Change of Plan

The plan today was for me to come home from work, have some dinner and take Elena to Shanklin for a game of crazy Golf. Came home from work and had dinner and noticed Elena's top was a bit grubby so I asked her to change it. I haven't got anything to wear was her reply {roll eyes}. After showing me the T-shirts in her wardrobe we had a change of plan. We went through them all and apart from her 2 new ones (well new in May) nothing fitted her. So off we toddled to Newport and bought 4 new t-shirts :O) We remembered to call at the pet store to get Monkey some more bedding & food too.Here is a sneaky peek at the other two. There should be some photos of her wearing them over the next few days :O) Lisa's been at work all day so I haven't seen her. Picked Gemma & Liam up from work at 6pm tonight and everything's OK :O)
Just wanted to add that 10 years ago today, Princess Diana was killed. I remember it like it was yesterday. It was a Sunday morning because I was getting up to go to work and Andrew was having a lie in. The alarm woke us up playing the radio station and the first thing we heard was 'Princess Diana' is dead! It's a bit weird to be woken up like that because I didn't really believe what I was hearing. Anyway the news on the TV soon confirmed our fears. We were all so sad and felt really bad for the 2 boys she left behind. This lady touched everyones hearts and the whole country was in morning. She was so beautiful, so kind & gentle, it really isn't fair that she had to go in such an awful way.

Goodbye England's rose;

may you ever grow in our hearts.

You were the grace that placed itself

where lives were torn apart.

You called out to our country,

and you whispered to those in pain.

Now you belong to heaven,

and the stars spell out your name.

And it seems to me you lived your life

like a candle in the wind:

never fading with the sunset

when the rain set in.

And your footsteps will always fall here,

along England's greenest hills;

your candle's burned out long before

your legend ever will.

Loveliness we've lost;

these empty days without your smile.

This torch we'll always carry

for our nation's golden child.

And even though we try,

the truth brings us to tears;

All our words cannot express

the joy you brought us through the years.

Goodbye England's rose,

from a country lost without your soul,

who'll miss the wings of your compassion

more than you'll ever know.
---ELTON JOHN/BERNIE TAUPIN

A Berry Nice Walk :O)

Back in June we walked up one side of the river Medina from Newport to Cowes and half way back again. We couldn't get any further because the footpath was closed whilst they cleaned up after the Isle of Wight Festival. Andrew ended up not being able to walk properly for weeks so today was the first chance we've had to finish the walk :O) Elena came with us and we had a great time :O) What a Bank Holiday weekend, lovely & warm, sun shinning, just glorious! This is another of Paul's wood carvings and sits on the river bank at the start of the trail. We walked towards the town through the industrial estate where the boatyards are. Some one decided their boatyard needed a lighthouse ~ lol :O) Past the back of the Quay Art Centre and along the road. Over the road bridge and up the otherside where we could see the front of the Quay Arts. Loads of people were out on their boats. We carried on walking by the side of the river until we reached the Folly Inn. We had lunch and a drink (shandy). We walked back with full tummys :O) Elena took over as photographer for a while :O) There are loads of little bridges over the tributaries of the river. Love swans, don't you :O) Elena did really well considering the distance we walked. Elena found a hollow tree to hide in. And a rope swing :O) Before we knew it we could see the start of our walk on the otherside of the river. Wasn't long before we were back in the town were Elena tried everything she could think of to make us laugh ~ lol! We crossed over the road bridge and walked back through the boatyards. Our legs were aching a bit so I asked Andrew if there was a quicker way to get back to the Nissan. Elena said yes, there is. We both looked at her in amazement and asked her how. Her reply ... take bigger steps!!! ROFLMAO!

Back to the title of the post ... A berry nice walk ... well what an abundance of food for all the animals & birds! Just couldn't believe the amount of fruit & nuts & seeds there was :O)These are just some other random photos I thought worthy of blogging :O)

No more moaning & Liam find's his blood line :O)

OK, I feel like I've been moaning and groaning for ages and really I have nothing to moan about :O) So NO MORE MOANING!!! LOL! Well for today anyway :O) I'm doing the late shift at work so I've got all day to please myself. Sorted my HSMS photo out before getting dressed. HSMS has improved my photography but it's made me realise what a lack of pretty everyday stuff we have. I must try & put that right as I adore bright colourful objects. I think Andrew & I are too practical sometimes :O) We buy things that 'do the job' and are 'easy to clean' rather than what it looks like. Which reminds me. Weeks ago now when I treated myself to a new handbag. I spotted a bag charm in Accessories but the charm cost more than the bag itself so I resisted the temptation. Well today I couldn't hold back anymore :O) I went to Newport to get Andrew an Anniversary card and walked passed the shop. I left it up to fate. If the charm was still there I would buy it, if it wasn't, then so be it. Guess what ~ it was still there :O) It's my little wedding anniversary treat or that's what I'm telling myself ~ lol! I drove over Brading Downs to Newport and the view from the top is amazing. It was very clear today but the light's still not good. It keeps raining on & off but we haven't seen anything like the amount the mainland has. In Sheffield, Yorkshire, they are flooded and it's causing chaos! Hope everyones OK up there, it must be a nightmare for them oxoxo
Edited to say ~ great news :O) I have been tracing my family history for years now and it's always a topic of conversation. I asked Liam about his family ages ago and he told me that his Dad was adopted as a baby. He knew that his father's mother was Irish and that his father's surname was changed when he was adopted. He has always wanted to know what his father's birth name was but didn't want to ask as it wasn't a subject for conversation. Well :O) tonight, he has found out. Liam's Mum has told Liam all about what she know's, his Dad's birth name, his Dad's half brothers & sisters and how his Dad found his birth Mum a few years ago. Unfortunately she has since died but Liam is over the moon about knowing. His Mum even has his Dad's birth certificate and medical records etc. how cool is that :O) Liam is so thrilled bless him. Maybe now we can go a hunting for ancestors??? Who knows :O)

We must be Nobby's Nuts :O)

A few weeks ago now, Andrew & I decided we would take a days holiday, whilst Elena was away, so we could go on a long walk. Up until this morning we were going to complete the coastal walk from Bembridge to Culver but instead, after a lot of deliberation (I know, we used to be indesisive but now we're not so sure), we decided to do the Medina Estuary Circular Walk. It's approximately 9 miles/14 km long. We drove to Newport and parked by the entrance to the cycleway. You have to walk over a bridge to cross the marsh lands. We could hear lots of birds but couldn't see any. We are very reluctant at the moment to become proper "ramblers". You know the ones, long khaki shorts, proper hiking boots, wide brimmed hat & binoculars around the neck :O) (I've actually told the girls to shout at us if we slip into that genre!! LOL) So we have to be content just to listen :O) We carried on walking up the side of the river getting a glimpse now and then of the water through the trees. We talked about allsorts of things, how Claire must be feeling now that Chris has gone and how we should be there for her. How Elena was getting on tasting snails this morning in France and if she would like the chocolate factory more this afternoon? How Lisa was doing in her exam. Now and then we would stop to take a photo of the view and have a drink. The weather was very overcast, misty even but it was so hot. It's a good job there was a bit of a breeze blowing. Andrew pointed out the site of the Isle Of Wight Festival on the other side of the river. A bird was circling us over head making a heck of a racket. The photo is really weird because the trees have no leaves on and it's summer. We walked through some woods and we saw a Red Squirrel. He was just sat in the tree staring down at us :O) We are lucky on the Island as there are no Grey Squirrels, if there were, the Red ones just couldn't survive. After 3 1/2 miles the path ended so we had to consult the map. We had to walk through the streets of Cowes to get to the floating bridge. Just look what we saw, are these people late or early??? We waited for the floating bridge. It takes you across the mouth of the river Medina from West Cowes to East Cowes. You have to pay a small fee if you take your car across but it's free to foot passengers. A view of the river bank from the floating bridge. It only takes 5 or 6 minutes to cross and there are seats inside to sit on. We soon got to the other side and walked through the town. The school children have painted murials on the walls of a building. As we climbed up the main road into Cowes you could get a good view looking backwards. We turned right into Beatrice Ave and headed toward Whippingham Church. East Cowes is home to one of my favourite places on the Island ~ Osborne House. Prince Albert designed and built it as a summer palace for his wife, Queen Victoria and the place is stunning. Whippingham Church is was the church the Royal family used and Queen Victoria's daughter, Princess Beatrice, is buried there. As the church came into view I thought it looked like Sleeping Beauty's castle. Lots of dark towers surrounded by dense trees ~ lol! We couldn't go inside as it was having some repairs made so couldn't see where the princess was buried. We walked round the grave yard and found the grave of Lord Louis Mountbatton. Not the one killed by the IRA but another member of his family. They are all related to the Royal family somehow. We came back out of the church yard and walked down a narrow path until it opened up into fields. I had been really stupid and put my sandles on which were not very sensible so I took them off and walked barefoot through the meadow. It was so lovely and now that's one more thing I cross off my 'do before I die' list :O) This side of the river was so different to the otherside, more woods and more fields rather than a tarmac path. Another quick look at the map before we entered the woods :O) The Folly Inn couldn't be too far away. We thought this was an excellnt spot for a lunch break. It's right on the river edge ~ great :O) We carried on through the woods and out the otherside. Past the holiday homes and down the lane to the Folly. We were quite hungry and went inside. They told us that they were having a new ventillation system put in today so they weren't serving any food ~ the only day of the year they were closed for food and we had managed to pick it!! So, we ordered a Coke on the rocks (cola with ice), a Shandy & 2 bags of Nobby's Nuts (hence the title of this post ~ ROFL) Looking on the bright side though, they had a toilet and somewhere to rest. I'd bought a banana and some biscuits plus a bag of our favourite 'pic & mix' sweets. Looking on the map we had completed three quarters of the walk and the 'Bargemans Rest' wasn't that far away from the end so we could have lunch there ~ sorted!! We sat outside watching the river. We continued on walking and found the path again at the back of the pub. Crossed the little footbridge over one of the tributaries and munched on the sweets :O) The footpath ran parallel with the river and the view was amazing. The sun had broken through the cloud too. We found the next landmark on the map ~ Island Quay so the end was in sight:O) There was lots of construction going on but we managed to find a way through. We walked passed the 'Ryde Queen' and leant that the paddle steamer 'Ryde' was built in 1937 and her varied history included service as a minesweeper, an anti-aircraft vessel, a ferry, a disco & a hotel! We picked up the footpath again an d saw this sign ... OMG so near and yet so far!!! We had to turn back and walk out of the Marina, passed the men launching a small boat and headed for the main road. When we got there we could see we were miles away from the town. It took the wind out of our sails a bit too as there was no Bargemans Rest for lunch either. We walked along the busy main road until we came across a bus stop and decided to wait for one. We could see the site of the IOW Festival opposite and the amount of litter was unbelievable! We only had to wait about 15 minutes for a us which took us into the new bus station in the middle of Newport. We got off the bus and walked through the town, through the industrial estate ...to end where we could see the gates at the start of our walk :O)We had a great time even though it didn't go exactly to plan :O) Here are a few more photos of the Flora & Fauna we saw on our travells :O) Got home with an hour to spare before I had to be at work. I know I said we had booked the time off, we are so short staffed at the caravan park at the moment that I had to work from 5-8pm. I had a job to walk around the office, I can tell ya ~ lol!