Canon fire and car boot sales

One of the nicest aspects of living in England has been the glorious springs we are blessed with. However this year we are still waiting for the temperatures to warm up.  It's been the coldest spring on record since  1975. It wasn't particularly brilliant last year either when I actually think about it. Last year the skies opened up in April and it didn't stop raining once until September.  Well maybe once or twice but I was probably at work that day, or out of the country. This year the temperatures have been similar to those I used to experience back home in Nova Scotia in spring.  At least there we knew that we didn't have to start planning our summer wardrobe until the end of May at the earliest. Oh, and residents of Nova Scotia don't have to worry about the heat melting their igloos until well into June, July if they are lucky.

This post wasn't meant to be your weekly weather update for the North East of England.  Please accept my sincerest apologies for that. At least the sun has been shining.  Now if only the wind would calm down.

Andy and I had this past weekend to ourselves and on Saturday we took Wendy and Dave to a lovely old pub for lunch.  It's hard to find a place to eat around here that has good service, good food and a great atmosphere.  The White Hart in Grimsby ticks all the boxes. I had a beautiful piece of Salmon with crisp vegetables and Andy ordered the Ploughman's Lunch;  this is what he was served (with a side of home-cut chips):

The board was nearly as big as his side of the table - the food was beautiful and fresh.

After a lovely lunch we went home and took Molly out for a long walk:

We thoroughly enjoy this walk and I would love to be able to incorporate it into my run as a) I believe it meets the required three miles I need to be able to complete for the upcoming Race for Life and b) I much prefer a trail over pavement, however at the moment we aren't even going to be able to walk this route as Molly now hates going this way and starts to back off the moment we start to cross the road into the field.  It's such a shame because she really used to enjoy it, especially the big pond.  Her reason for this? The farmers around these parts have been putting air-canons in their fields to help keep the birds off the crops.  Those air-guns are loud and although Molly is technically a gun dog it's obvious to anyone that she so isn't.  She's terrified of loud noises and because of the air gun she starts to pant and shake the moment she hears one go off (it happened four times on Saturday).  What's worse is that she doesn't calm down until we are almost back home. She spent the latter part of the walk on Saturday quivering and shaking; I almost expected her to throw up she was in such a state.   The last thing I need is for her to have a heart attack.  So no more going that route unless the farmer removes the air canon - which I doubt is likely.  Next time she makes it clear she doesn't want to go that way, I'm going to listen. 

On Sunday Andy and I decided to take a drive out to one of the country-side markets that's constantly advertised on the radio. Unfortunately we didn't stick around very long as it was basically just a glorified car boot sale (flea-market) and that is definitely not the way Andy and I like to spend a Sunday morning.  Especially when the wind was blowing dirt and sand all over the place.   I love a bargain but I think I will stick to e-bay and the charity shops for any second-hand items I may need.  

Soon to be Undercover

Andy and I choose to live in a village just outside of our local town of Grimsby, North East Lincolnshire for a number of reasons.  The predominate one being that our village is much prettier and less crowded than the town. 

In England residents have to pay a local council tax. The fee is determined by the area you live in and how many people reside in your home.  The purpose of the council tax is to pay for various amenities such as garbage collection, road maintenance etc.  Because we live in the area we do, our council tax is higher than what we would pay if we lived in a less desirable area. When you are paying taxes at these rates it's only logical to expect that the services you pay for are carried out.  Or maybe we're just unreasonable people. 

I understand that since I moved to this country over nine years ago there has been an increase in population and therefore traffic.  We've seen an increase in bad weather each winter which is now resulting in our council having to fork out extra cash to clear the roads as well as fix the numerous potholes that result from the inclement bad weather. (When I first moved here I was astounded at how fresh and smooth the roads looked.) 

Over a year ago our council paid to have what used to be just plain dirt jumps converted into a proper set of bike ramps: 

The kids absolutely love it. 

There is a beautiful big field that leads directly off the jumps.  It's practically outside our front door and on days it's not used for a football pitch, its perfect for exercising Molly on.  

(This is only a small corner near the jumps and path)

Loads of families use it.  Every spring when the days get longer and warmer the community comes out in full force and it's great to see.  

The only trouble is, over the past few years and definitely since the instalment of the bike ramps the amount of rubbish has increased.  Sure there are two rubbish bins near the ramps but they are either full to overflowing, or people just blatantly disregard them. (I won't even touch on the amount of cars that park illegally  and block our drive- that's an entirely separate issue to bore you with.)

Around the corner from the ramps is a bike path that has a high volume of foot/cycle traffic as well.  For years Andy has been petitioning the local council to place a few bins down the pathway but has only met with refusal because it would mean the council would have to pay someone to actually go down the path to empty the bins, rather than those just those placed at each end.  I'm not sure how beneficial it would be anyway as the bins provided aren't always used. Yet it would be a start.

Because this is the lovely view we are met with every time we go out for a walk:

(This is only one small area)

It's disgusting.  I can't believe that people take no pride in their community and just fling their garbage wherever they feel like it.  It's bad enough when people won't use the allocated bins for dog waste, but what's the point of bagging it up if you are only going to fling it in the trees?

We live in a lovely area yet you would never know it from the amount of trash that is strewn all over the communal areas.  The council will send someone out to clear the rubbish that is directly on the path or field but say they can't allow anyone to venture more than a few feet off the path to do the undergrowth etc due to Healthy and Safety regulations. Last year someone actually came out to view the situation and her opinion was 'It's not that bad'.  Maybe not, if you live in a trash can with a green muppet called Oscar.   

Our only consolation is that in a few weeks the foilage will have come out in all it's splendid greenery and for the most part will hide this disgrace under it's cover like it does every year.

*sigh*   

Our Beautiful Birthday Boy

His Grandy and I can't believe how much joy he has brought to our lives. How fast this last year has gone.  We are so looking forward to spending lots of time outside with our little man this summer. 

We love you loads, Jayden

26 Miles

I've known a lot of runner's throughout my life. One of my oldest and dearest friends has a father who still runs and he's well into his sixties.  Another close friend started running when we were in our early twenties and I was amazed by her transformation; she still runs despite owning her own law firm and raising four children.  My brother in-law does at least one triathlon a year. Two of my sisters have both completed 1/2 marathons and are committed to running.  They look and feel wonderful.  I'm incredibly proud of them and a little bit envious.  I've dabbled in running over the years but have never been able to run more than 3 or 4 miles non-stop.  Lately I've been thinking about trying it out again.  I strongly doubt I'd ever aim to run a full marathon because I'm not convinced it's the healthiest thing for a body - not mine anyway.  I know the type of havoc it wreaks on the knees and ankles but I was shocked when my sister wrote a post a few years back about her toenails turning black after a race, which is apparently a common occurrence in runners. Suddenly running didn't seem so appealing any more.

And then Monday happened in Boston.  (My home town of Halifax, Nova Scotia has a special bond with Boston.  If any of you are history buffs, you will get the connection.) I don't know anyone personally from Boston, nor anyone who was running that race;  But like the rest of the world I'm full of anger and disgust at the sick people who are behind the horrible atrocities that seem to be occurring more frequently. I'm mortified that some sick shit didn't think that an explosion or two would be enough, but that ball bearings and nails needed to be thrown into the mix.    

Aside from the worry of how dangerous a place this world is becoming I also have concerns that people are  becoming more self-involved as time marches on;  it seems that the more technology advances, the less time people want to spend with each other.  And then something terrible happens and everyone comes together in their shock and fear and like most of you undoubtedly feel, I too believe that there is more good in the world than bad; that there are people who care about other people, strangers or not. It's very clear from all the posts and photos circulating this week that humanity is most definitely in abundance when it comes to marathons, as is so beautifully captured here.  (I found this post by Kate via Julie, a witty and talented blogger I enjoy reading).  Unlike a lot of other sporting events where spectators yell obscenities at the players, referee's and other spectator's (never mind the fighting that goes on between the actual team members) marathons seem to attract the complete opposite.  Whereas most sports involve participants who are paid a ridiculous amount of money for personal gain, it would seem that most marathon runner's have a valid reason for putting their bodies through such torture.  It seems that for most it's about more than achieving a personal goal or proving a point to themselves (which would be reason enough) it's about raising awareness and money for charities and people who can't run for themselves.  I've always known this, but I've never really noticed how it's about so much more than just running until I read Kate's post following Monday's events. How so many people are with each other, running or not - encouraging and cheering each other on. It's a brilliant and poignant post about people and how there is so much joy surrounding these events. And it makes me think that maybe it's something I want to be a part of.

For years I've thought about signing up for the Race for Life (Run for the Cure), and nevermore so than after my mom was diagnosed with breast cancer.  Thinking about something isn't enough so today the procrastination stops.

I've signed up for the local Race For Life and on Sunday, 19th May, at the age of 40 I will attempt to run a race for the first time ever.  I will be doing it for my mother, sisters and nieces.  I will be doing it for everyone out there who can't.  Most importantly I will be doing it for me, because it's something I can be a part of for such a good cause and I want to participate in an event that is focused on our strong spirits and the goodness that is always going to triumph over the awful things that happen to us, be it cancer or horrible acts of violence.

It won't be 26 miles, but it's something.

I want to thank all of you out there who inspire and encourage others on a daily basis - it matters more than you might ever know.

Our first hike of the year

This time last week I had been curling up on the couch and congratulating myself on the kick-ass Thai Fish Cakes I had made for our Good Friday dinner and debating opening a bottle of ice-cold wine as I toasted the first full day of my 10 day hiatus from work; but I didn't. I actually held off on the wine for a further day, finally breaking my 35 day run of wine-free veins. 

We spent the weekend conducting a vigorous spring clean and I can now say that our house looks great pretty good, especially our spartan bedroom which at the moment is taking a bit of getting used to because it's so minimalist. We moved our wardrobes to another room and I threw out a lot of stuff I'd been hanging on to.

Tonight marks what is the start of the weekend for those of you who actually had to work the last four days; for me it means I only have two days left of an at-home-holiday that ironically resulted with my coming down with a cold/flu on Tuesday. (So much for all the working out I had planned).

Speaking of Tuesday, we packed up the car and got on the road with Dawn, Rob and the dogs. A short uneventful three hours later, we arrived at one of our favourite trials to hike - Ingleton Waterfalls. It was a chilly day so we layered up and with backpacks full of water, juice and wraps we got underway. It's not a long one by any means (2.5-3 hours) but it was a good start to the hiking season, with lots of hills and steps. Oh, and tons of places for the fur kids to splash about in. 

If you aren't interested in viewing a TON of photos, you should probably change pages right about now because here they are: 

Just getting started and already a photo op

Beautiful scenery and my husband asks for me to get in the shot (not that he ever has to ask twice, I am a McDonald girl after all)

Dawn wasn't so sure Carter wasn't going to do a leap off the bridge...

Over the top;  Carter couldn't be bothered about a photo

 I like the quirkiness of this one :) 

This was high up... not that you can tell

The bridge was very flimsy 

A man, his dog and a breathtaking view

Daddy, throw the stick already

The Gallivan's - our great travelling companions

Only a few minutes up the road by car was this viaduct; my husband being the train geek fanatic that he is meant a quick stop and a short walk down to view it.  

It actually was quite spectacular, especially since it was built well over a century ago.

Easter Break

Today marks the start of a 10 Day Hiatus from work for me.  It feels kind of strange to actually have a week off from work without having any real plans made other than:

• Painting and re-organizing our bedroom (however hubby will be doing the majority of this task so I suppose its not really on my list of plans).  My only task is to be on the look out for a nice chair. I will try and take a before and after photo for the 2 of you who might be interested.
• Cooking an Easter dinner for my family and Beryl.
• A long over-due hike in Yorkshire Dales with the Gallivan's and our dogs.  Fingers crossed it warms up a little bit.
• A little bit lot of working out.

Last weekend I didn't make it to Nottingham due to the inclement weather, however not getting away on Saturday morning meant I got to spend a little bit of extra time with my most favourite boy in the whole world: 

Doesn't he make you just want to pick him up and cuddle the chubby cheeks right off of him?

  He's an excellent little snoozer as you can see. 

Seriously, this boy is the biggest time waster on the planet when it comes to me and his Grandy.  Part of me can't wait until he's old enough to enjoy Easter Egg Hunts. 

Oh and on Saturday afternoon I got the call that my dad had been taken into the hospital after suffering a mild heart attack in the early hours of the morning.  He was released yesterday and I'm relieved he's OK.  I'm sure he was given fair warning by the health care workers that he needs to make a serious life-style change.  Fingers crossed he does this time, as this was his 2nd strike and we all know how that mantra can go. 

My Mom and sister Stacy are travelling to Ontario to have Easter with my sister Tawny and her family. I know Mom will enjoy seeing our little Clara hunt for her Easter Eggs.  I hope to see lot's of pictures! 

I also hope you have a lovely Easter and partake in a little bit of chocolate. Although Jesus is the reason for this season as well, the Easter Bunny deserves his recognition too don't you think? 

Happy Easter Everyone     

That Friday Feelin

Last night Andy was going to be home late so I made myself a chicken stir fry for dinner which I really enjoyed.  I much prefer to each chicken and vegetables over almost any other food.  Well besides pasta, I love pasta but it's something I rarely eat. 

After I'd eaten I decided to make some chocolate snowballs. 

The healthy version:

These are made with almonds and dates;  they are gluten and dairy free as well so just about anyone can eat them provided they don't have a nut allergy. 

This week hasn't been as productive as I would have liked; I've been a bit lazy and I've let myself down in more ways than one but I'm not giving myself too hard of a time over it.  I can't stay mad at anyone for very long, least of all myself.  Life's too short.

I have a busy weekend ahead of me; tonight baby boy is coming to sleep over with us and he and his Grandy will take me to the station in the morning so I can catch the train to Nottingham to spend time with my adorably loquacious niece. 

Sunday is Dawn's birthday so I will have to make sure I get back in time to go have a little celebration with her.  Which puts me in a bit of a predicament.  Remember that post I did last month where I confessed to the fact that my pal Sarah and I had fell into a vat of champagne and nearly drowned in it?  Well since that weekend (tomorrow it will be four weeks) I haven't touched wine.  Not one glass.  Come on, pick yourself up off the floor I'm not done this post yet.... I know how surprising this must be to you because in recent years wine has become one of my four food groups. And I know it was champagne and not wine that we'd over-indulged in, but since then I told myself I was going to lay off the wine and see how long I could go without breaking open a bottle.  Perhaps until Easter, a sort of delayed Lenten sacrifice.  Dawn thinks it's funny when we get together on a weekend afternoon and actually have coffee. So I will have to see what happens this Sunday afternoon. Perhaps we can have a glass of cider. 

It's not been as hard as I'd though, kind of like the time I kicked my diet coke addiction. I did tell you that I don't drink diet coke on a daily basis any more right? I don't even have it in the house. Seriously, and not because if it's there I will have to have it.  That only applies to chips and cake.  It's the same with the wine - there's plenty of it in my wine rack but it doesn't even call my name when I'm in the living room watching Stella. I know, right?  I'm  not the raging alcoholic I thought I was.

However like with my diet coke, I don't plan on never drinking wine again;  Sorry but I love my summer afternoons/evenings in the garden with my pal and a glass or two of crisp, cold pinot grigio.  Just like the times when I grab a sandwich from the local deli and enjoy it with a cold can of diet coke. It just has to happen from time to time. I don't believe in giving up something you love for ever.  Everything in moderation works for me. 

They are calling for dodgy weather in these parts this weekend;  I don't know what's happened to the spring that England used to experience but here's hoping it's a good weekend even if the weather is a stubborn mule. 

I hope you enjoy your weekend too, and wherever you are I hope you at least see the sun.  I'm beginning to forget what it looks like.

Who says you can't teach an old dog new tricks?

This past weekend was the kind I really enjoy.

I managed to get in a couple of great workouts as well as spend some time pottering about in the kitchen. Yup, that's my idea of a good weekend.  I'm not even going to apologise for boring you.  Be warned that the latter part of this post will be spent telling you about how fantastic my dog is. 

I made home made rolls for the first time; These are Hawaiian rolls made with crushed pineapple - you can't really taste the pineapple but it gives them a nice sweetness (I only tried a corner off of one though so I'm not really in a position to properly critique).  

I'm not Irish, but being from Nova Scotia and having the family I do, I was raised to celebrate acknowledge St Paddy's Day.  Years ago I would head into the city dressed in something green for more than a few beers and a jig or two but I've outgrown that.  Ok, maybe I haven't really, it's just not the done thing in this part of the world. However I was pleasantly surprised when Andy and I went to our local pub for dinner last evening and found it all decked out in shamrocks; they were even playing Irish music which was the real shocker.  The barmen, Anthony and Rob kept fiddling with the sound.  I laughed and cheered when Anthony turned it up and Andy cheered when Rob would turn it down.  He's just so old English sometimes.

So here was my contribution to the day they call the 'Most Friendly' of the year. 

Chocolate Guiness Cupcakes 

I made a batch of 48, most of which were given away as I'm trying to maintain a healthy diet.  After icing that many cupcakes I didn't feel like arranging them for a picture so my apologies for the lack of imagination.  I know a lot of the appeal with food is in the presentation but if you tried one you'd forget about that. Honestly; they are scrummy; Unlike the buns, you can take my word for it.

Yesterday my friend Alison had a 'Birthday Party' for her Slovakian Rough Haired Pointer (dog) Seda who turned 3.  Now before you start rolling your eyes, hear me out.  Alison goes dog training with Seda on a Wednesday evening and this was something similar for her friends and & their dogs that consisted of various games, mostly based on agility and their ability to follow instruction. Molly rocked the party games, especially Musical Chairs and Pass the Parcel (which we won). We came 3rd at Musical Chairs (you have to get your dog to sit & stay before you can grab your seat).  We had fun although Molly was a bit confused at first but still followed my instructions (which she will usually do anyway, especially if there is a treat to be had).  

The agility games were great fun and Molly did brilliantly despite all the distractions; it was loud and a bit boisterous at times. She got a little bit obsessed once or twice with the smoked sausage treats Alison had in her pocket which were obviously way better than the hypo-allergenic organic treats in my pocket. I wish in some ways I'd taken my girl training years ago.  She would have been a real pro. 

Dog party or not, I was a very proud Mama; Molly was so well behaved and clever and aside from nearly taking Ali's fingers off in her quest to get the sausage (her manners are something we continue to work on but then again, a lab will be greedy). All told, she did very well for being the oldest dog in the group (not that anyone could believe that she was coming up for 8 next month). I'm not even sorry if I'm making you gag by constantly bragging about Molly, but she earned it.  My dog rocks.     

Ali and Molly (with the toy she won for being so obedient). 

65

Today my beautiful Mom turns 65

Throughout my life I have often heard the statement 'You are just like your mom'. 

As far as I'm concerned, it's the best compliment I could receive.

Growing up most of my friends told me how lucky I was to have her for a mom, but they weren't telling me something I didn't already know.

Most of my cousin's tell me she is their favourite Aunt.

Just about every child I have ever known instantly falls for her, including our boys.  Even Cameron who came to visit with us last summer fell hard for her.  No surprise there.

She is the absolute best mother I could have been given in this life. Completely.

Thank you for being the woman you are and for teaching me to be the woman I've grown into. 

Happy 65th Birthday Mama.  I love you with all of my heart.

Weekly Wrap-up

Well here we are again at Friday.  The week has been a pretty good one and despite the fact my exercise goals took another hit due to the fact that my lower back has been in spasms for most of the week.  However I'm optimistic that today is a new start.  Hopefully by the end of the day my back will still be ok and I can make it to the gym.

This is what's been going on in the last week:

• I've managed to plan a few healthy meals and cook for both Andy and myself this week;  Yesterday I cooked a ham in our slow cooker and served it up cold alongside potatoes dauphinoise for Andy and Tasha.  I cubed up a few slices for myself and added them to a huge spinach salad, which I really enjoyed.  I also made some turkey chili  chock full of vegetables for our dinner this evening which I'm really looking forward to.  I love chili. Andy will probably want a baked potato with his but I will eat mine all on it's own.  Lately I've been making big pots of veggie chilli, which I seem to enjoy even more than meat chili, which is a bonus as it's super nutritious.

• Kate Middleton visited our town on Tuesday.  Surprisingly it made international news by putting our grubby little town on the map, even if momentarily.  I love how she went to the local fire house. Andy's cousin is a fire-fighter and snapped this photo:

The Fire Chief at least looks pretty impressed.  

And on Tuesday night our little snuggle-bum came down for a visit with his mum and dad who were on the scrounge for some food.

This child is a massive time waster. 

He pulls the most crazy faces; something tells me this boy isn't going to take himself too seriously. 

I love how they will sit side by side with only the slightest bit of curiosity toward each other;  Molly seems to have become resigned to the fact that the little ones are here to stay (Daisy didn't give her any other option as she was determined to make Molly love her).  I think the dog is just relived that Jayden doesn't constantly follow her around seeking hugs and will only reach out to touch her foot on occasion.  For the time being the baby is more interested in pulling my hair. 

• After a lot of thought, I made a major decision this week to quit my gym;  I spend £40 a month on a membership that I don't utilise enough to warrant paying that price.  It would be different if I was dedicated and attended  4 or 5 times a week but it's time to be honest - I don't; I'm lucky if I get there twice.  Today I will put in my three month notice and after that I will likely sign up at another local gym that will only cost me £16 a month.  I also plan to start a running program again as well as getting back to doing a lot of other outdoor activities. Besides, I always have my Ripped in 30 and 30 Day Shred videos to fall back on  for building/maintaining muscle (which has proven to work for me more than the gym ever has).  I will see how it goes;  There is nothing stopping me from going back to the gym I've been a long-standing member of, should I change my mind.

It's UK Mother's Day this weekend and both Andy and I are looking forward to a quiet one;  we are hopeful that the weather will soon turn so we can begin getting out on hike's again.

Looking for the right balance...

I've been bursting all weekend to let you know that the Oreo Mint Ice-cream I made for Andy turned out brilliantly.  Just goes to show what happens when you actually do a bit of reading before you start a project.  One thing I have to remember for the next time is to ensure I make the ice-cream about 8 hours before it's meant to be enjoyed and then serve it.  On Friday morning after being frozen all night, it was absolutely terrific, frozen to a perfect, creamy texture.  However by the evening, after being in the freezer 24 hours it looked to have a little bit of freezer burn going on, although Andy said he enjoyed it just the same. Either way, like any hobby or skill I bet I will get better the more I practice. 

We had Jayden for the night with us on Friday.  He is growing like a weed and I think I need to start posting more pictures of him.  He's just too adorable to not share.  I can't believe that he's going to be 1 in April. He's an absolute dream to take care of, sleeping through the night and not waking up till after 8 am, and always smiling.  Sometimes it's very hard to give him back to his mum and dad.  The kids are doing a great job raising him and what's really sweet is that they make sure that he gets to spend lots of time with all the family and his numerous grandparents. (He has a lot as both Alex and Bonnie's parents are divorced. However I suppose this is one of the positives of today's modern family - that many more grandparents to spoil and adore).

Saturday afternoon was spent in the kitchen cooking a three course meal for my in-laws;  between friends and family we are trying our best to keep them occupied on the weekends.  It was a relaxed way to spend the evening and Wendy came armed with a load of cookbooks for me, which was like Christmas in it's own way.  Her only request was that I start baking again and leaving treats out for her and Dave when they come down to walk Molly during the week.  I've been holding off using my lovely new mixer Ruby because I'm trying to cut back on eating foods that aren't helping my waistline but if I'm being completely honest its because I don't want to get her dirty.  Sad.  I know. 

In other news I've been trying to exercise more but it's a bit of a hit&miss saga with me.  I often wish desperately that I could find the motivation that my sister's seem to have in abundance, however it alludes me at ever corner and for some reason I don't think I'm going to find it in the fridge which seems to be where I look the most these days.  Perhaps I should start doing a Weekly Accountability Post or set up an exercise/food chart.  I think these sound like great ideas in theory but I have to face it, I'm not a planner. I spend all week sorting charts and diaries at work and like my home life to feel a bit more relaxed.  

There has to be a happy medium somewhere and I'm sure I will find it eventually.  I probably feel a bit less motivated at this very moment because I have a dry, sore throat and just want to lay down and read my book.

I'm no Ben, or Jerry for that matter...

I'm so relieved that today is the last day of February.  Despite the fact that we had a wonderfully luxurious holiday and have managed to spend quality time with our UK family and friends, the last few months have been mixture of good and the not-so-good-at-all.    

March brings us that little bit closer to spring and with spring often comes new beginnings and fresh starts - hope even.  Spring in England usually means sunny days with flowers blooming in just about every direction you could turn. Well except if you happen to take a walk up the path near our house.  Then you just get the pleasant sight of bags full of dog mess hanging from the trees and a ton of rubbish strewn throughout the bushes.  It looks lovely, honest; or so the local council would have you believe because they don't seem to see anything but flowers and fairies if they bother to come check it out. Most years they may decide to take a bit of notice but by then the lush green foliage will have grown back, conveniently covering all the trash and mess leading them to believe the local villagers are just tale-tellers. Or perhaps the Rubbish Fairies really have done a tidy up while we weren't looking.  

Anyway, even if the sunny skies of spring only last a month or two before they open up and wreak havoc on us for believing for one moment that the good weather could possibly extend into summer, then so be it.  At this point in time I will take it.  

In other news, Andy went to work away this week for the first time in months.  It's been a bit of adjustment for me & Molly but we have been keeping ourselves fairly occupied in the evening. For instance, last night Dawn and Carter came over.   

I made these for our dinner: 

Loaded Sweet Potato

They were low fat, healthy and tasty.  I hardly even used any grated cheese as the rest of the toppings were flavourful enough. 

The recipe can be found here and it's worth a try, trust me.  Even if you aren't health conscious and need a new recipe to break the monotony. They are so good.

We then played a few rounds of Skipbo in between trying to make a chocolate & coconut milk (lactose-free) ice-cream.  Key word here is 'trying'.  It didn't seem to amount to much when we were done but I haven't talked to Dawn yet for the final result. The instructions for my ice-cream maker (which I've called Elmo) said it wasn't meant to immediately be the consistency of ice-cream but surely it should have been a bit thicker than what we ended up with.  

Tonight I will endeavour to make a Ben & Jerry's recipe for Andy's return.  Fingers crossed it turns out, although I think it might take a few tries before I get the hang of it.   If you have any experience with making ice-cream I would welcome some pointers.

Champagne Confessions

I spent all of Sunday looking pretty much like this and feeling ten times worse.

(Brooke Shields plays Rita Glossner on one my favourite sitcoms, The Middle)

My friend Sarah and I had such high expectations for our day out on Saturday for a belated 40th celebration;  She had a pocketful of money that she was excited to spend on me.   It was an insane amount of money and I didn't feel completely at ease about how much she was willing to spend but she was adamant it was for our enjoyment; I felt very spoiled and very indulged. We started off at the salon where I had my nails done, followed by a relaxing back massage.

What was then supposed to be just some leisurely shopping followed by champagne and cake turned into a champagne crisis. Instead of picking up two slightly tipsy women, my husband ended up collecting one tipsy woman, Nicky, who had come to join us right about the time we should have called it a day, and two women who had metamorphosed into a hot mess. 

My husband doesn't mind lots of friendly kisses from my friends, or even letting them cuddle him on the odd occasion when there has been a bit of alcoholic indulgence (what man wouldn't enjoy the attention).  He's even aware that we sometimes give each other a fond kiss or two and doesn't seem to mind that either.  However being vomited on by my girlfriend isn't his idea of a brilliant Saturday night.  Perhaps this would be expected of one's teenage offspring, but not by a grown woman. So big oops there.  

I was ungracefully in bed by 8:30 pm;  Waking up feeling like I'd been run over by a truck and very unclear  about the past evening's activities is something I had meant to leave behind me in my obnoxious 20's.  For the most part I have laid that idiot to rest and have turned into a mostly respectable married wife and step-mom who enjoys taking care of herself and her family.  As I said in my previous post, I like to eat and I like to drink, but not to the point of over-indulged inebriation.  Most of you know how much I love to have a good laugh and this is something that I often do, without the help of alcohol and this is the way I intend to roll now that I'm a middle aged granny.  Sure I can indulge a little now and then, but not to the point where I'm swimming in a vat of wine with no idea of how to get back to the surface. 

You will be pleased to know that I'm now back to my regularly scheduled self; eating well and exercising while I think up great ways to thank my husband for being such a trooper last weekend. I will spare you most of the ideas I've come up with , however he has requested that I get cracking and put my new ice-cream maker to work. (Something that will probably turn into a post of its own, considering I've never made ice-cream before.)

I thought I'd share this shameful story with you because I wanted you to know that even I can screw up sometimes.  (Something I did frequently in my early years, but not so much now that I'm a respectable lady woman of a certain age ;) 

Waitin on that four o'clock whistle

When we were in the Maldives I had that Friday Feeling every day; It was certainly made easy on an evening like this:  

Sitting on the edge of the Asian Wok sure wasn't hard work, as we watched an incredible sunset while shark's swam in the shallows below us and we sipped on our yummy cocktails.  I love this picture - it captures the whole feeling of our trip and even my naff hair doesn't spoil it.  I mean can you see my tan? 

Getting back into the groove hasn't been the easiest, especially after the loss of Andy's sister, so I've been keeping fairly busy. It's only been a four day work for me (I had Monday off to help Beryl celebrate her 85th birthday) but I'm really glad it's Friday. 

On Tuesday night I tried making Pad Thai for the first time, meaning the sauce wasn't from a jar, and was impressed with my efforts.  Even Andy ate it and he's not much of a noodle man.

(I didn't think of snapping a picture until after I'd packed up for my lunch the next day.) 

After work my number one man and I are meeting with Rob & Dawn at our local for a bite to eat and Friday drinks, which will be really good as the four of us haven't had a proper catch up since we got back from our holiday.  Tomorrow my pal Sarah and I are heading out for a few spa treatments followed by lunch and very likely more than a glass of wine - we've been trying to get together to celebrate my rite of passage into the world of the Middle Aged since I've been back.  It should be good fun and as usually happens when we get together, I'm sure we won't be acting our age.  I mean really, whoever invented that ridiculous saying anyway? It's almost as silly as 'That's not very ladylike'. 

With that said, why does the theme here always seem to be food and drink? Bah, never mind - I will never purport to be anything other than myself.  I like to eat, I like to drink.  Some things will never change, especially me being 'ladylike'.

So wherever you may be, I hope you have a great weekend.  

Two Tickets to Paradise

I don't know where to even begin telling you about the wonderful time we had in what can honestly only be described as paradise.  I should probably let the pictures speak for themselves:

We were upgraded to a water villa the first night (due to an issue at the airport);  I'm happy to report that other than a delay waiting for our transfer at Male Airport, there was absolutely nothing we could find fault with. 

The Adults Only Pool :) 

The amazing beach outside our villa: 

Walking around the Island:

Lazing Around: 

Hammocks were everywhere and I definitely took advantage! 

As much as we loved the water villa, we were much more content with our garden villa.  

Our own sunbeds waiting for us on our section of the beach:

The Spa was amazing - we had a complimentary treatment upon our arrival, and then of course the couples massage on my birthday.

That's the Over-Water spa behind Andy - the fish we could see swimming below while we had our treatment  were beautiful.

The food was brilliant and such a variety of choice every single day.

The picture below is of commonly used Maldivian spices; Friday night was Maldivian Curry Night, the only night Andy wasn't really thrilled with because although lots of the dishes were marked mild, they weren't.  At least not to Andy who is not a fan of spicy food. 

The wildlife was fantastic and we saw plenty of gecko's, bats, sharks and heron's. 

I fell in love with these:

They were very friendly and curious :) 

 Heron's were constantly outside our villa (in the jungle) and weren't one bit shy.  We loved watching them  stand perfectly still in the water on an evening, when the sun was setting and the tide was out, while they fished.

As for my 40th Birthday...  

It was fabulous.  We spent the morning sunbathing and I even went to the gym before a late lunch; we snorkeled in the afternoon and then walked to the other side of the island for an afternoon drink (which we did  most days) at the Pavilion Bar, which was our favourite, the chairs were so comfortable. 

We then headed back to our villa to shower and get ready for the amazing couples massage at 5:30 which left us feeling very relaxed chilled

Andy had arranged for a candlelight dinner on the patio next to the beach which was perfect.

We arrived back to our villa after lots of food and wine to find flowers all over my bed:

It only rained once during our time on the Island, on the Friday before my birthday. It came on quickly and didn't last long.  We got soaked as we were out walking but we weren't complaining.  

It was a lovely way to cool down and we didn't mind falling into the Pavilion Bar for a cold beer!

Before we knew it, the sun was back out.  

The picture below is the patio area outside the bar next to our restaurant;  we often met another couple, Vicki & Dave there for drinks on an evening after we'd eaten our evening meal.

And the sunsets - they were spectacular:

I have so many fantastic memories of this holiday which already seems such a long time ago. It is Andy's and my hope that one day we are able to return; we aren't sure if we want to try another Island or go back to Meeru because it is honestly such a fabulous resort.  

(I also have tons more pictures that I will be posting on FB once I get them all sorted in case any of you are interested in seeing even more .) 

I have some great stories that I want to share with you, however this post is long enough.  I will try and do a few posts of my favourite moment's from our holiday when I get a chance.

In the meantime try not to be too sick with envy over what I have managed to shown you ;)