Just popping by........

Oh dear, oh dear.....this poor blog is very neglected lately.  A combination of John being away and extremely busy when he isn't, me working full time last week and again the week after next, Islay ill and pregnancy tiredness - that seems like enough reasons for me not being around on blogland but I do hope I can be back here more often soon! 

I'm really missing catching up with people and I do apologise for not visiting and commenting much recently.  And I am also missing recording what I have been up to on here.  I have some lovely photos from recent walks that I'd like to load up and share (and it's actually as much for me to have them stored on here where, in the future, I can reflect back on we have been up to)....maybe this week, maybe not.

Yesterday we had a lovely day with John's parents celebrating their 80th birthdays (one last month and one this month) with family and friends.  It was good to catch up with some of John's cousins who we rarely see and I think his mum and dad had a great time - which after all was the main point of the day.  I tried, a couple of weekends ago, to take a photo of John and the kids to give to them as an extra present.......but as you can see by the photos I've shown here I didn't have much success - and I've weeded out the worst ones!

Islay is much better altho' a perforated eardrum means no swimming for a while.  John set off again this morning for 7 nights away but mum has taken Kipper which frees up quite a lot of time (dog walking and dog-related hoovering and floor sweeping are blissful to be without for a week!).  I left work on Friday night having completed a good chunk of what I'd set out to do so I can enjoy being at home this week with my three lovely little people and a couple of days with my niece and nephew too - and then I'll head back into work next Monday for a week to finish off (as part of my Forestry Commission career break I work two weeks a year to 'keep in touch'.  It's fun to find my brain again, catch up with people and find out what has been going on in the world of forestry (rather different up here in Scotland than in England).  And my very capable mum and dad do a brilliant job of looking after the kids for me.)

I have managed a wee bit of sewing too.  A knitting bag for John's mum's birthday - I used a free pattern from uhandblog.  Very quick and easy although I am a bit disappointed with the way the design works at the top - it actually doesn't open very wide.  Another time I'd modify it so there's a deeper opening at each side.

Hope to see you all again soon!