Good afternoon everyone!!

Well, the weird weather saga continues here! Today is very cloudy and grey and COOL!! A complete 180 from what we've been having the last few weeks!! We even had a little rain (not as much as we need, but we'll take it!) so a little respite from the heat, but it is supposed to return again by the weekend!!

Jules, I'm sorry to hear the weather was so crummy for the Olympic torch festivities! Darn weather!!!! I hope people were still able to get out and enjoy it somewhat anyway. I'm so glad to hear you have some sun today! I hope it sticks around now for awhile!! And what a lovely gesture from your son!!! I thought that was so touching!!

Helen, glad to hear your decorating is going well! I'm sure it looks wonderful! Your mum sounds like a lovely lady, I'm glad you are able to spoil her! Mine will turn 70 next year, so I'd like to think of something special as well *hmm, wonders if Keane will be touring* haha!

Ana, I'm glad you are having a sunny, beautiful day, I hope you were able to get out and enjoy it!

I've been procrastinating on the housecleaning, so I guess I best get to it! lol

Have a great day everyone!!

Good Night Everyone!

Thanks Chris! Yes the flowers are lovely! It's not been great here today but at least it was dry!! Hope you enjoy the heat when it returns.

Sleep well everyone

Hi Everyone!

How are you all? Anything planned for the weekend?

Well, with fingers crossed, it is actually dry here and the wind has dropped, thank goodness.

Hope you all have a good day! I'm really looking forward to the Olympic Games.

Jules

Good evening! Hope everyone is doing well?

Jules, I'm sorry about the rain once again I'm so hoping you have a better day tomorrow! *sending Jules some sunshine*

Feeling sad tonight for the tragedy in Colorado My thoughts and prayers are with the victims and their families.

Good night my friends 

Good Morning Friends!

Chris, thanks for the sunshine, i think it should arrive tomorrow!! We have rain forecast for today.

Very sad news from Aurora, i'm thinking and praying too. What the hell is wrong with the world when you can't even go to the cinema!!!!!

Have a good day my friends

My heart goes out to everyone out there too.

Chris - what date is your mum's birthday next year? I'm sure you'll make it special for her, my mum's is 17 August. Smiled at the Keane related ideas for presents - great suggestions and V Festival is the same weekend (I think) but shame that would qualify as expensive!  Seriously though, it's more deciding where to go for a day trip because of ....... yep, you guessed it, the weatheeerrrrr!  Still, we can make a last minute decision for a day trip atleast.  It's actually OMG sunny and pleasantly warm today (it did pour it down the last couple of days) at the weekend as well and the temperature is set to rise into next week!

My decorating is all done and it looks fantastic, now it's done it really shows how desparately it needed doing! 

Helen

Hi Helen, glad your decorating is done, bet it looks great! I know what you mean about planning a day out with our weather! But hopefully things will change for the better with the jet-stream moving away northwards! It did turn out lovely here after all, with no rain, so i actually got out to walk on the cliffs! Felt great to get some air.

My sister Debbie is having a *Jackie* day! Anyone remember the Jackie magazine for girls from *years* ago? Well you can get Jackie cd's with music from that era; so we've had a day of David Cassidy, Donny Osmond etc. At least i can sing along to these!!!

Have a nice evening!

A walk on the cliffs sounds lovely!  Living inland, we only get to see the sea occasionally and naturally don't have scenery like that, we do have the peak district on our doorstep though, don't know if you've heard of Chesterfield and it's Crooked Spire where I live but I guess you'll know Chatsworth, we are about half an hour's drive away. 

Pleased to hear you are getting some relief from S Club 7!  Going off to listen to Keane now.  Have a great evening!

Helen

Good afternoon/evening friends!

Jules, I'm SO GLAD you ended up having a lovely day and got to walk on the cliffs!!! I was about to send you a boat load of sunshine if I had to bring it over myself!! hahaha! I'm *willing* that jetstream to mooooove!!!!!!!!! I hope the lovely weather continues for you! And your 'Jackie' day made me smile! I remember all of that, especially David Cassidy and Donny Osmond!! Brings me back to when I was a kid....I had such a crush on Donny Osmond!! hahaha!! (hmmm, I just realized not much has changed...I'm 40 years older and still having crushes on cute lead singers!! LOL!) Anyway,  I'm glad you can at least sing along!

Helen, my mom will turn 70 on September 6th of next year. I'd like to plan something special as well. And  I think the V Festival sounds like a fantastic idea!! Seriously, though, a day trip sounds really lovely! It's a shame the weather prevents you from planning anything further out, but I'm sure it will still turn out memorable for her!

Well, the sun has come out after a cloudy morning, so I think I'll try to get my little one down for a nap and try to have a little 'me' time out on the patio! Have a lovely evening my friends!

Good Afternoon Chris!

Thank you for the sunshine! It's been quite nice today(yipee)! Yes the Jackie cd has made me think of all the crushes i used to have too! I agree with you on *our* lead singer, 100%. I still feel like a teenager (hehe). I hope you have a nice relaxing time on your patio? Sounds lovely!

Good Night Everyone. I have Jackie part two tomorrow! How many are there? Still, beats S Club7!!

Jules

Good Morning Friends!

It's lovely here and i think i will probably be able to escape the *Jackie* day part two. (And they call it *puppy love*) hehe!!!!.

In fact, even if the weather does change, i think i will shut myself in the shed and build myself a time machine and go back to the 70's myself!!!!!!

Have a lovely lazy Sunday everyone and i hope you have good weather wherever you are.

Jules xx

Hi all, it's blue sky and sunshine (or should that be clear skies grin) it's very windy though which means no sunbed time for me cos the hay fever will be shocking tomorrow for work.  Here's hoping for a decent autumn to catch up on sunbed time then!  You never know, it sometimes happens! 

Know it's early but hope your mum has a great 70th Chris! 

Helen

Hi Helen, it was the same here! Except we had no wind for a change. Fingers crossed it stays sunny for ages. I did some gardening but it was so lovely i went for a walk with my son instead. The Rubettes were playing as we left but i like them (or did i should say!), we could hear Sugar Baby Love as we crossed the road, lol

Have a good week Helen

Jules xx

Good evening friends!

I had a nice lazy Sunday! I hope you are all doing well.  Today was the first day of a huge week long air show that our city hosts every year...it's the largest fly-in air show in the world and for one week out of the year our little small-town airport becomes *the* busiest airport in the entire world! It's really cool...100's of thousands of people come to our little town from all over the world. It's kind of exciting to see all the planes buzzing around overhead...huge military jets, old warbird planes, blimps, experimental aircraft, you name it! So anyway, to make a long story short...we went out to the airport today to watch all the planes coming in. Really cool!

Hi Jules! I'm so glad you are *finally* getting some lovely weather and you even had a nice walk! And your musical trip down memory lane sounds like fun!!

Hi Helen! Glad to hear you're having some nice weather, too! And thanks for the early birthday wishes!

Well, I better turn in, back to work tomorrow! Good night my friends!

Good Morning Friends!

Wow Chris! That sounds brilliant! I would have loved to have seen all those planes! I took James to an air-show when he was very young and we had a great time, especially watching the Red Arrows. How big is your Airport? Thanks for the sunshine you sent over!!

Well i hope everyone has a good week, whatever you are doing? It's so nice to go out my garden in just a t-shirt(yipee no coat!!!!). I'm off to do some shopping then i'll tackle the garden! Ooh i love sunshine.

Talk later my friends.

Jules

A sunny start to the week when the Olympics begin. We've marked it in the D household by having our own pant Olympics on the staircase. It involves hurling an old pair of boxer shorts high up into the stairwell to try and dislodge dust bunnies that have become visible in the sunlight. Apart from the odd spot of garden footie from Son2, this is likely to be the beginning and end of our engagement in sport over the summer. 

Dawn, who is the likely gold medalist for the pant hurling contest?

Hi everyone!

I had a great weekend. The weather was lovely, so I took advantage!!!! Yesterday I had a birthday barbecue of a friend of mine and I had an excelent time!

My father reached 65 years old last year and we organized a great surprise party with family and friends!  In the day before, I made all the desserts! It was well planned, I asked two of his friends to take him to buy them a coffee on the morning (it was Sunday) and we prepared everything! His birthday is on February, so we cooked Tripas à Moda do Porto, a typical food that is great for cold weather and that is easy to cook for a large number of people. 

We were eating, laughing, chating and making jokes during all the afternoon and all the evening: the party ended after 1 am! It was great, my father loves to be with family and friends! My suggestion is that you find something that means the world for your mums, Helen and Chris, and that will be great. Sometimes, the simplest things are the best!

Hi Ana!

I'm so glad you had such a lovely weekend! The food in the picture looks *yum*. That sounds lovely what you all did for your Father, i bet he was thrilled.

I don't think we've had such a hot day as this for ages!!!! It's been lovely, to walk on the cliffs in a t-shirt and not be cold. I love it!!!.

Have a lovely afternoon/evening everyone