Yesterday was a marvellous day. Pete and Dawn and Carol and John all came for lunch. And guess what they brought? Champagne of course! No idea what we were celebrating – apart from a beautiful friendship and an extension of Carol’s 70th birthday celebrations…..
Carol brought the bottle of champagne I had bought her for her birthday, saying, “I shall never drink that all on my own! So let’s share it, shall we?” Never one to say ‘no’ to champagne, even with a gippy tummy, I naturally acquiesced.
Pete and Dawn arrived a few minutes later, and Peter came in with a flourish, brandishing a bottle of champagne, too! ‘Just because’ was the reason given. Smashing!
So we started off with Peter’s contribution as an aperitif, intending to share Carol’s later on, maybe after the dessert course. In the end, though, we didn’t get that far, having enjoyed a bottle of red with the meal. “I’ll take it home again then, shall I?” said Carol, “We’ll drink it at my house next time we meet up, maybe!” Well, I won’t say ‘no’ if she’s still got it next time we go.
We had a really good get-together. Gosh, they are all such good company, and we spent all the time chatting, tripping over each other almost, thrilled as we were to be together again. Not only chatting but laughing our little socks off. At one point we were doubled with laughter at the dinner table and Dawn was streaming with tears, so funny we found the topic of conversation. Eeeh, it were lovely.
I was pleased that John was able to keep up the pace. We had a moment, just before the guests arrived, when I wasn’t sure whether we’d manage it. Paul and Harriet arrived unexpectedly, just on mid-day. “Come in, come in,” we said, waving them in. John made his way to the front door and stretched his arms out to give Paul a hug. They hugged but, as they did so, Paul felt John’s arms sliding away and then his whole body slumping until he landed in a heap on the floor. Hmmm……
“I don’t know what that was all about,” John declared when he came round and was upright again. Neither did we. I turned to my stock response in these situations: have a glass of water. It might enable to blood to flow a bit easier to the brain, maybe? Anyway, he recovered enough to greet our guests and to join in throughout the afternoon, only crashing out on the sofa once they had all departed.
It was rather nice that Paul and Harriet were there when our guests arrived. I think it is a while since they had all seen each other, so I was delighted that they could have a few minutes chatting. Don’t you just love the fact that your besties have seen all your children grow into superb adults and still love them the same as when they were little?
We took it easy today after all the excitement of the week so far. We had a lie-in and then drove to Solihull for John to have a blood test and me to collect my sunglasses. We had planned to drive over to Birmingham, too, to visit Mum. However, we were both a bit tired, so we decided to phone the ward instead to see how she was before making the journey if necessary.
In the end, I couldn’t get through. The phone line either rang out or was engaged. I really did try to get through. I dialled the appropriate numbers 47 times over a period of an hour and a half and no joy. I reasoned that if there was anything to report the hospital would get in touch, so I plan to visit tomorrow instead.
We came home and enjoyed an afternoon watching the cricket. Well, I say enjoyed – I think that is stretching it a bit. We enjoyed the action with some good shots being played and excitement as wickets were claimed and then denied by the third umpire. But it was painful to watch from an England supporters point of view. Come on England!!!
This evening we prepped a few nibbles ready for a visit from Margaret and Chris, friends we’ve made through church. And guess what they brought? Champagne, of course!! Lush, eh? Two days on the trot! Don’t mind if I do!! Hehe.
We had a lovely, chatty evening. Again, such good company, with the conversation flowing from the minute they walked through the door until the minute they walked out of it to go home. Really enjoyed ourselves.
Regrettably, no photos from either event. Too busy nattering to think about it!!
Meanwhile, over in the Kenilworth Newbies clan, Michael was busy last night at an awards evening where he’d been shortlisted for an award for ‘Improving Health and Wellbeing’ at work. Howzat? Another bottle of champagne might be required, do you think?
I can’t help but feel so proud of all of our boys. Their dedication to their work is breathtaking and it’s amazing how much success they are experiencing. Long may it continue!
Take care everyone. Hug your loved ones tight. God bless.