Mostly In Today...

Up early and off to the surgery over the way to see the nursey vampire for a blood test. Jolly little woman who sort of treats you like you are about eleven.I hand over my sample of wee and she says "You little star!"  And this the woman who used to control a class of thirty very lively teens in secondary school! Anyway, she had three goes and eventually got the samples of blood that were required.
Since it was a fasting test it was home for breakfast..in my case it was a rice cake and cheese spread, in Vins it was a bowl of cereal that jane had left behind.
Stripped the bed and got that on to wash and caught up online for a bit, then it was coffee time. very nice too, from the coffee machine  (for a change!).
New Year's Eve today, and a lot better than last year. if I remember right we had to go to the walk in clinic in litherland because the stitches had sprung a leak! lovely !! But with the great NHS and all of the people involved we got there in the end. Thankyou NHS and lovely Vin without whom life would have been awful.  He isn't my rock he is my boulder :)

Last New Year's Eve. we traditionally take a picture every year  at midnight. Sometimes with a cat on the knee mostly just vin and mje. Don't expect that tonight will be any different.
Tonight we are having:
Lemon and black pepper escalope
bread and cranberry sauce
potato croquettes
veggies from the fridge.

A Couple of Outings!

Yesterday (Sunday) was nice. We went over to Maghull to do a bit of shopping. I wanted to go to the Bon Marche to have a look at the sale and get a few bits from Superdrug. Also wanted a look at the card shop, but that was closed. It was a beautiful day actually, very sunny which was a pain for vin driving because it was right in his eyes, but  the bonus was that we parked in the square and it was free. That was good.
I had a good browse in BM and Vin went into B&Ms to get cat food etc., Got a new jumper, fleece and another top. Some great stuff in the sales. Got my bits for Superdrug and then we went for a coffee at Costa which is quite new there. Very civilised, sat at the back out of the direct sun, then some people moved from one of the sofa areas so we went there. Lovely, relaxing time people watching.
Today we went to Dobbies to use our vouchers for December. Had a mooch there, but they didn't have much in their sales at all. Very disappointing.  Vin did get a new Ho Ho Hoe ! for doing the garden when the weather gets better.
Home via Tesco so we got our weekly veggies because we aren't going out tomorrow. We will give the machine at home a go.
I have an appointment for a blood test tomorrow and we are expecting a delivery from Bullens the Healthcare people, so stop in tomorrow more or less.
Tonight we are having:
Pizza with mushroom and cheese and pepper for Vin
green salad with baby plum tomatoes and avocado
Potato salad for moi and pasta salad for Vin

She's Gone!

Aaaah! We were woken up early this morning by our jane with a tray with coffee on it..Bless her XXX She said she couldn't sleep so she was getting ready to go back to Manchester. She was getting a train to Southport from here, then from there to Picadilly Manchester then on to Didsbury which is about ten minutes from her house. She could book her ticket all the way through from here and it was about £12.50. Not bad really. 
Her dad went and got her a gingerbread man from the shop..she loves those, and she was all ready to go. She's planned the times of the trains so that they all connected and in fact she rang us up at a quarter to one having arrived at her house. very good timing, even though she said that Picadilly was very busy.
At least she went back with some things she wanted. I got her some gift cards from Tesco so that will keep her going, and gave her the money from the pound coins that I collect for her..which added up to about £100. Got her a little monkey purse to keep some in and some other bits and bobs.As well as her lap top so she did ok this year.
it was a lovely visit actually, a really nice Christmas. Everyone was in a good mood and the food was great, the hit of the day being the chocolate brownie dessert I think.

This is a lovely picture of Jane and her Dad. Love you both XXXX
After she had gone, we went off to Tesco's to get our weejkend things, which was good. Didn't have any problem parking, it was really quiet, nothing in the sales either, total rubbish. we did get some things to use for our weekend meals but we are very well stocked up!
Had our coffee when we got back, Vin didnt't want a Costa. :( Aaah well never mind, always next time.
Tonight we are having:
Cheese and onion pasties from Waitrose,
A few baby carrots from same,
Rice puddings from Waitrose too.

Festivities!

Boxing Day today and all is quiet. jane is in her bed having a well deserved rest from Uni and her placements etc., i am catching up on here and Vin is downstairs tootling about. Very nice :)
Christmas Day was LOVELY..really nice.
We had a great Christmas dinner and :
Chicken style roast with roast potatoes, carrots sweetcorn and parsnips
Stuffing, bread sauce and gravy. very tasty.
Our dessert was Chocolate brownie, raspberries and creme fraiche. (Gorgeous)

Absolutely beautiful!

The three of us on jane's phone. Party hats from the crackers were made for people with very small heads!
Watched the Call the Midwife..very good
Corrie..superb..
Downton Abbey..not as good as I was expecting but still good.
And, a lovely day..a LOT better than last year..stuck in a hospital bed, even though they did try to make it a bit festive.
Tonight we are having:
Bits and bobs a sort of buffet.

A festive cat to finish with. Little Rusty in her paper hat !!!

"Phew!"

What a mornng! We had to go out to get some fresh things for Christmas. i wanted to get some raspberries and also some nice vegetables for the Christmas dinner, so we thought we would go to Waitrose.
not a terrible good sign when we got there to find the queue of cars coming out of the car park, but we stuck it out. Very fortunately, as Vin turned into one of the aisles there was a car coming out, and we drove into it. Not far from the entrance either which was good since it was pouring down with rain. Shop was heaving..really heaving! People everywhere, baskets of food and vegetables everywhere, with tons of carrots and bags of sprouts filling up the aisles so you could barely get your troklley round. let alone browse. We did get everything on our list though, don't think we've missed anything which is good.
Jane is coming home tonight! Hooray!! It will be lovely to see her again, hope she has a good rest. We have her bed all ready for her with new pillows so she will be comfy. She has just rung up from her way to the station to say she is on her way to Didsbury.Should get here about six she reckons, and she said she is hungry.  :)
I did say to Vin in Waitrose..maybe there is something to be said for being in  hospital ovver Christmas and let it all wash over you..or there again maybe not!!!
it's lovely to be home again.
Tonight we are having:
pizza with cheese and mushrooms and pepper for Vin
Green salad with baby plum tomatoes and avocado
Potato salad for moi and pine nut and pasta salad for Vin.

Busy Busy!!

A bit hectic this morning. off to tesco's to get our weekend things. Thought it was going to be busy when we got there and there was a queue to get in the car park access road, but that was for getting petrol. The car park wasn't bad actually, we got a space near the door.
Busy inside though, but not so busy that it wasn't easy to get round, just had to wander around with the trolley a bit. Got all of our weekend things to begin with then some extra thingies for the holiday. Mad really isn't it..you would think we were getting ready for a siege. We did have to get some extra stuff for jane coming home in case she doesn't eat what we do..which is probably the case actually !! Met some of our neighbours in there at the checkout we haven't seen for a bit, so had a catch up with them which was nice.  Very proud granny showing us pictures of her lovely little grandson. Aaah.

Tonight we are having:
Fishless finger (Hooray!!)
Chips 200grms
Mushy peas for Vin and green beans for moi.
Tartare sauce.

Anniversary!!

Some Anniversary! it is exactly one year to the day that I had my op done in Aintree. Woke up in ICU with a lovely nurse called Rachel looking after me. Don't remember much about it all until i got back on the ward some days later.  Poor Vin was doing twice a day trips to do the visiting Bless him. The only real thing I remember was having an electric blanket put over me because I couldn't stop shivering. Always cold me! Wonderful thing it was.Wouldn't mind one for Christmas.
So, one year to the day and here we are, safe and sound and ready for action in Dobbies! Went there this morning to have our coffees for the month and get a few bits. had a good look round, bought some christmas cards for next year at half price,really nice ones, and Vin got a diary half price too which fits his holder so he is a happy bunny. He put them in the car then we went for our coffee. Big queue so I went to find a seat and he got the drinks. Vin had a lovely looking flat white with a pretty fern picture on the top and I had a tasty Americano.
Did a bit more mooching, he had some vouchers to use so we got some biscuits for cheese and a pot of damson fruits for cheese, and a big bag of logs! Funny mixture! nice trip out, better than a year ago eh!
No post today..very odd!Wonder why?
Today we are having:
Something from the freezer
Remaining veggies from the fridge,
Baked potatoes..little ones
White sauce or gravy.

This was us last year..a few days later when I was back on the ward. Desperate to have my hair washed too ! This is one lovely husband..My rock!

A Quick Obe...

Stopped in today..well we have been out for the last two days so we wanted to get a bit of time at home. No deliveries or anything but just wanted a breather. Nice and quiet.
Vin wrapped the few things that we had got for jane this morning. he is such a good gift wrapper, he does it so carefully, folds in the paper and everything.  So she has some things for Christmas Day. I'm really looking forward to seeing her, she needs a good rest poor kid, she is working so hard.

We seem to be quite well organised this year. Vin got the chicken stye roast from Holland and Barratt the other day and we have all the bits and bobs, just need the fresh things early next week.

It is exactly one year to the day that I went into hospital for my operation last year. I did think I would have been out for Christmas but it wasn't to be. Poor Vin spent the holiday period going back and forth to Aintree doing the visiting, Bless him that must have been so tiring.
It's been a bit of an up and down road, not always plain sailing and a few problems to begin with, and it really took me a lot longer to get over than I would have expected, but we are definitely getting there now. been out and about a lot more, and the trip to The Cheshier oaks the other week was a bit of a milestone. That was great. Onwards and upwards now. Thankyou all of the wonderful people in the NHS and especially to my wonderful husband for being..dare I say it  "My Rock".
Tonight we are having:
Pasta with a cheese sauce,
mushrooms
A bit of garlic bread for Vin
Yello Carrots and asparagus.

One of Those days!

It was. One of those days when everything goes right when you are out. They don't happen very often so it's pleasant when they do.
We had decided to go over to Ormskirk mainly to get little Rusty's tablets from the vets, and then to go on and get some shopping bits as well. Tablets duly received, so we went off to the town centre to see if we could park in behind M&S. Just as we drove into the car park a car was pulling out so Vin nipped in. Good Start!.  Went to Holland and Barratt to see if by any chance they had our fishkless fingers. They did! so we got four packs. They are on buy one get one half price offer so that was a bonus. I had some bits to get from Superdrug, and Vin had a few places to go so we split up for a bit. Did manage to get his christmas card so that was good.  Back to the car with a few minutes to spare so he ran into M&S to see if they had his damson and sloe gin jam they didn't but they did have a similar one. Also the frangipan tray bake that we both like a lot. Great.
Then down to Morrisons to get our veggies for the week. Refreshing cup of coffee in their cafe..very nice too and cheap which is probably why it is so busy. 2 coffees and a pack of shortbread biscuits well under £4. Wandered round the store to get some things that the other s/markets don't sell   . Did get some intriguing looking carrots in a pack..yellow and orange! haven't had those before so they will be new. lots of bits and bobs for Jane for when she comes home too, plus stuff for the store cupboard. Did really well.
Home about twoish so had lunch and that's it for the day really.
Tonight we are having:
Gruyere cheese escalope
Mixed veggies with a white sauce
Sliced and fried potaatoes

Out and About..

I had aqn appointment over the way at the surgery this afternoon so didn't want to waste the day waiting for that. Went over the bypass to The Ladygreen Garden Centre this morning for our free coffees for the month . For once it wasn't heaving, so we were able to get a table for a change! I found a table and Vin went and got the dfcoffees. We had already had a bit of a look round before so had a bit of an idea what was going n.
nice table in the end by the window until some screaming child came and sat nearby..ah well you can't have everything. It was quite a pretty child though!
Had a bit more of a mooch after that, Vin bought a really nice candle..gold,frankinsense and myrrh. Smells lovely. I bought some coconut shortbreads and a very dinky little set of heart shaped tea spoons which will be great for desserts. Can't wait to try the brownies with them!
Went along to the other garden centre next door it is much much smaller but more of a serious garden place. Vin wanted to get some light bulbs for his garden lightswhich he did.  So that was successful.
Then along to Tesco petrol station to get some petrol, it was for a change quite quiet, so he got that and home for lunch.
Appointment after lunch at three thirty. We got there on time and waited about ten minutes. Total waste of time, all she did was to take my blood pressure, and make appointments for another nursie todo the diabetic review, in January. Grrr.
Tonight we are having:
Pizza with mushrooms and extra cheese
Green salad with avocado and baby plum tomatoes
Potato salad for moi and celery fruit and nut for Vin

Oooh Friday the 13th !

Doesn't seem to make any difference, except that a little dish that we use for Rusty's creme fraiche seems to have been spirited away. it is a sweet little heart shaped dish and it's has just gone..vamooshed! I've said the prayer to St. Anthony and expect it will turn up somewhere.
We went off to Tesco this morning, via Waitrose where the car park was heaving. Vin ran in and got the pasties for tea so he is happy there. Then off to the tip to discard the toaster that had broken and Tesco for the weekend things. Got more things for the storecupboard too, and I got Jane another of the gift cards that they do. We were running out of time by this tinmne so we didn't stop for coffee in the Costa but came home instead which save about a fiver! looked quite busy anyway. Plus we had a lot of frozen stuff that we needed to get in the freezer.
Vin has just dug the Christmas cards out of the cupboard for me so I'll get them done in the next couple of days. getting a bit late actually,and we are getting a flurry of them now. Done the neighbours ones and Vin has posted them through their respective letterboxes.
Tonight we are having:
Cheese and onion pasties
green beans and any remaining veggies
Rice pudding..yum yum.

The Unexpected.!

Well, the plan today was to get up earlyish and go to Southport to the Dunelm Mill shop to get new pillows for Jane's bed. Then to go on to Dobbies for our coffee!
Then...we woke up later, so that wasn't a good start, and then Vin had got up to go to the bathroom and came back to say the carpet by the side of his bed was damp. This is where the radiator is, and it turned out it was dribbling water which waasn't good either.  So, that needed attention.
by this time the clock was moving on and I had thought it wasn't worth going out, but Vin said that he had fixed it temporarily and we could go. So off we went. Must admit I wasn't going to bother but in the end I'm glad we did.
Dunelm Mill had a great choice of pillows. Jane wanted soft ones so we got some feather and down ones, £12.99 each, but what we will do is when she has been and gone, we will swap them for our two top ones which are getting a bit worn. Also saw some tumblers that we were looking for. |They had them in M&S but out of stock, or discontinued so we got them there instead, 59p each..cheap enough. A nice pack of napkins and a little sugar bowl with sugar written all round it like the one I had broken. So a good shop.  Vin also went to the Brabantia (sp) store next door to see if they had any slippers..they did have one pair that he liked in the right size so he was happy. Glad we went in the end. Plus..we had a lovely coffee and shortbread in the Dunelm coffee shop. Free parking too.
Plus Vin fixed the valve on the radiator this afternoon so that is OK now. Well done Vin XXX
Tonight we are having:
Something from the freezer..
Potatoes baked in the ovenRemaining veggies from the fridge,
Mushroom sauce.

11/12/13 !

What an odd date today! at ten past nine tonight it will be 9 10 11/12/13.That would be a good date to be born wouldn't it. imagine saying that all of your life..11/12/13. Someone will be using that in years to come.
Didn't go out today, had a rest day and stayed in. We have been out for the last two days so we needed to catch up. Vin wanted to clear out the bottom of the freezer, it was all iced up and he had bought a new spray to use so he did that. It's all ready for getting some Christmas stuff now.Jane will want some roast potatoes and bits like that. We did find a bag of peas that have been there since God knows when and some yorkshire puddings likewise but not a huge ammount to throw away really. Fridge is nice and clear now.
Mainly the reason we stopped in today was that we were having a coal delivery, that came mid-day and was £57 for three bags!! What a price it is now..smokeless fuel that is.
Tonight we are having:
Pasta in tomato and basil sauce,
Butternut squash with sweet potato,
Mushrooms
A bit of garlic bread for Vin

Out Again!!

two days on the run..getting to be a habit! Today we went over to the M&S in Aintree to get some things that we wanted for Christmas. We wanted to get some of the accompaniments for the Christmas dinner and theirs are quite good. Also there were one or two things that i wanted to look at.
Got there quite reasonably, clever Vin spotted a car coming out of a space that we were going along, so he pulled in quick. just in front of the store too. Walked aalong to the Boots because I was looking for some of the perfume that I wear..the ginger Origins one, but they don'e sell it. Only liverpookl or Speke the girl said! So I walked back to the M&S and he went to the Halfords next door. I had a good mooch round and spotted a pair of slippers in my size. I have terrible trouble with slippers, they rub my toes, or are too big..or something! got a nice pair though straight away for a change. Then i was looking for a nail varnish but they werre upstairs by which time Vin had found me so we went up there. They were on offer for three for two, so I got that, and Vin got some of his Wood Spice which is lovely. He had a voucher off that so used that up.
Coffee Time!!! And guess what..he had a card for a free coffee, so I had an Americano and he had a flat white.Took our own biscuits so was a nice cheap do!!
Round the food hall then. Got some stuff for treats,Plus some essentials. Then home for lunch. Really enjoyed the trip actually. This time last year I wasn't going anywhere. Mind you saved a ton of money though :).
Tonight we are having:
Escalope of some sort,
baby potatoes baked in the oven
Vegetable mixture
Sauce of some sort..not sure what yet.

Thank Goodness!!

Indeed, thank goodness. My blog appears to be working properly these last few days. For some weeks now I have had terrible trouble with it. Couldn't get signed on and couldn't get rid of the Malwear that was on it. Then Vin looked it up online and someone suggested that you get rid of the calendar that was a gadget on the site. That was easier said than done however, because I couldn't get on to the settings. Then one day last week I found another way to access the blog and lo and behold the settings were accessible, so I deleted the calendar and  Hey Presto the site was going again!Saves such a long time.

Today was a going out day. We went to Homebase first to get some outside Christmas Lights. he had seen some on Saturday for half price so we went to get them today. he bought them on the Nectar points so didn't cost anything, except you can't buy on them for less than ten pounds. The lights were £9.99 ! so he picked up a [packet of gold coins for Jane's stocking as well !! We then went to Tesco to get the veg shopping for the week which we usually do on a Tuesday, but we were nearby so that was it. Went round there quite quickly, and the it was up the bypass to the Ladygreen garden centre. The idea was to get our free coffees for the month but the place was so busy that we couldn't see a table so we turned round and came home. We did go via the littler garden centre next door, and got a wreath for the front door which looks lovely.

It is all beginning to look lovely and Christmassy now.
Home for our coffee.. in the peace and quiet of the house, and a lovely Americano from the Tassimo machine !!
Tonight we are having:
Pizza with mushrooms and extra cheese and pepper on Vins one
Potato salad for moi and cheese and nut salad for Vin
green salad with avocadoes and baby plum tomatoes.

It's beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas!!

Well in our house it is. We have spent the day putting the trees up and the decorations, so everywhere is looking lovely and festive now.  Vin has the trees and the decorations very carefully packed away upstairs, and it is quite a job for him to get them down. He knows where everything goes though and it's a case of everything in its place.

This is the ne he hates putting up the most, he always swears when this one goes up because it's a tiny little hook and it takes a while to hang it up there above the fireplace.
He said we put them up on the same day last year, so we will get the month out of them given that we take them down on the 6th of Jan.
The news today everywhere is of Nelson Mandela's death yesterday. Endless news reports, and the world and his wife are cropping up to say what his death means and when they met him etc.,The Beeb have probably had programmes prepared for months given his precarious state of health.
We did share the same birthday..but not the year!
Tonight we are having:
Crustless cheese and onion flan,
Spaghetti in tomato sauce
A few chips..200grms between us.

Best Laid Plans!!

Of mice and men and retired couples!!. The plan was to go over to maghull and I could have a look at the Bon Marche shop which had a tempting %20 off everything offer, and Vin would have a mooch about, then we'd have a coffee at Costa.
However, we woke up this morning, lateish because it was dark, looked out of the window and the trees were blowing about like crazy, plus it was raining, so we decided against that idea and stopped in.
Vin did some clearing up af the places where the Christmas trees were going, and then just beat the hailstones and got the one out of the shed that goes in the extension.; Plus the one that goes in the middle room as well. So he did well!!
Very dark and wintry looking today, horrible outside and lots of trouble on the news. bridges closed all over especially in the North, a lorry blown over and the driver killed, a man blown off his mobility scooter and killed, and flooding all over too. Looks very bad, particularly in Scotland.
I did a bit of ordering online so that I got the discount from the Bon Marche,so I'm a happy bunny. The little cats are indoors today too they know which side of their bread is buttered.
Tonight we are having:
Escalope with gruyere cheese,
Mixed vegetables with a sauce
Baby potatoes sliced and sauteed.

Hooray!! At Last!!

At long last, after about three weeks or more of trouble with getting on the blog , it finally seems clear. Fingers and toes crossed at this point. I went on my blog via another website yesterday, and found the settings. So, deleted the calendar gadget that someone had said to remove. Did that and hey presto I was back on. Great.
Stayed in this morning , had to really because we were expecting a coal delivery. That came at about a quarter past one and three bags for £59. !! not a cheap fuel these days is it. We have the winter fuel allowance which helps with some deliveries, so that's good.
I did a pile of ironing all of the bedding that was washed yesterday. Vin was up and down doing some clearing up, going through papers etc., so getting a bit ready for Christmas. he did put some lights up outside too and we'll put the trees etc., up soon.
First Christmas card arrived this morning so must get going on mine.
Tonight we are having:
Pasta with a cheese sauce
Asparagus and butternut squash
A bit of garlic bread for Vin.

Is It Once A Year??

You can tell Christmas is coming round because the brasses get done. Not the ones at the front of the house because they get done when they tarnish, but the ones round the fireplace. They have been there for donkey's years, my mum used to do them weekly, but we don't I'm afraid.  They do look good when they are done though, especially with the Christmas decorations done.

Some of them are just viewable here but the picture is a bit yellow for some reason. no matter. So that was the job this morning, Vin puts the Brasso on and I do the rubbing off. It doesn't take that long actually, you just keep putting it off.

bedding done as well this morning, so all changed and new. lovely. The reason we stayed in today was because I had a delivery expected..well two actually. One from the Aranesp injections people and the other from bullen's healthcare with the colo stuff. 

just heard Johnny mathis on the Steve Wright show, talking about his new Christmas album and his up coming tour of the country starting in April. What a good voice he still has, a proper legend not like some of the one day wonders you hear these days.

Tonight we are having:

Chicken and mushroom style pies

baby roasted/baked potatoes

Carrots and beans

Mushroom gravy.

Well It's a Nightmare!!

Trying to get on my blog is a nightmare..that's what. !
I haven't a clue what is going on these days, just don't seem to be able to get rid of the "Buddyhost" block that comes up every time I sign on. Proper pain in the neck, and I mean a REAL pain in the neck! it used to be so easy, now I have to find circuitous routes to get on my blog. Ah well. All down to sonmething called Malware that affects what you are doing.
Odd weekend. Vin broke our toaster yesterday, so that meant we had to get another one today. It is used a lot so is an essential piece of electrical.  We have vouchers from tesco who are doing a five pound converts to ten on electrical items so that was a good choice. he went to the one in Formby yesterday but they only had four slice ones which are too big for us, or a couple of very cheap own make ones which we didn't want. Went from there to Homebase and they were the same. So the plan was to go to the big one at kew today to see what they had. Success found the last Russell Hobbs one in the store, £19.50. Vin took the vouchers to the customer service desk, and the lady gave us two ten pound conversion vouchers. She shouldn't have, because we should only have used one, and paid £9.50 remaining. But, he took the item to the self scanning till and put one in and the girl came over to say that we shouldn't have two! oh dear..she goes off to consult her team leader and comes back to say because it was their fault we coyuld put it through. Goody..we got a toaster for our vouchers with nothing to pay.
From there to ARGOS to get a One for All for the new television and sound box from Bose. Mainly it is to work the sound because the one I use now doesn't work the new sound box from Bose..Grrr. We still have some vouchers from the Shopping monitor so used those. Vin chose the most suitable one so he bought that. Didn't cost anything either.
Called in at Waitrose on the way back. got free coffees on our cards, very nice too. Vin had a Latte I had a black like an Americano. He got a free newspaper too..good going. Did our veggie shopping for the week, and got a few extra things we had run out of.
So all in all a really good free day eh!
Tonight we are having:
Pizza with mushroom and extra cheese
green salad with avocado and baby plum tomatoes
potato salad for moi and celery fruit and nut for Vin.

WooHoo ! We made it!

yesterday we finally made it to The Cheshire Oaks outlet Village over in Ellesmere Port. Oddly enough it has been twenty months since we have been there, couldn't believe that.
Left the house at about twenty to ten and arrived there at around half past ten, so made good time actually. i had been wanting to go there for ages since the op., and it was a sort of goal.Took a lot longer than I would have thought but hey we got there in the end.
It has changed a fair bit. Some stores that we used to go to have gone to be replaced by others. lovely to see a Lulu Guinness shop, and yes I did buy a make up bag for my cosmetics. Would have loved a handbag but didn't see one that I wanted. Maybe next time.
Soaps from the L'Occitane shop which was very busy with Christmas shoppers.
Vin was happy because we had a Costa coffee half way round. it was absolutely heaving in there and we were nearly giving up because we couldn't find anywhere to sit, then Vin asked the girl if there were any seats and she spotted a table for us, so that was good.  We had a really lovely look round, I was surprised just how busy it was, but we went where we wanted to go mostly. Don't like the M&S way too crowded, and you couldn't find anything. Did go into the Bose shop though to have a look at the Solo sound system for our new television which has terrible sound. Bought one! £349 !!! bit dear, but..it makes a heck of a difference. Vin has fixed it up this morning, and it's working great, thank gfoodness.
We  had our lunch in Sainsburys we both had a panini with brie and cranberry, just about the only choice for veggies. then went back to get the bose sound system. Once we got that it was homeward bound.
LOVELY day, and i was pleased with myself for getting round fairly ok. Vin was great though moving the car a couple of times.
Last night we had:
pasta bake with carrots squash and mushrooms.
Tonight we are having:
Something from the freezer with potatoes and mixed veggies.

It's A Wrap!!

Didn't go out today, stopped in to do a few bits and pieces.
Vin wrapped the things for John and Ann's Christmas parcel this morning. He is great at wrapping presents actually, tons better than me, he takes real care getting the paper folded properly and everything. We've sent them a calendar, dvd a book for John and a few little christmas ornaments, all beautifully wrapped in holly paper. Post that tomorrow probably. Also did my Christmas bauble swap, i have sent a villeroy and bosch little teddy bear, a little fridge magnet and a small yankee candle votive candle with a little gloass holder. Hope that's well received. 
Vin is playing about with the old television this afternoon, we have been debating whether to get a sound bar to increase the sound quality on our new television which is a bit tinny to say the least, but he has rigged up some speakers for the moment and they are very good actually. 
Might go to the Cheshire Oaks on Wednesday, we haven't been there for around a year i think. Wonder what has changed? Be interesting to see.
Tonight we are having:
pizza with mushrooms and pepper for Vin
Green salad with avocado and baby plum tomatoes
Potato salad for moi and sweet chilli noodle salad for Vin.

50 Years!

November the 22nd, 1963 President Kennedy was killed. Doesn't seem that long ago at all.  Quite something when it happened. i can remember it clearly, I had come home from night school and John and Ann were in our kitchen at home having just come back from Australia.It seemed to be unbelievable at the time, he was such a charismatic figure.  i suppose the modern generation will remember the 9/11 tragedy which was there on screen for everyone to see.  Then it was the television and very grainy pictures at the time, and patchy information. What a difference 50 years makes.
Today we went off to Formby to get our weekend things, stopped off at Waitrose to get some pasties for tonight and some rice puddings, both of which were on offer. so that was worth it. then on to Tesco for the other things. Went round quite quickly and got everything we had on the list plus a few extra things (as usual) and home for our coffees.
Tonight we are having:
Pasties from Waitrose
green beans and something tomatoey
Rice puddings from Waitrose.

In Today..How Exciting!

No not really.  We have been out for the last two days so it was a stop in day today.
Started off with a big pile of bedding to iron, takes quite a bit of effort to get the creases out too. It's the Egyptian cotton stuff which is gorgeous to sleep on but a pain to iron from the washer and drier. creases like nobody's business. never mind it looks good when done.
Vin did some sorting out, he did the front because there are still some leaves around although they have mostly gone now. Just a few hanging on to the trees.
Nice miid morning coffee to keep us going too, a creme brulee today. Doesn't make a full cup, but tastes nice. Wouldn't have one of those every day though.
Jane hasn't rung for a couple of days, but she is off till thursday so she can get her essay done so didn't expect to.
very quiet today, no post nothing doing except one phone call about boilers this morning. Pain in the neck those. In the middle of the ironing the phone goes so you run to get it, and it is the recorded message shouting at you about boilers Grrrr !
Tonight we are having:
Something from the freezer,
Baby potatoes sliced and sauteed
Remaining veggies from the fridge,
mushroom sauce.

Nice Surprise Today !!

Wednesday today..i wanted to go over to masghull for a while now but we just haven't got round to it. My favourite clothes shop is there (since the Ormskirk one has closed) and I had a catalogue with discount off. The online site is excellent but it is a bit of a faff getting stuff delivered, you can't beat looking in store really. I had seen a nice warmer jumper for the colder weather in the catalogue and a nightdress in fleece that would be ideal. 
So Vin very kindly said he'd drive me over there. It isn't a very good square for shopping in, not pretty or anything and there have been a fair lot of closures lately, but it's ok. Went to   the Bon Marche..had a lovely look round, and bought the exact jumper I had seen online but in a smaller size. Medium now !!! and the nightshirt in the smaller size than I would have ordered online too. Excellent. Vin caught me up outside, and put the stuff in the car whiloe I went into Superdrug for a few things I wanted. He met me outside there to say.."Guess what has opened in the old Blockbuster shop?" Yay!!! A COSTA COFFEE shop!! So that was it. He parked me in the Hallmark shop next door while he parked the car again. I got some lovely christmas cards and a couple of fridge magnets and a small yankee candle to send with my bauble swap.
Then next door for a really nice Costa and shortbread. Made my day that did.  Sad woman I am !!

Home to find Bobby in the same place on the bed than when we went out. No wonder actually, for some reason the electric blanket was still on ! Oh dear..no idea how that happened. No wonder she hadn't moved !!
Tonight we are having:
Pasta with a cheese sauce,
AQ bit of garlic bread for Vin,
A few veggies to go with.

?????

Goodness knows what this site is playing at. seems to have the gremlins today. All I want to do is access my blog as I have done most days for the pastabout four years, and it won't let me. Grrrr !!
proper pain in the neck today. 
Funny today. I had a dream last night about being along a long school corridoe with my bag over my arm. Then I discovered that my bag was open wide, and my purse was missing.  Went back along the corridor amongst some kids and found my purse with my bank card missing.  
We went off to tescos today, mainly because we had a voucher for £5 off £40 so it was a puller. On the way there I checked my purse as I often do to find...my card missing!! odd or what? Vin always puts my card back but for some reason he didn't. Real funny that.
Armed with a list, we did a lot of shopping for bits and pieces and got the veggies for the week. Really busy today for some reason, and the checkouts were heaving. So Vin decided to go through one of the self scan ones. I hate them with their bleeping and bossy woman telling you what to do. It was a stubborn one which threw up a lot of problems today.A LOT of problems the poor girl had to come and put it right a few times, and it wasn't what Vin was doing he is good with them. Then it wouldn't take the vouchers!! Grrr. But, we got there in the end and home for coffee.
Little Rusty is loads better today. Thuis antibio injection seems to have worked really quickly. Well done Tim the Vet.

Tonight we are having:
lemon and black pepper escalope
bread sauce
Stuffing
Baby baked potatoes
vegetables carrots and beans

Monday Monday..

Not much doing today. Didn't go out anywhere, stopped in and did a few things.
We are a bit worried about the sound on our new television. it is a great tele for the vision, with a really good clear picture but the sound is very "tinny". Apparently it is a problem with the flat screen types of televisions where the speakers are below the screen.
So we spent some time this morning looking at soundbars for them.   There are a lot of different ones on the Argos website and it's a bit of a minefield. if you look at the reviews you get very mixed reactions, so it's hard to know which to choose. We have some vouchers for there for £50 plus a bit of extra money left over so it's not the cost, although they can go up to many hundreds of pounds. The decider came when Vin measured them and found they were much wider than the telecvision so that was it really. For the moment we are trying a pair of speakers in front of it which seem to be a bit better.
 had a lovely shower this morning with the L'Occitane shower gel. i love that stuff, it's really gorgeous smell. get it from QVC but we have loads. The liquid soap is the best in the world, and lasts for ages.
Tonight we are having:
Pizza with mushroom and extra cheese
Green salad with avocado and baby plum tomatoes
potato salad for ,oi and sweet chilli noodle salad for Vin.

Formby Tour!

Today we went on a trip around Formby.  First Vin had to take some library books back, and now you can drop them off at any of the borough libraries, so since we were going to tesco we decided to take them there. easy to get to, and you can park right outside which is a bonus..you have to pay at Waterloo now!!! He was in and out in two minutes so that was handy. 
Then it was off to Tesco, expected it to be really busy, well the garage was so we didn't get petrol there, but the shop was fine.  Got round armed with vin's list and our vouchers and got all of our stuff for the weekend quite quickly. Got Jane a voucher for Christmas from there too so she can use that for her shopping during the term.
By the time we had finished it was well past coffee time and the Costa looked very quiet and inviting so we went in there. I had a really nice Americano as did Vin today, and we shared some lovely little shortbread biscuits. very nice too, it's made a real difference to Tesco the Costa has. 
Home via the petrol station, but..the Tesco one was heaving with queues so he went into Foemby again and got some at the Texaco one instead. And, that's our day really, only one letter which was the notification of the heating allowance.. £100 for moi Vin's will come later i expect. We'll use it for buying coal. 
Tonight we are having:
Crustless cheese and onion flan
sauteed mushrooms
Small tin of spaghetti hoops.

Little Rusty..

Little rusty was a bit off colour today and yesterday, so vin rang up the vets and got an appointment for 3.30 this afternoon. So the day centred around that really. She had been a bit wheezy and her nose was giving her trouble too so he thought she needed another of her antibiotic injections.
this morning we just did bits and bobs, bits of ironing and sorting out of things from the cupboards to be thrown out. Spices from 2007 !! Bin day tomorrow so it's a good chance to get rid of stuff.
Had some lunch then off to the vets with Rusty.  She must have got a bit stressed on the way there because her nose was bleeding when we arrived. That wasn't bad actually because the nice vet (Tim) could see more clearly what was going on. he gave her a good examination and another antibiotic injection said she coyuld do with a few days r&r, and we were home by fourish. Pretty good going.
Tonight we are having:
Something from the freezer,
Baby potatoes sliced and sauteed
Mixed vegetables,
White sauce.

Ordinary day..

Well it was an ordinary day today. Not going anywhere and not doing much either.  two deliveries both via the postman. One was a set of screwdrivers that vin had sent for from the Daily express. he was thrilled with them, and tried to tell me all about them..but I think it's a man thing really. :) 
my delivery was a box of gluten free chocolate brownies that I had ordered from QVC who else!! They came beautifully wrapped and can be frozen so that is what we have done with them. Now this is a woman thing! I have ordered them for Christmas, and they will make a lovely desert with a blob of cream or ice cream and a few raspberries. Maybe a dusting of grated chocolate. Yummy.
Vin did a bit of mooching about outside this morning but it's raining now so he is doing bits downstairs. The little cats are ferreting about and as usual little rusty is following him around. Aaah.
Jane hasn't rung up today but she did yesterday. She is having laptop trouble and was going to take it to a computer shop today to see if they can fix it.  I do hope so, she can do without the stress.
Tonight we are having:
pasta of some sort
Asparagus
A bit of garlic bread for Vin.

A Touch of the Draculas!!

Went out for a blood test today to Aintree, should have been done on the 4th but no matter. So, we got up a bit earlier, and the plan was to go to the hospital first to get the blood test done, then go to the M&S in Aintree later for a mooch at their Christmas stuff and have a coffee there.  The blood test took a bit longer today, they were slow movingbut Vin parked in the emergency bay and collected me afterwards.
went off to the retail park where the M&S is which wasn't too bad today. Sometimes it's really busy, but he got a parking space right outside which was good.  Had a bit of a look round but couldn't find the gifts, seems they were upstairs. Time getting on so we went for our coffee upstairs. Not too bad, and not too busy. I found a table right under a fan but when Vin came with the coffees he spotted one of the sofas by the window which was really nice. Funny today we were just given cups and no saucers..apparently the machine that must be used to wash them must be broken! Odd drinking coffee from a cup with no saucer:) I had an Americano and Vin had a flat white. Lovely little shortbread biscuits shaped like little christmas trees.
Had a bit of a mooch then because we found the gifts, but didn't see anything that we wanted just yet. Maybe later so it was off to the food dept to get our veggies, plus other things that we like from there. new York coffee for example.  Used my card and got 15% off the shopping because of the voucher. Not bad eh!
Home for lunch and two little cats waiting for us. Little Rusty usually meets us at the door which is lovely. XXX
Tonight we are having:
Escalope 
baby potatoes baked in the oven
Carrots and beans
White sauce or hollandaise.

Nothing Much!

Nothing doing n the calendar for this week. The only thing I have to do is get a blood test done at Aintree, and I was thinking of doing that today. However, Vin woke up this morning and said he was going on the train to Waterloo to get a new gas poker! So we will go tomorrow instead. no matter. Just means getting up a bit earlier to get organised.
Cats were a bit lively this morning like they have been of late. Rusty seems to become awake quite early and then perches on my hip from some ungodly hour till we move. Every now and again I have to turn over, and she jumps off then jumps back on. Aaah! She is a little sweetie and I wouldn't have it any other way. Vin finally found out what the black and white cat who comes visiting is called. He feeds it with biscuits and it belongs to a woman along the road who works in Waitrose. It's called Sammy..and it has been coming for its biscuits for quite a few years now. must save the woman a fortune. So Sammy it is.
I have ordered the new DVD of the series four of Downton Abbey this morning. Gone up a bit in pricce but it will go in John and Ann's parcel for Christmas. It was a good series and I think they will enjoy it. The series finished last night, which is a shame, but there will be a Christmas special, to look forward to, and I will probably buy that for John's birthday parcelwhich is the beginning of February.
Tonight we are having:
Pizza with cheese and mushrooms
Green salad with baby plum tomatoes and avocado
Potato salad for moi and celery fruit and nut for Vin.

Weekend Stuff..

Off we went to Tesco's today. Mainly because we had more of their vouchers/coupons than anywhere else. It is quite near as well only ten minutes up the road. 
Weather not too bad this morning, coldish but nor raining. making up for it now though..it is absolutely peouring down and grey and miserable. Vin has just come up to say that he was going down for the coal but is leaving it for a bit to see if it clears up a bit. Don't think it will somehow though.
Tesco looked like it was going to be very busy but in actual fact it wasn't too bad inside. We went round with Vin's list and got everythuing on it and finished quite early. The plan was to get a coffee in their Costa, but it was really busy and nowhere nice to sit, so we came home for one frokm the tassimo machine instead. I had a Cafe Hag and Vin had a Jacobs maille..I think that's how it's spelt. 
Tonight we are having:
Fishless fingers with tartare sauce
Chips! 200grms
Butternut squash and mushy peas for vin.

Busy..

Bust today.. did a load of ironing this morning, while I did that Vin brushed a lot of leaves outside, and tidied the back garden ready for the green bin tomorrow.
Had the rest of my delivery from Bullens this morning, pretty good service from them.
Jane just rang up a few minutes ago to say it was freezing there, she was going in to work at Ticketmaster, and on five to ten tonight so not too late. She was going in to get a coffee before she started work. Nice to see she is punctual, something must have rubbed off during her upbringing.
Tonight we are having:
Something from the freezer,
butternut squash and sweet potato,
Potato croquettes,
White sauce or a bread sauce.

Off for a mooch!

Object for the day was to get a garden broom! seriously!!  Vin was doing the leaves yesterday and his brush gave up the ghst.  All these things made in China..don't last don't you know :)  Since there is a lack of places to actually go and get brushes he thought he might get one in Dobbies. So off we went there.
Quite nice actually, it was reasonably quiet, and I had a good look round.
I was looking for a really nice bauble to send for a Secret Santa bauble swap, but couldn't find one, they tend to be very cheap looking.  I miss Past Times for those sort of things.  The Pier was good too but they have both closed. maybe have a look over the way at the other garden centre to see what they have got.
Had a relly nice Americano, Vin bought me, he had a flat white that he had a voucher for, and we take our own biscuits being cheapskates :).
I bought some shortbread and some Yankee candles tea lights in cinnamon stick, really nice, and Vin got his brush/broom. Only a fiver so not too bad.
Tonight we are having:
Baked Potatoes, haven't had them for ages,
Some sliced mushrooms and a bit of cheese to go with. 

Remember Remember the 5th of November...

Firework night tonight, and already it is showing signs of being blowy. The hotel/pub over the road usually has quite a big noisy display, most often on a Saturday, but they are having it tonight.  So we'll have to watch the cats. What we usually do is keep them inside, with a fair bit of noise about so they aren't so aware of the noise. Hope that works.
Stayed in today because I was waiting for a delivery from bullens, did the bedding which was a bit difficult because Bobby had plonked herself right in the middle of the bed and we didn't like to disturb her. got it all off eventually though and remade it so she could settle again. Aaaah !
Vin did quite a lot of tidying up outside this morning because he wanted to move the leaves...green bin week.
Sent my letter off to John and Ann this morning, now need to start the new christmas one!
Tonight we are having:
Escalope with broccoli and cheese
Potato croquettes
Mixed vegetables with a mushroom sauce.

A little tragedy..

I know in the greater scheme of things it isn't that important but it is to me. This little fellow has been in our garden since I retired from school in 2000. I love him..his smiling face always looks out at me from the extension window and when we are sitting in the garden.
Well, Saturday we had terrible gale force winds and storms, and Sunday morning Vin gave me the bad news that he had been blown over in the gale. Apparently he had been lifted off his feet and blown right away even though he is perched in a reasonably protected corner. His arm has broken off. Completely come off at the side. My lovely husband saw it on Saturday night but didn't tell me in case it would upset me before going to bed. I am really upset actually. I just love that little fellow, but he says he will try his best to fix him. Bless him XXXX
Today (Monday) started badly. Couldn't get going at all. Sat on the bed for about ten minutes trying to get a pair of earrings in my ears and gave up in the end. Just couldn't get going. I decided that we would go to Waitrose for our veggies today, thinking that we would get our free coffees there for a change. Vin definitely wasn't keen!!  grumbled about not finding his card and wasn't bothered. But, there were a couple of things i wanted to get from there, and we didn't have vouchers for anywhere else so it was there in the end.
Got all our veggies, must admit I do like their veg, they seem to have a better selection than enywhere else, then we decided to leave our trolley by the cafe and went for our coffees. Pleasantly surprised that they were really nice. All it cost us was a pack of biscuits at 84p. I had a regular black and Vin had a latte. Lovely.
Went to put our groceries through, and the girl said had we got our paper, we hadn't because we didn't know we got one, so he chose a guardian!! Proper little leftie!!!
Home to scan the shopping, and the Heavens opened. An absolute downpour, sleety stuff, and really horrible.
Tonight we are having:
Pizza from last night,
green salad with avocado and baby plum tomatoes
potato salad for moi and sweet chilli noodle salad for Vin.

Ear ! Ear!

Today revolved around an appointment at the Hearin Aid Centre in Southport. it was for a quarter to twelve so ate into the morning a bit. Didn't help that it was pouring down which made the morning grey and miserable.
Fortunately, just as we were about to leave the house, quite literally, the doorbell went and it was the courier with my coat from kaleidoscope. must admit I'm very impressed with them, it was a first order, and I did have a few hiccups along the way because I ordered a size bigger than I actually needed because I thought it looked fitted on the catalogue. It was actually way too big..my fault because I still think I'm that size but I am not any longer. So sent it back by the same courier, and tried to arrange another in the right size. out of stock! But... unlike other firms where you have to wait ages for more stock, they gor some in within a few days.  I was sent an email from their customer services dept., to say they had reordered another in the right size at the earlier discount price. Excellent..Well done kaleidoscope.
So I'm well happy.
Off to Southport in the rain got there dead on time and parked in Sainsbury's over the road. VERY quick appointment..he cleaned my aids, said they were ok and make another appointment for six months which will be may next year.
GOT A FEW BITS FROM sAINSBURY'S AND THEN WENT TO dOBBIES TO HAVE A COFFEE. vIN HAD PACKED A FLASK SO WE DIDN'T ACTUALLY GO INSIDE. Don't know why the printing has gone large and I aint typing it again!!
Left there, and I suggested that we went into Tesco on the way back to get the weekend things which would save Vin going tomorrow. got it all except the potato salad which they had loads of but the sell by date was tomorrow! no good.
Home for lunch and all done.
Tonight we are having:
Cheese and nion pasties from Waitrose,
A few green beans for moi and mushrooms for Vin.
Clotted cream rice puddings.

In Which Vin has his Hair Cut..

It's Halloween today..trick or treat day. Don't really go in for it much round here probably because there aren't any children much along the road. We haven't been bothered for the last couple of years but we don't answer the door anyway. 
Vin went off to formby to get his hair cut this morning. he hates having to wait in a queue so said that if there was one he would come back. So, I was surprised when he rang up not long after he went and it was him saying he had had his hair cut and there was only one man in the queue. Very quick in the end then.He went to waitrose then to get the pasties for friday, so that was another job done.
While he was off I attempted to get the letter finished for John and Ann.I'd already done the most of it, but couldn't get the printer going properly. As usual!! It never works for moi.
At least he was back in time for a decent coffee today, which was nice. I had a cafe hag crema and he had an Americano with milk. Mmm, lovely.
Tonight we are having:
Something out of the freezer
Baby potatoes
remaining veggies that are in the fridge
Mushroom sauce.

Coffee Table Rage!!

Off we went over the road this morning to get our free coffees for this month before the month runs out. When we got there, it didn't look too busy and ours was the only car in the little parking bay away from the main car park. Huh! When we got in, we had a bit of a mooch round and we both spotted some things that we wanted to get for Christmas etc., or general use. Vin was looking for some candles or more specifically tealights because we seem to have had a lot of not very good ones lately.
Time for coffee so we took ourselves off to the cafe part..Absolutely Heaving.. for some reason today, really really busy. I wandered round to try and get a seat for us, but no spaces anywhjere. eventually spotted a table right by the queue where we wouldn't normally dream of going, but had no choice today. Tables all full and loads of clearing up to do as well. So noisy you couldn't hear yourself speak. So we had our coffees and decided we would go pretty quick. I got up to move and two women rushed for the table. It was really funny, one little old woman said "I've got it " in a big loud voice and the other woman gave in. What a scream!!
Anyway, left them to it. Went round the gift shop again, which is very good actually, Vin got his candles, and I bought a nice little decoration to pop in John and Ann's Christmas parcel. 
Weather quite nice today,at least it was till about half three then it started to get darker and is now looking like rain. Not very warm now either.
Tonight we are having:
Pasta with a four cheese sauce
Mushrooms
mixed green veggies with asparagus
A bit of garlic bread for Vin.

Still Playing Tricks.!!!

I Thought this had been cracked. Still seems to be playing up even though I signed up to Google Chrome which was supposed to help. Grrr.Can't make head nor tails of this at all.  Ok I give up!

Today is the veggie shopping day so we took my money off to Sainsburys since we had a voucher for two pounds off twenty. Obviously we came out having spent double that! Typical. my fault putting all sorts of extras in the trolley. 

We did get a few things that we were in need of however. Parked right outside and Vin got a trolley that already had the pound in it so a bonus. Why do people leave the pounds in their trollies i wonder. just absent minded or don't care. You wouldn't catch Vin doing that  !

Still blowy today with some very strong rainstorms too. We have missed the worst of the weather though, it appears to have been bad in the south. Loads of trees smashing cars etc.,

Tonight we are having:

gruyere cheese escalopes,

White sauce with mushrooms

Mixed vegetables

Small baked potatoes.

Blow The Wind Southerly..

Well...it was supposed to be the storm of the century so far. We were told by the weather forecasters that there would be 80mph gales etc., but mainly in the South. there have been trees blown down and the papers are full of pictures of cars squashed by trees etc.,four people killed by various means and terrible delays on the trains down south, and planes cancelled, so a lot of disruption in the lower regions of the country.
Up here in The North, it is a funny day. very changeable bright sunshine one day and pouring down the next. In fact it is absolutely pouring as I type this.  Quite gusty but not enough to blow things down or over. 
We weren't planning to go anywhere today, because I had arranged for a courier to collect a parcel for the kaleidoscope company. it was a coat i had ordered with a fur hood in a nice blue colour for a change! but I had ordered a size too big. So wanted to return it and get a size smaller. Unfortunately they don't have any in stock but may be getting some in so will wait and see. 
Vin went off to Formby to get his new glasses from Specsavers which he got for half price. very nice they are too..really smart. There is a horrible Specsavers advert at the moment for glasses for the older man and the "model" has one of those absolutely horrible spiky half beards..Uggh! Vin looks much better in his glasses.
Of course he was back for his coffee. Lovely Americano for moi today.
Tonight we are having:
pizza with mushrooms and peppers for Vin
green salad with avocado and baby plum tomatoes
potato salad for moi and sweet chilli noodle salad for Vin.

Wello!!

There seems to be further advances to the site.. Goodness knows what. It appears that you have to twiddle around with the buttons to get somewhere. I haven't a clue what is going on really, but will try anything to get it back to normal. 
All i want is my little blig back :(. 

Grrrr..

OK It's officially beginning to drive me mad now. What is going on here I have no idea but it will not let me sign in officially simply. Real psin in the neck now.

Off we went to Tesco's this morning after I had a phone call from the Health Suppliers,We had one of those vouchers for £4 off £40 so that was a good incentive. We needed the weekend things so had to go somewhere and it is quite easy to make up the amounts with stock items. Really nice this morning, bright sunshine with the sun blazing through the car windows, Now it's gone very dark and has started to pour down too so hope Jane isn't getting wet going to work. Haven't heard from her for a few days so hope she is ok.
Vin is funny going round tesco..he sort of steers me round..either with his arm or with the end of the trolley. The idea today for him I think was to get me back, done and out of there so he could get home for his coffee! Whish was accomplished. By the time I got on the blog today i had got fed up with it so it will be short and sweet.
Tonight we are having:
Fishless fingers with tartare sauce
Chips 200grms
Mushy peas for Vin and green beans for moi.

What a Pain!

I haven't a clue what is going on with this blog site at all! I have been running it for years now and for the most part haven't had any problems, but for the last couple of weeks it hass brought up all sorts of trouble. So difficult to log on and use where it used to be simple. Yesterday was particularly problematical and today is the same. Vin says it;s because Google has taken it over and it wants everyone to go through Google. I wish they would leave things alone or tell us what they are doing. Putting me right off Google I know that much!!
Stay in today because the ironing wanted doing. Did that then Vin did the floor in the kitchen. While I did the ironing he did the leaves in the front garden to put in the green bin for disposal tomorrow. The bigt sycamore trees at the front of the house are a real pain, cause problems all year round but the resin is the worst, sticks to everything, and makes a real mess of the cars.
Nice machine coffees today, Vin had a capuccino today while I had a cafe intenso which is flavourful and quite strong.
I ordered a pair of Murano glass earrings for Ann for Christmas hope they come in a better box or I will have to find a suitable one. Also ordered a book from Amazon for my kindle today too.  Building up a nice collection of books on it now. My order for my case arrived today too, it is a lovely wine purple colour with a light to make it easier to read at night. We have ow energy bulbs in our bedside lights and I do have a bit of a struggle reading with them.  Hoping this will help.
Tonight we are having:
Something from the freezer
Remaining veggies that we have left
White sauce or a bread sauce depending on what we have.

Goodness Knows!!

What happened with this blog yesterday and for the last few days propr to that. It all seems to have gone mad, and I couldn't get on at all yesterday neither could my husband who is usually excellent with computers and fixing things. Had a little bit of a fiddle today and appear to have got somewhere, although goodness knows what I did!!
I will try this out anyway.
Today we went over to Ormskirk to our vets to collect the tablets that little Rusty takes for her thyroid problem.  Quite a nice run although not as Autumnal as we expected. On the way back Vin decided that we would call in at the Costa in Tescos for a nice coffee for a treat. His treat, which was lovely.
Tonight we are having:
Pasta with a tomato sauce
A bit of garlic bread for Vin
Mixed green vegetables.

In Which Vin is Out Early..

Not me out today, but Vin on his own to go for an eye test and new glasses. his appointment was quite early, so it was an alarm clock jobbie so he could have his coffee before he went.
He was up, showered, cats fed, all before I woke up this morning!! he puts me to shame. I wish I had his energy!!
So he ws off to Formby Specsavers for an eye test and some new gasses. he said his sight hasn't changed much in the two years since his last test, so that's good. Then he was off to Tesco to take back an avocado that I bought on friday for last night's salad. When i cut it in half it was very bruised and bad and it was £1.25 so worth taking back, and he got petrol while he was there.
Weather a bit changeable today, very dark and grey when we got up but went sunnier later. now overcast but not blowy. Said in the News today there was a mini tornado that hit hayling Island and areas with trees blowing over and cars crushed etc., looked pretty bad.
Tonight6 we are having:
Pizza with mushrooms and peppers for vin
green salad with avocado and baby plum tomatoes
Potato salad for me and barbecue noodle salad for vin.
(P.S.) I had written quite a lot more but the site is playing up, and I couldn't find what I had typed so gave up!

Vouchers again!!

In the absense of anywhere exciting to go today we ended up going to Tescos. mainly because we had a coupon for £4 off £40 so that was a bit of a draw. They know what they are doing these supermarkets.
So off we went round all the aisles with Vin totting up the costs as we went. I did put in some things that we can keep for Christmas to put in the box upstairs, so some of it was stock up items. trouble is that the shop has moved things around....Again!!! which is a real pain, and it makes ordinary shopping quite confusing.   But, we got there in the end.
Home in time for our coffee even if it was a bit late. Doesn't matter though.
Watching the television Sky news this afternoon just after lunch and it was showing forest fires in Australia just North of Sydney. Absolutely terrible totally devastating. trees just totally blazing away and homes left in ashes almost. Poor people and animals.
Tonight we are having:
fishless fingers with tartare sauce
Mushrooms and green beans for moi and mushy peas for Vin
Chips 200 grms.

What a Difference a Day Makes!

Yesterday it was wet, grey and really gloomy. Today the sun is shining and the trees are still and it is a nice Autumn day.
We stayed in today mainly to do bits and bobs. Vin wanted to do the bench outside while the weather was decent. he has wiped it down because it was wet from yesterday, and put some wood treatment on it. We have bought a cover for it to protect it from the ravages of Wintry weather so that can be tied on now.
Sorted out the freezer this afternoon, and got rid of some redundant things that have there too long. it's amazing how things get left in a freezer. You buy them thinking they wil be useful stand byes then they end up not being used probably because you don't fancy them or there isn't anything to go with them. Didn't waste a huge amount though.
I spent some time this morning trying to think of something interesting to put in John and Ann's letter. it isn't their Christmas one, but one to thank them for sending Vin's birthday cards etc., One really good thing that happened from Janet and Tony's visit was that Jane showed me how to use the FB site a bit better and I get some of the posts from the girls which are lovely.
Tonight we are having:
Gruyere cheese escalopes
White sauce with mushrooms
Baby potatoes sliced and fried,
mixed veggies.

Lovely Autumnal Weather..Well No !!

No it isn't like this today at all! Wish it was..and I wish we were in New England obn a lovely tour/drive holiday. here today it is pouring down with rain..blowing a gale and as dark as the hobs of Hell.. In other words it is an absolutely horrible day.
Didn't start off too promisingly when I had a phone call at breakfast time from the District nurse at Thornton, telling me that the hospital had been in touch to come and do my Aranesp injections. Since I have been doing these for years without any problems, I said I wasn't happy about that because they were quite busy enough without an extra unnecessary one to visit. She said she would ring the G,P. surgery and get back to me. Which she did, and they don't have an appointment for tomorrow but to ring for one for next week.  What a terrible waste of NHS time when I can do them myself perfectly well. Suppose I need to get in touch with the Consultants secretary and check whether it is necessary. I'll do that tomorrow.
We had planned to go to Dobbies today, have a bit of a look round and get our coffees for the month which we did. just about to leave the house and the Heavens opened. Terrible rainstorm, but we went anyway. had a good look round, bought a few things and a very enjoyable coffee. Quite busy there actually, and Christmas stuff everywhere but nothing that I fancied. Massive numbers of Christmas trees with lights that would drive you mad. Some quite nice ones though, although we have enough.  Home via Waitrose where Vin ran in and got our pasties for Friday and some butternut squash for tonight.
Tonight we are having:
Pasta with a four cheese sauce,
A bit of garlic bread for Vin
butternut squash and asparagus and mushrooms

The value of a Coupon!

So, the last time we visited Sainsburys we got a voucher for £2 off £20 with our shopping. hence our veggie shopping for the week was done in Sainsbury's this morning. On the plus side it is local-ish, and only takes ten mins to get there, on the down side the parking for free is only 1/2 an hour so you have to rush round, and...the range of goods in the store seems to be less these days for some reason. They have re-vamped the shop but don't appear to have as much on offer. Very odd.
For some reason I had a coughing fit when I got inside. Very embarrassing and Vin went off to get a bottle of water for me bless him. God knows what set that off but it went. Whizzed round and got our weeks supply of veg and a couple of other things we had run out of, then home for our coffee from the machine. very nice too.
One telephone message when we got home..guess what..the boilers one.These come with monotonous regularity these days, and they shout down the phone at you too. really irritating.
jane hasn't rung up for a bit, must be busy. i know she was doing a special assessment today so that is probably why.
Tonight we are having:
Escalope with lemon and black pepper
baby potatoes baked in the oven
mixed vegetables
White sauce with mushrooms

Eye Eye!

Bit hard to type this because I have had the drops put in the eyes to dilate the pupils. Therefore everything is blurred and very light so makes it harder to see.
Today revolved around an appointment this afternoon at the eye clinic for the diabetic eye screening to be done. I last had it done at Aintree in October last year and it was horrendous, we had to wait for four hours till we were finished.  I got a letter a couple of weeks ago giving me an appointment at Southport hospital, didn't fancy that one but you could go online and change it, so we got it transferred to Litherland Town hall which is much nearer. The appointment was for twenty to three and I was called in as soon as I got there. had an eye test   and then drops in the eyes and had to wait outside for twenty minutes. Went back in and she took a photo of both eyes, and that was it. Excellent, we were out of there really quickly, and home by four, so that was all pretty painless.
Funny weather day today, we came home in rain, now it is bright shining sunshine. very odd. Been like that all day really on and off.
Tonight we are having:
Pizza with a bit of extra cheese and mushrooms
green salad with baby plum tomatoes and avocado
Potato salad for moi and coronation rice salad for Vin

Change of Plans...

The idea today was to get up and go over to Dobbies, have a mooch there, and get our coffees for this month.  However, I had bought some Royal mail shares yesterday, and wanted to sell them today for a quick turnoverr. The idea was to make enough money to pay for the clutch repair on Jane's car which was £210.
Vin got onto the website earlyish this morning and found that if they were sold now they would make about £230 so that was it. Sell up, nice quick turnover on my money.
Therein lay a bit of a problem because he couldn't get onto the website he bought them on, it had obviously been overworked. So had our breakfast and tried again..no joy. Too late for Dobbies so he went off to  Tesco for the weekend things instead. Really quick..it was a rush round with his list and no impulse buys like there would be if I went. :)
Back in time for his coffee really quickly, I was surprised when he called out that he was home.  His coffee worked fine, then at the end of the making of his one which was a latte, the red light started flashing which meant mine wouldn't work. So madam had to have an instant today..been spoilt really, I am used to really good coffees now.
After coffee he tried again to sell the shares, and kept on trying but no joy at all. Gave up in the end when it got to lunchtime. Eventually got on during the afternoon, and have made £238.15. Very good profit. Nice to make a bit of money out of this government!!! So your clutch Jane has been paid for by the government!!

Tonight we are having:
Fishless fingers with tartare sauce
Chips..200grms
Green beans for me and mushy peas for Vin.

House Chores..In and Out...

An in day today. Nowhere to go and nothing to go and buy so it was in the house for us. I did the bedding ironing which is time consuming, while Vin went out to do the front garden. It is the green bin tomorrow so he wanted to get the leaves swept up from the front garden for that.  The big sycamore trees at the front of the house on the road are shedding their leaves a lot now, and they just land in the garden, settle in the corner and get wet and mushy when it rains. Pain. So he did that. He also cleared out some pots that were overgrown, and planted some nice little mini narcissi and daffodils in the barrel for the Spring. All looks lovely and tidy now.
Jane rang up just before in Tescos..she said her car was driving like a new one with the new clutch. She frove it round the car park last night to try it out, and hadn't realised just how bad it had got till it was done.  She was telling us about her course thing that she has to do on Tuesday. They have to work with a dummy that breathes, and talks and bleeds and everything, so is used to simulate and emmergency. Sounds different anyway. Doesn't sound like a boring course.!
Nice coffee inside today..too cold to go outside now really. Vin had a Latte and I had a Carte D'or cafe intenso. A couple of mini shortbreads left from Costa the other day and that was it. Tasty offerings from the Tassimo.  What a good machine that is.
Tonight we are having:
Something from the freezer,
Baby potatoes I might peel and mash,
mixed vegetables left over, carrots squash etc.,
Mushroom sauce.

This is the barrel in the summer, now cleared out and planted for the Winter/Spring.

Outing!!

We wanted to go out and get a bir of fresh air this morning so off we went over to Ormskirk. Weather didn't look promising, started off very grey and blowy but cleared up as we drove over there. Quite a nice drive actually, very rural, passed Farmer Teds which is a little farm place that people go with kids. Quiet there, not many cars.
Parked behind the M&S store and for some reason loads of spaces today. Usually when we go there it is parked up and you go round for ages. So, that was a bonus. Went into Holland and Barratt to start with to see if they had any fishless fingers that we like. They did..another bonus so bought three..all they had, one for Friday and two for the freezer. I went over to Superdrug for some bits and bobs and Vin had some places he wanted to go so we met in the middle a bit later. What I really miss is the Bon Marche..such a shame that shop went. :(
Back down in the car to morrisons, and had our coffees there today. vin had a latte and I had a filter. Wanted a few things from there because we don't go very often, and actually they had everything in today. It was one of those days when everything went right for a change.
Vin has just come in to say that the Post Office shares are very highly oversubscribed so it doesn't look like we will get many. If it pays for Jane's clutch that will be a good thing. 
Tonight we are having:
Pasta with a tomato sauce or cheese not sure yet,
Mushrooms,
A few asparagus tips to go with and some butternut squash
A bit of garlic bread for Vin.

Up and Running...

Today was a stay at home day but a busy one. Firstly it was the delivery from the Aranesp with my injections. Then it was strip the bed and put the laundry on (roll on Thursday and a lovely load of ironing !!)
Breakfast and Vin set about getting the new television up and running. I got out of the way while he did that.. but he said it was easy to do actually. One good thing is the picture is bigger and clearer, and also a bonus is that we no longer need to watch awful Welsh channels with Pobol y cwm or words to that effect!
Second delivery from Bullens today with my bag things seems odd that they both come on the same day, but at least it saves staying in for two days though.
Vin has bought some Post office shares for us today, and is getting some for himself tonight when I have transferred the money over. Jane rang up this morning too to say that she had been to the garage with her car, and it is the clutch causing trouble, so they are going to do it tomorrow for her.  I'll give her the money for that, she needs her car, and I don't want her standing around at bus stops at some of the hours she comes out of Ticket Master. Poor kid, she works hard enough as it is with the job and her Uni work and placements.
Can't wait to see a good film on the new tele,we have Skyfall on the hard drive so that would be a good one.
Tonight we are having:
Quorn escalope
Mixed veggies with a sauce of some sort,
Little potatoes baked in the oven

Big Buy !

Well this weekend we made a decision to buy a new television. We had £300 worth of vouchers for Argos from doing the National Shopping Monitor scanning. Vin does the scanning and I put our stuff away so it workd out ok. For that you get points, and the points add up. We took out about 3000,000points worth a few weeks ago and decided to use them on a new television. That way you can actually see what the scanning has bought us.
So on Saturday with the papers came a catalogue for Argos with some teles in it n sale and I had a look online. Saw a Bush 32" Smart tele which was £250 seemed reasonable, so we had a look and reserved it online at the Kew store. Thought we would get the television and get a coffee at Dobbies on the way past. But, we had some tomatoes that had to be returned to Tesco because they had gone mouldy,so change of plans. Vin didn't want to go to Dobbies anyway. Collected the tele from the Argos..the poor girl having to scan in £250 s worth of ten pound vouchers which took her ages, box with the tele in surprisingly small, just a bit bigger than the television itself. very thin these days too. Drove past Dobbies in the way back and must admit I felt a pull..but never mind we will go later in the month.
Called in at Tesco's on the way back and took the tomatoes back for a refund. I suggested that we got our veggies today as well since Vin would be doing
 the tuning in tomorrow which will take a while, plus it's bed washing day, and I have two deliveries tomorrow. Aranesp, and Bullens with my bag things.  So, we got a good selection of veggies a lot on offer too, and I dragged him into Costa for a nice coffee. mainly the time was getting on, and plus there had been a bad accident on the by-pass that we had passed on the way going, and turned out they had actually closed the by-pass both ways so must havve been a very bad one. We had to come back via the back road and the Pheasant to get back home. It was a very good job we had our coffee out in the end then.
Jane rang up this afternoon, she has been having what she thinks is cklutch trouble so has booked it in to the garage tomorrow morning so will find out what is going on then.
Tonight we are having:
Pizza with mushrooms and extra cheese,
green salad with avocado and baby plum tomatoes..not mouldy ones.
Potato salad for moi and chinese noodle salad for Vin.

P.S. Turned out that the accident that was on the bypass there was someone killed in that so no wonder the road was closed.