alone at last

I am alone in the house - gloriously, peacefully alone! This has not happened since mid-July.  One way or another the house has always been full of:

• builders working on the kitchen reno (nearly finished, but we're having a little break until the worktops are ready to fit).
• plumbers fitting the new boiler and radiators.
• my lovely husband and stepsons + girlfriends.
• my parents and mother in law who came to stay this week. The plan was to celebrate my birthday and do the big reveal on the kitchen (Oops!). My dream of cooking a fabulous meal had to be modified a little - big thanks to my Mum for turning up with enough chicken pie to feed an army.  Also thanks to Mr A-P's Mam for cleaning the brick dust off the contents of my kitchen cupboards, ready to go back into service.

Today everyone has gone home/away/out/back to work and I sit in solitude to write. (Okay - so I'm waiting for the Rangemaster guy to come and fix one of the burners on the new cooker, but I reckon that doesn't count).

Guys - I love you all, but a girl needs a moment to herself sometimes!

So before I go off to sit and stare into space in our new sun room (I think that's what we're calling it), here are some pics of the birthday loveliness that was bestowed upon me this week:

a fab Gareth Davies 'seaweed' print that I hankered after when we were in N. Wales

(can't find any details for a link, but it was bought from here)

stylish things for our new kitchen

(they'll all be wanting 'Shaw's the Drapers' linens soon - you saw it here first!)

the exact book I wanted

good things from my friends' clever hands

and sweet words from my stepson...

the water may be choppy sometimes, but we sail our little family ship together!

I am a very lucky girl.

voyage round my mother in law

To cap off our week of wallpaper stripping, we headed 3 hours north to see my mother in law this weekend. The family gathered to celebrate her upcoming 80th birthday.  We did manage to prevail upon her to let someone else do the cooking when there were going to be 10 of us, but for the rest of the weekend she turned out food for all her guests with a degree of vigour that puts the rest of us to shame - must be all those years of Chapel teas and feeding the men on the farm.

As well as enough roast dinner to feed a gang of hungry shearers, there is always a choice of homemade puds. I thought I should share her Pineapple Upside Down Cake - a thing of great beauty that must (surely) be set for a smart restaurant comeback any day soon.

She also quite often gives me stuff when she's clearing out her cupboards.  As well as a rather lovely 70's craft pottery cheese dome (that I currently can't find the bottom of so haven't photographed), I have acquired a new tea towel for my collection.

Now I like a souvenir tea towel..... I also like a map.  I particularly like a souvenir tea towel with a map, especially if it's somewhere slightly off piste.  The jewel in my collection has long been...

relic of a previous life in the film industry

But my lovely mother in law has added the perfect companion piece....

the refuelling stop of choice en route to the Falklands

(Note to self - consider ironing textiles better before photographing them)

Will be heading back up the garden path this week - hoping to get some garlic and shallots in if the ground doesn't freeze before I get there.  Also need to prune the soft fruit bushes - more of that later.