random ramblings: Another birthday, and another Easter

So last Monday was my Birthday. It was better than last year in that I didn't get any presents stolen. I had lots of cards, a few cheques, a DVD and 3 CDs, Only Boys Aloud, The Fisherman's Friends, and the Hobbit soundtrack. Husband had the day off and we decided to go to Milton Keynes where there is a huge shopping centre. Our Daughter has suddenly discovered that making her own clothes is cheaper, and has borrowed my sewing machine. She is so hooked, that I cannot see me ever getting my machine back, and as I've had it since we married, I thought it might be nice to look at what was available now. I have one or two unfinished garments, and a pattern and material unused.
We went into John Lewis, and realised that the store had had a complete revamp since my last visit. haberdashery was nowhere to be seen on the ground floor. We wandered through and managed to find a store guide, Phew! They had moved hab to the second floor. I know that a few stores got rid of their material sections, including Watford, but this recession has gone on for so long that people are rediscovering the delights of making clothes for a fraction of the cost, plus the fact that one can have something that no one else is wearing.
We went up the escalator, and found the sewing machines, I was feeling a bit out of my depth. There were machines ranging in price up to over £900. An assistant came along and helped me, she showed me the difference in machines in my price range, and eventually I settled on a Janome which has 50 different stitches. Scarey! We paid for it and arranged for it to go to the collecting bay. Then we went to the Place to Eat, which is now on the second floor, the old one is still at the front of the store, but is now more of a coffee and cake place. I had a feta salad, and husband had a prawn baguette.
Then we began a tour of the shopping centre, Husband was amazed that I walked past Lakeland without going in. We went into Smith's for papers, and discovered one had sold out, but they had Shirley Hughes books, 3 for the price of 2, so we bought Dogger, Alfie Gets in first, and one I hadn't seen before Alfie and the Big Boys, which apparently deals with going to nursery, and as a certain young man is coming up to 3, seems appropriate. I went in M&S and had a browse but decided I didn't really need a new summer skirt, I found the other newspaper there too.
We didn't go down to the newer part, husband went in a phone shop,but after that we walked back down the other side of the rectangle of shops, found the car, then drove to the John Lewis collection point and collected the sewing machine.

We called in on Daughter on the way home, she had been going to pop around to us, but it was easier for us to call there as she has two little ones to wrap up and bundle into the car. We gave her the books, she gave me my presents, and she was pleased. Dogger has always been a favourite of hers.
In the evening we had booked a table at the place where we had Sunday lunch on my Birthday last year. It being a Monday some restaurants were closed, but they have a lodge, so there were a few business men, there and a few other diners. For starters I had fan of melon, Iberico ham with herb salad, husband had bubble and squeak cake, bacon and poached egg. We both had the sea bass with ratatouille, prawn and caper butter, and a shared dish of veg.
For dessert I had Grand Marnier creme brulee, with a white choc and cranberry cookie, and husband had Amaretti choc torte Swiss choc ice cream, and choc sauce. After coffee which was served with petit fours, we felt well and truly stuffed. I drove home as husband had had a glass of wine.
As I walked in the back door husband told me he had taken a call from my sister to say that my cousin had died. I'd only been 'talking by text' to her sister at 6.30, with no indication of anything, but they had all been summoned to her bedside and she had gone peacefully just after 8 pm. We had a total of 11 missed calls on the answering machine from sister. I hadn't taken my mobile with me, but she had rung that once too.
In Contrast Tuesday was boring, I got husband's car insurance sorted, my usual walk in freezing temperatures, my exercises, and not much else worth recording. Late Birthday cards continued to arrive.
On Wednesday I decided to skip Weightwatcher's but didn't manage to get to Sainsbo's any earlier as I was trying to pay things online, and one payment kept stalling, so I had to search out a phone number, then hold on and press various buttons before speaking to a human who took details over the phone. Sainsbury's was extra busy, due to the upcoming Easter weekend. I dashed home, unpacked the cold stuff, and after a quick bowl of soup went to Parent and Toddler's. There were not many there, perhaps they had misunderstood when we were open, so lots of tots missed out on chocolate eggs.
I had had to change my physio appointment as they were too close together and all that was available was 8 am on Thursday, so I was up early, left home at 7.15, anticipating heavy traffic and arrived at 7.35 am. I had a coffee from the machine, but it was slow and I pulled it out before the milk came then had to shove it back, so it ended up almost black. I was given 2 new exercises, and a band, we are now into strengthening exercises. The official advice (health and safety) is to wear goggles as I have to put one end of the band under my foot, and it might ping up and hit me in the eye!!!!!
I vacuumed upstairs for the first time in many weeks, I still have to be careful and mainly use my left arm. I called in on Daughter in the afternoon to take something, then got home in time for husband's arrival home. He came in with a large bunch of flowers for me, from his colleagues. He joked that they were sympathy flowers, he also brought in an assortment of stuff he has accumulated over the 9 years he has worked there, to add to the piles that we need to sort out. He still maintains that he is not retired yet, that it's not his Birthday till Tuesday, so he doesn't retire till Easter Monday.

my 'Sympathy' flowers

On Friday we had a Good Friday service at 10 am. I spent part of the day making up the bed in the front bedroom. Daughter and her husband took the children with uni friends and their little boy to the Buckinghamshire Railway centre at Quainton, as they had a visit from Thomas the Tank engine. There were 2 very excited boys.
On Saturday we were quite late leaving for town, I'm not sure why, we spent far too much money n M&S. They had run out of Easter cakes so I had to make do with a chocolate fudge cake, and the only chocolate Birthday cake they had was a party size, so that had to be the one. Our Son and Daughter in law arrived at around 3.30 pm, with Tom, and later they went out to a friend's house for a meal, leaving Tom with us as the friend had cats. I phoned my sister, then made bolognese.
On Sunday we had a visiting speaker, the last time he came was 2 days after my op, and had felt dreadful after yawning all through his sermon. This time I didn't yawn, but he did lose me after a while. Everyone seems to finish dead on 12 these days, no more 45 minute sermons to enjoy. Then home to pick up some stuff. When our Son and his wife got back here, they collected Tom, and we all went up to Daughter's, as I didn't feel I could cope yet with entertaining so many. They had invited a friend too, so it was merry chaos, Nathaniel haring around, shrieking after Tom, tripping over feet and falling over, Lydia watching her brother admiringly. Dinner was lovely, roast beef,Yorkshires, roasties and all the trimmings. Then white choc mousse or a choc roulade I had picked up in M&S. I tried to doze off after but didn't really succeed, I'm still not sleeping properly. We didn't think we could concentrate on the evening service, but Son and Daughter in law went off to theirs, leaving Tom with us. Daughter had bought loads of food, so we had a late tea, suddenly there was tap on the window, the others had come home, found we were still out, so came to join us. Daughter had decorated the choc fudge cake with eggs and a chick, so we had an Easter cake after all. We came home to phone Mum in Law, and the others came home later. Will write about Easter Monday later.