New Years Eve 2014

So , as the sun sets on 2014 I just wanted to pop in on my neglected little blog and wish you all a very happy New Year .  

Here's hoping that 2015 will be filled with love and laughter .

Gabe........

 

Last weekend the rash on Gabe's chest turned into clusters of tiny blisters so we took him to A&E . It's just at the end of the street so we didn't have far to go.

He was diagnosed with 'Shingles' which we were told could either spread all over his body and be really painful or 'fingers crossed' could stay in one spot and not be too bad.

It is contagious but only by touch so the school said he couldn't come back until all the blisters had scabbed over.

Luckily it didn't spread so that meant we could spend some time down the park..... I think he kind of liked being off school just me and him.

Queen Anne's Lace

Such a beautiful plant and did you know that it's edible ?

It's recommended that you use a first year plant but the thin woody roots can be used in soups, stews and for making teas.The leaves can be chopped and tossed in a salad as can the flowers which can also be fried. The aromatic seed can also be used for flavouring soups or stews.

You learn something new every day.

The Last Day..........

Monday was the last day of the school holidays . It was still warm and very overcast but we went to the beach.

After a breakfast of bacon sandwiches we went to see what we could find.

I think we did pretty good .......

This Side.........

I'm a creature of habit as much as I don't like to admit it. We tend to do the same walks quite regularly and don't often find new ones. It's time to change that.

Quite often we cross the bridge in the photo above and mostly drop down , walk underneath it and head off towards the coast . Today we didn't cross it , we stayed on the this side and headed inland. It wasn't  a very long walk at all just a small loop which took about an hour.

It was nice to get a different view , a different perspective, well at least I thought it was.

Park Life...........

Sunday..... a day of rest or so they say, more like restless in my book!

So I left the boys at home playing Minecraft and watching football and took myself off down the park.

It was so quiet and so peaceful , the sun was shining and I felt warm for the first time today. The rabbits were nibbling at the grass , squirrels were chattering and throwing half eaten pine cones to the ground whilst a tree creeper crept its way around the trunk of a tree. Butterflies fluttered , bees buzzed and a dragonfly rested on a leaf. It was bliss.

As much as I really don't like where we live I know that I am lucky to live close to so many open spaces where I can escape to should the need I arise .