useless!

The camera is in use in our home one way or another most days. Except yesterday. I forgot to take a single photo yesterday. And yesterday was an important day.
It was 2 years ago we all travelled home together and our family of 3 became our family of 4.
So 7th April is known as S Day in our home and we try and do something nice to celebrate. I began checking the internet a couple of weeks ago for activites during the Easter school holiday which may appeal and suggested going to Portsmouth for the day. There was a special children only disco in the afternoon. S could dance away and play games for a few hours to her heart's content.
'No thank you mummy' she replied.
'What would you like to do?'
'See Auntie C and go to the park please.'
So that's what we did.
Minus the camera!
So instead of a photo from yesterday here's one from 2 years ago.



Easter Monday we had our egg trail for the children. Clues were given out to find the chocolate stash hidden in the house and garden.
Love this photo of them. T was appalled that we had put (wrapped) chocolates on top of the compost. Nothing was going to stop S from adding to her haul!

This pot held some mini eggs, my daffodils are nearly out.

And S modelling the final 2 eggs.

Tuesday I took the children over to Hythe, which is a 12 minute ferry ride away. They really enjoyed the trip on the water and wanted it to go on for longer. Once off the ferry you can either walk up the pier or catch the world's oldest pier train, it's listed as such in the Guinness Book of Records.

Once in the little village centre we tried all the suggested places listed on the website to pick up a copy of Healthy walks around Hythe. I would have printed on off before leaving home but we are out of ink. Unfortunately no-one had a copy.

Not even here at the local council office. Isn't that a pretty place to work.

Especially being able to look out the window at these gardens.

We did have a wander round of sorts, we visited the playarea, found a charity shop or two to mooch in and had a very unhealthy lunch of chips.

The children want to visit again in the summer. Next time we are taking G, a picnic and a homeprinted copy of the walking guide.

a good friday

A quiet indoorsy day for us.

Which involved...............


Hanging up some Easter decorations

Making some bunnies to give as our version of an Easter card

Drinking coffee and eating hot cross buns with chocolate chunks in

Making the masks I received from Lydia in her fabulous giveaway.

Although I think G and I possibly make the 2 least cute spring lambs ever!

But these 2 are definitely cute, biased though I may be!

Happy Easter to everyone who pops by here.

cut outs

When I was a young girl I spent HOURS and HOURS playing games with what was known in our home as cut outs.
Old magazine and clothing catalogues of my mums would be trawled through and cut up. My aunt used to bring us old Simplicity and Style pattern books from the shop she worked in and me and my sisters would cut out hundreds of the 'models' and play fashion parades giving a running commentary on the clothes as they were paraded up and down the 'catwalk'. Or beauty contests where we would make up names and jobs and hobbies for each contestant.
Also making collages on with a specific theme. I remember I did one for school on the 5 senses, all lips and eyes and hands.
Gluing, cutting and sticking.
Hours of fun and happy memories.

I still enjoy cutting out pictures. Sometimes they have been useful for projects that the children have had to go at school. Sometimes they get pasted in my inspiration book. Mostly though they have just accumulated into a big fat pile.
On Monday I was feeling a bit bleurgh. Rubbish weather and a few other issues that combined to a make me a bit low. As I was doing the housework I noticed the box under the bed where all my cutouts are kept and decided to have a rummage.

Oh I'm so glad I did. It was very soothing. Out came the glue and a small piece of cardboard and I spent a very happy hour absorbed in choosing a selection of pictures and words.

It's sat on my mantlepiece in the dining room and everytime I have come into the room and seen the dotty, stripey, hearty, holly loveliness of it all it has made me smile.

Saturday

A few weeks ago G's mum rang and asked if he and T would take part in a sponsored relay swim to help raise money for a Parkinson's charity. It was being orgainsed by the co-ordinator of her local carer's support group. Of course they said, but unfortunately I have developed a cold in the last couple of days and yesterday G woke up with a sore throat and so was concerned I may have passed the lurgy onto him. With a very exciting event to look forward to today, COME ON YOU REDS, he didn't want to take the chance and feel yucky today. So we watched on and cheered very loudly as T took is place in the team, which consisted of 7 others, all adults! They swam for 55 minutes and completed 113 lengths between them.
So proud of our T for taking part.





The event was held at a private girls school in Salisbury. I nipped out about halfway through T's swim as I needed some fresh air, it was getting a bit hot and stuffy for me, and I snapped a couple of things that caught my eye.



The entrance looked very attractive

Love the old windows

This tree in the grounds was planted in 1991 by Diana, Princess of Wales.

And I found out, just as I wandering back to the pool, that the building you can see through the trees in the background is the arts block and in there they were hosting an art and textile exhibition. Unfortunately there was no time for a nose round.

Once back in town we stopped off at South Western House. It's now been converted into apartments but in a previous life it was a hotel. I have always loved it, but never been inside, until now.

The city was holding a free event to celebrate The Lost Hour ,what with the clocks springing forward. We had to book tickets for The Last Voyage and the plan had been to sample more of what was on offer but due to colds and tiredness it didn't pan out that way.

We turned up at 7pm to be shown into the bar next door where we were chatted to by a tipsy young woman. She looked very elegant perched on a bar stool, sipping gin from her tall stemmed glass and wearing navy blue 50's style cocktail dress. She gosspied about being part of the entourage staying there with Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton. I think she may have been portraying Vivien Leigh because of few remarks she made, how very glamourous! Then it was on to a room upstairs for a briefing from an American solider who told us that in the next room Roosevelt and Churchill were sat making plans for Operation Overlord. WWe had to show our passes, which we were given at the door, to indicate we had security clearnace to be there!

Finally back down in the reception was a very dapper looking gentleman impeccably attired in his evening suit who had stayed in the hotel before sailing off the next day on the Titanic. He told us how he had chatted with Captain Smith, the Astors, Mr Andrews and Mr Ismay and then he relayed the sights and sounds he had heard the night the unsinkable ship sunk.

coats and gloves

I became quite optimistic about the weather after our lovely sunny Sunday.
But today we are back to the grey and wet.
Maybe I should keep these mittens I bought from Saturday's table top sale to hand rather than packing them away to await the wintery months.
They have never been worn. Isn't the heart pattern sweet.

Confession time. Nothing too dreadful though.
I own two coats I have never worn.
Why haven't I worn them?
Because when I bought them both, from different charity shops, they each had a button missing.
And they have sat in the wardrobe waiting for me to get organised enough to buy suitable new ones.
I finally sorted that issue out on Saturday afternoon.
The red coat, owned 3 years, is having the plain brown buttons replaced by much prettier ones.
And the floral coat, owned 20 months, is having the fabric covered ones replaced by equally floral pretties.

Now all I have to do is get them sewn on.

Maybe that'll be a job for this evening. Once S is in bed and G and T have gone out to watch the footie.

Or maybe I'll take a leaf out of Malcolm's book and get snuggly with the duvet.

Just how contentedly asleep does he look?!

happy sunday

Seeing the sun today has made me look forward even more to when the outside looks like the illustrations in S's school book.

Check up

Melvin had his check up at the vets today and I'm pleased and mightily relieved to be able to say that all is well.
Long may it continue to be so.