So Long Mum

Don't worry, she's only gone to stay with my sister Julie in Spain but it's a "so long" from us as she's been staying with us here in Framlingham for the last ten days. Hopefully she enjoyed herself. We've enjoyed having her and we've kept her busy despite the unseasonal summer we're having. At 93 she's struggling a bit with her mobility but still managed to walk around Framlingham with us and enjoyed our regular coffees at The Dancing Goat and a trip to the cinema. 

The Art OF Racing In The Rain is a sentimental tale narrated by a dog. I know it sounds silly but it was a pleasant if schmaltzy couple of hours out of the rain.

Mum busied herself with the crossword and a jigsaw puzzle which she completed in a few days.

We waved her off yesterday at Southend Airport and she arrived safely in Alicante where she's now enjoying  a bit of sunshine.

It's been a month since I last blogged. It's been a busy time.

As soon as I felt sufficiently recovered from my hospital treatment we drove up to St Andrews to visit the family. It was great to see them after being virtually housebound since April. We were fortunate to have chosen the week when England experienced that tremendous heatwave. We enjoyed the weather in Scotland without the thirty degree temperatures.

I felt sufficiently recovered to get on my bike for a couple of short rides. They went well.

It's always great to see the grandchildren. Melody is nearly six now.

And Rose is 8. I can't believe it's been so long since we rushed to Scotland to meet her for the first time.

St Andrews was as lovely as ever. We were fortunate to get a table at this place. The Seafood Ristorante was recently awarded the accolade of Scotland's Restaurant Of The Year by Catering In Scotland. 

The accolade is fully deserved

The famous Old Course

A Trip To Tentsmuir Beach

Craigtoun Park

We visited Dundee Museum for the first time and were very impressed.

The girls loved the dressing up room.

And I was fascinated to learn that the world's oldest depiction of a football match is this painting in the museum's collection. 

The girls were fascinated by Dundee's Oor Wullie Trail. We spotted these two in Dundee and St Andrews

Before we left Scotland, Rose and Melody joined us in the caravan for a sleepover. They converted the lounge into a shopping mall.

Back in Suffolk, I've been busily trying to get my fitness back. We've joined the gym on top of going there for exercise classes and have been working out in the mornings and it is paying dividends.

I also felt well enough to go out with the detector again. I've limited the sessions to a couple of hours at a time but have managed to find a few interesting items.

A typical afternoon's finds

I always enjoy finding medieval silver hammered coins. I love the cartoonish portraits of our ancient rulers

The garden is beginning to look established

I've not had much luck with eBay recently but I do have hopes for this c1825 Derby porcelain cup and saucer which looks like it was made yesterday.

Yesterday we visited the opening of Framlingham Art Society annual exhibition. There were plenty of very good works on display and we bought a small watercolour landscape. 

Finally I would like to mention my novels (again). Since I dropped the prices to 99p on Kindle, the sales have increased nicely. If you do read one (or both) it would be a massive help if you could leave a review as Amazon reviews do influence sales greatly. I'm working on a sequel to Mr Prendergast's Fantastic Find and if I can publish it while sales of the first book are buoyant it will be a boost.