Officially on holiday!

No more phones for a week, at least of the “Is there a bug going around, because I’ve had a sore throat for 2 hours” variety…. So now the holiday can truly begin, the free range turkey has been delivered  along with other delights, courtesy of our superb Farmers market locally:

 

http://www.sfmdirect.co.uk/

Here's an example; what would you prefer?

 I have fought with the freezer....and won...just........Now crammed full of meat, the door needing encouragement to close, but mission accomplished.....


Cranberry relish and bread sauce made:

A few decorations to set the scene:

Tomorrow we will pick the sprouts and the parsnips to see if we need we have enough or a final trip to the greengrocers is required, ice the cake....left it a bit late, I know! Then I have cakes to bake, the boys' favourites; mini chocolate Christmas puddings and date slices, plus Cranberry and ginger muffins which dh and I enjoy.

Plan the menus for 4 days, military operation!

At some point, I will wrestle with the sewing machine and make a Christmas stocking from felt, as I am one down. Two need some attention....and tlc...

But for tonight, it will be grabbing my knitting and settling down to watch Living with the Amish at 8pm. Dh will just be getting in the door having done his last "extended hours" shift at work for 2011 and will be officially on holiday too...and very hungry!

http://www.channel4.com/programmes/living-with-the-amish

Just a little window into my day, mainly for my mother's benefit as I'm told I don't blog frequently enough.... you never know 2012 may be different! 

Never mind the quality, feel the width

Well. it all began in a straightforward manner. The upstairs bedroom needed a desk, suitable for a student, we had one downstairs that fitted the description. EASY. We could replace the one downstairs with a lovely rustic-type desk that would blend in with the theme we were creating.... So we measured the width aperture: 150cm and off we went to the furniture shop to have another  look at a desk we'd already got our eyes on.

It was still available, we measured the desk, hmmm... 150cm wide, tight, but possible, decision made, we bought it, two men lifted and loaded it into back of car (tight, but possible!) asked me if I was intending to help with the removal and relocating of said desk,  I answered in the affirmative, men look unconvinced, dh says," we'll be fine" as we get into car. I make him promise he will not shout at me if I can't (!) and off we go...

Once home we manage the task, with me squealing periodically, threatening to drop it, fall into a flower pot and treading gingerly down the steps to the front door by feel rather than sight, but we get over the threshold having avoided any shouting and teamwork having prevailed . Little do we know what is to follow....

Old desk is cleared of computer, shelves (and their contents) on the wall are removed, all is pushed to one side. Vacuum is employed, carpet vigorously attacked with scrubbing brush. on my knees, area cleared of cobwebs and grime...ready to go!

Desk is moved into position, suggestions are made, diagonally,then straighten up, nope doesn't work.. Okay....issue is door frame jutting out by 1.5cm so if we angled it so that part of desk went through the bannister railings and then we eased it past the door frame, we should be okay...so far so good, however we then discovered that the lower staircase mountings also jut out so having angled it throught the railings we found the desk rested on these bits and perched in mid air.... We had measured from above the jutting out bits where there is no problem... My suggestion to remove part of staircase did not go down well.....

Well, we tried every angle we could think of with much yanking and pulling of bannisters, should we rearrange room furniture, I suggest tentatively... No, the only option would be to get the electric saw out and cut it down to size.  We agree there is no other way... Off to garage get  30 year old "seen better days" electric saw and sander attachment, pencil and ruler. The kettle is put on....

The noise, smell and dust begins to fill the room.

Seems SO wrong.....brand new..... yet the only option....

The smoke alarm immediately above, goes off, piercingly...

All work stops, smoke alarm is deactivated.....sawing resumes.....

Smoke alarm goes off again....

Battery from said smoke alarm is removed...

Sawing resumes....slowly, blade is old...? 30 years, we can't remember...

Sanding follows....edges softened....

Desk is  placed in position again.....not quite enough, will need to saw off other side to make it equal...

Pencil, measure, saw....

Blade breaks.....

Thankfully, packet of spare blades are found in garage....

We can't remember how to get  broken blade out of saw....

Miraculously we find old, yellowed, decrepid manual in garage.

Need long handled screwdriver....off to garage again... retrieved aforementioned. ("Nurse, scalpel!")

Blade removed, replaced...

Suddenly remember  tea is brewing...

Sawing resumes...faster...new blade....

Sanding...

Wipe off dust covering desk, small scratch repair completed, where saw slipped...

Desk pushed into position, slowly...

STOP....now what???!!!

Desk will not advance because when computer plug is in socket it protudes about 1 cm into the side of the desk...

Discussion ensues... Are there flatter wall sockets? Do we need to move the plug....get an electrician in?

B&Q tomorrow to search out socket depths....(yeah, we know how to live!)

Vacuum required again.....black dust, carpet looks like Santa has come down the chimney...

I can write all  nearby surfaces with my finger......

However.....All achieved without marital disunity! RESULT!


24 hours later.....

Flatter wall  socket purchased...as yet untried...jury is still out

Desk is in forward position with gap of about a foot behind it...for now

Computer is back up and running.

It will all look wonderful, eventually!!!!

NB Offending socket in far distance...

Update:

Flat socket was enough to do the trick!!!! Desk is now in final position and looks great! Thank you dh!

The Facecloth!!

         The Facecloth!!

This has to be  read, laughed at and passed on. There is not a woman alive
today who won't  be mortified when she reads this amusing account!

I was due  for a smear with the doctor later in the week. Early  one
morning, I received  a call from the doctor's office to tell me that I  had
been rescheduled for that morning at  9:30 am . I had only just  packed
everyone off to work and school, and it was  already around 8:45 am .  The
trip to his office took about 35  minutes, so I didn't have any time  to
spare.

As most  women do, I like to take a little extra effort over hygiene  when
making such visits,  but this time I wasn't going to be able to make  the
full effort. So, I rushed upstairs,  threw off my pyjamas, wet the  facecloth
that was sitting  next to the sink, and gave myself a quick wash in  that
area to make sure I was at least  presentable. I threw the facecloth in  the
clothes basket, donned some clothes,  hopped in the car and raced to  my
appointment.

I was in  the waiting room for only a few minutes when I was called  in.
Knowing the  procedure, as I'm sure you do, I hopped up on the table,  looked
over at the other side of the room  and pretended that I was in Paris  or
some other place a million miles  away. I was a little surprised when  the
doctor said, 'My, we have made an  extra effort this morning, haven't  we?'

I didn't  respond.

After the  appointment, I heaved a sigh of relief and went home. The  rest
of the day was  normal - some shopping, cleaning, &  cooking.

After  school when my 7 year old daughter was playing, she called out  from
the bathroom,  'Mummy, where's my  facecloth?'

I told her  to get another one from the  cupboard...

She  replied, 'No, I need the one that was here by the sink, it had all  my
glitter saved inside  it.'

NEVER going  back to that doctor  ever!!

"You're never fully dressed without a smile!" (Annie)

Walking to work this week, I saw a man walking towards me pushing his little daughter in her buggy. As I passed them, the toddler and I looked at each other, suddenly she smiled broadly and her eyes sparkled! It was one of those special moments, captured in a second, where lives connected, a celebration of being alive, of sharing a moment in time. What a refreshing start to a day!

How easy to just wrap your coat around you and stride forward, head down.....and miss out.

Let us always meet each other with smile, for the smile is the beginning of love — Mother Teresa

Be still...

Found this verse a helpful way to focus on God during the past few days.

Be still and know that I am God
Be still and know that I am
Be still and know
Be still
Be

Psalm 46 v 10

After this morning at http://www.yeovilcommunitychurch.co.uk/ (Talk is not on line yet, but will be soon, I expect) thought I'd put it on the blog:
Quote of  the week


When we can see the image of God where we don't want to see the image of God, then we see with eyes not our own.  "Everything Belongs" Richard Rohr

Stevie Wonder....

"If Your Love Cannot Be Moved"
(feat. Kim Burrell)

You can't say we shall and not fight through hell
You can't say we will and not dare to deal
You can't shout out peace and then vanish in the crowd
You can't ride the storm without some effect
You can't steal the spoil and not pay the debt
You can't wave a sign that spells "evil" and feel really proud
You can't sing a song with no melody
You can't say we're one without unity
You can't form a line if you're sacred to stand alone
You can't pray for grace and then smack her face
You can't speak of hope and then crack a joke

You can say you're there but time knows how much you've grown
Put a face to your somebody

Can you say your name?
Or would you rather stay unknown?
Can you show your face?
Or are you fearful of it shown?
Can you feel your heart?
Or does it beat for you alone?
Lift your glass up high
Say that your truth will never lie
If your love cannot be moved

You can't look at me and not see yourself
You can't say "for them" and not for who else
You can't truly bless and not bless the good of all
You can't serve the rich and desert the poor
You can't hear their cries and just close the door
You can't say you're down and not take it to the wall
You can't benefit from one's detriment
You can't find the serum and not cure the sick
You can't free the slave to enslave them differently
You can't see the right only from your sight
You can't see the wrong and just go along
Or is that the way you would want your fate to read
Put a face to your somebody

Can you say your name?
Or would you rather stay unknown?
Can you show your face?
Or are you fearful of it shown?
Can you feel your heart?
Or does it beat for you alone?
Lift your glass up high
Say that your truth will never lie
If your love cannot be moved

You can't make a pledge and then slip the script
You can't say the words and not move your lips
You can't be confused and still say you understand
You can't be a friend but not through thin and thick
You can't be a click but in danger split
You can't evenly share and then grab the biggest hand
You can't say you do but then show you don't
You can't say you will and make sure you won't
You can't want for change and not do what you need to do

You can't give up all and then take back all you give
You can't live to die but you can die to live
Or is that too much to ask of the you in you?
Put a face to your somebody

Can you say your name?
Or would you rather stay unknown?
Can you show your face?
Or are you fearful of it shown?
Can you feel your heart?
Or does it beat for you alone?
Lift your glass up high
Say that your truth will never lie
If your love cannot be moved.

If you want to hear him sing it:



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nWjGkM0nVhQ

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart - Ave verum Corpus KV 618 - The Vienna Choir Boys

On Sunday my son left home, the final bird to fly the nest (Am I being too dramatic?) That morning I awoke to this music...and the tears flowed.

No matter how excited you feel for your children, how eloquently you talk about it being the right time etc, something rises up that overides reason...It's a mother thing that starts in the womb....at least that's my take on it...

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart   - Ave verum Corpus KV 618 - The Vienna Choir Boys

Minor keys are probably not advisable at times like this!

Incidentally, he's having a great time!

Carpe Diem

Yesterday is gone. Tomorrow has not yet come. We have only today. Let us begin. ~ Mother Teresa

This morning,  from where I stood....

 Psalm 57:7-11 New International Version (NIV) 

⁷ My heart, O God, is steadfast,
   my heart is steadfast;
   I will sing and make music.
⁸ Awake, my soul!
   Awake, harp and lyre!
   I will awaken the dawn.

 ⁹ I will praise you, Lord, among the nations;
   I will sing of you among the peoples.
¹⁰ For great is your love, reaching to the heavens;
   your faithfulness reaches to the skies.
 ¹¹ Be exalted, O God, above the heavens;
   let your glory be over all the earth.

Each new day is a gift, how quick we are to just launch into it without a thought. So how shall we begin? Being thankful is always a good start. We are alive, we get to live the adventure today! So...the challenge in this fast-paced world is to s-l-o-w   d-ow-n and look and see and appreciate each other as well as practice "living in the moment"  and savouring it instead of a cursory glance as we whizz by. We can learn more than we realise from the difficult situations we face if we ask ourselves some searching questions, nothing is ever wasted.

Let's walk into our days with eyes wide open, with minds alert, hearts softened and hands ready to help.  Let's see what the day holds...and then as the sky darkens through its various shades of deepening blue, let's end as we began, by being thankful.


"You must live in the present, launch yourself on every wave, find your eternity in each moment. Fools stand on their island of opportunities and look toward another land. There is no other land; there is no other life but this."

— Henry David Thoreau

Flowers from the boys!

 The facebook status of one of our sons:

Would love to congratulate and thank his parents for the 30 years of marriage they celebrate today. 'Matthew 7:25 And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock.'

I reached for my hankie....

The three boys sent us these, classy or what?!!

Lilies and Roses with a small pearl in each centre, for our 30th...

And the Lilies are perfumed....

 

After my previous post which included our song The dh has his suggestion of the song which takes us into the next chapter, posted on his facebook page:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xqOMuR5Z530


and then the card...

So just to say thank you to everyone who has commented and helped us celebrate 30 years, I'll shut up now!

You're still the one...thirty years on!

 Thirty years on....


Our Song......

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WXtc-TH0Iv4


10 things I would tell my "newly married" self, 30 years on:

•  Your marriage will go from strength to strength, there are adventures to be had!

•  Marriage is not 50:50, sometimes it is 90:10 on either side due to outside influences past or present and the time will come when you no longer need to "unload your issues" at ridiculous hours of the evening

• "This too will pass"- 120 hour working weeks when you spend evenings and weekends alone with small children.

• Enjoy the fact that you both have very different personalities and learn from each other! 

• Don't talk to him when he is reading in bed....

• Always feed him before you tell him something that will cause irritation, when he arrives home.

• He has totally  different "love languages" from you, try and remember that (constant note to self)

• Map reading in cars will cause major stress if you are the navigator....but Sat Nav is on the horizon!

• He will introduce you to growing stuff, dogs and chickens and you will tell him about India....

• He will always love you, just the way you are and will encourage you to become who you were made to be!

Who knows what the future holds, the next 30 years?!

One thing is certain, our marriage has never just been about us.....

"Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken."

Ecclesiastes 4:12

God has always been our third strand...without His transforming work in our lives, I wonder where we would be today?

KIdnapped! Sunday morning- Long Mynd

The morning begins with secret Road Map peerings away from prying eyes... and zoom lenses...

and much speculation whilst P and S play  "the procrastination game" which involves much windscreen spraying and wiping, oil checking and secret smiles....

giving nothing away...

Oh here he is again...has to be fiddling with something

S gives the "okay, everyone come over here" gesture....what's coming....

It turns out...a 5 mile walk...I've learned NEVER to ask now, just do it and don't look like a wuss...

OOh look, who's under the bridge acting out  3 Billy Goat's Gruff...trip trap trip trap...K plays her part as lead goat....

S climbs up a rock face which totally freaks L out and I can hear her telling R catagorically that if she is expected to "climb up there, I am turning 'round and going back".  Thankfully S has chosen the path of most resistance... for to our right there are alternative steps to negotiate...so up we climb and I have the final scene of the Sound of Music in my mind.

R and D consult...I stay out of it, probably wise...

of for goodness sake, he even brought a flippin' compass.....

Onward and upward.....there is a point at which a girls asks directions from someone on his way back...so why did the girl have to ask? No comment.... Of course the guys knew the right way....they had a compass and a map after all....

No words needed...I think R was chasing sheep and looking for hidden post boxes at this point....I didn't discover the "almost  an entire fleece" he had shoved up my coat sleeve until the following day....

A brilliant weekend with great friends who I have the privilege to have in my life....So  when's the next one,then?!!!!

KIdnapped! Saturday afternoon Blists Hill

Blists Hill: Victorian Town:

Signs of the Victorian Times! Here are a selection that made me smile!

SSo as not to bore you too much, I'll just show you the Victorian Doctor's house, which incidentally had a veg garden with chickens and a pig enclosure (if we had more land...sigh...).  The Doctor's wife was sitting by her open fire sewing a tapestry.  Her knitting basket on one side with wool items in various stages of development! I felt quite at home...

The Consulting Room:

TAll consultations written down, Doctor's handwriting legible?! Sorry it's a little too small to read easily on here, but believe me I had a good read!! 6d for a consultation or no charge in some cases....Stuart Smith wanting his 2nd opinion...1/6 please!

Nice.......

There was a framed painting in the small waiting room in the house. I wrote down the name of the artist:Luke Fildes and did some research when I got home.

"Fildes’s painting was inspired by the death of his son and the professional devotion of Dr Gustavus Murray who treated him. But this work shows the moment when a child shows the first sign of recovery. The redeeming light of dawn is shining on the child.In order to make the picture convincing Fildes constructed a cottage interior in his studio. He began work at dawn each day to catch the exact light conditions. The image of an ordinary doctor’s quiet heroism was a huge success with the late-Victorian public."

 Here's one I made earlier...the item that looks like a hand drill on the middle shelf is a Blood circulator....what the heck.....

Oh and the kitchen, homemade jams...yep, as I say, quite at home!

I loved the whole experience of wandering around a working Victorian town, with characters in costume going about their daily life!  We will definitely go back and aim to have a sepia photo done at Smitheman Studio Photographers next time!

Ended the day with K and D going off to buy and prepare dinner for us, followed by an unplanned (by us) Jackfield Brass Band concert in a courtyard near to the Youth Hostel. Lovely end to the day!

Kidnapped! Saturday morning.

Saturday breakfast...there is always one exhibitionist.....love 'im....

Not the Ironbridge, but I liked the plaque attached to it:

See what I mean...

The motley crew minus S and me!

I just loved this mid terraced cottage with the lavender growing out of a sieve and a Morris Minor parked in front. The garden was an ordered chaos, if that makes sense!

Everyone needs a couple like this in their lives!  Might regret saying that re the male of the species...

Oh, here we go again.... "Saturday Morning Fever" comes to mind!

Yeah..straitjacket...don't be fooled by the pout....he's into Am Dram...

Follow my leader to Ironbridge...learned to identify a chaffinch call on the way!

First sitings of the town....

and the Ironbridge itself!