Sympathy card

One of my dearest friends recently lost someone very special in her life

It's times like these when I don't like the hundreds of miles in between us, I so wanted to give her a hug

Love and long distance hugs

Tracey

xxx

Get well wishes

One of Neil's friends is really quite poorly at the moment and wanted to let him know that we are thinking of him

I made this card, keeping a monotone colour scheme to try and keep it masculine

Get well Roger, much much love from Neil and I

Tracey

xxx

Duran Duran

On Friday we went to see Duran Duran at the Eden Project

The weather was perfect, not a cloud in the sky

What a stunning setting for the gig, definitely the prettiest place I have ever seen a band

I took this photo as everyone was starting to arrive, it was a sell out, so all those empty spaces soon filled up

The event was the finale for the BBC's music day and was filmed for the one show

Duran Duran were supported by Izzy Bizu ( who was very good )

And Laura Mvula (who was very good but not my cup of tea )

Duran Duran were outstanding, we have seen them before at a much smaller venue but they just seem to get better with age

Eden lit up the biomes once the sun went down and an ethereal blue glow radiated out behind the stage

The whole project stays open on gig nights, so you can use the restaurants and cafe, they put on a huge barbecue and of course you can wander the gardens if you like, it really was a very laid back but special atmosphere

Thankyou to my lovely hubby for the special treat, it was a fantastic night 

Love and rock star kisses

Tracey

xxx

Thankyou

I hope the rest of the country is also enjoying the stunning weather we have had this week

It has been beautifully warm and sunny all week here in Cornwall and we have been making the most of it, walking every day. We have been to our local Luxulyan Valley three or four times and to Cardinham twice

Talking of walking, this card was made for the surgeon who 'fixed' Neil's knee

Neil tore his cartilage years ago and it had been getting steadily worse

We were referred to a surgeon at the Royal Duchy Hospital in Truro and he confirmed that an operation would help the problem

It turned out the tear was rather large so it was a good job we did make the decision to go ahead

It took only a few weeks for the referral to come through, the procedure went really well and I cannot fault the service Neil received from the surgeon and the staff at the Duchy. The hospital is lovely, immaculate and modern and the staff were all so kind and attentive, nothing was too much trouble ( I even got tea and biscuits on a tray with a doily as I waited in Neil's room whilst he was having his op) And I might add in case you were wondering, this was all on the NHS

I am guessing the health service gets enough complaints so we thought it would be nice to say thankyou 

Love and kisses

Tracey

xxx

Cardinham Woods

Come walk with me, let Molly and Bruce guide us 

Today we are going to stroll around Cardinham Woods, 15 minutes away from our house 

The girls at work have been telling me how wonderful the woods are but, until I got there myself, it was hard to imagine what was so special about them. Well, all I can say is that they were not wrong, the woods are truly outstanding

There are plenty of trails to follow, all clearly signposted so you can't get lost, for both walking and cycling

Lots of children's activities for all ages, stick man trails, badger clubs and all manner of nature inspired games

A couple of child play areas

And a beautiful old stone cottage that is now an excellent cafe 

Streams meander through shady passes, beautifully clean and bubbling over boulders and branches

There are quite a few wood carvings hidden here and there

We chose to go on bank holiday monday and the weather was uncharacteristically glorious, and, although there was plenty of people visiting, we spent most of the time on our own, the woods are so big it's easy to find a little seclusion, peace and quiet

Bruce and Molly, always a little way ahead, lead the way.They are both so good off their leads now, super friendly with all other dogs and their recall is good now too, they forge ahead but never let us get out of sight

Bruce waiting for us to catch up

What are you doing down there Mum ?

And just in case you are in need of refreshment,  the Woods Cafe. We didn't use the cafe we took pack up and ate it along the way in a quiet spot, a sunny little nook nestled in the trees

If you are ever in the Bodmin area, it would be a crime to miss this stunning scenery, Cardinham Woods will definitely be a regular haunt for our family, I can't wait to show Amy and Ben

Love and leafy loveliness

Tracey

xxx

Anniversary wishes

On the 20th of this month Neil and I celebrated 24 years of marriage

Our first anniversary in our new home

It's amazing how much love changes over the years, changes but does not fade

It gets deeper, more tolerant, easier

So happy I found my soul mate

I made this card for him

We exchanged gifts, went out to lunch and generally enjoyed the day together, as it should be

Love you Neil

xxx

Gorran Haven with BA and LJ

I received a phone call a few weeks ago from my lovely friend Joan, she rang to tell me that she and her equally lovely hubby Alan were visiting Cornwall and would we like to meet up. I couldn't have been happier, marking the date of arrival on my calendar and looking forward to catching up with our dear friends

Joan and Alan were staying a little further down the coast, just past Mevagissey in a little harbour town called Gorran Haven

Our friends arrived on the saturday and we agreed to meet up for Sunday lunch at one of our local pubs

Lunch was delicious and five hours later we were still sat there catching up on all the news

We had such a wonderful afternoon and decided to meet up again on the thursday, this time in Gorran Haven, Neil and I hadn't been there before so it was also a chance to discover another little stretch of the coastline

We met at the cottage Joan and Alan were staying in and walked down to the harbour 

Just to the left of this photo, on the harbour was a little eatery - The Mermaid Cafe, we sat and chatted, had lunch and then decided to take a little stroll along the coastal path

Joan and Alan never stop smiling, they are like a tonic and we had such a wonderfully relaxed afternoon

We left the harbour and followed the path around the cove

Looking ahead, it was pleasantly warm but not sunny, at least it stayed dry for our gentle coastal amble

And of course we took time to take in the views, almost all of the path is beribboned with white 'bluebells'

Even on this relatively dull day the sea was a lovely turquoise colour

We didn't venture too far on the path, turning back after a little while and heading back into town

We took a slow wander around the narrow streets and up to the local hotel for a nice cold drink

Back at Joan and Alan's holiday cottage, we took a moment to capture our special day

I hope it's not too long before we can all meet up again

Love and special friendships

Tracey

xxx