longish post

Well my week off was good but i really could do with another couple off as well.  Managed to achieve some stuff, got DD Neve's room painted and bought her chest of drawers after suffering the hell that is IKEA.  Is it just me or is there anyone else that cannot stand IKEA, it drives me to distraction - i just want to go in to a shop, pick what i need and get out, i don't want to get lost in their furniture maze - but fair due to them ,their furniture is nice and well priced so I grit my teeth and go for it.  needless to say though Neve's chest of drawers has now taken up residence still in the box in the hall - i reckon if I have it built by Christmas i will be doing good, i really have to work myself up to it..

some piccies of our weekend away - our cottage was gorgeous, it's just outside Peterhead, about 40 mins north of Aberdeen, up on the northeast coast of Scotland. I had never driven up that way before, been to Aberdeen to visit friends before but don't really know that part of the country.  We dropped the kids off at my dad's and set off on the Friday morning, it took up about five hours altogether after negotiating Aberdeen city centre on a Friday afternoon - lots of fun... Sheila who owns the cottages was there to greet us and showed up round.  The two cottages are out on a little isle and to say it was a bit breezy was a bit of an understatement.  Lee was more excited about the coal fire than anything else and spent most of the weekend keeping it going.  

We got sorted and then headed out for something to eat - we ate in a local hotel, Buchan Braes, and i have to say it was one of the best meals we have had for a long time - baked scallop, lamb terrine and gressingham duck - just gorgeous...

Saturday we just pottered about and ate in, we had planned to go for a walk but it was just so windy we were struggling get about.  We came back down the road on the Sunday , it was so nice to be away but we did miss the kids .



I did spend time doing some reading, i had my book with my for book club  - not sure if i have mentioned before but i am in a book club, well we call it book club but this is in the loosest possible terms, each of us picks a book, read it and then talk about it for oh maybe five to ten minutes and then chat for the rest of the night.   So this month's book was Divine Misfortune by A Lee Martinez - a fantasy comedy about gods ? - honestly when i first looked at it i was not impressed, fantasy is just not my thing in books but i got stuck in and i have to admit I quite liked it, it was amusing but not laugh out loud funny and an easy read - kind of drifted halfway through but got there in the end. 

So now am finished that have started on a book i picked up in the cottage - New York by Edward Rutherford, now this is definitely more my cup of tea - a nice big meaty historical tale.  I've read Sarum years ago and really enjoyed that one so am looking forward to getting stuck into this.  this is definitely a reading at home book though as it is the hardback and weighs a ton lol..i'm tempted though to actually just get it for the kindle instead, as it'll be easier to handle.  I just love me my kindle.

The only other reading i've been doing lately though is blogs, i miss reading them a couple of days and the next thing you know you have 200 posts to read - i am slowly catching up though and commenting, but if comments are a few days behind that is why, - my whole life is always playing catch up ha ha

Nothing too exciting to report on the stitching front, just working away on my rotation - finishing up this month with HAED QS Rapunzel, starting a new month tomorrow with Chatelaine.   and at some point in the near future i am going to sort out my list for Measi's 2012 WIPocalypse .

Okay best be off, thanks for stopping by and welcome to my new followers. 

ihsw

Off to Aberdeenshire tomorrow so just a quick catch up from my first hermitting weekend: I worked on Ink Circles - Bramble and The Rose, 32ct white linen and Carrie's Creations Island Breezes

Before

After

That's all folks, goodnight xx

needlebook exchange

My partner has received so can now show pics:

This is from me to Gillie

and this is from Gillie to me

 

am loving the thistle..

holiday time

Off work for a week - yay! Plans are :

1. not setting the alarm for 9 whole mornings.
2. having a girly day with my dd Neve
3. painting Neve's room
4. stitching
5. getting the house into some sort of order
6. spending a romantic weekend with my dh Lee - staying at a lighthouse keepers cottage here

So, made it to Berlin and back, it was short but sweet, would really have liked to spend a couple more days there to have a good wander about - the hotel we stayed in was really nice, actually a one bedroom apt, me and Kim (my friend who came with me) were ready just to move in - no kids, no husbands, no cleaning - seemed good to us..  the Bruno Mars gig at night was surprisingly good - lots to sing and dance along to and of course we had to indulge in a few beers (we were in Germany after all).

Stitching wise, managed to get a wee bit done on my Chatelaine White Nights and the Solar System and this weekend i have signed up for International Hermit and StitchWeekend - looking forward to having a look at everyone else's progress, always good to find more blogs i haven't come across yet, you can never have enough blogs to read!

Okay pictures:

Chatelaine White Nights in St Petersburg

Solar System

Ink Circle - Bramble and The Rose

Reichstag

Brandenburg Gate

Berlin Cathedral

Right off to enjoy some more hermitting and stitching..

aarrgghhh!!!!!!

that is how i am feeling at the moment - I am now into week 3 of no washing machine and going slightly demented!  It is not even a year old so still  under guarantee so am stuck waiting for Comet to pull their finger out and get it sorted.. they sent an engineer out after they had diagnosed what was wrong with it from me telling them "it was making a horrible screechy noise" and funnily enough it turned out to be something else, and they are now still waiting on the part to fix it - between trips to the laundrette and the goodwill of friends and family we are just about keeping the washing under control but it is seriously pissing me off!!! 

Ok rant over lol!

I got my needlebook finished for the exchange over on Friendly Stitchers - actually got it finsihed last week but it is still in my car waiting to get posted, sorry Gillie - it will get to you eventually... I am normally terrified of finishing but this wasn't too scary, will post a piccie once i know it has been received.

Got a bit more done on HAED SK Rapunzel - am stitching this on 18ct aida and really loving it, my other HAED is on 25ct linen, so this makes a nice change, not quite as demanding. 

this week am back to working on Chatelaine White Nights - aiming to get at least the west gates done but between fat club, book club and Neve's skating, it'll be a bit of squeeze getting much time on it. 

Off to Berlin in two days - very excited now!