That's What Friends Are For

It's Marion's birthday this week and I wanted to do something special for her as she's had a rough year after losing her dear mum and then selling the house she loved, living in a caravan for six months and moving to a new place where she knows almost nobody. Presents are all well and good but I wanted something different so I secretly contacted Marion's best friend Jane and asked if she and husband Dave could come and join us at the caravan. It was a lot to ask for them to give up a precious weekend and drive hundreds of miles to stay in a cramped caravan but they did me proud.

I managed to slip a few extras into the shopping trolley while Marion wasn't looking and prepared a friday night meal for four without her noticing the unusually large portions and Jane and Dave turned up right on cue just before it was ready to serve. I can't thank them enough for giving Marion such a fantastic surprise. She was genuinely shocked to see them and we had a great weekend with a great couple.

On Saturday they joined us at the always excellent Seafood Restaurant for lunch. We hoped to be able to show Dave and Jane around St Andrews which is now our second home town but sadly the weather defeated us and we were restricted to a tour of the town and surroundings by car before heading back to the caravan to watch the rugby and spend a night in front of the telly.

On Sunday we went to see Sarah, Duncan and Rose and enjoyed some of Sarah's delicious home baking before a quick cup of tea at Mitchells after which Dave and Jane had to get back on the road south. They managed to get back safely despite heavy snowfalls in the Dumfries area.

As I write it is snowing yet again. I don't think I can remember a winter with more days of snow than this one. Weather permitting we're going to join Sarah and Rose. Later this week we hope we can get to Dundee to see at least one of the films on our wish list although my hopes of a day out with the detector are looking increasingly doubtful.

Still Standing

As the deluge continues unabated (it's been raining for three days now) the river Eden down the road near Dairsie has broken its banks and what is normally lush green pasture is now a raging torrent and the garden of the house by the bridge has disappeared.

Fortunately for us the caravan has weathered the storm well and we have escaped unscathed although the adjacent trees have sometimes swayed to a perilous angle in the wind. 

We're off to the Seafood Restaurant for lunch. If it were high tide we would have a spectacular view but the tide should have turned by 1 o'clock and we won't be dining in a maelstrom. 

Marion loves Christmas and our house in Southport was always packed with lights, candles, presents, trees and decorations. It's not something she could do in the caravan so our only nod to the festive season is a few glittery twigs amongst the flowers. At least Sarah and Duncan and Paul and Josephine have continued Marion's tradition and their houses are both beautifully decorated for the holidays.

We've been busy assembling one of Rose's Christmas presents this morning. She can't read the blog yet so I'm not spoiling her surprise. I think it's lovely. Hope she likes it.

A Trying Time Ahead

With our move to Suffolk planned for around 14 January we’ve plenty going on in the forthcoming weeks so the summons that arrived this morning for Marion to appear as a witness in a Scottish court early in the new year was not exactly welcome. The case dates back to a fraud we experienced almost three years ago. Let’s hope that it doesn’t throw a spanner into the works of the house move.

It’s almost a week now since the WIFI signal at the caravan site disappeared and, although the service provider Caravan Connect tell us that they are working on it and parts are on their way, with the caravan site office closing on Friday we are facing an internet free Christmas – that means almost no Twitter , no metal detecting forums, no eBay, no Facebook – I’ll probably realise how much time I waste on them all. I’m only able to upload this blog as I’m babysitting for Sarah and Duncan. Tonight is the last chance for them to take advantage of our proximity for a week or so as we’re off on another tour tomorrow.

As it’s below freezing here at the moment we need to drain down the caravan completely and then put antifreeze into the u bends and toilet bowls to make sure that we don’t return to the disaster of cracked pipes. After that we’re off to Southport. We were hoping to have a meal with my mum, my brother Pete and his wife Val but Val is ill so that’s not going to happen. At least we should get to see Mum and to exchange family Christmas presents before heading down to Framlingham to catch up on the house – there should be some pretty significant changes as it’s almost a month since our last trip.

After that we’re back here in St Andrews this time next week for a relaxing Christmas before hitting the road again to Rochester after Boxing Day and hopefully dropping in on a few friends between then and the new year prior to heading back to Framlingham to oversee some wardrobes being fitted there on 3^rd Jan.    

Yesterday we used a wonderful treat that Sarah and Duncan bought me for my birthday and enjoyed a fabulous champagne afternoon tea at Rufflets – a lovely country house hotel just outside St Andrews. Although we only ate an early morning breakfast and had no lunch we still struggled to finish the magnificent late afternoon feast. There are so many great places to eat and drink in and around St Andrews. Although there are many places worthy of a mention, we like Mitchells best for snacks or coffee and cakes and The Seafood Restaurant for fine dining. We’ve got a lunch booked there on the Saturday before Christmas and are really looking forward to it.

La Petite Gourmette

Duncan wanted to treat us to lunch at the fabulous Seafood Restaurant before we head off down the motorway for home. It's been a highlight of many a trip to St Andrews so I was disappointed when we phoned to make a reservation and discovered there was no high chair available for Rose. However, after tweeting my disappointment, Tim at the restaurant got in touch and offered to find a high chair for us so happiness prevailed. 

Serving wonderful dishes like my delicious crab tart starter and scrumptious turbot main , it's not exactly the place for chicken nuggets and chips so it isn't somewhere to take a hungry family with typical school age children (although do give it a try if they're adventurous). But, as Rose is at the very early stages of eating solid food and will try anything, it was perfect and she merrily tucked into small portions of her dad's turbot, Marion's courgette, Sarah's bread and crab cake and my er well that was enough for her wasn't it? We had an excellent lunch washed down with a lovely crisp bottle of white wine and a glorious tarte tatin dessert. Service was friendly and welcoming and we had a super long and leisurely time reminiscent of holidays in France when Sarah and Paul were growing up.

And if great food and service is not enough for you, just look at the restaurant's location (photo borrowed with apologies from their website). Perched above the sea, diners are able to enjoy the view and the sound of the waves crashing or lapping depending on the weather and the state of the tide. For fine dining, it's as good as it gets. It's five stars from us and a big thank you to Duncan.

At the head of the table

The waiter just cracked a joke

And to show that she's not picky and doesn't only go for fine dining, we took Rose to Pizza Express on Tuesday where she tucked into her mum's pizza with gusto.