Rain and shine

Walked through rain to get to see Sam today.  But later on there was sun so Lesley, Sam and I went to the park.

This is Lesley showing Sam how to find out whether he can fly.  One of many imaginative games played this afternoon. 

Another at home day

The weather was wet and miserable today so we had no choice but to stay indoors.  It started raining just after I had arrived at the house so I didn’t get soaked walking there.

Had a good time playing with Sam and Elsie.  I managed to take the above picture which is the first one I’ve taken of Elsie smiling.  She smiles a lot but until today I hadn’t managed to catch it in a photo.

Fire and moon

Today received this lovely photo from Spiros in Buddha Garden.  Seems to encapsulate the energy of the place.

Had a lovely home day with Emma, Sam and Elsie together with Maria from Germany, a friend of Emma’s from Auroville. Just doing ordinary things like going to the shops and park and mowing the lawn and weeding.

Grey skies again

Have been on three different trains plus a trip across London to get back to Manchester today.  After glorious weather in Norfolk I got back to grey skies and almost rain in Manchester.

As I walked into the house I suddenly felt very tired.

An active day

Today we went on a bicycle ride along the new cycle path that connects Wroxham to Horning. For lunch we had proper English chips from a proper English chip shop. Then I made contact and caught up with friend Sylvia who I haven’t seen for years.

A lovely day.

Feeling cared for

Went with Andrew and Jill to a ‘Tree Festival’ which was actually a craft fair in the grounds of Strumpshaw Hall.  Very laid back and relaxing.  Jill and Andrew described it as ‘hippy’.

Jill and Andrew take such good care of everything. I feel so cared for and very relaxed.  Its lovely.

Family getogether

Had a lovely family get together at the Sugar Beat just down the road from where Andrew and Jill live.  Very nice to catch up with everyone and to drink my first English beer.

To Swainsthorpe

Moved to stay with Andrew and Jill where I will be for the rest of my time in Norfolk.  Beautiful place with a beautiful Zen garden which is gorgeous to sit in during this lovely weather.

To Norfolk

My actions show me once again, that I am daft as a brush.  Got to the station to find that I couldn’t get the pre booked tickets out of the machine. Bought another ticket and then found the original tickets that I had got from the machine in Manchester.  Managed to get the new ticket refunded so all OK in the end.

Brother Chris collected me from the station and I saw various family members in Maria’s swimming pool.  Had a lovely time. The picture is of my favourite room in Maria’s house – the conservatory.

An artist's pallet

Went to see an artist friend who is quite ill with cancer.  Felt very privileged to be allowed into his shed where he does his paintings.  This is the pallet he is using at the moment.

I love the colours.  It seems to be saying something to me about the unending colours of life that are available to me if I only look.

Picnic in the park

A day that was as hot as it often is in India.  It feels much hotter here because of the city.  It felt very airless at night. After doing some shopping we had a picnic in one of the Royal parks in the centre of London.  Then went and saw a lovely stage production of Bugsy Malone.

The dancing was fantastic.

Sunny day

Today Lesley and me went to pick up Rachael at Kings Cross and on the way stopped at the Royal College of Physicians.  There we looked at their medicinal garden and I thought about how we could do one in Buddha Garden.

Its fabulous with the sun shining and being warm at last. 

London

Arrived in London about lunch time and have had a lovely time catching up with Lesley.  At last the sun has come out and I feel warmer.  At last.

We went for a walk in the evening in a nearby park.  Coming back we saw this almost full moon.

Harbour festival

Had a lovely few hours at the Bristol Harbour Festival where there was a wide variety of different activities, and of course lots of boats.  There were so many food stalls but nothing that was gluten free enough for Mary to buy and give to the children.  First time I realised just how difficult it can be for her when she has to plan and bring all the food to these sorts of events.

The picture is of someone we found making balloon things.  We all stood around her and watched very carefully how she did it!

Long journey

It felt like a long journey to Bristol although there was only one change of trains so it wasn’t too bad.  I hoped it would be a bit warmer here, but it isn’t.

Had a lovely time playing with the balloons and trying to make different things with them.  I think I am getting better at doing this as I didn’t burst quite so many balloons.

It seems to be working

Spent some time getting the poster printed today.  It seems to be a success!  Sam has put it up in his bedroom.  He puts stickers over the pictures when he managed to put anything in the potty or toilet.  Today he has been more successful than he has ever been.

We also went to the graduation party at the nursery. I think it is ridiculous to do this sort of thing when the children are so young. I needed have worried and the young children managed to undermine the more formal part of having their certificates presented.  Although they obviously enjoyed the party side of it.

Potty poster

This is a poster I made for Sam that I hope will help with the potty training.  Its not going well and everyone is getting frustrated.

If it doesn’t work it won’t be any worse than what is being tried at the moment!

Home day

Spent the day with Emma, Elsie and Sam doing domestic stuff.  Shopping, jigsaws, the last of the balloons.  It wasn’t raining but still feels cold to me so we didn’t go out anywhere.

A very restful day compared to yesterday.

Family visit

Went to see the family in Stoke on Trent today which included Miriam who tried on her new Tshirt. Had a lovely time and wonderful food.

Then went to see the doctor in Rochdale which was quite a trip in the pouring rain.  Glad to know that everything is OK. Got back happily tired and very wet.

In the park

Had a lovely day in Sheffield.  This is Charlie and Matilda in the park after we had visited the Heely City farm.

It doesn’t feel as cold here in Manchester as when I left.

Rainy Manchester

This is what it looked like in Manchester first thing this morning.  It reminded me a lot of what it was like when I first came here when I was just 15 years old.  I remember being taken with the huge black buildings (as they were then) and the acres and acres of housing going in all directions outwards from the centre.

Got to Sheffield and had a lovely meal with Magda, Chris, Rachael and co.  Rachael’s house is lovely and warm.

With Sam and Elsie

Even although I have watched a lot of videos about balloon twisting, my skills are not very good.  I burst a lot of balloons today although I did manage to make some OK balloon dogs.

Sam very grumpy because tired.  He had an afternoon nap yesterday, didn’t get to bed until late and was up very early.  We had to keep him awake so as not to repeat the same cycle today which was difficult at times.

The picture is one that Sam took yesterday on my camera.  I think it is rather interesting given that we often discuss the potty and whether Sam is ever going to use it…..

Rainy day

A rainy day today so we tried making balloon animals indoors.  They were far more difficult than anticipated although we managed to make one or two that didn’t look too bad.  I will have to look at some Youtube videos this evening to see how to do it properly.

We also did cooking and painting as well as reading stories.  So a nice day despite the weather.

Two grandmothers together

Today Sam was able to enjoy both grandmothers together.  Lynne mainly looked after Sam – lots of stories were read and as the picture showed – while I looked after Elsie.

This enabled Emma to get some work done.  Much needed apparently so she doesn’t have too many messes to sort out when she goes back to work at the beginning of next year.

A day at the farm

Today we visited a place called Shore Community farm.  It was right in the middle of a part of urban Manchester so the land must have been worth a lot.  It was a somewhat ramshackle place but quite together in its own way.

There was a field full of thistles and docks that two people were trying to clear with a long handled shears (one end) and a grass cutter at the other end.  It looked like very heavy back breaking work. I wondered why they couldn’t get a tractor for the afternoon that would probably do the trick in just a few hours…… but maybe they like doing it on their own.  I can really appreciate that sentiment.

Raspberries and pom-poms

A day with Sam and Elsie. Sam and I made our first pom-pom today using a kit that I had ordered.  It’s a bit too complicated for him to do very much but he seemed to enjoy the finished product.  We also picked a huge amount of raspberries in the garden.

All this after I had picked him up from nursery with Emma.

Path Found

Had another restful day today when Emma and the children came to where I am staying instead of me going there.  This is Sam helping unwrap a present for Elsie.

This morning I found a footpath that is part of the Trans Pennine Trail.  Apparently it goes to Liverpool one way and Leeds the other.  Although there are some lovely scenic bits some of it is on ordinary roads.  It was a lovely piece of the country in the city.

Relaxing together

A very relaxed day when Rachael came over.  It was lovely seeing them both together.  Had a good time with Sam and Elsie, making more balloon faces with Sam and rocking Elsie to sleep.  On the whole she seems to be a very peaceful baby.

Despite the relaxation I keep having feelings of tiredness hit me at different times of the day.

Balloon making

I was sooooo tired last night that I went to sleep early and then woke up very early.  Spent some time unpacking and re-arranging my room and then went to see Emma and co.  Sam really enjoyed making balloon faces. 

So did I once I had got back the knack of blowing up the balloons.

Journey

This where I have been living for the last 24 hours – in airports and in planes.  Journey was very trying.  Airline didn’t receive the online payment and as the ATM at the airport wouldn’t pay me any money so I couldn’t pay for the extra bag.  Ended up taking it as extra hand baggage which made my shoulders ache to carry around the airport.  I had also packed liquids in it which they wouldn’t let me take through Heathrow.  Sue’s present had to be binned – I couldn’t even give it away to the person who binned it! I was very disappointed.

For the future traveling light is a must so no more space consuming presents. Lovely to see Emma and Sam and Elsie when I finally arrived.

In limbo

Have felt very much in limbo today.  I seemed to have a lot to do, probably because with Rajan and Sangita coming into my house I did more clearing up than I usually do when I leave.  I also feel more anxious than usual and don’t know why.

Best thing was to keep busy which I did. In the end I decided to pay to take an extra bag to take on the plane.  Didn't manage to create or find any suitable picture for today.

Nuts

Pierre came in today with two huge bags of nuts and dried fruit.  It weighs 15kg which is more than half of my luggage allowance of 23kg.  As you can see in the picture this caused serious space issues in my bag.

I can’t believe I am going to the UK tomorrow!