Merry (belated) Christmas and a Happy New Year....

Ooh, I have neglected my blog :(

But I will be back to normal in 2013!!

I hope you have all had a lovely Christmas....mine was fantastic! 

Deakon was pleased with all his presents, a laptop being his main present....

My Mum cooked a mahoooooosive feast.....

and we had a really nice day. 

I was very spoilt my my family and Mr P. I got my very first GHDs, an Ice watch, a diamond butterfly necklace, perfume, Cath Kidston stuff, SMASH stuff and lots of chocolates!!! Happy Happy girl.

I also got a large supply of....

Yum!!!

Hope you all were as spoilt as me and had a fantastic Christmas.

Here's to 2013 being my year

xxxxxxx

Autumn swap goodies....

So, I took part in an Autumn swap and I was paired up with the lovely Liz from "love those cupcakes"

I loved everything in the parcel and even my Mum was getting excited as I unwrapped each one...

An Autumn card...

"something to keep you cosy!.....cute socks!

"something jingly jangly!....love these

"something to bake"...nom nom

"something handmade for you to stir into hot milk or chocolate"....Deakon has taken a shine to these!

"something to scent a drawer"....this smells divine.

"something to brighten a dark night"

"something to perfume a room"

"something handmade for you"....this is my favourite

"something handmade for Deakon"...this was chocolate but he ate it before I could take a picture!!

Thank you so much, Liz, I hope yours reaches you tomorrow

xxxx

On the beach, where I belong...

I'm back from a glorious week away with my Mr P.

Deakon was staying with his Dad for a few days so we took a mini holiday.

We went to the gorgeous St Ives...could seriously live there very happily in a little cottage and open up a little gift shop. Happy happy.

It was a little cloudy when we arrived but the sun was trying to poke its little head out!!

 We took a trip to Landsend, we didn't manage to get a photo with the famous sign as there was a bit of a queue and some guy was having his photo taken with his sports car next to the sign. 

Men and their toys ;)

We walked along the coast line - me in flip flops which wasn't the best choice of footwear!!

And the sky was a gorgeous blue...perfect

We came home on Wednesday and I picked up Deakon, then Thursday it was back to the seafront for a lovely stay in Devon! Lucky me!!

We went to Budleigh Salterton, listening to the pebbles moving underneath the tide - lovely sound

Then home on Friday evening.

Trying not to think about work tomorrow.....sad face :(

xxxx

5 more working days...

...Until my mini holiday!!! Excited!

I am going to St Ives for 4 nights with the lovely Mr P, I am so looking forward to getting away and having some "me" time. 

I love St Ives, it is the most gorgeous little place - I could live there quite happily. 

This weekend I went to Usk Castle with my sister, brother in law and niece. Considering we have lived here all our lives, we have never been to Usk Castle - which is about a 20 minute drive away!

Deakon was with his Dad for the day so we had a little trip out.

At the entrance there is this cute little nook where you add a pebble from the jar into a bowl (so they can see how many visitors they get daily) and a donation box.

The gateway still stands...

And the tower.

Very beautiful place, all tucked away. 

I've got a giveaway all lined up - just need to get a photo done and then I will announce it shortly.

xxxxx

Ooh I love a bargain...

Last Sunday I went to a car boot sale and came away with some nice finds for my new house (when I finally get one!)

This beach hut unit was a bargain at £3!! Loved it and couldn't let it go!

I also got this picture from the same seller for £1!

I've also been on the lookout for some old vintage milk bottles, to put flowers in, so I was all excited when I found these in a little nik nak shop...

As well as bargain shopping, I have been celebrating with my son Deakon who turned 11 on Thursday. He also just left Primary School for the last time and will be going up to the Comprehensive School in September. He's a bit scared but he's with his best friend in his new class so I'm sure he will be fine. 

This is Deakon after his last day of school....

And his birthday cake!!! It was delicious!

Keep a look out over the next couple of days as I will be doing a give-away! Yay!

xxxxx

Holibobs....

My sister and brother in law kindly took me and Deakon on Holibobs to Bluestone!! 

It was gorgeous there :)

We went to Narberth, Tenby, Saundersfoot, and Folly Farm. We played archery, Deakon went on the climbing wall, Emmy went on a bug hunt and we all had fun in the Blue Lagoon water park!!!

Sunny Day

Tenby

Me and Deak

Jaime, Jon and Emmy in the rain!!

Me on a rainy beach

Super-Deak

Mr Giraffe at Folly Farm

Relaxing with a cold cider :)

It was lovely to get away from it all. Thank you Jaime, Jon and Emmy for taking us

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Moments to cherish...

This morning I went to the post depot on my way to work to pick up a parcel......exciting, I love snail mail!

It was a swap from the lovely Isobel

I was so excited opening all the parcels....its like she knows me so well!!! I loved everything!

2 Yankee Candles, a box of buttons and a cute flower ring.....

...a mug, the cutest salt and pepper shaker ever :)...

...a butterfly bookmark, handmade crochet heart garland and a decorative heart (which is now hanging on my wardrobe)

Oh, and some Chocolate Eclairs but they have been eaten!!!

Thank you so much Isobel, I've been really spoilt, yours will be with you soon and hope you like it just as much

xxxxxxx

BBQs and sunshine...

I love BBQs!

Beautiful weather over the past few days, so time for a couple of BBQs in the garden. 

Yum!!

I'm not a massive fan of sunbathing (unless I'm on holiday, next to a pool with a cocktail!!) but I happily sat in the garden reading my book on Sunday.

 I love a good book and am currently hooked on Karen Rose. I managed to get 4 of her books for £3.50 from the old charity shop. Bargain! 

We also had a cheeky game of Snakes and Ladders with Deakon before dinner....I won!!!

Hope you all had a good weekend too

xxx

A bit of sea air...

Random day off from work today so we headed down to the sea...I love the beach!

Porthcawl

It was slightly windy and rained a tiny bit but it was nice to be out in the sea air and get away from the office. I did, stupidly, wear flip flops so had to walk across the rocks with no shoes on so it took me about half an hour but it was a good laugh!!

Wait for me!

We walked about 4 miles in total, from the car, all the way along the beach to the main town and then back again.....via the chip shop of course! :)

Going to sleep well tonight with all that fresh air!!!

xxxx

Jubilee swap...

My Jubilee Swap parcel came from the lovely Emily, we had a bit of a 3 way mix up but it's sorted itself out nicely and my parcel will be winging its way to Jewel this week ;)

I love getting mail and this parcel was gorgeous, so thank you so much, Emily!!

xxxxxxx