Garden delights!

This morning I decided to tackle the gardening as it was long overdue. I trimmed the front verge and tidied up the border, but the bushes have spread so much, there wasn't that much for me to do to be honest. I'll be really glad when the large Hypericum at the front has completely filled in all the gaps!

In the back garden Keith and I cut down two of our big bushes at the back by our fence which made them look a lot neater. Everything seems to have grown so much this year! The weather has been gorgeous today - nicely warm with a delicous breeze.

Mum and I went off to Beckworth in the afternoon for a cup of tea and a mooch to look at the plants. I managed to buy a few more - some geraniums and some very striking daisy-type flowers...

I couldn't resist them as they'll look great in some long troughs I have. I managed to avoid the temptation to buy some wine and we returned home with our purchases before I went to pick Sophie up from work. She said she was in urgent need of a Creamy Cooler so we went off to Riverside where I bought her the drink before having a quick look at the VW dealership. The place was closed so we didn't have any salesmen chasing after us and we had a look at two Polos. Keith came with us but then said he fancied a different make of car!

A very relaxed evening followed: Keith and I had a couple of games of cards in the conservatory with a drink and then it was a hot curry for dinner. Phew!

Below is a photo from Friday of Sophie enjoying her Caiprinha:

Easing slowly into the weekend...

I woke up this morning with a bit of a sore head! Leaving Keith in bed I went downstairs, took some Nurofen with a strong cup of coffee and gradually returned to normality!

The weather this morning has been a bit grim so it was a good time to tackle some housework and then Keith and I went for a walk over the fields. Keith felt a bit fragile as well and thought that a ramble would clear his head. Luckily, the rain held off as we walked although it was warm and muggy.

We met Liam on the way back who was attempting both sides of the reservoir (the nature side and the public side). It's a long walk, and probably about 14 miles in all so we both thought he was very brave, especially after a heavy night!

After our walk, I watched some of the Tour de France which is taking place in Yorkshire at the moment. It was very strange seeing the local landmarks described in French on the television! At 3pm we left to go to the gym for a much-needed swim and the pool was much quieter than last week despite the spa being very busy.

After getting home the sky cleared and we sat in the garden for a while with Monty and soaked up the late afternoon sunshine. I was really glad I'd done some exercise today and my foot hadn't hurt at all, so let's hope it's back to normal service!

Friday frolics!

Today has been very relaxed and enjoyable - just as a day off should be!

Sophie and I went off to Milton Keynes mid morning and I managed to get my holiday shopping off to a good start by buying a lovely top that Sophie spotted, and two bras. We had a quick break in M&S for something to eat which would keep us going until we had lunch later at Las Iguanas and then resumed our shopping.

I needed a new swimsuit and I managed to find a lovely pair of white linen trousers and a floaty kaftan top to wear around the pool. After we'd shopped in M&S we went to New Look and Sophie bought herself a lovely dress for her holiday while I spotted a pair of wedge heel sandals.

By 2pm we were all shopped out so we took our bags back to the car and walked to Las Iguanas which was about ten minutes away. The streets were thronged with office workers enjoying their lunch hour in the sunshine, so it was a very pleasant walk and much better than taking the car and trying to find a space.

Las Iguanas was quiet and we chose to sit inside as although the weather was sunny and warm, it was very breezy. We enjoyed a lovely meal - nachos with chicken to start followed by flatbread stuffed with chicken and salad and served with curly fries. My demon of a daughter persuaded me to have ice cream for dessert so we were stuffed when we got up to go home! I'm so glad we decided to shop first!

The M1 was at a standstill so we drove back to Northampton via Newport Pagnell and Olney. It made a pleasant change from hurtling down the motorway!

In the evening we went out for a drink with Sarah and Liam to the Malt Shovel in town. After the lovely dry weather we'd had all day the rain arrived just as we were setting out...typical! The pub was very busy but we managed to grab a table and had a great evening with the men enjoying a succession of beers, some of them with very strange names indeed! I stuck to wine as I thought that drinking gassy Belgian beers on a full stomach would not be a good idea!

We invited our friends in for a nightcap when we got home and just had the one whiskey...I think it was a good idea as I already felt pretty tipsy!

Saying goodbye...

Today has been a lovely day, even though it was sad saying goodbye to my Uncle who is flying off to Cyprus tomorrow, to live there for good.

Mum and I intended to leave work at 9am but I knew that was never going to happen as we had a Pre-school group suddenly arrive and lots of other customers as well. If Dad had been on his own, as we'd planned, he would not have been very happy!

We had a great journey down to Kent until we reached the Dartford Bridge where the traffic all slowed down. Unfortunately, I chose the wrong lane to be in at the toll as the person at the head of the queue had fallen foul of the machine and the barrier was refusing to move! I changed lanes, we moved off and we were soon on the A2 heading towards Herne Bay where we'd arranged to meet my Uncle.

It was the most glorious of days - cloudless blue skies, a temperature of about 27c and a light breeze. The light at the coast is always gorgeous and while waiting for my Uncle to finish doing his business at the bank, we strolled down to the front and had a quick look at the sea. The pebbly beach was busy with people sunbathing and even a few swimmers were out in the water taking advantage of the warm weather.

After meeting my Uncle we drove to Canterbury where he said goodbye to his car at the Kia dealership and then we headed back to Herne Bay so he could deposit his cheque at the bank. We drove through some gorgeous villages and although I understood his reasons for moving abroad, I decided that I would find it almost impossible to leave our green and pleasant land.

We had lunch in Herne Bay and then I drove us all to my Uncle's home in Reculver. He's been living in a static caravan for the last few years and this had also been sold, so it was just a question of saying our goodbyes. He gave us some glasses to take home (a Peroni beer glass and some whisky tumblers), a half bottle of vodka for me and a full bottle of Grants Whisky for Mum, so we didn't do too badly! I also took advantage of a full bottle of Ouzo that he didn't want - I'm sure I can give it a good home!

We promised to keep in touch and I think Mum and Dad are hoping to visit him in September. I took a photo and then we said our goodbyes...

We had a very good journey home, apart from the usual stickiness at the Dartford tolls and Keith called me to say that he'd gone to the pub as he'd had a busy day and was dying for something long, cold and wet. I dropped Mum off at about 7pm and joined him in the pub for a glass of wine. Mikey also popped in as he was roaming about the village! It was a lovely end to a great day!

Scots v Irish

Today has been a long, slow, hot day at work and I'm really glad I have the next couple of days off! Sophie was in with Keith and I today and the poor girl was bored on Reception...but at least she was earning some money for her travels! 

I helped Keith tidy up the grass in the car park and in our garden first thing, before it grew too warm. Our little garden area was looking very untidy indeed, so we cut the grass, I wiped down the furniture and threw out some old chairs that had been left in the corner. By the time we finished it looked so much better and I didn't mind customers going out there to enjoy the sun!

We were at work until the bitter end again today and to make matters worse, we had to do the cleaning before we left as our daily cleaner is off to Egypt tomorrow! I did some hoovering but there wasn't that much to be done so we left at about 6.30pm and gave Polly a lift home. When I got in I poured myself a glass of Leffe and sat with Keith in the conservatory for a chat before we made dinner. Both of us had had a busy day and it was bliss to sit and relax for half an hour!

After dinner I suggested to Keith that we sample the new Irish Whiskey I bought in Duncan's shop on Saturday. I thought it was delicious, really smooth and soft and Keith liked it as well. However, when we poured a small measure of Bushmills, the difference was startling! Keith said that the Teeling was like a woman, whereas the Bushmills was like a man! I had to agree with him!

We didn't stop at the two Irish Whiskies though...we sampled my other four Scottish Malts which included Talisker, Jura, Auchentoshan and my Highland Park. My favourite was still the Irish Teeling with the Jura a close second. Keith loved the Auchentoshan which he'd bought for me, so maybe that's a gift idea for the future!

Miscommunication!

It was a good job we had another school visit at work today as otherwise we would have been very quiet indeed! Needless to say the weather has been beautiful again - very warm and sunny with almost cloudless blue skies. Sophie came in to work and helped Polly at lunchtime as the school were eating with us, rather than bring in a packed lunch.

In the afternoon Dad, Sophie and I popped over to the bank to sort out Sophie's new current account. Mum and Dad had set up a savings account for her (and Mikey) some time ago and we needed to transfer her savings into her new account. We explained very clearly what we wanted to do but the teller somehow misunderstood us completely (or wasn't listening properly) as she promptly transferred money from Dad's current account into Sophie's savings account so she had double the amount of money! When we said this was wrong, she accused us of not being clear about what we wanted!

Eventually, after about twenty minutes and getting supervisors involved, it was all sorted out and Sophie's money was in her account. Back at work, she ate into it by taking out travel insurance for her holiday to Barcelona, which is rapidly approaching!

We were at work until past 6pm tonight which was a bit of a pain, but I've booked Friday off to go and do some shopping with Sophie and take her out for lunch!

Bucket List update

I ticked off two more things on my Bucket List in June...

 1.  Visit Boughton House near Kettering

2.  Watch Mad Men from the very beginning

3.  Go somewhere I haven't been before, once a month, right up until December. Sophie and I visited the Buddhist Centre in Kelmarsh on Saturday 28 June


4.  Write a story!

5.  Grow a vegetable from seed.

6.  Go fishing

7.  Cook something different, once a month, right up until December. I made Gordon Ramsay's Pulled Pork with Chipotle Mayonnaise on the 15 June, for Father's Day.

8.  Try my hand at making my own wine.



I thnk today, at midday, we are officially in the very middle of the year!