Normality

Whatever that means! :-) Am back at work in a full office, and have just been home to switch on the washing machine... the guests have gone, the Christmas cake is half eaten, and there are only a handful of choccies left! The New Year's resolutions have started in earnest... all is good with the world!

Saturday
Had a lovely weekend with the pares actually. Saturday, we strolled around the village for a bit, and in the evening just fried some fish dad had bought over, had a cheeseboard and then watched some crappy TV... was nice to chill out! I was also pleased that I managed to get a cheap pair of Merell hiking boots in the sale in the village.

Sunday - New Year's Eve
Mark worked so I took Mum and Dad into the city for a bit of a shopping spree. We had quite a successful day. I managed to spend the money Tracy gave me for Xmas on a new Fossil watch. It was just what I was looking for. I also managed to get a load of new bedding for both bedrooms, and some perfume I was after... all in all a good haul.

In the evening, I just cooked and we all stayed in and drunk lots of wine! I did smoked salmon and goat's cheese pate with bruschetta and avocado for starters, tuna steaks with a green peppercorn sauce, minted new potatoes and big old salad for main, and Irish lemon pudding for desert (my speciality!). At my rather stupid request, we watched "The Cook, The Thief, His Wife & Her Lover" on DVD... maybe not a good choice of film for watching with your parents! The last time I watched this was around 10-12 years ago, and I had clearly forgotten quite how gruesome it was, how weird ("arty!") it was, and quite how often Helen Mirren get's her kit off and has sex in it... hmmmmmmmmmmm............ After a shaky start (Mum voiced some concerns), they actually go into it! It won't be something I will be pulling out for family viewing again, although it *is* indeed a complete masterpiece.

We watched the AMAZING fireworks on TV at midnight, and saw a bit of Joolsy... all very nice.

Monday - New Year's Day
Again, a very pleasant day, albeit one in which I spent most of the day in the kitchen! Mark's parents came over, and shared lunch with us and my parents... I cooked a cauliflower and cheddar soup with garlic bread, which (although it pains me to say it) was absolutely gorgeous! Mark had planned to go to football with his Dad, but the match had been cancelled due to a soggy pitch... so we all stayed in and watched the recent remake of "Flight of the Phoenix", which was actually superb. Mark's parents went home after "Clash of the Titans" (gotta love that film! The special effects are.... errr........ well.... special!), and I cooked sausage and mash, with rice pudding for desert. Yummy! In the evening we settled down and watched "The Four Feathers", which was kind of ok (major redeeming factor was Heath Ledger, mostly topless!).

Tuesday
Back to work today. Poor old Mark has gone to the funeral for Noel's brother, and Mum and Dad have gone home.... sigh! Not a good start to the New Year for Mark.

On an up note, I have managed to revive the running group (we are going tomorrow - eek!) and have so far stuck to my unrealistic diet and drinking ban.... joy! ;-)

Hope you all had a great new year?
Much love
Hayls
xxx