What Katie Did

This time tomorrow.....

I will be on my way to Spain!
For the next few weeks I will be Away From Home, Away From the Blog, A-W-A-Y!!
Yesterday I took the train into Newcastle (practice?) to get the few things I thought we might need. Look what the romantic train people are doing for valentines day...

there is a sneak peak at my train knitting too - well - some of it - I can't decide what to take!
Here is the start of me being organised

dates, days and numbers of days on the move. Who knows - I may be able to show you this all filled in in a few weeks time!!!
But for now, I have to go and get even more organised which involves having tea with Anne?? She is sewing up the jumper I plan to take with me (layers!) in the most expert fashion!
I will leave you with some valentine magic and wish you all - each and every one of you - the most loving valentines day ever!

Baron Jonno McKarl

Does anyone read comments on other blogs? I tend to read a few if I am going to leave a comment just to make sure what I am going to say hasn't been said a dozen times already.
I really loved the comments on this last post. Thank you all for your reassuring words and lovely thoughtful wishes.
All this talk of grandchildren and then my daughter - 'Just to clarify however, grandchildren? not yet.' this made me smile!
I have all the grandparent fix I need from Hester (6 months), Nancy (one), Cala (three), Thea (four) - all girls and all delightful! No pressure from the 18, 20 and 22 year olds!
But if anyone is in the habit of reading my comments they can't have failed to notice a very bizarre person leaving weird messages from time to time. This could be 'Peter T Wintergreen', or 'Corlucka the strongest man in Belarus', sometimes 'Olga the Russian fool' and 'Captain William W. Avaril of the West Virginian Hussars' . He has been Mr. Watergate and Bosshog, Big Paul Smith, Ranald Sigmundson, Colonel Muscardo and the Wolf of the Sea. I know him best as John (or sometimes - Baron Jonno McKarl)

seen here sitting in my shed (with his mad 18th birthday mat to the right of his head)
John has been making names up for us, himself and his friends for as long as I can remember. He was 'Twigget of the Green (hardly ever seen)' when he was little. Owen has been 'Chad' for as long as I can remember, Martha - what was/is yours? (Mink?) Geoff is Fader Coram, from the Pullman books (just Fader most of the time) and I have been Miln for many years.
His comments never relate to the post. I think he regards this blog as my Facebook and has never understood blogs and comments.
Well, he and I are about to have an adventure... though as you may have guessed, just having John in the family is an adventure.
This time next week Geoff and I will be on our way to Spain where John has been living for the last few months. We will have a week of lovely rest and recuperation until Geoff comes home on his own and John and I embark on our own return journey. We have Inter-rail tickets and 22 days to explore Europe. (Is Europe ready I wonder?)
We are setting off from Granada and will be going to Verona and then to Slovenia. I don't know why, but we decided we would head east rather than come up through France. We are ending up in Amsterdam.
So - here is the request please. Has anyone got any thoughts about the places we might visit - towns with a bit of a textiles history, wonderful cafes in strange locations,  fantastic places that we might miss without a personal recommendation. We can go ANYWHERE on a train. Our deal is - 10 trips in 22 days - and we would like to find some interest off the tourist route. Any tips? What to take? Survival tips for long train journeys? Thoughts please!
Oh - and we are going to do this the cheapest way possible because neither of us has any money! Hence the YHA Guide. (Youth? 52!)

getting excited!
Peter T Wintergreen's Mum

No more 'children' ... its official

Today, Owen is 18. I am the mother of adults. I have been remembering the night of his arrival, he was born at 5.00 am about twenty minutes before the midwife arrived. He was born into a stormy day with winds that brought down some of the old scots pines in front of the house. This cut off the electricity for hours and provided some interesting entertainment for Martha (4) and John(2) as the whole lot was cleared and sorted out with emergency vehicles and Jack from the saw mill, right in front of the bedroom window. No-one paid much attention to the baby brother in all the excitement.
Today it is sunny. He has gone off to school with a Full English Breakfast inside him. This is one of his favourite meals and he was as pleased with the mat I made for his wall as he was with the real thing.

eggs, bacon, sausage, 'shrooms, toast and tommy K. Knife and fork (you can just see) and checky tablecloth. It has been fun to make, and Owen thinks it is 'mental' - this is good apparently.

I had a request from someone who flies by the name 'willywagtail' (you couldn't make it up) for more information about mat making. I am going to ask my friend Annie if she will come and help with photos and we will host a little tutorial. Very soon I promise!

For now, it is sunny and mild. The snow has gone and I am going to walk the dog, reflecting on my new status. I am a little sad.