December 27 2006

Have just caught up with the traveling bloggers - fancy having the heating on in S California!! Your photos are all lovely and it is great to see what you are all up to. Jan and Dave came yesterday around noon and we headed off for Crosby to see the Anthony Gormlley figures. Quite a few festive decorations and a very very cold wind on the return walk but good to get out for a blow.
Back home for spicy soup and traditional Boxing Day cold buffet with trifle to follow and good wine. Liverpool were on TV so Mel was excused from the table at 3 pm! We all tried the sloe gin which was very pleasant and well worth the wait; you will have to celebrate the big 30 with some Mandy!! I have suggested going to collect some sloes tomorrow if it is fine ready for next year's bottle. We started playing Balderdash at around 6.30 pm closely followed by Pit and Pictionary and Janet was amazed when it was only 8.30! We gave up at around 10.30 as there was a lot of yawning and after a Bailey's for Jan and whiskey for J and I we went to
bed. We all had a lie in this morning and it was well past 9 am when we got up. J and D left about 11ish and we went to Asda to buy a few essentials! A lazy afternoon and plans for going to the gym tomorrow - how lazy can you get in a week! Take care and keep blogging. Thanks to Greg for his wonderful Christmas letter and for the Christmas card, lots of love xx

Christmas 2006!

Christmas is almost over for another year! Strange to hear tales from around the world of Christmas swims – perhaps we will try it tomorrow if we make Formby! We have had a good day with nice food and drink and some good presents. Thanks Ben and Madeline, I am looking forward to my grown up book, I shall try to read it in the daytime so I don’t fall asleep.
We did a repeat walk yesterday of one we did a couple of years ago on the Wirral, We decided that 12 miles of the Ribble Way was a little ambitious for Christmas eve! We did 10 miles last week and it was very boggy in places and almost dark when we got back. Perhaps we will get an early start next week and go for it. We saw lots of birds yesterday; because it has been so mild lately I think they have missed out winter and are getting into Spring mode. We saw a huge flock of curlews (big birds with long curved beaks!) and quite a few flowers which shouldn’t have been in flower. Hopefully J will provide the pictures. We are both off work now until 2 Jan but poor Mel has to go to work on Wednesday! Not sure what we will do, possibly lots of trips to the gym for me to get rid of the Christmas sloth! (Two toed).I think there is probably a connection Ben between the drink and the hangovers, perhaps you are just getting too old to keep up the pace!! Glad you had a good time with Paddy and Katie; let me know if you think a week in SF would be a good idea in April and if you would have any time to spend with us?? I know you are busy but we can do some self entertaining too – I have the book! As you are going to be there for at least 2 years I am sure we could come again later and possibly do the trip down south? Let us know what you think sometime!
Lots of love to you both and the OZ travellers too – take care if you meet any big kangaroos!! xx

Catching up .....

Last weekend we had Mandy and Dave to visit, which was nice. They arrived uncharacteristically early on Friday evening so had to go to the chippie for tea as we had already eaten! Saturday we went to Southport shopping as Dave had discovered that there was Russell & Bromley shoe shop there. He bought boots and trainers which was a great success but I don’t think anyone else got anything. We went home via Farmer Ted’s for meat and the farm shop for veg and a hot drink and snack, apart from Mandy whose toasted teacake never arrived.
On Sunday M & D did a bit more shopping at Asda and we had lunch around 2 ish – steak and kidney with dumplings followed by baked Alaska which seemed to go down well. Lovely to see them before their great Antipodean adventure (is that the right word??). The rest of the week was pretty much as usual, work, sleep, gym. TV etc. Friday night I parcelled up Mel’s gifts for Ben and Madeline and delivered them to Tickle’s mum who was amused that I called her daughter Tickle rather than Katie. I was equally amused that she only knows Ben as Scouse! We wrote all the Christams cards and I wrapped up books for the great nephews and niece. Yesterday I did some bits of Christmas shopping for people at work (I suffered a serious cardboard cut in M & S which bled profusely!) then in the evening we went to the Packet Steamer with Mel and Lucy and Ian who had come up to watch the football. Mel had got them tickets and we had a very pleasant evening of good food and pleasant conversation. I had my hair cut in the afternoon, I am glad to say that it has nearly recovered from the butchering at Toni & Guy.
As the forecast for today was stormy with strong winds and wall to wall rain we decided not to continue with the Ribble Way and went instead in search of culture. We went to the Walker Art Gallery where there was an animation thing called Insyde http://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/whatsonnet/displayexhibitions.aspx?mode=current&venue=2#InsydeInsyde
which kept us amused for quite a while. We then went and looked at 3 rooms which had been rehung with modern art – pretty rubbish! Then it was off to the Tate to see the Henry Moore sculptures (J got told off for stroking one!) and then to the Paul Caulfield exhibition which was quite nice. http://www.tate.org.uk/liverpool/ The big canvas of brightly coloured pots on the web site was my favourite. We then went to the Tate café and I had toasted blue cheese with roasted pear and rocket leaves – very tasty. We have just watched the last bit of the semi final of X factor which we missed last night and poor Ben has been sent home!! I think it might be crossword and nap time now as J is watching rugby! Looking forward to tales of Oz and San Fran xx