Echoes of a Dream

The Blog Tour - final part

For this last bit of our trip we were staying with Wylie in Long Island. She and I had hit it off as soon as we exchanged our first emails and when I announced that we coming over to America Wylie had invited us to stay with her. Oh my - what a lovely place Long Island is. The drive from the ferry to her house had us open mouthed and oohing and aahing at every turn.

Wylie's house was equally lovely and she had made our rooms so inviting - the boys had story tapes next to their beds; Amber had a copy of Adorn and a book called Knitting for Peace; Tom had the Wall Street Journal and I had a Martha Stewart magazine next to my bed. We arrived, dived in the shower and drank copious amounts of cold drinks. Now Wylie did say that she hoped that the highlight of Raj's visit wasn't going to be the fridge/freezer that dispensed ice cubes because he was rather taken with it. Wylie, I'm pleased to say that although he loved it and used it often he didn't mention it until yesterday in the car and talked more of other things that we'd all done together.

On Thursday morning we dropped the car off at Budget and took the train to Penn Station whereupon we decided to split up. Tom took the boys to see the Statute of Liberty and Amber and I headed off with my list off fabric/trims/buttons shops.

She and I didn't get past 39th St that afternoon because we went to M&J Trimming:

Tinsel Trading. Lou-Lou's. Macy's and Lord And Taylor - the latter being for the toilets really. Then we found Daytona Trim which was much cheaper than M&J but didn't have the range. After that I rested my feet at Sephora whilst Amber went mad in there trying to decide which shade of eye pencil to buy. Then it was off to Grayline Linen which I had first heard about from Steph:

I have to tell you if you are ever in the area do get down there because their range is wonderful and the prices are fantastic. I did have to limit myself to just a few yards though as our suitcases were heaving by now:

Having ticked off everything on my list now I just had Purl Soho to visit but I was meeting Tom back at Penn at 6pm and it was now 5 o'clock. Do you remember that I had a got myself a mobile phone just for this purpose - to contact each other when we split up? Well guess what - the phone conked out or rather I thought it had conked out but really it had read 'unregistered sim' in Vermont when it meant 'no signal'. I took unregistered sim to mean that the phone didn't work so I didn't use it again and let the charge go. Boy was I livid when I got back and called Orange and they explained what had happened. Anyway, to cut a long story short I tried to call Tom from a call box and through the operator, who was going to charge me $46 and I just couldn't get through to him. So Purl was left till the next day.

Meanwhile we met up and found a great little Japanese cafe called Omsbi (on 156 East 45th St) that had been recommended by my ex boss where we ate Japanese rice balls, miso soup and hijiki (seaweed). Yum. Then we walked over to the Rockefeller Centre and had a hot drink in Dean and Delucca - very disappointing that place and then it was off to 76th St to stay at a friend's that night.

Next day we woke up to torrential rain and we spent most of the day ducking it. A few hours in Barnes and Noble and these purchases:

an hour or so in M&M World. I couldn't believe I was in there but the children loved it:

Then we got a cab to Soho and ate at Silver Spurs which is excellent and went to Kate's Paperie which was OK and then back to Kinokuniya which was a huge disappointment. I used to shop there in Tokyo and I came over to spy on them about 15 years ago when I worked in a Japanese bookshop in London. I have to say that their selection of craft books was terrible. There were lots of books there but nothing new or inspiring and none of the more popular ones either.

After that, wet and tired we decided to get back to the safe haven of Wylie's house. It was when I was sitting on the train that I remembered that I hadn't gone to Purl and I was so cross and disappointed. I had planned to get my sister the Barcelona skirt pattern and some fabric, some bits for a couple of bloggers over here and some fabric for myself of course. Grrrr.  I was mad cos I could have had a bigger splurge at Valley Fabrics. Oh well, never mind there is always mail order I suppose.

On the train back an older lady got talking to Tom and the boys and asked him what the English thought of George Bush. He looked a bit sheepish and said do you really want to know at which point I noticed a couple of men put down their papers and prick up their ears. Ooops be careful Tom I thought but he was very diplomatic thank goodness.

That night we went out for a most delicious Japanese meal where at first glance it looked as if we'd ordered way too much but the greedy Brits managed to finish most of it off. Next day Wylie and Matt took us to a couple of yard sales which were such fun. Tom went mad and bought a suit, a jacket, some shirts AND a little suitcase to take them all home in!

Oh I wish this day had gone on and on as there was so much to do and see. After the sales Matt took us to eat egg sandwiches which were yummy:

what a delicious combination of bacon and eggs. Then it was back to their house briefly before we went to Sue's for a chat and a swim in her pool. The boys and Tom swam and the girls chatted. It was so nice meeting Sue who's from Texas and we had lots to talk about as you can imagine. The boys had to be dragged out of the pool two hours later as they were having such fun. 

I had a quick trip to the supermarket with Matt to buy some bits and bobs to take home - the ingredients for s'mores, ghiardelli chocolate chips and some kool aid too and umpteen packets of Junior Mints which Amber is crazy about. Back home to pack it all up or rather to jam everything in the suitcases and then the evening was finished with a lovely barbecue. Oh Wylie, I wish we'd all had another day together at least, there was so much more to do and see and talk about.

We tumbled into bed around midnight that night as we were getting up at 4.30am. Wylie had borrowed her boss' car and they drove us to the airport at that crazy hour in the morning. So kind........ thank you so much Wylie and Matt it was lovely staying with you. We enjoyed your company so much and you really spoiled us.

So that was it - the trip in a nutshell. You can see why I was so sad on the plane back and why I found it hard to settle back for ages. We really did have the trip of a lifetime and we will all be talking about it for many years I reckon. The hardest thing for me was getting to know everyone and then saying goodbye. I made such lovely friends and I wish I could see you all again soon.

We loved America and the Americans we met - everyone was so friendly to us even the man on the street. We loved the sense of space too and nearly empty motorways. We loved the clapboard houses and the water everywhere that you could just dip into to cool off. I loved the choice and am very envious of what is available to crafters out there and the prices too. We definately plan to go back sometime. Meanwhile, we're making plans in our heads of where we'll take all our friends when they come and visit us next year.

Before I go here are some pics of me and some of my friends. I figure after sticking with me for a year you ought to really see what I look like! 

 

From top left: me and Jodi, me, Kristin and Julia, me and Sarah and finally me and Wylie. Apologies to the other ladies as some of the pics were just too blurred to put up.

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A footnote to say goodbye for a week as we're off to Wales with my sister. Pretty timely this trip because our garden is like this at the moment:

We're having it levelled, a porch built (that's an English porch) and the stable in the background done up before it falls down. More on all that when I get back ...................

The Blog Tour - part 3

So where were we on that Sunday morning? Ah yes, wondering where to go next - Boston, back to Ashfield or The Berkshires even? - when the phone rang and someone answered our prayers. It was Kristin sounding really pleased that she hadn't missed us as she'd just got back the night before from New Jersey. Can you come and stay she asked? I nearly fell out of my seat. When Kristin and I had spoken about this trip we realised that we probably wouldn't get to meet as she would be away when we passed by her place and it was only because this friend in Boston couldn't have us that we were now free.You know I've spent this whole trip saying how blessed we were and it's things like this that made me say it.

Anyway, I did not need asking twice so it was off in the car and back down Tom's favourite motorway:

On route we stopped off in Grafton (what a pretty place):

and somewhere near there we stopped on the side of the road and bought lemonade and brownies off two lovely girls. We told them we'd come all the way from England for their treats and they looked suitably impressed:

Then it was another quick dip in a river somewhere (near Newfane, I think):

before arriving at Kristin's.

Oh Joy. What a beautiful house she has - the downstairs rooms are painted in soft leafy greens:

piled high with books, decorated with beautiful textiles, rich coloured cushions here and there, molas and paintings decorate some of the walls, other walls are painted like so:

Talk about eye candy. I just drifted from one room to another with my mouth wide open. It's such a lovely house in itself but the internal decoration really is quite stunning. If you want to see more there is a link to a magazine article here. Just scroll down till you get to Country Homes.

That night we had a barbeque, ate some more s'mores and all the children played board games till late whilst the adults chatted. The next day - guess what - we took Kristin and Julia to Elmers for brunch but we were too late - they'd finished serving and cleared up the kitchen. So we went over to the pizza place instead which was actually really nice. After that it was a visit to Historic Deerfield:

and a tour through one of the lovely houses which my children patiently bore but Julia loved and then back to Kristin's where the boys helped her husband to herd sheep that had gotten astray. They had a great time - my boys that is - and Rohan has gone back to his original dream of wanting to be a farmer. He got sidetracked by wanting to be a cricketer and then a rugby player in between.

Now next morning we were supposed to get up early and go to Boston but the children woke up asking if they could please go to Elmers and then to the glacial potholes before we left. So Kristin and I managed a bit of extra time together thankfully. I tell you I should have packed the others off and spent a day with K as we had so much to talk about and I wanted to see her work and her studio. As it was I managed to look through the books she's written and see some of her projects close-up. She is so talented and such an inspiring person too. I feel so lucky that I finally got to meet you Kristin and to stay with you too.

Look what she gave me as I left. A signed copy of:

and some balls of her lovely wool which is as soft as can be (it's a wool/mohair/alpaca blend). She let me pick what I wanted and I tell you it's so lovely I could have taken a ball of each colour but I didn't want to appear greedy:

So after a snatched hour to ourselves we went back to Elmers - "Hi it's us again" - and had a great brunch and a lovely chat with the owner who is from New Orleans. I didn't catch her name but I just want to say if you're reading, 'please come to England and open up an Elmers near us'. My children will love you forever and do all the advertising for you ....... and get pretty huge too, I suppose.

Well after a quick swim we really did have to leave for Boston and we did it with tears in our eyes. Thanks Kristin, Mark and Julia for being such wonderful hosts - can we come back next year please?

Three hours later we were in Boston where we got to stay in our first hotel. It really made us appreciate how amazing our trip was that we only did it once. That afternoon/evening we walked around Boston and then met Brenda and her family for supper. Brenda and I have been e-mailing each other for a while and I was so pleased that we were able to meet up. Sadly, the evening was far too short but we were well entertained by Jason, Brenda's other half who is a real character. The boys loved him as they did the two little boys - Jack and Nash. We all had a cuddle with Nash who is just six months old. To prolong the evening we went to Ben and Jerry's down the road but it really was time to go back to the hotel as we were all wilting by now. A sad goodbye was said and we went back saying what a lovely family you have Brenda and thanks so much for supper and for the lovely gifts you gave us too. We just wish we could have spent some more time together - you and I had so much to talk about.

Next morning we went to Cambridge and had another American brunch at Zoe's before we sped off down the motorway to Bridgeport to get the ferry to Long Island. In retrospect we should have spent the morning in Boston as Cambridge was far too busy and touristy but never mind.

I'm sure you'll be pleased to hear that the fourth and final part will be coming up soon and then we can resume normal broadcast - as they used to say on the telly. Thanks so much for reading and for being interested in our trip. I wanted to share it with you to show you just how amazing this blogging community really is and also to pay tribute to all our lovely hosts and to say thank you to my wonderful (new) friends.

The Blog Tour - part 2

I'm sorry I haven't been updating as often as I would have liked but we've had cousins staying - or rather I had cousins staying because Tom was back in London. What with the awful weather and all, I seemed to do nothing but wash clothes, chuck children in the bath and feed them. By the time my sister arrived on Thursday I was knackered and still feeling unsettled being back. What a weird week. Anyway, on to part two of our fabulous trip:

After a whistle-stop tour of Target and Old Navy in Holyoak Mall we arrived in Northampton where I was meeting Lee. We were so hot and bothered by the time we got there that we made straight for Herrell's and their superb ice-creams. Tom took the children for a look around the town while I went in search of a lady with a long plait and crazy socks. She in turn was looking for me with a pink top and mauve culottes and somehow we found each other .

Lee took me to Valley Fabrics, which is such a lovely shop. There was a great choice of fabric and I was only tempted to buy a little (huge mistake in retrospect) as I thought I would be going to Purl Soho the week after. The ladies in Valley were lovely and very friendly. Everyone was intrigued to hear about how we were making our way across New England, staying with people met through my blog.

then we went to Webs, where I'm afraid I walked around like a child in a sweet shop. I was so overwhelmed with all the choice that I couldn't choose anything. What a great shop though - if you live in the vicinity of either of these shops you're very lucky. There was a huge range of wool, needles, spinning supplies and books. I really could have spent ALL day in there.

Now here's a bit of 'random act of kindness' for you. As we were chatting outside Webbs, Lee showed me her Sat Nav or GPS and how to use it and then out of the blue asked if I wanted to borrow it. We were complete strangers as we had only started leaving comments on each others blogs a few weeks ago. How incredibly kind and trusting is that? Tom and I couldn't believe it. Thank you so much Lee and thanks to your husband too - it was really useful and we're so touched by your kindness.

So GPS jabbering away to us, we headed off to Shelburne Falls to find Tonya who we were staying with that night. First it took us off the beaten track onto a private road that said CLOSED and deeper and deeper into an increasingly spooky forest. Then when we were told we'd got to our destination it looked remarkably like the middle of nowhere (although we were only a few hundred yards away actuallly). So we pulled up outside another house and I went for help, opening the screen door and calling out in my best British accent:

"Hello, I wonder if you could help me please, we're lost"

"I'm sorry but I haven't got any clothes on" said a reedy voice from inside.

"Oh! It's just that we're lost and we're trying to find number ... on this road".

"You can come in but I haven't got any clothes on," added the ancient voice, which became half a wizened face peering at me from around a corner.

She looked worryingly like Bette Davis in Whatever Happened to Baby Jane.

"Oh hello" I said. "I'm so sorry to trouble you but we're lost and we need to find ......."

"I haven't lived here long" she said "I used to be a Professor at Amherst. Youshould ask Marion so-and-so down the road - she knows everyone".

"OK. Thank you so much and I'm so sorry to have troubled you," I gabbled.

"It's alright. I'm sorry I haven't got any clothes on. I got hot and took off my outer garments....." - at which point I ran.

It was so surreal and so funny .........

I did, however, finally meet Tonya and her beautiful daughter Zoe (we got there in the end). Tonya and I discovered that we had a lot in common being raised my immigrant parents in England although she's miles younger than me. That night we all sat in her garden and chatted and the next day Tonya took us to the best place for brunch in New England - the children are still talking about Elmers in Ashfield:

Pancakes, waffles, home fries, eggs, sausages and lovely hot chocolate. This is where we discovered the "American Portion". Diet, what diet? I didn't even get to swim it off in Ashfield lake, unlike Tom and the children, but I did have a lovely chat on the beach with Tonya. How civilised, having a lake in your town to swim in. Ashfield is the most beautiful little town. Elmers is worth a stop too not only for the food but for the gifts and things they sell in the back but I think you have to be a resident to swim in the lake I'm afraid. Don't miss the ironmongers or hardware store either. It's great as is the pizza place next door.

Next stop a quick dip in the glacial potholes at Shelburne Falls to cool down again:

and then it was off to Vermont to spend the evening with Sarah and Nelson before they dashed off to PEI the next morning. It was so lovely to arrive and slump in their gorgeous home - it was still very hot at this point, perhaps about 30C, and we certainly weren't used to it:

Sarah and Nelson's house is truly stunning. They built and designed it themselves following the guidelines in a book called something like the Not So Big House or some such. I think the idea is that every room in the house should be used every day, a kind of antidote to the McMansion. It was lovely. I particularly liked the three sided bookcase where the fireplace is the fourth side. It's all open plan downstairs with an enclosed verandah (porch as I learned to call it) where we sat and ate as dusk fell. We all discovered that we had masses in common as we are both Waldorf families and I was eager to hear about Sarah's job as an Historian. Tom grilled poor Nelson about the house and he got very excited by the cellar - particularly the plumbing down there. The children all played Skip-Bo which was new to us and I discovered that Helen, aged 11 makes lovely earrings. I rather greedily snapped up about six pairs - some for Amber and some for me and we've been wearing them off and on since. Thanks so much Helen - I really think you ought to sell some at the school fair this year.

The evening ended far too soon and we naughtily tried to persuade Sarah and Nelson to not rush off in the morning so that we could spend more time together. I know they were tempted but they had reservations and a long drive so they got off at 9, but not before giving us a delicious breakfast of pancakes and bacon. Then that was it we waved them off and went back inside their house which felt decidedly odd I can tell you. Another act of faith and trust though to let us stay on in their house for which we were so grateful. It was just nice to stop, relax, get some washing done and to slow down a bit.

So that day we visited Woodstock which is such a pretty town and then onto Killington. We were hoping to take in a Sugar House on the way back but had left it too late so we went and ate out instead. On Saturday we went to the excellent Norwich Farmer's Market:

What a great market with such wonderful produce for sale. There were fruits and vegetables, maple syrup, pottery, wool and delicious pastries by these two people:

Again well worth a visit if you're ever up there. Then the rest of the day we visited Queechee Gorge, ate at the Farmer's Diner:

and then we went back down to New Hampshire to Long Ridge Farm where I was to meet Nancy Zellor as I wanted to buy some Earthues plant dyes from her. Sadly, another hurried visit but we managed a quick chat and I bought some dyes before we went for another swim at Westmoreland. I'm hoping to get some colours like these in the future with the dyes:

Then Sunday morning came all to soon and we were suddenly in a dilemna as to what to do as our friend in Boston couldn't put us up that night. We had three days before going down to Long Island and we decided that we didn't want to spend them in a hotel in a city. I voted to go back to western Massachusetts as we'd come through it too quickly but where to stay and which bit to go to .......... then the phone rang and I tell you someone heard my prayers. Part three next time ...............

The Blog Tour - part 1

It really is time to pull myself together you know. I've been back for three days and I've been moping around the whole time. I'm finding it really hard to settle back into a routine and who wouldn't if they'd had the holiday that we had. Eighteen days of sun, fun, no cooking, great company and lots of cheap shopping. So sit back with me whilst it pours with rain outside and see what we did and where.

I think it was Georgia's husband that called our trip 'The Blog Tour' so here's part one:

We spent the first four days in Pennsylvania with Jodi and her family. From the moment we met at Trenton Station in New Jersey to take the long drive to their house we all hit it off so well. It put my niggly feelings of 'what if they don't like us' firmly away as we wittered away for nearly two hours. Jodi and Mike knew exactly what everyone wanted to do and see and had planned everything beautifully. On the first morning the children played badminton and paddled in the pool with Bron who is eleven and was very happy to share her playthings with the children:

Then we went off for a spot of local shopping. Clothes at American Eagle for Tom and Amber, baseball hats and Converses for the boys and craft shopping for me at AC Moore's and Jo-Ann's. I couldn't resist getting scrapbooking stuff for the children and card making making things for myself:

I must say we all went a bit crazy seeing the prices as everything was so cheap for us and that theme continued the whole way around New England too. That night Jodi and Mike took us to a Diner as we really wanted to see what one was like. Well, they picked a great one called Ruby's which was so retro inside. That was our first introduction to American portions and I have to say that we were fit to burst afterwards:

We had a great waitress with a really loud voice and strong accent. We loved her voice so much that we recorded it for posterity on my camera - she must have thought we were crazy.

The next day we went to a baseball game to see the Wilmington Blue Rocks and the boys, thanks to Jodi, got invited on to the pitch to take part in a big shoe race:

They were so thrilled especially when the customer services chap gave them signed baseballs and other goodies when he realised we were from England. Before the game we had a 'tailgate picnic' and ate Philadelphia Cheese Steaks and Hoogies (sp?). Jodi told Raj not to eat the cheese steaks outside of Philadelphia as they wouldn't be as good and that he should laugh at them if he saw them on a menu elsewhere. Well, Jodi I'm pleased to tell you that Raj saw some on a menu on a street stall in NYC and he went up to the picture and said 'look it's a Philly Cheese Steak' and he proceeded to hold his stomach and laugh! That boy.

On Sunday we went into Philadelphia briefly to visit Reading Terminal which makes our Covent Garden look boring and commercial I can tell you. What a wonderful place with such lovely stalls - my fave one has to be this one:

where they sold the most delicious looking cakes and biscuits:

That night Jodi and Mike had a barbecue in their garden for us where we ate the best corn and shrimps and lamb cooked by their son Alex. Jodi had made some delicious Gazpacho with tomatoes from her garden too. They had also invited my friend Sue and her family who happened to live about twenty minutes away. We had a great evening all of us chatting and drinking Pimms that we had taken over for a present. We also got to try S'mors which I have never had before and although they are a tad sweet we loved them. No wonder I've put on about half a stone! However, I did have to bring back the ingredients so that we could initiate our friends and family this summer:

By now it was Sunday night and I was very conscious that our time together was coming to an end. My three were so happy the whole time playing with Bron, Joy and Alex and it's a testament to how lovely Jodi's children are that the older two who are in their early twenties played and chatted and laughed with them all day long for four days. The adults sat up far too late in the evenings chatting and I had to drag myself to bed most nights.

Monday was our last day and Mike had hired a bigger car to take us all to Lancaster County and what an interesting place that was. On the way we stopped off at this amazing place chock full of antiques and old things at very reasonable prizes:

We looked around the Amish Village, visited the lovely Country Store and a couple of other places and most of all saw some of the Amish people themselves. It was a very intriguing place:

I couldn't resist these for presents for the folks back home:

On the way home we stopped at a shop called Weavers where I couldn't reisist a few bundles of fabric at 79 cents each:

All too soon it was Tuesday morning and the children were begging to stay an extra day. Jodi and Mike, made us feel so welcome and it was really hard to leave them I can tell you.

I can't finish their story without telling you about one of the kindest deeds that I know of. On Friday Amber purchased some clothes from American Eagle and we spent about $80. Somehow the bag got left somewhere in some shop by one of us and when we got back to Jodi's it was missing. Alex, her son spent a long time on the phone calling around shops we had visited to see if they had it but it was nowhere. Tom and I decided that we wouldn't let it ruin our holiday and that it could have and would have happened in England too.

Well, listen to this. When we came back from the baseball on Saturday Alex handed Amber a bag with all the clothes in that she'd bought. He had gone shopping with his girlfriend and REPLACED everything. He didn't want her to have a bad experience in his country. Boy was I on the verge of tears when he handed her the bag and I'm even tearful now. This is a young man that is working his way through College and can't have pots of money. Thank you so much Alex - at the risk of embarrassing you I have to say you are a great guy.

See what I mean when I say that I have learned so much about human kindness and generosity. The whole family were such an example to us all. It's funny isn't it that five months ago we didn't even know each other.

Well, sad as it was leaving Pennsylvania we got into our hired Dodge Charger and took to the road to drive to Connecticut to Georgia's which was our next stop. This is the house that they rent and boy have I coveted it since I first saw it on her blog:

I was so excited about meeting Georgia as we had written to each other a lot and seemed to be on the same wave length. The boys too were keen to meet her boys and play a spot of cricket:

Well, they played more than cricket that day. There was kayaking, talking about bird-watching which Remi and Rohan realised they had in common and a fantastic Aussie barbecue too thanks to Matt, Georgia's other half. After we'd got the children off to bed the chaps drank beer and watched baseball on THE biggest telly I've ever seen whilst Georgia and I sat and chatted and she slowly revealed all the things she makes. My goodness that woman is a dark horse - she makes the most beautiful cards which I just had to buy, handmade paper, lovely pottery and she paints too. Oh and I forgot to mention the wool that she spins so well on her drop spindle. Now she's gotten into dyeing too. I really need to go back into her archives to see what else I've missed. Here's a pic of some of the cards I bought:

and here is a link to her granny square blanket (which I forgot to take a pic off). I have to say it would get my vote for the best blanket - the colours are great and I love the way she's done some big squares and some smaller ones - it felt gorgeously soft too as she'd used a blend of merino and alpaca. I tried not to feel too inadequate as we left that morning!

Well, after a delicious breakfast of pancakes it really was time to leave although it took us all of two hours to actually say goodbye. Oscar and Amber, both thirteen decided that was the time to hassle their Mums about having mobile phones but Georgia and I stuck firmly with the age fourteen deadline. Then it was back in the car to drive up to western Massachusetts where I was meeting Lee very briefly in Northampton (that was after we'd stopped at Target at Holyoak Mall as I just had to see what this place that everyone mentions was).

Massachusetts and Vermont coming up next time (after I've recovered from doing this post which seems to have taken ALL morning).

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PS Just a couple of pictures of the faerie house that Jodi made for her children. I just had to show you all as it's so enchanting - please click on each pic to view the bigger one:

 

Speechless for once

I have been prevaricating all day about writing this post and for once I'm actually lost for words believe it or not. How do I tell you about the AMAZING, WONDERFUL, FANTASTIC time that we had in America? How can I begin to tell you about the generosity and friendship that we experienced? Where shall I start when I tell you about my lovely new friends and the fun time we had together?

I'm lost for words because I'm a bit overwhelmed to tell the truth. The whole of the last 16 days I felt as if I were in a dream. A dream where strangers opened their doors and their hearts to us and enveloped us with their love. A dream in which everyone made us feel so welcome that I cried each time I said goodbye. I know everyone talks about the kindness, the support and the sharing that goes on in the blogging community but I defy anyone to have the experience that we have had these past eighteen days. We were welcomed by readers of this blog - some that have blogs and others that don't - and they couldn't have done more for us.

I have lots to tell and many pictures to show too but first I need to unpack all this lot:

and to get my head around all the building work outside and the dust inside:

As we only arrived back at 11.30pm last night I just need a day to process everything but I will be back. I have so much to tell you about our wonderful holiday and about friendship, trust, generosity and kindness.

So please be sure to look in tomorrow .....................