Today I shall be Mainly...

[PanBiker]

We are going to our Daughters for Christmas lunch and will call at the Counting House first, it would be rude not to let my Son in Law buy me a beer.

[Big Kev]

Presents distributed to various grandchildren, spoken to the aged mother and will be heading out to the Barlick Raj Balti for lunch very soon. Merry Christmas.

[Stanley]

Checked on the celebrations in Oz, all is well. Looking forward to Susan coming today for a steak butty Xmas dinner.
Thinking about Janet..... she slipped away last Boxing Day morning.
Looking forwards to grand daughter Jess's wedding in April! That's the next milestone.
Never forgetting to count my blessings and remembering those less lucky than me..

[Sue]

Lying here in bed reflecting on the excellent day we had yesterday with julia and family. Lovely lovely food, followed by a long walk with the kids, games and laughter in the morning. Today is the annual Boxing Day cricket match at Eds cricket club. It only lasts half an hour, followed by lunch and more games I think. Home tomorrow

[Stanley]

Sounds like a very good Xmas Day Sue. I'm glad for you.... My treat is to come today with Susan and the dogs.

[Stanley]

I shall be having a perfectly normal day! Shed, bed and Jack....... Small things amuse small minds.

[Sue]

Today I shall be having a telephone interview with the person from Manchester Metropolitan university who is researching John Roberts Widdup. On Christmas Day I received my DNA results from Ancestry. A good Northern girl through and through with 20 % Scandinavian....perhaps Viking?

Otherwise a relaxing day revovering from the hectic few days in Coventry with the family.

My other daughter did not have such a happy time over the last couple of days. Little Erin was rushed to hospital by ambulance on Boxing Day with severe breathing distress caused by a random viral infection. They were there 8 hours when she was eventually allowed home with steroids and inhalers. She had bronchiolitis when only 6 moths old and this was a similar episode.

[plaques]

20 % Scandinavian....perhaps Viking?

Sue, remember William 1 (the conqueror) was of Viking decent. So not only did they come here as illegal immigrants but from a more formal takeover bid. The place is awash with them.

[Wendyf]

There was another offer on Ancestry for the DNA test over Xmas so I decided to treat myself. It may put me in touch with family I didn't know about...I would love to know if there is a connection between my Trossell family and the Trussells and Thrussells. I'm sure there must be as my ancestors had their name spelt in all those ways. There were Norman Barons called Trussell or Trossell who came over with William, but the line faded into obscurity in the 17th century with the last one being hung for highway robbery.

[Sue]

20 % Scandinavian....perhaps Viking?

Sue, remember William 1 (the conqueror) was of Viking decent. So not only did they come here as illegal immigrants but from a more formal takeover bid. The place is awash with them.

Oh so true. But a good northern girl all tbe same.

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[Stanley]

I shall be keeping warm, looking after Jack and quietly progressing with my cutter sharpening...... It's going well but oh so slow and fiddly!

[Stanley]

I shall be aiming for the shed but must write an obituary for my old mate John Capstick.

[Sue]

Claire and Erin are coming over today. Erin has more or less recovered from her breathing trauma on Boxing Day, thank goodness. Later I shall be doing some cooking prep as we are doing the annual New Years Eve meal this year.

Six of us ( 3 who worked together at Bury College and our husbands) have dined together at Joans for over 25 years, apart from Millenium Eve when we catered in our cottage in Anglesey. This year Wendy and Keith are at a large family holiday in Mexico so Joan and Eddie are coming here. I want to prepare what I can today as I don’t want to soend all evening in the kitchen. Bob will do half the cooking on the night, we don’t normally share the kitchen!

[Marilyn]

We are having friends to stay New Years Eve. They are bringing Fish for dinner. Last time they brought Fish, I cooked it ( quite confidently as I am used to cooking Fish) but I did feel I was being scrutinised...so this time I shall offer them the cooking. I shall do salads and slice the Lemon! ( and sip wine). It should be much more relaxing than having their faces hanging over the fry-pan!

[PanBiker]

I collected Sally and Ruby from the train yesterday, Ruby will be with us into the New Year. Today is family meal at our place so the Silsden contingent, Carla, Ant, Isla and Finley will be here along with our Jack. Meat is in the oven and it will be with all the trimmings, Sally is making a nut roast. Tomorrow as we have Ruby we are having a few of our old friends round who we normally see in the New Year with.

[Tizer]

We'll be dog-sitting for an hour this morning while my cousin's family make an early-morning day trip to London. My cousin is very organised and she's arranged for neighbour Vicky to take Merlin for his 7.00am walk, then us is the morning then neighbour Sue to walk him again in the afternoon. One spoilt Labrador!

[Stanley]

I can think of worse investments than spoiling a dog.
I shall be acting perfectly normally, cooking and housework today, in bed at 10PM and after being woken by the daft bugger with the fireworks at midnight Jack and I will sleep another four hours.....
Later at 07:30. I've done all the food preparation and am ready for switch on at 9AM. Now I have to chge all my clothes and make sure everything in the house that needs washing is in the washer. Then I'll take a view. I may pass on vacuuming this week..... Could be an hour in the shed instead! Busy.....

[Sue]

A bit of cleaning this morning, then its get the best crockery , glasses and cutlery out and polish it up. It occurred to me I haven't used it since Dads last Christmas 6 years ago. New years resolution is to use it WHENEVER we have visitors not just celebratory meals. Its one of those sets you can’t afford to buy all at once and was accumulated over years with gifts of different pieces, now it sits in a cupboard with my KIngs cutlery and cut glass glasses. How crackers is that!

We did a lot of the cooking last night, soup made, dessert made, fish course made, potatoes and parsnips pre boiled ready for roasting. Thus we just have to roast the beef, do the cauliflower cheese and yorkshire puds. We are determined to be socialising and not cooking all night.

Erin and Claire came yesterday for a few hours. Erin was back to her old self, it was good to see. You would never know she had been so ill a few days ago. Kids recover quickly. She had me playing games and jigsaws as well as role playing going to the pantomime. She was so funny telling me how to shout and what to shout when the rat king was on stage ( she went to see Dick Whittington on Christmas Eve). I certainly needed a cup of tea when they left!

[Wendyf]

Another feast Sue! It sounds magnificent though. I am cleaning this morning, I can't believe how filthy the house has got in just a week with these two big dogs and a world of mud outside.
We are serving our guests with one of Col's aubergine and celeriac moussakas which was cooked and frozen a couple of weeks ago, followed by cheese and oat cakes.
Whoops, time to get vacuuming!

[PanBiker]

Sally's makings yesterday wasn't a nut roast it was a nut Wellington of which there is quite a lot left. It will serve for tonight's gathering as a majority of our friends are vegetarian. Discussions and texts have been made and exchanged and folk will be contributing to the Jacobs join. I reckon Linda will be bringing the pudding. Sally is bound to do a quiz (because she always does), no one will be rolling drunk but there will be good conversation and as we are all of the same mind politically we will put the world to right, again!

[plaques]

All this talk of food reminds me of the old radio programme ITMA, "But I'm all right now" – Hattie Jacques' character Sophie Tuckshop, after describing a long list of food she had eaten.

[Stanley]

God China! You remember the same programmes as I do.....
No vacuuming here Wendy and I was in bed at ten only to be woken by people who felt they had to do their bit for the Chinese economy. Jack and I were not impressed.
Sue, you must be very popular with your friends!
No shed yesterday either but cooking done for the week.
I look forward to the shed today....... And of course setting off into the troubled waters of 2018, never thought I'd get this far......

[Sue]

A good night was had by all lots of food, conversation! Laughter and not too much alcohol. I forgot the wuiz, it was still sitting on the dresser in the kitchen this morning! We took a SELFIE of the four of us at midnight supping champers, to send to the missing couple on holiday in Mexico. All tidy by the time we hit our bed at 2 but I still woke at 6. A quiet day today I think

[PanBiker]

One couple of our intended gathering had to give back word due to illness. We were very much the same though Sue. We dined on supper at around 9pm then dis the quizzes prepared by the grandchildren followed by Sally's. We saw the New Year in with Jools Holland's Hootenany then played a few round of a strategy board game along with nibbles and brews. 3am when folk left but a good time was had by all, had a lie in undisturbed by the girls fortunately. Finlay joined us this afternoon for the sleepover tonight so all three grandchildren tonight. Just about to set about making tea.

[Marilyn]

We had a good night too, with overnight guests and a lovely meal. Then we walked to the beach about 10pm for the fireworks. It was a lovely warm night.
New Years Day began with an early swim, which was most enjoyable too.

Luckily our guests weren't still here this morning. Hubby was in the shower when there was an almighty BANG and the sound of hissing running water. Pipe in our pantry wall burst again, almost at ceiling height, just above the new join the plumber put in a few weeks ago. Kitchen rapidly flooded as water cascaded down the wall. Had to run out in my nightie to turn the water off.
We have emptied the pantry yet again, mopped up what we can and the plumber is on his way. The gyprock wall in the pantry is looking pretty mushy in parts.