Curtains!

Following on from my last post, perhaps not the best title!  But now the light mornings and nights have passed I have finally got bedroom curtains.  Okay, I know, they will keep the room warmer in the winter, so no need for sarcasm.  

Our windows are small and high and presented a problem.  I didn't want pull across curtains as the windows are too small and close together and the size also ruled out blinds.  Sue, our neighbour, came up with the idea of hanging them above the windows on two small hooks and then unhooking one side by day and leaving to drape.

Mum and Dad had bought some lovely full length, lined, ready made curtains for their lounge but one set were too small.  However, the material was perfect for our bedroom, so they donated them to our worthy cause and went and bought another set in the right size.  Sue cut them up, sewed a pole into the hems and added two rings to each.  They work beautifully.

I apologise for the poor quality of the pictures, but the light was all wrong and it really doesn't do the curtains justice.  Mind you, we are sleeping later which is not such a good thing! Now to finish the paintwork :)

Life's Curveball

Sometimes, just when you think everything is swinging along just perfectly, life throws a curve ball at you and throws you off balance for a while.  Two weeks ago I went for a routine scan for gallstones.  Whilst I was there the technician found two spots on my liver and called in the consultant to take a look.  From that moment things moved fast and I feel that the last two weeks have been lived in a blurry and scary place.

I was called back two days later for a contrast CT scan and then we had to come back from holiday for the day for an appointment with the gastroenterologist consultant.  He explained that he felt the lesions were probably secondary liver tumours and that I would have to have further tests to try to find the primary cancer site.  I had an MRI scan and further blood tests the same day.  As you can imagine, by this point I was convinced I was at death's door and feeling like every little twinge was a major symptom.

Yesterday I finally got a call to say that the liver consultant is absolutely certain that they are a specific type of benign tumour and that I could stop worrying.  They have checked every part of my body from the knees up and I am fit and healthy.  Such good news, I feel like I have been given my life back.

The last couple of weeks have certainly been a wake up call about what is actually important and what is superficial.  Top of my list of priorities now is my family and friends, everything else slides down the scale.  Pete has been my absolute rock and I am very lucky to have him by my side.  I know that there are many, many people who are not so fortunate as me and from now on I will be more mindful of that and help wherever I can.

Enjoy life people as you never know what is round the corner.

At Last, A Holiday!

With three boats that all need work, continually working to pay for said three boats, I needed to get Pete away on holiday.  Funds are still very tight until the house is sold so we decided to try camping.  It must be 30 years since either of us went camping, but we are game for most things.  We bought a second hand tent and just a couple of other bits; a second sleeping bag and a one ring gas cooker and off we went.

We are staying in Suffolk, near Aldeburgh at a beautiful campsite run by Sue and Colin.  I knew about the campsite as I am a regular reader of Sue's blog http://frugalinsuffolk.blogspot.co.uk It is a super site and very central to a lot of places to visit, well worth staying at if you are in the area.

We managed to get the tent up and fully unpacked within an hour AND without getting to divorce stage!  We certainly got a bargain with our tent, it's great.  So far we are having great fun and will be doing this lark a bit more often.

Pete finally relaxing and reading a book.  Mission achieved!

Oooops!!

Can you see the bit of illegal parking!  The poor woman was reversing and, heavens knows how, she reversed over the wall and in to the creek.  The tide was in, but fortunately a quick witted, off-duty fireman dived in and pulled the lady free.  I guess the car will have to be craned out tomorrow as it is now blocking the shipping lane.  One thing for sure, I wouldn't like to be explaining this one to my husband!

A Right Good Tidy Up

As I am now on summer holidays until September, I have a looooong lists of 'jobs' to get done.  Unfortunately the glorious weather and the very urgent need to get out in it, eg walking Alfie, pottering at the allotment, any other excuse, has taken priority and those jobs seem to be being put off whilst the list gets longer.  Yesterday was cooler, so I decided to tackle the pantry.  As I don't have a proper kitchen yet, things tend to get dumped in there and I was losing track of what stores I have amongst the 'stuff'.  Time for action!  So I got stuck in and eventually got in done.  Despite an accident with an open bottle of soy sauce being knocked off the top shelf, it wasn't as bad as I thought.  Everything is still in date (not that I take much notice of best before dates) and I have discovered lots of goodies that I had forgotten about.  Here are the before and after pictures.  I actually have another four shelves of cookbooks elsewhere (can you see a theme around me and my books?) and kitchen equipment is stored in the cupboard under the stairs at the moment.

Kids!

I have been spending a lot of time with my wonderful grandchildren, but normally seeing them individually.  However, we all got together for Sunday dinner so it was a perfect opportunity to get a photograph of them all together.  Not quite as easy as it seemed, hundreds (!) of photos were taken until we ended up with this lovely picture, my babies with their babies :

Two seconds later, chaos resumed!

Hi There!

I apologise for my prolonged absence from our blogging world.  I could offer all sorts of excuses but the truth is that I lost my blogging mojo for awhile.  However, a lovely message from Connie at Crafty Home Cottage gave me the kick up the proverbial that I needed, and I also realised that I missed you all and the interaction.  I am now going to spend the next few days catching up on my favourite bloggers and seeing what I have missed out on.

So what have I been doing?  I have been gradually emptying my office at the house and transferring it to my office on the barge.  This is no mean feat as I have literally hundreds of books.  I am having to sort them out and donate many to the charity shop as I just don't have room for them all. However, for someone who cannot get rid of any book, this has proved quite traumatic!  But I am getting there and am now half way done.  Most of the books here are reference books, teaching resources and classic and modern novels.  Cookbooks and gardening books etc are elsewhere on the barge.  Can you tell that I love books?  I have to keep finding little areas that Pete can put up more bookshelves, I keep telling him that they are good ballast!  So here is my office now, I love this space :) On the metal sign are the words to You Are My Sunshine.  I just had to buy the sign and put it in my space as my Grandad used to sing this to me when I was little, it makes me smile every time I look at it.  Can the eagle eyed among you see the mouse hole?  The cheeky thing has also hung his washing out!  I will be back soon, I promise! 😘😘😘😘