HALF TIME.....

Two nil at half time.  Will it be two nil at full time. We hope, we wish.  We will need to tidy up soon or I will not be able to find the radio to listen to the match.

ALONE

Today is the first day that I am alone with the children (for a week). Yesterday, as a treat, before (I) went on a trip with work we all went to Martin Mere Bird Sanctuary near Preston. It has been a really Spring like week and we had a lovely, easy, drive over - until we were just around the corner that is! The suspension on the car was no longer suspension and we felt like we were all sat on the road, peddling furiously as the car dithered up the road to the Bird Sanctuary. Great! We got Recovery out - incidentally the service we received was excellent. We got away from Martin Mere later than we anticipated but with the car in tact and the suspension back. Along the way during that day we also found out that our car was on a "recall" list to have the fault rectified..... this made us feel really good. As a result of this I expect the car to fail again at any moment. Anyhow, as I face the weekend and following five days alone (yawn yawn) I am planning my crafty exploits, projects that I have started and not yet finished - you know the thing. I will tidy up all my wools and patterns etc and have a planning session as to what I am going to do in the next month or so.

Easter beckons.... I love Easter. Something in my head tells me it is the first turning point in the year, when all the flowers spring up into life.... lovely. Have a look at www.holidays.kaboose.com/easter for a little inspiration.

A NOT SO PERFECT END TO A PERFECT DAY

Supporting Manchester City is like, well Forrest Gump. Half the time you walk around in a daze and "life is like a box of chocolates, you never know what you gonna get". I thought we started off playing our usual skillful game. Trying to play the game of, well, football! However, quite a few teams in the Premiership don't really play football, they foul and cheat and con the referee (yesterdays referee was very conable, appauling in fact). But Sunderland, well, don't really deserve to be in the Premiership, in team purposes and ground purposes. After standing up terraces were replaced by all seater stadia (after the Hillsborough disaster, which I'm sure I will touch on in another post), visiting a Premiership ground was supposed to be, now, a safer place for the spectator. Whilst the spectator has been looked after admirably, the players have not. Yesterday the pitch at "The Stadium of Light" was in really bad condition, the ball bobbling about, so Mancini's style of pretty football did not come off. Instead Tevez and co were knocked off the ball fouled and kicked (sounds like a regular saturday night out in Sunderland). Enter Adam Johnson, our saviour. Enter Mission Impossible, no Tom Cruise didn't make an appearance (AJ doesn't look anything like TC, he's about three feet taller for a start and far better looking). What a goal, catch it if you can, but we should have won. We should have played them at their own game. We need to toughen up a little, no a lot. De Jong needs to play as mean as he looks... Come on boys, 4th place beckons.

LATER IN THE DAY

Later in the day "we will mostly be watching " Man City beat Sunderland.........

and some very lovely, flowery perfume....

this lovely plant .......

this lovely necklace......

thank you for my lovely needlework....

MOTHERING SUNDAY

Today, in the UK, is Mothering Sunday. Gifts are given to mum and she is looked after all day!!! Here is a snapshot of the gifts that I have received..... Do you think my girls have this opinion that their mother smells and has ageing skin!!!! I'm sure that never entered their heads as these gifts were given by my two year old and eight year old...

WRAP YOUR NEWBORN IN THIS.....

This all in one knitted wrap is one of the nicest patterns I have found for a newborn garment. It is knitted back first then following very simple steps of increasing and decreasing to form a wrap over front. It is fastened with two lengths of ribbon and tied at the back. More photos to follow of the finished garment. It is also knitted using one 50g ball of double knit. If you prefer a somewhat finer finish, 4 ply or cashmere works well too.

Thank you Jane

Just a short post to thank my friend Jane for the presents she gave my two little girls. They are lovely.... very good crochet, something I am unable to get to grips with.... thank you again Jane.

UPDATE ON ALL THINGS CRAFTY

During the next weekend, with my lovely better half back from business to do all the cleaning, cooking and general housekeeping duties, I will post some more of my knitted items and work in progress, this will stop my bitter feelings to all things red (incidentally, red is never a wool or fabric colour that I will ever use)

KNIGHTS IN SHINING ARMOUR? MAYBE

Well, I am unsure of where to start this post. On the day of the League Cup Final, I tuned into my usual five live sport to find a Man United fan being interviewed about his teams chances of lifting the cup. No, alas, he could not talk about that, about the joy and pride of his "beloved" team playing at Wembley, the first words that came out of his mouth were "we are doing all this to silence our noisy neighbours". This made be laugh out loud, but mostly I felt very sorry for this individual, who incidentally did not have a Manchester accent. I would feel the utmost pride if my team were at Wembley, playing in a final, not jealous feelings that a team on your doorstep are on the way up and you are on the way down. Maybe a change of colours is needed!!!

During the next week, the "Red Knights" made themselves known to all that they wanted to buy Manchester United from that lovely god fearing family the Glazers. The Red Knights are a bunch of very rich Manchester United (glory hunters) fans who, the media say, are willing to pay upwards of £1 Billion to purchase this once money making machine. In the middle of this bunch of people is Keith Harris, the fixer. He, apparently has the ability to broker a deal between these Knights and the Glazer crew (just like he didn't do for Mr Ashley at Newcastle).

I'm sure you are following the story so far. If not and you have lost the will to live, or carry on reading, then CBS Drama (channel 149 on SKY) are re running Dynasty. This is somewhat easier to follow.

I take no pleasure (I had to say this to make myself look like a reasonable human being) in the demise of Manchester United, going around the world with their begging bowls. Oh how things have changed. I will wake up in a minute from a dream, Manchester United in no trouble at all, Francis Lee still at the helm at Maine Road, yes, Maine Road........ still there with a falling down stadium and a falling down team that spend their days in the pub instead of on the training ground. Thank you Manchester City oh and Jeff and Fallon will re marry in Dynasty. Another chocolate biscuit I think.