Christmas Newsletter 2019

 It is hard to believe that 2019 is almost over and we are fast approaching 2020!
Another decade has flown by...

Here I am writing the Christmas Newsletter again!

This year Kevin was been semi-retired and not worked overseas at all - I retired when we left Abu Dhabi in 2013. However we both find plenty to occupy ourselves. We go to the cinema frequently... I have my crafting and yoga and Kevin is always busy working at home, gardening or working on the house. He also enjoys cooking, trying out and developing new recipes!

After spending last Christmas with us, Sophie set off in January to take up her new teaching  job in Melbourne, Australia, She seems to have fallen on her feet, living in North Brighton and teaching at St Kevin's. This picture is before she left - will all this fit in my suitcase?

We are looking forward to her visiting us this Christmas...

Mum and Dad have again needed a lot of support - scroll down to the next post for their newsletter - Liz has been up to stay, regularly throughout the year, to help and we often enjoy a pint in the pub...

 

 Andrew sits with Dad when I take Mum out for her weekly outing to the hair salon, the cathedral and Sainsbury's.

We find plenty of occasions to open a bottle of bubbles... Valentines Day (our 43rd Wedding Anniversary), Dad's 93rd Birthday in March, Mum's 88th Birthday in June...

In March and June I went on weekend crafty retreats, meeting up with old friends and enjoying different workshops. I led the one where we made the cards in the second picture.

In April I was 67... Kevin and I went out for dinner after we had enjoyed cake with Mum and Dad!

At Easter the weather was good enough for a barbecue in Mum and Dad's garden and Abigail, the youngest member of the family, Caroline and Tomi's daughter, attended .

 

In May, we again took part in the village Plant Pot Trail.
My creation was a fairy town; we made Mary Mary for Mum and Dad's...

 

We still regularly help Mum and Dad entertain the Golden Oldies (Mum's brothers and sisters and their other halves) to lunch.
In June it was a special one in our garden to celebrate their platinum Wedding Anniversary.

A few days later it was Caroline and Tomi's wedding...

And then Kevin and I set off for two months in Australia - it was lovely to see all our family - especially as we all went to Fiji for the week of Dan and Lizzie's wedding.

We came back to the UK however to find Mum in a very poor way - we thought it was her rheumatoid arthritis - but it turned out to be a fractured hip.
To cut a long story short - she ended up in hospital, then rehab for getting on for a month. We all looked after Dad but then he went into respite for a week...

Eventually all was back to normal - and in fact Mum is walking better than she has for a long while!! Her first day back home, we took her to the pub...

We put our house on the market just before we left for Australia - and now we are waiting for completion.

We will move back to Melbourne in February - of course I am very worried as to how Mum and Dad will fare without us...

But now we are looking forward to Christmas... and a big family dinner here...

Anyway I think that gives you an idea of our 2019 - hope yours was a good one!

Wishing you all the best for a Happy Christmas and a wonderful 2020!

Sue and Kevin


xx

Merry Christmas from Marjorie and Frank Willatt 2019

I was hoping that there might be less doom and gloom to report this year – and, yes, we have had some good news as well as bad…       When to start?

I think with the arrival of Abigail on the 14^th of December 2018.  A gorgeous baby girl for Caroline and Tomi! Not without difficulties as Caroline had blood pressure problems and was in and out of hospital, but all was well by the time of the family Christmas dinner, held this year at Sue and Kevin's home. 

We had a lovely Christmas time! Lizbeth and Pete stayed in Devon as John, Julia, Chloe and Emma were staying (visiting from Australia) – they popped up to see us just after Christmas. After this all the Briens’ family went off to Kitzbuhel skiing! Lucas and the girls were naturals!

Immediately after Christmas, after spending New Year on Anglesey with friends, Sophie went off to Australia too, to start her new job at a private boys’ school in the Melbourne area.  She was helped by her three brothers who all live there.  Sophie is loving it all and doing well, and recently we have seen pictures of her rowing on the Yarra!  Of course, we miss her but are looking forward to her visiting this Christmas! In this picture Sophie is at the Chandon Winery enjoying some bubbles! We have happy memories of there when we visited Australia in 1999!

But we too have had plenty of occasions for bubbles during the year – Frank was 92 in April and I was 88 in May.  

So … we trundled on with the aid of our family and carers …  Sister Kath and I managed to get to Emanuelle’s wedding on June 1^st in wheelchairs! I must say that we are both walking now!

We did the annual village plant pot trail and were pleased to be mentioned ‘in dispatches’! I am still baking and making plot toffee and so on – but didn’t do the jams and chutneys this year.

We haven’t had quite so many Golden Oldie occasions this year but we all got together in June when Frank and I had our 70th wedding anniversary. We had a card from the Queen…and we celebrated with a garden party at Sue and Kevin's.  They have a beautiful garden. 

Find the facebook video here

Later in June we celebrated Caroline and Tomi’s wedding. This wasn’t without its worries, not the least being that Tomi was seriously ill in hospital just days before.

 

Lizbeth made the cake!

The early summer was great and we spent late afternoons in the garden. We couldn't of course go away although we still have the cottage.  Andrew and family used it for the Menai Straits Regattas.  The weather was wet and windy and so they only managed 5 races but did well and were pleased with everything.

During the summer my knee which has been painful since I broke my leg last year became worse and more painful. I thought it was to do with my rheumatoid arthritis, but I managed with the help of painkillers. This had started to be a problem just before Sue and Kevin went to Australia for 2 months. Their trip included Dan and Lizzie’s wedding which was held in Fiji.

When they came back I was really struggling to walk and could not get down the kitchen steps into the carport. Within days of their return Kevin took me to A&E and after X Rays and other tests, it was eventually discovered that I had a severely broken hip. Personally I was beyond caring…  I was admitted to the Derby Royal and had an operation 24 hours later.  After 10 days in hospital I was transferred to a rehabilitation place for another 10 days.  Sue moved into Holly Ave to be with Frank then Lizbeth took a turn. Andrew, Kevin and Kathryn helped, especially with visiting as eventually Frank went into a home providing Respite for a few days.  This meant that he wasn't there when I came home which was rather sad, but I had time to settle in (in fact on the first night Sue and Kevin took me to our village pub and I had a huge gin and tonic - but couldn't eat all of my dinner!).  

Now I am walking very well – better than for months - and I am much more back to normal!

On the 23^rd November Tomi’s mum arrived in the UK for a couple of months (she couldn't get her visa in time for Caroline and Tomi's wedding - you wouldn't believe the palava she went through for a visa to come out and go back to Nigeria) so she is in time for Abigail's first birthday and christening and Caroline and Tomi's church blessing.

 We both love it when Abigail comes to visit! And Michael loves to play with his niece!

And so we are coming to our November lunchtime party for my brothers and sisters. This will be the first time that Brian cannot be with us – we were all saddened when he passed away in October after fighting illness for so long.

Lizbeth, Pete, Ella, Leo and Lucas are off to Australia for Christmas – but the rest of us will have Christmas dinner together…

I hope everyone has had a good 2019 – would love to hear your news…

With lots of love and wishing you the very best for Christmas and the New Year – 2020

Marg and Frank

xx