31 August 2014

Checking in .....

Just a quick post to say hi to everyone. I have been so busy this week but also very productive. The clean after the flood is all sorted and mostly put back to rights. The insurance company have been very good and did a lot of the clearing out for us via a skip. The sad thing is that as fast as the skip was filled up people were in it taking it back out. As we used the cellar for a lot of our storage there was two large food cupboards for tinned and jars etc. Two huge plastic bags were put in the skip and within twenty minutes two huge plastic bags were taken out. Tables chairs paint  and all sorts were put in and gone in a flash. I am happy that someone found a use for it all but sad that there is a need.
 I have this weekend had the most awful stomach bug and had to come home from work yesterday after being sick three times while driving to calls. I felt so bad leaving them in the lurch when we are so short staffed but its the first sicky I have had in 15 months.  I still haven't shook it off completely but hope its decides to go soon as we go away tomorrow for a week.
  Remember I told you last week that our granddaughter Mollie got great results in exams, well imagine our surprise when we opened the local paper and there she was smiling away as she received them. Magic.                            Mollie on the right with some of her friends.
                                              And her results.
                When we were sorting out I found two bags that had come from mum's after she died. I thought I had sorted everything out but must have forgotten about these. There was lots of old photo's and  spent a day  looking through them and remembering, laughing and crying. Here are a couple of really old ones.
                                                           Mum and her friend, mum on the left..
                                                     Another one with mum on the left.
                                           Mum and me around 1952...
                                          The ones of mum are taken in the 1940's and seen as how we now do 1940's re enactments do you see any resemblance at all.

      I have been trying all afternoon to comment on  blogs but am just getting not available web pages. Going to try again now as I was getting it on mine as well and am now in.

                                    We are away for a week from tomorrow so catch up later.
                                                   Carol

24 August 2014

Update on the little one's.....

A few pictures of the young ones
                                        Alivia, Layton and Leon
                             Since Alivia had her surgery she has come on leaps and bounds..
                                      Alexis too is making up for her shaky start.


                                              She has become a chatter box too..

          Look at Layton at 11 weeks.

                                   Lilli when she was here on her birthday. Always a joy..
                                         Alexis


                                             Layton
                                                       The boys Nicholas and Leon as cheeky as ever.
                                                           Lilli again on her birthday

Hope you enjoyed the little update on the little ones.
So much sadness around the blogs just now so I thought I would show a few happy pictures. I do though think about all our blogging friends that have had sadness just recently.
Carol




22 August 2014

Sparkle in the sky.....

A true legend in the blogosphere lost her fight and I honour her along with so many more. Sparkle was one of the first blogs I went to and I so enjoyed reading and joining in with everything. Sparkle will be so missed by so many. I hope with all my heart that she is now running free with my GJ and all our other friends.
Run free sweet Sparkle. Love and hugs to your mum who will I know be hurting very much.

21 August 2014

Proud as punch .....

Please excuse a sort of boasting but I am so very proud  and I wanted to share it.
                   I am a bit late posting this because I am on nights but I wanted to say to our gorgeous and talented granddaughter Mollie... A huge congratulations on you exam results.2 A's 4 B's and 1 C. Now on to collage and a start on her chosen career of midwifery. I am so proud I could burst.
                  Well done darling. Love you loads..  xxxx

20 August 2014

Happy Birthday Lilli.....

Today its our gorgeous granddaughter  Lilli's  11 th Birthday. (I had a senior moment and gave her an extra year )

Happy Birthday Lilli We love you loads XX

13 August 2014

Whiskers and noses..

Next door have got two new little arrivals. Just take a look at what peeps under the gate...
                                   They make lots of noise and jump up to say hello...
                                   They live where Suki the cat does and I am not sure what she thinks of them..

                           We are working our way through the clear up from the flood and the insurance people have sent in a firm with drying out equipment to help. They will then send in someone to remove a lot of things, freezer etc as all not viable. We are getting there.
                                      I will get back to visiting everyone soon.
                                                         Hugs Carol xx

9 August 2014

Floods and beauty...

You will have probably seen that yesterday here in the UK we had a months rain in just a few hours. At first we were watching it and taking pictures of the street flooding. Then we quickly realised that we were in trouble. Our house has a cellar that is fitted out and used for storage etc. we realised there was nowhere for all the water outside to go and into our cellar it poured and quickly. We have electrics, freezer and more down there but the real worry was that it was rising fast and already way up the stairs and heading for our new kitchen and lounge. we began bailing water and called my son Tristan and his wife Sue. Without their help we would have been in much more trouble. The four of us bailed water and also pumped for a full 5 hours before we got it under control. It thankfully stopped raining. Barrie stayed up all night pumping it out while I tried to get a few hours sleep as up for early shift but the worry would not let me. I went to work and what a shift as I was out and about helping others also caught in the floods. Our company was finding alternate accommodation in some of our sheltered schemes. we had one lady who was in bed asleep when she realised her bedroom was awash. I realised how lucky we had been. Nature is so upside down at the moment .
                                                    Through the back window
                                                The front window and Barrie's car

                                             The street  outside our house.

                                 Today Barrie worked scooping and mopping, every time he thought he had got to the mopping stage more water is seeping in as the ground is saturated. We are now on red alert as more heavy rain is forecast to be on the way in the form of Bertha. We are so hoping they are wrong.

               Then when I got home from work there waiting was a parcel. Look at what was inside. When I ordered this from the very talented Sheila at  http://www.feltedfantasies.com/  opted not to see photo's of it finished but to be surprised. I opened the bag and out came this beautiful bag. The likeness to my boy is stunning and I love it. What a cheer up it was and to arrive today.
 

              What a beauty. Do you agree..
     Thank you so much to Tristan and Sue who must be shattered today because they will feel aches and pains everywhere from all that bucket bailing and to Barrie who proves there is life in an old dog yet lol.

7 August 2014

Cats of Corfu.....

There were a lot of kitties and I worried so much for them. Everywhere we went we saw them. I think that there is no TNR program and the kitties are left to their own devices. We saw some evidence of people feeding them and we never actually saw any that looked thin and very hungry but I did worry that what happens out of season when there are no restaurants etc.

                   We were out for a walk on the cliff top and out popped this little one from the reeds.

                                        I looked in the reeds and saw another one sleeping.
                                          Then I saw another.
                                            And another..
                                            Two came out..

                                               Then three. I worried a lot about this family. Barrie said there was containers were someone had taken food. Hopefully they will continue to do so.
                                      We walked past this spare ground every night on the way to eat. There were many living here and we did see them eating from packages that someone took to them and again they did not look thin or hungry.
                                      They are eating from a package.
                                 We were up in the old village and saw these peeping at us. Can you spot them..

                          Every night I shared my meal with two kitties that were always at the restaurant. This one was very pregnant and looked about ready to have her kittens. She ate a large proportion of my meal every night.

                                       This is the other one and she was pretty..



                                         Another one while walking.
                                Back up in the old village there were many window ledge kitties.

                                       He was a cutie...

                                   He wouldn't look at me..
                                  These two didn't want to pose either..
                                              He was gorgeous and just sat and looked at me ..

                                            Not so sure but not afraid..
                                All the last ones were up in the old village and that is were people live all year round. I saw no evidence there of hungry cats and they were all quite unafraid. In fact although there were a lot everywhere they all looked in quite good condition and were not afraid of people at all. Perhaps I am worrying needlessly. I hope so.
                                         Hope you enjoyed seeing some of the many kitties I saw.
                                                   Carol