Happy Father's Day

Happy Father's Day!

Wishing my dad, Jeff's dad and Jeff, dad to our two, a very happy day! 

We're popping over to Wells later to go and see Jeff's dad. I'm seeing my dad on Thursday and Jeff will see our two on Wednesday evening.

I do need to update my photo's! 

We have lots of the four of us but I need a good one of Jeff with S&S on his own.

I had to crop this picture from a big family group pic at Christmas!!

This time last week, Jeff and I were heading to Bristol to see Sophie Ellis-Bextor

As always, she was fantastic. So much energy.

The rest of this week has been exams and clash supervision. 

I did have Wednesday afternoon off and managed to catch up with a couple of friends over coffee. And then on Friday evening...

.....a group of us went out to Bill's! 

I usually meet up with them all individually but with work, it's not happened, so I suggested we all got together. I used to work with them all at Sainsbury's. Two years on, they're still all there and have remained good friends.

The weather this past week has been mixed. 

We've had rain which the garden definitely needed. 

My fig is looking fantastic. 

The sunshine we are promised for the week ahead, will help them ripen and flesh up!

So, next week? 

I have two more days of exams and clash supervision and then that's it, exams are done!! I have a bit of work in the Art Dept. getting stuff ready for the next exhibition. We have a lunch to thank us for our invigilation over the past 7 weeks, on Wednesday afternoon. Sophie and Sam are back that evening. The three of us are then heading down to Lifton on Thursday, to meet up with my Mum and Dad for brunch. Sophie then heads back to Cardiff Thursday evening. Sam does the same on Friday in the Micra, to start packing up his life in Cardiff, emptying his student house for the final time!! So another busy one! 

4 years of Uni done!!!!

Lets start the weekly round-up with a huge shout out to Sam, 

who has completed 4 years of UNI!!! 

He had his last exam on Friday and that completes his Uni experience. I honestly thought on a couple of occasions that this day would never come. He isn't a model student and he has no idea what he wants to do, but I believe Uni offers so much more than just study. He needed to grow up and become more independent and he has achieved that. He has also enjoyed his course, once he changed from Chemistry to History and Economics. He's made great friends, enjoyed some great adventures in Morocco, Montenegro, France. Had three very different living experiences from living in Halls, sharing a house with seven, to a house of five during this past year. He's taken on the responsibility of managing the bills and utilities in this last house and has managed his own money better. He's met his girlfriend and is going to be spending the next year with her, whilst she completes her final year. He has no idea what he wants to do, so who knows what he'll do next!! I guess it could be hard having a sister who knew exactly what she wanted to do, who got a job straight out of Uni, who already has had promotion and is financially sorted..... but, they are two completely different entities. You honestly wouldn't think that they had been brought up together and I actually love that they are so different. So I just wish him success and happiness, as he figures out what lies ahead x

So, the rest of the week? 

It's been a full on week of exams for me. I've done all 10 invigilation sessions, a mix of GCSE's, A 'Levels and Year 9 mocks. I need to invigilate as many exams as possible and make my money now, as I won't get paid in August or September. The weather has been pretty rubbish this week, so I don't feel that I have missed out. It did make getting Benson Boone tickets a little trickier but Sophie was able to work from home and secure us the tickets. That's her birthday sorted, as we see him at the O2 in London on her actual birthday!! Something to look forward to.

We've had a little visitor here this week. We've spotted this hedgehog out in the garden twice now. He/she seems to venture out just after 9.30pm and has a little route along the side of the shed, up to the back door. I love it! 

Maybe the wild lawn area has made the garden more attractive to it. Jeff has spotted a few slow worms and we've definitely noticed more bees. It's also been a lovely colourful display of wild flowers too. So much better than a plain square of grass. What's not to love?

The garden has probably needed the rain, after a dry Spring. The trouble is, it's also got colder and I don't 'do' cold!! Fingers crossed it looks like it'll warm up again by mid week. I went out last night, to the BTEC Art students Private View and I changed into a jumper, in June!!!!

Tonight Jeff and I are off to Bristol again, to see Sophie Ellis Bextor! 

It's my 3rd time seeing her, so really looking forward to it. And it's good that I've managed to get Jeff out again during term time!! Things are getting slightly easier for him, as the exams draw to a close and his Year 11 pupils start to go home.

Next week is another busy one. Another full week of exams and clash supervision. I have one free afternoon, which is already booked up with a long overdue coffee date. That is the only thing about doing the exams, it's finding pockets of time time to catch up with friends. My weekly walks have also gone out of the window for now. I have just a week and a half to go. I then get to help out in the Art department and do a little bit of gallery prep for the September exhibition. So it's all go! 

Have a good week.

EDINBURGH & Half term

We kick started off the half term break with an evening out in Bristol (again)!

The second time this month with Jeff!!

We had a fabulous meal at a family run Italian, halfway up Park Street 

Molto Buono

Would highly recommend if in Bristol and wondering where to eat.

The main event was to see Chicago!

We last saw it together 19 years ago in London, for our 10th wedding anniversary. We'd left the children with my mum and dad and went up on the train, all the way from Redruth in Cornwall. I just remember it being really hot!!

It was great, a really excellent show.

I guess we got home just after 11pm and met my friend on the driveway. 

She was staying the night, as we had a 5am alarm in the morning.....

.....and it was back at Bristol airport!

Jeff very kindly dropped us off. He was home alone for a few days. My KA was in for it's MOT and he was going up to Cardiff to collect the first of Sam's stuff, so was busy, whilst I was off for a few days in....

.....Edinburgh....

....visiting old school friends.

I have known them both since I was 11. They had both been together at primary school. We've met a few times, after reconnecting over the past 10 years but Em lives in Edinburgh and it was about time we headed there. Mel unfortunately couldn't make it but we probably made up for her, talking 10 times over!! I think the first day, we managed 14 hours solid!!!

Em very kindly hosted us for the 4 days and it was lovely to meet her family and fill in all the gaps. She was also the perfect person to show us around Edinburgh. The first day we pretty much stuck to the centre, taking in the 'must see' tourist bits. I remarked that I knew of one person in Edinburgh, my friends daughter is a student there....and who did I see!!!!? I hope I didn't embarrass her running across the road to give her a big hug!!

We were lucky, the forecast for our trip was wet, very wet, but the biggest downpour happened whilst we were inside eating lunch!

Day two and we went to look around the Royal Yacht Britannia. Not something I would have chosen to do, but my friend Ju's dad served on the yacht, so she wanted to go and see it and see his name listed on the crew sheets. 

I was more impressed by the Anthony Gormley sculpture at the end of Leith Pier.

Before heading back, we walked to the top of Calton Hill, for fabulous views across the city, Leith, Arthur's Seat and Holyrood Palace and the Parliament buildings. I LOVED Edinburgh and actually, would happily relocate there, but it would have to be warmer and drier!!!

A fabulous sunset to round off the day!

Our last day and Ju and I went off solo. Em was going on holiday the following day, so she dropped us off in Stockbridge, another beautiful part of the city. We had a mooch around, admired the houses that sell in excess of a million pounds and headed to the river, to walk the Waters of Leith.

It was a beautiful mile and half walk along the river, passing through Dean Village...

...to another Anthony Gormley sculpture. 

From there, we headed up to the Gallery of Modern Art for lunch. And, yet again, dodged another heavy downpour. We did have a brief look around before getting the bus back to Em's and said our goodbyes.

We had a fabulous stay. Loved spending time together and catching up, meeting her family and sharing the 'missing years'. And it would have been perfect, had our flight home not been delayed! We arrived home with 6 minutes to spare, from the 3 hour compensation mark!! Poor Jeff, collecting us from the airport!! We got home at 2am!! Ju stayed over and then headed home the following morning....

....whilst I dashed over to the Newt, to meet up with my Uni friend and her husband. They were staying locally and wanted to go to the Newt, but you can only get in as a member or as a guest of a member. So I met up with them for a coffee, got them in and then left them to explore at their own pace. To be fair I was knackered after four days of going to be bed after midnight, so headed home for a quiet afternoon doing very little.

We haven't done anything in the latter half of this week, just potter around at home. The garden is looking lovely, especially the wild lawn area. Jeff has planted out the sunflowers, geraniums, lobelia and pumpkins, so fingers crossed they now establish and do there thing!!

Pinch and a punch.....

.....hello JUNE!

It's back to school/work tomorrow. I have two and a half weeks of full on exams ahead. I am doing all 10 available slots next week and clash supervision and I think it's a further 8/10 slots the week after. Then a final two days in the third week, but the possibility of a couple of days helping out doing gallery stuff. So a busy 3 weeks ahead, before a calmer week to pack and get ready for our Greek adventure! And that'll be June done!! It's frightening when you think of it like that. We do have another night out in Bristol and a meet up with my mum and dad to look forward to, too. Sam has his last exam on the 6th and will then be leaving Cardiff. Packing up 4 years worth of stuff and doing a couple of runs back and forth, as he only has a Micra or a KA to transport everything! Although that said, it all went up in a Micra with room to spare!! So, a busy month ahead and lots to look forward to.

A quick round up before half term!

I'm away for a few days from tomorrow, so a quick round up of the week before half term! 

The week started with taking Sam to the train station, returning to Cardiff for one of the last times.

Tuesday and a rare day off!! 

So Sophie and I met up at Cribbs for a little retail therapy together. 

It's pretty much halfway for us both, so a good meet up place.

Neither of us really found anything to purchase, other than a much needed replacement pair of DM's!! Although, I do intend to try and keep them until September and the start of the new academic year, IF my olds ones can keep going that long. A new school term and a new pair of shoes, just like school days! Ha!

The weather this week has been mixed and as always, as a holiday approaches, so the good weather disappears and makes way for a wet, unsettled week ahead.

Jeff did manage to plant out the sunflowers one dry evening. 

Let's hope they put on another magnificent display throughout the summer.

It's hard to believe that these tiny seedlings will end up 5/6ft tall!!.

I had a little anniversary this week. It's 10 years since I lost all my weight and 10 years on, I've managed to keep 4 of the 6 stone off. I'm pretty chuffed with that. I won't say that it's been easy, in fact it's taken up far too much headspace over the years. But, the older I get, it's even more important to keep going. Health, strength, mobility, etc are far more important than being thin!!

I've had a super busy week of exam invigilation and Jeff has been super busy as this term comes to a close. He's just returned from the Summer Celebration and Prize Giving and is now officially on half term, with 4 weeks left of the school year once he's back! We've both pretty much been flat out this week and have both had to make the effort to venture out to the garden in an evening to appreciate how lovely it is looking at the moment. The Alliums are at their best.....

...the Hosta's are at their most lush and unspoilt.

My fig is doing fantastically, laden with fruit ready to be ripened and....

....the geraniums and honeysuckle are full of flower.

So half term plans..... we're off out tonight to the theatre and a meal. Then a 5am alarm in the morning, and a trip to Bristol airport, as I head off to Edinburgh for a few days to meet up with old school friends. Jeff is home alone, but is up to Cardiff one day, to start packing up Sam's stuff and bringing it home from Uni! My car is going in for it's MOT and he has lots of bits to keep him busy, before I return late Wednesday evening. The weather the past few weeks has been glorious up in Edinburgh, so of course it's forecast to rain!!!!!! Sigh!! Packing has been tricky, what to take??? I last went to Edinburgh when I was 16, the summer after my O'Levels. I travelled by train from Redruth in Cornwall, all the way up to Dundee and then onto Edinburgh, with my Granny and her neighbour Enid!! We went to see the Edinburgh Tattoo. I just remember it being the journey from hell, so I'm hoping the flight tomorrow will be far less arduous. I will report back next weekend, have a good week x

Out on a school night!

We started the working week with a night out in Bristol!

We sat out on the street enjoying a beer, pretending we were in Italy or Greece HA!

Then on to St George's......

....to see the talented Tony Ann.

I started following him in Lockdown, when he would sit on his balcony, with a keyboard, videoing himself composing and playing. He is now on a World tour and has amassed over 100 million views over social media. Go and see for your self over on Instagram @tonyannnn 

We have been enjoying the most glorious sunshiny weather, which was temporarily disrupted by the threat of a thunder storm mid week. Thunder rumbled around, the skies darkened, but it amounted to nothing and very little rain. We have apparently, had more hours of sunshine this Spring, than we had the whole of last summer!! Which I can easily believe. Let's hope it lasts, although the forecast for half term week is looking extremely soggy x

I had a rare morning off on Thursday to walk with my friend. We usually walk every week, but my Thursday mornings have been filled with exams. When I gave my initial availability, I kept Thursday mornings free, but this is the last remaining free Thursday until the end of June!! 

So we decided to head up the Tor as we've not done that for a while. 

9000 steps in the bag and a nice coffee reward at Middlewick cafe at the end, 

before going back in to do another exam in the afternoon. 

After a full week of exams, it was lovely to come home on Friday, to Sam waiting for us, wanting to know what was for tea!! He's finished his last assignment, got 3 weeks until his FINAL exam!!! So has come home for a few days. Normally, he'd be here, there, and everywhere catching up with friends but he must have been in need to chill, as he's pretty much stayed here. We walked yesterday afternoon, up and around Compton Dundon Beacon....

....and then after tea, we did a 'Boris Walk', once around the block, for old times sake!!

Sam and I walked every day together in the first lockdown, as Jeff preferred to use his allotted time to run. We mended a lot of bridges whilst walking.

 During his GCSE's I came down on him like a tonne of bricks, was very much the 'moany mum' as he is a bright boy but extremely lazy. I made him sit down at the table to revise, as he'd have done next to nothing left to his own devises. We didn't really like each other much by the end of it. BUT, during lockdown, we started to enjoy each other's company a little more with each walk, and it's still something we enjoy doing together now!

It's been lovely to see him. Jeff is dropping him off at Bridgwater train station tomorrow evening. He's back in Cardiff for a few days before heading back to London to see Poppy. He needs to start sorting out his stuff, to pack up and move out. Jeff is heading up in half term to collect a car load and he'll probably get insured on the car to do any other runs he needs. We only have a Micra and a KA, so not big cars and Sophie has a Fiat 500, so four years of accumulated 'stuff' may take a few trips!!

Next week is the final flurry before half term. To be fair, it's all gone by pretty quickly. I'm in all week, except for Tuesday. Sophie and I are meeting up for the day, a little retail therapy!!

Have a good week, enjoy the sunshine whilst it lasts!