Treat night!

For the first two hours this morning, I did the new job that Sheila trained me on last Thursday. Seeing as I'd only made notes once, and hadn't even done any work myself, I think I did pretty well, but Sheila came over, just as I finished a particularly frustrating call, to let me know I had done some things wrong... I could have burst into tears, to be honest! She isn't always the best at explaining things, and the process of the daily cash-ups is quite complicated as everything has to be saved to different folders because of any future audit inspections.

It just brought it home to me that this new job is above my pay grade, and I get the feeling I'm being taken for granted a bit. Not wishing to blow my own trumpet, but I now do a lot more than the others in the office and have taken over responsibility for the cinema almost entirely, a job that Stella used to do on her own. And all this while handling sometimes long-winded and difficult phone calls!

It seemed today that every other phone call was from someone for which English was not their first language. It is very difficult trying to understand and be understood, and it can be frustrating, especially with the volume of calls we're getting this week.

Jo and I walked out together and we had a chat about how difficult work is at the moment. I am looking for something else, but do I really want all the upheaval? It was lovely to head home and look forward to two days off. I am back in on Friday but working shorter hours, thank goodness, and will be finished at 2pm.

Keith, Sophie and I headed out in the evening to The Hare in Loddington for a drink before a meal at India 2 Mawsley. The pub was surprisingly busy for a Tuesday evening with a large group arriving to eat. Sophie and I perched on a bench seat while Keith stood, as there was nowhere else to sit. All the tables were reserved for food, with a trio of men dominating the bar area, and the lack of seats for people just having a drink is one of the reasons we don't visit very often.

We arrived early for our booking at Mawsley and thought we would be the only ones eating in but we were very wrong! The place was nearly full! We enjoyed poppadoms to start followed by curries and delicious rice. It was lovely to chat and enjoy the food, which was well-cooked and plentiful. We had no room for desserts so it was off home to relax for a while before bed!

A busy start to the week!

It's half-term this week and we were expecting to be very busy... and we were! It was mainly for the first hour, though, and of course, the majority of the calls were about booking swimming sessions. I really had thought that we wouldn't need to do this anymore, but it looks like it's here to stay. I dread to think how we'll all be after the long summer holidays! Ready to scream probably!

It was heaven to get out at 4pm and go home to a quiet house. The noise today and some of the calls had my ears ringing! 

Sophie cooked dinner this evening - very garlicky chicken with roasted new potatoes and vegetables. We all decided to go out tomorrow evening for a treat! Keith's numerous £1 each way bets on horse racing have accumulated a little fund so he's taking us out! 

Just pootlin'...

After the enjoyment of yesterday, today was much quieter and more restrained! It was a Sunday spent pootling about and doing various jobs. Keith and I tackled the garden and, while I mowed the lawn, Keith cut back some of the shrubs lining the fence so they looked a lot neater. 

While we were working we took up all the bird food, but a blackbird was obviously desperate for some grub and flew down as we were finishing. I put some fat snax down and he was straight back to peck away at it. We just can't keep up with the birds at the moment! It must be peak baby bird season! We have the usual flocks of starlings visiting as well as a huge Rook, Jackdaws and smaller birds such as sparrows and robins.

Sophie was busy putting some things on eBay and I sorted out some clothes I didn't want anymore. We are trying to get £100 in our PayPal account before July to pay for lunch in London!

It was lovely to potter about and not have to go anywhere today and it helped that the weather was lovely and sunny, albeit a bit colder than of late. In the evening we played Scrabble and Sophie narrowly beat me! We enjoyed Martinis and then a glass of wine with our dinner of chicken and dumplings. 

Sunday night has come around very quickly again but at least Sophie and I are facing a shorter week!

A fabulous day out!

Waddesdon Manor had emailed me the other day with details of a Wine Tasting in the grounds over the weekend, and it seemed too good an opportunity to miss! I went ahead and booked entrance to the house and gardens, and what made it even better is that Sophie went free as she's now a National Trust member, thanks to Laura's birthday gift! The Wine Tasting was booked for 3pm and the house visit for 1pm, giving us plenty of time for a little lie-in and a picnic in the car before we went in!

The route we took last time seemed very long, so we went down the A43 until we came to signs for Bicester, and then we took a winding country road skirting the town, ending up on the A41 towards Aylesbury. It was a good road and we passed Graven Hill again, where we'd visited last week!

It took about an hour and a quarter and was an enjoyable journey. Once in the car park we ate our lovely picnic and then took the shuttle bus to the house, along with lots of other people. Our first views were stupendous, as always and we walked slowly towards the house noticing people picnicking on the front lawns.

Sophie suggested a cold drink so we queued up and then sat on a bench overlooking the manor.

The last time we came was January, so it was lovely to see the Spring flowers and all the trees in leaf.

At 1pm we went inside and were told it was a self-guided tour but there were plenty of staff around to answer questions. Never in my life have I seen such opulence in a house! It is huge and took us a good hour and a half to look around, as there is so much to see and marvel at.

It was explained that Waddesdon was never intended to be a family home, its main purpose was to showcase the Rothschild treasures and to be a venue for lavish parties. The majority of the works of art pre-date the house by about 100 years and many, many objects come from France. One room was entirely panelled in marble! Can you imagine the cost now?

It must have been wonderful to be invited as a house guest, and the parties went on for a long time, we discovered! Before going upstairs we visited the vast cellars which must have been stuffed full of the Rothschild's wine back in the heyday of the house!

Wine label with famous signatures - note Diana's at the top

Sophie with a label from 1996, her birth year

Not sure if these were full of actual wine! I suspect not!

From the cellars, we climbed the stairs to the upper floors and had a good nosey in the bedrooms and bathrooms. We came upon a family where the mum was sobbing on her husband's shoulder... we have no idea why, and then she said, "I've got to get out of this house," so something must have bothered her! A lot of the rooms were quite dark, as the drapes had been drawn and there were mesh blinds at the windows to keep the sunlight out, so some areas were quite gloomy.

There were lovely views from the many windows

One wing was for men only where there was a smoking room and a games room complete with a huge snooker table. It must have been a real hedonistic time spending the weekend at the house!

Our last visit was up to the Treasury where various "treasures" were on display. These items were all behind glass and it was like being back at the British Museum!

The time was getting on so we made our way out and had a good look in the lovely shop. The wine tasting was taking place on the parterre overlooking the formal grounds and we sat at a bench for a little while until it was 3pm.

We'd paid £10 each for the wine tasting and we were able to try eight wines. I only had a couple of sips as I was driving and Sophie enjoyed the rest of my samples! First up was an English sparkling wine from nearby which had the strangest aroma. It tasted good but was a little acidic. We then sampled a Chilean Chardonnay (quite acidic again) followed by a Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand, which I liked! I had told the man doing the tasting that I wasn't keen on the grape grown in new Zealand as it often tasted of cats' pee, but it was delicious!

We had two more whites - a white Rioja, and then a Riesling from New Zealand, which was on the sweet side. It would have been great with a slice of cake! The three reds we weren't keen on, two of which were from Bordeaux and were still very tannic. Another man joined us for the tasting, and agreed with what we said, especially when Sophie said she loved Aldi wines!

The wine tasting was absolutely lovely and we thoroughly enjoyed standing on the gravelled parterre and talking about one of our favourite subjects! What a wonderful way to spend an hour! We just had time to call into the shop before leaving and we noticed that the wines we drank weren't cheap so it was very good value!

We took the shuttle bus back to the car park and then re-traced our route to Bicester. I decided to take the M40 home and we called into a Tesco before the motorway to use their facilities. Back in Northampton we called into Aldi and bought a bottle of their New Zealand Pinot Noir to go with the pasta dish for dinner.

It had been a lovely day and we're looking forward to going back to Waddesdon again, perhaps at Christmas. We sat and watched 90 Day Fiance before dinner, which was very easy to prepare!

A new perspective!

Today has been gorgeous, weather-wise and it would be, wouldn't it, when I was at work for eight hours! As always, I was glad it was Friday and I was hoping it wouldn't be too busy. Unfortunately, within ten minutes of the lines opening, the calls were very busy, with nine in the queue at one point!

It did calm down a little bit, thank goodness, but it wasn't as quiet as last week! In the afternoon I had to change desks as they were supposed to have been setting up my computer to have full internet access (I get it at the moment and need it, but we have to log onto different software to access it, which can be a nuisance sometimes).

It was strange sitting at a different desk as I'm so used to my own, but it was only for a couple of hours. At 4pm I sped off home, knowing that Sophie was just behind me as she'd finished at 4pm too. She was off out with Laura tonight to their pub in Yardley Hastings, and Keith and I were looking forward to fish and chips... again!

Keith didn't go to the pub so we sat and chatted in the kitchen and I tracked the fish and chip van. As soon as it was on our estate we went to get our meal, and very delicious it was too!

Keith and I relaxed after dinner and watched an excellent programme about the Pacific Surfliner train in California that runs from San Diego to San Luis Obispo. What a treat to see the glorious Pacific Ocean and the blue skies.

Sophie returned home at about 11pm and had enjoyed a great time with Laura. I was so pleased she'd decided to go on Friday... lie-in tomorrow!

New tasks...

My six-hour shift passed pleasantly today and I did a lot of admin and helped Sara with the emails first thing. I then had a three-hour training session with Sheila, to learn how to do the end of day and end of week cash-ups for when she goes on holiday in June. It was a bit complicated and involved a lot of Microsoft Excel work, but I should be OK! It made me realise that I'm now doing jobs above my pay grade and I'm going to have to say something to Sara about my hourly rate. I am on the same as Tracie who only answers the phones - nothing else - so I think it's time for some discussion!

At 2pm I dashed off home, said a quick hello to Keith, and went back out again to pick up my Mum. She had some more clothes to return so we drove to Tesco and had a coffee before doing our shopping.

She bought some more tops and another pair of trousers and some chocolate to enjoy! Well, why not! I dropped her back and pootled home to relax before making dinner. Tonight we'd decided on minced beef pasta bake and Keith dry fried the meat while I chopped up an onion, some celery and a couple of peppers. 

Just as Sophie arrived home we finished the preparations, and it was into the oven for a slow cook. Easy! This gave us the opportunity to sip a glass of Pinot Noir that Keith had bought for us and watch 90 Day Fiance!

Dinner was delicious served with salad and garlic bread, and there was enough left over for another meal. Sophie and I are out on Saturday, so we decided to have the rest then as it would be easy for Keith to do if we were late home. No food waste!

A little trip out...

I'd planned on mowing the grass today but we had showers first thing, and grey skies. It was not very nice at all! We showered and dressed, and after a lazyish morning, Keith and I went over to Wellingborough to visit my work colleague's pub, The Little Ale House.

It's a tiny pub but won Best Town Pub of the Year for 2022, and Tracie was there with her partner Alan. There were a few other people drinking, and a couple of electricians were in and out doing work in the garden in preparation for the Jubilee next week, so not a lot of space! I must confess that I can't remember the names of the beers we sampled but they were very good!

Not my photo but this is Tracie who I sometimes work with!

We had a great chat with Tracie and Alan and had a couple of drinks - the atmosphere was lovely, and a delivery from the Pot Belly brewery came in while we were there, with the driver having a lot to say about the gastro pubs that seem to be springing up everywhere at the moment and the prices they're charging! The prices in Tracie and Alan's pub are very reasonable indeed!

The Little Real Ale House doesn't serve food so we set off for home, via Great Harrowden and Isham, and had lunch. The weather didn't improve all day at all and it was chilly and grey. Horrible!

Grumbling!

The phones were quiet at work today so I was able to get on with some admin work. We are still receiving cancellations from members but, equally, we are getting calls from people interested in joining. It's like a seesaw!

I stayed behind for half an hour after my shift and chatted to Jo and Louiza about work. We're all a little fed up at the moment and seem to be getting more and more work for no extra money! It's annoying that we do a lot in our office whereas some of the other staff do a fraction of what we do! After we'd vented for half an hour, I returned home in heavy traffic and pootled about. 

In the garden, it's baby starling season and we just can't keep up with feeding the birds that visit. The other day we even had our resident Red Kite swoop down and pick up some chicken we'd put out. It's a huge bird and I only saw it as it flew off. It kept hovering about overhead but didn't come down again, which was a shame! It certainly makes a change from the sparrows, blackbirds, starlings and robins that we normally get!

Sophie and I were going to go to our cinema tonight to see the film, The Worst Person in the World, a Norwegian film with subtitles, but once home I rarely want to venture out again. I'm such a stick-in-the-mud!! It was available on MUBI with a free seven-day trial anyway, but I suggested an impromptu game of Scrabble and Martinis to cheer my daughter up, as she's feeling a bit down at the moment. As a treat, I have booked to go and see Psycho at the Northampton Filmhouse in June, so that's another afternoon out to look forward to.

Keith had prepared chilli so there was nothing to do for dinner, and we sat and listened to music and became a little tipsy! After dinner, we went upstairs and watched 90 Day Fiance. Outside, the sky was very interesting with some ominous clouds. We've had sunshine and showers today - is it May or April?!

Monday again!

I slept well last night so didn't feel so tired this morning. Work was OK, and Jo was back after having covid. She hadn't felt ill at all, and her experience of the virus was similar to mine. We have a new threat now, though, in the UK... Monkeypox! Can you believe it? This is normally found only in Africa but seems to be spreading here and in Europe. I don't think it's as dangerous as covid, but it's a little worrying all the same, especially for those under 50 who haven't been vaccinated against smallpox.

I popped into the post office at Moulton on the way home to take an eBay parcel, and we're back up to a reasonable amount in our Paypal account after the spending sprees in London of late! There's enough for lunch at Pizza Express, but we're saving up for a restaurant lunch in July when we go to The Tower of London!

I cooked dinner tonight - breaded fish fillets, cauliflower cheese and cubed roasted potatoes. I wasn't really looking forward to it but it was better than I expected!

Sunny Sunday.

The weather has been beautiful today, sunny and dry with a lovely breeze. We pootled about this morning and did some chores - Sophie prepared the Vietnamese pork curry for tonight (Hair Bikers' recipe) and then cut my hair! She did an excellent job of trimming the ends and my fringe!

I swept the driveway and cleaned the cloakroom windowsill which was covered in cobwebs and bits of old leaves. We also took my Dad's car through the carwash at Morrisons... we initially went to the Moulton garage but the carwash area had been demolished! When did that happen?

I had planned on seeing Mum this afternoon, but she said she was busy sorting out her clothes so we postponed until another day. This meant I didn't have to go anywhere... yippee!

In the afternoon I had a look at villas in Mallorca for our September break. I've booked two weeks off at work, coinciding with Keith's birthday on the 24th, and I'm longing to go away somewhere for a couple of weeks and relax by the pool. I looked at Villa Plus who seemed reasonable, but what shocked me were the car hire prices - over a thousand euros for two weeks! And this for just a standard car like a Ford Focus! I was horrified! EasyJet flights were annoying as well, with high charges for taking a hold suitcase! 

Because of this I looked at Airbnb houses on the Costa Brava in Spain, near the border with France, and spotted a lovely one with a pool. We can then drive down and avoid flights and car hire! I spoke to Keith who was uncharacteristically gloomy about the prospect. Our electricity bills will be going up and will be £600 more a year than they are now... oh joy! I'm not giving up though!

The afternoon was a lot lazier than this morning, and at about 5.30pm Sophie and I played Scrabble. After the game, my lovely daughter finished the dinner - the pork had been cooking slowly in the oven for a couple of hours with a delicious curry paste and it smelt heavenly. It tasted heavenly, too!

Oxford calling!

Sophie and I had decided to visit Oxford again today, so we set off at about 10.30am and had a very easy, pleasant trip to the university town. We chose the Pear Tree Park and Ride and we were soon on the busy bus and heading into the city centre.

It had been cool and cloudy when we set off, but the weather grew sunnier and warmer as the day wore on. First up was a coffee and a small cake in Waterstones, and after we'd eaten we had a browse around the bookshelves. I love a good bookshop and I'm always on the lookout for something interesting to read!

Oxford was thronged with lots of tourists and we also saw some students wearing graduation robes, so there was a lovely atmosphere. We walked the short distance to the Ashmolean Museum and went up to the second floor to look at European art. Both of us love wandering around and looking at paintings so this was perfect!

We stayed for about an hour and then headed back to the city centre in search of lunch. By now it was warm and sunny but we found a lovely little bistro tucked away down a side street called No 1 Ship Street, which was offering set lunches or mussels and chips for £13.00. We went in!

Inside it was lovely and dark and we sat right next to a huge wine rack which I was worried I'd knock over! The menu was quite pricey, but the lunch offerings were good value. We ordered bread and a plate of mussels accompanied by thin-cut chips. The dish came with a small glass of wine, which was delicious.

I was particularly fascinated by the table next to us and the four people who were obviously friends, having a very interesting conversation. One of the couples was American and I couldn't help overhearing what they were talking about! The English man was evidently a hernia surgeon as he went into great detail about the operations he was performing!

We had a lovely meal, finished off with what we know as a "pizookie" - cookie dough cooked on a skillet and served with ice cream.  We had planned on going back to the museum but it was getting late and it was warm so we popped into Tesco for some beer for Keith and a bottle of Vermouth, and waited for the bus back to the Park and Ride.

Driving back to the M40 I saw signs for Bicester and asked Sophie how close to Graven Hill we were. This housing development has been featured on Grand Designs: The Street and I'd always wanted to go and see it. Sophie said we were very close so off we went!

Graven Hill is a development of houses where plots are available for self-build. There are conventional homes and flats as well, but the array of houses is astonishing! There are so many different shapes and sizes and we recognised quite a few from the series. How great it would have been to see Kevin McCloud!

We drove slowly around, and there were other cars doing exactly the same! We didn't take any photos but it was wonderful to see so many different designs! Most of the houses had a lot of glass and we could see right into the rooms, some of them, bedrooms! We will certainly go back for another look!

After half an hour of driving around and marvelling at the houses, we headed home via the M40 and the A43. Back home it was almost time for Scrabble, and I beat Sophie this evening!

Hooray! It's Friday!

Work has been very pleasant today as Kathy and I were on our own from midday onwards, and the phones were behaving themselves! It was a great end to the week, and it was lovely to escape at 4pm and go home.

Mike was out with friends again but came home just before Sophie returned from work. He had invited Abbie for dinner, and we had decided to treat ourselves to fish and chips from the van. Keith didn't go to the pub this evening and we tracked the van as it trundled around Walgrave. This is incredibly useful so you know exactly where it is!

Abbie arrived and we took the food orders. I accompanied Sophie this evening, and we walked up the road to say hello to a couple of neighbours who were also taking advantage of this lovely service. With five of us eating we had a large order, and one particular neighbour said he'd try and get in front of us next time! Sorry! All the food is freshly cooked and it was quite chilly standing outside the van and waiting for the food to be ready! I keep forgetting it's still only May!

Back home we devoured the fish and chips which were as delicious as ever. Sophie and I settled down to watch 90 Day Fiance and Abbie and Mike left to go back to Northampton. They are heading home tomorrow but it was lovely to see them.

Much to Keith's disgust, we watched 90 Day Fiance for the rest of the evening... it's addictive!

Return of the son!

I really wished I had today off as I still ached from the intensive cleaning yesterday! Work was OK, though, and I did lots of admin jobs to fill the six hours.

I'd arranged to take Mum to Tesco this afternoon as she had some clothes she wanted to return, so I picked her up at 3pm and drove to the supermarket. She bought some more outfits and I picked out a bottle of wine to drink with Sophie this evening - Gordon Ramsay's Rose which was reduced from £10 to £7.50 with their Clubcard. I noticed that Kylie Minogue had her own Rose, as well as Graham Norton! We might try all three of them!

After shopping, we sat and had a coffee in Costa and chatted. My Mum seemed a bit happier today, which was great and a relief for me! She said she loved going out, even for a short while, and I could understand that completely.

Mike had returned home yesterday, and Abbie had bought a new car - a little Peugeot 207. He said he was coming home this evening and could we pick him up from town? I dropped Mum off and returned home to sit and wait for his call, but Keith phoned him and he said he would make his own way home. He sounded very merry! That was a real bonus as I didn't fancy driving into town in the rush hour traffic!

I made a fish pie this evening for dinner and Mike arrived home as I was doing the preparation. He was indeed, quite merry, and had been in the pub catching up with his mates. He wanted to have dinner with us, which was good as there was certainly enough for four! We ate in the conservatory, which was a novelty! We don't do that very often!

Spring clean!

Today has been spent giving the house a deep clean, and it was long overdue! Sophie very kindly hoovers for me at the weekends (she insists on doing it) so I was lulled into a false sense of security. However, the march of the spiders has begun, and the cobwebs were hanging like lace from the ceilings and, specifically, on the mirror on the landing. Keith said it looked like Spanish Moss...

I started upstairs and scrubbed the grouting in the bathroom with bleach and let it soak in. Keith cleaned the windows in the bathroom, Sophie's bedroom, the spare room, and the kitchen. I vacuumed all the skirting boards, the ceilings, the light shade on the landing and moved furniture about. We changed the bedding in the spare room and made sure it was lovely and clean as Mike said he would be home this evening. I also changed the bedding in our room and washed the mattress protector and the under-sheet. If something didn't move, it got washed!

It took us until almost 5pm to get everything done, upstairs and downstairs, and the house gleamed when we'd finished, and smelled lovely and fresh as I'd opened all the windows. I ached everywhere but it was great to know it was lovely and clean. 

I had suggested going out for a meal this evening as Mike was coming home, but he texted me to say that the brakes on Abbie's car were dangerous and that they had to delay the journey. I had already told Sophie we were going out but we'd changed our mind now because of his plans, and we cooked pork in a peanut sauce with noodles instead. Well, Sophie did... Keith and I sat at the kitchen island with a drink and did the menu and list for the weekly shop!

Dreaming of sunshine!

We were without Jo at work today, and although there are no rules about isolating anymore with covid, I still don't think it's a good idea for people to mix when they have the virus. Denise was working at home but went onto the phones to help out, even though it wasn't too bad.

It was great to drive home at 4pm and look forward to a day off, although the plan for tomorrow is to give the house a deep clean!

We barbecued again this evening as the weather forecast was looking good, but would you believe it rained just as Keith was setting it up! He opted to stand on the drive again and managed to stay dry!

After dinner, Sophie and I watched a couple of episodes of Holidaying with Jane McDonald and this time she was in Orlando and Fort Lauderdale. Seeing the sunshine, the blue skies and the sea really lifted our spirits, something we definitely need at the moment!

Some people!

Jo came into work this morning saying she didn't feel very well... I just knew she had covid, which was confirmed later in the day when she tested positive! She had tested before she came to work, and it was negative, so this virus is still about!

Work was OK, but I am finding it increasingly difficult to be on the phone now because people are so thoughtless. My favourite (not) is when customers call when they're driving and want to sign up children with a membership or are asking about swimming lessons... just go home and do it where it's quiet and I can hear you! Maybe it's time for a change of job!

At home in the evening, after dinner, Keith went upstairs to watch Newcastle play and Sophie and I watched 90 Day Fiance. It's pure escapism, and although we realise some of it is contrived, it's enjoyable nonetheless and a perfect antidote to a stressful day!

Getting things done!

After our second late night, I woke up at almost 9am... oh dear! Getting up at 6am tomorrow will be hard! After sunshine and blue skies first thing, the weather clouded over and we had light rain, which was disappointing, especially as tonight's meal was a barbecue!

Keith put my little sign up and the sock board:

I have almost finished the little laundry room - Sophie said my new jars were too pretty to be hidden away so they're on the windowsill, and I put some laundry and cleaning products on the shelf instead. I want to paint the walls the same pink as we have on the end wall, and freshen up the door frame.

We didn't have to do loads of preparation for dinner tonight, which was a bonus, and in the afternoon we collected Mum and took her over to Tesco in Kettering so she could do some shopping. We had a coffee and something to eat first in Costa, and then we let her loose in the aisles.

Sophie and I bought some shopping, took it back to the car and went to find her. She'd bought some more clothes and toiletries and wanted a bottle of whisky for Dad! Outside it was raining - so much for the barbecue this evening! We ought to take our barbecue to a drought area and it would soon rain!

We dropped Mum off, popped to Broughton to take two bags of Tassimo pods, and headed home. It was lovely to relax, play Scrabble (I narrowly beat Sophie) and then help Keith with the barbecue. Because of the rainy weather, he set the barbecue up on the driveway, underneath the garage door and it worked out a lot better there, probably because he was so close to the kitchen!

We're second!

I felt a bit bleary this morning, and after waking up at 7am and going downstairs, I went back to bed at about 8am for another hour... oh dear! 

I felt much better when I woke up again and we pottered about in the morning, catching up with jobs and watching some of Saturday Morning Kitchen. At lunchtime, we drove over to Weedon, through stunning countryside that was in full bloom.

We decided to have lunch first and managed to bag a table outside. Sophie ordered a Pimms while I made do with a glass of water. I was still trying to re-hydrate after last night! We had lunch of sandwiches and turkey salad and it was heavenly to sit outside and enjoy the beautiful weather.

The place was packed, and after lunch, we had a wander around the shops. I was on the lookout for some pretty jars for the new laundry room and I found a little slate tile with "Laundry" on it that was perfect for the door.

From the Shires Shopping Village we drove to Vintique in Weedon itself and I picked out two lovely little jars which will go perfectly in the kitchen. I also found a wooden sign for lost socks which will come in handy! We're always losing socks and lonely ones stay on an armchair in the living room until their partner is found!

Today has been warm and the temperature was about 22c. Summer is on its way! From Weedon, we drove to Dobbies Garden Centre as I wanted to get a bottle of Champagne and there's a Sainsbury's outlet there. They only had one bottle, though, so we bought an ice cream instead and sat in the car to eat it! Perfect for a warm day!

We bought a bottle of Champagne in Aldi for a few pence over £13, which was excellent value, and returned home to relax. I made the meringue for a pavlova while Sophie prepared vegetables for the beef stroganoff. Of course, tonight was the Eurovision Song Contest and we were hoping that we'd do better than last year when we received nul points!

Sophie and I played Scrabble and listened to music and Keith joined us at the island to watch the FA Cup Final. Liverpool won on penalties. Sophie beat me by 3 points... drat!

Dinner was delicious and we ate the stroganoff with rice and garlic bread. We managed to catch up with the Eurovision Song Contest, and we enjoyed this year's show very much. We scored each song and our favourites were Armenia and Iceland, both of whom didn't do that well. I finished off the pavlova and we drank Champagne and had a lovely evening.

The fantastic surprise, this year, though were the scores Great Britain received. We were leading after the Jury votes, but once the public votes had been counted, Ukraine won and we were second! Not much surprise there! But it was brilliant for us! What a difference to last year when we were well and truly last!

Catching up with friends.

The phones today have been busy, in that drip, drip way that's so annoying. In between calls, I managed to get the rest of the holiday playscheme places on and noticed that some of the earlier days in August have already had children enrolled on them. We have some very organised parents!

This evening Sophie and I had been invited, along with our friend and ex-neighbour, Sue, to Michelle's for dinner. Unfortunately, Sue has tested positive for covid so she wasn't able to come along, so it was just the three of us.

Before we went, Sophie and I had a sneaky wine hour with a glass of Pinot Gris and the rest of 90 Day Fiance... bliss! Keith didn't go to the pub this evening and cooked himself fish and chips. He should have taken advantage of the van, but Sophie and I would have been very jealous!

We walked up at 7.15pm and were given a glass of fizz to start proceedings. I said hello to Hector and Lily who didn't seem as wary of me this evening!

Lily

Michelle had cooked a vegetarian lasagne with salad and garlic bread. It was lovely to be out for dinner and catching up with her as we haven't met up since last year.

The cats kept us company all evening and Lily loved having a cuddle. Hector wasn't so sure!

Can I join you?

We had a brilliant evening chatting and laughing, and Richard joined us later after we'd had a delicious Tiramisu. He showed us photos of their trip to Iceland some years ago, and the fantastic Northern Lights they'd seen.

It was 12.30pm when we left - I hadn't realised it was so late!

Time flies!

I had a busy, shorter shift today and managed to get a lot done. Tracie was working with us, and as well as helping out in the contact centre, she runs a pub in Wellingborough with her husband. They've just won the CAMRA pub of the year and I keep meaning to go over and visit with Keith. As I left, Sara suggested we all go over as a group from work, which I thought was a great idea!

The rest of the afternoon sped by... I don't know where the time goes on a Thursday! I finish at 2pm but it seems like only minutes before it's 5pm and Sophie's leaving work!

Keith and I had planned to go and see Operation Mincemeat at the cinema this evening, but we both decided it was too much hassle to try and do dinner before 6pm, eat it and then leave in good time to get there. I wish our cinema showed films a little later in the evening, like before, but I don't think that's going to change any time soon. Life as we used to know it has well and truly gone, which is a shame. I would love to go back to the hours I used to work!

Running errands

It was Sophie's turn for new tyres on her car today and the fitter arrived at just after 8am. He wasn't finished by the time she had to leave for work, so I gave her a lift and we popped to Cafe 900 for a coffee and a muffin. We didn't have long to linger, though, and after five minutes I delivered Sophie to her workplace.

Back home we sorted Mike's "care" package out and added some Squashies sweets, Kinder Buenos, and a couple of cans of McEwans Champion to the box before taping it up and driving over to the post office in Brixworth. I sent it First Class so it should be with him tomorrow!

The weather has been abysmal today with rain all morning and into the early afternoon. After popping to the post office, we drove to the care home to take Mum's washing back, so that was all the errands completed. I spent the rest of the day pottering about and doing some jobs and at 4.30pm, when the weather had improved hugely, we drove down to Brackmills to collect Sophie.

This evening, Keith went to the last of the football finals at Sileby, while Sophie cooked dinner. I'd already prepared the vegetables and she made a delicious chicken, mushroom and pasta dish. After we'd eaten, we had a look for 90 Day Fiance on the television and realised it was on Discovery+, which costs £3.99 a month. We took the plunge and signed up, so now we can watch the series again, something we haven't done since 2020! It's definitely our guilty pleasure!

Dreaming!

I had to take my Dad's car today as my front two tyres were being replaced and I was disheartened to see how dirty his car was... maybe on Wednesday I'll try and get it washed!

I felt tired again this morning, but not as badly as yesterday, and I managed to get a lot of work done, including a whole load of cancellations (worrying), a few orders, and the report that Sara now wants me to do every month.

It was great to escape at 4pm and head home, and look forward to tomorrow off. Before dinner, we watched a programme featuring Jane McDonald in the Florida Keys. Seeing the places she visited brought back some fantastic memories! She stayed in Marathon and the hotel and beaches looked gorgeous! How lovely to go back and spend a couple of weeks relaxing in the Florida sunshine!

Feeling weary...

I felt very tired when Sophie woke me up this morning. I hate getting up so early and think my optimum time for waking is about 7.30am!

Being tired really drags me down all day and work was quite trying. It didn't help first thing that we had an abusive customer who shouted down the phone at both Jo and me, even though we were doing our best to help.

Back home I have to confess to sitting on the sofa with Keith and doing very little. He was watching a programme called Mountain Men, which seemed to be a variation of the series set in Alaska we used to watch. I fell asleep!

We had decided to barbecue this evening, as I'm sure the forecast was for warm sunshine, but it clouded over and became horrible. Keith went out nonetheless and cooked some chicken and sausages along with corn on the cob. Sophie and I stayed inside and cooked new potatoes and prepared a salad. The meal was delicious, though, and afterwards, we barbecued three bananas and enjoyed them with chocolate ice cream. How strange that I love hot bananas or any other form of banana, except for a raw one!

After we'd eaten we watched the third episode of The Staircase and I decided I didn't want to see it anymore. Why was our lovely Colin Firth chosen to play a horrible man? I don't care for any of the characters and couldn't care less whether she was murdered or it was an accident, so that's it for me!

Pottering in the garden...

This morning I tackled the gravel garden and was amazed to see how quickly the weeds have taken over! We haven't really done any work out here since last year and I was delighted to see the Clematis flowering. I thought I had killed it!

This area of the garden is overgrown but it's lovely when we prune the bushes back and pull up the weeds that had spread like a carpet over the gravel.

The love seat at the end of the garden needs replacing but it's fine for now. We don't really sit in the garden at the moment - the constant banging of the ball from next door puts us off a bit, and I remember years ago when our children were smaller, we'd spend a lot of time enjoying a drink on the seat and soaking up the sunshine, as it's a real sun-trap. We did have plans to put a large table and chairs out here and make it an extension of the conservatory, but that will have to wait!

I was also thrilled with the clematis at the back of the garage:

This plant used to live in the gravel garden next to the love seat and has a twin which I placed in the back border. Both plants produce gorgeous flowers in May, and the one in the border has managed to survive despite being overcrowded!

We did sit for a little while on the seat in the garden and then it was time for a shower and a visit to see Mum and Dad at the care home. Mum wanted us to sort out Netflix for them, and between Sophie and I, we managed to get them a subscription so they have more choice of what to watch.

We were there for almost two hours, then left to go home. We called into the Co-op first and I bought a bottle of Rose to go with dinner, and Sophie treated us to an ice cream. We drove home via the scenic route and the countryside was looking beautiful. I do love May!

We played Scrabble early this evening and I beat Sophie. Ha! Monty has developed the habit of immediately jumping onto the barstools every time one of us gets up... he knows what he's doing and is a real monkey! Sophie is a real softie and doesn't have the heart to throw him off!

Dinner tonight was delicious - we had Thai green chicken curry and it was lovely with lemongrass and ginger. I have now grown to like fish sauce, something I thought I would never enjoy!

A Saturday spent pottering!

It's been a lovely day just pottering about and getting some jobs done. Keith had an appointment at Guilsborough surgery for his Spring booster covid jab so we drove over, and he was so quick he was in and out before his allotted time!

We called into the ultra-busy Co-op in Brixworth to buy a bag of nachos to go with the leftover chilli for lunch. The place was packed with people calling in to get essentials!

At home, we pottered about and Sophie did loads of prep for tonight's dinner of salmon in an orange crumb, and the Thai green curry we're having tomorrow. All she has to do tonight is put everything in the oven to cook!

It's been beautiful weather today with a mix of sunshine and a few clouds popping up. Keith had cut the lawn on Friday so there was nothing to do in the back garden except watch the birds constantly eating! It's the height of baby bird season but we haven't seen any fat babies yet, although we have a constant presence of blackbirds, sparrows, starlings and a robin visiting. 

In the afternoon, Sophie and I applied a face mask, and my lovely daughter also painted my toenails for me. It was heaven to lie on the bed in the cool and be pampered!

Before dinner, we played Scrabble and Sophie beat me... Hmmm! She seems to be doing this a lot lately! We have certainly got our money's worth from this game!

Dinner was effortless and delicious and it's a meal we'll definitely make again. We don't eat a lot of fish as a family so maybe we'll look out some fishy recipes to try in the future!