Making lists..Christmas is officially over

Chris usually photographs his Christmas gifts (it has become a bit of a tradition) I usually make a mental list of what I received! (quelle surprise!!!!!!!!!!!!) thought I would list my gifts!, not only because I am anal to the point of obsession!, but because this year I have been particularly lucky and have received some lovely things.

From Chris (George,a mobile phone,a pair of winceyette pyjamas!!!,a lovely ink pen, woolly hat (my favourite see pic), calendar,theatre tickets,and clinique "Happy" aftershave. Janet and Ned , an Edwardian glass, a book on allotments, an art deco silver spoon, a theatre voucher AND a lovely gaudy welsh jug. Ann & Tim, a mushroom growing kit (!), vitamin E cream from Body Shop,wild flower seeds a dog duvet, garden secateurs, & fingerless gloves for work on my field and a lovely 1930 style pie dish. Nephew Chris, a dog bowl. Andrew & Jayne, a cookery book. Nigel, a home designed calendar with lovely photographs and a bee keeping book. Mike & Bev, allotment and gardening books! Sorrel, a years' subscription to Empire Magazine for 2008. Nu & Jim, a years' subscription to Empire! for 2007. Katherine (a voucher to repair ancient tapestry for the National Trust). plus many bottles of wine,genden vouchers, a bottle of gin, tons of chocs!!!

There I feel better .....list have been made!......I know Christmas isn't all about gifts! just wanted to thanks everyone for their thoughfull and welcomed pressies....

Woodlands Benromach

Meet woodlands Benromach (aka George), and typically of the breed he bounced into the house as if he owned it. Finlay and Maddie gave given him a few sniffs before they ignored him and Meg has been rather bemused, as hasJoan, who would have raised her eyebrows if she had any to raise.

Got to Sheffield yesterday and we had a memorial drink in All bar one, after looking at the city Christmas lights. It was interesting to see that instead of the Islamic "Happy Eid" under the Merry Christmas banner near the City Hall, we have now "Happy Chanukah" Hanukkah is the Jewish festival of lights, and is from what I remember a "roving" celebration that occurs from November to December. I wonder why the change? hummmmm?

Met up with Mike and Bev and friends Tom ( an affable A&E doctor) and Jackie ( earth mother and GP), and caught up with the gossip whist eating tons of pizza. It was a lovely night. Maisie is a heaven sent child as she went to bed at 6.30 and didn't stir until 9 am this morning.

Came home from Alfreton via Chatsworth House which is one of our favourite places, but was glad to get home after nearly 5 hours of driving

Lovely to see Chatsworth house feature as Mr Darcey's country home in Pride & Prejudice (2005), as it has never looked lovelier as when photographed by
Roman Osin

Walk and back to a bit of normality

We met up with Ann & Tim last night at Janet's house and had an evening of "family fortunes". So left the car there and went to collect it from Prestatyn this morning on foot with Meg. The picture on the left is Gop hill photographed from the wooded northern slope. We walked past the foot of the mound and into Gwaenysgor. I am not a lover of this time of year in the country as everything looks a dirty shade of brown/green, but the day was not too cold and quite bright.




Gwaenysgor pond, (right) was all churned up at the edges , difficult to keep Meg away but finally we got to the top of the hill. The view of Prestatyn and Liverpool Bay was quite misty.



Meg was knackered when we came to the car, but rallied somewhat as we had to pick the others up and have a second walk on the beach. Barkby beach was crowded with dog walkers, having their post Christmas ambles, and before the rain started we got home just in time to take down the Christmas tree and to make a Turkey curry.

The final picture was taken in the garden as the colour of the berries on the trees is amazing. The mild winter has meant that all those hundreds of bulbs, daffodils,crocus and tulips that I planted in the autumn, are actually starting to sprout.


Watching the The Da Vinci Code (2006) on DVD, at the moment, not the best of films but Audrey Tautou is always lovely to watch.
Tomorrow we are off to Sheffield for our xmas meeting with Bev and Mike. Today we can relax.




By the way, Interesting story of the new James Bond film Casino Royale (2006) , it is the most popular Bond EVER....

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/6211929.stm

Drag Hunt?

It is tradition here to watch the hunt at Denbigh on Boxing day, and it took a while but we caught up with it just outside Henllan. The field was fragmented but at least forty horses stormed past us on the old Denbigh road, trying to keep up with the pack of good natured hounds.

Not the best of photographs but I didn't want to chance the flash going off if I took one of the hunt approaching.

After flasks of tea and mince pies we went up to Andrew and Jaynes for lunch. She originally described it as a buffet, so we were expecting sausage rolls and a bit of quiche. Not on your nelly! home made asparagus flans, venison hot pot, ham that melted in your mouth, and all sorts of other goodies. Jayne's mum is an ex horse/hunt woman, so Chris had big chats in between the lovely food. also her Grandson Gareth and his squiffey but affable girlfriend joined the dinner which was fun

Got home around six. I think Ann and Tim may be calling around later which will be nice, Chris is asleep on the couch, and the fire is lit,

all is peace..................

Nice Day

It's 23.14 and I have just got the house straight. Fair do s to Chris as he has
just cooked a lovely Christmas meal (see flaming xmas pud) and managed well as we ambled down to Peter and Tracey's house ( nephew and wife) to meet them, and Ann and Tim. The swapping of gifts went very well, and happy with our respective lots we settled down to a quiet day, of too much food and banter. Dragged ourselves into the 21st Century by web cam connections to Chris' family !

Good to see everyone! Nephew Chris (below) has been dating some girl from Wynyard Road in Sheffield.....very small world.!!! Tomorrow we are going to the Hunt meeting in Denbigh then off to Andrew and Jaynes for lunch, then Janet and Ned's at tea time. Weight watchers couldn't come too soon.

Nuala rang early morning from Liverpool and asked me if I would give her away at her wedding! She caught me unaware and we both burst into tears!!! I feel very honoured to be able to do it. It was a lovely Christmas present.

The best man won

Mark and lovely Karen stormed to victory last night , and we had a lovely night cheering him on. Karen wanted and needed to win and it was very emotional watching her at the end!

Just finished a twelve hour shift, and looked after a delightfull elderly Welsh lady, but glad to be home, On this very cold Christmas Eve


Chris went to Evening service in the village and said the tiny Church ( Eglwys in Welsh) was packed, he said he loved the high service, and the candlit atmosphere!

Christmas Past and Present

ee HAPPY

CHRISTMAS QQ

I did my thinking on the bus or tram when I was in Sheffield, or walking with the dogs at Redmires. Today I still have big thinks when out with the dogs, but this time it is at the Beach or on the roads around the village. I also love to think when I am in bed looking at the view towards Rhuallt hill, and today's thought was of Christmas past and present.

I have always loved Christmas, it is a throwback from my Mother who spent the month run up , making awful home made sweets, copious lists of Christmas card replies, and planning for a huge dinner table, complete with 1970's prawn cocktail and a solid sherry trifle. She adored making the day special, and tradition meant that she and my father "held court" on the day itself as all the family called around. Strange to think that Chris and I had very similar Christmas upbringings as it were, even down to the same daily routine.






Recent Christmas' have always been a mixture a real family and "urban" family times, Friends Mike and Bev have always figured high in our Yuletide tradition and I am glad that we will be seeing them on the 28th. I hope we can catch up sometime with Nu and Jim, but as her mum has been admitted to a Liverpool hospice, things are pretty busy for them. We had a lovely card and pic from Nia and George (pic) with little George proudly on show, and Christmas day we are joining the Queen with a technology overdose, by setting up a webcam greeting with Chris' Brother and mother in Broadstairs.
Funny how things evolve, isn't it?

Britain at its best!!!!!!...hummmm? and a lovely Hollywood Moment

Well the staff of central trains are full of the Christmas spirit!...... Not!!!!! Just heard that 230£ for one days work is not enough for most of the Rail staff on duty for Christmas Eve, they are striking for more money> Can you believe that? As a bloody hard working nurse on ITU I would love to get 230 quid for my twelve hour shift on Sunday!! What are they doing? clipping a few tickets? This happened last year and the striking rail staff held their managers ( and more importantly the poor passengers) to ransom, and won!. Poor Nige is travelling from Sheffield to Blackpool on Christmas Eve, and his whole plans have been kiboshed!. Coupled with this extreme selfishness of the rail staff, misery from fog bound airports and packed roads, will upset and ruin Christmas for so many people this year. Britain better get its finger out, or else we will be the laughing stock of all Olympic citys, when the world focuses its gaze on London and its transport in 2012.

On a happier note it's the final of Strictly Come dancing tomorrow! Will it be Mark Ramprakash and the lovely Karen Hardy (she has become an articulate and very watchable personality in her own right) or underdog Matt Dawson and Lilia Kopilova. Who knows...how the British public will vote but watching the Argentine tango last Saturday the winner should be Mark. It makes a change watching people doing something that requires great skill on tv

Took the dogs out at four, and noticed that Mrs Dunnington ( she of the big swept up hair and bad tempered labrador) was standing next to the village hall. She was listening to a few of the choir members practicing. The men were singing "Over the rainbow" of all things, and for a few magical minutes we both listened in the dark and the cold. All very Hollywood! it was lovely.

Just read Nige's blog, I like his comments and writing ! my blog resembles a teenage diary in comparason<>Here is a summary of dog life at the cottage

The dogs are now functioning more fully as members of the six-mammal team that occupies their cottage. I usually prefer Male dogs to bitches, but here I actually prefer Meg, the female Welsh terrier, to the male (Finlay), although she is still animated with adolescent, mischievous behaviour. Scots terrier Maddie, in contrast, astutely observes everything and, like a career diplomatic, seems to calculate with precision both when to hide and when to emerge in order to obtain a quiet advantage over her more hedonistic peers.