as she is addicted to The Office (US one) on Netflix!

Keith came in and we sat and played cards and provided a calming influence on our daughter as she scribbled away. By the time dinner was ready she'd written her essay and taken some photographs of us for more exam work. It's amazing what you can do when the pressure's on!

Gone shopping!

So, the last day of my four day break has arrived and the long weekend has flown by. I didn't get all the things done that I wanted to, but there's always the next Bank Holiday weekend in only two weeks time!

Sophie, Mum and I went off to Milton Keynes today as my daughter had things to take back to River Island and H&M and she also wanted to try and get one of her bags repaired where the zip had broken. There's a place that can do alterations and repairs near to the multi-storey car park, but amazingly they were closed, which scuppered our plans!

We had lunch in Caffe Italia first and then did everything that Sophie wanted to do. The shopping centre was very busy - I can't imagine it yesterday when everything was closed. I went into Boots to take advantage of their No7 foundation matching service and had a nice chat with the sales assistant who said that she'd relished the previous day off work, and that she was expecting the store to open on Christmas Day in the future. I was amazed by what she said and couldn't imagine them making people work on such a special day.

We returned home at 3pm and I was amazed to see that the outside temperature was registering about 25c on the top level of the car park. It was a hazy, stormy kind of sky but very warm. I wish we'd planned on going somewhere now, but I'm sure the forecast was for rain today!

In the evening Keith said he fancied a beer at the pub so I drove him there, which was a surprise. He's been so vehemently against drinking lately that I just expected him to carry on with the lime and soda at the pub!

Rain, rain, rain...

Well, the forecast rain arrived and it's been a miserable, cold and horrible Easter Sunday.

I cheered myself up by watching a great film first thing called Love Is All You Need starring Kim Bodnia (from The Bridge) and Pierce Brosnan. Most of it is set in Italy and the scenery was breathtaking! It certainly beat looking out of the window to see our grey skies!

I made Gordon Ramsay's special porridge for breakfast and then spent the rest of the morning giving our en-suite a thorough clean and shampooing the carpets, something I've been meaning to do for ages. We were forced to put the heating on in the afternoon as it was so cold!

At 4pm Sophie, Mikey and me went over to Mum and Dad's for a cup of tea and some cake and my Mum gave Mikey an Easter egg while Sophie received a New Look voucher. She's not a fan of chocolate eggs and she was really pleased with the voucher as tomorrow we're off to Milton Keynes to do some shopping.

By evening the rain had worsened and while watching a great programme on the wildlife of Florida, the sky grew darker and darker. We had torrential rain which hammered on the roof of the conservatory as we ate our roast turkey dinner so it hasn't been quite the warm and sunny day I was hoping for!

Plans postponed...

Today has been a wee bit stressful! Keith and I dropped Sophie off at work before going to Riverside to the Homebase there as I wanted to stock up with paint. We'd planned to decorate our en-suite on Sunday as the weather was forecast to be horrible. However, the car park was teeming with cars and people and I just couldn't be doing with it! We said we'd much rather pop down in the week when it's quiet to pick out colours and the stuff that we would need, and we'd decorate next weekend.

The afternoon was spent doing very little and Keith and Mikey went off to the football again, leaving me on my own to watch a film on Netflix. Bliss!

We all went out in the evening, for a meal at The Wavendon Arms in Milton Keynes. We had talked about going away somewhere for the night but as the weather was forecast to be cold and wet on Easter Sunday, we'd decided it wasn't a good idea! So, going out for a family meal was the next best thing and I was really looking forward to good food and a couple of glasses of wine!

The pub/restaurant was busy when we arrived and we sat at the bar with our drinks while our table was made ready. The very pleasant front of house man made us all feel welcome and we were given a great window seat so we could watch the sun go down.

Things went a bit downhill after that, though...we were given menus and waited ages for our order to be taken. At first we didn't mind at all as we were all in a relaxed mood and the wait wasn't an issue. We shared a "Sticky Platter" and a garlic bread and then waited a very long time for our main courses. By now the restaurant had emptied out considerably so it didn't seem as if the kitchen was trying to catch up with loads of orders.

Our mains were fine, but my portion of Pork Belly with mashed potatoes and green beans was on the small side and I was finished long before the rest of my family! Keith and Sophie had delicious spit-roast chicken while Mikey enjoyed a beef and Rioja pie. Our waiter was not the most charismatic of people and we never once saw him smile or engage in friendly conversation. He managed to forget Sophie's drink and then, at the end of the evening when we all just wanted to go home, we had to ask for the bill three times! Rather frustrating!

However, it was great to go out for the evening with all the family and Keith very kindly offered to drive home so I was able to enjoy a few glasses of vino!

Fishy Friday...

It was lovely to wake up this morning (a little later than I wanted due to our post-midnight taxi trip!) and realise I had four days of holiday ahead of me! It was a beautiful day as well, which certainly was a bonus!

Keith had gone shopping but arrived home just as I was making myself a coffee. The morning was spent pottering around and I managed to mow the grass verge outside the house, but the soil was too dry to think about turning it over and weeding. I had a chat with Sue who was also out, but neither of us lingered as the wind was a bit chilly. Not really a day for sitting in the garden with a drink!

At 4pm we met Mum and Dad at one of the garden centres in town as they wanted Sophie to choose some new fish for their pond. We saw some beautiful Koi Carp and one of them actually swam over and let me stroke him! Sophie picked out three little Koi and then after saying goodbye to my parents we had a quick drink in the Costa Coffee there.

We'd decided to go for a swim at the gym so we headed off down the very busy dual carriageway to Virgin and spent a pleasant hour swimming and lolling about in the spa. I had a chat with Sarah in the changing rooms, both of us planning to have a fish and chip supper - well, it is Good Friday and you're not supposed to eat meat today!

I dropped Sophie off at home and called into the pub to have a quick drink with Keith before we headed over to Broughton to the fish and chip shop there. Our supper was delicious - I don't think you can beat good old fish and chips!

Just a reminder...

The last part of my account of a family holiday to Spain in 1999 is finished. Here's a link for anyone that is interested:

http://janiesjottings.blogspot.co.uk/search?updated-min=1999-01-01T00:00:00Z&updated-max=2000-01-01T00:00:00Z&max-results=5

More celebrating

Sue came around for a drink this evening and we had a great chat as usual. Keith was back to not drinking, which was a good thing as Sophie was attending yet another 18th Birthday celebration and needed to be taken and picked up.

Sue and I got through a bottle of Oyster Bay Sauvignon Blanc (delicious with a very slight fizz on the tongue) and then I poured her a glass of the Long Horn Valley Chardonnay that had tasted so strange the evening before. Unfortunately she screwed her nose up at it so I gave her the remains of the Sauvignon Blanc that I'd rejected for tasting bitter, which she enjoyed. The Chardonnay was back to being fine, so I can only think it was the fluoride that made both wines taste so weird!

After Sue had rolled home (we both felt a bit tipsy) Keith and I had a slice of quiche and watched Endeavour until it was time to pick our daughter up from her party. She was very sober, which was a huge relief. I only wish I could say the same for her mum!

An uncomfortable experience...

Today has been a little crowded at work as all my family were in with me! Mikey wanted a haircut so we picked both kids up and took them with us when we went to the bank. While Mikey was being coiffured Sophie and I had a coffee at BB's before going into Tesco where I picked up a couple of bargains - wine for half price, including a white from Burgundy, and a great offer on the Tassimo Costa Coffee.

We were busier today even though the weather was beautiful. I had hoped to go home with the children and Keith in the afternoon but we stayed just in case they needed any help. It would have been a waste of time anyway, as three of us had a dentist appointment at 4.30pm, which I wasn't really looking forward to!

Keith stayed in the car while the three of us went to our doom. I told the dentist about Mikey's braces and said that he was hardly wearing them but after a little lecture, I think Mikey might be wearing them more often now! When it was my turn everything was OK, but he said he'd do a scale and polish as usual. I braced myself (I can feel myself tense up as soon as I'm horizontal in the chair) as I really hate the suction thing the nurse uses to suck up the excess water... This time, though, I think my dentist had hired a trainee as she stuck the thing right down my throat and I almost choked! I batted her hand away and shouted, "No!" as I really thought I was going to be sick as well! After a couple of seconds they resumed but my dentist kept nudging her hand away so she was obviously unsure of what she was doing!

Luckily, he didn't take too long to do the scale and polish and then I was set free! He did coat my teeth with a smear of fluoride before I left which tasted a bit yukky!

Back at home I helped Keith prepare the dinner and then we went into the conservatory for a drink and a game of cards. I put out some crisps and when I tasted the wine it seemed very bitter even though I'd drunk some of it the night before and it was fine. After a couple more sips it really tasted horrible so I put another bottle of white in the fridge to cool, but when I tasted this (a Californian Chardonnay) that tasted strange as well...

I can only think it was the fluoride, so I'm hoping that tomorrow my taste buds will revert to normal!

Problems, problems...

Today I decided to tackle the accounts software on my new computer and I had to call Sage again as I needed an activation key. When I called I was told that the package I had was licensed to Mum and Dad's old company that they closed years ago and the license couldn't be transferred. This meant that I was forced to buy a completely new package - Sage Instant Accounts - for around £150!

I downloaded the software but when I came to back up the files it wouldn't work as our version was so old. I then had to call Sage again and the man I spoke to did a very clever thing by getting me to send my back-up file to them online so they could convert it. It's going to take a day to do but at least it solves the problem. Hopefully when that is done it will be the end of all the niggles I've been having and everything will be up to date!

It's been another gorgeous day here but at least we were a little busier than yesterday!

All change!

It's been very quiet at work today as the weather was beautiful and normally we're closed on Mondays so maybe people thought we weren't open! It did give us an opportunity to bunk off a bit earlier than normal and go home to set up our new BT Broadband.

The router arrived today and first thing this morning we didn't have internet access at all as AOL must have switched us off overnight. I was dreading it, but it went very smoothly indeed, and within half an hour all our devices had been connected to the new router and everyone was happy!

If only my computer problems at work could be solved so easily!

Housework calls...

I forced myself to go back to sleep this morning after waking up at 5.45am! What is it at the moment about early mornings?

Keith went off for a walk while I cuddled up to Archie on the sofa with a cup of coffee. When he returned I stripped our bed and then we went off to get the newspaper and called in to see Mum for another coffee. She'd been to a 70th Birthday party the day before and was telling me what a good time they'd had. She'd hoped to see some old friends there, but although there was only family, they'd had a good time. It must be a year for landmark birthdays as my Mum will be 70 in November, the business will be celebrating 20 years in July, Sophie is 18 and a number of friends will also be reaching special birthdays!

When we got home it was time to take Sophie to work and after we'd dropped her off we popped to Homebase to get a new bath panel. Ours is disgusting, being all warped and horrible so I wanted Keith to fit a new white plastic one. Over the next couple of months, I'm determined to do some decorating as our house is looking a bit worse for wear!

I stupidly wore a pair of summer shoes to Homebase and they instantly gave me blisters on my heels so I had to hobble around the store in pain! It was too nice (sunny and warmish) to wear boots but I wish now I had! I wanted to look at paint choices but it was all I could do to make my way to the checkout and then back to the car. Driving home was very painful and I just wish I could have taken my shoes off!

I spent the next four hours doing housework and just as I finished Sophie called me to go and collect her from work. We'd been very quiet as the weather today has been gorgeous. Luckily she was in a better mood than yesterday so a Creamy Cooler was not necessary. Good job as I hadn't bothered to dress up to collect her so I resembled a bag lady!

Annoyed!

I was up at 6.45am this morning and sitting downstairs drinking a weak latte (my fault, I only used one espresso). The weather wasn't as good as I hoped it would be, being grey and overcast, so my mood was a bit grey as well!

I had a feeling that I would get a call from work saying one of the staff was out sick, and lo and behold, it came at just after 10am... Up until then I'd been trying to tempt fate by researching places Sophie and I could go for a day out, but of course, she had to go into work at midday and any plans I might have had were definitely scuppered.

I met Mum and Dad for a coffee at BB's after dropping her off at work and we all agreed that we will have to get a new member of staff in on Saturday mornings to be a "floater" who will be an extra member of staff available should someone call in sick. I really don't care about Sundays as Sophie is in anyway, but I do love having Saturday free and at the moment I can't even make plans to go somewhere as I'm scared the phone will ring.

After having coffee with my parents I bought a new quilt and some sheets for the children's beds and went home to change their beds. My bed will have to wait until tomorrow!

Keith and Mikey went off to the football in the afternoon and ten minutes after they left, Sophie called to ask me to pick her up from work at 4pm. As a treat I took her to Costa Coffee and bought her a Creamy Cooler. She was in a grouchy mood so that made her feel a little better!

The evening was spent watching the last episode of True Detective which has been brilliant. The two lead actors, Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson, have been superb and I've loved every episode. The last one was bloody and full of suspense and I'll really miss tuning into this every week. Saturday night TV is usually so rubbish that it's been a real treat to watch something so well written with two fantastic, talented actors!

Even more frustration!

Today has been very trying. I asked Mum to do the tills and open up and by 9am I was on the phone to Sage trying to get the payroll sorted out. I waited half an hour and then spoke to a woman called Sarah who told me that even though I'd downloaded the new update, it hadn't installed properly, which was why I was having trouble submitting the info to our beloved Government.

I tried again and then received the ominous message that I hadn't got enough memory on my old computer... I really had no option then to try and get everything put on the new computer so I was on the phone to Sage again and this time waited almost an hour before realising that I was able to download the update myself and without any problems...

To cut an extremely long and frustrating story short, by the time I left work I'd done what I'd set out to do, but the new computer refuses to acknowledge my printer so I had to nick my Dad's wireless one. I also realised that I had no word processing package so I might have to fork out some money for that if I want to continue designing menus and vouchers for work as we currently use Microsoft Publisher.

Sophie and I dashed home, changed and then took the Mini back to Mum's before Keith gave us a lift to Audi to pick up my car. Even there, we had a wait as a load of people had all turned up to reclaim their cars, too! I have to say, though, that the service I received was great, the work was covered by the warranty and my A4 had been washed and cleaned inside so it looked beautiful.

Sophie and I went off to the gym and managed half an hour in the pool, a quick relaxing session in the spa and a shower before eventually going home. It had been a long day!

Frustration!

This morning found us at the Northampton Audi dealership where I left my poorly car to get fixed. Hopefully it will be all done by the weekend.

I spent most of today grappling with the new computer and trying to save all the files I needed from the old one. I encountered problems, though, when I tried to install the payroll and accounts software as I couldn't restore the old files and it looks like the payroll hasn't been updated...

By 4pm I'd had enough so Sophie and I went home and Keith and I did our normal walk. The weather had turned cloudy and overcast and to be honest I didn't really enjoy the walk as all I could think about was the problems I was having at work!

Zooming about!

Keith went off to Northampton General this morning as he is taking part in a research programme into statin drugs. He's really pleased as it means he'll be given a much improved drug and will be closely monitored for the next five years!

I went into work as usual and then I popped home to get Sophie as she was working for us today. The weather has turned beautiful and sunny but despite this we were still quite busy. I had a lot to do today but we couldn't leave until Booker had delivered, and of course today, when I wanted them to be early, they were very late, not arriving until the worse possible time - lunchtime!

As soon as we'd put everything away we dashed to the bank and then to one of our suppliers to get some cleaning stuff. We drove back to work and then went over to Daventry to pick up the new computer I'd ordered. I found it amazing that I could just hand over a Nectar card and walk out with a £400 computer without having to provide any identification!

I did the sensible thing and decided to leave installing it until Thursday and then Sophie and I went off to the gym. I did a shortish workout followed by a lovely swim and then a long session in the spa. In the changing rooms I met Sarah and she assured me that she'd hardly heard the revellers on Monday night!

Springing a leak

I awoke this morning feeling a bit bleary as I hadn't managed to get to sleep until well after midnight (I dreaded someone being sick and being called on to clean it up) and the slightest noise woke me up.

I looked out of our bedroom window into the conservatory at 6.45am to see a couple of party-goers awake. Whether they just hadn't gone to sleep at all I couldn't tell, but when I left for work an hour later, peace reigned.

I did the cleaning along with Mum and Dad but it was better than I'd expected and as the sun was shining and it was a beautiful day, my mood was a lot lighter this morning!

I did more grappling with the Payroll (still not resolved) and then went and checked on my car. Last night, as we were leaving Market Harborough, the coolant light came on and this morning before I went to work the level was very low so we'd topped it up. Now, at work, it had fallen again, which was a bit worrying.

When I got home (partygoers still in evidence) Keith and I took another look and it had fallen again, plus we'd noticed a small puddle of water on the drive. Time to call Audi! This comes on top of the problem we're having with the shower in our en-suite at the moment which is leaking and running into the carpet on the landing so at the moment we're a bit fed up with waterworks!

I called Mum and Dad to ask if I could borrow the Mini as the woman at Audi told me that it wasn't a good idea to drive my car until I was able to take it to the dealership on Thursday morning. Mum and Dad hardly drive the Mini so were more than happy for me to borrow it for as long as I wanted. I'm going to miss my car!

Party time!

This morning dawned grey, rainy and totally miserable! I drove to work with a heavy heart, I have to admit, because I wasn't really looking forward to today or tonight when Sophie was due to have her party. Things worsened at work when Maureen came in to tell me that Chloe had phoned in sick, which meant that we didn't have an assistant cook and also, that she wouldn't be going to Sophie's party tonight...

We tried to get other staff in as we knew it would be busy, but in the end I had to phone my daughter to plead with her to come in for a couple of hours over lunchtime to help out. Understandably she wasn't happy but did agree to work for a while until the busy midday rush was over. It meant I had to drive home to get her and she'd already started tidying up the house in preparation for tonight, bless her.

The afternoon was spent grappling with a payroll problem which put me in a worse mood! I desperately need a new computer as mine runs on Windows XP which is due to detonate soon! I did wonder whether my problems were caused by this but by now I'd had enough of the background noise of kids screaming so I went home to help Sophie clean the house.

When I arrived home she'd been shopping with Keith to buy a load of food and had cleaned everywhere downstairs so I could have gone to the gym, which was my original plan! I had a lovely bath and then Keith and I decided to go Ten Pin Bowling for a change and then have dinner in Market Harborough. We had spoken about going to see "Noah" but the timings weren't right and besides, it had had bad reviews in the Sunday papers!

We went bowling in Kettering and as our lane wasn't quite ready we sat at the bar and I had a glass of wine while Keith sipped mineral water. He's done so well and I can see that he's definitely lost weight so it's paying off for him.

We had two games, costing £21, which lasted all of 45 minutes! Keith won the first game and I won the second but it didn't help that the people playing in the league arrived half way through our games and they all looked very professional!

By now it was pouring with rain so we ran to the car and took a leisurely drive over to Market Harborough where we parked easily and went to the Indian restaurant we'd eaten in a few weeks back. There was just one family about to leave...and us!

No-one else came in while we were there, but at least it was nice and quiet! We had a delicious meal - poppadums, a mixed meat platter and curries (biriani for me, Madras for Keith) - and a couple of drinks and it was very relaxed.

It was now only 9pm so we drove back home and called into the pub on the way. There was a lot more noise here as a group of people were at the bar having been in there quite a while judging by the raucous laughter and chatter! By 10pm we had no alternative but to head for home and see what awaited us...

To be honest, it wasn't that bad. There was a huddle of teens in the kitchen when we arrived (including Sophie) and they were all just having a good chat and a laugh. Keith and I headed up to our bedroom straight away, saying goodnight to Mikey who was in the living room on my laptop. We watched the news and I read but after about twenty minutes of getting home they turned the music up loud and it stayed that way until about 11.30pm. I'd told Sophie to quieten everything down by midnight and I'd warned our immediate neighbours of what was going on so I was ready to go downstairs and tell Sophie if it got out of hand!

Yet more shopping!

Sophie and I went off to Milton Keynes this afternoon to do some shopping, but more importantly to go to John Lewis for lunch where my daughter was desperate to have their Moroccan chicken soup again!

The Place To Eat was busy but we found a great "high" seat where we could do lots of people watching! The soup was delicious (as it always is) and seems to be very popular as the people in front and behind us in the queue were ordering it. Sophie had a look of panic on her face as she was worried they'd run out!

After lunch we called into River Island for a new bikini for her, then New Look and H&M for pyjamas for her Monday night party and sleepover. By 3pm we'd had enough and headed back to Northampton. The plan had been to go to the gym for a swim but when we pulled up in the car park, Sophie said she wanted to go home as she felt so tired! I felt a wee bit weary as well and the thought of curling up on the sofa with my Kindle was too good to resist!

We had roast lamb for dinner and then we settled down to watch "True Detective" which is nearing the last episode. We've all really enjoyed the series and I'll certainly miss seeing Woody Harrelson and Matthew McConaughey on the TV every week!

Birthday celebrations!

It's been a busy day today with the Birthday celebrations starting first thing in the morning as Paul delivered a present and a card from him and Sue, and then Lynda popped around with more gifts, flowers and a card.

My parents arrived for coffee and Sophie opened her present from all of us, a beautiful Nikon camera. She was also given a silver Guess bracelet from Polly at work, which she was delighted with.

After Mum and Dad had left Keith and I went and put a bet on the Grand National. I'd picked a horse called Teaforthree which turned out to be the favourite (I'd just glanced at the paper, read the short commentary and decided on it) and Keith had about four runners so we were hoping for a winner amongst them, especially as mine was 12/1 and I'd put a fiver on it each way!

Sophie and I went off to Market Harborough in the afternoon and did some shopping, although Sophie was more restrained than usual! We had lunch in Caffe Nero, mooched about in New Look and Monsoon and then had a lovely wine tasting in Duncan's shop. It was the first time Sophie could legally join in! We tasted a Spanish white, a Sicilian red and Sophie tried a honey beer! Duncan and Nick even sang Happy Birthday to her (a rude version) and she was just glad the shop was not packed out with people!

I treated her to a bottle of Honey Bourbon from Mikey and while we were paying Megan, Duncan's wife, gave us a small sample of Easter Vodka from Two Birds. It's infused with chocolate and caramel and was lovely so that might be an idea for an alternative Easter Egg for Sophie in a couple of weeks!

From Market Harborough we drove straight to Kingsthorpe to pick up Sophie's ice-cream cake. It looked beautiful and I was really pleased with the photo on the front, of Sophie eating ice-cream at Beckworth Emporium a few weeks ago!

The plan had been to go to the gym for a swim and a session in the spa but we just ran out of time as Sophie wanted to be home in a reasonable time to get ready for our evening meal at Las Iguanas. 

Keith arrived home from watching his local team play and we watched The Grand National which we'd recorded. I don't know why I put myself through the stress of watching the race as I hate to see any horses fall. All of our choices lost (mine unseated his jockey) so we didn't win a penny! Never mind!

Sophie very kindly found time to straighten my hair and do my base make-up before dressing in a gorgeous floaty dress with a borrowed shrug from Sue. She looked stunning!

Las Iguanas was very, very busy and the noise level was tremendous! We were seated right at the back of the restaurant so we had a good view of everyone eating and drinking and having a great time. The food was superb, I have to say and we all enjoyed our meals.

When the waiter found out it was Sophie's birthday he brought her a free Brazilian cocktail, a Caipirinha, which matched her shrug! 

Our food choices included Nachos with chicken, a couple of Tapas dishes, a Fish Taco, Champinones (mushrooms in a hot chilli sauce) and chicken wings. For mains we enjoyed chicken in a hot BBQ sauce, burgers, chilli con carne and Sophie's favourite, Tortas, which she had when we ate there a couple of weeks ago.

It was a great, if very noisy, night and when we arrived home it was time to tuck into the Birthday cake! It's never too late to eat ice-cream!

Ahhhh! The end of the week!

Work was back to normal today as Maureen returned from her jollies in Egypt, which was just in time as the children break up from school today. We now face two weeks of the Easter holidays and I'm hoping my two will pitch in and help! Both of them are keen to earn some money so it looks like it'll be a real family affair!

After work it was off to the gym and we were delighted to find that the Slow Lane of the pool was open. We hurriedly changed into our swimsuits but by the time we got down to the pool the sign had changed to "Family Swim Session" so we ignored it...we are a family!

We swam for just over 30 minutes and then had a very relaxing session in the spa where I could have easily fallen asleep! Our time at the gym was finished off in the cafe where I treated Sophie to a cookie...well, it is her Birthday weekend after all!

Drinkies!

Sue came around for a drink this evening and we had a great chat with some beautiful New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc and lots of nibbles. As the Government has now recommended we all eat 7 (yes 7!!) portions of fruit and veg a day I prepared carrots, peppers (two kinds) and celery and served a very healthy bean and salsa dip. Sue brought some cheese with apricots in it and added a couple of bunch of grapes to the feast! I'm not sure whether the wine counts as one of the portions, but who cares?!

Pollution!

The news was full of the air pollution that's currently affecting the UK at the moment. The weather was certainly grey and murky and not very nice at all!

We were busy at work again first thing with a big group of childminders coming in. We always seem to get busy just before a school holiday, as if all the parents or carers with small children come in and make the most of the relatively calmer time before the older kids descend. We have two weeks of holidays coming up and it will be interesting to see how busy we'll be over Easter. It all depends on the weather!

After work it was off to the gym with Sophie and her friend Laura. The girls did a long workout and were only just going down to the spa as I was getting dressed. It gave me an opportunity to sit and have a coffee (decaffeinated!) in the cafe and watch all the comings and goings in the pool!

Preparations!

I ordered Sophie's card from Moonpig today and customised it by adding photos and changing the text, so I hope she likes it!

We were very busy at work first thing but by lunchtime the sun had come out and all our customers had melted away! I received a call from the school to tell me that Mikey looked very ill and complained of feeling sick, so I dashed off to collect him and take him home. However, he looked OK to me and when I got him home he made a beeline for a loaf of bread and, according to Keith, never stopped eating all afternoon!

After work Sophie and I went off to Gallone's Ice-cream parlour in town so I could order her an ice-cream Birthday cake. Finding one in the UK is very difficult - last year in Florida we were spoilt for choice! Baskin Robbins make them but the nearest shop stocking them was in Amersham, about 70 miles away! Luckily Gallones make them to order (with a photograph) so I ordered the cake for collection on Saturday and had one very happy daughter!

Back home, Mikey was feeling fine and had already eaten his dinner as he was going off to Army Cadets! Not a thing wrong with him, then!