Love is in the air!

February, so far, has been cold, damp, grey and miserable, so I injected a little colour with some red, felt, heart bunting, just £2 from Tesco's, in preparation for Valentine's day. My yellow bunting will go up soon and the fake forsythia will be out, encouraging, sunshine, warmth, brightness and Spring!

I've been helping out up at school, in the gallery this week. It's been good to be busy and not just sat gloomily looking out at the grey weather! This year Millfield is celebrating 90 years and one element of the celebrations is a 90 Photographic Portrait Project. The students had a workshop with photographer Finn Taylor, then went about photographing various members of the Millfield community. 90 portraits were selected, edited, and finally, I got to print out the final results. 

Derek framed them all and ...

Rach and Jen curated the order .....

before Derek and I spaced....

...and hung the portraits.

I LOVED it!! Completely in my element. I love display and remembered in conversation, that I actually did my dissertation on the importance of display. I am such a visual learner and that's also why I take so many photos and why I love my little job in the gallery.

Friday was Valentine's day and Jeff broke up for half term.

Although I spent my Valentine's evening in Bristol at the theatre, 

watching Dear Evan Hansen....

....with Sophie!

She'd seen it back in early 2020 in London with a friend, just before Covid happened!!

 And said at the time, that if it ever toured I should go.......so we did! 

We met for food first. Had a good catch-up, tried to lift her spirits. She'd just put in her very first offer on a house but got pipped to the post by a better offer. So we talked through the disappointment and by the end of the evening and turned it all into a positive, and as I always say...things happen for a reason and this one wasn't meant to be. It's hard doing it all on her own. Last house viewing she took Sam and we're going up in the week to view a couple, to give another opinion. When the right house comes along, and it will, it'll have been worth all this stress and emotional upheaval but at the moment it's an additional burden she doesn't have the capacity for..

Jeff says we'll never move again!! We've been in this house for 9 years now, and are only now finding the motivation to tackle the stairs and landing. I was supposed to do it last year but my frozen shoulder got in the way of that. No excuses this year, we've no where to be, it's not great weather, it was supposed to be just the two of us, so not bothered about exposed gripper rods as a painful trap. Somehow the kids have us booked in for next weekend, so they have been told to bring home their crocs!! The carpet doesn't actually get fitted for another couple of weeks, as the paint needs to harden off, so the hazard will remain!! 

My other surprising motivation, has been staying focused on my Italian countdown health kick. Despite the cold weather, I have pretty much been eating well, no real carbs other than my Valentine pizza date and a couple of slices of sourdough.  I actually managed to lose 2 and 7/8 pounds, so near enough 3lbs!! Half term makes things slightly trickier with Jeff at home, enjoying carb'ier lunches, possible days out, kids coming home at the end of the week, but!! I do not want to waste this weeks efforts, so I must do my best to remain focused, 5 weeks to Italy and counting.

I'm going to continue to drink plenty of water, have my veggie starter, focus on fibre, protein, and good fats. Might not walk as much as I'd like, as we're decorating this week, but see how I go!

And it's at the mention of decorating, that I must love you and leave you and crack on. Jeff's just finished pulling up the carpet. I now need to sand down all the wood work, wash it it all down, hoover up the mess and then I can start actual painting!! I always think the prep is the worst bit. Just need to keep reminding myself it'll be worth it in the end. Hopefully I'll have something to show you next week.  

A busy week

A beautiful sunny morning to kick start the new week, but not the best start for me, with the dentist for a check-up, first thing on a Monday morning. I do have an old root canal that needs re-doing, with an additional new crown, but at nearly £2000, I will take my chances!! 

To cheer myself up, I met my friend and old Store Manager up at Middlewick, to take her on her first outing up the Tor. You couldn't see it when I left home, but thankfully the weather improved! Was nice to see her and have a catch up, now she's retired!!

I went into school on Tuesday, to help hang the new exhibition. 

I loved it, right up my street. 

Derek did all the hard work, I was just his assistant! It's looking good. I am looking forward to hosting it after half term. It's the 90th year of Millfield School and there are a lot of extra things in the pipeline to celebrate, hence I'm helping out and freeing up the others to do the extra work! I popped in for an hour to add all the description labels later in the week, and am in again next week to help print, frame and hang 90 portraits!!

I wasn't needed on Wednesday, so I took myself off, over to Ham Wall. I love it there. 

I don't have the patience to sit for hours but I do occasionally get a good 'accidental' shot!

It is so beautifully still, peaceful and calm. 

My second 'happy place' after Stockhill Woods x

You can always guarantee a good capture of a robin, great tit and a bonus wren on this visit.! 

On Thursday morning I met up with Lynn before work. 

It was a frosty one, so we headed up Wearyall Hill to take in the views. 

There's still so much water on the Levels.

I came home to the most cheerful delivery waiting for me. Emily Powell is the artist I visited back in November, on my way back from Cornwall. She is the most colourful, creative talent, and if I ever won the lottery, I would fill my whole house with her work. She has a new exhibition opening soon down in London, at the Portland Gallery. This is the catalogue of her work 'Paintings on Prescription'. The next best thing to going to the exhibition in person.

Friday and Saturday were awful weather wise! Grey, dull, damp, cold, just plain miserable! I was supposed to be meeting my friend Claire on Saturday over at the Newt, but we cancelled! She was going to be coming from Cheltenham, so not worth it. I spent the day instead, sorting myself out!!! It's just 6 weeks until Sophie and I got to Italy for a few days and I want to be at least half a stone lighter, if not more!!

I have to watch a few podcasts, look back through some meal pics, just to motivate, inspire myself to take action. I hate a countdown but sometimes I need it! It's still a little cold to completely come out of hibernation but I have to make a start!

So I decided to get out and walk this morning! 

One leap too many!! 
Was too far into my walk to turn back!
And one muddy backside to show for it!

I had initially gone up to school to take a few photos of the spring bulbs flowering...

...then got distracted by the sculptures! 

It was such a lovely morning, I decided to do the loop across the fields!!! 

That was my mistake!

 Everywhere is still so wet and muddy! 

But I'd got to a point, where I was too far in to turn back. I did actually land where I'd hoped but my foot slipped and that was me, in a muddy heap!! Still, it's all been washed and been out on the line. No harm done, other than my bruised ego and bottom!!

I cheered myself up with a healthy lunch.

 Toasted sourdough, topped with avocado and soft boiled eggs! 

All in all, a good, positive start!!

So, another week done and another beckons. 

I have kept next week relatively free, so I can help up at the gallery once they are ready. Jeff breaks up on Friday for half term and I am meeting Sophie in Bristol in the evening for a theatre jolly! We've kept half term relatively unplanned too, as we're taking up the old carpet and I have to focus on painting the staircase and skirting boards before the new carpet arrives in a couple of weeks time. S&S might come home for the end weekend. We have a coupon to use, for a free National Trust visit and I'm meeting a friend one evening, but the rest is open to whatever!! Let's hope the weather improves.

Pinch and a punch......

......hello February!

YAY!! We survived January!

It is my least favourite month. Partly down to the weather, the come down after Christmas/lack of money, just the general greyness of it all! BUT, we are out the other side, and as the years go by I do work hard to find the positives. Nice walks, occasional blue sky days, birdsong, snowdrops, £1 bunches of daffodils, a freezer full of food to use up, booking/planning/looking forward to holidays, meeting up with friends over coffees or extended lunch dates, the first theatre outing, bits of work, a trip to Cardiff to check in on our two!!

I know I say it every year but I do think a £1 bunch of daffodils, in January, is the best £1 spent!

They are a bunch of pure joy!

So this week?? What have I been up to? On Monday I went and got my hair blonded! Again, a cheery positive thing to do in January, although it was a nightmare getting to the hairdressers due to flooding. But my hairdresser was coming from the same place, so I knew if I was finding it hard to get there, she would be too! In the afternoon a man came over to measure up the stairs and landing for new carpet. It's only taken us 9 years to get to this point but I'm scheduling in the carpet removal and painting for half term!! And with the carpet now booked in for fitting and paid for, it has to get done!!

Tuesday was just cold and miserable, a day of nothing!!

On Wednesday it was still cold and grey, but I headed over to Wells for coffee and a meet up with a fellow invigilator. We've been meaning to get together since the summer, as you never really have to chance to talk properly when the exams are on. So that was nice and I discovered a new coffee place.

Thursday morning I was in school, exam invigilating, cursing my decision, as the one day of the week I was in, was the sunniest, nicest, blue sky day! I was glad I'd arranged to meet up with my friend Lynn in the afternoon to go walking. It's hard to know where to go at the moment, as everywhere it so wet and muddy but we wandered around the lanes of Compton Dundon and stayed relatively dry!

So lovely to see some of the first snowdrops....

......Spring is not a million miles away now!

Friday morning, I met up with my lovely friend Sam for a coffee, before heading up to Cardiff to see Sophie and Sam. I went straight to Sophie's to drop off my things, picked her up and headed over to collect Sam. Being a nice mum, I had offered him a food shop. I used to do it when I visited Sophie, so only fair to do it for him too. 

We then all headed to Maria's, the Greek restaurant where Sam used to work. The food is lovely and I got to enjoy a FIX, my favourite Greek beer!! And, even better, Sophie kindly treated us all!! Will have to time my visits around pay day again!!

I stayed over at Sophie's, as on Saturday we had a house viewing booked in for 9am!!

 It wasn't the 'one' but we had a nice wander around the area, got coffee and breakfast and went to see another house, just from the outside, in another part of Cardiff. They seem to be doing these 'Open Days', where, I think the estate agent said, there were 14 viewings in 2 hours and full and final offers were expected on the table by Monday morning. I see how it is more time efficient for the agent but it makes the whole process very competitive, and unnecessarily so. It was a useful morning though. I think it was nice for Sophie to go with someone and talk things through, clarify what was really important to her. I think Sam may even go with her to her next viewing, just for another opinion. On paper it could be the one but you never know. As with Uni visits, she'll get that gut feeling, although annoyingly here it will be down to £££. She's in a good position though, as a first time buyer, no chain etc. All feels very grown up but she's so sensible and good with money, having saved up her deposit, so unlike me, won't be making any rash, emotional decisions. I headed home after lunch, got back in time to make tea! Jeff 'pinged' his calf muscle refereeing, so could miss a few of the next matches.

Despite his injury, he's been out in the garden for a bit today, pruning the apple tree. We're hoping for good weather in half term, to be able to get out in the garden and do a bit.

 It's lovely to see the bulbs poking through and the odd one flowering. Jeff planted loads of bulbs in the Autumn, so it's so nice to see them coming through. Spring doesn't feel a million miles away now. I'm hoping for dry days going forward, as we've had so much rain. Blue skies and warm sunshine would be a bonus but as long as it's dry, and I can get out, that'll be good for me. 

I have the dentist to kick start off my Monday morning.... I HATE the dentist! Then I'm meeting a friend to go for a walk. I'm working Tuesday and Wednesday in the Gallery, helping them hang the next exhibition and then the rest of the week is still open to offers, weather dependant!! I'm in no doubt that February will whizz by. The next two weeks are busy, then it's half term, then just a week, and I'm in the gallery that week, before it's March!! They do laugh at me and the way I chunk out time but I do think February will come and go in a flash! let's hope it's a good month x