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Wesleyfamilys BlogOur chance to gossip.... May 12 Tiree Travels!Well, howdi all. Hope everyone is well. I am just blogging today to let my mum and dad see our pics from Tiree. We went last week for 4 days. It was my surprise for Nick. He is going to hit the big 4 oh on Wednesday and I decided to treat him to a weekend away. I suspect that he was guessing that it might be a trip to NYC or Paris or somewhere equally glamorous for the two of us. Little did he know that it was to be a trip to a little Scottish island in a self catering cottage with the kids, dogs and his parents!! You should have seen his face when I told him!!
However, Tiree is the most beautiful place. The sun shone for us and we had a great time! We didn't take a car because it was too expensive so Nicks Olds took their bikes and we arranged to go on the community bus. We weren't allowed to take dogs on the bus though so Nick walked them from the Ferry to the cottage. We had estimated that it was just about 3 miles to the cottage but we had worked it out wrong. It was 6 miles!!
We hired bikes for the duration of our stay and cycled everywhere - its great because it is so flat there. the beaches are fantastic - white sand and clear green sea - its like the carribean!
We had a birthday BBQ for Nick on Saturday for his birthday - we ate loads and drank too much! But it was great fun. Good food and excellent company - a shame that some of our old pals from Kegworth were absent but we had a drink on their behalf!!
We are both taking the day off on Wednesday - the weather promises to be glorious - so we will walk to the pub for lunch. Then the following Wednesday I bought him tickets to see the Kaiser Chiefs - they are playing in Oban!! Can you believe that they are playing in such a wee venue. Our Rock and Roll friends Nick and Joey managed to get us on the guest list - so if anyone wants to buy a couple of kaiser chief tix for Oban drop me an email!!!
Well, take a look at the photos - there are some beauties.
Lots of Love
Karen  March 18 Long time no see!Hey all! It has been ages since I managed to get onto write here! I spend months trying to remind everyone to visit regularly and then stop writing. We just have such a busy life here!
So what have we been doing over the last year?! We spent a couple of weeks last summer in the south of France, which was a blast - if an expensive one! The kids really enjoyed it. WE rented a villa with a pool near Valbonne which is near Cannes. We spent far too much money doing far too little!( I will upload some photos) So we decided to do something a bit cheaper next year and went and booked to go to Florida!!! Hmmm absolutely no sense in that reasoning at all!! We are going with our great friends Dougie and Annie and their 2 gorgeous girls. Hope it lives up to their mark though, Dougie just came back from husky dog racing in Greenland!! We don't go til October which seems like a lifetime away! Holly will be in high school then - she will be almost 12 and joe will be almost 10! God where do the years go?
We spent the rest of last summer walking and visiting the neighbouring wee islands on Dougie and Annie's boat. What a blast!
Christmas was another huge success. Mum and dad came and made it extra special and Hogamany was spent in our house with 60 of our friends!! It was a lovely night, dry and a star filled sky meant that Nick had to light the fires outside and most people were sat drinking and singing outside! Lucy and Matt and their new baby daughter surprised and came to stay for a few days, too! Its a good job we have a large house! I never stop grumbling about having to clean a 5 bedroomed house when we only use 3 bedrooms but its great for entertaining! We spent newyears day at our friends who live over at ARdmaddy Castle for a barby in the barn. Great times take a look at the pics.
We had our house on the market for a few weeks but decided not to sell in the end because we couldn't guarantee a house here on Seil. So I am really pleased. But it has given Nick the DIY bug again!! He wants to make half of our garage into a garden room and install a sauna/hot tub. So watch this space!
I have to go and clean our pigsty of a house now as my mum and dad are arriving for easter, tomorrow. I also want to get on with diggin the veggie plot over for this years stock. We don't have a greenhouse anymore as it blew away in a gale so don't know what I w ill do to grow my seedilings.
We are thinking about getting a few hens but I want to hatch my own. So I am keeping an eye on ebay for a cheap incubator. There doesn't seem to be such a thing as a cheap one....anyway watch this space!!
Keep in touch.
Love
Karen
January 26 Did you hear the one about the small dog and the large Turkey??Hi All!!
How are you all keeping? Hope you are all well and had a fab chrimbo. We had a great time - one of the best that I can remember! We spent it at home with my mum and dad. Mum and dad brought a huge turkey for christmas lunch - 400 miles!!! It was the size of our dog - so big, it wouldn't fit in the fridge (and anyone who knows us knows how big our fridge is!!) So I asked Nick to hang it from the rafters in the garage. So he bagged it up in 3 bags and then couldn't see why I had asked him to hang it and so left it on the side in the garage. At 2pm on christmas eve (sunday) Holly came inside asking if we knew that Bonnie the dog was eating the turkey and had dragged it up the drive and left it in the gravel!! As you can imagine, we didn't and so all hell was let loose. I stormed off to Oban at 2pm on christmas eve looking for the last turkey in town and lets face it, you would be lucky to find a skinny old chicken at 2pm on ANY sunday in Oban never mind Christmas eve! So Tesco had not a fresh item of food instore and coop had a titchy little turkey and a duck.......so that was our chrimbo feast - for 8 people!!
That evening, after a couple of glasses of the fizzy stuff and several jabs in Nicks ribs we were finishing wrapping the last few pressies when I remembered that we had left some in a box in the loft. When I fetched it out I was gutted. Mice had chewed through them all. A duvet cover, several items of clothes.....gutted!!! Despite all of this, we organised a fantastic feast and the kids were thrilled with their HUGE pile of parcels from Santa.
Holly & Joe had 'the killer cold' over chrimbo. Mum and Nick also managed to catch it so it was snot city in our house...Kleenex and calpol did a bomb out of us over the festive season! The shops were shut for so many days that we were able to trade in calpol sachets over the bank holidays! My neighbours daughter had 'the cold' which was exacerbating her asthma and we ran out of butter so we traded butter for a sachet of calpol!! It became a valuable commodity!
It hasn't stopped raining here for a couple of months now. We have all developed webbed feet and our skin has become a strange white translucent shade...lacking sunshine I think! The scots are hardy souls!(Mind you, even the scots are whinging now!).
We had a new years eve party - Wesley style!! - it was a wild wild night...the weather not the party! Hurricane force winds but the hardy seil islanders weren't going to pass up on free food and booze because of a piddling hurricane passing through! We had attached a tarp to our house and above the deck which runs the length of the house so that we could spill out onto the deck...but at about 6 PM we had to take it down...before our guests even arrived. I was worried that the corners that were blown loose would take out someones eye! We thought it would be better to take it down then whilst we were all sober rather than trusting several drunken men with ladders and power tools later! It was a good night though. Our utility room was bursting with oil skins and wellies because everyone had at least a 2 mile walk home! No streetlights and strong wind and rain!! That said, the wind dropped enough for a brief firework display at midnight. Well, the intention was brief...well mine was...nick had other ideas.
Never ever put a man in charge of fireworks....they become 10 all over again. The fire works were brill but after about 35 minutes out in the cold at midnight I think that folks were just being polite!! The deck outside made for a great viewing platform though. It runs the length of the house but is elevated about 4 feet up because our house is built on a hill. It has always been fine with the 4 of us and a couple of dogs on it. 50 revelling partiers is a different matter completely! It didn't take long for some caber tossing scot to realise that it 'bounced' when he jumped and set off several other large chaps demonstrating that our deck needed better support....not sure that virgin house insurance covers us for 50 people bouncing on the deck.....god try explaining that one away!
Since it hasn't stopped raining since october.....I haven't missed having to go up to Ruffy twice a day. Holly is still riding up at the stables in Oban. She did her pony club mucking out badge the other day. I reckon that Alison (the owner of the stables) fancied a bit of a hand with the mucking out! She rang up on the Thursday to see if the girls wanted to go up on the Friday! They enjoyed it though and all gained their badge...it is quite amusing...a pile of pony poo embroidered on it!! That will look lovely sewed onto her pony club sweatshirt! She also did her poisonous plants badge....which she got top marks in so was very chuffed. Holly is riding right now as I am writing this. It is bucketing down and gale force winds...wonder what they will be doing?!
For the new year I have become a Brownie leader! I must need my head looking at. There are 4 of us who have volunteered to run them. It is a combined unit of brownies, cubs, rainbows and beavers. The first combined unit in Scotland....so basically we can make it up as we go along! Hehe!!! There just aren't enough kids here to start up just brownies etc....so a simple solution is for them all to get together.....first session was last week and it went well...not to bad. The leaders decided against the usual brown owl names etc....because of there being scouts and beavers and it was decided by the kids that we would be called after birds of prey....so I am Kestrel (no not after the beer!), there is also, falcon, hawk and osprey. Unfortunately, my son, Joe called osprey - ostrich by mistake and it has kind of stuck!! Well, more jinx next week!
We will be back in good ole Keggers for half term - Feb 14th for 5 days. So look forward to catching up with as many as poss of you then.
HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!! December 14 Big Brother is watching us!!!Hi All! Everyone ready for Christmas??! I am in my usual state of disorganisation. I will get around to sending your chrimbo cards out - honest!! I haven't gotten around to even writing in them yet! I will i will!!
Mum and dad are coming next week....can't wait! Only 9 sleeps til they get here! Hurry up ma n pa...drive carefully obviously...but get here quick!
Busy week ahead. We are going out for dinner with friends tomorrow night and then it is our respective christmas meals on Saturday. Nick has employed one of our friends daughters as a receptionist just so that we can get a lift home with her parents!! He has promised to keep an eye on her for the night! She is only 16....not so sure he is the right volunteer to look out for a gorgeous 16 year old twin!! Hope Donald and Rosalie aren't looking at this! Nicks gang are having a very typical roudy ceidlidh and we more sophisticated ones are having a lovely meal at a local seafood restaurant.
The kids have their carol service at school on Thursday and then their party - glad rags at the ready.....you all know Holly! No such thing as less is more with her - more bling the better.
Friday is the last day of term, so high jinks all round! Order of the day is to run around like headless chickens and to get everything ready for mum and dad!
I am back to work the day after boxing day (boo) bloody NHS!! But then, it will probably mean that everyone else will have done in the bathroom and have lunch on the go by the time that I get home at 1!!
Nick had decided that a New Years Eve party is the order of the day! So Saturday and Sunday will, no doubt, be spent organising food and drink for the hundred odd (I hope that I am being really silly with that guesstimate!!) guests. I have to work New Years day at 9am!! So that should be interesting!
We are invited to a bonfire party on new years day in the afternoon over on the mainland at Ardmaddy Castle. It is to celebrate the new year and one of Holly's friends (Davey) birthday. But it is a surprise.....so shhhhh!!
I have attached a few photos for you to have a peep at. Some aerial photos of Balvicar...the village that we live in - well, we live just outside the village....our house is just off the photo to the left as you look at it. There is also one of our house, we were sucked into buying them at the door!!. We are such mugs! But they are really cool. The one of the house depicts our normal weekend routine..nick mowing the grass half naked, bikes everywhere....dustbins by the dozen at the gate..big bag of gravel...spookily no dogs or children....no blue car....wonder where we were. Feels like we were being spied on!! Big brother is watching!!!
Did anyone see us on TV tonight? It was on Ch 5 at 9pm. It was the New Life in the Country programme. About a couple from Sheffield relocating here and renovating an old tin church. Lovely photography of the island...Nick feels sure that it will have made house prices shoot up again!! Wishful thinking maybe! If you missed it it will soon be on the 5 life channel!
Anyway, better get off now. Have a lovely christmas everyone, we will be back in old Keg in Feb for a few days - so hopefully will catch up with a few of you all soon. Keep in touch. Send emails and pictures. If anyone sees Louise tell her to pencil me in for my hair do around Feb 16th 2007!! I can never get her at home!
See u all soon
Love
Kaz
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December 03 Winters here! Where did summer & autumn go?Well, lots of catching up. I have been a bit slack about keeping up to date - so that probably means that you have given up looking! Well just on the off chance that you take a peek, I will add some more info and pics.
So, what has happened since the summer?? We have been up and down the road a few times to see you all and of course to see the Robster!
Nick and I went to see Robbie in september - it was a bit like planes trains and automobiles! We caught the train to Glasgow and had a nice day mooching around Glasgow some yummy nosh at Wagamamas (so sophisticated compared to Oban!) then we flew to East Mids, Clare and Ade kindly put us up then we were picked up by Claire and Jason and driven to Milton Keynes for the gig. We stayed in a cool hotel with a gym and pool. We had gold circle bands so we turned up at the gig just as the main man was coming on. We snook clare into the gold circle by sliding our bands off. She was wetting her knickers thinking she would get chucked out!! Such a goody two shoes!
The boy did good, it has to be said. Although it wasn't as good as Knebworth! We were in the gold circle there too so were a bit spoiled. I will add a few photos - Clare was supposed to be emailingme more....ahem, Clare.....when you are ready. We drove back to Keg the next day, then flew to Glasgow, train to Oban and car back to Seil island! How cool?? Bloody knackered for a week afterwards though!!
We have just about finished the kitchen and it is looking fab! There should be photos here.
In October I had a birthday and Nick gave me a fab surprise! He bought me a new car. He and the kids did loads of sneaking around - which did cause me to be suspicious but I didn't know what was going on! So take a look at the photos to see what I got! Not the most practical car for a family of 4 with 2 dogs and living in ARgyll where it rains all the time!
Holly and Joe had their birthdays last week - holly was ten and had 4 friends over for a false nail painting party and 'sleep over' (I use the term sleep very loosely!) For their tea they finished up with a chocolate fountain...not a good idea...ended up a chocolate and saliva cocktail! Ughh!
Joe had a footy party with a couple of his pals then tea in town and back to seil for a video fest. He had a great time and was much more civilised than his big sister! So we are now planning for christmas and I am as disorganised as usual! Ihaven't bought a thing. I have no idea what to give to the kids - they were given what they asked for for their birthdays and haven't asked for anything else! So Now I have now idea where to start. So a trip to Glasgow calls! Aaaggh!
We aren't coming back to Keg til next year. It will be in half term. It seems such a long time since we saw you all and we are missing you heaps...specially mum and dad, pete and mary and Lucy & Matt. Can't wait to come back and see you all.
You all know that Brenda has been ill for the summer and so to update you - she is doing much better. She has been home for a month and is getting quickly back to normal. She is looking forward to a noisy christmas and new year with us all.
Its going to be pretty hectic here! My mum and dad are coming for christmas and new year (YAY!!!!) and Lucy and Matt may come on over too. Fingers crossed! So Wesleys B&B is going to be heaving! Can't wait! Mum will have her work cut out cleaning up after this lot!!
 Well, I had better go and keep trawling t'internet for chrimbo pressies!! HAVE A GOOD ONE!!!! June 28 Kitchens and sports galoreHello All! Just a quickie....yeah yeah...I know you have heard it before and I will still be waffling on at christmas!
We saw some of you a couple of weekends ago when we made an impromptu visit to Kegworth. Only for a couple of nights but it was lovely to catch up - if a little knackering! It was great to see all of the St Georges cross flags decorating the village...fingers crossed they stay up a while longer! Joe has now put one up on the outside of our house...hope we don't lose a window or two as a result!!
We were down to dismantle our 'new to us' kitchen. I know, only us could be mad enough to buy a kitchen off ebay and for it to be in Stoke!! But the kitchen is fab. We are really pleased. It only arrived on Monday and already the base units and work tops are installed! Take a look at the photos of the works in progress. I will add to it when we have finished.
This weekend was the islands highland games. It is much more for the children and families than the traditional 'heavy' stuff. Although there were still a few Jocks tossing cabers and hammers etc. Joe won a small fortune which he spent on sweeties and had a stash of 4 of the coveted slate medals, Holly won 2 but had much more fun posing with her pals! She did the hill run...and believe me the hills are hills around here! She ran the whole way round and beat several girls much older than her! Nick and I were stewards - looking stunning in our bright yellow vests so we didn't get to take part ourselves - although Nick did the cross country run and the hill run. He couldn't walk the next day! The ceidlidh at night was a blast as usual. Even Nick will get up and take a turn around the dance floor now! he is getting quite good at the gay gordons, the dashing white seargent and the canadian barn dance! What a hoot. Holly is very good at it and didn't sit a single dance out! She didn't want to come home at midnight with her old ma and pa and stayed to sing auld lang syne with her friend and her friends parents brought her home at 1.30 am! What a party animal!
Yesterday was sports day at school. It was a beautiful day - glorious sunshine and the field is right beside the shore..stunning. Nick won the dads race - and I won the mums race!! It was the sack race...never let it be said that we aren't good in the sack!!! Hollys clan came third in total and Joe's clan came first. Although both won 4 medals each.
Finally, we can breathe a sigh of relief. It seems that Bella isn't having pups. Good job too - slip of a girl that she is! I don't think that I told you what happened. A couple of months ago, Bella was in her first season. Right near the end - after about 3 weeks of keeping her in - no walks, no off lead runs, not allowed in the garden on her own - she sneaked out into the garden through the cat flap and the local farm dog jumped over the fence and humped her. When i opened the gate to let chase him off she followed him begging for more - strumpet. I was wearing nothing more than a pair of old Pyjamas (I was painting in them) and nothing on my feet). So I am running along the road in the pouring rain (surprise surprise) trying to chase the beastie off my little princess screaming at the top of my voice - in my pyjamas. Meanwhile they were humping all the way down the lane. I finally caught her about a mile down the road, little hussey. I had to take her for 'emergency contraception' at the vets. Cost me 30 quid and a stiff talking to about responsible parenting from the vet! The jag that she was given is about 95% effective...so we have waited with baited breath. No signs of babies so far. Now we just have to look out for a nice posh boyfriend for her.....;O)
Anyway, see you all this weekend. School ends tomorrow for 7.5 weeks YAY!! We will drive down to Glasgow after tea and fly to East Mids. Hope to catch up with as many of you as poss over the weekend but bare in mind that we won't have a car...so you will have to come to mums!! See you all soon,
Love,
Karen  May 18 Radio 1 Big Weekend DundeeWe are just back from Dundee. We had a brill weekend! The weather stayed fine, we had some good food, met up with our friends Jo & Nick and a few tipples to boot. What more could you ask for???
We left Seil on Friday afternoon - set off twice (I left my jeans on the ironing board then never wore them!!) I really could have done with a visit Lou my friend who doubles up as my hair dresser! My roots were looking very grim indeed. I still go back to Kegworth to get my hair done! I don't think that Louise does anyone elses hair that travels 400 miles to see her!!
A beautiful drive across country and we arrived in Dundee - the city of discovery at dinner time. Our hotel was like fawlty towers - I kid you not. The land lady greeted us with "ARe you here for the concert.....how come you got tickets to both days, thats just not bloody fair, all the tickets went to England(...pulled no sway when we told her we lived in Scotland!)" She then went on to inform us that if we wanted breakfast it was before 9.30 sharp, to be out of our rooms at 10 or they just won't get cleaned....she was too busy to hang about and that we were to vacate our room on Sunday morning by 10.30 and no later. ...er Hello, we just traveled 100 miles and are paying good money to stay here....;o) Scarey lady!
We had a first class meal in a restaurant called 'Bon Appetit' - Delicious food and excellent service. We then checked in on Jo and Nick and crew who were still slogging away in the tent at Camperdown park. We had a quick tipple then got off home.
Saturdays concert was ace - my highlights were Corinne Bailey Rae and Snow Patrol. We were given VIP passes which enabled us to go into the guest area - nice, clean toilets, no queue in the beer tent and a seating area or two. We mingled with the radio 1 DJ's and their family and friends. Lee got his tshirt signed by anyone he could grab and then proceeded to schmooze the weekend away with Edith Bowmans mum! Firm friendship formed there - he is already booked into her B&B!!
Sunday was Nicks birthday and he enjoyed another great day! We got photos with most of the DJ's, went backstage and saw Pink! We were proper star struck groupies! We enjoyed the whole days music but for me...The feeling, Franz Ferdinand and Keane did it! We had an excellent view from the lighting deck with Jo & NIck. I am sure that we were completely under foot but they were great and didn't kick us out - although Lee might have been pushing his luck when he turned up with Ediths mum to watch Pink - cos she couldn't see from the floor!! What is he like??!!
It was really interesting to watch Jo, Nick and their team at work - its funny how you just take the lights for granted....you should all take notice next time...a lot of work goes into it all!
Well, its nice to be home and to see the kids....I am sure that I will get over that feeling soon! I did miss my dogs too. Bella is in season and keeps escaping...we might be playing guess the daddy in a few months...god I hope not!
I don't think that I have anything else to add except for a huge thanksto Jo,Nick,Phil,Jake and all the rest of the crew who answered questions (1000's!!) tripped over us without moaning and provided us with a great weekend, good goss whenever possible and of course our tickets!!
Well, we will see you all back in good old Keg in about a months time. We are back on thurs 29th June. If anyone reading this sees Louise, could you please ask her to ring me???!!! I left a message on her ansafone asking her to colour my hair on the friday 30th but haven't had a reply! I can't miss getting it done! Clare and ADe...were the photos any good??!! Couldn't text them to you cos my camera phone is broke!! I will attempt to upload the Big weekend pics to this site and also a few short movies of my fave acts. Keep well and see you all soon - for drinkypoos!!
Love
Karen  |
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