Wednesday 10 September 2008

Countdown

Chris and I are now in full countdown mode......only 15 days to go till we hurtle through the air in a big metal tube heading towards the UK. We've been shopping for Birthday and Christmas presents....that sounds very organised doesn't it.....until I tell you that the Christmas ones are the ones we didn't get to give last year!!! I've ordered some new clothes to be made in the vague hope that it will stop me freezing my butt off!!! (I was cold in June last year so Scotland in September.......I think I will find it lovely for about three seconds and then I will spend the rest of the fortnight complaining). I have been handbag shopping - If you ever come out here and want to buy a handbag...JJ is the woman you want to help you choose it!!! That woman knows her handbags!!!. I've had my hair cut and coloured....Oh, I didn't tell you about my orange hair disaster did I.....well it's no longer orange and it's now a lot shorter. (Short version of the story - four lots of hair dye, screaming orange hair, very bad dry hair, wait a month, dark colour to cover orange (a bit too dark actually but I'm hoping it will fade) and cut to stop looking like I have a bale of hay on my head!!). I'm desperate to show you the gifts we've bought (they are rather fab) but that will have to wait till they have actually been given....would kind of spoil the surprise otherwise!!

Our itinerary is starting to shape up - we're going to be all over the bloody place!! It looks like we will be in Scotland from the 25th to the 29th, overnight in Swindon on the 29th, overnight in London on the 30th and the 1st, overnight in Manchester on the 2nd before then going back to Scotland to collapse and recover for a week!! It's not easy trying to fit everyone in when your only back once a year!!

Other good things

I have been awarded this rather fab 'Perfect blend of friendship' award by the lovely JJ who, as you all know, is a wonderful, talented lady who is great fun to have around (not to mention going handbag shopping with). As part of the rules I need to pass it on to five other blog friends....this is the bit I always find difficult....I want to give it to give it to everyone on my blog roll but if I can only give it to five then I choose (This was made slightly easier by the fact that I have eliminated those who have already received it) DJ, Jen at Spiral Skies, Debs at The Lehners in France, Sue at Me and Others and last but definately not least Caroline at In Search of Adam - Please go and check them out if you've not already!!

And that leads me nicely to -

The new widget that I have added to the side of my blog entitled 'Black Boxes'. Black Boxes is the latest novel by the lovely Caroline Smailes who wrote the wonderful and haunting novel 'In Search of Adam' and the wonderful 'Disraeli Avenue'. The novel deals with choices and how those choices influence the direction of your life (I've not read it yet as it's literally just being launched but I KNOW it will be fantastic). Anyway, click on the 'decide' button, make your choices, add your own query and your blog address and then you will be taken to the blog of someone who made similar choices to you. I can't wait to see where my answers lead me........

27 comments:

Jenny Beattie said...

That'll be a nice rest for you, won't it?

When are we going looking for the green handbag?

Carol said...

JJ - I think I'm going to need a holiday to recover!!! I'm tired just thinking about it!!

When are you free??

C x

Fionnuala said...

Hi Carol and Chris,
The widget broughtyou to me and me to you! Great blog - you're going to need some red bull over the next few weeks! F

Lane Mathias said...

Wow that's a whizzy itinerary! Fun though!

Very nice bag indeed and I'm sure your hair is very lovely and will fade to the exact shade you desire before you leave:-)

ps - have emailed you cakey recipe.

Caroline said...

Widget brought me to you :)

I LOVE that red bag. It is such a beautiful red. I need to come shopping with JJ too.

If you're in Manchester and fancy meeting up for a coffee/cake/whisky, then email me.

I'd love to x

Leigh Forbes said...

Ha! The widget brought me back to you.
Isn't that nice? :-)

Cheryl said...

Hi to you both, I just got your message on my Batman post. The widget is really cool and nice to meet someone on my wavelength. I look forward to catching up with your blog some more.

trousers said...

The widget brought me here too. Hi!

DJ Kirkby said...

Widget brought me here! Yay, thanks for my award! I hope we get to meet up while you are here but I don't expect it to actually happen :)

DJ Kirkby said...

Widget brought me here again!

DJ Kirkby said...

and again :)

Georgina said...

Wowah, thanks so much for passing on the award to us in France (for now). I am sure you will have a great time back in the YUK, but be scared by the prices. It sounds like you are planning one hell of a trip. Bon courage. Debs x
Word verification: honouredthanks

nmj said...

hey there, i have come on caroline's magic carpet, i see you are in scotland end month, you shd know the weather is way WORSE than usual, you will need duffel coats!

Anonymous said...

I don't need widget to find you.
Pity you are so far away as I missed the orange hair, remibds me of zebra tan incident. I'm sure you never looked lovlier.
Tomato

Pat Posner said...

Love the handbag.
Good thing you got your hair to rights or it would have clashed.

Where in Manchester will you be? I'm about 14 miles northwards.
You're welcome to call in for a cuppa en route to Scotland.

Adrianne said...

My widget brought me here.

Carol said...

Fionnuala - Hooray for Caroline's wonderful widget!! (and thanks for the lovely compliment!!). I'm not so keen on the old red bull but coffee....yep, coffee by the bucket load!!!

Lane - I can't decided whether it will be fun at the time or afterwards when we have fully recovered!! I do know that it will involve lots of good food and wine....so it's not all bad!!

Ooohhh, I do hope it fades...think Wicked Witch of the West!!

Yay for cake recipe - Thanks hon.

Caroline - Your widget is wonderful (lots of alliteration happening here today).

JJ can sniff out a beautiful bag at 100 paces (probably more!!).

I would love to meet up with you. Once everything is in concrete I will e-mail you and we can arrange something :-). Am all excited about the thought of actually meeting you!!

Leigh - It works!! It's fab!! (OMG I think I may be addicted!!)

Lily - That's exactly how I felt when I read your batman post!! Good to 'meet' you :-)

Trousers - *Waves*

DJ - Hehehehe....just goes to prove that it works very well...We both have great taste :-).

The award is very well deserved so you are very welcome!! It would be fab to meet up, as I said to Caroline, once we have everything in concrete I will give you a shout and we'll see if it's going to be possible!! *goes away with fingers crossed*

Lehners - You are very welcome my dear....I love your blog!!

Ewww, I know that our holiday is going to cost us an absolute fortune - the petrol alone is going to be hideous!! Still, it will be worth it in the end :-)

NMJ - Nnnnooooooo don't tell me that!! I'm still holding out for an Indian summer that starts when I arrive :-). I'm going to freeze aren't I...

Tomato - OMG I had forgotten about the zebra orange tan disaster (Oh the trauma!!)....yep my hair would have matched that rather beautifully!!

Pat - It did clash....and then I got hot and the colour clashed with my rosy cheeks....not a good look!!!

I'm not sure where we will be yet - I think we will be staying with a friend just outside Didsbury. It would be fab to meet you :-)

SSC - I love that widget!! Will be popping over to yours for a nosey :-)

C x

Unknown said...

I'm in awe of all your traveling. Some day I hope I can get to those places.

Sue Guiney said...

Thanks for the award! And the UK itinerary. Even if we don't get to meet (and I can tell you'll be wildly crazy), it will be nice to know you are on this side of the world!

Anonymous said...

Wicked Witch of the West? Hope you don't have the green face too.

Soooooo looking forward to seeing you when you get here for a late Christmas - and I've got prezzies here too...

Love Mum xxx

ps love the handbag

Deborah Carr (Debs) said...

You're going to have such a wonderful time, I cant wait to hear all about it.

Dx

Tamsyn Murray said...

Have a great time. I was in Edinburgh a few weeks back and expected coldness but it was luvverly :-)

Carol said...

Ashley - I'm really looking forward to visiting everyone :-)

Sue - You are very welcome!! We are going to be very busy but I'm hoping that we will have time to see your play, so you never know, perhaps we'll see you there!!

Mum - No Green - I'm sorry to disappoint you!!

We're going Christmas shopping this weekend...have already got some things but we have rather a lot of people to buy for!! I've been told that Jim Thompson has a factory outlet so I think we're going to go and have a nosey there.

Really looking forward to seeing you.

Debs - We're having Christmas dinner on the first Saturday we arrive with my Mum, Mum-in-Law and Aunt-in-Law. Then my Aunt, Uncle and Gran are coming over in the evening and we're going to pretend that it's new year!! I really can't wait to see everyone!!

Tam - I'm keeping my fingers crossed that it's not going to be too freezing!! (But I now have an excuse to by a pair of boots so it's not all bad!!)

C x

spacedlaw said...

This time the widget brought me to YOU.
Thank you for visiting my Live Journal.

Carol said...

Spaced Law - You are very welcome!!

C x

Anonymous said...

Anticipation is such fun, sounds like quite a whistle stop tour.

xx

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