Photo Scavenger Hunt 2013 - January

Good evening

Almost late at handing in my first months pictures for this years Scavenger Hunt!

Link to Greenthumbs blog in my sidebar.

 1. Blue - the sky on a cold, snowy winters day.

 2. Cold - frost patterns on the conservatory window.

 3. Door - a forgotten Christmas decorations!

 4. Food - homemade bread - my favourite sort.

 5. Mailbox - looking pretty in the snow.

6. Reflection - red spray carnations in a Cornishware eggcups - these ones got damaged in transit and I couldn't let them go to waste!

 7. Produce - rather tricky this time of year here in the UK but the garden came up trumps - am sure the birds have been grateful for these during the cold weather.

 8. Statue - this steel cowboy stands on the verge in a nearby village - he makes me smile every time we drive past.

 9. Sign - a roadside covered in snow - just happens to be near my postbox!!

 10. View - one you've seen before from me - Southwold from the Pier - on a bitterly cold winters day with very rough seas. 

 11. Warm - my reward for the cold walk at Southwold - hot chocolate in the cafe on the Pier.

12. Twelve - birthday cards from Little Son's recent birthday.

Loved the first list and am looking forward to February's. I hadn't realised till I started taking the pics how much I'd missed the Scavenger Hunt!

Thank you for lovely comments on my last post - chin firmly keeping up :)

See you soon

xxx Vicki xxx

3 of 52 weeks of happy

Good morning

Whilst life here in the VV household isn't to great at the moment, I am determined to be British and keep calm and carry on - I will tell you eventually but its just too tricky at the moment to write it all down.

However I am determined even with all the less nice stuff to find happy things in my world and take pictures and share them - trying the glass half full approach ;)

Here's what has caught my eye this week;

1 - Gorgeous new fabric which I will turn into a dress for me - red is also a cheerful colour and if you add roses what is there not to love :)

2 - A charity shop find - a not-vintage-but-still-lovely printers tray - just needs a few coats of paint then attaching to the wall and filling with little pretty things.

3 - A sunny day and the first washing on the line for 2013 - here's hoping it won't be too long till I can do this again.

4 - Online scrabble - playing Little Son and various friends - I'm not particularly good at it but its great fun.

I have something else lovely to show you but that deserves a post of its own, so that will have a wait until next time.

See you soon

xxx Vicki xxx

Snowy Stuff

Good afternoon

Yes, I know another blogger with snow pics - am sure you've seen plenty but trust me I've limited myself to just 9 in a mosaic - there are rather a lot more I could share ;)

School was closed again today - hardly a surprise it snowed so much yesterday afternoon, evening and overnight. When I woke to the radio telling me the bus depot nearby wasn't sending any buses out I knew it would mean no school. The boys had second guessed this and the deal was only to wake them if school was on - so I left them snuggled under their duvets for as long as they wanted.

Little son appeared just half an hour later than normal - he's growing again and his tummy was rumbling.

Once we'd packed MrVV off to work - it took him a while to find his car under a thick blanket of snow - we got sorted and started another snowy day.

These pictures start on Friday - the boys & I played outside - towing each other on the sledge, throwing snowballs and of course making snow angels and a snowman.

The ruler shows the depth of snow on our picnic bench this morning - 4 inches not the 6 inches a certain man told me ;)

The front garden under its blanket of white fluff and a garden bench which won't be sat on today!!

The last 2 pictures are the view either way down the lane - both looking tempting and like a winter wonderland.

Today Little Son & I walked into town together - jobs needed doing and we collected my Mother-in-Law en route - we'd offered to do her shopping but she decided the fresh air and company would be lovely.

We shopped for more veggies for more soup and the first creme eggs of the season!! I also found a gorgeous vintage print single duvet cover in the charity shop which has now been converted into a draft excluder in front of our draughty patio doors - its seems to be doing the trick already.

I wonder what tomorrow will bring?

See you soon

xxx Vicki xxx

2 of 52 weeks of happy

Good evening

Just a quick post whilst waiting for teenagers to vacate the bathroom so I can have my turn in there!

Week 2 of 52 weeks of happy - here they are;

1 - My Ipad mini - I've been saving for one of these for ages and finally had enough money and ordered it. It came last week and I am in love - great for watching tv in bed when those brass players of mine are at practise and for checking for school closures on snowy mornings from the comfort of my own bed!!

2 - A pretty ceramic cottage jam jar bought from the CS for just £1 - I want a cottage just like this one day.

3 - Homemade bread - my breadmaker is dying and no longer produces more than dough. When we had our snow day on Friday I decided to try something other than the normal rolls - this came out brilliantly. Next task to try making bread entirely by hand.

4 - Ladybird books sent by another blogger - love the kindness within blogland :)

We did manage playing outside in the snow on Friday - there are pictures to upload and sort. I think there will be another tomorrow as its been snowing here for most of the afternoon/evening and the roads seem worse than last time. Only time will tell - I will be checking online from my bed tomorrow and if school is closed I'll leave those boys of mine for a longer snooze!

See you soon

xxx Vicki xxx

Keep calm and get cooking

Good afternoon

Well the world is about to end! School is closed, the supermarket shelves were striped bare and my Instagram feed is full of snow pictures :)

Oh yes - a few more inches of the white stuff arrived overnight -making everything look pretty.

We woke to the news that school was cancelled - happy boys.

MrVV however has gone to work - he's hoping that this remains so he can pelt the boys with snowballs tomorrow!!

Little Son & I headed into town - there were a few bits we needed - we thought we might need another pair of wellies for him but fortunately due to my wellie hoarding a pair has been found that fits him!

Once home and after hot chocolate had been drunk, it was time do some cooking.

Homemade bread and carrot & coriander soup for lunch;

Enough leftover for the same again tomorrow.

In a while we're off into the garden to build a snowman and probably throw a snowball or two. Got to make the most of these boys of mine - perhaps in another year or so they'll think they are too old for all of this.

Thanks for all the lovely comments on my last post - I was very pleased with those pics.

Here's just a couple more - I mentioned cake making and another birthday - here's Little Son's cake;

It seems you're never to old for Toy Story! The big candle was supposed to be musical - lets just say I've heard a more tuneful sound from a cat!

The official birthday photo;

Right time to hunt out something for the snowman to wear!

Have a good weekend.

See you soon

xxx Vicki xxx

The world is sparkling today

Good afternoon

Just sitting down to a late lunch whilst a batch of bread rolls cooks in the oven.

Its been very much a home day today whilst I wait in for a parcel to be delivered - a vague sometime after 11 was the only time I was given!

No sooner had I posted yesterday, then the skies darken and snow began to fall. Not enough for snowmen or snowball fighting but enough to make the world sparkle.

This was the view this morning from our conservatory;

 Probably one of my favourite photos I've taken this year.

The Green Woodpecker has been a regular visitor to the garden for years - however he is very shy and I've struggled to get a decent picture of him. This morning I braved big sons room and sat at the open window and snapped away with my new toy.

Love the way Mr Woodpecker clears a patch of grass in his search for bugs in the ground.

I nipped into town first thing to do a post run and on the way back, I spotted the perfect picture. I quickly took my bike home and grabbed my camera.

 The view over the frozen fields.

 A frozen snow capped giant hogweed.

Then this picture - this is the one I had in mind :)

I also managed to tick many pictures from this months Scavenger Hunt list too but more on those at the end of the month - there's still quite a few that need hunting down.

I'd best be off - the rolls are nearly done and there's birthday presents that need wrapping for a certain persons 15th birthday tomorrow!

See you soon (probably with cake pictures!!)

xxx Vicki xxx

1 of 52 weeks of happy

Good afternoon

I've seen this on many blogs and thought it was a good idea. I struggle big time during the winter months with the dark, damp and miserable days so looking for the good things when you initial impressions are 'its all bad' seems a good idea. Plus it gives me a chance to use some of the random photos I take and struggle to link together into a non-rambling blog post!

Here's the first one of what I hope will be 52 weeks of pictures that make me happy and lift my spirits;

A cake fountain indoor firework on MrVV's birthday cake

The first of the mini daffs I treated myself to have flowered.

Also the hyacinths surprised my one morning too - I smelt them before I saw the flowers.

Lastly, new boots for me - they arrived just in time before the icy weather returns - nice, thick treads so hopefully I'll remain upright!!

We've avoided the snow here on my part of the coast - lots of flurries yesterday and overnight but it didn't stick - can't say I'm sorry about that either - though the teenagers have a different opinion!!

See you soon

xxx Vicki xxx

Little green shoots

Good evening

Little green shoots represent something new;

Uncovered in the garden this weekend - lots of signs that the bulbs are growing again.

Oh yes, MrVV & I did some gardening - together! I was even allowed to use sharp things AND I still have all my fingers attached! 2 trailer loads of stuff later and you could (a) see where we'd been and (b) could see lots of signs of new growth.

I love looking for these signs - anything to hurry through the dark, damp days of January & February. At least we've plenty of birthdays in the coming weeks to look forward too - just 6 this month! Thank goodness I've only got to bake 2 cakes!

I've been playing with my new camera and trying to get the hang of it - lots of options to play around with - doesn't help that the light hasn't been ideal for photo taking. We headed to Southwold yesterday afternoon and I'd hoped to make a start on the Scavenger Hunt list but the sea mist put paid to that - instead we ended up having a hot chocolate in the cafe on the Pier and then heading into the silly photo booth - were we even ended up reincarnated as teenage Emo's!! (I'll show you that pic next time - by the time I remembered the daylight had faded). Oh we did have a lovely long walk to despite the cold.

Anyhow my new toy - a Samsung WB101 which I'd been to choose a while ago - I wanted something that wasn't too heavy but also felt right - this ticked all the boxes - well there was another a loved by the price tag was just too much!!

As I tidied the front room and dusted today I though perhaps one pic of me & it was in order!!

One new thing for me for 2013 is to try to read more - not magazines or craft books but actual proper books - not even in e-book form. Real paper books - mainly bought from the charity shops, borrowed from the library or given as pressies.

Here's my first 3 for this year;

 The Sue Townsend one I started just before Christmas and managed to finish in the bit in the middle - I love her writing. I've been meaning to read the Help for ages - have been told by so many that it was a good read - when a copy appeared in the shop I thought I'd give it a go - I really enjoyed this and it gave me a better understanding of the whole civil rights situation - I now need to borrow the film.

This is my current read - a pressie from my Mum - I've seen this on other blogs and Instagram feeds. Again I am liking this - not too complicated and I'd love to go teacup shopping with the 3 main characters :)

One last thing for tonight - the first swap of 2013 - hosted by Lisa over at Bobo Bun;

See you soon 

xxx Vicki xxx

Winter, Spring, Summer or Fall - 2012 the best bits

Good morning

Slowly returning to normal here - MrVV has gone back to work today and I'm off back to the CS this afternoon for a shift. However those boys of mine are still dead to the world for another half an hour then I shall be evil Mum and go and wake them!

Time for another coffee and a blogging session.

One last look at 2012 - pictures that you've probably seen before but represent the past 12 months rather well for me and my family;

 

Winter

January saw me finally being able to cycle again after that minor incident on the dance floor!

Birthday season started for my menfolk.

Heavy snow in February meant family fun

The first flowers appeared in the garden promising warmer days very soon.

Spring

March brought my favourite flowers and a birthday trip to Cambridge.

April saw the influx of chocolate eggs and fluffy chicks.

May brought the arrival of Bertie and a trip to a gorgeous river side pub to celebrate May Day.

Summer

June the Jubilee celebrations and an evening with Mumford and Sons

July - Big Son's Prom and the Olympic Flame coming through nearby towns and villages.

August - a trip to Yorkshire in Bertie and the most amazing sunsets and then a wonderfully wet but fun day at a folk festival with Bellowhead as the finale.

Autumn

September - Sir Bradley Wiggins and his friends cycled through our little town one sunny Sunday morning.

October - time to hunt fairy houses.

November - those men of mine were marching and remembering.

The last picture is also November - one final look back over my shoulder.

No December pics as they are all rather too recent.

Time now to look forward to 2013 - I forgot one major important event happening this year when I posted the other day!

In March sometime before my birthday, I'm going to be an Auntie again. My baby sister is expecting her first child - I am guessing I'll know when the big event starts to happen even before I'm told - when my other 2 sisters had their babies I came out with sympathy pains even though I'd no idea they were in hospital!

I must get cracking on with my crochet - there's a blanket partially made for this baby and another that's needed for a special birthday later in the Spring!!

Oh good news - a quick blog surf yesterday found news of a new Photo Scavenger Hunt for 2013 - I've really missed the ones Kathy used to host. This new one is hosted by Greenthumb @ Made with Love - should keep my eyes open at all times this year!!

See you soon

xxx Vicki xxx