Ramblings from Pat

I'm allowed to brag...I'm a grandma!

Mon, 26 May 2008 09:56:59 GMT

I was awake at 4.30 this morning and couldn't get back to sleep, it was raining hard then, and it's still raining hard, but then it's Bank Holiday Monday and it's what we Brits have come to expect on these weekends....gives us something to moan about!

One thing I AM happy about is that my grandson Joe (he's 10 going on 20!) and his football team won the tournament they played in this weekend! Last year they got beaten in the semi-final and this year they got the winner's trophy - well done to them! The whole team, and their families, have been staying at a holiday park in Great Yarmouth since Friday. They played four games on Saturday morning, won them all, (Joe got a goal in the first three games) and two games yesterday morning before competing in the final. The rest of the time they were swimming, go-karting and doing whatever else boys do at a holiday park, having a wonderful time anyway and I'm sure the weather hasn't spoilt it for them!

I still haven't been able to plant up the window-boxes and tubs, the plants are all on the table on the terrace and look lovely, they'd look even better if they were planted in the containers! As I can't get into the garden I feel as though I've been given an extra day to do something else...but what?! I do have a lot of things that need doing but they're not things that I FEEL like doing. Do I make myself do them? One thing that I've been trying to do the last few weeks is clear clothes from the wardrobe and drawers that I no longer wear, it's a job I hate but needs to be done. I took some to the charity shop before we went to France but it didn't make much of a dent in the wardrobes.

Another thing I have to do is filing, the filing tray is over-flowing! Once I get into it I'm fine, I put it all on the dining table, sort it into piles and go from there. I put the shredder on the chair and shred as I go along. Anything that's Peter's I put to one side for him to go through, I never get rid of his paperwork, I leave that for him. Once it's done I tell myself that I'm going to do the filing at the beginning of every month, a good idea if I was to stick to it but I've only ever managed to keep it going for about three months at the most. What does everyone else do with their filing? We have a filing cabinet but even that is over-flowing and needs to be whittled down! Even writing about it fills me with dread!

Last night 'Walk The Line' was on TV and I stayed up to watch it, it didn't finish until 11.45 and I'm usually in bed before that! After waking so early this morning I shall be feeling like a wet rag by about 6pm! When my daughter Lorraine phoned me this morning I told her I watched it and she said 'Mum, Peter bought you the dvd of it at Chrsitmas!' I'd forgotten that! He'd got me two Dolly Parton tickets and bought the dvd so that it looked more like a present when they were wrapped up together! Lorraine will be going with me, lucky her, Peter's paying for her ticket too and they were £75 each! Anyway I really enjoyed the film and will probably watch it again with him.

Rhiannon came yesterday with a school photo of Isabella and Sofia. Isabella is in her school uniform but although Sofia goes to the nursery at the school she doesn't have to wear the uniform yet. She won't mind me sharing it, I think it's a lovely photo of them both... but then again, I would!

Sofia 4 and Isabella 5

Well I think that's about it for now, it's still raining but I'm sure it's a little brighter than it was. I've just decided that the filing has won! I'll feel so much better once it's done I know!

I've just remembered, I lost another 2 lbs last week, only another half a pound to lose and I get my 'silver seven' sticker!

Bye for now,

Pat

Saturday evening

Sat, 17 May 2008 21:37:05 GMT

Guess who! Well two entries in a week, what's going on?!

I've had a bit of a lazy Saturday, apart from doing all the ironing and general bits and pieces I haven't done very much. I phoned my aunt to see how she was and also my brother's ex-wife to catch up with her news, we really get on well and had so much to talk about...but then that's what women are good at!

My daughter Lorraine came round later this afternoon, she'd been out for a meal with her two eldest children, the youngest son was watching the cup final, much more important than food! My colleague at work will be a very happy man today as his team Portsmouth won, he was lucky enough to get a ticket too, I expect I shall hear all about it on Monday.

Yesterday I went to Bexleyheath to meet Lorraine and do a bit of browsing (and spending!) and then Peter met me there at lunchtime. We wanted to buy some plants for the window boxes and tubs, we're a bit late getting them this year but our holiday put us out a bit. We ended up spending nearly £50 on the plants although we did buy a ready-made hanging basket for outside the front door, lazy I know but it looked lovely and was really packed with plants, a bargain indeed! Today has been rather wet, the garden needed the rain but I wish it would rain overnight and stay dry during the day. It's supposed to be better tomorrow so hopefully I'll get everything planted up, we have four window boxes at the front of the house and also three big pots, it should look very colourful in the summer.

My eldest daughter Claire is having a dinner party tonight, she was a bit worried about it as it's her first 'proper' one. The phone has been red hot this week and emails have been flying back and forth. I spoke to her this afternoon and she has everything under control it seems so hopefully they are all enjoying their evening as I type! For dessert she is making Creme Brulee with fresh fruit, she's made it before so she felt very confident about doing it again. I told her about the one I had in Germany while on holiday the other week. The Alsace in France is right next to Germany so we often go there, one particular restaurant our friends took us to is out of this world, it's now our number one restaurant to eat. I had Creme Brulee this time and it was so well presented I took a photo of it first! Marie has already seen it but she won't mindme posting it again.

The ice-cream on the left was hazelnut and it was all so delicious! I remember in California last year I ordered a chocolate dessert, when the waitress asked Peter if he wanted anything he said "No thank you, I'll have what my wife leaves!" When it came up I was glad he didn't order anything because no way could I have eaten it all! I took a photo of that too, I'll see if I can find it! By the way, taking pictures of my food before I eat it isn't a thing I usually do!! You must all think I've got a folder somewhere with all the meals I've ever eaten, not so, they are the only times I have!

By the way, this was just a lunch in a Red Robin, we only went in for coffee and didn't think we were hungry enough to eat but the food was too tempting! Those hairy arms are Peter's by the way!

Well all this talk of food reminds me to tell you that I lost a pound and a half at WW this week, not a great deal but better than nothing, that's four and a half in two weeks so I'm happy!

Enjoy the rest of your weekend!

Love, Pat

Sat, 10 May 2008 21:30:02 GMT

Hello all! I've been reading some of my past entries and they all seem to start with reasons I haven't posted for a long time! This time I'm not going to apologise, I shall just carry on as though I write regular entries - who knows, one day I might even manage to write one a week!

As usual we've had a lot going on in our lives, is it because we have a large family I wonder? I wouldn't change them for the world of course but I can never plan a day and KNOW that it will turn out as it was meant to! Today I looked after Rhiannon's three little ones, they came early enough for breakfast and at 12.30 Rhiannon came and we went to daughter Leigh's house for a barbecue.

Sofia enjoying her Coco-pops! Our beautiful ceanothus bush can be seen through the open French doors.

Another picture of the ceanothus!

Recently we went to France for two weeks, the first in Provence and the second in the Alsace. The weather was very kind to us but unfortunately we didn't see as much of the south of France as we would have liked - but that's a story for another time! I particularly loved the markets, we went to two and they were nothing like our English ones, I'm pleased to say! The smells as you walked round were something else! I wish I'd taken photos of the olive stalls, the cheese stalls and also one of the man who had made a giant paella complete with prawns hanging over the edge! I think if we had markets like that in England I'd spend a fortune! Saying that, we do sometimes get a French market in Bexleyheath where I go for most of my non-food shopping; it's really expensive though and because we know how cheap it is in France it rather puts me off buying from them but of course they have to pay their transport costs. While in Provence I looked for a colourful tablecloth that I've wanted for a long time for the garden table, they have them with olives, sunflowers and lavender on them, amongst other things, lots of reds, yellows and orange colours and so very particular to the area. The second market we went to had a stall selling them and there were so many to choose from! The stall was manned by a lovely little old Frenchman who didn't stop smiling, he was so sweet! I ended up buying two tablecloths, a 6 foot long one for the main garden table and a round one for the smaller table we have on the grass (I'd love to be able to call it a lawn but I'd be lying, it needs so much work doing to it!). As I was leaving the stall I saw lots of aprons hanging up, they were only 6 Euros and came in the same lovely bright designs, I just had to have one! As I gave the little man the money, he held on to my hand and gave me back the 1 Euro coin that I'd handed him with the 5 Euro note, he then said I could have it for 5 Euros as I had bought the two tablecloths! He was so sweet, I ended up stroking his cheek as I was thanking him, all the time he had this lovely smile on his face! I really wish I'd taken a photo of him and the colourful stall that he stood behind.

Taken in a small village in the south of France, a very pretty place but I'd hate to go there in the height of summer, it would be too crowded!

I've been quite busy at work since we've been back, my colleague went on annual leave to America as I came back from France, she's back on Monday though and I'll be really pleased to see her, not because of the work but because she is such a lovely person, I've really missed not seeing her for a month!

In future weeks we have a 25th wedding anniversary, a big family re-union party, my grand-daughter's 18th birthday party and in September a trip to Valencia to see little Isabella and Sofia as bridesmaids to their daddy's cousin! Oh I forgot, a cousin's daughter (my God-daughter) is having a 'Ladies Day' at her house, just cousins, 2nd cousins and their children, no men allowed! It was another cousin's funeral in January and as usual we all said that the only time we seem to get together is weddings and funerals so we're now rectifying that by having two family get-togethers within a month of each other! As my mum was one of 13 children you can imagine how many of us there are!

Time now for me to close, I think I've more than said enough! Oh I forgot to say, I joined Weightwatchers last week and on Friday I was pleased to find I'd lost 3 lbs...happy me!

Love to you all, hope your weekend is going well!

Pat

The Salt Glazed Jug

Sun, 16 Dec 2007 23:54:42 GMT

My lovely Mum died nineteen years ago today. She was 64, only two years older than I am now, much too young to die. She hadn't enjoyed good health in her last years and was in hospital for the last six months of her life. Of course I have been remembering her today, thinking of her more than usual although I do think of her every day, even after all this time.

When Mum was alive she had this salt glazed jug, I always loved it, I have a 'thing' about jugs! It's quite old and I don't even remember where she got it from, but I admired it every time I went to her house. Some time after Mum died my eldest daughter Claire went to visit my Dad and he gave her some things to take home with her, among them was the jug. Claire and David had a big boisterous dog at the time and while we were at their house for dinner one Sunday I noticed the jug was in a kitchen cupboard and asked why it wasn't on show, she said it was because she was afraid of the dog breaking it. I asked Claire if I could have it because it seemed a shame to hide it in a cupboard and not be seen, she was quite happy for me to have it.

My Dad died in 1996 and some months after he died, while talking to Claire on the phone, she said that she'd been thinking of the jug and thought that as my Dad had given it to her she should take it back. I wasn't very happy about her having it again but then I didn't want to fall out with her over it. I told Claire that we'd talk about it when she next came to our house. The jug was on my mind all the time, I suppose it was because it was a link to my Mum and I was sure that it couldn't possibly mean as much to Claire as it did to me.

Christmas was approaching and I had an idea. When I next spoke to Claire I told her just how much the jug meant to me and asked her if she'd mind if we 'shared' it. I said I would give it to her when she was with us on Boxing day and then the following Christmas she would give it back to me to have for a year. She thought it was a good idea. So today I have carefully wrapped the jug in bubble-wrap, put it into a sturdy box and then wrapped it in Christmas paper, on the label I wrote 'Dear Claire, Your turn now! Love, Mum xxx' It's been going back and forth for a good many years now, I'm always sad to see it go but whenever I go to Claire's house the jug is always on her kitchen window-sill in front of the sink and always has flowers in it, so I still get pleasure seeing the jug from time to time. I had an idea today while wrapping the jug, next Christmas when it's my turn to have it, I shall buy another jug, similar if I can and we can swap so she can still have her flowers in a special jug in the kitchen.

It's very late now, time for bed. I'm sorry I haven't written for so long, thank you to Lyn for reminding me!

Love, Pat

Sat, 08 Sep 2007 19:41:50 GMT

Scattergories

Use the 1st letter of your name to answer each of the following. They have to be real places, names, things...nothing made up! Try to use different answers if the person in front of you had the same 1st initial. Erase my answers and put in yours, and put it in your journal.

What is your name? Pat

4 letter word: Poem

Vehicle: Pantechnicon (a furniture van, all I could think of!)

TV Show: Panorama

City: Portsmouth

Boy Name other than yours: Paul

Girl Name other than yours: Pamela

Drink: Pineapple juice

Occupation:   Public Relations Officer

Something you wear:   Pants

Celebrity:   Paul McCartney

Food:   Pastries

Found in a bathroom:   Powder

Reason for Being Late:   Procrastination!

Cartoon Character: Popeye

Something You Shout: Peter! (my husband!!)

Another year older!

Fri, 31 Aug 2007 06:58:25 GMT

Yes it's me!! It's my birthday today - 62 years young, or so I like to think! For the last ten years though I have shared it with the anniversary of the death of Diana, I remember the day well, it was a Sunday and I was expecting my family round for Grandma's Day. I was up early to start preparing the food and put on the radio in the kitchen, I thought it must have got tuned in to another station because it was very mournful. Just as I was about to retune it, there was the announcement about her death, I was so in shock. I went up to the bedroom to wake Peter and tell him even though it was some unearthly hour, he soon got up and we switched the television on to hear more. When there is the death of someone famous or some big event you always remember where you were and what you were doing.

I remember when John F Kennedy died, I was at a show to see the Shirelles, after the support act the interval seemed very long, much longer than usual. Then one of the Shirelles came out alone and told us all that the president had been assassinated and apologised for the delay. They still went on to sing though and they were my very favourite group at the time so although I was so very sorry for the Kennedy family and America, I was really pleased they didn't cancel, seems a bit heartless of me now because it must have been very hard for them to perform after such tragic news.

I have opened ten cards this morning that came in the post yesterday, also some presents that were left here by my friend Linda when she stayed three weeks ago, I was very good and didn't even look in the bag, just put it straight in the guest room! I have also opened a lovely e-card from Marie of Marie's Musings which made me laugh, thank you Marie! Thank you too for the lovely card that came in the post yesterday, it's so pretty. Rhiannon will be coming here today with her little family and also my daughter Lorraine, I shall be making some lunch for them, probably pasta as that's the children's favourite. On Sunday we will be having a family barbecue so I'm very much looking forward to that. Hopefully the weather will be nice enough for a barbecue, then the men will take over the cooking and I can 'socialise' with my girls and the grandchildren! Why is it that it's always the men who are in charge of a barbecue?! We women stillhave to buy and prepare all the food AND do all the clearing up, they just get the fun part!!

This is me holding my great-nephew and Rhiannon with Rico, Rico is four weeks younger than baby Mickey.

Big sister Isabella with baby brother Rico, he was two weeks old.

Rico's first trip to B & Q, the diy store, to buy floor and wall tiles for mummy's kitchen!

Auntie Leigh and cousin Joe the day Rico was born.

Well I shall have to get myself ready for whatever the day brings! I'm going to start by making some cakes for after lunch then I shall just chill out until my visitors turn up! Hope you all have a good day and I'll post some photos of our Sunday family get-together next week.

Love, Pat

And the name is.....

Sat, 04 Aug 2007 11:07:26 GMT

Rico Jose Palanques-Lopez!

At last a name for our new little one! They did actually decide on Thursday but I haven't got round to writing about it before.

This was taken two minutes after he was born, the cord was still attached! Doesn't Rhiannon look well?

Taken about half an hour after he was born, she had just been feeding him.

Rico is a form of Richard which is Rhiannon's dad's name, he died seven years ago, and Jose is Ivan's dad's name. As she wanted to use Jose she wanted a Spanish first name to go with it but didn't like Ricardo which of course another name for Richard. So everyone is happy with the name and of course the baby, who is very much loved by his two older sisters and all the rest of the family. It doesn't seem that long ago when I was telling people that Rhiannon was pregnant! He was due to arrive on Monday but decided to come five days early instead. By the way, they don't use the full name, only Palanques, which is enough for anyone!

Isabella holding baby Rico with Sofia by her side, aren't they beautiful?!

Yesterday Peter and I were lucky enough to be invited to lunch with Marie of Marie's Musings, I can't do the link but I'm sure anyone who reads this will read Marie's journal too! We spent the morning at Scotney Castle, had a lovely walk round the grounds, had coffee in the walled garden and then spent a little time in the National Trust shop, I can't resist those places! I bought a new little cookbook called Afternoon Teas, I know I already have some of the recipes that are in it but I do love a new cookbook!

We then went on to see Marie and Todd, what a beautiful place they live in and how lucky Marie is to be able to liveand work there, I envy her! As you can imagine, the lunch Marie gave us was wonderful, I enjoyed every mouthful, as did Peter. When we driving away he said that I had to make sure Marie gave me the recipe for the Chocolate Tart, and she has! She posted it in her journal this morning, I have printed it off and will be making it tomorrow for dessert.

Marie and Todd are a lovely couple, they made us so very welcome and we all got on really well, as she said in her journal this morning 'we didn't stop talking'! After lunch they took us for a walk round the grounds of the estate where they work, we couldn't have chosen a better day weather-wise either.

We all said that we must meet up again soon and when Peter found out that Marie had never been to the Cotswolds he suggested that we could go together, he is happy to drive and as we've been there so many times before he knows where all the lovely little villages are, that will be another special day I know.

Well my friend Linda will be here shortly again, it was only a couple of weeks that she was staying here, but she has come to visit her God-daughter Rhiannon and of course see the children, especially baby Rico. This time she is bringing her daughter and two grandchildren and they'll be staying overnight with us. Roast beef followed by Chocolate Mousse Tart for dinner tomorrow...mmmm, can't wait!

And the name is.....

Sat, 04 Aug 2007 11:07:24 GMT

Rico Jose Palanques-Lopez!

At last a name for our new little one! They did actually decide on Thursday but I haven't got round to writing about it before.

We then went on to see Marie and Todd, what a beautiful place they live in and how lucky Marie is to be able to live and work there, I envy her! As you can imagine, the lunch Marie gave us was wonderful, I enjoyed every mouthful, as did Peter. When we driving away he said that I had to make sure Marie gave me the recipe for the Chocolate Tart, and she has! She posted it in her journal this morning, I have printed it off and will be making it tomorrow for dessert.

You, too, could win!

Sat, 04 Aug 2007 07:42:00 GMT

You, too, could win!

Ashwin’s Blog Extravaganza!! Win $2500

Over at Ashwin’s blog, you will find one crazy blog owner!! You can win $2500!! To enter just copy this text and paste it in your blog!! But hurry, this competition will not last long! So get posting!

I don't know if it's for real, but I'm not taking any chances. I could sure use a little bit extra cash and I'm sure you all could too! Doesn't hurt to try at any rate!

What a wonderful day!

Thu, 02 Aug 2007 06:30:13 GMT

Well our new little family member has made his appearance five days early! Everything went so well for Rhiannon and Ivan. She was always worried about when her contractions would start, worried in case it was when Ivan was at work and whether he would get back in time, worried whether she would be out in the car somewhere, and also worried about whether Pili (Ivan's mum) would be able to get to look after Isabella and Sofia in time. Luckily they started during the night which is why I got the text message just after 6am as I was just about to have my shower, she also sent a text to Pili who was staying with her daughter.

Peter was at work and my other daughter Leigh was going to come round to me yesterday with her son Joe so I phoned her partner Michael to ask him to leave Leigh a note to say that Rhiannon had gone into labour. Michael immediately said he would take me to Rhiannon's on his way to work, bless him. Pili was already there (her son in law had taken her too!) and Rhiannon's two little girls were in the bath. I sat with Rhiannon for a while and then she too had her bath, she was in there for what seemed like ages and I kept going into her but she said the warm water was helping her! We finally got the cab to the hospital at 8.30, not much traffic thankfully but the car seemed to go over every bump in the road it could find, making it quite uncomfortable for the poor girl!

At 9am she was in the birthing room, she had opted for a natural birth as opposed to having an epidural. The hospital has been open for about two years but this new 'natural birth' unit only six weeks. The midwife Caryl was lovely, as they usually are. She told Rhiannon she could have a water birth if she wanted it, there was also a big ball in the corner of the room to use, it looked as though it would be too uncomfortable to me!

When Caryl examined Rhiannon she said she would have the baby by lunchtime which was good news because with Isabella her labour lasted 37 hours, poor girl! Rhiannon was managing her contractions really well, then she felt as though things were starting to happen so I got Caryl who was at her desk just outside the room, after another examination she said things were starting to 'rock androll'! The final stage of labour was so amazing easy, Rhiannon even said so herself afterwards. I watched as the head appeared and in no time at all without hardly any pushing, his little head was out! I was trying so hard not to cry, even now as I type I'm feeling emotional. His head was wrapped in a caul and Caryl said 'Well we know he'll never drown!' I wonder if other people have heard that old wives' tale?

He finally entered the world at 10.23am, she had no stitches and immediately afterwards looked as if she hadn't just given birth - she looked wonderful! I must learn how to post a picture as I have the most fantastic one of Rhiannon with him and also the three of them that was taken just a couple of minutes after, the cord hadn't even been cut, Ivan did that, he's very much a hands-on daddy. Their new little son weighed 8 lbs 2 1/2 lbs, quite big considering Rhiannon had a very small bump! She even had to have an extra scan three weeks ago because they said they thought the baby was small! All she kept saying afterwards was that she couldn't believe it had been that easy, indeed it was amazing, and I was so thankful it had been like that for them both as it's very hard watching your own child in pain, you want to be able to have that pain for them.

After a bath Rhiannon moved into a small ward where she tried to get some sleep, I think she was too excited though. She opted to go home that day and Caryl said she'd need to stay until about 4pm, the baby had his final checks, Rhiannon's blood pressure was normal and my second daughter Lorraine came walking into the ward with his car seat, we were off!

I phoned Pili to let her know we were on our way home and as we drew up to Rhiannon's, outside playing on the grass, were Isabella and Sofia with Ivan's two sisters and their two little girls, it was a lovely welcome when they all came running over!

Well you may be wondering why I haven't called the baby by name, the reason is, he hasn't got one yet! They had both the girls' names ready and if this baby was a girl they had a name ready for it too, but they couldn't choose a boy's name that they both liked! They did decide on Reyes (pronouced Ray-ez) until Pili came back from Valencia and told them it was a Spanish girl's name! Rhiannon wanted the baby's middle name to be Jose after Ivan's dad so they thought it best to have a Spanish first name. Rhiannon's dad died seven years ago, his name was Richard but she doesn't like the Spanish version Ricardo, another version of Richard is Rico which they both DO like but still haven't finally decided. Ivan likes Enrique Jose, Rhiannon likes Emilio Jose and I like, no LOVE, the name Raul which both of them like as well. So we'll just have to wait and see, I'm going to their house today, it's Ivan's 30th birthday and I have to take his presents and of course help Rhiannon in whatever way I can. Ivan is off work today but will go back tomorrow and Pili will be spending a few days with them.

Well I'm sorry if this entry is too long, I suppose it has helped me just writing it all down, I'm reliving every wonderful moment of a very wonderful day! I shall let you know tomorrow what name has finally been decided on!

Have a good Thursday!

Love, Pat