Post Christmas.

My Christmas Day walk.  I finally walked to the end of the esplanade. And could get no further!  My chariot doesnt do sand dunes.

So I have extended the walk in the other direction.  Although the views of the fish factory are not the most picturesque.

Christmas Day was spent quietly.  Just the Dawn Patroller and I. 

Pheasant for dinner. 

And lots of wine.

The weather was totally foul on Boxing Day - as was I - so no walk.

Sunday we had our eldest daughter and two grandsons visit from Edinburgh.

Suitably awestruck at the sight of the North Sea.  

And of Grandma in full walking mode.

Later on in the day I introduced the boys to acrylic paint.  Which has been applied with gusto, so much so it still hasnt dried. And acrylic paint was chosen specifically as it dries quickly.

Number 1 grandson is better than I , my placement of subject leaves a lot to be desired. Spiderman would not have had feet if Grandma had painted him.

I finished the day off with lots of wine sorting the world out with daughter as one does. Especially avec  le vin.

Which meant that today with 34 m.p.h winds and rain and gloom/darkness I didnt do the seaside walk -  again.

Hope you all had a wonderful Christmas.  Still got New Year to go.  Oh God and the resolutions........

Being Grandparents.

So glad I checked Google to find out if what we were experiencing was normal!  One plea was from someone who was the same age as me, 65, who as she said, "Didnt look it."  I like to think I dont look it, well I do not dress it. But thats probably as far as it goes.

Our eldest daughter and partner came to stay last Wednesday.  With our two grandsons aged 6 and 3.

The Kids loved the Playpark.  All the kids.......

I met them for lunch after they had also hit the Kids Activities at the Lighthouse Museum.

Following which I crashed and chilled in my shedudio.

After an evening of grown up enjoyment including red wine being woken at 5a.m. by 

was not a great experience.  

We then hit Fraserburgh Heritage Centre.  Which is conveniently placed just across the car park to the Museum of Scottish Lighthouses.

It really is an amazing and fascinating place.  Totally run by volunteers.  I learn something every time I go in.

 This is a mock up of driving a rib on the sea, a lifeboat, you press buttons and get the radio speaking to you, engine noises, wowee.

 This train used to tootle up and down the Beach Boulevard.  Moves afoot to return it to there rather than remaining static in the museum.  But hey ho, enjoyed whatever. 

The grandchildren on an old herring fishing boat.  Apparently the hold was smelly.  As it should be.

The three generations found lots of interest.  

The DP and I perused an old map to find the croft our house once was, before being rebuilt, using some of the original granite walls.  But more interesting to us was that it once was within the vast estates belonging to the Frasers late of Cairnbulg Castle.  And there it was on this map dated 1880 something.  

Because of the celebration ? of the first world war there were displays of local heroes.  Including the medals of the grandfather of our butcher.  

I love the fact that they display all these personal mementoes that are important to people you know.....

In the afternoon everyone, but me, went to New Aberdour Beach.  It is a very popular beach with the locals, possibly as it is so sheltered.  In the Summer the Fraserburgh Beach is packed with tourists, golden sands...and clean.  But the locals pile in to New Aberdour with picnics, barbecues.

I have always liked it, but always feel it a tad dour.

The caves are amazing.  Lots of tales around them.

 Rock pools as well as sand.

 Also on the beach, or very near...

 St.Drostans Well.  
  The well is just to the east of the carpark at the base of a hill. St Drostan used the water of this spring to baptise local people and was famed for his miracle cures. St Drostan died at Glenesk in 809AD. His remains were conveyed from Glenesk to Aberdour where they were placed in a stone coffin and long believed to work wondrous cures.


 Despite all this culture, fresh air and fun the grandchildren were still up early next morning.

The DP and I were not.  Well not physically, but the senses surely were.

24 plus hours later just about back to normal.  They have gone home. Bless.

Pre Christmas Catch up.

Sunset on the Forth Road Bridge, Edinburgh.

Vehicles leaving and coming.

 

Tradesmens Entrance into Edinburgh Castle.  
 

After dog sitting over the weekend the Dawn Patroller went off to Edinburgh for a few days.  Taking costly gifts to three of the daughters and two of the grandchildren.  And taking lots of high tech photographs, none of the grandchildren......

Without the master chef I got a bit fed up of Ryvitas.  Had some beans on toast one evening which set off Sith cat's memories of tin opening meaning meat, sadly our cats get dry biscuits only, but they both have an excellent set of clean teeth.

Yesterday was somewhat better as my art group had their Christmas Lunch at the Leisure Centre.

There are certainly at least two, if not more, well under retirement age, but it was busy and the waitress charged us all at the OAP rate!!  Thats really why everyone is smiling.

The day before that a small group gathered at the Lighthouse Museum to make Christmas Wreaths.  I staggered in carrying about six bags, two crammed with most of the evergreen prunings from our garden, bags with ribbons, fixings, etc.  Only to find the 12 who had signed up had reduced to 5.....

 
I also introduced the masses (!) to making Pomanders.

Oranges, Cloves, Ribbons, Orris root powder, cinnamon powder, nutmeg, mixed spice, all dusted over.  The smell was divine, we were all off on one, far better than the illegal stuff.

 All my Christmas Parcels have now gone.  And yes  we had the whole Security Questions on each one.  I am so glad I hadnt shopped at Anne Summers.

So now I have no excuse. Do we get a tree or not?  My efforts so far have been to bring on the bits and pieces.  

  
Which basically consisted of me plonking wherever.

 

 
Whilst walking past the front window, glancing in, I realised that this Santa had been mooning at every person person passing......

The Dust Settles....

Well, you didnt expect me to start cleaning after an exhausting week of rellies and hangers on did you?

NO!

Our cats are only just moving back in out of the shedudio.   

The one pictured above is one of, oh it must be, the hundred living at the Willows Animal Rescue Centre.  

This one, in my favourite colour of cat, appears to be working out how to get in the cage and eat the guinea pig.

Some of my time since my family left on Saturday has been chilling out, along with our two cats, down the shedudio.

I have been drawing with the brush,  not very successfully.  

Had a break, much needed after the failed exercise, of drawing with a pencil.

 

Have to admit I really have not done anything about the dust, but me and the washing machine and the clothes line have really been going it.  All bedding and towels washed and dried.  Pillow cases into the ironing basket, the rest folded ready to go back on the beds. Towels back into drawers.

Also been out distributing NEOS Catalogues to cafes, Leisure Centre, oh just everywhere.

While scooting from the shed to the house am totally horrified by the amount of weeds shooting up everywhere.  So when I do get the dust to settle and then vacuum it up I have to go outside and kill things.

Speaking of killing things, anyone else in the UK been inundated with b****y flies?  I know why, it happens every year, harvest time.  Combine Harvesters due any minute.  Then I have no chance of dust settling.

 
 

Supergran,

Whooo.  Not sure I am any good on the Grandma front.  

Eldest daughter, partner, and 4 year old and one year old, arrived Thursday.  Both the DP and I are only just upright.

Friday they all went to the Museum of Scottish Lighthouses.

While Grandma was doing her volunteering (and trying to knock the business managers nose off.)


Today, following an evening of much wine quaffing, everyone, (apart from Grandma who had quaffed far too much, but really wanted a bit of peace and quiet), went off to Aden Country Park.  Which among other things, ruined mansion, Museum, also has working circa 1950 farm.

Sadly, not many 1950's animals, apart from the above.  And a stuffed cow below, presumably from the 1950s.

But the boys enjoyed themselves, boys do tend to roar and try to be scary.

When they returned, it was Grandmas turn.  While the wee one had a nap, I instructed how to make a pirate out of a loo roll inner.  

Seriously, all his own work.  Let me know if you want to know how, or are daft enough.

We made a pirate hat out of newspaper and skull and crossbones printed off and glued on.

Together we made, Pirate mask, Captain Hook's hook, from plastic cup and foil, and spyglass from kitchen paper inner.  One happy Pirate, looking fierce, as thats what Pirates do apparently.

Plan was to let the kids fly a kite.  Big Kids took over.

Little kids didnt seem to mind.

They return home tomorrow.

And leave me with one big question.  Why did I have four daughters?