General Chat

Hi All........ Just popping in to say hello though it is once again just a quickie. I have now got My Maternal line from Mum's I can't see any way of merging the two files so I am painstakingly working through it and adding it all to mine manually typing it in phew!!! Mind you I think in the long run it is better this way because I am learning about them and the little intricacies of marriage where familes come together several times. I have been concentrating up until now on my paternal side because Mum has been doing her side, so its good to get aquainted. John, my husband has had great difficulty with his paternal side because his father was brought up by his Grandparents. His Dad's Dad died in the war and his Dad's Mum left him with his Grandparents and married someone else, he doesn't talk about it much, I think he would like to but he just doesn't know much about his family. Anyway, John decided, as did I, to try and trace his tree but as you can imagine it has been difficult to get that side off the ground..... Would you believe it? Last night he got a message whilst on Genes - only turned out to be his Dad's half sister! He gave her his Dad's Telephone Number and she rang him, they haven't seen each other for years (I don't think John was even born last time they spoke) and they had a long conversation... It's fantastic, I am soooo pleased for him, we will have to pop round this weekend and see him and find out how things went. Well that's it for me today, I am having a day concentrating on my tree, My Dad's coming tomorrow so I am trying to get something together to show him..... so I had better get on with it! See you all soon - love reading what everyone is up to! Have fun! Gaynor Ann :-))) xxx

Kathleen, You are a nightowl. Good on the AA even if they do take forever. It's always good to know that they will come. The paper thing does get over the top doesn't it. One minute you think you've got it under control then you get excited about one line of the family and all sorts of stuff comes out and gets shuffled about. It's sunny now and our Weimaraner always knows where the sunny spots are. He always likes to be close to people. I don't think he knows he is a dog. It's funny when you see other Weimaraners you would think he might be interested but I'm sure he doesn't realize he is one of them. If he's out for a run that's what he's interested in.

Hi everyone, What a wet and miserable start to the day. Didn't go well at all, my trip to Windsor didn't happen as I only managed to get through part of the rush hour traffic - only to get a puncture!! Took forever for the AA to get to me and they wouldn't put my spare on for me as it had a nick in the sidewall. Now have a new tyre and will have to replace the spare later on. My car might be an old banger but the tyres for it are expensive. Wish I had decided on the train after all, it was the rain that made me opt for driving all the way. The worst part was I let someone down quite badly and I feel really awful about that. Incidentally I can change a tyre myself but was on a major road with heavy traffic and didn't feel safe hence the AA callout. Clearing out all the old paperwork is such a chore - where does it all come from? I have to admit to keeping things that probably don't need to be kept but have tried not to let it pile up too much - I think it breeds during the night!! Still it will all be much better when it's all sorted, though I will probably find I have thrown something I should have kept. My neice was to have been married on December 11th but has postponed the wedding until the summer - she is pregnant and didn't fancy walking down the aisle with a bump! Baby is due at the end of April. Her brother is to become a father two weeks later beginning of May - so I will be a gt.aunt again twice. Am already gt.aunt about 9 times. Will also be a step gt.grandmother in March, my son's step-daughter is due to give birth then. Already have 2 step gt.grandchildren. That makes me an ancestor - oh dear!!! Jude, Kyzer wasn't allowed upstairs - that was why there was a dark mark all along one wall at the side of the stairs, he used to sort of slide upstairs close to the wall and sneak into my sons' bedroom where he would hide under the bed covers. Sometimes I would catch him peeping round my bedroom door - he would walk out backwards and go down stairs in about two great leaps if he saw me in there. The sun did come out later this afternoon and I put some washing out but it didn't dry - thank goodness for dryers. Have to be careful though, Chris and Michael wear uniforms at work and I have to watch they don't get creased too much so have to get them out the minute the dryer stops. They do their own ironing and moan if there are too many creases. It hasn't been a good day so I apologise for not having anything cheerful to say. Never mind - tomorrow will be better. Love to everyone Kathleen

Hi everyone, It's been good reading all your messages. Anne, You are lucky getting a new laptop. It takes a while to get used to it I guess. If I ever have to use my husbands I just can't get used to the mouse thingy - guess I'm not good at change. Kathleen, My garage needs a good clean out. I asked my daughter yesterday if she'd give me a hand. She's in luck it's raining today so it will have to be put off till we get a really sunny day.

just got a new laptop so can be on here while watching TV now, instead of having to rush up and down stairs. Takes a bit of getting used to as the mouse is fixed in front of the key board and you have to be careful not to touch it when typing or you end up all over the place. An expensive toy really but useful. thank goodness Tony managed to set up the network with all the computers in the end so they are all on Broadband and I can print on the printers upstairs from down here. Isn't technology wonderful? Sometimes! June, we had rain first thing this morning but when it cleared itn was a glorious autumn day. Unfortunately I was stucik in a meeting all morning looking at the sun through a window, well when I wasn't taking minutes. then I spent the afternoon downloading my holiday photos onto the computer, got some quite good ones too. Must print some off now. Pleased that you had a good productive day with Gaynor Ann. It is very satisfying when you get old photos scanned into your programme isn't it? Kathleen, sounds as if you are having a good clear out, I regularly send clothes to the charity shop but it is paper work that I need to sort, old credit card statements etc, they soon mount up. Ihope that you get all your decorating finished soon. Lou, hope Bex enjoyed today at work. Jude, I look forward to seeing you both on the 16th and also you on the 10th Nov. I will contact Daphne. That was a wet awakening today from Madoc. Many Happy returns to Vic and I hope he enjoyed his birthday celebrations. The meal sounded good. I thtink that is all from me this evening. Ann Glos

Hi all:o)) The day started with Madoc jumping on the bed and licking me almost to death!!! lol - he's not supposed to come upstairs cause of his leg,but hubby insists on waking me up early!! Then we all sang "HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO HUBBY", we being son, dil and her mum and lickle old me of course and then opened his cards. Last night my sister was also here and we had grilled salmon(with pesto sauce on top)stuffed peppers,spuds,broccoli and carrots - l was determined to do something abit different - mind you sister helped alot(actually she did more than me - lol), cooking is not a favourite of mine and when l told her what l wanted to stuff the peppers with she looked abit concerned - but THEY TURNED OUT TO BE REALLY TASTY. They were stuffed with mushrooms,feta cheese and baby toms.Sis cooked the mushrooms in a little olive oil,part baked the peppers or was it grilled,chopped feta into small squares and quartered the toms - then about 5 mins before serving we sprinkled parmasan cheese on and grilled again.The peppers were halved and de-cored. Luuuvly. Abit later on sons mil appeared with a farmhouse fruit cake with candles on - so hubby had 2 celebrations.Son left about 8.30 this morning.He's just handed in his notice as gym instructure/trainer and excepted a salesman job - hope he knows what he's doing?? The weather started off miserable, l really thought it was set for the day - but it cleared up and was really nice:o)) Lou - so pleased Bex is enjoying her job, how was it today. l know what you mean about this thread,everyone is so nice and its usually the first thread l look for - don't always have time to read it in the mornings though,especially now that the puter is up stairs - so l get withdrawal symptoms at work!!! lol. Ann - Yes l sometimes print off some pages,but l often forget to staight which page/s and end up with 10!!!!! Hey thats great news re: you both coming to Gaynors meeting on 16th Oct:o)) Vic & Tony can have a chin wag!!!! Vic is ok about the 10th November in Gloucester. ANYONE ELSE LIVE NEAR GLOUCESTER?????? Kathleen - oh bless your son,its so nice when you have someone to do things like that is'nt it - my hubby hates any form of DIY,will do the bare essentials amd get my bil in to help quite often!!! Is'nt Windsor a nice place - we called in there in Aug the day the american rellies arrived for son's wedding. One of the children loves castles, so we made sure the first one he saw was special - he's only 3yr,well 4 end of Oct,bless:o) June - the wreaths have not been started yet,l have some berries and foliage though,but at this rate l won't be able to do anything with them - we have more visitors at the w/e,they may be here tomorrow - gawd!!!! PAF files - don't really know much about them, although l did have part of my tree on one once,but somehow it all got lost and have'n re-started it. Whilst son and co were here yesterday, we looked at the videoing l did at the wedding,none of us had seen it,not even me - it was really good fun to watch,some was abit fuzzy though, but great memories for son and dil - he thanked me for doing it:o) usually l get the p--s taken cause l've always got a camera of some sort in hand or round waist- lol Right l ought to go now and start the dinns - we have bubble and squeak with bacon and baked beans - ummmmmm:o) Sylvia - hope your toe is ok?? Elisabeth - you ok?? And anyone else l have forgotten:o) Jude sarf wales xx

Hi everyome Its very dull here and wet this morning, it did have the odd shower yesterday, but the washing was nearly dry. Gaynor came round, we had quite a productive day, we copied some photos for her to load on to her PC.which she showed me how to do. I still have a lot more photos to scan. I use PAF as a back up for my tree and we took a copy of that for her to load onto to her PC too. Last night I put some photos of my relations on to PAF, so all in all quite a good day. Lou, glad to hear you enjoy reading our messages, I hope Cliff, Kris & Bex are all ok. Kathleen, Sorry to Chris for nagging to get your kitchen finished, it cant be easy with working shifts, he'll probably be as relieved as you to get it done. Did you drive to Windsor or decide to go by train, I travel by train more these days, I cant be doing with driving into a strange town and not knowing where one way streets are. Ann, thats great that you can manage to pop in to see Gaynor and everyone on the 16th, even if its only a short visit, it will be worth it. I used to print things off too but when I had trouble with my printer, I started jotting things down as I read through the messages and continued to do that. Everyone seems to have been busy yesterday, if I dont come on first thing, I get busy too. Love June xx

Hi everyone, just a quick visit tonight. It has been raining on and off all day so no tidying up in the garden and no washing out on the line. A rather shame-faced Chris promised that he will get the painting finished on his next days off. He works 4 on 4 off rolling shifts. That is 2 days and 2 nights so the first day off he sleeps until about 1 pm, he should be able to get quite a lot of the painting done in the other three days though. Spent the day sorting out stuff for the charity shop, found things in my wardrobe that I had forgotten I had!! Also clearing out old paperwork that I no longer need to keep, it does seem to take time though - more time to clear than to accumulate!! Have to go to Windsor in the morning so must leave early - hate driving through the rush hour traffic. It is mostly the cars coming off the motorway, the drivers seem to forget they have to slow down. Might just drive to the station and go on the train. Hope you all have a good night and that tomorrow will be brighter than today has been. God bless Love Kathleen

Me again, Just been told by Tony that we can call in to the meeting on 16th on our way to the overnight hotel in crawley. Will only be able to stay a couple of hours but I am really pleased as I was sad at missing it. So those who will be there, I look forward to seeing you. I think Daphne is going Jude. Mind you, we have got to find it first!! Ann Glos

hi all June, you are lucky to have a nice day, it is wet and dreary here - good job Jude is not out in the forest today. I have spent the morning letter writing and on this board (naughty) but Tony is at golf so 'while the cat's away....' Does anyone else find they have to print off the replies on this thread to be able to answer them? I get to the reply box and my memory fails me (what's new?) so i can't answer properly. No i have decided the only way is print off each day's replies. Lou so pleased that Bex had a good second day, she was probably hyper because she felt she had made a success of it, job satisfaction and all that, hope it continues. Jude, Of course we don't think you are a 'plonker'. We all lack confidence at something, if we don't we are overconfident and don't do things right. You know what I am like about driving, I hate it and really had to psyche myself up before driving to Malvern (all of 30 miles) in the summer. Just don't put yourself down, you are great as you are wit a super personality and a very caring person. I have put the 10th on the calendar, when you confirm it by e mail i will contact Daphne, don't forget to let meknow a time, and also see if there are any other Glos area people who want to meet for a cofee in debs on that day. I know there are several who live in the area. Kathleen, I am lucky, I have a very good neighbour who is about 17 years younger than me who makes her own Christmas puddings and she always gives us one which is great. They are lovely too. It was Gaynor Ann buying binders for her research papers and me who has mine in 11 folders, and will soon need more, although i seem to have come to a halt at the moment, what with holidays etc. Lucky Brenda still enjoying the Tenerife sunshine, although only a couple of days for her to go, i expect she returns on Friday. Sylvia, hope you will soon get your toe problem sorted. Elizabeth, are you still looking in? Things OK with you? Not heard for a while, take care. Anne Belfast, how did your meeting go? did you have a good natter? speak again soon Ann Glos

Hi everyone, Its a nice sunny day here, I must get out there and hang my washing. I am a little disturbed at one of the threads this morning, there seems to be confusion about allowing people to see your family tree and of Genes are doing their usual trick and not replying. Yesterday Gaynor showed me how to pull a report from my PAF file and how to add photos too, today she is coming round to look at my PC to see if I can copy to CD. Jude, as if we would think you are a plonker, we know you are not. There you have it in writing!! You are going to be way ahead of me with making your Autumn wreath, I must get going. Kathleen, where are you spending Christmas this year? If Christmas dinner is at your house, you could tell your sons you wont be able to cook dinner if the kitchen isn't done. Surely they will have finished before then. Only joking I'm sure they are doing a good job and they want it finished as much as you do. Ann Glos., Hope the computer is fine now, you have just reminded me that I should get rid of my temporary files too. Sylvia, Delft sounds lovely, its a place I have fancied visiting but have never got round to it. I was going to write dont forget to ring the doctor about your toe but that is a silly remark with the pain you are in, you are not likely to forget. The cards sound very unusual, it is a pity we cant see them. I hope the rest of "Our Gang" are well. I must now get that washing out, see you tomorrow Love June xx

Morning all - just seen your message Kathleen,look forward to seeing you and piccie of Kyzer:o) will try and remember one of Madoc. Its still fingers crossed re the insurance,the girl said yes,but we're not taking her word for it yet!! Oh eck l bet you're all thinking l'm right a plonker??? lol - l only mentioned the confidence thing cause whilst at work today l felt so much more confident,even though l had the colly wobbles before l left home. l was abit nervous when l first met you Ann,but only in the normal way,it was'nt a problem if you know what l mean?? Driving to Worcester was'nt a problem - but going to work is,strange ah!!! See what happens Thursday/Friday!!? Sylvia - Delft sounds a wonderful place:o) Such a shame we can't see your cards and wreaths. l collected some berries and leaves this afternoon,they'll all in the garden now in a bucket,need some more ribbons etc, will look in the the that was once a £ shop,they have cheap xmas parcel ribbons. My grandmother used to make all the xmas puddings and cakes,the kitchen and scullery were crambed with them. l remember the days when she put sixpences in the puddings. Hope you have lovely time with your son:o) Gaynor - do hope you are felling better,when do you think you'll be back to work?? Your Bonnie sounds very bonny - 13 is a good age.One of the neighbours came in this afternoon to meet Madoc,she loves dogs but won't have another one cause she's in her 70's now,but will always come and look after Madoc, she used to do the same for Lady - but l'm not sure about walking this one,he pulls!!!! although getting much better - infact hubby had him off the lead earlier!! Ann the 10th should be ok, l will tell Vic now then he can arrange to get a lift to work - but l will email you with final details.Yes please if you could contact Daphne. l have been playing with photo's again and have saved all the work ones onto disc,tried doing it the way you suggested. l might have to put all my kodak ones onto disc now because when l updated kodak easyshare the other day,its also called Ofoto and for some reason l can't always send photo's by email with kodak,updating has actually made things more difficult to do - or is it me??? Anne (Belfast)hope your visitors arrive ok and you have a nice day and that your all feeling better now? Ok thats it - l'm tired again now,speak again. Take care. Jude sarf wales xx

Hi everyone Has taken so long to get here that I almost gave up, but did that yesterday so tried to be patient. You have all been very busy, well done all those of you who make your Christmas cards - afraid I mostly just buy mine but my youngest g.daughter makes quite a few of hers. We were busy earlier this evening trying to find some facts for her History homework, she didn't have much luck but later on I had a look and found what she needed. She uses this computer and we have child controls on which keep her off some of the sites which would be useful for her. Sylvia your trip to Delft sounds lovely, I once saw a TV programme which was made there and it looked really pretty but unfortunately only showed a small area. I hope you get the results about your toe soon and that it enables the doctor to find the right treatment for it. I will be making my Christmas cake soon, usually have it done by now but, like you, I keep saying I won't bother this year. Always do make one eventually though. Used to make the puddings as well but nowadays I just resort to bought ones. Not so many of us these days and only three of us like them, the others all have fresh fruit. Jude, good to hear that the cost of treatment for Madoc is covered by the insurance, Vets fees can be so expensive. One of the prime reason I won't consider having another dog, though I do miss my lovely Kyzer. Your work in the forest sounds great fun and I'm sure the youngsters enjoy it. You are doing a great job and should feel very proud of yourself. I will try to remember to bring a photo of Kyzer with me when we meet in a couple of weeks. Now I have forgotten who has said what so please forgive me if I don't mention names. I don't get to see any school plays now as my g.daughters are both teenagers and they don't do them anymore. I remember the last one, they were both in it and both did so well, especially the older one who is very shy but she played her part brilliantly and spoke up clearly and confidently. I felt so proud of them both. At least I am not the only one with a kitchen in disarray - progress is very slow, in fact very little has been done for a few days. I am still trying to find half of my things because most of it was moved when I was away - no one can remember where they put things. I think I already mentioned finding the wok under my bed!! Now it is mostly the smaller items that were in the drawers, they were emptied into boxes - just need to find the boxes. Think they might be in the garden shed. Now who was it who is getting all their research papers nicely filed in ring binders? Think that was Gaynor Ann - I have made a start with mine but progress is very slow because I keep taking stuff out to do double checks, somehow never seems to find it's way back into the file again straight away. Mine is what you might call organised chaos!! I remember it was Lou's daughter who started a new job, I hope she is finding it a bit easier now. Those first days are quite exhausting, everything is new and strange. A long journey to and from work doesn't help either. It is getting late now so will be off to bed in a minute. Brenda is back from holiday at the weekend isn't she? June, Anne in Belfast, Anne from ?, Christine, Fred - hope I haven't forgotten anyone. Hope you all sleep well, catch up with you all tomorrow. God Bless Love Kathleen

Sylvia, thanks for explaining the autumn wreaths, they sound lovely. I too make cards but have not got a market for them so i just make them for my own use. I haven't started on my Christmas cards yet, the year before last I made 100 but lst year sent some bought ones as I didn't get time to make so many. I use photos in a lot of mine. Fred, I have got XP. Tony's computer eventually recovered itself when he swithed on 2 hours later. he decided it was his temp Internet files that caused it, somehow, in a short time he had accumulated a lot which clogged the system. Ann Glos

Hi everybody, Well Johan and I have had a day out today in Delft. The taxi picked us up around 9.00 am and brought us back at 4.30 pm. This taxi service for us is very good. It accommodates my scootmobile. We only pay a nominal fee. Delft is a very old town with 3 old churches in the centre. We made the tourist walk, me on the scooter, around the town. The weather was good, just a few drops of rain. Delft is really picturesque, with its canals and little bridges running over them. All the bridges are different too. Then of course there is the Delft blue and white porcelain. I fell asleep in the taxi coming home. It's a good thing that I had made double portions of spaghetti yesterday as I wouldn't have wanted to cook today. My God those birds were right a couple of weeks ago to have flown south. The cold weather really seems to have come early this year. Our heating is on every evening. I'm looking forward to seeing my son on Thursday, but he never feels the cold and has his balcony door open until it is really freezing outside. Will put my woolly knickers on!! Now that I have finished making my Xmas cards I can spend my evenings cross stitching, and maybe knitting as well. I don't watch a lot of television. I always tape Neighbours and watch it late in the evening, and also Ready, Steady, Cook. Has anybody made their Xmas cake yet? Every year I say I'll not make any more, but every year I go back on my word, cannot resist. I might even be tempted to make a Xmas pudding!! My toothache has died down a bit, so I've put off going to the dentist. If I drink hot or cold drinks, then I feel the tooth, so it is not good. I must phone my doctor to see if she has the results of the x-ray of my toe. I will wait until Thursday otherwise I may not be able to go to my son. I still don't own a scanner otherwise I would let you see all the lovely cards I've been making. My favourite ones are the "congratulations on the birth of a boy/girl". I knit miniature socks and jumpers to adorn the cards. I've sold quite a few of these! I cannot remember who was asking about the wreaths. Well these are the Autumn wreaths, all in Autumn tints, with berries like cottoneaster and miniature crab apples or anything like that. Mine is hanging on the wall on our balcony. Last year I had one too, and lasted all winter, but in the Spring the magpies started pulling the berries out. I don't have any cats or dogs, so can't talk on that subject. However, I do love to read all your stories, so keep them going. I'm afraid my "tree" has been put on hold at the moment. I did spend so much time on it, but am now doing other things. Will pick it up again later. Anyone who wants to look can see how far I am: http://www.xs4all.nl/~humaan/rosman It would be nice to have the photos, especially as I have some very old ones of my great, great grandmother. Well everybody until tomorrow, keep the thread going. Yes, Gaynor I do live in Holland - since 1972!! I've lived here longer than in England. Love, Sylvia xxx

Anne,if you have xp on your puter ,don,t put sp2 on at all,it is a stop gap security programme put out by micro soft and causes more problems than it cures,it took me hours to sort mine out last month.Fred.ptfg.

Anne Belfast. Have a great time with Lynda (which Lynda). It is good to meet people we correspond with on here and youw ill have lots in common. Lou did Bex have a good day today, she will feel better when she gets to know her charges more. Gaynor, My family tree stuff so far runs to 11 two ring binders, plus two shelves of reference books and loads of CDs Bonnie sounds a charmer, we had a tmin poodle who was blind and then went deaf. Unfortunately although they can cope with one or the other, they can't cope with both as they have no sense of direction or danger so, sadly she had to be put to sleep. She was 13. actually we had 2 min poodles who were blind, the other lived to 15. Sometimes I think Vets forget that not everyone can afford the enormous fees they charge. Ours is very good but always wants to suggest little extras, and it is these that mount up. Jude I am pleased that you have had a good day. Lovely being in the forest on a day like today. Can anyone ask the lad's Mum (the one who signs) for advice on how to interpret his signing. it must be frustrating for him and you not to be able to communicate. is he deaf as well? You have absolutely no need to lack confidence in your work, I have sen you with your charges and you are great. Also. they would not want you back if you were no good would they? They didn't want to lose you from Gloucester did they. do they send you on any courses? if you have the opportunity go on an assertiveness course. Meanwhile, say to yourself every morning, 'I am good at my job and I am as good as anyone else.' You give so much to people who need you. By the way deep breathing helps as well. Incidentally you didn't come over as nervy the first time we met up. And i was nervous too, it is only natural when you are meeting someone for the first time. what is all this about wreaths? i must have missed something when I was away. I have just started to think about making my Christmas cards, I usually make quite a few. Just made a birthday card for a friend this afternoon, quite pleased with it, i usually use photos but this one is a bit different. Sort of dark lilac oblongs on a pale lilac card wth a butterfly on it. pretty! Must go and see what Tony is doing, he has computer problems, downloaded MS updates, SP2 and others then his computer refused to start. So now I am too nervous to download them onto mine. Speak again soon Ann Glos

Ok trouble is here:o)))) Got ur email Ann, thank you. Well we knew he'd been in a road traffic accident,but no mentioned any other probs, there vet gave him a clean bill of health - which in away is good as far as the indurance is concerned - we get 30days free from rspca's own insurance and the girl said as he left with a clean bill of health, this prob we are dealing with now will be on the insurance - so yippeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!! (she says) The weather here has been really lovely - l worked in the forest today, had a brilliant day.We chopped and sawed and cut branches and tree's - frustrating thing though - most of them were christmas tree's!!!!!!! but the area had to be cleared for the butterflies/snakes etc, its a small biological site apparently!! some of our students will never be able to understand what we are doing or why - but they love doing what they do:o) one lad is dumb and signs,but the signs he uses are his - so its difficult to know what he's telling us.He had a carer with him which obviously helped,but even she did'nt know all the time(he's only been at the home 3 weeks) If there were'nt any branches for him to move he went off looking for some, anything would do as long as it moved when he pulled - bless:o) At break time they are all there willing to help, its brilliant. In January l suffered with a bout of depression which left me feeling anxious in the mornings, its started again since being back at work (even the voluntary job),this morning no exception - l usually have to dash to the loo 2 or 3 times before leaving home as well.l get very concerned at work that l am doing things wrong etc(no confidence) - well during work today l have felt great and l still feel great,perhaps atlast l have concured what ever it is and am believing in myself - ooooo sorry, but l do feel better:o)))))) Anne (Belfast) which Lynda is visiting you,say hi anyway. My first meeting with GC member Ann Knight (Gloucester) l was a bit nervy - but it was just so casual and friendly - the next time we met up with Daphne as well - and l have met Ann about 4 times now and Daphne 3 l think. Now l didnt get the colly wobbles when l met either Ann or Daphne and on one occasion l drove myself to Worcester from Monmouth (strange person l am). Hope the work on your kitchen is soon done and dusted, nothing worse than having to turn a room out for decorating - you have to put it all back again!! June - how is Beckham?? l am about to go out with hubby and Madoc and will bring some bits back from the field for wreaths. The books from library are really quite interesting. We ought to start a website for photo's of our bits and bats, especially all the cards Sylvia has made. Has anyone heard from her today - dieing to find out what they have been up to!!:o) Lou - tell Chris "fingers crossed" and hope Bex has a good day today, as someone else said the first day is awful, especially when ur in ur teens. Right l'm off now to walk the dog, thats if my legs will go - l'm aching from this morning!!!! lol Take care all - speak again soon - watch out the days not finished yet, l'm bound to find something else to talk about - lol Jude sarf wales xx

Hi All - Just a quickie today, just got back from Asda with Mum - have been buying MORE folders for my family tree files, I really do need to get it organised, I am getting lost. Bonnie is a Yorkshire Terrier, she is of medium build so she is quite chunky rather like Beckham. She is 13 now so she is getting on a bit but she is still like a puppy sometimes.... and of course she will always be my baby. She is deaf unfortunately now so we have to be careful in open spaces or when we open the front door because if she decides to run after something she doesn't hear us calling her back and she's off!!! ..... or could that be selective hearing ;-) She's very good with hand signals though and we don't really notice that she can't hear, I hope she feels the same. The Autumn wreaths do sound lovely, but like Mum I too will probably end up at Dunhelm, it can't be for a couple of weeks though as I am having to watch the pennies at the moment, being off sick and all. School productions are a hoot! aren't they? We went to see my step son in his school Nativity last year and he was waving and mouthing things to us all the way through, well that was in between smothering giggles between him and his buddies. I think they just about got away with it though. Anne I hope you have a good time on your night out. Jude, I hope Madoc is feeling better soon, it's such a worry when things go wrong, I remember when Bonnie hurt her knee, the vet was saying she needed an operation to save her from arthritis later in life and it would cost £600, when he saw our faces he began to back track a little, she got away with anti inflamatories and she is fine. I'm not saying he's a bad vet, he's very good and I have every faith in him but sometimes I think they get a bit carried away. Anyway I should go now, I am running late and should be starting dinner. Take care Gaynor Ann xxx

Hello everyone and hope you are all well today. Just a quickie for now, I am all excited (pathetic isn't it?). I am going to meet my first real life GC member tonight. Lynda and her sister are over here in Belfast for a few days, and John and I are going to bring them up to the house for a few hours. God help them!! They may wish they had stayed in their hotel! House is in a mess at the moment, as the kitchen is about to be redecorated and we have trailed the flooring up! Still the welcome will be warm. It will be good to meet her, as we have exchanged quite a few emails. Some of our research is actually based on addresses which are next door to each other. Small world. Well will have to go now and tidy up a bit. Hope we don't give her our germs, as we have had that old virus. Enjoy the rest of the day. Best to all Anne xxx