St. Anne’s and Cleveleys

Caroline suggested last week, when the sun was cracking the flags, that we go to the beach today.  So what was the weather like this morning?  Raining that’s what.  However we’re not easily put off and we went anyway.  So glad we did too because by the time we got there the sun was shining again.

I have to say, it was windy too!  Never the less we braved it out and sat here facing the sea and ate our picnic.

After which we headed into Lytham centre.  There are lots of  really quaint cottages dotted around the town all beautifully kept.  We mooched around the shops a little bit, lots of those too.  It was getting hotter by the minute.  A latte for us and an ice cream for Charlie were needed by this time.  Fortunately it was a very easy task to find a nice coffee shop to sit outside and enjoy a little breather.

Next we drove up the coast through Blackpool to Cleveleys.  Look at the blue sky now.

Cleveleys has improved so much over the last few years.  An awful lot of money must have been spent on it to bring it up to its current standard. 

Caroline striking a pose on the sea front.

We spent time on the beach, Charlie had a great old time getting his shoes and socks wet through in the sea and playing with his bucket and spade.  It was all fun until at the end of the afternoon when we called at McDonald’s at Freeport for a quick bite to eat.  Unfortunately Charlie fell just inside the doorway and smacked his little face into the tiled floor. He burst his nose, you wouldn’t believe the amount of blood that poured from it.  He got a fat lip too.  The staff were so helpful and brought out ice  cubes wrapped in a towel etc.   Poor little chap.  I’ve just spoken to Caroline and he’s back to normal and none the worse for his experience, thank goodness.

TTFN

Once again linking to Outdoor Wednesday at http://www.asoutherndaydreamer.blogspot.com/  Take a little look at this website, I  like it a lot and you might too.

St. Peter’s Centenary Celebrations

This year marks the centenary of the church I attended when growing up.  It’s the church where I and all my siblings were baptized, made our First Confession, First Holy Communion, were Confirmed and nearly all were married.  My parents were married there too.  As schoolchildren we would all take part in the annual Procession of Faith through the streets of Middleton. I could go on, suffice it to say that St. Peter’s played a big part in my younger years.  Today was a big celebration to mark the event.  The day started with mass said by the bishop of the diocese and then a procession from church through the streets of Middleton to St. Peter’s  school.  My old school.

So great was my desire to be there, in particular to watch the procession, that I was there a good hour before anything happened. I couldn’t believe it, unfortunately I’m one of those people who is usually unable to be anywhere on time!  I had got Caroline and Charlie with me and Victoria and her family followed very soon after.  My sister, Jean, and her two girls were already there.  Eager beavers to say the least.

We still have family connections to St. Peter’s.  My sister’s children and grandchildren attend it now. This is my sister’s grandson, an altar boy and choirboy, leading the procession carrying the cross.  My dad, his great-granddad would have been so proud of him.

The statue of St. Peter being carried aloft by the men of the parish.

A Scottish pipe band.  They were great and immaculately turned out.

In days gone by my older brother was one of the bearers of this banner or one just like it.

Little girls in their First Holy Communion dresses.

Flash back to the late 1950s.  That’s me (in front) and my sisters and brother ready to walk in the annual parish procession.  It was a big thing in the school calendar and everybody would want to watch  “the scholars walking”.  Indeed the whole route would be lined with what seemed like millions of people watching us.  We girls had to carry our rosary beads and walk with our hands joined as if in prayer all the way round. Today’s procession was a strong reminder of how it used to be and brought a lump to my throat remembering those processions of our schooldays.

The school grounds were given over to a “Garden Party” and there was tons of stuff to keep all ages entertained. 

I loved the Irish Dancers.  They were very good and put on a great display for an appreciative crowd.

These three ladies gave an unusual performance of an Irish Dance using brushes as props.  Their t-shirts said  “eejit” on the front and “Daft as a Brush” on the back. They were really good too. Don't worry about the Fire Brigade in the background, they were there as an attraction not for an emergency.

A small band played traditional Irish music.

Refreshments in the full heat of the sun.  The seats in the shade of the marquees were all taken.

St. Peter’s RC Church and school did themselves proud today.  The whole event couldn’t have been better. I am so glad we all went and so glad the sun shone down on the proceedings, even if it was a bit too hot at times.  I’ll bet a lot of prayers were offered up for that sunshine!

Once back at home, after I had dropped Caroline and a tired Charlie back at their house, Victoria and the boys joined me in the garden.  The boys cooled off with some water fun.  Later, George read a story and Nicholas listened. 

Meanwhile the men were glued to one television or another watching England play in the World Cup.  In fact that was the only cloud on the horizon today.  England got knocked out by Germany 4-1.  Not good, but hey, worse things happen at sea!

TTFN

I’m linking to the wonderful Outdoor Wednesday at http://www.asoutherndaydreamer.blogspot.com/  Why not hop over and have a look at all the other OW posts. It’s a great way of seeing how other people live.

TWTWTW

Anybody remember that telly programme That Was The Week That Was?  It must’ve been on telly in the 60s, a weekly review of items in  the news.  Well, this is my TWTWTW.  Starting with today.

We all went to the park up at the lake.  We’re having spectacular sunny weather just now so of course an ice cream was top priority.  I love these pics. Victoria had forgotten Nicholas’s sunhat, so George has got his daddy’s on and Nicholas has got George’s on. Very cute.  See Charlie in the background? He wouldn’t sit up on the bench with the other two and have his picture taken.

I feel like a stuck record but like I keep saying the weather is so good just now.  I’ve been taking my early morning cup of tea and book into the garden to read.  Peace and quiet all around except for the birds singing but that’s a sound I could listen to all day long.

The book I’m reading just now “How Green Was My Valley” is one that my sister has read recently and recommended I should read it too.  It was first published in 1939 and in the 60s was adapted for television and Mo and I both remember watching it when we were kids.  So I’m looking forward to getting stuck into it because I know I’m going to love it.

I love clematis but we never seem to have much luck with ours but this week I’ve been thrilled to see flowers on this one in the back garden and of course petunias are some of my all time favourite flowers.

Earlier in the week, John and Lesley, our wonderful friends and neighbours asked William and I to go with them to the lake for an evening stroll and then a cold drink outside the pub facing the lake.  Above you can see how busy it was.  It’s always like this in good weather.  The place is a mecca for bikers and I love to see all the shiny bikes and everybody togged up in their leather gear.  William didn’t come because Gary was coming round to watch the footie with him but  I’m glad I went, I had a lovely evening with two of the nicest people I know.

And finally this is what the hat that George had on looks like on the head it fits.

That’s it then, I’m all up to date.

TTFN

Blood Brothers

I took the train over to Whaley Bridge yesterday to stay the night with my lovely cousin, Sylvia.  Going to Whaley Bridge on the train involves changing stations in Manchester but I made the most of it with a leisurely stroll and mooch through the shops in the city centre. It was very busy.  The good weather had brought thousands of people out to sit outside pubs and cafes.  The premises above are very old pubs near the cathedral.  As a matter of interest The Old Wellington Inn (on the left) is the oldest building of its kind in Manchester and was built in 1552 .  The Manchester Wheel is still to be found in front of Selfridges.  I’ve been on it a couple of times and don’t feel the need to repeat the experience.  Sitting in one of those glass boxes 180 ft up is not my idea of fun!
The purpose of my visit over to Sylvia’s was to join her and her beautiful twin daughters in a trip to see a performance of Blood Brothers at the Buxton Opera House.
The Opera House and below is a pub opposite it flying the flag of every football country in the world it would seem.
Blood Brothers was really, really good!  We all sat there enthralled.  Syl and I both had to wipe tears away at the end.  The girls had seen it before in London and said this production was every bit as good as the London one.  I now need to go look on Amazon for the CD.

Linking to Outdoor Wednesday over at http://www.asoutherndaydreamer.blogspot.com/

TTFN

One for the album.

Here are the men watching England play Algeria in the World Cup…. … and George is watching it with them for the first time.  (He was only two the last time the World Cup was played for).  Don’t they look cute in their England shirts? 

George was so excited, I think one of the main reasons was that he got to stay up late.  I knew he wouldn’t last very long watching the match, he’s not really into football yet.  I think he gave it 10 minutes before he came looking to see what I was up to.  We played games together until it was refreshment time at half-time, then more games until it was home time.  He went home a happy little chappy but his daddy and granddad weren‘t quite so happy – England only drew nil nil.  Not a good result!

TTFN 

Kathleen.

Time was on my side…

…this morning, the weather was beautiful and I had a couple of hours to spare before I took charge of Nicholas at lunchtime.   So I decided to go to the lake for an hour and read my book.  I got a takeaway latte from the refreshments booth, found me a picnic bench and soaked up the sun. 

At lunchtime when Nicholas came round we took a picnic lunch to the canal.He was very interested when a group of local school children took to the water for a kayak lesson. One of these poor little boys overturned his kayak and ended up in the water, he came up gasping for air and I’m sure he must have had at least one mouthful of that horrible, not too clean, canal water.  He was rescued quickly and calmly though and managed to smile about it when he was back on the towpath.

Our day didn’t finish there, afterward we went to Caroline’s where she had set up Charlie’s paddling pool and sandpit.  The boys played happily while we chatted.

Just an ordinary day but so much more fun because the sun shone.

TTFN

Once again I’m linking to Outdoor Wednesday at  http://www.asoutherndaydreamer.blogspot.com/

Kathleen.

Boundary Mill

This is what the skies over our corner of the world looked like today.  Not very nice to say the least.  Certainly not a day for sitting in the garden or going to the seaside.  So instead William and I decided to go and have a look round an antiques centre that we had been to several years ago.  Only problem was when we got there the centre had moved to different premises and we couldn’t find the new place so instead we went to Boundary Mill (that’s it in the picture above).

Boundary Mill is a huge place which sells all sorts of stuff.  I love the china and homewares departments and there was a sale on today which made it even better.  I bought two 6” plates from the Portmeirion Botanic Garden range (pictured above).  I intend to hang them on my kitchen wall for a splash of colour.

I saw this game on a shelf.  My brother got this same game for Christmas one year when we were kids, it must have been in about the late 50s.  I had forgotten all about it until I saw it again today.   It was priced at £7.00, I wonder what the original cost? Might have been more like seven bob or in today’s money 35 pence!  Wait a minute, what am I saying, Father Christmas brought it so it didn’t cost a penny!

On a different note World Cup Fever has started to grip the nation.  Every where you go the England flag can be seen; hanging from house windows, flying from car windows, bunting with the flag on is even being strung from house to house in some areas.  I’m not a football fan but I do want England to win.  There’s our flag in the back garden.

Come on England!

TTFN.

For one reason or another..

..today didn’t start off too well.  So when my housework was done I packed my book in my bag, put the lead on Muffin, got in the car and set off for Uppermill.  I knew exactly where I wanted to go (after I had taken Muffin for a nice walk along the towpath) to spend some time reading my book and enjoying the peace and quiet of a sunny afternoon.
I wanted to sit on one of these benches and enjoy…

…this view and read my book and…

watch the occasional boat tootle along at about 4 miles an hour.  Actually these were the only two I saw, just like buses eh?

I liked the urns and cans on this boat painted in the traditional narrow boat pattern of roses and castles.  I didn’t know until just now that that was what the pattern was called, I looked it up on the internet.  I can’t imagine life without the internet these days.

Anyway, that was my Saturday afternoon and it was lovely.

TTFN.

We needed some fresh…

…air this morning so I took my Little Treasures for a little walk.  We didn’t go far, just into the field at the back of our house and along the public footpath. Over the stile and into the farmer’s field.  Nicholas climbed over mostly by himself but I had to carry Charlie over, he’s only just two after all.  Wait for me, Nichowas!  OK, Charwee.A view over to St. Barnabus’ church. That parish has a very active group of campanologists.  I love to hear them doing their thing. Moving at a rate of knots along the path these two little chaps came to a fairly quick standstill when they saw who was ahead of them. Very impressive Aberdeen Angus cows who couldn’t have been any closer to the fence.  I found out recently that the original Aberdeen Angus cows are black not this beautiful russet colour.I think this handsome specimen was happy to see us, he came very close for a good look at us.  Poor thing was covered in flies.  Nicholas took a step back.  Charlie wasn’t bothered by them at all. Then Nicholas got a bit braver and decided to feed the cows… just the one blade of grass! Obviously I didn’t let him. We usually go a bit further down the path but not today.  We studied each other long and hard, us and the cows, then we headed back to the ranch.  It was fun.

I'm linking up to Outdoor Wednesday again over at http://www.asoutherndaydreamer.blogspot.com/  Got a minute to spare? Go and take a look at all the other Outdoor posts from all over the world.

TTFN

Kathleen.