Is him happy?

Him is Nicholas’ giraffe.  One of those fabric comforter things children have these days.  Nicholas’ giraffe is three years old just like him.  He’s tatty and practically falling to bits and  Nicholas loves him.  Sadly he lost giraffe a couple of weeks ago on a trip to Ikea with his parents.  They searched high and low for him and asked at customer services if giraffe had been handed in but alas, the answer was no.  They had to go home without him.   Victoria rang the store a couple of times over the following weeks but still there was no sign of giraffe.

Nicholas would ask, out of the blue, “Is him happy?”  or ring Giraffe on his toy mobile and talk to him  and ask him if he was okay.  This little boy was missing his giraffe.

Now,  Ikea does have a lost property box and today we went back to the store to have a look in it.  Low and behold, there he was. Giraffe was waiting to be claimed and home he came with us!  So yes, today, him is very happy!

Kathleen.

A little moan…

… about the weather.  We have gone from brilliant sunshine to what you see here.  Skies heavy with grey clouds and the constant threat of rain which doesn’t quite materialise enough to call off the hosepipe ban we are under in these parts.  This picture was taken from my living room window on Wednesday night in the middle of a thunder and lightning storm.  I’m not really complaining though, I love a good thunderstorm and we don’t get that many.Yesterday Victoria, Nicholas and I went to the lake for a little walk and some fresh air. Wrapped up against the elements, it was windy out there!  However, we still sat outside the refreshments kiosk with a latte and admired the view.  Which isn’t bad, rain or shine!

TTFN

A Weekend Away and Portmeirion

We got back Monday night from a weekend in Wales staying William’s sister and her husband.  We always look forward to going to stay with Brenda and Arthur because we always, always have a good time with them.

We set off as planned at around one o’clock on Saturday afternoon when William came home from work. This in itself was a miracle because Victoria had asked me if I would put her hair colour on for her before I went and then Caroline rang at the last minute and asked if I would trim her hair for her before I went.  I managed to do both of these things and put my own hair colour on too, pack the suitcase and tidy the house all before William came home!

Anyway, onto the weekend.  On Sunday, as planned before our visit, Brenda and Arthur took us down to Portmeirion.  A place I had known about for a long time but had never ever visited.

We started the afternoon with the obligatory picnic.  There is something just so nice, for want of a better word, about eating a picnic lunch in the great outdoors.  Then into Portmeirion itself.  Portmeirion is a little piece of the Mediterranean right in the heart of Wales and what a beautiful, unique place it is!

This pretty building is the first thing you see as you enter the village.  Then it just gets better and better.

 
The village was the brainchild of architect, Clough Williams-Ellis, who had a dream of building a coastal village.  His dream began to take shape when he purchased this land in 1925.  More info can be found at the official website here.

  Sister and brother, Brenda and William.

Billy, Brenda and Arthur.  We stopped for a breather to absorb the sights and beauty around us.

The village has a beautiful hotel in the grounds and this is the resident’s pool, not open to the public.

There are great photo opportunities at every turn, like this one on the right with stunning views over the estuary.

I half knew what to expect of Portmeirion, I’ve seen photographs of it here and there and I’m happy to report that the reality of it does not disappoint. Not one little bit. 

We had a great time wandering around, having a coffee outside one of these beautiful buildings, surrounded by wonderful scenery, in good company and what’s more in glorious sunshine.  What more can one ask?

One last thing.  To Brenda and Arthur who will read this sooner or later – thank you for a great weekend!

TFN

I’m linking to Outdoor Wednesday at  http://www.asoutherndaydreamer.blogspot.com/  Hop over there, you’ll find lots of other great OW posts to stroll through.

Let’s go for a walk.

Victoria and I have been taking advantage of the good weather recently and have  been walking round the lake for the exercise and for the fun of it.  Of course, taking the boys with us too.  We were out quite early this morning and although the rain kept threatening to pour down, thankfully it never did.

Although you can’t tell from this picture the water level is getting very low.  We have a hosepipe ban in this area from tomorrow due to the lack of rainfall over the last few weeks.

Nicholas was being silly and sticking his head out of the back of his buggy.  He was in and out of that buggy like a Jack in the Box!

Charlie giving the thumbs up.

After a break for refreshments at the end of the walk we took the boys to the play area.  A new Lottery funded play area is being built at the nature reserve end of the lake.  We’re looking forward to that being finished, it’ll be somewhere different to go and the boys will love it.

William was home early from work this afternoon.  He had a medical appointment to go to.

Charlie got a piggy-back ride first though.  Look at him laughing, isn’t that one of the sweetest things in the world – a child laughing hard like this?

Well, that was my day and here’s to many more just like it!

TTFN,

Kathleen.

It’s Victoria’s birthday today…

…and to celebrate she and Gary treated us all to a meal at a local Italian restaurant. The birthday girland her sister

and with the men.

Studying the menu. It’s not easy reading all those funny sounding names.In fact judging by these expressions it’s a very serious business.  However everybody made a decision in the end and all enjoyed their choices.

Afterwards we all headed back to our house to sit in the garden for a while.  We ladies enjoyed a Margarita which finished the proceedings off very nicely indeed.

Happy birthday Victoria.,  we love you!

TTFN

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

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