A sad day

The old double edged sword ... always hits you when you least expect it, doesn't it?! Umm...

We knew that my Grandmother was very ill and even though you know it still doesn't make things any easier when the time comes for their spirit to leave you here and they go off to be with their soul mates.

On Friday I found a link and perhaps a connection to my Grandfather's missing family.... We have been searching for over 40 years if not longer... an email was sent off to them with a huge amount of hope that we have a connection...

My mum was so excited by the news when I told her on Friday night and her excitement was also that she would have a chance to tell my Grandmother ... something small to make her smile and give her something else to think about other than being ill and in pain....

Then on Saturday night my Grandmother decided that her time here with us had come to an end and she passed away peacefully in her sleep to be with my Grandfather ...

Love you both so much xx

A little light..

I have been searching for such a long time now, trying to find out any information that I can that would perhaps lead me to my Grandfather's family ...

Although I don't know if they survived WWII or not, I have space in my heart that I keep for them in the hope that there is someone for me to find.

Today I went onto the net again as I always do and typed in my Grandfather's surname and for the first time a listing came up ... the spelling of the surname was the same.... similar towns came up .... a family tree is trying to be established!

So today I wrote to this family in English and then translated my letter into Polish and sent it off .... I hope with all my heart that we may be a 'together' and that I get to share this news with my Grandmother before she passes away ....

Now the waiting for the reply .... xx

Image: Baltic Sea, Poland Photographer: http://www.socksoff.co.uk/walls04.html

Happy Holidays

Wishing you all a wonderful and very Merry Christmas!

Time spent with family and friends

Lots of laughter throughout the house

Warm hugs

Tinkling of glasses

Kisses from your little ones

Chatter around the table

Smiles all round!

Image: Vintage Christmas Card unknown

Albert Hall

Beautiful image of the windows in Albert Hall.... we had such a fabulous time at the End of year Celebration concert for our little guy's school yesterday.... wonderful wonderful time ..... so many talented children!

The youngest performer was 3 years old with the oldest being 16 years old ... so good to see all the children working together and being part of a community!

Congratulations to you all xx

The Harvard Book store

When I started travelling, one of my wish list places to visit was the Harvard Book Store ... I had this amazing image in my head about what it would like inside, the books that they carry, what the people would be like that worked there ..... and how it would feel to be an author and have a book in store!

Such a dream....

I did visit the Harvard Book Store and of course fell in love with ... it did turn out to be everything that I had imaged from 8 years old... still not 100% sure how I got to fall in love with it from 8 years old though!

It was warm and inviting, had beautiful books all around .... I still remember purchasing my copy of "To Kill a Mockingbird" ... to me it was perfect!

Image: Harvard Book Store photographer; unknown

Christmas Tree fun

We were looking for a few different things to do for Christmas this year and came across this on the Donna Hay website .... what fun to do this with the kids!

Looking forward to having a go at it with my little one!

From Donna Hay's Style Ideas, Celebrations:

A fun alternative to a traditional tree is to outline one in nails on a board, then run string or wool around the shape and decorate it with these spiced cookies. Full of Christmas flavours – cinnamon, nutmeg and allspice – and sparkling with a dusting of sugar, they make a delicious change from the usual decorations. Roll the dough a little thicker than normal, pierce a hole at the top with a skewer (to loop with strong thread or pretty ribbon) and cook for a little longer than usual at a lower temperature to make sure the cookies fully dry out.

To see more styling tips, please visit Donna Hay http://www.donnahay.com.au/index.htm

Image: Christmas Tree, Donna Hay

Text: Style Ideas, Donna Hay

Around the corner

Working away ... feeling a little behind with the new book ... focusing on getting it back to where I'd like it to be next week ...

Christmas and the Holiday season is definitely upon us as we jump straight into December, finishing up the school year, Christmas concerts, tree decorations .... all the fun things that make us smile!

Image: Heidi Tree with sparkles; unknown