Quite a Week!

This week's a biggie- Lent on Wednesday, then Valentine's Day on Thursday, like oil and water, and REALLY bad timing when you think about it. I mean, say for example, that you're considering giving up chocolate for Lent. Well, strictly speaking, you'll have to wait till the 'wearing of the green' to pop those truffles! Or what if you're (re)taking the pledge for the duration? Better put that champagne on ice and treat yourself to a nice long Shloer instead-what a bummer!  And, as it happens, an entirely hypothetical situation for me as neither champers nor truffles have made an appearance around these parts since sometime in the last millennium! I'm just feeling your pain, you see...cos I'm all heart! (Geddit!?)

 Thankfully, I've given it all some serious thought, and I'm afraid that the only way around this tricky situation is to
a) come to the obvious realization that truffles and champagne do not,  in fact, fall into the categories of chocolate, and alcohol respectively- rather they are both gourmet foods, and therefore exempt.  Or alternatively, and perhaps more attractively, you could
b) begin Lent on Friday instead...or better still, why not wait till Monday? Let's face it, starting Lent on a weekend is arguably self abuse, AND as an added bonus, you'll also have a week less to do! A win win either way, I'd say, and no problem at all, peeps, just glad I could help.

I'll be honest though, I'm not a MASSIVE fan of Valentine's Day. It just all seems a bit contrived, and I can think of nothing more boringly predictable, than getting engaged/married on Valentine's Day. Yawn. Don't misunderstand, I LOVE getting flowers from Loverboy (on that blue moon), but I also love to buy them  myself, for us all to enjoy. If truth be told, I'd actually be annoyed if he bought flowers on February 14th, (especially red roses- double yawn), because they're SO bloody overpriced! Spend the same amount two days later, Lover, and get me twice as much! (He's totally grasped the concept of the first part of that statement, ....I'm still working on the second).


 Contrarily, I WOULD be hurt if I didn't get a card- I'm not quite sure why! Maybe it's a throwback from NEVER getting any in school, as in NEVER EVER EVER, and enduring the annual humiliation of watching others slowly remove them from their school bag one by one, then smugly arrange them on their desk like badges of honour! (Bitter? Moi?)

Now don't get me wrong, I'm ALL for the big, grand, romantic gestures..... and the wee, small, much less grand ones too.... but not especially on Valentine's Day. A little originality please!  How about a surprise bouquet on a wet Tuesday in April? Or breakfast in bed on a blustery Sunday in October? Or a champagne beach picnic at the Caravilla in July? (Ya listening, sweetie?) Something that shows your love just because...and not 'just because' either.

When I was at the MAD Awards in London in September, (Whoops, did I just drop something? Because DO feel free to nominate me again this year...top of the page...thanks babes), I met the wonderful Lucy who writes the fab blog Lulastic and the Hippyshake. On her blog yesterday she wrote a post about thoughtful, original, romantic FREE Valentine's gifts and I LOVED them...(especially the last two....in case a certain person's reading.....just sayin'.)
 Happy Monday! Emmax

  I've joined up with Sarah Miles at Hello Wall today for the Monday Club-go on over and take a peek at the rest! 

Home Again, Home Again, Jiggity Jig!

All roads lead to...

So we're home now from the Caravilla, having just done a three weeker up there, and a very fine time we had too! After a washout week weather wise over the 12th, THIS time I went prepared- as in, I  ditched the heels and pashminas for welly bobs and a raincoat! (Before you ask, OBVIOUSLY, I still brought a makeup and jewellry selection-that would be a step too far.)
As it turned out though, this time we were SO lucky with the weather, that the wellybobs didn't even get a wee turn! The kids lived in shorts and t shirts, the sun (mostly) shone, and life was good. If I've learned one thing about Donegal summers, it's that just because it's pouring in the morning, doesn't mean you won't be sunning yourself and skinny dipping that afternoon... and vice versa. Once I realised that, I actually began to like it, because it forced me not to plan too far ahead. I tried to just let the good times roll with the weather, because Irish chances were, we'd probably be listening to the rain beat off the roof later on!

Our 'The Hills are Alive' moment

But anyway, now we're home, and the house seems MASSIVE and our bed super duper luxurious! (Now, dont get me wrong, the bed in the caravilla is cosy and snug..... but more than a tad vertically challenged, and a teensy bit too compact and bijoux pour moi on a long term basis.)
And don't even get me started on the emotional reunion with my bath! Having been bathless for three weeks, it was SUCH a treat to fill it with Jo Malone bubbles and sink into it, Grazia in hand. Showers have their place-they're functional and fast- the hygiene equivalent of a rocky bar, or a penguin, or possibly even a club milk, but a bath...well, it's a really good caramel square, or a slice of home made coffee cake. There's simply no comparison. One scratches an itch, the other is an itch all of its own!

My usual morning walk

And yet....after a day or so, the novelty of baths and beds and space has begun to wear off, and I find myself missing the beautiful simplicity of life in the Caravilla. The way that after the few days it takes me to wind down, real life with its many pressures, appointments, to do lists  and complications begins to seem very far away.
And the simple things like a walk on the beach, or the sun on your face, or the sound of the waves, can bring a contentment you only get to appreciate away from all the hustle and bustle.
It's probably something to do with the fact that the summer is drawing to a close, and although we'll be up again for a few weekends, our long stretch there is over until next year, and that makes me a little sad. The days are shortening again, a new term is looming and the mundanities of school shoes, hair cuts and potty training are on my immediate horizon.
Soon the long, sunny summer days will be only a memory...(And a hazy one at that, because obviously I'm already forgetting the quare bit of torrential rain and the numerous times we shook our heads muttering 'It's desperate- you'd think it was November! Sure you wouldn't live here unless you had to!')
But where there's a yin, there's a yang, and a whole lot of good stuff is coming up for us too. My little sister is getting married in a few weeks, and my brother and his lovely family are coming home from California for the celebrations. My other sister's new baby is due at the very same time, (although fingers crossed, Junior won't make an appearance till after the ceremony, because like me, she's signed up to be both bridesmaid and wedding singer!) And then, after all that excitement and family time, at the end of September, I'm off to the MAD awards in London ... and 3 whole nights away with Loverboy! As I said,  plenty to look forward to.
So here's to the end of one season and the beginning of another....but, hold on, not quite yet, it's still August after all.