Hello folk’s,

I thought I’d write a few lines at the beginning of my days off rather than at the end, the aim is to see if I actually manage to fulfill all my intentions for the two days...  The first bit is already achieved, my eldest granddaughter is sleeping in the study, I collected her last evening and she’s going to stay as its half term so my two days will hopefully be geared toward giving her a fun time as well as achieving my own goals!

So today's goals are:

·         Go for a run this morning. (But as I’m sitting in bed and typing on my laptop this doesn't feel like it’s going to get done anytime soon! lol)

·         Off to the river Thames to feed the ducks with my eldest and her two sons. (Gives the cousins a chance to play together.)

·         Baking some mini upside down cakes with Tia, my granddaughter. A recipe borrowed from the, ‘a beautiful mess’ blog. It’s a great blog and fun to read. (This is another good idea but ‘Delia’ is my name, not my occupation,sincere apologies to Delia Smith. I can’t cook but don’t tell Tia that, she thinks I can do everything and I don’t want to disillusion her.  J)

·         Do some work on my book ‘Tessellation Saga’ and send a few emails.

·         Lastly end the day with a small glass of Merlot and a good book. Currently reading, ‘Cloud Atlas’ by David Mitchell.  A collection of different but very cleverly interwoven stories. I believe it’s going to, or has been made into a movie!

I’ll let you know how I got on and post pictures in evidence, (again of course if I can get the pics to post properly, you know this act in itself proves a major challenge time and time again... duh!)

.-.-.-

Well, it’s been 24 hours and once again, Tia is still sleeping in the study, Yesterday didn't actually go exactly according to plan...  who wrote, ‘Best laid schemes of mice and men...’  (Possibly Steinbeck?)

Anyhoo, the broadband died within minutes of me getting up yesterday so I had to spend an hour on the phone chatting to someone from Virgin Media who attempted to tell me what to do to correct the problem. The fact that I found it soo hard to understand what she was saying didn't help. Have you ever been in a situation where you are constantly saying, ‘I’m sorry but can you repeat that,’ or ‘I’m sorry but I don’t understand what you’re saying!’ a dozen times? It made me feel so stupid. I was glad when my eldest turned up as scheduled and took over. So once again the World Wide Web is online and accessible! Woo hoo!!

Be thankful there is no audio!

 Whilst my eldest and I were busy sorting out the computer the kids decided to invite a steel band into my kitchen. I must own their repertoire was a little monotonous but they seemed to be having so much fun. Albie, the baby, especially so and Hendry, the eldest boy was so enthusiastic he broke one of my wooden spoons but dedicated to his music he promptly took another and continued. A budding composer...?

She says 'this is the best bit'

Thank you 'a beautiful mess!'

After Derry and the boys left, Tia and I actually did feed the ducks with the remnants of yesterday’s bread and we did do some baking! The pineapple ‘upside down’ cakes went really well and Tia was very pleased with herself. I must own I was relieved too!  She and I went to see her parents where she delivered some of the cakes and then on to see Derry again, where she delivered a few more whilst they were still warm.

On the way home we stopped at the local cemetery because She had been asking about family history. It was freezing cold and we were all alone in the cemetery but it was kind of peaceful. I showed her the graves of both her great and her great great paternal grandparents! Also we visited the grave of a young man who was tragically killed in a motor bike accident on her birthday a few years ago. He had been her dad’s best friend since early childhood and she had known him well. David actually sat outside the hospital on a grass verge all night long and waiting as anxiously as Tia’s father on the night of her birth.

When we arrived home to hot chocolate and a fire we spent a while looking at old photos until Tia decided she wanted to heat some soup on an old Trangia, an 'outdoor' cooker. (Lets not forget she became a Scout  last week!) after dinner we all played charades and I had my glass of Merlot!

It has to be Heinz!

So, the day was not at all as I expected but we had fun, Tia learnt something of our family and I got to work on ‘The Tessellation Saga’ after she had gone to bed! I love being a grandparent and would recommend it, alone I probably wouldn't have visited the cemetery or fed the ducks and my hubby and I certainly wouldn't have played charades, where we just laughed and laughed. Maybe we also built a few memories for Tia to look back on when she’s got grandchildren of her own, you never know!

Till next time... xx   :)