Turned away...

Keith and I had arranged to take my Dad's car to the garage in Moulton this morning to have it checked over before we take it to Spain next month. We dropped it off and popped to Aldi where we bought this evening's dinner and some pastries for breakfast. Luckily, the tyre on my car was still fine otherwise we would have had to ask to borrow Sophie's little car! 

We trundled home, had coffee and pastries and pootled about all morning catching up with jobs. I managed to get a lot of washing out on the line as it was a perfect drying day - plenty of sunshine and a heavenly breeze!

Dad's car was ready at lunchtime and we were charged £20 which was a bargain! At least we have peace of mind now on the journey!

In the afternoon I picked up Mum and we decided to have a cup of tea at Beckworth for a change. I haven't been for ages because of the time you have to wait to get a table, and I was hoping that this afternoon would be a bit quieter. Unfortunately, when we walked in (with Mum now using a zimmer frame) there was a forty-minute wait... I was very disappointed and told the woman handing out the buzzers that we hadn't been for a long time because of the wait. She was apologetic but there was nothing she could do, so we left, feeling very aggrieved! I did say to Mum that I thought it was a ruse to get people to go and do some shopping while they wait!

We drove to Next on Riverside and had a coffee in the Costa outlet there. Minutes after I sat down with our drinks and some cake, they closed the café as an engineer had arrived to fix one of the fridges which was right underneath the coffee machine. Phew! Another fifteen minutes and we would have been turned away from there as well!

We had a look around the shop afterwards and I treated myself to a large bottle of Eau Nude, a fragrance I really love as it's so fresh and clean. That should last me a while!

Back to reality...

Getting up for work at 6am this morning was not fun after the three lie-ins we'd had! It was most unpleasant, and the mornings are darker now, which is a bit of a shock. Autumn is truly on its way!

Work was OK and I think we are all looking forward to the end of the summer holidays now. It's been a busy six weeks and the next month will see lots of my colleagues take their annual holiday, including me. I will be covering for Sara from next week, and then doing the cash-ups for Sheila the week before we go away, so I have a feeling the time will fly!

When I left work I discovered, to my dismay, that one of my rear tyres looked flat... Luckily, Sheila's husband had arrived to pick her up, and as he is very good with cars and all things mechanical, he was able to put some air into it for me. I called Keith who arrived with our air pump as well, but it looked fine to drive with, so he took my car home while I drove my Dad's car and popped to the post office.

We kept an eye on the tyre all evening and it stayed well pumped up so I have no idea what the problem was! I really don't fancy buying two new rear tyres at the moment as I'm sure it hasn't been long since they were fitted!

Cultures vultures in Oxford!

Sophie and I had decided to visit Oxford today, so we set off at about 10am, looking forward to lunch out and a good muse around the Ashmolean museum.

Google maps had said that the M40 was closed at the junction with the A43, but this certainly wasn't the case. The traffic was heavy (it was a Bank Holiday) but we made it to the Park and Ride easily and were sitting on the bus at 11.30am.

First stop was a coffee and a small slice of cake at the Black Sheep café, and I took a photo of Sophie in front of a funky wall mural:

Thus refreshed, we made our way to the Ashmolean museum and managed to move our booking at the restaurant by an hour, to give us plenty of time to look around. We stumbled across a whole room of statues from Rome, some of which were a bit creepy. This part of the museum was very quiet - in fact, the whole museum wasn't busy, which was a bonus! I think all the statues were casts but it was a bit disquieting being in among all the white figures!

There was one particularly creepy exhibit:

The stuff of nightmares!

We headed for European art next which was a much more enjoyable experience.

Constable, I think. He loved clouds too!

It was lovely to wander about and we had enough time to see all that we wanted to see today, including a moving exhibition about partition in India called Postcards from Home. We also had a look at some modern art and spotted two paintings by Ben Nicholson, who had been the subject of Fake or Fortune last week. I have no idea what all the fuss is about with this kind of art as it was just geometric shapes! Not my kind of thing at all!

We finished up in the shop and Sophie bought a pretty little bag and a gift for Laura. I craved some gorgeous notebooks, but wasn't sure what I would write in them seeing as I do all my notes on the computer!

We left the museum and had a leisurely walk to the restaurant, No1 Ship Street, where we'd eaten before. The restaurant was busy, with a lovely atmosphere, and we took our seats in a dimly lit corner right underneath the fish specials board. I would love to have tried the whole lobster and the oysters, but we stuck to the set lunch menu, choosing mackerel paté with horseradish and toasts to start, followed by pork belly on top of delicious lentils. We ordered extra bread and butter and a bowl of chips, and the meal was divine, with excellent, friendly service.

We even managed to share a dessert of creme bruleé, which was truly scrumptious, and the bill came to a reasonable £66, including service, which was well-deserved today!

We waddled off back to the bus stop, took the short journey back to the park and ride, and headed home, well pleased after such a delightful day. Needless to say, we didn't have anything to eat in the evening! We were still full!

Keith and I watched University Challenge in the evening, the last series with grumpy Jeremy Paxman. The questions seemed harder tonight although we did get a few and I had some lucky guesses! Afterwards, there was a documentary on the programme as it celebrates 60 years, which was very interesting. One thing I didn't realise is that the teams practise a lot! So maybe Keith and I don't do too badly when there's just two of us and we don't have a buzzer!

Lazy Bank Holiday weekend!

It was great to have another lie-in this morning, and also to look forward to one tomorrow! I  baked some frozen pastries in the oven and Sophie, Mike and I enjoyed them for breakfast with coffee. Delicious!

I was determined to colour my hair today as it badly needed it, so Sophie helped me to do it, which makes it a lot easier. When we finished, Mike came to say goodbye and Keith gave him a lift to Abbie's Dad's house in town. 

We pottered about and put another couple of items onto eBay, and I also added some more old diaries to my blog and scanned another pile of photos. It's so much easier now that the computer and printer are back in the conservatory, but we're talking about moving them back into the kitchen for the winter and shutting up our lovely glass room, as it'll be too expensive to heat. The news is still full of the cost of living crisis and we're gearing up for a bad winter, I think. Maybe this will be the first year I'll wish for a mild winter with no snow!

Sophie and I played Scrabble again and we ate quiche and pizza for dinner. We hadn't known whether Mike was eating with us every night so it was quite difficult to plan for meals!

After we'd eaten, we watched The Bodyguard, and although I'd seen it a couple of times before, I still enjoyed it. Kevin Costner was great in the film, but it was poignant seeing Whitney Houston starring in the film, and knowing her fate years later.

I've noticed lately that the evenings are certainly starting to draw in now and it's dark by about 8.30pm. We have seen the hedgehogs almost every evening since Thursday, and I've been putting some food out for them as well as ordering special hedgehog food on Amazon. I must be mad!

A new routine...

Saturday mornings are now following a new pattern - Sophie goes to a yoga class at the gym, and then she runs on the treadmill, while Keith and I catch up with jobs around the house. This morning I moved the computer back into the conservatory, hoping that the sweltering weather is now behind us.  I hoovered the conservatory as well, cleaned the floor, and did a general tidy-up so everything is now much neater.

At lunchtime, when Sophie returned, she made us delicious sandwiches stuffed with chicken, salad and cheese. Mike wandered downstairs and looked at them longingly, but as he'd had the remains of the Jerk chicken pasta for breakfast I didn't think he was ready for any lunch!

Sophie needed petrol so we drove into Northampton and, after filling up, she bought a tub of olives and ice creams in the M&S shop. We drove to her old university campus to enjoy our ice creams and to see what's been happening since it was demolished a couple of years ago. It's now unrecognisable as the campus she attended for three years, and there's not one building left so she felt pretty disorientated, bless her!

Back home we met Mike walking out to meet some friends (we had offered him an ice cream, but he'd declined) and then it was time to relax. I scanned some more photos onto the computer, and we had an early game of Scrabble. Sophie made us vodka Martinis and used some of the olives she'd bought earlier in her drink. I just enjoyed them as an accompaniment!  

Mike came down and we all had a drink in the conservatory for the first game, but he joined us for the second game, and I won both! We were cutting it fine with the second game, as Keith had started to cook on the barbecue, but we hurriedly finished and set the table in between cooking some crispy potatoes and onions.

The meal went down very well and it was great for all of us to sit and eat together in the conservatory. He is going home tomorrow so the next time we see him will probably be Christmas!

So glad it's Friday!

There were only two of us on the phones today so we were busy, in that horrible drip, drip, drip way of calls, and it was extremely annoying. I was also trying to answer some moany customer service emails and every time I started to reply, the phone rang again!

I was exceedingly relieved when it was 4pm and I could go home and look forward to a long bank holiday weekend! Yippee! Mike and Keith went to the pub while Sophie and I had our first Wine Night in two weeks, sipping a delicious Mallorcan white called Angel and watching a classic romcom, The Wedding Date starring the gorgeous Dermot Mulroney... swoon!

Keith had prepared a chilli con Carne for dinner, so Sophie and I put the finishing touches to the meal and we all sat together as a family to enjoy it. There was no sign of the hedgehogs tonight, but I put some food out, just in case. I am so glad we have such an abundance of wildlife in our garden - a wide variety of birds, bees, butterflies, bats and now the little hogs! I haven't seen Mr Rat for a while, so that's good news!

After dinner, Mike went out with his mates while Sophie and I watched the end of our film and had an early night. The 6am starts always catch up on us on a Friday!

Return of the son!

Mike had texted me earlier in the week to ask if he and Abbie could have dinner with us this evening so Keith and I decided to cook one of our favourite meals, the chicken and ham tangle pie.

I drove to work in the rain this morning and it was lovely to see the withered grass springing back to life after the horrible drought we'd had. It was my colleague Sue's 60th birthday yesterday so Sara and Sheila decorated her desk and she was delighted with the presents we'd bought for her!

I spent my shift answering customer service emails and at 2pm I sped home to tidy the house. Keith had made a corned beef pie, spread meat, pastry and flour over a wide area, and then trodden dirt and leaves into the kitchen, after going out to the garage... I was not amused!

I prepared dinner and set the table, giving the conservatory a clean as it was dead fly city in there. Until now it's been too blooming hot to do anything strenuous in there, but it's now a lot cooler thank goodness!

Abbie and Mike arrived at about 6.30pm and we all stood in the kitchen having a natter and a drink. We sat in the conservatory for dinner, the first time we've done that for ages and I was so glad it was cooler!

After we'd eaten we were delighted to see two hedgehogs come into the garden - a very big one, and a much smaller one. They obviously manage to find a lot of food, probably because I leave out piles of logs full of creepy crawlies, but I put out a dish of cat food just in case! We were all so happy to see them and the sight of them confirmed our suspicions that they go into the garden!

A busy day off!

I went back to bed after seeing Sophie off to the gym but the lure of coffee was too much so I got up! The morning was spent pootling about the house, catching up with jobs and cleaning downstairs while listening to Ken Bruce on Radio 2. I gave the living room a good clean and hoovered away several cobwebs which were hanging from the ceiling. Delightful! 

Keith went to get his hair cut at Mawsley and popped to Tesco where he bought me a bottle of Sipsmith Orange Gin. Naughty but nice! When he returned I was busy packaging up another item we'd sold on eBay which was a bonus! Hopefully, we should be well on the way to earning enough for lunch in a few weeks' time! Once that was all done, I put some more photos of our holiday in 2003 onto Google photos, including this, which I thought was delightful:

Mikey has such a cheeky face!

In the afternoon I took Mum to have her nails done. The appointment was originally booked for 3pm but Natalia asked if we could go early. We arrived a few minutes before 2pm and I sat and read my Kindle. How I didn't fall asleep I'll never know! I kept feeling myself dropping off!

I suggested a cup of tea before going back and Mum agreed. I had to go to the post office in Moulton and I drove through the village afterwards to see if there was a cafe open. I'm sure there used to be one opposite the college but it had obviously closed down so we ended up at the Costa Coffee by the A14. After helping Mum out of the car and walking towards the entrance, we discovered this was closed as well! Mum wasn't keen on going to the other Costa in Kettering so I took her back. She is now very wary of walking which is worrying as it means she's not keen on her usual enjoyable pursuits like going out for tea and cake, and shopping.

Back home I relaxed in my clean and tidy house (won't stay that way for long) and enjoyed a Gin and Tonic. Bliss!

Hot and spicy!

Work today seemed busier than yesterday with non-stop phone calls for over an hour. We will all be mightily relieved when the children return to school! Not long now, thank goodness!

It has felt very warm and sultry again today, and on the way home I popped to the Tesco garage to get some diesel for my car. Thankfully, the prices seem to have gone down a bit but £45 only got me just over half a tank!

Keith was out tonight watching Sileby play so you know what that means? Jerk chicken pasta! The last time I'd cooked it I had covid so couldn't taste anything so I was determined to make it delicious tonight! I'd marinated the chicken in the jerk paste early this morning and Keith had bought all the ingredients we needed yesterday when he went shopping. 

Sophie and I opened a bottle of wine and started watching another fascinating Netflix documentary about a famous college football player who'd been catfished. The outcome was disastrous for him and his career, as people thought he had been in on the hoax when his "girlfriend" died at the same time as his grandmother. There had been an outpouring of sympathy for him when the two events happened, but when they realised his girlfriend didn't actually exist, things turned nasty! It was very interesting but sad for the athlete whose career seemed to have been ruined.

Sophie and I cooked the meal and it was delicious and spicily hot! There was certainly enough for her lunch tomorrow and Thursday and more than enough for me to have some for mine as well! After we'd eaten we sat in the garden for half an hour admiring the evening sky. Beautiful!

Monday again!

Monday rolls around all too quickly for my liking and it was back to work. We had an informal meeting this morning and Sara went over a few things before asking whether we had anything to say. I think we have all given up on getting a decent pay rise now, but the amount of staff leaving is worrying. We are still having enormous problems with our swimming lessons as we can't find enough instructors, and the DBS checks are taking weeks and weeks to come back. We are receiving several complaints from parents but there's not a lot we can do - we can't magic staff out of the air!

The rest of the day sped by with the usual manic rush first thing. Our swimming sessions at one of our popular pools were fully booked before the phone lines even opened!

At 4pm I drove home and pottered about, sweeping and mopping the kitchen floor before relaxing with the newspaper. Hopefully, with cooler weather predicted for next week, I can get around to giving the house, and in particular, the conservatory, a good clean. It's amazing to think we have had the kitchen for a year now and it's stood up well to the daily onslaught! 

Sophie was out for a meal this evening with her old boss so it was just Keith and me for dinner. We enjoyed prawn salad followed by gooey puds. He went upstairs to watch some football while I indulged in a couple of recorded programmes. What should have been a relaxing evening was spoiled by Monty-cat who was a little devil. He wouldn't settle on the sofa with me and kept prowling around yowling and being a real nuisance, one minute asking to go out and then just looking at me when I opened the door. I wonder if it was because his routine was spoiled by Sophie daring to go out?!

She arrived home far later than she'd intended so it was straight to bed after a quick chat!

Domestic bliss!

Sophie made a beautiful chocolate and courgette cake today, as Mum was coming over this afternoon for a cup of tea. She is still quite wary of walking so I thought the best thing would be for her to come here to relax.

We spent the morning pottering about (I was the pot washer for Sophie when she was making the cake) and I started adding some photos of our holiday in Mallorca in 2003 to Google photos so we can see them more easily. At the moment they're in boxes in our wardrobe and I want to be able to access them any time I want. It means scanning every photo, but it's worth it to have them safely stored on the computer.

At 2pm we went back to see Vera and picked up the dress. From Walgrave we drove to Kettering and I went up to collect my Mum from her room. I have a new friend at the care home now, a man not that much older than me who has dementia (according to my Mum). Although I feel desperately sorry for him, he is slightly creepy and seems to be hanging about by the lift whenever I go up. Today, he accompanied me as I walked down the corridor which was fine, but if he ever tries to get into the lift with me, I will be quite worried!

Mum used a Zimmer frame to walk and I just about managed to get it in the back of my Dad's car. This was a little worrying as we're taking the car on holiday, and I know we'll be taking quite a bit of stuff with us, including my pillows (I'd take the quilt if I could!) a box of provisions and definitely my coffee machine! Home comforts!

Back home Mum walked to the house without the frame and I made sure she was OK. The thought of her falling over again doesn't bear thinking about. We enjoyed the delicious cake with a pot of tea and enjoyed the peace and quiet of the garden. 

When we took Mum back, Sophie came up with me and we left my parents with some cake to enjoy later. As we were about to go back down in the lift, my new friend came over to chat, asking if he could come with us. He is very well-spoken and pleasant but we said no, which he seemed to accept. It's very sad.

Back home we played Scrabble and afterwards looked at photos of our Mallorcan holidays. We'd had some brilliant times on the island with some memorable meals and it was great to read the restaurant reviews that I used to write for an online forum. Let's hope we have some good meals in Spain next month!

A busy Saturday!

Sophie went to the gym this morning with Angel and enjoyed a yoga class. I think it's great that she's keeping in touch with her old work colleague and enjoying the gym. She's lost over half a stone lately, which is brilliant!

Keith and I pottered about and had a lovely, lazy start to the weekend. I amused myself by cleaning the microwave and putting some lemons into a bowl to heat up, making it smell pleasant inside. I certainly know how to live!

In the afternoon we went to see Vera, a local seamstress, who was adjusting one of Sophie's charity shops buys. She wanted Sophie to try on the dress to ensure it fitted properly, which it did, and she said it would be ready tomorrow. It cost her £50 which, in all honesty, was a bit more than she had expected to pay, but the dress looked beautiful and I told Sophie to wear it every day to get value out of it! She's glad she only bought it for £20, and she had seen on the internet that this brand was selling for over $100 in the US!

Before going home, I popped into the new shop in Walgrave to get myself something for lunch. I was hoping for something tasty but there wasn't a tremendous amount of choice, so I bought a loaf of bread and had an open sandwich with cheese back at home.

After lunch, Sophie and I spent a good few hours putting some unwanted items onto eBay. We had unearthed some shoes Keith no longer wanted, including a pair of black Clark's brogues that were brand new, and several ties that he will never wear again. I put in a blouse and a little black evening bag I no longer need. It's amazing that we're still finding stuff to sell - we need to build up a healthy Paypal balance ahead of our next trip to London! Any surplus will be spent on a meal in Spain... that's if we sell anything!

Sophie photographed everything and listed it on the site, while I made sure everything was clean and well-presented. We both find it very enjoyable, and it's great to know the items will go to new homes where they're wanted rather than languishing in the cupboard and gathering dust!

After a great game of Scrabble, we had our belated anniversary meal of steak, chips, tomatoes, onion rings and stuffed mushrooms. Keith barbecued the steak and tomatoes while I fried the potato chips and the onion rings. Sophie took care of the big mushrooms by covering them with a mixture of breadcrumbs and cheese. With some peas, the meal was delicious, and we opened a bottle of Vacqueyras, a lovely red wine, that went very well with the meat.

Our after-dinner viewing tonight was a film starring Sandra Bullock called Murder By Numbers. Keith and I enjoyed it but Sophie was not so keen!

More catching up!

Work has been fine today, and we had a new man in with us, who has just joined as a Duty Manager at another centre. He shadowed us as we answered the phones and did all the other jobs we have to do, so the time passed very quickly. We had long periods of no calls so that helped! Not long now before the school holidays are over!

At 4pm I drove home and lounged about until 6pm. Sophie and I had been invited out with our friend, Michelle, to Sue's house in Kettering, so we had showers, and Sophie curled my hair a bit for me. It's really long now, and thick, so it feels warm in the temperatures we've been experiencing lately. Not that I'm complaining of course!

Michelle's husband, Richard, took us over to Kettering so we could all enjoy a glass of wine, and Keith had agreed to bring us back as he was out watching Sileby play this evening. Sue welcomed us in and her new partner, Martyn, scuttled upstairs as soon as we arrived! 

We sat and sipped glasses of Pimm's and then sat down for a meal of quiche, salad and new potatoes, followed by chocolate cheesecake and raspberries. The talk around the table was all about the prices of our fuel bills and how expensive everything was in general. We also discussed the fact that Michelle, and the three of us, will be having new neighbours in the near future as Sarah and Liam's house has sold. I wonder if it was the family I spotted last weekend? 

The conversation flowed all evening, and Keith came to collect us at about 11pm. Michelle had told us she was now able to look after Monty for a week while we're in Spain so that was a huge relief!

Back home, Sophie and I finished the dregs of a bottle of wine and relaxed before bed. It's the weekend!

A good old catch-up!

I was a bit apprehensive about going to work this morning, but I was met with smiles so I was forgiven for not going on Tuesday night! I spent my six hours answering customer service emails, and dealing with orders, so the shift passed very quickly.

At 2pm I met my friend, Lynda, in reception and we both drove down to Riverside for a coffee at Costa. I hadn't seen her for ages so we had a lot to catch up on, and we chatted non-stop until 4.30pm! We sat outside and it was lovely and cool!

I said I would go out with the girls the next time they organised an evening meal but I did point out to Lynda that the price of eating out seemed to be going up every time we met up. The last time, at Miller and Carter, the price per person was £70, something I just can't justify, especially at the moment with the huge rise in the cost of living!

After saying goodbye and promising to see each other soon, I sped home, arriving just before Sophie said she was leaving work. Keith cooked a chicken and mushroom pie for dinner, which was delicious and a change from our normal fare! It was even lovely to eat green beans again!

After dinner, I went up to our bedroom, lit two scented candles and watched a very interesting documentary about Cary Grant. I honestly believe he was the most gorgeous man ever to have walked the earth, but he had a sad childhood and never seemed to have found a stable relationship with his wives. Seeing him on the television brought back some great memories of his films, my favourite being Charade, made when he was in his late 50s. Scrumptious!

A rain hangover!

The rain continued all night, but I didn't hear any thunder. We awoke this morning to grey, heavy skies and a sultry atmosphere. It was like a hangover from the torrential rain!

At 9am, Keith and I drove to Moulton to take my car in for its MOT, and before going home, we popped into Aldi opposite to buy some essentials. It was then home for a late breakfast and coffee.

We had arranged to meet Sophie for lunch at 12pm so the rest of the morning was spent pootling about and getting some jobs completed. We drove down to Brackmills at 12pm and managed to get into the cafe just before a massive queue of people arrived! Good timing!

We enjoyed sandwiches, salad, and a couple of cups of coffee with a brownie for pud. It was great to sit and people-watch and chat, and Sophie's lunch hour passed quickly. We said goodbye and headed over to Kettering to take some clothes back for my Mum, but she was still having lunch so we said we'd go over at the weekend. With her being reluctant to walk now, it means she won't meet me in the reception area, so any visit takes much longer than anticipated. I'm hoping she'll come over to our house this weekend for a cup of tea to get her out!

Back home, I suddenly felt shattered so had a half-hour nap before hoovering and making a batch of banana and chocolate chip muffins. We had two very mushy bananas languishing in the fruit bowl so now they've been turned into delicious muffins!

After dinner, we enjoyed a couple of episodes of My Dream Lottery Home and envied a couple who bought a holiday home in Mexico. The houses looked beautiful!

Feeling guilty...

Going back to work today was hard, but it had to be done! I spent the first two hours catching up with emails and orders, and at 10am went onto the phones. It wasn't too bad but we did have some calls from people who clearly didn't understand some of the services we offer! A lot of people say they find our website confusing, but to me, it's very clear!

At 4pm I sped off home under a very cloudy sky. We have had some rain today, but not the promised thunderstorms. I was supposed to be out with my work colleagues tonight but I just didn't fancy it at all. Am I turning into a reclusive hermit? I felt guilty for not going and stole Keith's dinner of chicken Kiev (Kyiv) which Sophie cooked, along with crispy sliced potatoes (anything but boiled new ones), asparagus and tender-stem broccoli.

After dinner, the rain started and it poured down - what a lovely sight to see and you could almost sense the parched earth giving a huge sigh of relief! We watched the second episode of an interesting programme about partition in India 70 years ago and learned a lot!

Celebrating!

After a lazy start to the day, and opening our cards, we drove to Oakham in Rutland to have lunch and celebrate our 30th wedding anniversary!

The temperature was a little lower than yesterday but it was still warm and sunny. We parked in a very convenient car park opposite The Wheatsheaf pub and entered the lovely, cool lounge bar. Keith was delighted to see Everard's Old Original available, and while he had a pint, I had a half. Sophie opted for a half pint of cold, creamy Guinness.

We only wanted a sandwich, as we'd planned on having a barbecue this evening, and our choices were sausage and onion, and a bacon, lettuce and tomato baguette for Keith. They were accompanied by a lovely side salad, coleslaw and a portion of very chunky and delicious chips. Yum!

The food was very good, the service and friendliness of the staff excellent, and I was pleased I'd chosen a good place for once! I'd started thinking I was jinxed with pubs and restaurants lately! There was no loud music blaring and it was a thoroughly good experience, and perfect for our wedding anniversary!

Afterwards, we had a stroll around Oakham and Sophie and I popped into a couple of charity shops where she bought a pretty, pink top, and I splashed out on some books for Keith. The little town was buzzing with people, and we will definitely go back again!

On the way home, we all fancied an ice cream, so we stopped in Uppingham, another pretty market town. Uppingham, however, was a lot quieter and most places seemed to be closed, including two pubs that looked well and truly shut! We parked in the tiny market square and walked over to a bakery that was selling ice creams, and a delicious assortment of cakes and pastries. Sophie bought us a tub and we sat on a bench watching the traffic go by. For such a small place, there were a lot of huge lorries passing through!

Exiting the car park, I somehow ended up deep in the countryside, and not back on the main road that I'd wanted. It didn't matter, though, and we soon saw signs for the village of Harringworth, where we'd been before. There is a huge viaduct outside the village and we stopped to have a good look.

Note how dry the grass is.

The building of the viaduct started in 1876 and was finished two years later. It was built to carry trains over the Welland Valley and is the longest masonry viaduct in the United Kingdom.

We carried on our journey home, and turned back onto the main road at the gorgeous village of Rockingham, overlooked by the castle high on the hill above.

Back home, it was time to relax and pootle about. Sophie and I played Scrabble and enjoyed a drink. We all decided that we didn't want to barbecue the steaks we'd bought as we were too full! Sophie and I enjoyed a stuffed mushroom each, with asparagus while Keith chose a juicy tomato sandwich! The steak could wait!

Photos found!

Sophie and I went to see Mum and Dad this morning and took the clothes we'd bought on Friday. Hopefully, this time they'll fit! We sat with them for an hour and then returned home to prepare lunch. The

weather was hot and sunny again, and I think I speak for all of us when I say we're praying for rain. I've never seen the grass look so brown and withered!

We enjoyed the leftover Chinese for lunch and still didn't manage to eat all of it! It was a meal for three but would easily have fed six! After we'd eaten I was determined to do something with the afternoon despite the mounting temperatures, so I decided to hunt for the missing photos. Sophie was ensconced on my bed watching the television while I made chaos in the bedroom, getting everything out from our wardrobes, and wondering why I was keeping tatty old Christmas gift boxes! 

Right at the back were some storage boxes containing photos, and I found the ones I was looking for, as well as some diaries and other writings I'd done years ago. More holiday notes to go onto the blog to keep for posterity!

It was great to find the missing photos as I'd feared I'd uploaded them to the computer and lost them. I used to use Picasa (and Flikr) but know that it's been replaced with Google Photos, so now I need to scan them and upload them to the storage site. At least then we can look at them regularly!

The plan was to barbecue this evening but the Chinese leftovers had filled us up so, after a game of Scrabble, and some very difficult tiles for Sophie, we enjoyed an already cooked roast chicken and baps. In this heat, I didn't feel like eating much! Hopefully, tomorrow will be cooler!

What word can you make with them?

It was a lovely thought that we are off again tomorrow and looking forward to a little trip out to celebrate our 30th wedding anniversary!

Lying low...

Today has been another scorcher and I've stayed at home, not venturing out at all, as it's been so warm. It's annoying as I would really have liked to have gone to Olney, or Market Harborough, but the thought of walking around a town in this heat is unthinkable!

Sophie went to the gym and did her yoga class, and came home looking a bit sweaty, bless her. I admire her for going and at least the gym is air-conditioned! When she arrived home, she found me upstairs spying on a family viewing the house next door. I will be the first to admit how nosy I am, but I really wanted to see who was looking around! After all, they could be potential neighbours, and as we get on so well with everyone else who lives close by, it's important to have a preview!

They had a good look at the house and spent a fair amount of time gazing up at the front, so it looks like they were interested. They looked like a nice family with two girls, so only time will tell!

When I'd finished being a curtain-twitcher, I found Sophie preparing our lunch. We had two leftover baked potatoes and Sophie had scooped out the flesh, mixed it with some cheese and put it all back in, to be baked in the oven. We enjoyed the delicious lunch with salad. Yum!

Keith went to pastures new this afternoon and went to see a local team, Moulton, play at their pitch in the village. Sileby were playing away so he'd decided to go and see the Moulton Magpies (to his delight, playing in black and white!), and he had a great time at the match seeing some of the Sileby fans there as well!

Sophie and I lounged on the bed with the fan full on and I fell asleep. At 4.30pm we had our first game of Scrabble and I lost. We had two further games, with a couple of glasses of wine, and I managed to win one quite decisively for a change!

Keith came home, we ordered a meal for three from the Chinese takeaway in Broughton and cracked open the bottle of Champagne, which was delicious and as good as any costing double!

Dinner was copious and delicious and after we'd eaten Sophie and I watched an Alfred Hitchcock film, Strangers on a Train. It was brilliant and the scene at the end, with the out-of-control carousel, was amazing!

More shopping!

Amazingly, Keith came shopping with us today and treated us to breakfast in M&S! After we'd eaten we picked out a larger size for Dad's clothes and exchanged them, which was very easy and straightforward thank goodness. We had a look at the clothes in the store but there were a lot of Autumn garments on the racks. With the temperature at about 30c outside, who wants to shop for jumpers and coats? Madness, but I've said that before, and hate the way that shops dictate to us what we buy!

Sophie had a quick look in H&M (also full of jumpers) before we left to go to Tesco in Kettering. Tonight she is going to a little soireé as one of her work friends is leaving, and she said she would get the food, which is typical of Sophie - generous to a fault, and I wonder how long the others will take to transfer their share of the cost?

On the way, we listened to the news and learnt that we are officially in drought in our region of the UK. It's hardly surprising, but as yet we don't have a hosepipe ban, although I think it would be a good idea to conserve water as much as possible.

It was very hot when we arrived at Tesco, but bliss to be in the cool, air-conditioned building. Sophie took a scanner with her so she could keep track of her spending and soon we were all done. We headed to Aldi, bought some Champagne for our anniversary, and headed home.

The afternoon was spent trying to keep cool, and at about 5pm I gave Sophie a lift to her friend's house in the village of Harpole. She arrived just before her friend who had been trying to buy Aperol and Prosecco in Tesco, but they refused as she hadn't any ID with her! She does look young but is definitely over 18!

Back home Keith and I sat at the kitchen island and had a dismal dinner of baked potatoes, leftover chilli and quiche. Not the most inspiring of meals!

We sat in the garden for a little while again, and I made sure the water dishes for the birds were topped up. Looking at the forecast there are possible thunderstorms coming our way next week, but with the ground so dry, the rain will probably bounce off!

We picked Sophie up at 10pm and trundled home in the cool of the evening. It was still about 22c so a stuffy night lay ahead!

A bonus day!

I managed to get today off work and stayed at home doing some jobs while Keith went shopping. Our amber weather warning starts today, with temperatures set to be in the low 30s, so not quite as hot as last time, but still uncomfortable.

We had planned on going to Majestic today to buy a sparkling wine called Chandon from Chile as we'd enjoyed this on our 25th wedding anniversary, but I had second thoughts while I was showering. Was it worth driving all the way to the other side of Northampton just to buy a wine that wasn't like the bottle we had in Florida (it was flavoured with oranges and spices), or should we just settle for the Aldi Champagne that's perfectly acceptable? With the current price of fuel, I can see us making more decisions like these in the future!

I drove over to wish my Dad a happy birthday, staying with my parents for over an hour. Unfortunately, all the clothes I bought for him yesterday didn't fit! They were too small! It means Sophie and I will have to return tomorrow to exchange them for a larger size. While I was there, the carers came around with ice creams and frozen lollies to keep everyone cool. Outside the temperature was building!

Back home, it was too hot to do a lot, so I succumbed and had a nap on our bed. I had been up at 6am with Sophie this morning and felt a bit sleepy! With the fan on me, I did feel a bit cooler!

Tonight was wine night as Sophie is also off work tomorrow so we sipped glasses of our New Zealand Pinot Gris and I persuaded my daughter to watch Brief Encounter with me. It was like a glimpse into another world... how different things were then (it was released in 1945) and Sophie enjoyed the film, even though she wasn't that keen on Trevor Howard's character, for some reason!

After dinner, Keith and I sat in the garden for an hour and saw the bats for the first time this year. They were swooping low over us and it was lovely to see them again. It was blissfully quiet sitting in the garden, and beautifully cool!

Proper shopping!

My Mum had called yesterday about my Dad's birthday on Thursday and I said I would buy something from her, as she still felt a bit worried about walking. 

Keith and I went to the garage in Moulton first, to book my car in for its forthcoming MOT. Keith asked also if they could check out my Dad's car before we take it to Spain next month, more for his peace of mind than anything else. It's been serviced, MOT'd, and has four almost new tyres, but it was a good idea anyway. He also said that if everything was OK with my car, and it passed, we would leave it with the garage in September so they could replace the flywheel. If it doesn't pass, and there's a big problem, we may have to say goodbye to it. I do hope it doesn't come to that!

From Moulton, I went to get diesel at the Tesco garage in Weston Favell, but just as we arrived they experienced a power cut and all the pumps went! We waited about five minutes but left to go to another near town as I really needed to get some fuel!

At Rushden Lakes, we had breakfast in M&S, and we arrived just in time as the queue started to grow behind us. It was lovely sitting in the big window and watching the comings and goings of people arriving at the huge shopping mall.

After we'd eaten I picked out some lovely soft jogging bottoms and polo shirts for my Dad, as Mum wanted, and a tee-shirt that would go with both joggers from us. I also bought some wine for him downstairs in the food hall.

All in all the experience had been better than I'd expected as I'd imagined the place would be rammed with people and very busy. We drove to Tesco and I bought cards, gift wrap and a box of sweets. I'm hoping the care home will make a huge fuss of him - they usually do!

Back home I wrapped the presents, which made me very hot and sweaty! The wrapping paper I'd chosen - a recycled, organic version - was the most annoying paper ever! The sellotape wouldn't stick to it which made me even hotter and more irritated! I am heartily fed up with this weather now! I want coolness and plenty of rain!

Keith and I drove back over to Kettering to take them to Mum so Dad could unwrap them in the morning. We took the scenic route home and the countryside was as parched as I've ever seen it. The farmers have been baling up straw lately and the roads are covered in golden stalks where they've been transporting the loads. I'm very surprised I haven't met a huge tractor yet! 

Back home we tried to keep cool and when Sophie returned it was time for a catch-up around the island. Dinner tonight was very easy - cold meats, salad and the ubiquitous new potatoes! Arrggghhh!

Getting warmer...

I really wasn't looking forward to going to work today but it was only one shift and then I would be off for a day... and I was tempted to ask if I could have Thursday off as well, as it's not a contracted day! That would mean I wouldn't be back until next Tuesday as I've booked Friday and Monday off to celebrate our 30th wedding anniversary!

There was an atmosphere in the office this morning, which was a bit uncomfortable, and Sara didn't speak to me all day... oh dear! I just got on with my work and celebrated inside when 4pm arrived. Yippee!

It felt hot and humid outside and the temperature was registering 32c, but I knew that wasn't real. Thankfully, it's not going to be as hot as the last time, but it will still be warm and sticky!

At home, I pootled about and when Sophie arrived home we sat at the kitchen island and chatted, which is becoming a lovely habit before we prepare dinner!

Our meal tonight was quiche, salad and roasted new potatoes. I am heartily sick of them at the moment - bring on the roasties we enjoy in the winter!

Bank-Holiday-gate!

Sara had promised that we would sort the forthcoming Bank Holiday out today and I had already said I would prefer not to work, as I felt I'd done my fair share of Bank Holiday working this year!

She asked the three of us to sort it out between ourselves, which I didn't think was a good idea, as it was obvious none of us wanted to work! In the end, Jo volunteered as she had only worked one of the Bank Holidays, so it was sorted, but I think my outburst of not wanting to work didn't go down that well! Ho hum! I have only taken two days of holiday so far this year (my week in April was cut in half because I had covid the week before) and I don't want to have to take all my annual leave in the winter months like I usually do!

The rest of the day was uneventful and, after a quick trip to the post office to return a parcel, it was home to relax. The weather is certainly getting hotter and we have another amber warning for heat later in the week. This summer is turning out to be a very warm one indeed, but will it compare with 1976 as everyone seems to think?

Dinner tonight was a barbecue - we've been trying to come up with meals that are suitable for the warm temperatures again!

Keeping busy!

I wasn't up quite so late this morning, and I asked Keith to pop to the new little shop in Walgrave to see if they had any pastries for breakfast. I have always envied the French and their village boulangeries and wondered what it must be like to be able to stroll down and buy fresh bread and pastries for breakfast. We have to drive some distance to be able to do that, so it takes more planning! 

He wasn't that happy about going and came back with a box of chocolate chip biscuits... not really what I had in mind, bless him! At least he went for me!

I decided today to save all the Mallorcan restaurant reviews I used to write to my blog because it was great to re-read them all and I would hate to lose them. I also found a diary of a holiday we'd taken to Mallorca in 2007 and added that as well, embellishing it with photos. In between doing that I did mounds of washing, and every time I ventured out into the garden I could have cried at how dry and withered it was out there. The grass was scratchy and crackly and not lush like it used to be. I made sure the birds had plenty of water. There is not even a hint of any decent rainfall in the forecast and it's due to get hot again next week with temperatures of over 30c. It really is quite worrying, to be honest.

Sophie went out for lunch with Daisy and Laura, and they went to Akasaka in town. I spent the afternoon trying to find some old photos from about 2002-2004, and I couldn't remember whether they had been uploaded to the computer or were on a disc. I was worried that I had lost them all, but when I have more time I'll have a hunt through our cupboards to see if they're in boxes. I know we went to Mallorca when Mike was about eighteen months old and rented a villa with extensive grounds, and he used to follow a little group of chickens about all day!

Sophie came back at about 6pm and we all sat around the kitchen island with a drink and chatted. Keith and I didn't really fancy cooking dinner so we just had a sandwich, which suited us fine!

A quiet day at home.

I was surprised to see a warning attached to my post yesterday! I hope it didn't put anyone off reading it, and it was very innocent!

I had an exceptionally long lie-in this morning which annoyed me, but I had no plans for today, so did it really matter? Sophie went to the gym with a girl she works with, and they both did a yoga class. Keith and I pottered about, catching up with jobs we hadn't had time to do during the week, and enjoying the sunshine (and the peace and quiet - bliss!).

Sophie returned at lunchtime and we ate leftover chicken and noodles for lunch. I really enjoy using up leftovers rather than binning them, and with the price of food at the moment it would be madness to throw it away.

Sophie prepared dinner in the afternoon, a Mery Berry recipe of fried rice and chicken which already smelt delicious! We packed loads of vegetables into it as well, using up some leeks, peppers and celery that were languishing in the fridge.

Keith went to the first football match of the season to see Sileby play a London team. I can't believe the football season has started again! And we have the World Cup to look forward to this year... or not!

Sophie and I enjoyed a face-pack and watched the third episode of "The Most Hated Man on the Internet" on Netflix. I won't say any more than that in case this post gets a warning as well, but it's a very good documentary and well-worth seeing.

As usual, it was Scrabble before dinner and I narrowly beat Sophie, which didn't go down very well. She is so competitive, something she has inherited from her Dad!

Dinner tonight was indeed delicious, and there was enough leftover for Sophie's lunch on Monday. Sophie and I went upstairs after dinner to watch My Dream Lottery Home, but I ended up watching a very funny programme about women in comedy with Dawn French and Jennifer Saunders, which was hilarious!

The weekend is nigh!

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A bit of a shock...

My Dad called last night at about 10.15pm to say that my Mum had gone to the hospital because of a fall she'd had yesterday. This was the second one since Monday and she'd bruised her face again. I'd spoken to her briefly when we arrived home, and when I called later in the evening Dad said she was in bed. The carers were obviously a bit worried about her later on, though, and she was taken to hospital just to be on the safe side.

I called the care home this morning at 7.30am before going to work to find out that she was being discharged, and I said I would visit her this afternoon when I finished work.

Work was busy, and I finished the "moan" report for Sara, which was great as it can drag on a bit. July seemed to be a very discontented month, with more complaints about our staff and the swimming lessons than ever before.

At 2pm I sped home and changed before going to see Mum and Dad. It looks very much like the planned visit to Duxford will be off this Sunday, which is a huge shame. Before going I had a quick chat with Sue who was doing some gardening at Paul's house. In the distance, we could see plumes of black smoke - was a field on fire somewhere?

Mum's face shocked me (I had been warned by the staff) and she seemed very unsteady on her feet.

We sat and chatted for over an hour and despite looking a bit battered and bruised, she seemed OK in herself. The carers had been joking she looked like she'd gone ten rounds with Mike Tyson!

I left them both, thanking the carers who had been doing a great job looking after them, and returned home. Sophie arrived at the same time as she'd finished work an hour earlier than normal. Keith and I went out into the garden and I was shocked to see how dry the grass was. It was like straw and was yellow and parched. There is no rain in the forecast at all, and several areas of the UK are now facing hosepipe bans. Thankfully, we aren't, but if we don't get some decent rainfall soon, I dread to think of the consequences for the gardens. I've noticed leaves are already being shed by the trees as they try and conserve water.

We played Scrabble this evening and Sophie beat me as usual. I'm going to get my revenge one day! Dinner was a delicious chicken stir fry with noodles, cooked by Sophie. Yum!

A day in London.

Sophie and I were off down to London again today, and she had an appointment with Dr Bawa at the Phi clinic in Harley Street at 11am. We decided on the 9.05 train from Northampton and arrived in time to enjoy a coffee and croissant at a quirky little cafe on the station's ground floor. For some reason, it was Harry Potter-themed, but the coffee was delicious and much better than the Starbucks upstairs!

We managed to get two seats on the train and it started to fill up. I'd had a feeling it would be busy, as it's the school holidays, so I was glad we had somewhere to sit. A woman sat next to me, across the aisle, and her personal hygiene left a lot to be desired... not really what I wanted first thing in the morning, and I was heartily glad I'd finished my croissant!

As we neared London and stopped at a lot of stations, the train filled up even more. It was hot and stuffy and quite uncomfortable. We couldn't wait to get off at Euston! We took an Uber straight to Harley Street and sat in the cool, quiet waiting room. Heaven!

Dr Bawa was very welcoming and he took Sophie to another room to take some photographs. When they came back he said she didn't need any treatment today as her face still looked good from the last time he'd seen her. I was surprised but very glad that he hadn't done any necessary work. It saved her quite a bit of money! We made an appointment for four weeks' time and went outside to find an Uber.

I had booked a table for lunch at the British Museum, in their Great Court restaurant for 1.30pm, so we had two hours to kill. We decided to go straight to the museum and have a look at the Elgin Marbles before eating.

We found an Uber straightaway, and very soon we were queuing up outside the museum. Once inside, we had a quick look at the Waddesdon Bequests from the Rothchilds (well, we had to, seeing as we love their home in Buckinghamshire). There were some beautiful objects on display in a dimly-lit part of the museum but it felt very warm indeed. 

We found our way to the Ancient Greek section and joined the throngs of people looking at the sculptures, taken from the Parthenon in Greece back in the 19th century by agents of the Earl of Elgin, who argued they were being damaged. In the museum, they were described as the Parthenon Marbles and I personally think they should go back to Greece where they belong. Lots of the sculptures are missing and are in a state of disrepair, the friezes of horses and people missing heads and other parts of the body.

The marbles are truly ancient, having been sculpted by Phidias and his assistants in the 5th century BC, and tell stories of the Greek Gods and Goddesses.

The men were rather good-looking in ancient Greece and er...fit!

More headless bodies

A body-less horse

It was amazing to think of how old these marble sculptures were, but we both felt they should be on display in Athens where they belong. I can't see the British Museum giving them up any time soon, though. 

We wandered about a bit more looking at some very old objects of beauty.

Aphrodite

I think Sophie has found a new beau...

Then it was off to ancient Egypt for a while:

By now we were hot and a bit weary, so we used the facilities (crowded) and sat in the main atrium for a few minutes. The place was packed with people and I was surprised to see several very young children in pushchairs. I would hesitate to bring youngsters to the museum as I wouldn't have thought it would be of interest to them. We never brought Sophie and Mike here, preferring the Science Museum or the Natural History one instead.

The gorgeous roof (I would have liked to have visited the exhibition).

At just before 1.30pm we made our way up the long flight of stairs to the Great Court Restaurant for our booking. There was a queue of people, and a couple in front of us hadn't booked at all and were shown to a table, which surprised me.

We were taken to a table outside of the main seating area and given menus. We had already looked at the dishes on offer and I chose the broad bean Scotch egg to start followed by fish and chips. Sophie opted for the black truffle and burrata tortelloni followed by sea bass. We decided on a bottle of Pinot Grigio Blush from Italy, and a large sparkling water as we were both thirsty.

It took ages for anyone to actually take our order, and then they brought just one glass of wine, instead of a bottle. They had no large bottles of fizzy water so we received two smaller ones instead (working out to be more expensive). There was no ice bucket for our wine so it warmed up in the sultry conditions!

We waited almost an hour for our starters and then another age for our main courses. What made it worse was that we could see people in the main seating area getting much speedier service than us! The staff were rushed and unfriendly, and we were very disappointed indeed, as we had been looking forward to going there so much.

I have to say that the food was good and from my seat, I could see the chefs working away in the open kitchen. There seemed to be a lot of staff, and quite a few of them were more interested in chatting to each other rather than concentrating on the diners.

After our main courses were cleared away we asked for the dessert menu but we waited, and waited... and waited. In the end, we both were so fed up with the service we decided to get the bill. Sophie visited the loo and when the waiter brought the bill over I told him that there was no way I was paying the service charge of 10% as the service was appalling, so he'd better take it off. He apologised (too late, mate) and went back to recalculate the amount, which came to £80. If we'd had good service, and desserts, the bill would have come to over £100, so they lost out!

We made our way through the still-crowded museum and hailed a black cab outside. Sophie's data on her phone had been used up (probably because of our broadband being down at home a couple of weeks ago) so she couldn't summon up an Uber. The black cab was great, though, and cost the same amount to get us back to Euston! We were very lucky to get seats on the 15:49 from Euston, a fast train getting us to Northampton before 5pm. 

Keith met us and drove us home, and when we arrived back, he suggested a drink for an hour. Sophie was hot and sticky so she went for a shower, while Keith and I decided to try the newly-opened White Horse to see what it was like.

We went inside to find a couple of men hogging the bar, and I asked for a large glass of Rosé, seeing as that's what I'd been enjoying in London. I went to sit at the bar stools in the window, and when Keith came over with the drinks he asked me to guess how much they were. I said £12 but he said higher, and I eventually discovered he'd paid £15.30 for just a glass of wine and a pint of lager... I was shocked and we worked out that my glass of Rosé was £10! £10!!!! I could have bought a good bottle for that! 

We really are starting to think it's not worth going out anymore. Along with mediocre food, bad service and sky-high prices, what's the point? Keith had another lager (he didn't fancy any of the ales on offer) and we had a good chat, watching the comings and goings outside the pub. We saw several huge farm vehicles trundling through the village so I suppose the hot, dry weather is enabling them to do the hay-making without fear of getting wet!

Back home, I had a cold shower and Sophie and I enjoyed the remains of a salad, couscous and some fried potatoes. We then relaxed before bed - it had been a long, but enjoyable day, despite the disappointment in the restaurant!

Little annoyances!

Tuesday seems to be a day when lots of people gather in our office and make a lot of noise! As we have six centres in Northampton, as well as a head office, why can't they all bugger off there?!

Today wasn't as busy as yesterday, thank goodness, but we had our fair share of strange phone calls which were frustrating. I took a call at 3:51 from a man who wanted to sign up his son for a membership, so I was out late, which was annoying but it does happen from time to time. He spoke with a heavy French accent, which didn't help!

Back home I hoovered downstairs, and when Sophie returned home we sat at the kitchen island having a good chat. She applied for a job ages ago in London and they contacted her today asking her to go for an interview... why leave it so long? She's in two minds about whether to go (it's on our wedding anniversary) but I urged her to attend as it's all good experience and she has nothing to lose.

Dinner was a delicious barbecue this evening with marinated pork steaks, sausages, new potatoes and salad. It was very windy in the garden and the gas nearly went out while Keith was cooking. It was a warm, humid breeze and we had overcast skies to make it even more sultry!

Manicosity!

Today has been even busier than last Monday with, at one point, 25 calls waiting to be answered. By the end of the day, we'd lost 90 calls, almost a third of the people who had called us! For the first three hours, it was non-stop so very wearying, especially as most of them were about swimming! Arrghh!

At 4pm it was bliss to go home and pootle about. It's been warm again today and Keith had opened all the windows when I returned. I thought something was wrong with one of my rear tyres but Keith had a good look and said it was OK. That's the last thing we need at the moment - any major work! 

I walked into the kitchen to find a load of vegetables on the island. We needed to do something with them, so we changed our meals and decided upon garlicky chicken served with cauliflower, broccoli and carrots and a sauce to liven it up a bit. We'll just have to keep our fingers crossed that it doesn't rain tomorrow evening when we barbecue!

Mum called me to say she'd fallen over today, so that was upsetting. Apparently, she had a black eye and a swollen forehead. It never rains, but it pours... It would be great for something really lovely to happen! I'd even be happy with a good thunderstorm!

After dinner, Sophie and I indulged in a new series - 90 Day Fiance, UK! We don't have a 90-Day Fiance visa program here (or not that I know of) but it was enjoyable nonetheless!