So Where Am I Now?

OK firstly, I stupidly tried to change my blog header and now it loads blurry. Apparently this is problem blogger are having and I can't get around it, I've tried loading the JPEG to host websites like photobucket but nothing is working so for now my title will have to look a bit lame.

So where am I now? Nafplion, yep that's right Greece! I am here for research and it is so, so lovely, therefore, I thought I would share some pics of the loveliness that currently surrounds me, colonial architecture and views...

 

I'm working, honestly...

So where the devil have I been?!

Indeed where have I been? I start a blog and then disappear...well where do I begin?

Christmas was manic, I mean really manic. The boy and I had the genius idea to invite any of our friends who couldn't get home for Christmas for dinner at our insey, teeny, weeny flat. So with us, 8 people needed to be crammed in to our living room which was already being largely taken up by a humongous, yet twinkley, Christmas tree.

On top of this we also had to visit all our family in both Wales and Birmingham in the snow

I cooked for two days! TWO whole days. The meal included a large turkey, a ham (bought from Joe's, the best butchers in the world and based in Bala, North Wales), a mushroom wellington for the vegetarian, a wide variety of veg, stuffing, home made cranberry sauce, and then all the usual things like mince pies, cakes and cheeses. In the end I was so exhausted (little did I know the full reason for this at the time) I didn't take any pics of the sumptuous meal that we made.

Then I got ill.

To cheer me up whilst I was poorly sick the Boy surprised me with a bunch of sweet pink carnations!

New year came and went in a fevered state. We watched the original Star Wars trilogy and pretty much went to bed.

On New Years day I woke up feeling more human and the Boy, being the sweetie that he is, made me fresh bread for breakfast mmmm. 

As I was feeling more like my old self I decided it was time to take up some knitting and began making the obligatory scarf, which is currently laid to one side with the suspicion that I have messed it up and may need to start again. I just don't think I have enough patience...

Other lovely things we managed to do over the holiday period were to go to see Swan Lake which was looovely (and has inspired me to look for adult ballet classes) and spent a day thrifting and bunting making in an attempt to look like we are proactively planning the wedding (due to take place in just over 6 months!).

I found some lovely fabrics, plates and some clothes (not for really for the wedding but clearly a necessary purchase!)

And for some it the entire holiday season was all too much...

Out with the new and in with the old

So I've started a blog, how very modern of me. I'm not generally a modern type of gal, in fact it is only in the past few months I've embraced Twitter and the smartphone revolution.

I like old things, they always seem to be made with more care, to have more character; all utter nonsense I'm sure but in this age of Primarche and Ikea (both of which I admit to regularly frequenting) it seems nothing is made to last, it's all about instant gratification, getting the right look now and throwing it away tomorrow.  So as I am also poverty stricken with saving for THE wedding, I am trying not to buy new. This means charity shopping, car boot sales (please, please let me know of any ones you would recommend) and lusting after the goods for sale at the local antique shops.

So far our tiny (repeat TINY) flat is a mishmash of Ikea and charity shop randoms which often also seem to have originally derived from Ikea, and it drives me crazy. There will be photos and more rants about how crazy it drives me at some point soon no doubt...

I am also collecting old plates, candle sticks etc. for the wedding (which should always be followed by the dun dun der music of imposing doom). Our wedding, the small, outdoor, candle lit wedding that is now the large wedding, inside, during daylight hours, but the gods were kind and we found this little lovely, hidden amongst the sand dunes of North Wales...

 

The entrance to the tiny church yard

 

 

The back

The inside (www.snowdoniaguide.com)

The beach behind

Isn't it just the lovliest?! It is really old and doesn't even have electricity, it's beautiful. But there is a catch, well a couple actually, the first is that it fits 80 people, well the boy has to invite every aunt, uncle, and cousin twice removed and replaced with a robot, which leaves very little room. The second catch is that it is in North Wales, not quite commuting distance from Shefftown and to qualify to get married there we have to go every month, but isn't it so worth it?!

Originally we wanted an outdoor wedding at night by candle light until my married friend had to break it to me that here in England you have to be married indoors and before 6pm. Who makes up these silly rules?!

There will be so much more about THE wedding (dun dun der!)...

So there you have it, my first post. A mini moan about consumerism and a long gush about our church.