Easter Holidays

I wanted to show you these photos from our recent holiday in Les Arcs 1950, France.
We drove the car through France, with a perfect stop-over in Paris and then a meander through the Champagne region.  Heaven!!
The weather, ironically, was warmer there than in England!  (not really surprising as it's been a lonnnng winter!).

We also shared the holiday with Jaimie's best friend at school, Thalia and her family.  Tanzin celebrated her 9th birthday on the slopes.

It was brilliant and we couldn't get over how much the girls, especially Tanzin, really enjoyed skiing and didn't want to stop!  Even for our daily crepe for lunch!

At Notre Dame Cathedral, Reims

Now that's a beer!

That's why he needs the beer!!!

Vin Chaud per moi!

Ski school every morning

Vines ready to ripen

Best smell in the world, fresh hot baguettes

Langres, a walled anicent city

One must have champagne in the Champagne region!

Hedges & ONJ

OK... Because you've asked for it, by popular demand, here is the latest development on the hedges....!!!!   Righteo, I'll come clean, no one asked, you've all got lives!  But I'm going to bore you anyway...

Can't say I've ever thought about hedges before, not exactly riveting are they?  But I tell you, after the amount of work we've put in over the past couple of weeks, I live and breathe hedges now!
C'mon ask me anything!!  So here are some truly boring photos (but not one of me driving the tractor, that would be a sight!)  By Summer, it'll be a gorgeous new hedge, fresh from the ivy trying to strangle its way in and we'll also have a fence so the darn dog Matilda doesn't keep escaping!

Thanks to my Aunty Pat, JP and I were able to go backstage to meet Olivia after her concert last week at the divine Royal Albert Hall.   I was in 7th heaven watching her perform and being so close to the stage singing my little heart out!  I'll try and get the photo of us 3 together to post here.

Before

half way there...

At the Royal Albert Hall

Perfect snowy weekend

This dire weather England is having brought us quite a bit of snow this weekend.
It's the coldest March on record, which I couldn't disagree with.

Ella, Finley, Jennine and Andrew from HK arrived on Friday for the weekend.  It was the perfect excuse to sit by the fire with them and eat, drink (and repeat!)  The kids loved playing in the snow.
Although we did manage to go outside once for a walk and to a pub for a very cosy roast lunch!

We have 3 days left of school before we head to France for Easter.  We're going to give skiing in Les Arcs 1950 a go.  http://www.arc1950.com/  This is our first time there skiing as we've only stayed there in the Summer time.

Finley & Jaimie

Icecream in the snow?!!  Crazy cats!

Ella sledding

Tanzin trying to hit me with a snowball, ha you missed!

Walkies

Words with friends

Scrabble. Addictive. Brain hurting. Good o'l fashioned fun. Tucked up in bed, I play each night with my Ma, cousins and best friends in Oz and Hong Kong.
(Notice I'm beating Mum by a fraction? It won't last long, so ill take this glory and run with it!)

Spring has sprung..

I wanted to share these photos of Granny's gorgeous little lambs.  In the past few weeks she has helped deliver about 12 lambs.  The girls love going around to bottle feed them.

And with spring, comes daffodils and snowdrops.  The daffodils are just starting to rise but our garden is fully scattered with bunches of snowdrops.

Happy Mothers Day!

Today is my first English Mother's Day - I'm not allowed to have two, so whilst in Rome (or Norfolk) it makes sense to join the crowd.

The kids were super happy, singing "Happy Mothers Day to youuu".  They devoured the pancakes that Tanzin cooked for me and presented me with flowers, cuppa tea and handmade cards in bed.

Plus, we all woke up to a light blanket of snow on the ground, which looks so very beautiful.  JP and Tanzin sneakily created this, then Tanzin cried out "Mummy, there's a deer on the lawn"!!....

The girls then went put on their snowsuits to go sledging, but ended up with more mud on their backsides!  After watching Pitch Perfect on DVD, a fantastic birthday present, we went to the Black Horse in Thorndon for a roast lunch with G&G.

Tanzin & Taylor's homemade vases

Belmont looking so pretty in white

Matilda catching snow.  

Classic

Aiyyyya!  Jacki Chan!

A ver snowy photo outside the pub

Weather or not?

7 months in

The radio DJ said this morning, "and it's a cold, drab, dull Friday" I had a teeny smirk as I was just thinking at that same time how mystic and eerie it looks when it's so foggy.  Granted it's no fun, especially when the weekend is just ahead of you.  But our family motto, thanks to good friend, Emma Gane is:  "It is not bad weather, it's just poor clothing"

In Norfolk, they brag about how much warmer it is than their neighbours.  Yippee?!
We've had a glorious bout of snow lately.  Forecast next week is more snow showers. Makes a change from the tropical heat we're used to!

Matilda loves playing in the snow as much as the girls do!

The girls have just finished half term holidays.  We're still playing tourist and exploring the area.  One of our favourite things to do on weekends is go bike riding.  Especially now that Jaimie is on two wheels now.  Ann & Max (G&G) live only 10 minutes away, but on our epic bike journey a couple of months ago, it took 2 hours!  (and many chocolate bars)