Thankfully, it was back to the sunshine today after the grey of yesterday. Mike had an orthodontist appointment at the ungodly hour of 8.30am...why we booked it for this time I'll never know and it was a bit of a shock when the alarm went off at 7am! We have had it too good!
Unbelievably he was fine which surprised Keith and I as he hasn't been wearing his retainer and on the way to the surgery he was drinking hot chocolate! We returned home to find that Sophie had written the shopping list, which was a huge help and meant we could go and get it over with sooner than we thought.
Mike was working this afternoon and Sophie was meeting friends for lunch in town so we had an afternoon of taxiing them about and sorting out Keith's car insurance which is due at the end of September.
We picked Sophie up from her friend's house in Moulton and the sky looked a bit ominous - a towering bank of cloud that wouldn't have been out of place in Florida. We hadn't been home long when Mike called to ask us to pick him up and he said it was raining!
Sue came around in the evening and bought wine and cheese with her, which was lovely. I restricted myself as Keith was cooking chicken pie for dinner, but I did sample some delicious soft cheese with salmon and enjoyed the Rioja! Unfortunately, while she was here she was stung by a wasp...we could hardly believe it had happened as I'm sure there wasn't one in the conservatory before she arrived and I had blitzed the room the day before. It's a mystery!
After Sue had gone we had dinner, but I have so say my appetite was somewhat diminished. Oh dear!
Thursday, 31 August 2017
Wednesday, 30 August 2017
The spiders have taken over!
I spent all morning and part of the afternoon cleaning the conservatory because while we were on holiday the spiders moved in. There were cobwebs everywhere and red brick dust from where Keith had drilled holes to hang our new batch of hearts. I had just shoved a load of stuff behind the sofa and the room was a complete mess!
Suffice to say, it is now much cleaner, a lot barer and the cobwebs have all gone!
Sophie helped by hoovering the rest of the downstairs rooms and Keith did a pile of ironing. It was the perfect day for it as the weather has been chilly and rainy. I did want to change the room around a bit but in the end we put all the furniture back to how it was, but at least I know there's no dead flies and nasty things lurking behind the sofas!
In the evening we all went to The Lamplighter for dinner and Keith was rather disappointed with the beer on offer. Actually, he was more than disappointed, he said the way the beer was served was "atrocious". The first two pints looked cloudy and flat but he said they tasted OK, at least. I stuck to a bottle of Leffe!
Despite the beer being bad, the food was good and Sophie and I ordered burgers, Mike had nachos with beef and Keith had fish and chips. We enjoyed garlic bread to start and Sophie and I shared a pudding of chocolate brownie with ice-cream. I felt stuffed afterwards. The diet must start soon!
Back home I changed into my cosy onesie and Sophie and I watched the latest episode of 90 Day Fiance. I am beginning to think that this show is very staged and that the people taking part are being told to act in a certain way. This has probably been the case all along and I'm being naive to think that most of it was real!
Before we went to bed we spotted an enormous spider on the landing wall. Sophie very kindly trapped it in a pint glass (yes, it was that big) and we took it outside. I most definitely would not have slept if I'd suspected it could come into the bedroom overnight!
Suffice to say, it is now much cleaner, a lot barer and the cobwebs have all gone!
Sophie helped by hoovering the rest of the downstairs rooms and Keith did a pile of ironing. It was the perfect day for it as the weather has been chilly and rainy. I did want to change the room around a bit but in the end we put all the furniture back to how it was, but at least I know there's no dead flies and nasty things lurking behind the sofas!
In the evening we all went to The Lamplighter for dinner and Keith was rather disappointed with the beer on offer. Actually, he was more than disappointed, he said the way the beer was served was "atrocious". The first two pints looked cloudy and flat but he said they tasted OK, at least. I stuck to a bottle of Leffe!
Despite the beer being bad, the food was good and Sophie and I ordered burgers, Mike had nachos with beef and Keith had fish and chips. We enjoyed garlic bread to start and Sophie and I shared a pudding of chocolate brownie with ice-cream. I felt stuffed afterwards. The diet must start soon!
Back home I changed into my cosy onesie and Sophie and I watched the latest episode of 90 Day Fiance. I am beginning to think that this show is very staged and that the people taking part are being told to act in a certain way. This has probably been the case all along and I'm being naive to think that most of it was real!
Before we went to bed we spotted an enormous spider on the landing wall. Sophie very kindly trapped it in a pint glass (yes, it was that big) and we took it outside. I most definitely would not have slept if I'd suspected it could come into the bedroom overnight!
Tuesday, 29 August 2017
An expensive day!
Sophie was working today but before we dropped her off we had to take my car in for its MOT. I certainly feel like I'm back to reality now!
We took Sophie to work and then collected Mike from his friend's house. He was very weary looking again and it was good he didn't have to go to work today!
Back home I caught up with some stuff on the computer and before I knew it, it was time to go and pick up Sophie from work. We had a coffee at Costa and then made our way down to the wine shop again as I'd said I'd pop in and see Jonathan. We had a good chat and tasted some wines and they told me they'd run out of The Ned Pinot Grigio! Oh no! We were going to buy a few bottles! We called into Jones's on the way home and I spent only a couple of pounds on some bird food.
It turned out to be a good thing they'd run out and I curbed my spending at Jones's because when I arrived back home my car was ready and it cost me £55 for the MOT! That seems to have risen substantially! The children and I then had to rush off to the dentist for our six month check and although both Sophie and Mike were fine, I had to have a filling! The first ever! I was mortified and it cost me the grand sum of £56 for the privilege even though my appointment isn't for another three weeks! So that was over £100 spent today on horrible things! I was not amused.
And to cap it all the weather has changed for the worse today and it's been a chilly dark evening. I'm so glad we made the most of the sun over the weekend, but what a change from last night when we were sitting in the pub garden enjoying ourselves in the sunshine!
Keith went off to see Sileby play in the evening and wore: jeans, a tee-shirt, a body warmer, his coat and a hat. It's not that cold!
We took Sophie to work and then collected Mike from his friend's house. He was very weary looking again and it was good he didn't have to go to work today!
Back home I caught up with some stuff on the computer and before I knew it, it was time to go and pick up Sophie from work. We had a coffee at Costa and then made our way down to the wine shop again as I'd said I'd pop in and see Jonathan. We had a good chat and tasted some wines and they told me they'd run out of The Ned Pinot Grigio! Oh no! We were going to buy a few bottles! We called into Jones's on the way home and I spent only a couple of pounds on some bird food.
It turned out to be a good thing they'd run out and I curbed my spending at Jones's because when I arrived back home my car was ready and it cost me £55 for the MOT! That seems to have risen substantially! The children and I then had to rush off to the dentist for our six month check and although both Sophie and Mike were fine, I had to have a filling! The first ever! I was mortified and it cost me the grand sum of £56 for the privilege even though my appointment isn't for another three weeks! So that was over £100 spent today on horrible things! I was not amused.
And to cap it all the weather has changed for the worse today and it's been a chilly dark evening. I'm so glad we made the most of the sun over the weekend, but what a change from last night when we were sitting in the pub garden enjoying ourselves in the sunshine!
Keith went off to see Sileby play in the evening and wore: jeans, a tee-shirt, a body warmer, his coat and a hat. It's not that cold!
Monday, 28 August 2017
The wrong choice!
We realised today that we have been on holiday for four weeks! And on each of those days we have had lovely weather. I dread to think how we'll feel when the rain and cloud make a return!
After a very lazy start we popped over to Tesco and called in to see Mum and Dad on the way. My Dad has a new phone so Sophie helped him set up all the contact numbers. Let's hope he gets on better with this one!
Tesco was very busy so we sped around and got out of there as quickly as we could! It's not my favourite way to spend a Bank Holiday Monday! Back home we had some lunch and then I suggested to Sophie that we go out as I really didn't want to waste the lovely day. We headed to the garden centre at Hardingstone as I had got it into my head that I would like to buy a palm tree, to remind me of Florida.
Naturally, the garden centre didn't have any, but they did have a banana tree exactly like the one we had in the front garden in Naples. I don't think it was for sale, though! From there we went to Homesense and I bought various bits and bobs, including a lovely scented candle. Sophie treated me to a peach and green tea lemonade in Starbucks, but we both agreed that we preferred the drinks at the US cafe.
Today has been warm and sunny again with the temperature around 85f. We returned home and I suggested to Keith that we go out for a drink before dinner. Mike was off with his mates again so just the three of us walked up to the pub where it was still busy with the beer festival. I made the mistake of choosing a pint of raspberry cider which was sickly sweet. Sophie followed my lead and was as disappointed with it as I was. Keith had one of the stronger beers but it was flat, which he hates. I think the beers and ciders had had their day so we swapped to wine for our second drink and Keith had a pint of lager.
There was a nice atmosphere in the garden, though, and we enjoyed sitting in the sunshine and having a chat. I have vowed to make the most of this gorgeous weather before it changes!
After a very lazy start we popped over to Tesco and called in to see Mum and Dad on the way. My Dad has a new phone so Sophie helped him set up all the contact numbers. Let's hope he gets on better with this one!
Tesco was very busy so we sped around and got out of there as quickly as we could! It's not my favourite way to spend a Bank Holiday Monday! Back home we had some lunch and then I suggested to Sophie that we go out as I really didn't want to waste the lovely day. We headed to the garden centre at Hardingstone as I had got it into my head that I would like to buy a palm tree, to remind me of Florida.
Naturally, the garden centre didn't have any, but they did have a banana tree exactly like the one we had in the front garden in Naples. I don't think it was for sale, though! From there we went to Homesense and I bought various bits and bobs, including a lovely scented candle. Sophie treated me to a peach and green tea lemonade in Starbucks, but we both agreed that we preferred the drinks at the US cafe.
Today has been warm and sunny again with the temperature around 85f. We returned home and I suggested to Keith that we go out for a drink before dinner. Mike was off with his mates again so just the three of us walked up to the pub where it was still busy with the beer festival. I made the mistake of choosing a pint of raspberry cider which was sickly sweet. Sophie followed my lead and was as disappointed with it as I was. Keith had one of the stronger beers but it was flat, which he hates. I think the beers and ciders had had their day so we swapped to wine for our second drink and Keith had a pint of lager.
There was a nice atmosphere in the garden, though, and we enjoyed sitting in the sunshine and having a chat. I have vowed to make the most of this gorgeous weather before it changes!
Sunday, 27 August 2017
Quiet Sunday
We've had a very quiet day today with long lie-ins for Keith and Sophie who seem to be trying to catch up on some sleep!
Mike called me at about 9.30am to go and pick him up and Keith blearily came with me so he could buy a newspaper. As soon as we got back home I tackled the back garden and mowed the lawn - the grass was very long so I can only assume we had a fair bit of rain while we were away.
We took Mike to work at midday and he looked very tired indeed. He'd stayed up all night to watch the big boxing match so he hadn't had a lot of sleep! Back home I worked on the front garden while Sophie kept me company and then we popped to the Co-op in Broughton to buy some beer and cold drinks. I ate lunch in the garden with Sophie and Monty but by mid-afternoon it was really quite warm so we moved indoors! No pool to cool off here!
Collecting Mike from work was a bit of a trial as when we arrived at 6pm the cafe was all locked up. We tried to get in touch with him, but as usual, his phone went straight to voice-mail. However, he hadn't wandered off as we had thought but was still at work! The beautiful weather we've had today meant they were very busy so he was still clearing up.
We returned home where I had a welcome drink and watched a programme about buying houses on the beach in the US...how I wish I was able to buy one as well!
Mike called me at about 9.30am to go and pick him up and Keith blearily came with me so he could buy a newspaper. As soon as we got back home I tackled the back garden and mowed the lawn - the grass was very long so I can only assume we had a fair bit of rain while we were away.
We took Mike to work at midday and he looked very tired indeed. He'd stayed up all night to watch the big boxing match so he hadn't had a lot of sleep! Back home I worked on the front garden while Sophie kept me company and then we popped to the Co-op in Broughton to buy some beer and cold drinks. I ate lunch in the garden with Sophie and Monty but by mid-afternoon it was really quite warm so we moved indoors! No pool to cool off here!
Collecting Mike from work was a bit of a trial as when we arrived at 6pm the cafe was all locked up. We tried to get in touch with him, but as usual, his phone went straight to voice-mail. However, he hadn't wandered off as we had thought but was still at work! The beautiful weather we've had today meant they were very busy so he was still clearing up.
We returned home where I had a welcome drink and watched a programme about buying houses on the beach in the US...how I wish I was able to buy one as well!
Saturday, 26 August 2017
Sunny skies!
Sophie went back to work this morning and after dropping her off I called into Waitrose to buy some biscuits for the boys at the wine shop. I'd promised I would go and see them after the holiday and see how the store had changed as they'd had new shelving fitted in the middle of August.
I struck up a very friendly conversation with a man in Waitrose (he was a bit dishy!) and bought a box of Fox's chocolate biscuits. Keith stayed in the car while I went in for a chat but Jonathan was out doing deliveries so I said I would go back next week for a good natter!
The weather this morning was a bit disappointing but it cleared up and the sun came out in the afternoon. I washed my dusty car and at 3pm Keith and I walked up to the Beer Festival in the village with Richard and Michelle and Sue and Paul.
It had turned out to be a glorious day and we found a table in the pub garden with an umbrella. Last year we'd had a huge storm in the afternoon and it was lucky we were inside the marquee! I started with a raspberry cider while Keith found a strong beer to enjoy!
It was lovely to sit in the sun with a drink, but the wasps were a bit annoying! They had obviously been attracted by all the different drinks on the table, a lot of them containing fruit. Mike walked up to join us but we had to leave at about 5pm as we needed to collect Sophie from work. I didn't mind, though, as the music had started up, making conversation impossible!
We walked home and discovered that Mike had emptied his suitcase and thrown all his clothes at the bottom of the stairs to be washed...I suppose it was a lot easier than putting them away in his wardrobe! I wasn't very happy about it, but over the course of the evening I managed to get most of it done on our "refresh" wash. Boys!!
He wasn't even about to help as he was off out to a party so we picked Sophie up from work and I dropped him off near college. When Sophie and I returned home we found Keith asleep on the sofa...that beer must have been very strong!
I struck up a very friendly conversation with a man in Waitrose (he was a bit dishy!) and bought a box of Fox's chocolate biscuits. Keith stayed in the car while I went in for a chat but Jonathan was out doing deliveries so I said I would go back next week for a good natter!
The weather this morning was a bit disappointing but it cleared up and the sun came out in the afternoon. I washed my dusty car and at 3pm Keith and I walked up to the Beer Festival in the village with Richard and Michelle and Sue and Paul.
It had turned out to be a glorious day and we found a table in the pub garden with an umbrella. Last year we'd had a huge storm in the afternoon and it was lucky we were inside the marquee! I started with a raspberry cider while Keith found a strong beer to enjoy!
It was lovely to sit in the sun with a drink, but the wasps were a bit annoying! They had obviously been attracted by all the different drinks on the table, a lot of them containing fruit. Mike walked up to join us but we had to leave at about 5pm as we needed to collect Sophie from work. I didn't mind, though, as the music had started up, making conversation impossible!
We walked home and discovered that Mike had emptied his suitcase and thrown all his clothes at the bottom of the stairs to be washed...I suppose it was a lot easier than putting them away in his wardrobe! I wasn't very happy about it, but over the course of the evening I managed to get most of it done on our "refresh" wash. Boys!!
He wasn't even about to help as he was off out to a party so we picked Sophie up from work and I dropped him off near college. When Sophie and I returned home we found Keith asleep on the sofa...that beer must have been very strong!
Friday, 25 August 2017
Saying thank you!
We all had to be up fairly early this morning as Mike had to enrol at college. We dropped him off and then went to do our shopping, but before going to Tesco I popped home as the vision in my right eye was blurry...
When I took my contact lens out I discovered why...last night I thought I'd taken both lenses out and discarded them as I'd had them in while we were on holiday. However, I obviously hadn't taken out my right lens and had put new one in on the top! What a twit! I had been a little worried about why I couldn't see properly but at least the reason was a good one!
We traipsed off to Aldi and Tesco and it was hard work, with lots of people wandering about aimlessly. The supermarkets were so quieter back in the US. I'm beginning to have the holiday blues!
Mum and Dad popped around in the afternoon for a cup of tea and were delighted with their presents. Sue also came to see us very briefly so we could thank her for looking after Monty while we were away.
Luckily, the weather has been fine, dry and sunny today so that has helped. I dread to think how we would have felt if, after three weeks of sunshine and blue skies, we came back to rain and cloud!
Keith went to the pub in the evening and Sophie and I picked Mike up from Moulton where he'd been seeing friends. I think he missed his mates while we were away so he is now intent on catching up with them! I have no doubt that I'll be ferrying him about everywhere during the next week or so! He joined Keith at the pub for some long overdue male bonding!
Sophie and I went to see Richard and Michelle when we got home and gave them their bottle of Champagne for looking after the cat. They said they'd really enjoyed feeding him, and more importantly, giving him lots of cuddles!
When I took my contact lens out I discovered why...last night I thought I'd taken both lenses out and discarded them as I'd had them in while we were on holiday. However, I obviously hadn't taken out my right lens and had put new one in on the top! What a twit! I had been a little worried about why I couldn't see properly but at least the reason was a good one!
We traipsed off to Aldi and Tesco and it was hard work, with lots of people wandering about aimlessly. The supermarkets were so quieter back in the US. I'm beginning to have the holiday blues!
Mum and Dad popped around in the afternoon for a cup of tea and were delighted with their presents. Sue also came to see us very briefly so we could thank her for looking after Monty while we were away.
Luckily, the weather has been fine, dry and sunny today so that has helped. I dread to think how we would have felt if, after three weeks of sunshine and blue skies, we came back to rain and cloud!
Keith went to the pub in the evening and Sophie and I picked Mike up from Moulton where he'd been seeing friends. I think he missed his mates while we were away so he is now intent on catching up with them! I have no doubt that I'll be ferrying him about everywhere during the next week or so! He joined Keith at the pub for some long overdue male bonding!
Sophie and I went to see Richard and Michelle when we got home and gave them their bottle of Champagne for looking after the cat. They said they'd really enjoyed feeding him, and more importantly, giving him lots of cuddles!
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