Just a quick note

To say ....

Please look over on Kate's blog and see if you would like to help with this appeal for China Kidz - they're wanting sweaters, legging (and toys) against the coming winter months 

The misty grey weather hasn't allowed me to take any really good photos of the wonderful autumn colours on the hills.  The leaves are falling now after a few days of rain and wind, but I hope we might get another good day before all the colour goes.  

A trip to Dunelm Mill with daughter at the weekend found this rather nice printed fleece throw, which matches very well with the quilt I finished last week.  Our bedroom gets a bit chilly in the worst of winter weather so we shall be glad of extra layers - though at the moment it's quite mild here and warm during the night.

 The week's been very busy so far.  Monday we took M to get her knee brace.  Inevitably after only three days wear it's been decreed that it 'isn't any good for ME' (always the stress on my superior requirements) and has gone the way of the walking frame and the perching stool.  It has been an excuse to ring all her friends to report its inadequacies and smugly reiterate her total superiority over all help, aids or any attempts to make her or our lives easier.  

On Monday I went to M&S and bought M new pyjamas as requested (size 14).. When I got them home I was told she'd meant 12.  This is new game, last week a box of choclates to send to friend was the basis of a similar strop and sulk as I hadn't asked for precised directions before I went out, but phoned from the shop when I remembered that she had asked for some to be purchased. 

Yesterday, sadly, I had to go to a funeral in Bristol where my family has come from for as far back as I have been able to research (at least 200 years).  My cousin's husband died suddenly aged only in his mid fifties.  It was a major logistical operation here to borrow a second car - as H also had an unmissable appointment and work out ways for us to cater to M's requirements around these committments.  Daughter, fortunately, didn't need her car, which saved me from an awkward train journey ( though she was very cross to be in London yesterday with no tube available), but it meant careful planning to fetch car, not to forget to collect M's prescription, change the pyjamas, and make sure H and M had lunch ingredients, so I could go off on Wednesday.  By great time management, I got home in time for her tea at 3.30 (having not been able to go back to the house with my cousin after the funeral ) only to be told that she'd made her own tea at 3.15.  For weeks now she has refused to use her kettle because her eyes are too bad, but I have seen her using things very easily so I think the deterioration in eyesight may be a convenient way to stop H and I going out together. I'm dreading the actual operation on her catatract as she's already decided it will be awful and won't work (it's different for ME I have degeneration) although the consultant was totally confident it will.

Finished the hoodie I was knitting in time to take it with me yesterday.  Hope it fits.    It was lovely to see all my cousins - despite the sad circumstances.  

UFOs

 

A long time ago, about six years I suspect, I bought a lot of fabric from a sale at Ikea.  I started to make a quilt, then several things happened...  First of all, my lovely old sewing machine broke halfway along the first line of quilting, and was taken off by a kind repair man for an unspecified length of time - turned out to be about six months.  Whilst I waited, I tried my new sewing machine but it kept breaking the needle and I got fed up.   Then a set of play costumes intervened.  Then H was taken ill and left permanent teaching but needed space to work from home, so my sewing space disappeared,and both machines and a lot of other things including the quilt disappeared into storage.  Since we moved here I've had lots of space but have only recently had time to start sorting out.

 

Over the last few days I've been sorting out boxes and found the quilt (amongst other things) but not the binding, so after a quick trip to the local shop, I eventually finished it and it's now sitting on our bed. 

Feeling a bit more inspired, I set to and finished the little rug I'd been knitting in pom-pon wool I bought at the last craft show at the Three Counties showground.  It's lovely and soft and I like the colours very much.  It just needs a fringe to set it off, so I need to buy some cream chunky wool.

 

 I've started some artwork using the photos I've been collecting for some while now.   This is a central door pull from Redworth Hall in Co Durham - a friend found the photo for me.

He's coming on quite nicely - I'm using water soluble wax crayons  (Neocolour II by Caran D'Ache).  Daughter very kindly bought me some new art materials as in my sorting out efforts I discovered that some paints and inks had dried out whilst also in store.  I've also found that I have about twice as many brushes as I thought and several forgotten blocks of water colour paper.

Amongst other things, I've also sewn half the new curtains for my sewing room and knitted two thirds of a hoodie for my cousin's two year old grandson - photo to follow when it's finished.

A friend recommended, then gave me three novels by Laurie R. King.  I was sceptical at first at the idea of Sherlock Holmes with a young female partner (and wife), but the books are very entertaining, and I shall certainly track down some more when I've finished these. 

Realised today that I have only four more posts until I reach my first hundred, and only just over a fortnight until the blog celebrates its first birthday so I must contrive to combine the two I think. 

Still here

Thank you to the people who emailed to ask if I was OK!  I was/am fine but our broadband connection has been sick.  In fact we've been suffering a technology blight - we had two evenings with no TV signal last weekend, both computers have been struggling for unknown reasons and the broadband signal has been totally unreliable.

Not a lot has happened over the last fortnight really.  I collected my new specs but the pressure in my right eye hasn't dropped so I expect I'll need to go back to the hospital - waiting for optician to write to GP at present.  The flowers above, and a lot more, came from my brother-in-law for our anniversary but the deliverers got the date wrong - no matter, they are really beautiful and are lasting well.   I also had two huge parcels from Australia containing some of my late sister's things - to our horror the customs charges were about 10 times the value so I shall query them next week. BIL sent payment via Western Union but I'm still appalled by the duty and VAT on items which have purely sentimental value.

I was thinking yesterday that although I haven't seen my brother-in-law for 14 years now, he's been part of my life for 54!  My sister was 13 years older than me and I was 4 when she first met him, and 8 when I was a bridesmaid at her wedding.  They went to Australia when I was 18.  I worry now that he's very isolated as their children live in other far-flung parts of Australia - Skype is a blessing though as we can all communicate without bankrupting ourselves.

Weather has been variable but we've had a few good days, haven't we?   Having less problem with the photo uploads now but I don't like the new system at all.

Hope you're having a good weekend.  I might get to the Malvern Flea Fair tomorrow  - fingers crossed.

The world at your feet

It's a bit steep on the way up, but once you reach the top, the views from British Camp on the Malvern Hills is breath-taking.  If you've got the puff, you can get a 360 degree view of the countryside - right over to the Welsh hills, to Hereford, Bredon Hill and Tewkesbury, and even glimpse the Forest of Dean.

We had the place more or less to ourselves - and the rabbits and crows - and the views were wondeful in today's great weather.

Blogger is still taking forever to upload my photos - anyone else have this problem?, or I would have shared a lot more.  Hope these brighten up your day and your weather has been as good today.

This is a brief post just to say thank you to everyone who commented or emailed to wish us Happy Anniversary - your good wishes were very much appreciated.  We had a great dinner at home last night, which everyone enjoyed, so now were off on another year - which we hope will be better.

I've now posted the items that people 'claimed' from my giveaway (yarn, buttons, handles, lace etc).  So if you haven't had yours please let me know as I've kept all the proofs of posting.  Judith, sorry I haven't been round with the yarn, yet. 

The silver lining...?

Today is our wedding anniversary.  We've certainly had the sickness and health, and the richer and poorer, and  plenty of better and certainly some worse (especially the last two years of looking after M which would test the bonds of any marriage, however strong).  During 35 years of marriage we've both changed - not always for the better, developed in different ways (I'd never get into my wedding dress now) , but kept the committment the same and faced problems with a united front.  Luckily, such problems as we've had have been for both of us, not caused  by each other. 
A quick trawl through Facebook and Friends Reunited shows me that of the people I shared my sixth form school years, the 15 or so 'girls' I knew, are all married and only one has been divorced and re-married.  We are fortunate that none of us has so far been widowed.  The 'boys' have less fortunate, the majority have been divorced or separated - the exception being the two who married classmates.

Apparently, 35 years is jade or coral - don't see us getting any of either.  We're having a family dinner tonight - fortunately we hadn't decided to go out today as it's absolutely throwing down rain and quite cold.


I took several photos of a beautiful morning yesterday - including silver mist and clouds across the horizon.

Blogger's new photo upload system has taken forever to upload these two but you get the idea. Pity today wasn't so lovely but we'll enjoy the day anyway.

Hope you all have a good weekend, whatever the weather.