Life's a beach

It is a very special week in our household

It is Molly's birthday today and Bruce's birthday tomorrow

We bought them some new toys and headed out to the beach for some seaside shenanigans

The pair of them absolutely love the beach and would stay there all day

Here is Molly being just a little bit canny, waiting for Bruce to do all the hard work. Bruce braves the waves, e retrieves the stick, only to be met by  a relentless Molly who snatches the stick from his mouth as he heads back for another throw

And you can see just how fearless my little labrador is, absolutely nothing will stop her, it doesn't matter how big the waves get she will frolic in the surf all day if we let her

So that was the first of many I hope. We all love our beach days, nothing like the sea air to blow away the cobwebs

Love and happy hounds

Tracey

xxx

Pupdate

We are oftentimes asked what we do to fill our time now we are retired 

In truth -  I have no idea. Ask any retiree and they will generally tell you the same - they can't fathom how they managed to fit work in !

One of our favourite ways to pass an hour or two is to explore our beautiful county and to do so with the dogs is an added treat

The world is always so interesting through the eyes and nose of a dog, we can learn a lot from their enthusiasm to explore and examine every little detail of a place

Our four legged friends find genuine pleasure in just 'being' somewhere new. They are not distracted by cell phones, time limits, protocol, what's cool and happening

Much the same as small children they can be mesmerised by the simple things in life, the ebb and flow of the tide, the peculiar sideways crawl of a crab or the enchanting twinkling of seaside treasures half buried in the sand, waiting to be released and played with, nudged with noses, padded by paws

Oh to see the unspoilt joys of the world from an innocent

Come on dad, give up with the camera, throw the ball now pleeeeeeease

Bruce has perfected the head tilted, floppy eared look of a dog begging to play, heartstrings firmly being pulled

Molly practising yoga among the seaweed, down dog - beach style

Bruce will always bring the ball back and wait patiently for the next toss, nothing will distract him, his mission is to retrieve and return

Molly on the other hand will run around randomly, ball in mouth seemingly oblivious to everyone and everything. She has been known to get more than one object in her mouth at the same time, ie not drop a ball to pick another one up, she sometimes even manages a ball and a stick !

And of course we can't forget our other little furry friend

What has Sox been up to this summer ?

Yes this cat can sleep anywhere and anyhow, utterly unbothered by the presence of two large clumsy canines. We had reservations when we first brought her home, terrified her tiny frame and placid nature would be no match for the huge personalities of the dogs

We need not have worried

Sox rules !

We also had an unexpected sleepover with this little cutie Tilly

Rob finished his shift last week to find Tilly in the beer garden, without any sign of an owner

We tried to find where she was from, but, had no success, so we brought her home for the night to keep her safe from the roads etc

She loved our dogs ( didn't quite know what to make of Sox) and was as good as gold.

 Happily she was reunited with her owner the following morning

Secretly Rob was a little sad to see her go, I think he would have quite happily kept her

xxx

Still here

Hellooooooooo

We are still here, although you would be forgiven for thinking we had fallen off the planet

FIVE months on from my last post, much has happened and not much has happened if you know what I mean

In a nutshell

*      We have been up country to visit family

*       Friends and family have been here to visit us (Mum and Dad, Tony and Carol, Kev and Jackie)

*      We celebrated our 25th wedding anniversary

*      Amy and Robbie finished uni

*      All three 'children' are now working

*      Amy has had a tonsillectomy

*      Robbie is learning to drive and has his first car

Some of these events will be blogged in more detail later. I have just finished editing all the photos from the last five months, 700 photos, two hours and three coffees later I have decided there is far too much to wade through in one blog post

And in other news

We had an unexpected little windfall, so bought ourselves this fab little campervan, we have been away in it a couple of times already and are planning our first trip away with the dogs soon

The dogs have had a wonderful time in the woods, on walks and especially on the beach

We have had some gorgeous days out, exploring our stunning county, sometimes just the two of us, sometimes with friends or family and often with the dogs

I gave up trying to cover the grey and have been gradually adding more and more highlights, I am really happy with the results and my hairdresser is fantastic, Paige has the patience of a saint with my stubborn hair

We have also had some amazing days/nights out, we have enjoyed some fantastic gigs this year, local and further afield, found a couple of new festivals, added a few new bands to our playlists and generally broadened our horizons musically ( much more to come on that in future posts )

And yes, I have still been doing a little crafting, much much less than I used to. I toyed with the idea of giving it up and freeing some space by getting rid of all my craft clutter  stuff, but the feeling didn't last long. 

It may take me a little longer to actually get started, but once I have all my pretties out on the table, I remember just how therapeutic it is to have a craft and play session

This is my most recent creation, a card for my lovely friend Sue

I know this is a bit of a 'mixed bag', but you know what it is like to have so much to catch up on that it is difficult to know where to start

A very sensible person once said "just start", once you get going, the fear of the blank page disappears and the rest is much easier, how true this is. Now I have a million ideas running through my head and rather a lot of photos on my hard drive, no excuses then !

Back soon

I promise

xxx

Sandy paws and salty licks

Yesterday was our first foray onto the beach this year

These gorgeous blue skies tempted us to don our warm clothes and venture onto the sand

It was actually a little breezy and definitely blew away the cobwebs, you can see the surf rolling in behind Bruce as he waits for the ball to be tossed back into the waves

Molly did the usual and buried and then 'discovered' her ball leaving little holes all over the beach

We wandered from one end to the other and back again, Bruce dashing in and out of the water, Molly my little partner in crime searching for flotsam and jetsam

We found this gnarly driftwood, far too big for Molly to play with but texturally beautiful 

And this chunk of Maritime debris, rusty and redundant, all the way from Manchester

Molly loves exploring, just like me - look at that happy little face ( unfortunately she gets so excited by her new finds she often loses her ball !)

Heading back, wind in our faces, two happy pooches and all the cobwebs completely blown away

The nearest I will ever get to a selfie ! This one was an accident, but look at that beautiful sky

Love and salty kisses

Tracey

xxx

7 on Sunday

Our week in photos

1. For the first half of the week the weather was a little damp and dreary but the second half has been fantastic, the sun has shone and warmed the days beautifully, we have enjoyed lots of trips to the beach again this week and have managed to shed a few layers, no need for coats !

2. The dogs favourite part of the day is 'seaside time' but coming home is a little less cheery, these two soggy and glum little faces peep over the backseats of the car, eyes pleading for another five minutes in the surf

3. My first Cornish pasty of the year and bloody good it was too, why on earth did I wait until March ???

4. AJ received happy mail from school this week, he achieved 97% in the first part of his mock exam and his teacher sent this note of encouragement - very proud mum moment

5. Amy's bedroom is coming along nicely, all the magnolia has now disappeared and been replaced with lovely crisp and clean white, there will a little splash of colour added in the form of her accessories, will share photos once Amy has seen it herself 

6. Today saw my first paddle of the year, been dying to dip my toes in but it has been a little too chilly up to now but today was lovely. I kept my wellies off all afternoon, I have so missed the feeling of sand between my toes

7. I stopped going to Slimming World about a month ago, Neil has had loads of appointments lately and we have had plenty going on at home too so I have decided to do it myself at home. I have put a couple of pounds back on since  I stopped going to group but am ready to reign in the snacking and go back on plan. I find it much easier if I menu plan and buy in only what I need. I have lost a total of 1 stone and 2lbs but would ideally like to lose at least one more stone ( I am not sure the Cornish pasty I devoured at the beach today would have been the healthiest choice - but you do have to live a little !)

Love and sandy toes

Tracey 

xxx

7 On Sunday

I have been asked why we moved to Cornwall

This is why !

1. St Mawes on Tuesday

2. Bathing in the glorious sunshine

3. Our first visit to Crinnis beach which is right on our doorstep

4. Midweek the beaches are virtually deserted

5. I have never known two dogs happier than when they are playing in the surf

6. Clear blue waters, clean sand and winter sunshine

7. One very soggy but very happy Bruce

Out of the past 7 days, we have enjoyed four days at the beach

Yes I have a little ironing to catch up on and the house hasn't been dusted yet this week, but do I care ?- hell no, the cleaning will get done on a day when we are limited by the weather. We wanted to move somewhere we could enjoy the outdoors. The coast has called me for years and I know we have done the right thing when I can see Neil and the dogs on the beach, not a care in the world !

Love and blissful beach days

Tracey

xxx

St Mawes

ST Mawes is a small fishing village at the end of the Roseland Peninsula, opposite Falmouth on the South coast of Cornwall, approximately 30 minutes (by car) east of where we live

We have passed sign posts many a time as we have travelled to and from Truro and promised ourselves a little trip there once the weather picked up

Tuesday was glorious and so we packed the beach towels, dogs and a picnic into the car and off we set

St Mawes is positioned within the gulf stream and basks in mild weather all year round, during the summer it is often a Mediterranean climate, which explains why there are some stunning gardens in the area

We headed straight to the harbour so the dogs could have a run on the beach

This is the view from where you enter St Mawes

We started out on Idles Beach

It didn't take the dogs long to dive in, Bruce is already swimming ( that little dot where Molly is heading)

I wandered off down the beach to explore the rockpools, Molly was not far behind, ears flapping, tail wagging and stick in mouth ready to play

I love this photo of Bruce, checking that his little sister is not far behind, he is a very elegant and strong swimmer, hardly making any splashes when he is in the water, Molly on the other hand, starts off like she is drowning with seemingly more legs than an octopus, she eventually settles into a lovely little doggy paddle but Bruce is always mindful that she is ok.

After our playtime on the beach we explored the town and took a wander along the harbourside.

St Mawes is a beautiful little village, well maintained and very clean. There was lots of painting going on, many of the seafront properties, mostly little fisherman's cottages have been painted ice-cream colours - so pretty, and then there was this stunning thatched cottage, up for sale at a cool £750,000 - but honestly the view it had was priceless

Strolling passed the thatched cottage and continuing around the harbour we found the perfect little sun trap to settle down, take a breather and enjoy our picnic. With views out over the harbour and out to sea, the sun on our faces it was the perfect end to an absolutely beautiful day.

I just love the way Molly is catching the rays, eyes closed, sniffing the clean sea air and drying out nicely.

Love and sandy paws

Tracey

xxx

Spit Beach - February 2016

We had a break in the rain yesterday so decided to make the first visit of the year to our nearest beach - Spit Beach which is a 15 minute walk from our house

It was still pretty chilly so it was no surprise to find the beach deserted

Guess who was especially happy to run around in the sand and surf, Molly actually looked like she was grinning the whole time we were there

It was just after lunch time but the light was extraordinary, the cloud cluttered sky sporadically broke to allow the sun to dazzle the waves

We made the most of the full length of the beach and the dogs explored every nook and cranny, always mindful of where the next tossed ball or stick was coming from

A brave and bedraggled Bruce patiently waiting for the ball to be tossed back into the seaweed strewn surf

Crystal clear rock pools

Gazing out to sea, man and dog, at one with nature, tired, a little cold but completely content on the crisp Cornish coast.

Love and salty kisses

Tracey

xxx

Last of the Christmas 2015

2015 was our first Christmas in Cornwall

We did most of our Christmas shopping at Truro, I never tire of seeing this beautiful Cathedral

The last few of my christmas cards

This one was for a commission, I made it for our decorator to give to his girlfriend, he wanted something with the theme of Tim Burton, what could be better than Jack and Sally from A Nightmare Before Christmas !

Ben and Amy are completely besotted with all things animal, so I made them a card with penguins

And mum also adores penguins, so this was my card to mum and dad

All the kids made it home for Christmas. Ben and Amy came a couple of days after as they spent Christmas and Boxing day with Ben's parents. They travelled down in the car, got stuck for five hours at Bristol services,  lots of little things went wrong, lost car keys, dying phone batteries, bumbling AA men, etc etc - honestly it was like a scene from Planes, Trains and Automobiles, but they got here eventually and Robbie came home the week before

Seeing Robbie ( on the left in the photo below ) made us realise just how much AJ has grown in the last couple of months, must be all that good clean Cornish air ! You wouldn't believe the taller AJ is four years younger than Rob when you look at the photo - and yes his hair is always like that !

And it was our first ever Christmas with our lovely little lab Molly, look at those beautiful eyes

We bought both the doggies glow in the dark bandannas for Christmas, they look so cute

And my big softie Bruce, awwwwwww

I hope all my friends and family had as lovely a christmas as we did

Love and looking forward to the new year

Tracey 

xxx