Our holiday in Scotland

As most of you will have noticed I was missing in action last week because we had headed north in our motorhome.  We intended catching up with family and friends on our journey so you may recognise a few familiar faces along our travels.

We left Shropshire on Sunday 8th and headed to our first stop on Haltwhistle Campsite in Northumberland.

The campsite was by the side of the river and this is what we looked out over....beautiful.

The purpose of this stop over was to meet up with my second cousin Sally and her husband Graeme who we met up last at Michelle's christening 35 years ago.  We've kept in touch since then at Christmas and on Facebook of late but not seen them since then so they had changed a little....in fact I guess we all had :-)

It was really lovely to see them again and we felt as if we had lots in common....not only our walking sticks eh Sally?

On the Monday we travelled on further north to Calzean Castle campsite looking out over the sea....as you can see Biscuit bear loved the view as much as us and was excited to see who was already on the site waiting for us.....

Catriona and her hubby had stayed over there on the Sunday night and had the kettle on ready and waiting for our arrival.  It was so lovely to catch up and as you can see Biscuit bear was just as excited to catch up with his friend Harris bear.

We spent Monday evening in our motorhome chatting and catching up with them both and on the Tuesday morning they left fairly early to continue their travels further south....we relaxed and waited for the next excitement.....

Elizabeth and her hubby drove over to us and picked us up to take us out for the rest of the day on the Tuesday.  We went down to Ballantrae where we met their friend Alfie the donkey and treated him to some carrots then we called in at Girvan on the drive back where we posed for a few photos and I snapped the local RNLI boat especially for Jan :-)

The Tuesday night was very windy so we were rocked to sleep but thankfully we survived and there was no damage the next morning.

On the Wednesday we travelled further north through the hills and passed some really stunning scenery...as you can see there were some black clouds above us but we headed towards the blue sky :-)

We stopped for a toilet and coffee stop by the side of one of the Lochs and also saw a hydroelectric powerstation en route to our next stop near Oban.....this was a small campsite inside what was an old walled garden.

Our next stop was on the Rosemarkie campsite looking out over the sea....a lovely site and we enjoyed a walk on this beautiful sandy beach.  There had been sightings from here of seals and dolphins in the bay but alas we didn't see any while we were there.

The following morning we travelled south to our final site to spend our last two nights at Beadnell Bay site in Northumberland.

En route we stopped on a layby on the A9 for a coffee and my darling hubby picked me a bunch of heather....it's now tied with ribbon and is hanging in my sewing room :-)

We called by to see the Kelpies but refused to pay the 5 pounds they were asking just to park the motor home so I snapped a quick photo as we passed.....stunning and much bigger than you think.

Before we reached our next site we passed Bamburgh castle....really stunning building so just had to snap a pic.

The campsite at Beadnell Bay was much bigger than all the rest and for the 150 pitches it only had one toilet block at the opposite end to the pitch we were given so it was too far to walk to use...thankfully we have our own facilities in the van but I did feel for the ones in smaller vans and tents around us.

Over the road from the campsite there was a rocky beach [just the sort I use to love as a child for hunting in the rock pools] so of course we had to have a little walk over there on the Friday evening.

On our last day we drove to Alnwick and enjoyed a walk around the grounds [much further than normal for me so have been rather stiff since!]..It was really lovely there and we even saw a Japanese couple getting married there in one of the rooms.

The swing seats were really lovely there.....there were lots of them up through the bank of flowering cherry trees....I bet they were even better when in full bloom.

There were many water features through one area of the garden so I snapped several of them as we were passing through....even one where Dod could go down some steps and stand in the middle of....feel free to zoom in to spot him :-)

Every time we stopped [even for coffee stops on laybys] we spotted a little robin.  I know there are lots of them around at the mo but it did feel like they were watching over us and keeping us safe during our travels so thank you to the little robins....we had a wonderful week and are now safe back at home.

This week's smiles....week 335

Another week and I've had lots to smile about so I will share a few pics with you....and hope you will all leave me a little message to say you've called by and will hopefully then share your own smiles with us.

Little Theo has been on holiday this week with his Mummy, Daddy, Uncle and the other set of Grandparents so they have sent us many photos to share what a lovely time they've been having together.

While the cat's away.....as the saying goes :-)

While Theo was away we popped round to their house to fit the little curtains I made for his new play house and as you can see Grandad had to climb inside to fit them....it was a bit of a squeeze but I'm pleased to say he managed to get back out :-)

We had a few days away at the Welsh coast at the weekend in our Motor home.  Sadly Michelle, Brent and the twins, who were supposed to join us but on Saturday they tried and failed to get their tent up in the strong winds and ended up breaking one of their tent poles and going back home.  The weather was awful and I was so glad they weren't in their tent on Sunday night because in the middle of the night it was blowing a gale and we were woke by a very heavy rain storm.....I really wouldn't have wanted to be in a tent in that!

The middle photo shows how the sea was whipped up by the wind....and if you zoom in you will see in the bottom right photo that Biscuit bear, Milly and I  stayed warm in the motor home while my darling hubby took the photo.  :-)

The top two photos were taken on Monday at Aberdovey and it was a much calmer day and we actually saw some sunshine. :-)

The twins very proudly picked the peas they had grown from seed,  podded them themselves and added them to their pasta tea.....yum yum.

And last but by no means least here's the latest photos of our little footy star.  Steve's been going to football training each week during his school holidays and really loving it.....he was chosen to go for a full day's experience at Shrewsbury Town FC where he went on a tour of the ground/changing facilities, met the players and also played on the pitch at half time during the game.  His big sisters, and Mum and Dad proudly went along to watch him play.  

His trainers have requested that he also went to special training sessions for goalkeeping in Ludlow because they say he has real ability and skill for it.

He was given a skills award during his last session and they have now passed his details to the development team at Shrewsbury so watch this space....I'm so proud of him and love just how excited he is about it all.

That's all my smiles for this week.  I really hope you are all fit and well and have lot of your own smiles to share with us below.

Hugs,

Annie x

This week's smiles....week 333

Now that's a nice round number 333.  What a lot of smiles we've shared over the years too....keep them coming folks cos it sure makes the world a better place to be.

This week has been full of smiles for me so I've lots to share with you...

Sunday we had a ride out in the motor home to Bala and Biscuit bear posed for me to snap a pic looking out at all the people enjoying fun on the lake....we even saw a couple of dogs body boarding but Milly declined.

Amy's three have been enjoying days out in their camper van ....I love seeing them all playing together and doing just what children should be doing.

Steve has enjoyed a day's football training each week and this week he was asked to join in a special goal keeper's training session because the trainers can see a lot of potential in him....one very proud Nanny Annie here.

The twins and Theo have been away camping on the Welsh coast with their mummies this week....it sounded like they have had lots of fun together....if maybe not quite as much sleep as their mummies were hoping.

For her Dad's retirement Amy and family gave him a voucher to use at a really nice country pub which we enjoyed a meal at on Tuesday lunchtime this week...and the best thing is that it only used half of the voucher so we will be going back there soon to enjoy using the other half.  Thanks Amy and co. xxxx

We both had salmon and monk fish with new potatoes and salad for main then just had to enjoy one of their yummy desserts afterwards [I have to say mine was really yummy but a little too sweet for me so Dod had to finish it off for me...no hardship there].

Finally, last but by no means least was this thank you card I received this week.  It was so lovely to have feedback on a quilt I donated to raise money at our local children's hospice.  It was really nice to think my quilt had, in a small way, helped to raise such a huge amount for such a good cause.

That's all from me for this week.  If you can please link to your own smiles below and I will pop over to see what's been making you smile this week.

Hugs,

Annie x

This week's smiles....week 302

I'm back!  I've had a few weeks off....needed to focus on other things and get my head round what life was throwing at us.  I'm so glad that we are a strong family and when life throws us challenges we are able to support each other and get through it....it doesn't happen over night but we are all recovering and hoping 2019 is a kinder one to us all.

When life throws me challenges I like to be kept busy which I certainly was leading up to Christmas with my Memory bears and what a lot of smiles they have caused so many people....I've had lots of lovely feedback and I feel truly blessed.

Having 6 gorgeous grandchildren has certainly helped...you can't sit dwelling on things with little ones around you plus there has been so many happy times shared with them over the festive season.  I have found just a few of my pics to share with your today.....

When Father Christmas asked little Theo what he wanted for Christmas he said...'A guitar like Daddy's please'.

I know it's a ukulele but he's one very happy little boy as you can see....here he is jamming with his daddy and grandad. 

'One careful driver'

Have a feeling this little girl loves her Nanny....she's so like her mummy and I really love this photo.

On 27th we were asked to a house party over the road at our neighbours...the theme was 'Old before your time'.  A difficult one for us of course cos we already have the grey hair, glasses and walking sticks but of course you just have to make an effort....the scary thing is when I look at my pic I see my mum looking back at me  :-)

The weather was lovely last weekend so, as we were badly needing a breath of fresh air and a stretch of the legs, we headed off on an adventure in the motor home.  As you can see Biscuit bear is posing in front of the window....can you see where we are?....answer at the bottom of the page.

The best part of our adventure was baking fresh bread rolls in the oven and frying bacon to make these yummy bacon rolls....I bet you can smell them from there....and they were every bit as yummy as you imagine.

We enjoyed a lovely walk with Milly on the beach and along the promenade...it was really good to get out in the fresh air.

I hope you have enjoyed my smiles for this week.  Thanks for all the love and support I've been given over the last few weeks...you're all such lovely people.

Here's hoping we can all share lots of happy smiles over the next year.

Hugs,

Annie x

The answer to where we went is....Colwn Bay :-)

This week's smiles.....week 299

Hello all.  Thankfully I'm feeling more like me.....less pain now so less pain tablets needed tablets......not so drowsy and clearer head makes living a lot easier.  Just as well really cos I've had a busy week with my sewing so I've had lots to smile about.

Here's a few pics to share my smiles with you.....

My play date with little Theo on Tuesday saw us playing with big boy's Lego and what a fun time we had.  We built houses, boats, horses, and here you can see his playing with the aeroplane we made....and what lovely stories he made up while playing with his plane....he's growing up sooooooo quickly.
Just look at those  eye lashes....isn't he gorgeous?

I had a sneaky little visitor by the back door that obviously knows we have a little dog....she was so cautious and can think herself lucky it was me that saw her and not Milly.....the little cat lives next door but she dices with death coming into our garden cos Milly would put her to run if she could and the cat only has 3 legs so Milly would have an advantage over her.

Little Biscuit bear had his first adventure in the Motor Home at the weekend....we went to New Brighton for the day.  The sun shone for us and as you can see he was very happy to pose for a pic for me.

This is my last smile for this week.  I saw this on Facebook and it made me chuckle....it's not true at all of course

                   :-) :-) :-) :-)

I hope you've enjoyed my smiles for this week and will now share yours below.

Hugs,

Annie x

WOYWW.....

Another week, same desks, different photos.  I'm just one of many who snap pics of their work desks each week to share their creative makes with friends all around the world.  If you'd like to know more and hopefully join in the fun then please pop over to Julia's and The Stamping Ground for details and join in the fun.

This week has seen lots of action over here at Sewing by Annie's.....

These are the 6 little Memory bears that arrived for me to make last Wednesday...now completed and collected.

I will share a little tale with you next....On the Tuesday before I had had a phone from a lady saying that her daughter would be bringing items of clothing to make 6 Memory bears for her so when the lady arrived on Wednesday morning I had to chuckle when she said it wasn't her mum that had rung.  I hadn't taken her name because when she rang it was my day off and I was in the middle of changing a dirty nappy so answering the phone was a little difficult.  This of course means there is another lady coming wanting 6 MORE bears making plus the lady the ones are for in the pic above told me, when she collected them, that her friend wants 3 making and I am already expecting 4 more to make plus there are possibly a further dozen that had enquired about them that may well turn up before Christmas .....I have a feeling I'm going to be busy!!

Hence why this rather large bag of toy stuffing arrived at my door this morning....a further 5kg!!!  It takes a lot of stuffing to make a little bear.

 A lot of you suggested that my new little travelling bear should be called Biscuit so he's got his new name....I rather liked the idea of taking a biscuit with me on my travels ;-)

You can see he's been watching over me making a start at my Christmas cards....22 done many more to go yet.

That's all from me for today.  I will hopefully call round to see what you've all been doing this week.

Hugs,

Annie x