Lazing on a Sunday Afternoon - 19/10/25

Yes today has definitely been a lazy day!  I needed one after the last few days.

A big chunk of Thursday was spent at the Foodbank - we had a huge delivery of lots of fresh food in from our regular supplier plus a lot of other items which all had to be taken in and then organised and distributed.  It was hard going as I was the only person in the back storeroom this week.  Then the church had to be cleared of all the food and set up ready for a weekend concert.

Friday I caught up on a lot of household chores and laundry.

Then yesterday I was back at the Foodbank to take in another delivery.  Thankfully my fellow volunteer Sally was there to help with that because this is the picture I took after we'd been sorting the contents of bags for almost an hour.

Every Saturday we get a delivery from people who attend a church in nearby Woodford Wells.  They put a donation bag outside their houses, volunteers collect them and bring them to us.  This week we also had a big collection from a nearby school that had been brought in on Friday to deal with. There were bags everywhere and they needed to be moved as we have to be able to walk through the store room as it's a Fire Exit route.

Sally and I spent about 2 hours opening up all the bags and grouping things together in crates.  Usually we would try and write dates on the items and put them in their proper storage area but there was no way we could do that on Saturday.  I didn't get an after photo as I actually did a video to send to the Manager showing her what we had done.  Most of the things were stored in the green crates you can see in the picture but we had to leave a lot of cereal boxes on the work table.

Hopefully the team that come in on Mondays to set up the Church ready for the Tuesday session of the Foodbank will be able to make some more progress.  It's a good problem to have though.  We're always grateful for donations.

When we'd done as much as we could I made my way round to Tesco's where Hubby was doing our shopping - in my rush to get to the Foodbank in the morning I'd come out without my door keys!

Saturday evening I was back at the Church but this time for entertainment - 

This band have for the last few years done a concert at the Church with proceeds going to the Foodbank.

The band was formed by John Ongom back in 2002.  John was originally from Uganda but came to England to study and stayed.  When he tried to find a band to join he couldn't find what he was looking for so he just set up his own.  Sadly John died in 2018 but the band continues under the musical director Angus Moncrieff who was born in Highams Park.

It was a really good concert and well attended so hopefully it will help our fundraising efforts.  And it was nice to be out with Hubby for the evening.

But all that is why today has been a very lazy, quiet day.  It's also been raining so that was another excuse for not getting out for a walk.

I've read the paper, caught up on some book reviews and last night's episode of Strictly Come Dancing.

Now I'm off to bed to do some reading while Hubby catches up on the weekend's football on TV.  I've just started Sense and Sensibility.  It may take me a while. 

Love the Lake 23/6/25

Recapping the weekend - we had a lovely time on Saturday at the wedding or our niece Annie to her partner Henry.

The view across the field.  The bunting had an emotional connection as some of the fabric had come from clothing of Nick's sister who died last year.

Henry's family are farmers and this open barn had been converted in a short space of time into a perfect summer venue

Complete with a bar area in the centre

Mexican singers, and food was served from catering vans and we had a choice of burgers, tacos and later on pizza - from a pizza oven fitted into the side of a landrover!

Earlier the couple exchanged vows in an area that had been set out with chairs for guests.

We only attended for the evening reception but I'm told this was lovely. But we still got to hear the speeches which was nice.

Our eldest son Matt, DIL Vicky, Daughter Rebecca, me and Nick.

I was so glad I swapped my outfit though - it was a very hot day but there was a breeze so it wasn't too unbearable and it cooled down a bit in the evening.

We left at about 11 pm - Nick finds it quite hard to cope with loud music but I'm sure the youngsters partied on into the early hours.

On Sunday I decided to try and get out for a walk quite early before the day got too hot again but actually the day was much cooler than the heatwave we had last week - still mid 20s but with a breeze so much more comfortable.

Both the wooden bridges over the river Ching which runs alongside the lake have been replaced.  This one is at the north end of the area and is much better because before there were no sides.

Not sure what the coot thinks of these Egyptian geese sitting on its nest!

Look at that lovely blue sky!

The cygnets are doing well and there were lots of ducks around

Some of them look like they could have been the ducklings that I saw not that long ago.

And this is the other bridge that has been replaced, again with proper sides - it has wire netting previously that wasn't great.

I spent the rest of Sunday just relaxing.  It was still too hot to be too energetic!

How can it be Monday? 26/5/25

It's been a while, again!  The days seem to be flying by and I need to be more mindful about making time to blog.  My blog serves as a journal of my life so I need to keep up with it.

But life gets busy sometimes.  Last Sunday (18th) was the annual Spring Festival in Highams Park.  I volunteer for the Planning group behind that so was there from 8 am in the morning helping get things set up - which involved a lot of moving equipment around and putting up signage etc.

Then when the main organisers from the Food Hub group arrived I helped them set up their stall and then volunteered there for the rest of the day (apart from an hour or so for a lunch break).  I didn't get home until after 5 pm and had managed over 16,000 steps!

Needless to say last Monday was a quiet day!

On Wednesday I was at the Food Hub taking in a delivery and then at the Food Bank session on Thursday as usual.  I did manage a couple of walks during the week and managed to catch sight of the new cygnets on the lake.

These pictures were taken on the 18th and (I think) it was the first outing for the cygnets.

These pictures were taken yesterday (25th) - aren't they cute.  This pair of swans are fairly new to the lake and it's the first time they've nested here.  It will be interesting to see if they chase the cygnets off when they are fully grown of if they will allow them to remain with them.

Friday found us "enjoying" Nathan and Ella's school fete.  It was noisy and hectic but we did join them for a nice dinner afterwards at their house.

On Saturday we were here!

Celebrating the wedding of our niece Megan to Freddie.

                                                

Hubby (Nick) on left with his brother Bernard.

22 of the 23 cousins - our son in the US was the only 1 missing.

L-R Our daughter Rebecca, her wife Victoria and cousins Geraldine & Natalie

It was a wonderful day.  They are such a lovely couple and the atmosphere was just so joyful.  The reception venue was the Catholic Club that we've been to for many events, but they had totally transformed the garden by hiring the marquee and everything was lovely.  My SIL (the Mother of the Bride) has a great eye for detail as has her DIL who is an artist and did all the artwork for things like the seating plan, place settings, Order of Service etc.  They had also laid on coaches to transport guests from the church to the reception venue.

And the rain held off.  We've had such lovely weather recently but on Saturday it rained in the morning and it was quite cloudy and grey in the afternoon but the bride did not get wet!

Needless to say yesterday was another quiet day - we were up reasonably early to prepare breakfast for our elder son and his wife who were here for the wedding but they left soon after to pick up their boys and head off to the Peak District as it's half-term for the boys this week.

So that's me caught up again.  I'm off to bed now as I have to be up early tomorrow to collect food for the Foodbank from one of the nearby supermarkets, then it's on to Keep Fit with tea and cake afterwards at my friend Catherine's as it's her birthday.

I love being retired!

Weekend Recap - 20/11/23

Well it was a busy one!

Our eldest son and his family arrived late on Friday.  The grandsons were all ready in the PJs and they both settled reasonably quickly in their beds.  Miles seemed to think it was the morning as he'd been asleep in the car and took a little bit of convincing that no, it was still time for him to be in bed lol.

Saturday we met up with our other son and his two boys plus of course the birthday girl Ella and her brother and parents.

We went to the Museum of London in Docklands where there is a play area for the kids with soft play and other activities.  They all seemed to enjoy themselves.  After the session finished they had a quick visit in the museum before heading to a pizza restaurant just a few yards away.

It's hard getting 6 little ones to pose for a photo but this is probably the best one taken between us!

Here are a few others from the day.

Not obvious from the photo but Noah and Rory chatted the whole way from the station back to our house!  Vinny tagged along too.

We brought Rory and Vinny back to our house as I was babysitting them in the evening as their Mummy was singing in a concert and Daddy was going to watch.  We fed them but then I took them back to their house to go to bed.  They were so tired out from their busy day that they were asleep within a very short time and I didn't hear another peep.

On Sunday we had them all at our house for lunch except Nathan who had swimming lessons.  But by late afternoon they had all gone home so I was able to relax in front of the TV for the evening!

Looking back on the comments from my last couple of posts (thank you for all the birthday wishes for Ella and other kind words) there were a couple of questions that I'll answer here.

Yes John we do still play Kerplunk although the version we have is not as robust as the one my children had.  It takes a while to assemble and is best done by an adult!

Marie, we do gather elsewhere for the big extended family gatherings but the group we had at our house was just Hubby's generation and we were a couple missing so only 11 - I can cope with that.

Carla, the pig I made for Ella was named Maisie in the pattern book I used so I kept to that although of course Ella may decide differently lol.

And finally for Linda, this is the pattern book I used

It quotes Louise Crowther on the front but it's a David & Charles book - there are others and the website is www.davidandcharles.com

Despite my struggles to complete Maisie I already have the wool to make George the Dog - on the right.  But first I have lots of knitted squares to sew together to make a blanket. 

Finally, on a slightly sad note, I'm not sure if any of my readers now go back to the time when I was originally on Yahoo and then Multiply before finally ending up here who may have known "Benni".  Her actual name was Theresa and although she hadn't really blogged much in the past few years she was very active on Facebook posting photographs she'd taken.  Unfortunately she died suddenly last week.  Thankfully there was a post on her page notifying friends - some of my blogging friends have just stopped blogging without any explanation which is a bit disconcerting. RIP Benni.

Where to start?

Where to start indeed!

It feels like an age since I was last here.  I just don't seem to have been spending any time on my computer these last few weeks.  I've just spent a couple of hours catching up on blog posts, making sure I haven't missed any major events.  I've tried to leave a few comments here and there - apologies if you didn't get one.

I've been focussing on eating healthily and getting plenty of walking in and I just haven't felt motivated to blog.  But the hard work is paying off as I've now lost 9 pounds since I had the pre-diabetic blood test result and .... drumroll please - I had another blood test done recently and I was back in the normal range!

I'm still attending the support sessions offered though as it's been interesting and informative and the weigh-ins keep me motivated to keep up the healthy habits and hopefully lose some more weight.

Last week was a bit hectic as we had my elder son and his family here for the week.  Early wake ups as the grandsons are usually in bed and asleep by 7.30 at the latest but consequently awake around 6 am!

I still need to work on my bedtime routines as I'm not getting to bed very early so probably not getting enough sleep.  

They returned home to Nottingham on Sunday so since then I've been doing all the extra laundry generated by having guests - extra bedding, towels etc and getting the beds remade and some housework done.

Today we had my brother and his wife here for lunch which made a nice change.

Tomorrow I will be doing what's become a regular thing of volunteering at the local Food Bank.  I often tend to be in the kitchen making cups of tea and coffee, plus we provide snacks such as jacket potatoes or something on toast.  Nothing too complicated!

Now I'm off to bed and looking forward to reading something easier than the book I've just finished - A Week in December by Sebastian Faulks.  It took me 3 weeks to read - I didn't like the characters or the plot but I hate giving up on a book and it ticked a box on the summer reading challenge I opted to do.

Hopefully it won't be another 3 weeks before I blog again!

Is it Sunday? 22/5/22

Yep it's Sunday so over a week since I last posted here.  You could be forgiven for thinking I'd fallen down a rabbit hole with Alice.

I seem to have lost my enthusiasm for blogging this last week or so but it has been a busy time.  Getting the bedrooms straight after the decorating took time and then last weekend we had all the grandkids and their parents here on Saturday for an early birthday celebration for Noah and Rory.  Noah turned four on Tuesday and Rory will turn 4 on 1st June so last weekend was the nearest we could get to both birthdays for a family get together.

It coincided with the Eurovision song competition which 2 of my DILs are very keen to watch and enjoy.  To the extent of having European flavoured drinks and snacks.  This meant we ended up with 2 of the 3 families staying overnight.  The grandchildren were actually quite good at going to bed and sleeping, although they were up early the next morning.

Of course it was lovely to see them all together but it does get a bit hectic and then there are beds to change, extra towels etc to wash after they've all gone home.

It's a bit tricky getting a decent photo of all 6 grandchildren together.  This was probably one of the best ones:

Another thing we managed to do this week was deliver the blanket I'd worked on with my daughter and 2 of my DILs for Maya.  Maya is the daughter of one of Nick's nieces.  Another cutie.

So what with straightening up the house, visiting family, babysitting grandkids and so on, blogging has definitely been taking a back seat.  I haven't even been doing as much reading as I usually do.

Another time stealer has been games on my phone.  I'm sure most of you can guess the main culprit there.  Well tonight I've deleted them.  I'll probably relapse and add it back at some point but for now that's one less thing to take away blogging time.

Today has been a nice relaxed day.  We walked down to the lake and then into the park as it was the Highams Park festival today.  There were fairground rides there, a display of classic cars, live music and lots of stalls either promoting local organisations or selling food.

The weather was lovely today so lots of people were in the park and the queues for food were long everywhere so we decided to walk into town and had a nice lunch at a place called The Melting Point Bistro.  Nick has been there quite a lot but it was the first time for me.  Won't be the last either.  We had some lovely tapas dishes and some wine.

That's two good meals I've had this weekend as on Friday our Ladies Lunch group became a supper occasion and our host cooked a lovely salmon dish accompanied by an aubergine dish both of which were delicious.  Finished off with a fruit flan and of course washed down with wine, although not too much for me as I had to drive home.  The company was also good so a very enjoyable evening.

So lots to be thankful for this week although I didn't get around to doing my usual Friday Fave Five post.

Now I'm off to bed with a new book on my Kindle.  Have a good week all.  Hopefully I'll get around to visiting your blogs and leaving some comments!

Where did the weekend go?

Goodness me, it's almost Monday and I haven't had a chance to blog all weekend!  I didn't even get a Friday Fave Five post done.

Friday was a busy day with work going on in the house.  I had to make two trips out for paint - once to get some testers so we could try and find the right match for our hall and then the second time to actually get the paint.  (Note to self, when we do any decorating in our next house, keep a note of paint colours!)  In between I was still decluttering/tidying.  In the evening I met up with some friends for drinks and food at our local pub.  It was nice to relax and unwind.

Saturday was more work in the house and then late afternoon we went over to babysit Nathan so his Mummies could have a night out.  It was lovely to see him as we hadn't been for about 3 weeks.  He was ill at one point and then I wasn't well.  Then we'd been in contact with Rory when he had his tummy bug so didn't want to risk passing that on, even though we were fine.

Anyway we're all well at the moment.  Let's hope it lasts.  Nathan was on good form.  He's so chatty now.  He let me put him to bed without too much trouble although it does take him a while to settle down to sleep.  

We stayed the night so that we could spend time with them all today but we got home in time for a late lunch then it was back to work on the house.  We've decided to bite the bullet and tell the estate agents we're ready to put the house on the market.  I'm really beginning to believe we will be moving house and trying not to freak out over it.  It's hard - we've been here almost 27 years!

Let's hope it doesn't take us too long to find the right house for our next home.

Lazing on a Sunday afternoon!

Well I am definitely having a lazy day today.  I started to write the title thinking well it's almost afternoon only to notice it already was!

We were babysitting Nathan last night.  He was quite good for us considering he is being very clingy to his Mummies at the moment, especially my daughter.  I think he is picking up on the vibes re moving house.  It's a stressful time for them.  Added to that my daughter cannot pick him up and carry him as much at the moment because of her ankle injury so that isn't helping.

However he didn't cry too much when they left (for an anniversary party) and he let us bath him.  Then Grandpa read him some stories and then Nanny lay with him while he went to sleep.  That took quite a LONG time.  He doesn't put himself to sleep very quickly but we got there eventually.

He slept for several hours but then stirred and realised Mummy wasn't there.  He was happy to accept Nanny as a substitute but he slept very lightly after that and everytime I tried to ease myself away his hand would reach out or he'd lift his head and cry so I just gave in and stayed put until his Mummies came home.

Sooo it was a late night for us (early morning actually) so today is going to be very lazy.  Need to recharge the batteries ready for Rory tomorrow.  He is almost walking.  He can stand up from the floor now without holding on to anything so it won't be long before those first steps.  You might think I'll have my work cut out keeping up with him then but actually he can crawl REALLY FAST! Keeping up with him is already a challenge.

This was him standing up while we were away last weekend.  He was very pleased with himself before he fell over.

It's much cooler here today which is nice and it rained overnight so that saved me worrying about watering the garden.  I'm trying to keep the garden watered to keep it looking good, especially the new plants and window boxes but when overnight rain does the job for me I'm not complaining.

I've been trying to plan out the week ahead, particularly meals.  We're back to a Hello Fresh delivery this week so that takes care of a 3 dinners but I still have to think about today and one other meal during the week.  I've also got a supermarket shop being delivered tomorrow so I need to tweak that order a bit but I'm feeling very organised!  It probably won't last but it feels good right now.

Now I'm off to catch up on some TV!

Where's Wendy?

Psst, Alice here.  (If you're new here and don't know about me check this post out!)

It's all ok here.  Wendy is fine but those grandchildren of hers are keeping her very busy.

This past week she had Rory all day Monday

 and then Nathan on Tuesday. 

They're lovely but tiring (even when Grandpa helps out) and I haven't had the heart to bother her when she's got home.

I did think the rest of the week would be quiet, particularly as Nathan was away with his Mummies on Thursday so Wendy had 3 days free, except she was busy finishing this:

Having knitted a blanket for Nathan (which took her ages!) of course she had to provide one for the following grandchildren, except the next two came along together and very quickly after Nathan.  So she's been working on two blankets for a while but, as a special event was looming, she had a deadline to meet this week because, Noah's first birthday was last Friday!

Of course that meant a trip to Nottingham this weekend so it's been very quiet around the house.  All I've heard is the clicking of knitting needles and, while they were away animal noises.

No I'm not going mad, there is still a cat in the house who is making herself very much at home.

Which means this blog has been very much neglected.

I'd like to say normal service will be resumed now the blanket and other pressies have been delivered to Noah but as Rory will be one in two weeks time there is now another blanket needing to be finished.

You might have to put up with me a bit longer!   Apologies though, Wendy won't let me comment on your blogs or reply here to your comments.  I can't imagine why.  Anyone would think she doesn't trust me!

My poor neglected blog!

Oh my goodness.  A week without a post, my poor blog must be feeling neglected.

Yes it's been a hectic week!  I did 4 days of Grandsitting last week - Nathan on Tuesday & Wednesday and then Rory on Thursday & Friday.  Rory's Daddy had gone off to walk in Scotland with his brother and some friends so Nana had to step in.

Of course it's lovely spending so much time with them but 4 days back to back is very tiring.  But I survived and more importantly so did the babies.  Rory did end up flat on his back at one point - he's starting to pull himself up on furniture - but he was more shocked than hurt. It happened in a blink of my eye and he has a very loud scream.  I was very relieved to confirm there were no bumps or bruises.

We went walking in the park.

The squirrels came up very close!

He loves his food!

Thankfully after all the babies we were away for the weekend with all of hubby's siblings and partners.  We stayed at the Mill Hotel in Sudbury which is a very pretty spot.  It was lovely not to have to cook or think about all the things that need doing at home but being part of a group of 14 is not particularly restful.  Especially when you throw in some walks, a mooch around the town and a lovely meal in the hotel Saturday night.  I'm not complaining though.  I really enjoyed it and I took some photos!

Flatford Mill

 

Suffolk countryside - River Stour

The Mill Hotel

Main course - Calves liver & Bacon on mash & veg

Dessert - sticky toffee pudding

View from the bedroom window

Ducklings!

Flatford Mill

I should have had the foresight to re-arrange our dental appointment on Monday morning though.  It was a 9 am!

Thankfully no work needed on my teeth, apart from a good clean up.  Does anyone like going to the dentist?  Yep I think that's a rhetorical question!

Yesterday we were back with Nathan as usual except we ended up staying later as Becca was unwell so it was quite a long day.

Today I have Rory while Daddy has his driving lesson.

Then I will be chilling!  Or trying to work on my A - Z posts.  As usual my forward planning has almost ground to a halt and now I'm starting to panic about being ready for next Monday.  If you haven't a clue what I'm talking about check it out here.

Well that's me done for now.  Hopefully I'll get to the Wednesday Medley later.