Soop's Extended Extension.

I've the aches and pains to prove it but a big smile too! The grapes are lovely, thanks Nonu.

A bonny wee lad Soop, Torben that is !

Ahhhh, she's gorgeous, Lona. Yes, she does look like a little livewire

Coo LONA she looks like you --great !
now then here is that peeled grape , in fact , lets not stop at one , here is a small bunch !
laugh !

Great photo Lona. She looks a real livewire.

Phew! I've come to relax on the chair in the window, that soop so kindly reserved for me.
Overnighter with my dgd was wonderful, we had such fun. My arms ached so much that I didn't get much sleep, but who cares? Dgd is such a character.

soop Torben is such a happy boy, I'm sure you have a joyful time when you do manage to visit him. I've also put a picture on my profile of Savannah this morning, with her Minnie Mouse Tshirt and matching bunches!

Peel me a grape someone please!

soop - what lovely photos of your little dragon. He looks like a very happy little boy

After four very wet and gloomy days, the sun is out in SW Georgia! In more ways than one because our little Bella is definitely on the mend. DH is also happy because he can get on with painting DD2's house.

Have just received a photo from DD3 (who is holding the fort in Malta) of Zim the cat and Max the dog lying side by side in the sun. They must be bonding in our absence. Usually they do not get along!

Enjoy your rugby

The sun is shining in London and tomorrow we are expecting 18C. At least in my back garden! (I can bit hope) I am going to rake out the garden furniture I think.

soop that is a distance to travel (and not cheap) to see the wee man. If possible do not get into a black cab in London as they are horrendously expensive. If possible get a mini cab as their price is not ruled by the traffic.

Thank you, Charleygirl Rory has not met Torben. Over 600 miles separate us from him. We visit him in London. I would like to play a bigger role in T's life but accept that cannot be so. When the weather improves, we shall travel by bus, train and taxi and make the most of a long weekend with him.

What's the weather doing in your part of the world? It rained heavily over night. It appears to be getter more settled. The sea is less choppy. The cold wind has abated.

Six Nations rugby later this afternoon. Scotland v France. I'm revving up in readiness.

soop I love to see photos of Torben, the little dragon with the beaming smile. He is going to be a very handsome some man. I am hoping that he will not grow up too soon but somehow I do not think so, his parents have their heads screwed on correctly if you know what I mean.

How does Rory cope with Torben or does he just ignore him?

Me too, Granny23. It's a worry when they appear to disappear...if you know what I mean. Tortoiseshell turned up late yesterday. She never ever appears to be scruffy. Always well groomed. Takes after her Pa.

We have two new photos of Torben, dressed as a dragon for World Book Day. I've uploaded for you to see. He has the most beautiful smile.

Now that you mention it Soop I realise that the other cat (Jake) has not been around for a couple of weeks. I do hope that means that he/she has found a home of his/her home [fingerscrossed]

Bellasnana Nana cuddles are the best ever Vanilla cake trimmings, eh? I shall do my best to leave some for the rest of you. I've still not taken as much as a wee bite from the date slice.

Gally Selling on eBay!!! Good for you. I've sold masses of items. MacSporran sold his entire Corgi collection for well over £500. He was dead chuffed. It is a time consuming business. It drives me potty after a while. I do love hunting for bargains. And yes, as Marelli says, like Gransnet, it can be addictive. Good fun. As for the neighbour he needs to mind his p's and q's. I hope that any mess is cleared up when the job's finished.

number Six weeks is very young to have such a nasty illness. Your parents must have been so worried. My younger sister caught the disease from me. She was about two at the time. She then contracted double pneumonia.

anno I believe that Alan Turing was mentioned on a news programme not so long ago. Although homosexuality is no longer a crime, there are still far too many bigots prepared to do hateful and unspeakable things against them. Man can be so cruel...

I've just spoken on the phone to a friend in the village. A lovely man who lives there, died peacefully in his sleep last night. His wife and daughter were at home at the time.

I shall now say night night, sleep tight, and hope to talk with you again tomorrow.

Hope you have a nice night with your DGD Lona. It is tiring sometimes but completely worth it as the chit chat is priceless.

GD2 who is 4 has found her singing voice and was sat at the kitchen table yesterday playing the keyboard and singing something she was making up as she went along. Suddenly, she asked her Mummy to write down the words for her, would sing a few lines, wait until they were written down then continue with her song. Completely oblivious to the laughter going on due to,the fact she can't read or write yet but wanted them written down to remind her.

Rosequartz, we had an outbreak of Scarletina around 1970, where we lived at Heywood, in Gtr. Manchester, all the local children were vaccinated. I`d never heard of it before, I had scarlet fever when I was 6 weeks old, so I was told by my mother.

Thank you all for your kind wishes for DGD. She still has an awful cough but is much better in herself today. We have had lots of cuddles and I've been reading her lots of stories. Memories to treasure when we have to go back home.

I'm leaving you a big plate of vanilla cake trimmings from DD2's latest cake. Hope you enjoy them

Gally - well done with setting up your ebay account! Being a seller can be as addictive as being a buyer - be warned!

Strange old day here: very cold, high winds, lashing rain, snow, brilliant sunshine, more rain, hail, more snow ........ Hope it's better tomorrow.
I have a sore back caused by bending over the iPad for too long. I am learning how to sell on eBay and the air is blue So far managed 6 items so hoping for a good result a week hence, fingers x'd.
I remember my best friend (at the time) Margaret, having scarlet fever in the late '50s. I wasn't allowed to visit for weeks and her room was fumigated afterwards??
My neighbour is having work done on his roof and for access purposes the scaffolding is being erected in my garden. I wouldn't mind if he was more friendly and feel slightly put out that all the mess and noise will be right outside my kitchen for the next week, not his! Ok I know it's lent and everything and I should be more Christian about it, but......... [grumpy emoticon]
soop have fun using all your newly acquired art purchases!

I live in hope. Forever the optimist and we have beaten them before!

Oh, I really hope I haven't jinxed them now. Argh!!

Went last night to the Cheadle Hulme Am Dram Society (chads) to see their production of Breaking the Code, a most moving play about Alan Turing. This is a first class am dram company and this production was one of the best I've seen. It was very moving and many of us left feeling aggrieved at the injustice, only recently undone by the posthumous Royal Pardon he received last year. But - if it was a true account, and I have no reason to doubt that - he was a very indiscreet homosexual in an age when that was bound to lead to trouble. The lead actor, on stage all the time, and with two or three big monologues to deliver, was absolutely perfect in the part.

Me too, Agus, though I may be watching with a cushion over my face.

Lona the chair has been moved to the window. When you call by tomorrow, please make yourself comfortable.

anno Although it was almost 69 years ago when I took myself off to bed and imagined gnomes were coming through a crack in the ceiling above my bed, I can recall almost everything that happened thereafter. We didn't have a phone. My mother had to walk into the village to call the doctor. When the ambulance arrived, my pals were hanging around and waving to me. As a very pretty nurse took my hand once I was inside the ambulance, I put my tongue out. I still feel ashamed at doing so. Parents weren't allowed to go with me to the hospital. I vaguely remember being in isolation for almost a month. When my elderly uncle caught the disease as a six year old, he went blind. It was a very serious illness at the time.

Bellasnana I'm hoping that your dear granddaughter is beginning to recover.

rosequartz Scarletina is I believe a much milder form of scarlet fever. Perhaps Galen can reassure us. Enjoy your trip to the seaside. The weather is set to improve over the weekend.

Agus I finished turning out the bathroom cupboards late yesterday afternoon. Today...I'm going to take it easy. Scotland v France in Six Nations rugby tomorrow. I need to conserve my energy.

Good afternoon to my Granspals. We've been to Lochgilphead for a few art supplies. Visited a very nice card shop and selected a good many cards in readiness for birthdays and the likes. Treated ourselves to a date slice [not as good as bags's] but delicious with it, and MacSporran chose a millionaire's shortbread. He's having his with his lunch. I'm saving mine until later. The journey to Lochgilphead from here, is awfully Z-bendy. We set off in a rainstorm, passed through bright sunlight and arrived to leaden skies and a hammering of hailstones. Sunny again and the sea is mighty choppy. Big, dark clouds approaching. It's good to be home.

Granny23 Whatever happened to the cat that would join you...if Cassidy felt so inclined? Does it still call by for a snack? Tortoiseshell kitten hasn't visited us for two days. She's very likely to come calling in the early hours...which means...outside sensor light is triggered...I leap out of bed...tip-toe through the kitchen...and put a bowl of food on the flat roof of the log store. After which, she gets back into a more sensible routine: breakfast at 8 and supper at 5-ish. Have fun with your granddaughter.

We received a photo of Torben dressed as a crocodile [like the one in his Richard Scarry book]...he was going to a book club celebration.

Agus This time last year, the village of Clachan was cut off for over a week. We were without power for six days. The snow drifts were so bad, even the snow ploughs couldn't get through. Villagers have since written short stories and poems relating to their personal experiences. The book is on sale in the village shop.

Windy and chilly interspersed with bright sunshine and dark skies with a couple of flurries of snow so far.. I have photographs of GDs sledging last March! Suppose we have been lucky so far with a mild winter but there is still time for the white stuff

What is the weather like today chez nous? Here we have bright sunlight, interspersed with hail showers - so grass green one minute, white the next. DGD2, here for the afternoon, is loving it but Cassidy is obviously puzzled and has been in and out umpteen times to inspect.