And A Blessed and Happy New Year to you all.


Jenny <><

Happy Christmas everyone!


Jenny <><

Busy, Busy, Busy

Wouldn't i just like to be like them. Life has been hectic with the lead up to Christmas and i have been too tired to read many blogs let alone comment. Sorry.


Hubby's virus turned into a chest infection and more antibiotics and it seems this virus also likes to pop back for another visit every now and again. At the moment he is asleep in the armchair beside me.


I had a good time at g'daughters sleep over. There were 7 all told and they all seemed to talk at once???? I had borrowed a chocolate fountain, but everyone said that they made a big mess up the walls and carpet, so i bottled out and just melted some chocolate in the microwave. We had strawberries and marshmallows to dip in the chocolate mmmmmmmm! I got to bed at 3am and went straight off to sleep. I had originally gone to bed at 12 midnight but g'daughter called me out to tell them a story, so up i got. But it didn't matter cos i enjoyed it.



I still haven't got all my Christmas presents or written any cards... Am i bovvered? Er... sometimes. But i expect it will all get done by the day.



We have had a big problem trying to find a turkey over 9 kilo, so much so that we have had to settle for an 8.4 one. It seems there are not many around this year due to the trouble with turkey's last year. People have suggested having a crown cos there are no bones so you get more meat, but a lot of us like the legs the best and a 4 legged turkey would be alright for us :-)



Another suggestion was to get a fresh one from the butchers, but that would be far too expensive. No we got a frozen one from Tesco's like always and now i have to cook it in my new fan oven. Eek!! I have never used a fan oven and i haven't used my big bottom oven yet. As there is only the two of us at home the small top oven does us for most things.


I usually cook the oven on low all night, but how low is low in an electric fan oven???? We shall see.


Oh well i really should be tackling the Christmas cards about now....


Jenny <><

Happy Birthday Granddaughter

Granddaughter is 13 today. She was born by C section 13 years ago, my daughters first child. This last year she must have grown about twelve inches in a year, she is now much taller than me. Saturday we went shopping and i bought her some clothes. That girl has always known how to shop :-). Today we go out for a meal and next Saturday i have the privilege of supervising a sleep over of 7 girls. I have already been given my orders, mainly not to embarrass her. As if i would...

Last night my next-door-neighbour had his car stolen from outside the house. It was inches away from ours. All this happened at teatime, not in the middle of the night as you would expect.

Just a short one today to say 'Happy Birthday' g'daughter have a great day as you enter your teen years.

Jenny <><

Pain and more pain

Well i give up. I have tried and tried to put pictures in and it is having none of it. so i cannot be bothered any more tonight.

Remember hubby's toothache.... well it was an abscess so he has now had the nerve taken out. Now he is saying the one next to it hurts, but i am wondering if the abscess hasn't quite gone and he needs more antibiotic.

He has also had for the last two weeks that nasty chest virus that is going the rounds. It sounds like the same one that they have on Strictly Come Dancing. G'daughter has it too and has been very ill. Last Wednesday night she ended up in A&E because she couldn't breathe. Luckily they saw her straight away and gave her some steroid tablets to take and a prescription for sprays. She is better but her chest still sounds terrible and i doubt if she will be back to school at the start of this week. She is very rarely ill but when she is she often ends up at A&E and has what ever she gets worse than normal.

Next week g'daughter will be 13, how did that happen. It seems she is having a sleep over of 6 friends. Now daughter has come up with clever the idea - she thinks - of her and g'son sleeping over my house and that i go over and supervise the sleep over. One reason being that my daughter has a very short fuse when woken from sleep at night, although she reckons she cannot remember what she says the next day. Hmm!! Anyway to save her nerves and g'daughter's this was the suggestion. G'daughter is all for it as long as i don't embarrass her. I haven't given an answer yet, but oh what fun i could have. Embarrass, Ha! Ha!

My glasses broke half hour ago and i am wearing some very old ones from years back. I dread to think what i look like... No comments please :-)

Today i wrapped up...well hubby wraps...my first presents. Thank goodness, i thought i was never going to get started. Sons family is nearly all done, so is Church friends, but i still do not know what to get for some members of the family. And i am not telling on here what i have bought already as i know family reads this blog, so there.

Tom Jones is on TV at the moment, his voice hasn't altered a bit with age. Boyzone was good as well and i have always loved Seal.

Well I'm off to watch I'm a Celebrity and i am recording Strictly results to watch later... Oh what a busy life i lead.

Jenny <><

Holiday

We have just got back from my last holiday this year.

We set off Wednesday morning, picked up my friend who was coming with us and set off. We were going to 'Mission Worship', a weekend conference where christian singer/songwriters teach us their new songs they have written. Give us good teaching and raise a lot of money for a kids charity that provides schools in the Amazon jungle. It is run by Kingsway Publishers who gives a large percentage of the money raised from the sales of goods at the conference.

Back to the plot. To make a bit of a holiday of it we thought we would go a couple of days early. My friend wanted a lift to the conference so had to come with us early.... So it was a lovely day and on the way there i suddenly saw the sign for the Bluebell Steam Train Railway Line. My husband is rather a steam train lover and we had been there before so i said lets go and visit.

We saw one train and had a lovely lamb dinner. I sat and sunned myself on a seat in the station while my hubby and friend went and looked at the engine sheds. I am not quite so much a train lover. If you have seen one you have seen them all is my motto.

A couple of hours later we set off again and reached the hotel about 4pm. We had a lovely room with a big bay window overlooking the sea. There was a full moon and we sat and watched it shining silver on the water as the sun went down. ( i am now singing the song 'by the light of the silvery moon').

This isn't exactly the same as our room but it is one of their bedrooms.

There was a 'Tinsel and Turkey' group at the hotel so my friend and i went down to the hotel lounge and joined them on Thursday night as they had a singer playing 60's songs. They were all from Doncaster and very friendly and didn't mind us gatecrashing one bit.

For those that don't know, 'Tinsel and Turkey' is what the over 60's go to usually with their clubs. It is a coach trip to a hotel usually in November when you pretend it is Christmas and have a Christmas dinner, presents and do all the things of Christmas day. When we joined them they reckoned it was New Years day, LOL! :-) It is especially good for people who have lost their partners and would never get away from home as it makes a nice 5 day break for them.

Friday morning the coach departed and our lot for the conference started turning up. There was 10 of us from our church. Now if i am doing these pictures correct there might even be a photo of the hotel we stayed at.

The first floor big bay window 3rd from the end of the hotel was our room. The weather was very warm i never wore my coat at all. It was lovely to spend time away with some of the church family. We sang, we danced, we worshipped together. We had breakfast together and spent time till late at night chatting in the hotel lounge.

Actual hotel dining room.

My husband had raging toothache all during the holiday. One of us usually has something. He likes to go for walks on holiday, not my thing. So i think he walked at least twice up to Beachy Head with some of our church mates. This was uphill a lot of the way.

Picture coming....

That is Beachy Head, quite a famous landmark in the UK and famous for people throwing themselves off of it. Thankfully hubby's tooth never got so bad he saw that as a solution.

So after a good week we came back Sunday afternoon and now looking forward to getting back to work :-(

I wonder if this post is going to look the same as it does now when i publish????

Jenny <><

Empty head

Explain this phenomena to me. In bed, at the bus stop, anywhere away from my computer i write the most interesting posts. In my head. But the minute i sit here to write something all thought deserts me. Nothing, nowt, zilch. One empty head. And to make it worse it's raining and I'm not at work.

About three weeks ago the handle of my handbag came unstitched and broke. Now i could have mended it but i have a bit of a handbag fetish... after about six months i get fed up with it and buy another. Which is the reason i only ever buy cheap bags. So what was i going to do today?? I was off to buy my new bag and do some Christmas shopping. But it is pouring down and has been all day. It is dark, dull, windy... Horrible in fact.

Time for a random picture ~

This was where the random picture was supposed to be, but as you can see they came up at the top???????????

On holiday this year we went on a deer safari, i think i have mentioned it before. Well this was it and the face g'daugher pulled after feeding the deer. She had very dirty hands.

I would love to show some pictures of my other g'kids but do not have as many photos of them. One reason is that they are much older and whenever we go round there they are in and out like yoyo's with their friends. Also i am very bad at taking photos and most of the ones i have of my daughter's children, she has taken and emails me them. Unfortunately at Son's house computers only last a few months with 5 kids on it. The deadly virus is just waiting to get it. So i don't have as many pics of them at all. Hopefully i will get some when i go Christmas.

I have just had my tea, sausage and mash. I used my new frying pan to do the sausages and what do you know... i still nearly burnt them. LOL!!! I will get used to the new cooker, and yes i have myself a new set of pans but it hasn't improved the cooking

Daughter just told me what she had for tea and it sounded very tasty:

Cook some chicken and bacon and put on top of leeks and mushrooms in a casserole dish.. Pour a tin of condensed chicken soup over the top and then mashed potato on top of that. She then put it in the oven for 2 hours. Sounds like something i might try.

Well i think i will stop now.

Enjoy tomorrow...

Jenny <><

Another Birthday

Yes today is my birthday, 21 again, and again, and more! Thanks to the above 'Happy Birthday'. I have had it a long while and must admit i cannot read who made it as my eyes sight is not good enough.

Well today i am going over my daughters for Sunday Roast and looking forward to it. It is always good when you haven't had to cook it yourself.

Right now i am giving myself a birthday present by being on the 'pooter so early in the day, hubby's in bed (although the door bell just rang and might have woken him) having a lay in like he does every Sunday catching up on his sleep. He works unsociable hours and has a long day Saturday. He also knows i like a bit of time on my own. No, he is now up the doorbell did wake him!!

It is a shame b'days are not quite so exciting when you can see your bus pass getting nearer and nearer. For those in the US when you get to be 60 in some parts of the UK you get a bus pass to use the buses for free. I still have 3 years to go BUT I DO NOT FEEL OLD ENOUGH YET!!!!

That's why i have called this blog and my old AOL one 'Stop The Clock' The rest of it used to say 'times moving too fast'. Or something like that, i cannot quite remember now. See the brain's going as well.

Ah well, i am off to get ready to enjoy my day and to give thanks to God that he has seen me through another year.

Jenny <><

Up to date birthday photo

Now look at that cake. Doesn't it just look perfect.


This is what he asked for.... A friend of my daughter's always makes his cake and so she made him an ice hockey cake as that was what he wanted... BUT he asked if it could look 'off' ~ because last year he said everyone had a piece leaving him none. So by his reckoning if it looked off no one would want a slice.


So she made it to look perfect on the outside but on the inside it looked like sludge. I am told it tasted lovely as long as you kept your eyes closed.


I have made a decision, no more gym, so that's that.


Saturday night we had a lovely time. Godfrey Birtill was around in the 60's. He is a very spiritual man and his songs hit the button on what God is up to right now, but he puts some of his songs to a rock and roll beat. So we worshiped, we praised and danced till we dropped. It was the best way to party on a Saturday night and i went home tired and happy.


My slow cooker came out today and i made a beef casserole and dumplings. I have to say they were 'Aunt Bessie's' but nice nonetheless.


Now what type of dumplings do you make... suet dumplings or Norfolk dumplings? I like both but was brought up on Norfolk dumplings. I expect now the weather has changed my slow cooker will be used a lot more but i do not have a great range of receipes. Any good ones will be gratefully received.


Jenny <><

Happy Birthday

Today is g'son's 9th birthday. I 'm afraid the photo is not a recent one. All the ones i have at the moment are either of him a long way away or with his sister. But he hasn't changed much.

I will be buying him some ice hockey gear he wants, and guess where he is now? Ice skating....

In December his sister will be thirteen and then in January i have.... wait for it ~

Daughter, son, daughter in law, g'son, sister in law, niece. It's a dear season.

Tonight i am going to a Godfrey Birtell concert. He is a christian singer/songwriter, very spiritual but also knows how to rock and roll. Don't ever say us Christians don't know how to enjoy ourselves. I am hoping to do a bit of bopping tonight. Ok, the body will move after a fashion before i flop into a chair exhausted.

Which brings me to exercise. The Gym is not working....I felt feint after being on the exercise bike for 5 minutes but how much of that is because it is on my mind after what happened on the treadmill the other week i don't know. Without that though my knees and other joints are getting sorer and sorer and now hurt constantly through the week. So i do not know how long this will go on for, i have a review in November. Now swimming i love and could stay in the water all day.

Hubby has gone upstairs to have a bath, who wants to bet on how long it takes him to start snoring. LOL!!

The clocks go back tonight so it will get dark by 4pm, winter is getting closer, Christmas is getting nearer. This year we have a bit of a problem. Every year i put the turkey in Mum's freezer because mine is usually full and of course Mum is no longer with us. So, Where am i going to put the turkey then, eh? And it is one big turkey.

Well it will be interesting to see if my paragraphs turn up in this post or if i have a long streak of white paper before you get to the comments button like last time. Lol!

Have a good weekend.

Jenny <><

Addiction

Tea's in the oven - there's time to spare.

You switch on the computer. You just want a little peek to see how everyone is doing.

Click on 'live feed' and there they all are.

**** is playing Pathword.

****has just got her highest score on Word Challenge.

****has got the best hand yet in Texas Hold -Em Poker.

****virtual pet has just been to visit yours - and they had a good time.

Ha ha! Everyone is at their computer and you know what they are up to.

But! Hang on! What's this!

That high score I worked so hard for all last night has just been topped. Oh no!

I got to get started. Working hard ... Fingers flying and then Yes! Yes! Yes!

WhooHoo comes from the armchair as i do the 'happy jig'.

Beat em....

For now. Till Tomorrow. Till the next time. When it all starts all over again.....

Such is the life of a Facebook Addict.

Jenny <><

Sunday

It has been a hard week this week not helped by it having been my 'one Saturday in three' day on. All the christmas stuff is going on the shelves and i am not the most creative person on this planet.

Sooo, I am really having this as my day of rest. Hence it is 2.30pm London time - i am still in my dressing gown - and i don't care :-) I have been eating chocolate and am playing about on here. So there!!!

I will go to church this evening and i think it is the night for our fellowship group to meet, I hope so, and start the week afresh tomorrow.

It is still sunny and warm here, i have a new flush of roses coming out into bloom and it is very quiet. ssshhh!

I bought a new CD at the shop i work in called 'A Christmas With The Gaithers'. It made hubby laugh, he said it was the ealiest he had ever heard White Christmas played. Certainly in our house.

What usually happens is, i put a christmas CD on, everyone shouts at me to turn it off, it's not christmas yet. This goes on till Christmas Eve. Christmas day we are usually out and when i try Boxing Day they then say christmas is over. So i sneaked it in today and fooled everyone. Ha! Ha!

Being as it is Sunday i thought i might add a few pictures of my g'daughter at her baptism a couple of years ago.

Sorry i have not put them in too well, never mind i will get better.

Jenny <><

Today's news

G'daughter has now been in Germany on her school trip for 4 days - she went Monday. She enjoyed the flight (it was her first time), likes the food and the family she is staying with. She says they hardly talk any English though but is managing.

She hasn't been very impressed with where she has been so far - German parliament, museum - today she has gone to the zoo and i know one of the days they are going to see Mama Mia so hopefully she will enjoy them more.


She doesn't come home till next Thursday so they will have gone for a long while. G'son has a birthday coming up on the 25th and is hoping for some ice hockey gear. He will have to wait and see....


I didn't get much sleep last night, the lump on my head hurt and i was dreaming about how i was going to get off the treadmill next week without keeling over and head butting the wall. I am certainly going to have a talk with someone before i try again. It brought a whole new meaning to 'did the earth move'. I now know my hip hurts as well where i landed. And do you know, family and friends all laughed when i told them. Can you believe that????

I have to work tomorrow it's my 1 in 3 Saturdays on. I could do without it really, but i think i will take it easy. I just hope the Saturday worker comes in.

I do like the way this saves your work as you go along. I may be imagining it but it seems a lot easier to write a post on here than AOL. Well I'm off to get some food now.

Jenny <><

Danger in the Gym

Well i surpassed myself today. I thought i was doing rather well. I had upped the resistance on the bike and was going faster on the treadmill. Then i got off.

I am always a bit dizzy when i get off the treadmill, a bit like you have been on a boat for a long while and have just got back on firm ground. So.... i stopped the treadmill and stood there for a moment before stepping off. I felt really dizzy and there was nothing to get hold of, i felt myself going over but couldn't stop myself from falling as gravity took me the rest of the way.

The wall stopped me. Crack went my head and elbow. The music was loud but two people heard the bang over the top and called the trainers over. One winced when she saw my elbow, but i haven't bothered looking. I am a great believer in what i cannot see i don't worry about (a bit like the size of my behind LOL!). My head feels like it has been bashed so i hope it will be alright. Bit concerned it won't happen again though especially as i have to up my time over the next two weeks.

Also.... I have successfully transfered my old blog over and have called it Stop the Clock Archive. Not sure if i am going to do anything with it yet though, or just keep it for prosperity.

Jenny <><

Busy weekend

Well i have been over my daughters this weekend helping her get g'daughter's bag packed for her trip. Just about now she will be landing at Berlin and meeting her host family. She was a bit tearful when she went as this is her first trip abroad and to fly then stay 10 days with complete stangers when you are only 12 is daunting. But she is a friendly girl and not shy so i know she will soon be having a good time.

This has not given me any time to look at blogs and comment but i will get around to everyone.

Tomorrow the gym saga starts again.... how will the backside stand up to its pounding this week i wonder????

There is a fatal flaw to Blogger i have found. Look at the bottom of my page and you will find a game i have added from gadgets. It is so easy to add things to your page with gadget, but beware this game is addictive!!!!

Soooo Tired

I don't think i have been to bed before 12.30am since Tuesday this week. Tired doesn't begin to describe it. Playing with this Blog. Making sure i have everyone so i don't lose any of the blogs. Playing a word game on Facebook. At least now i have found some people on Facebook i am no longer 'Billy no mates' anymore. Next week i must get some sanity back to life.

Another reason for being tired is the GYM! This has been my first full week, I go Tuesday and Thursday afternoon after work. I was going a bit faster on the bike and treadmill already yesterday, but oh my backside on that saddle. It will get better won't it???

My joints are sore and burning as well but i am going to ignore that unless it gets really bad.

G'daughter is off to Berlin in Germany on Monday and this will be her first trip abroad and flying. She is going with the school and staying with a family. She is a bit scared at the moment and snapping everyones head off, but she makes friends easily and is chatty so i am sure she will get on. Well she has kept saying she needed to do the abroad experience so now she will. They will be gone for 10 days and go on lots of trips and have a day at the German school.

G'son (the youngest) has started to go to ice hockey training. He loves it, but when they get older it seems to be a very dangerous and violent sport. He loves ice skating though and because of his ADHD he cannot settle with most sports but this is fast enough for him. LOL.

It has been very cold today i hope this isn't what's to come especially as the gas bills have nearly doubled so it seems. There will be a lot of people struggling this winter. We have also had a lot of stock in today for Christmas. What happened to summer, i seem to have missed it this year.

Well i am getting a bit hungry now so I'm off to eat and read some other posts.

Jenny <><

Playing with this

Well i am having a good time playing with this. I must admit i like the way you can put gadgets on the sidebar and at the bottom. It still doesn't look visually as nice as AOL though.

I have tried to cover all bases and have put people in my IE 'favourites', RSS feed and become a follower and put people in my dashboard. I should find you somewhere. There are still people whose 'pooters are down, on holiday or just haven't posted for a while who have yet to hear what is happening. I hope they don't leave it too late. I know Guido is trying to cover that.

I have had my second go at the Gym and i have saddle sores on my butt. It is sore! Do you think anyone will notice if i go tomorrow with a cushion down my trousers. The cycling was no problem but after 10 minutes my backside was in agony. Talk about chafe. It is going to have to toughen up as i have to increase my time each week. It doesn't help that i have short legs so i rock from side to side as i pedal. I am going to try Vaseline tomorrow...

Well i am off to play some more.

Jenny <><

Moved from J'Land

Well this is my new blog, or rather a continuance from the old 'Stop The Clock'. I think i will migrate the old one as 'Stop The Clock Archive'. If it all goes pear shape i won't be too sad. I will have to get used to this, it took me long enough to get used to AOL. Off now to go and put the others on alert if i can.

Jenny <><