Good morning!
Hi to Trudie and Sue, my new followers - thanks ladies.
Over the last couple of days I have had chance to look at and be inspired by lots of lovely new blogs. The reason I have been able to do this is because my two gorgeous boys have been away. But more of that later.
Some of the blogs I have found to read are on my 'Blogs To Inspire Me and You' list. These include Our Quiet Life In Suffolk, Frugally Challenged and Shoestring Cottage - Frugal Living but others I have not listed yet. Also I have been commenting on lots of things but now forgetting on which ones so struggling to see if anybody has replied to my ramblings!
The reason I've been able to do this is the boys have been with the Gramps for a whole week, hubs has been working and I have had oodles of me time. But, this morning hubs has headed off to North Wales to bring my boys home!Woop woop!
We have lots of things to do when they get back in readiness for our week away at Nana's in Menorca, leaving home very early on Wednesday for a 7am flight. We need a trip to the barbers as their hair will be sooo long now and I've washing to do because some of their fav clothes and things went with them for the week. I have pulled out the suitcase in readiness for packing - just taking one of 25k between us as we can use Nana's washing machine, fab, and hopefully bring home some clean things like last time!
Ok, think I should go now as I need to put on a wash load as it looks like quite good drying weather.
Catch you later.xx
Yesterday hubs and I, well mainly hubs, gave the shed/garage a good tidy out in readiness for whenever we move. We took a trailer full of junk to the council tip and it was great to get rid of it all.
However, I did find a few useful items which I have put to one side. Look see!
This is called a Swift Chopper and I have already tried it out chopping carrots to hide from the boys in a lasagne I made this morning.
Please undestand my boys love their veggies but always good to get more inside them!
Next is a lovely little bowl which, as you can see, is quite teeny tiny. However it matches the larger versions that I already own.
These two items will be very useful. The little measuring gadget will let us know we are not over packing for our holiday, a week yesterday to Menorca. eeek!, and the tape dispenser will help with the paking when we finally move. You cannot FAIL to be impressed by my sense of optimism!
Finally I re-disovered a favourite plant pot holder which I had forgotten about.
All in all a good rummage along with the much needed clear out!Ok, I need to get on and finsih my ironing so all I have to do after lunch is the lasttidying for the viewing.
Hope to catch up with you later.x
This is a super quick email to say thanks to everybody who has visited my blog in the last couple of days. I have had more lovely people read about my ramblings than ever before!
I have to thank Sue at Our Quiet Life In Suffolk. I have seen a lot of people coming to me via her lovely blog so thanks again,Sue.x
I just wanted to take this opportunity to remind you that you can easily recieve my ramblings straight into your email inbox by popping your email address into the Follow my rambings by email gadget. This is great if you don't quite have time to read my posts and you can then do this at your leisure. It takes two minutes.
Hope you continue to visit and see what I get up to in the coming days.xx
Just a very quick post after lunch in between the regular chores of the day.
We had a very positive viewing last Saturday and then we heard from the agent yesterday that they would like to come and look again on Thursday evening! Eeek!
Once again we are in clean, tidy, cushion-plump mode ready for the visit. My toilets have never been so clean, really.
It is always so very tempting to get over excited at this stage. You always assume people are extrememely interested if they come back a second time. However, I have come to the conclusion that, as much as people like a property, it is quite often extenuating circumstances which mean they do not proceed. This could be because grandparents are not close enough to help with child care, there are concerns about catchment areas or close proximity to school choices and, of course, financial setbacks.
So with these things in mind we remain positive, but are always aware that nothing is done and dusted until we sign on that dotted line.
Wish us luck!xx
This morning I've dusted the living room, cleaned the downstairs loo, ordered a book I want to borrow from the library and read the electricity meter - and that was all before the school run! I wanted to come home and have my coffee and breakfast, as I am doing now as normal, then get onto a task that has been driving me cerrr-azy because....
we decided we would get away for a week to hub's mum's apartment in Menorca so managed at the weekend to get a hire car and flights for us all for the week for a bit over £660. I wasn't that bothered about going to start with but as we talked it over more I realised that just because we still want to sell the house everything else doesn't have to come to a standstill.
Things seem to be going our way a little more as we have finally sold the Spitfire. This means hubs can start to sort out the shed, now that he has more room, and all his huge collection of tools and stuff can be sorted through, packed and be ready for when we DO move. We just want to be ready, although he was a bit upset yesterday when he realised I'd already packed the garlic squisher!
The task I'm having a bit of trouble with is the flight confirmation print out. My printer is NOT playing ball but I will get it sorted today then I have everything ready; insurance, airport taxi, dog care (thanks to Grandad) so just the spends to buy. When it comes to packing we are going capsule with just 20k between the four of us plus our hand luggage in the form of three back packs and my handbag. The beauty of using Nana's washing machine is that most clothes come home clean ready for the ironing bag or simply to be put away!
Quite excited really but only going for a week as we've normally had enough by ten days away, at the most. We like to get out and do stuff as are not lie on the beach/by the pool all day people and the boys like to go on little adventures. Can't wait for a boat trip - have to have a boat trip - and I have to admit to having a bit of a thing about European supermarkets. I think that stems back to a loooog time ago when I use to rep in Spain and loved mooching around the bread and fish departments.
Ok, well I'd better get on with getting the flight paper work sorted out or we are going nowhere!
Take care.xxx
I have been surfing t'internet a little this morning looking for something which I didn't think I'd find but I did find it in an archive post..? Whilst doing this I found an online chat I myself had some time ago with Jocelyn of The Reading Residence where I was asked about why I wrote a blog. This got me thinking why I still do.
I would never consider myself narcissistic but I do love showing things I've made and rambling on aboout nothing much most of the time! However, I am caught in a situation where I deleted my Facebook account, NEVER to return, because I was up to my neck in other people's life and stuff and frankly I'd had enough, but I still like to share to a certain degree.
I think I manage to get the balance right because I am not super regular at posting, although have done so more in the last few weeks than in a long time. I sometimes look at the content of other peoples' blogs plus how much traffic they get and think that mine is sooo boring. But, I don't promote it hugely as I no longer have a Twitter account (got sick of that too!) and rely on people stumbling upon it I suppose. I don't mind really as it is just fun to look back on the memories, experiences, makes and bakes in the last few years since I have been blogging.
Therefore, if you are reading this and enjoying it, thank you, and if you tell somebody else about it, fantastic, but right now I'm enjoying that which I continue to do firstly for myself and maybe for others, too.xx
10 years ago this July 4 hubs and I returned to work after our fabulous wedding in Cyprus, full of the joys of new marriage and plans for the future when we moved from London to Chester.
I travelled to work on the tube two days later, 10 years ago today. Arriving at Earls Court we were directed up to street level but we didn't know why. I had to find my way to Putney and eventually got on a bus. Whilst travelling to work I managed to hear Sally Traffic on Radio Two with news that there had been some major disruption on the tube network.
By the time I reached the office everybody was glued to the internet at their desks and news had begun filtering through about the terrorist attacks. Not much work was done that day and by lunch time we were told to try and make our way home. It was suggested you somehow didn't get on a tube or a bus but getting around London without either is difficult. I figured out a route, all be it very long, by walking some distance and then managing to get a bus back to Deptford.
Looking back I remember in the coming days I was very pleased that I knew by August Bank holiday we would be settled in Chester with our new resaurant business, but that is a whole other story.
Thinking of all those affected by the events of that day.
