A very eventful week.

Well it’s been an eventful week starting last Sunday at the Crafts House.  I attended a Mad Hatters Tea Party organised by Sandra in aid of fund raising Marie Curie.  It was a privilege to be in the company of such talented people and for such a good cause.

 

 

The tables were laid out beautifully with a bountiful array of freshly baked homemade cakes, scones and biscuits which was sheer purgatory for me being a member of Slimming World on a rather long journey to slimness.

My new friend Gilly was kind enough to send me a crochet pattern which I have coveted since viewing her blog.  I have decided to try and learn to crochet using a selection of books and the tutorials on line at youtube.

Since participating in Blueberry Hearts Cosy Autumn swap my interest in knitting has been re-ignited so after knitting several items of fruit and vegetables for the swap.

 

 

I then went on to create a strawberry tea cosy for Kerry of Blueberry Heart Fame. I have a few other projects on my agenda but they will be revealed only on completion.

 

 

I saw this coaster pattern in a magazine a and thought I would give it a go using youtube for instruction.  Its not perfect but looks a lot like the picture in the magazine. Its supposed to be Rudolf!

 

 

My first proper attempt at crochet is to be a flower on a granny square.  I can’t tell you how many times I have unpicked my efforts.  Maybe it’s my age, well I became a year older on Friday the 5^th! I will persevere.

Take care everyone and have a good week.

Mrs C x

 

Blueberry Heart's Cozy Autumn Swap

Well what an exciting day.  The post man has just arrived carrying a huge box addressed to yours truly.

Its from Gilly and its my Cozy Autumn Swap Parcel.  OOOh cant wait to open it.

Everything was so perfectly wrapped in pretty paper.

One by one I opened the packages inside;

It was a shame to destroy the perfect little parcels but a girl's got to do what a girl's got to do!

The entire contents of the box is now revealed.  There is a hand made cushion (love it) a shopping bag, a tea towel, a pair of hand knit mittens (so handy) a tin of tea, hand written scroll containing recipes, muffin cases, a soup mug with integral spoon (love my soup too Gilly) and a stencil for cappuccino or hot chocolate.
Thank you so much Gilly for the lovely swap.  I really appreciate it.  Oh and thanks to BH for organising the swap too.

Oh and Gilly your package should be well on its way to you now.  Sorry for the delay which was due to holidays and a huge pile of laundry, I hope you understand!

Mrs C
X 

A family holiday to Florida

Well we are back in England now after nearly two weeks of family time together which was wonderful. 
At one stage though it looked like my plans of a family holiday would be scuppered as my grandson was rushed into hospital from the hotel we stayed in at the airport the night before we flew.  He was kept in for two days then released fit to fly on Sunday afternoon which was a relief to all of us as he is only just turned two and is the absolute centre of my universe.

We visited all the theme parks starting of course at the Magic Kingdom in Disney.  The park has a magical atmosphere and young and old alike are awe struck by the street entertainment, rides and shows available to everyone.  My grandson was mesmerised seeing his favourite characters up close.  At first he couldn't believe his eyes, bless him.  It makes your heart warm seeing a child's reaction to the wonders of Disney.

We also went to Universal Studios to participate of course in the Harry Potter adventures!  The work that has gone into the creation of the buildings as well as the rides is magnificent.  I didn't participate in the rides as I am a bit of a wimp where those sort of things are concerned but my daughter and daughter in law said the rides were "awesome"!

      

 

 

Another park we visited was GATOR LAND which is a theme park of sorts founded by the late Owen Godwin in 1949, and still privately owned by his family today, Gatorland is a 110-acre theme park and wildlife preserve, combining "Old Florida" charm with exciting, new exhibits and entertainment. Known internationally as the "Alligator Capital of the World," Gatorland today provides a breeding marsh with boardwalk and observation tower, one-of-a-kind reptilian shows, aviary, petting zoo, swamp walk, educational programs and more. Our day at Gatorland was very informative and enjoyable but around 3pm the sky turned black and the rain poured down from the sky.  Time for a sharp exit and an early dinner!

Well the two weeks were pretty exhausting with lots of park visits as well as our time a Gatorland so not much time for my other favourite pastime which is shopping.

Well back home now and back into the routine of work Monday to Friday and rain Monday to Sunday.
Take care
Mrs C X

Has it really been so long

I cant believe its been so long since I last posted anything.  I received several awful comments from random individuals which at the time really unsettled me, hence I stopped posting.

Such a lot has happened since last I posted on my blog.
I became a grandmother to the most gorgeous little boy who obviously is the light of my life.
My daughter moved back home after 6 years following the end of her relationship, which I have to admit pleased me greatly.
I have been to Mexico and even did some para gliding (at my age that's no mean feat).  I also have visited Tunisia twice with my friends for a girly week of lounging around doing nothing more strenuous than swimming, and I went to Orlando and Miami to visit my friends in January 2012.
I am off back to Orlando next week with my husband, grandson, his mummy and daddy and my daughter for a good old family holiday.
I love spending time browsing in the crafty shops picking up ideas and projects that I don't always get around to starting!
I will try my hardest to keep this blog going as my dear friend Blueberry Heart can then give me a break!
Mrs C x

A day out in Durham with Lady B

My good friend Lady B celebrated her birthday yesterday, so I thought it would be quite nice to take her to Durham for a day out and a nice lunch. As we walked into the market square we noticed a colourful procession walking down the steps next to the entrance to the Indoor Market.






Being the blogger that I aspire to be out came my camera. At the time I had no idea what or who I was photographing!




Quite a memorable day for both Lady B and the Commanding Officer of HMS Bulwark. HMS Bulwark's crew were awarded the Freedom of the City.

The crew of HMS Bulwark can now march through the streets with swords drawn and bayonets fixed. The honour was conferred at yesterday’s meeting of the City of Durham Charter Trustees. Councillor Jeff Lodge was also made an Honoury Freeman of the City in the same ceremony.

Congratulations to all!

More photo's of Boston

As I said in my previous post, my family and I flew over to Boston to celebrate Mr C's 60th birthday at the end of January. We had a fabulous time taking in as many sights as we could. I thought I would share a few with you. The above picture I took of Faneuil Hall and it was a really sunny but cold day. We ate lunch in Quincey's Market where there is a choice of many different foods from Italian, Chinese, Japanese, American Fast Food, Sea Food, Chowder, Ice cream etc etc etc. The place is really busy as the food is really good and excellent value for money.
More sight seeing to walk off our lunches and we walked across the common. The buildings in Boston are magnificent.




Then we walked through the park on our way back to the hotel.
There is such a lot of history in Boston. We would love to return to visit the places we didn't have time to see. Hopefully next time we could visit in the summer months!

Mothers Day Lunch and updates on travel

Sorry for the break in my posts but this year has been really busy work wise, interspersed with travel for pleasure too!

I have just returned home from my son's house where he cooked me a traditional roast beef lunch for Mothers Day. I am so lucky!

In January I worked in Peterborough for a week but forgot to take my camera so no pictoral records to post. It was dark when I left my hotel and dark when I returned so any photos would be drab anyway.

At the end of January my other half Mr C reached the ripe old age of 60. As a treat I decided to take him to Boston Massachusetts, a place we both love. I arranged the flight and hotel over the Christmas break without his knowledge. I also thought it would be really nice to add to the surprise so I booked for both my son and daughter to travel out there ahead of us. They flew out at lunch time Friday 29th January and me and Mr C flew out at 3pm. He had no clue where we were going and the check in staff at our local airport were wonderful keeping the surprise secret too. We arrived at Heathrow with a couple of hours to kill before boarding our flight to Boston. The booking agent at BA had upgraded us to First Class as an extra treat to add to Mr C's surprise to off we went to the lounge for a tipple or two. Our flight came up on the board and we proceeded to the gate. He still had no clue! We got through the gate still keeping our destination secret and then on to the extra security check. The guy asked to examine Mr C's bag and gave the destination away by saying "I hope you have some warm clothes in there sir its minus 12 in Boston".

His face lit up, he couldn't understand how I had managed to keep the destination a secret for so long. Then it all went horribly wrong. The flight was cancelled due to the plane having been hit by lighting. We were booked into a hotel near the airport and transferred onto another operators flight the next day. I frantically text my son and daughter who by this time were out eating dinner having a ball!

The hotel we stayed in at the airport was really nice and they provided us with a complimentary dinner and breakfast the next day. We travelled back to the airport and checked our bags in again this time hopefully we would start our journey to Boston. As we were travelling on another airline our complimentary first class cabin was no longer available but who cares we were on our way.

We arrived in Boston around 6 in the evening and headed straight for a cab to the hotel.

It was minus 12 and the snow had been falling all day it looked fabulous.

We checked in and went up to our room which was actually a two bedroomed suite. The hotel knew that it was Mr C's 60th Birthday, How kind of them!

Well we got to our room and started to unpack when there was a knock on the door and the voice said "room service". I hid in the bathroom so Mr C would have to open the door and there they were our son and daughter "Surprise Dad"! He was speechless with a tear in his eye. Worth all the planning.

His birthday was the next day and he wanted to go the Hard Rock for lunch so we decided to walk from our hotel through Boston Common. Very picturesque.

The staff gathered round our table and sang Happy Birthday to him which made him very embarrassed but hey your only 60 once!

The next few days were a mixture of sight seeing and shopping and we had a truly wonderful time that I hope we will remember for a long time to come.

On our return home my next work related travel was to Colchester in Essex. Very pretty but once again I left my camera at home so sorry no pictures of the Colchester country side. Home for one day and off I travelled to Dover for a weeks work. The weather was horrendous. Torrential rain and snow too! Sorry but too busy for photos that week too, maybe next time, where ever that might be.

Thanks for dropping by!

Mrs C