Azlan

He has finally arrived. I went on Monday morning to the Isle of Wight to collect him. We arrived in plenty of time to catch the hovercraft but as we were about to board I realised that I had left the breeders details in the car! We decided to board anyway and call somebody the other end to look up the details. It was the first time that I had been on a hovercraft, what a strange sensation. It feels like being in an aeroplane in fairly heavy turbulence.
The breeder lets the cats have the run of most of the house. They were everywhere. It was really lovely to see. OH adores him and had no idea that I was getting him. Azlan is so affectionate. He and Bella are not seeing eye to eye at the mo. Hopefully that will change in time.

Horsing Around…

I am still in shock with a silly grin on my face! OH is buying me a horse. It all started just over a week ago when my riding instructor called me to say that he had found me a horse that would be suitable for both OH and I. We were not even looking for one. He is from Belgium and had been over there looking for horses for other clients but just happened to find one that he thought that we would like. Vasco is a Belgium Warm Blood and about 16 hands high, I think. Anyway I said that I needed to talk to OH and would let him know. I contacted him on the Sunday with the view to looking at the yard he is going to rent and talk livery charges. I went to the yard on the Monday, which is fab and discussed livery. Vasco would be on a working livery for £300 per month, which inc a lesson a week for me. OH and I were due to ride the following Thursday (Thursday just gone. I am still walking funny lol) so I said that we would let him know then. It was only that morning that OH said that I could have him. I cannot even begin to explain how excited I am. He is due to arrive early next year. As soon as I have a pic of him I will post it on here. I have not even seen him yet!!

Shopping!

Oh boy, have we shopped today. OH needed to replace his skis and ski boots, so we decided to go to a fantastic shop Snow and Rock. Thankfully MIL called at 8am to see if we wanted to leave the kids with her. Good job we did, we ended up being at the shop for THREE HOURS!!!!! As well as choosing the boots and skis he wanted, they had to be set up/fitted correctly. Anyway I cannot complain because I have got my very first pair of skis!! OH also treated me to a new jacket, which is gorgeous. Check out the fluffy pair of pink slippers!! Skiing is OH sport and horse riding is mine. As OH has taken up horse riding, I feel obliged that I should make more of an effort with “his” sport. We also brought Olivia her first pair of skis for Christmas; she is going to be so chuffed.

Vroom! Vroom!

On Wednesday OH had his works do at Palmer Sport and I was invited along (wooooo, hooooo!). Palmer Sport has four road car circuits and one off-road circuit. I had the most fantastic time.







Our team drew the short straw because we had the FPA cars first thing. The track was wet in places. I did not enjoy that very much. We then drove the Land Rovers on the off road circuit. That was great fun. What a fantastic car. The Jaguar JP1 was next. 370 bhp!! That was very scary and I suffered a little from motion sickness so came in a few laps early! We then had lunch but unfortunately my stomach could only take vegetables, so I missed out on the lovely pud. We then could drive the Caterham 7 Superlight but I sat that one out because I wanted to save myself for the Porsche and Clio Cup. We then moved onto the Porsche and Clio. I went out in the Clio first. It took me a couple of laps to warm up and get the hang of it all. What a fantastic little car. I just wish I had longer in it. The Porsche was next. I want one. It has paddle shift to go up and down the gearbox. So when you are accelerating you do not have to lift your foot off the accelerator, just pull the paddle to go up a gear or two! I was really buzzing after driving those two cars. Lastly we had the Jaguar XKR, which OH fell in love with. Motion sickness caught up with me again and I had to end my stint a little early. All in all a really fantastic day to remember. Everybody had a great time and wants to go back. Some of the other teams had been 12-18 times before!!!!

My results are as follows (75 people in total)-
Porsche 911 JP3 40th Which I was very pleased with. OH came 34th.
Palmer Jaguar JP1 45th Not to bad considering I nearly wet my knickers!
Renault Clio Cup 54th I am sure I could have improved with a couple more laps.
Jaguar XKR 67th Must try harder next time! OH came 14th!
Caterham 7 Sat that one out. Will have a go next time.
Land Rover 42nd I was pleased with that.
Karts 70th I hang my head in shame. I was not giving it my all.

Overall I came 70th, which at least is not last I suppose. However OH came 8th, what a boy!

Remembrance Day

A day to remember those who lost their lives in war. On the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month in 1918 the guns of Europe fell silent. After four years of the most bitter and devastating fighting, The Great War was finally over. The Armistice was signed at 5am in a railway carriage in the Forest of Compiegne, France on November 11, 1918. Six hours later, at 11am, the war ended. That is why on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month we observe a 2-minute silence.

Olivia takes part in a Remembrance Day march every year with the Badgers and Cadets from St John Ambulance. I stayed and watched this year. We arrived at 10 am along with hundreds of other cadets from various organizations, British Legion etc. It was lovely turnout. The march was scheduled to leave at 10.30. At 10.30 the heavens opened, sods law! Thankfully it only lasted about half an hour but it was long enough for some of the children to be soaked through. We then had a service at the war memorial where Olivia and another Badger laid the St John poppy wreath, which was a very touching moment.

So Proud

Both of my girls have made me feel sooooo proud today. Youngest daughter was celebrated at school today for “being such a kind, helpful and friendly member of the class”. You get a certificate in assembly and have to stand up in front of the whole school to collect it. It brought a tear to my eye when I read the certificate in the school playground.

Eldest daughter is having a poem she wrote published in a book. I entered her poem in the Young Writers competition ages ago and completely forgot about it until I got a letter in the post this morning. Of course I will be buying a few copies of the book. The poem is as follows-

Dolphin Dolphin

Dolphin dolphin swim in the sea
Dolphin dolphin sing with me
Dolphin dolphin wiggle your tail
Dolphin dolphin swim like a whale

Chi Sono?

Sono musicista. Sono Americano. Il mio marito e Inglese. Ho una figlia e due figli. Sono molto bella. Io abito in centro di Londra ho tanti casi in tutto il mondo. Sono la ragazza di materiale! Chi sono?

The above is my Italian homework for this week. I feel so pleased with myself. However I cheated a little and got OH to help me when I got stuck. I will have to read it out in class tonight and see if they can guess whom the famous person is. It will be sods law that OH gets held up at work and I miss my lesson.