Firstly I apologise to all my subscribers and to those blog owners I subscribe to for such a lack of activity in the blogosphere.
I did have a bad cold and sore throat for a number of weeks, but that is no excuse.
I think in 2015 my blog will evolve.
In the past I've concentrated on the quantity of pictures, and though quality hasn't been bad I intend to upload less images. Where scattered throughout previous posts there may well have been the same scene repeated, I will be doing less of that.
Now that Christmas is over, I can only wish.............................
So, back to Christmas and my trip south.
Before I headed off I was visited by next doors cat.
This is Jerry, he has a brother called Ben.
For Christmas I drove down to Cheltenham. The first two days I spent with Marie and Chris before moving over to Longlevens, Gloucester to stay with Sarah, Phil and the gorgeous Audrey.
The drive as always was a pain. How people can stand to travel the M6 between Manchester and Birmingham daily is beyond me. The manufacturers of Prozac and other antidepressants must have a stake in keeping it crawling along.
Anyhow, I digress I arrived safely in Cheltenham.
Over the next few days I wined and dined (overdoing it on occasions that didn't agree with my alimentary canal) walked with the family to lovely places and enjoyed getting to know my lovely granddaughter Audrey.
There wont much dialogue, I hope you enjoy the pictures. Where required I will indicate the location.
So, it's on with the pictures.
A seasonally lit Cheltenham
Audrey and dad
Phil, Marie, Chris, Sarah and Audrey
Leckhampton Hill Car Park.
The next dozen pictures were taken up the hill.
A quite famous building !
Back in Cheltenham
A visit to Smokey Joe's Coffee Bar
Marilyn Monroe and James Dean were the doors to the washrooms
The gorgeous girl and the gnarled granddad
A selfie in the Everyman Theatre
Fabulous food at the Bar and Wok
(Watch what side dishes you order, you might find that the portions are quite enormous)
St Matthews
A morning walk in Cheltenham
The continued morning walk
Cyril
Heading for Longlevens, Gloucester, via the Aviator
After settling in and sleeping off my upset tummy, we headed out on Christmas Day to climb the National Trust's May Hill, what a fantastic place for a walk
She was a happy wee girl until the bitter cold at the summit made her curl up into the warmth of mum
Belties on May Hill
Atmospheric skies over the Severn
Flush Bracket S5151 on Trig Point 4696
After climbing May Hill we had an appetite.
Christmas dinner was fabulous.
A fair variety of birds were spotted on a short morning walk round Longlevens..............
......................while back at Phil and Sarahs the Goldfinches flittered about in the trees
I'll finish this post with these.............
..............a bubbly smiling rosey cheek and a winter rose.
Thanks for a great Christmas family.
I'll see you again soon.
I had been contemplating going across to Lincolnshire to wish my two eldest and their families a Merry Christmas, but after listening to the weather forecast decided on a night drive back to Scotland.
A wise decision, many of Derbyshire's major roads suffered badly from the snow that night. Saturday's traffic reports of tailbacks also gave me a feeling of satisfaction.
I got back on Saturday morning, but obviously too tired to join my fellow walkers in the Wigtownshire Ramblers.
The highlight of my trip ?
Have a guess, go on !
Making memories - beautiful.
ReplyDeleteThank you Rose, may your last evening of 2014 be a good one for you and may 2015 bring you joy
DeleteI think the highlight was definitely the beautiful Audrey and judging by the massive smiles any time she was near Grandad the feeling is mutual. Looks like you had a brill time, I'm very pleased you travelled home when you did considering the weather later on that day. We'll see you soon enough xx
ReplyDeleteYou're quite right No1, it was no contest. She just brightens the life of whoever steps into her world. All the best for 2015.
DeleteLooks like a good trip Jim. Even 40 years ago that bottleneck between Manchester and Brummie Land was always packed with cars any time of day. I,m surprised Wolverhampton folk still own a car with today's fuel costs. They must go through half a tank just getting onto the motorway :o) I used to know the Cotswold region fairly well and Gloucestershire is lovely. Like the Christmas lights photo but most of your photos can stand alone anyway, like the different bird photos.
ReplyDeleteHappy New Year and Best Wishes for 2015.
Hi Bob, It's a strange thing, but everytime I'm coming into Birmingham I remember the first time I made the trip. It was pre motorway and I was around 13 or 14. Must have been 56/57. My uncle was delivering a lorry load of toilet paper and other stuff. The smog was bad but I remember the wide roads and I'd never seen so many different vehicles. It's not changed much, but the smog's now gone which must be healthier.
DeleteA happy new year to you Bob here's wishing you the best for 2015.