A pint with Polly & Morris :)

Evening

How was your day?

Ours was better than expected - mainly due to the lack of water pouring from the sky - was so glad the forecast was wrong. Finally got to the end of my holiday washing mountain and MrVV got the special treat of cutting the grass ;)

Late this afternoon, MrVV & I decided to head to Aldeburgh for a walk - it is the start of carnival weekend there and it was busy but amazingly we found a space to park in the High Street. We had a wander around and guessed many of the mistake items in the shop windows. We also had a walk along the sea-front  - pleased to see a set of Gallopers there this year to ride on.

We were heading home when in the village before ours, I spotted a sign outside the pub which said 'Morris Dancers @ 5pm'. A little pleading with MrVV to stop & the promise of a pint followed and he turned round and parked up :)

The Knots of May and Kemps Men visit this part of the world every summer for a weekend tour - they play at village fetes, pubs and of course the carnival @ Aldeburgh on Monday. I never tire of seeing them and wasn't at all surprised when the programme said this was their 22nd year of visiting!!

Need to find out what the strange snake like instrument is called - anyone know??

At the end the two sides joined together and invited the audience to participate - I hadn't had enough beer so just watched instead ;)

Oh the Polly part of the post title? The pub name is Parrot & Punchbowl & Polly is the local nickname for it. For many years before children arrived we used to meet friends at the 'Polly' for a drink or several on a Saturday night ;)

Hoping tomorrow the weather is kind as a family day out is planned.

See you soon

xxx Vicki xxx

Go West..................

Life is peaceful there! Actually it probably normally is until last Wednesday when the VV rolled into town!!

Oh yes the annual VV household camping trip this time headed in a south-westerly direction, via Stonehenge to the Devon/Dorset border.

This was planned as our longest camping trip ever - 7 nights! The week started well with a trip into Bridport - gorgeous little town - really liked it there - would like to visit again one day;

My lunch got in the way of the camera lens ;)

This shop had the prettiest flower displays - only when I looked closely could I see they were in fact plastic flowers!!

West Bay harbour - a typical west country harbour, complete with;

Lobster pots

Seagulls - looking for food

This rather large hill was climbed by the VV menfolk - I waited on the beach for them!!

The campsite was lovely - even had a pair of resident very free range chickens who made sure that any dropped food didn't stay on the ground long.

We meet up with friends on Dartmoor for Sunday lunch. Afterwards we went for a wander along the riverbank at a little village called PostBridge - stunning location;

The original bridge

My boys opting for the stepping stone crossing - amazingly they didn't fall in!!

We had lots of lovely days out - Fleet Air Arm Museum for a Dalek Invasion, Lyme Regis, Bath (my first CK shop visit - more on that next time ;) ) and the National Motor Museum at Beaulieu - we had to drive through the New Forest to get there - another location we shall be going back too. Beaulieu was a great day out though after a while I got a little 'carred' out and wandered off to look at a little exhibition about vintage camping & caravanning!! The boys (all 3 of them) loved the Top Gear exhibition;

We went on the monorail around the site - I even managed to smile (sort of) for a photo!!

Though little son has a cheesier grin than me!!

Of course it would be rude to visit anywhere and not sample the local delights;

Sundays pudding - I was good & shared with little son!

Last but not least - you can't go to the West Country without having a cream tea - though whether its a Devon delicacy or a Cornish treat is the subject of lots of debate!!

We arrived back home again yesterday - I seem to have spent most of my time since then - loading & unloading the washing machine and hanging up washing!

See you soon with a hint of west country vintage and of course the spoils from the CK visit ;)

xxx Vicki xxx

What to do with a knitted triangle??

Good evening

Am really out of the whole blogging routine at the moment - guess it will be like that till life returns to 'normal' in September.  Seem to have spent the last week doing housework - got seriously behind when the weather was extremely hot and am not fighting a losing battle with the spiders & dustmonsters.

Have found time to sew together the 24 triangles I've knitted so far;

Bunting

One side of cushion

Other side of cushion

For a first attempt I am really pleased with how things turned out. The cushion ended up with a custom made pad - I had to hoped to do some clever folding but in the end it was easier to empty the stuffing out and remake the case in the right shape. 

My parents called in this afternoon and Mum was rather taken with it - think I shall be starting one for her for Christmas very soon. Arrgghhh the 'C' word - the only downside of making stuff for pressies is you need to start really early.  BTW we were shopping at the weekend and passed a cheapie card shop - they had huge 'C' word cards in their window and wrapping paper :(

The weather has continued to be rather unsettled here which nearly scuppered plans for a garden tidy at the weekend. Fortunately Sunday morning was ok so it was all hands on tools to attack the weeds and the rather overgrown borders, grass & veggie patch. Even with all 4 of us working hard there are still bits that need doing another dry day.

An after photo of my little veggie patch - hopefully in a few weeks time we'll be getting lots from here - at least the rain has really mad stuff start growing quicker. (The little tower in the middle normally holds a sprinkler but that has gone away now the weather is wetter).

Has anyone else noticed that the evenings are getting darker earlier already? This year is going by so fast - only a few more weeks and this blog will celebrate its 1st birthday! I need to think how I shall celebrate that ;)

See you soon

xxx Vicki xxx

Spacemen, parcels & raindrops!!

Good evening

The holidays are going to quickly - could someone slow them down please. So much we want/need to do and already we are finding it hard to achieve everything!! 

Its quiet here tonight - MrVV & Little Son are at brass band practise and big son is at badminton. I've made it a little bit noisy - I've plugged my Ipod into the stereo (ingenious bit of wire - about £2 - instead of a docking station which would have cost lots more pennies - thank you Ebay).

This morning, I got to indulge in one of my favourite games - scare the postie!! Poor lady - least she didn't drop the parcels!! Apart from my bit of wire and another violin book for little son, there was also something lovely for me - my Shabby / Vintage Swap parcel from Aija @ Craftsmiles ;

All looked so pretty - it was hard to choose which one to open first.

Inside there were;

Hearts - one in patchwork and another in vintage fabric

Buttons, ribbons, smellies, some CK bluebell (my favourite), a notebook and a couple of books - all gorgeous and in Little Sons words - "very you Mum".

Chocolates (hidden from the menfolk), a pretty rosy pot and fabric (including the lovely folded fabric design in the background of the pictures).

Thank you Aija for my lovely pressies and Karen for organising this fun swap. 

Here is what I sent Aija;

A UJ cushion made from a selection of vintage fabrics, a CK purse, an vintage tray cloth, a bag of sweets, a shabby chic chalkboard, some needles, yarn & book to help her learn to knit (something she says she wants to do - and if I can do it then anyone can!!).

Talking of knitting - in between housework and gardening this week, I've been busy knitting more triangles - this time to make a cushion cover - one side is sewn together & I'm 2 triangles from having the 2nd side done;

The reason I've had lots of breaks is because after weeks of drought, we've have quite a bit of this;

The boys have been pretty self-sufficient - finding things they want to do and also helping me with various jobs which need doing before we go camping again soon. 

One thing we wanted to do together this summer was to go to the cinema to see the 3rd part of a film that is a family favourite. Plans were slightly scuppered when big son saw it with the school during activity week (and decided that once he'd seen it in 3D - normal 2D was not going to be as good) - so only little son & I headed off the other afternoon for a hot date with a cowgirl & a spaceman ;)

Definitely worth the 11 year wait :) - would recommend this to all - seems to suit all ages - I know my 24 year old brother has been with his mates - he remembers clearly seeing the first one when he was about 8!!

See you soon

xxx Vicki xxx

The wilds of Norfolk

Good evening

Back from our little weekend camping trip in Norfolk with friends - actually we got back yesterday but its been so busy here today that I've only just sat down at my computer.  I see that Dawn has got in first with her account of the weekend - I shall try not to show you the same pictures again ;)

Friday really just saw us setting up, having a drinkie or 2 and just catching up on news. It turned rather chilly in the evening and so we didn't stay up very late.  I was rather glad of my decision to bring both my knitted blanket & patchwork quilt as in the middle of the night I was very chilly indeed.

Saturday dawned bright, sunny & rather warm. After a minor hiccup - steam trains leaving rather earlier than we thought ;), we instead ended up heading to Gressenhall and the Museum of Norfolk life. So much to see and do - I think another visit as a family is on the cards at a later date.

The 5 boys heading off along the river bank - not sure how much of their surroundings they were taking in - at least we'd managed not to lose any of them for this bit!!

Similar picture to on Dawns blog - except its my boys on the horse.

I loved the recreations of the houses - I had seen so many of the lovely things either in my childhood or in other bloggers homes!

I can never resist knitted toys or dolls clothes.

Big son 'milking' a bucket - just after this he got into a water fight with one of the Dads.

Back at the campsite, a game of rounders was played - Dads v Boys - not sure who cheated the most!!

That evening we wandered into the village to a pub for dinner. Every time we've been on one of these massed camps I seem to have taken a picture of the child with the biggest meal - this year it was big son;

Yep - he cleared the plate. I guess another growth spurt is in the offing.

It was a good weekend - great location - very peaceful and unhurried. A campsite I am sure I will be heading back to in the future.

Today has been the first proper home day of the holidays. We have been sorting out the boys rooms - they have been brilliant and have been very honest about the stuff they have and what they actually will use every again. A huge pile has formed for a car boot sale, lots has been recycled and some things have sadly been consigned to the grey landfill bin. Apart from a sort of clothes and some curtains to wash we did it all - brilliant hard working helpers they were - lets hope the rooms stay that great.

We've lots to look forward to this week - friends visiting, cinema trips, seeing family and the boys intend to spend lots of time perfecting their new diabolo skills too.

Aija - your swap parcel has been wrapped tonight and will be on its way to you tomorrow :)

See you soon.

xxx Vicki xxx

Flowers, clocks and a camp heap ;)

Good evening

Hurrah term has finally ended - the boys are both very happy about this. Though they have both enjoyed their last week of term - both had activity weeks and have had a great time - particularly big son, he's been to a theme park, seen Toy Story 3 in 3D, spent the day learning more diabolo tricks and today he's been paint-balling - lucky child. I remember our end of term trip when I was young was either Norwich Castle or Bressingham Steam Museum!!

Many months ago as part of a swap (can't remember which one) - I received from Jen @ TheMadHouse some sweetpea seeds. After a slow start they've suddenly sprung to life this week and this afternoon after they took a battering in a heavy shower, I cut some to bring into the house;

Gorgeous - they smell divine - thanks Jen :)

I also finally collected something today that I've meant to for several weeks. This little clock belonged to my late grandad & it was one of several he used to remind he to take his medication.  I have been helping my Mum & Aunt sort out his belongings and asked if I could have this as a little reminder of him and his ways;

This week has been so busy - getting sorted from last weekend and preparing for forthcoming  camping trip. Just as I finished my last load of  washing, when my machine died!! Have arranged for the engineer to come first thing on Monday ( a washing free weekend then) to sort it out - it could be such an ouch moment IF we didn't rent our machine. Instead if he can't repair it - he'll just swap it for a replacement - phew!

Now this camping trip is an annual ritual - 3 families (6 adults & 6 children) - a new campsite each year. This group includes my mate Country Girl and a friend we've known for many many years. Heaps have been forming all over the house & this afternoon to make space to get to my sewing machine (must finish my latest swap pressies!!), lots of it was doubled checked and dragged downstairs and it can clutter up the hall instead!!;

Tomorrow is day 1 of the hols - wonder how it will go? Whether I'll be looking forward to day 2 or counting the hours till September!! I shall let you know next time ;)

xxx Vicki xxx

Knitting with (L)atitude

Afternoon from hot & muggy Suffolk.

Well what a weekend - so much to tell you that I could fill pages with lists of who we saw and of course lots of photos too. Those poor people who are my Facebook friends will have been able to see some pictures - however there are a few that were specially taken for my lovely blogging friends.

Little son & I had a great time - we've walked miles, seen so many acts and of course sampled all sorts of great festival food. We've also meet some lovely people both in the campsites & arenas and also bumped into friends that have moved away from the area too (that was quite a surprise!).

No visit to the festival would be complete without a walk around the lake to visit the rainbow coloured sheep;

Of course they are popular with everyone - including celebs dads and the Sheriff of Nottingham;

Now you can take a crafter anywhere and she'll find something to do. Imagine my delight when we found a Knitting/Crochet tent - the idea being you knitted/crocheted a square which will eventually be made into a blanket & used at another festival for people to sit on while they knit/crochet!!Of course I had to this;

The phrase if you can't beat them - join them sprung to mind when Little Son decided he'd have a go;

The first square was not bad and he was soon badgering me to let him use my needles & yarn to start another;

So another blanket has been started in the VV household or possibly a cushion cover - depends how long this new hobby lasts.

One of our favourite performers this weekend was Phil Jupitus and we knew he was staying on the site for most of the weekend and infact everyone seemed to have met him & had a photo taken. Well just as we'd given up hope and were heading back to the tent on Sunday night - we finally bumped into him. What a great man - genuine and friendly. So one happy small boy ends today's post;

Off to battle the laundry pile and make the most of the final days of peace before the holidays begin. I shall be blogging over the summer but probably more hit & miss than normal so don't worry if I seem to disappear - like Arnie - I will be back!!

PS - big son & MrVV had a very great lads weekend - a party, a huge cycle ride and plenty of meals out and fun - just a shame they forgot to take any photos!

xxx Vicki xxx