Sunday Sevens #176 24.2.19

February 24, 2019February 24, 2019 ~ Making Stitches ~ 5 Comments

So, this week has been a tad exciting. I didn’t mention it last week but when I pressed publish on last week’s Sunday Sevens it was courtesy of the free WiFi on the plane I was on at 35,000 feet! Last Sunday I went to Sweden with Eldest on a super adventure….

Off we go

Last Sunday, we got up super early and drove to Malaga to catch a flight to Stockholm. Eldest has wanted to go for ages and this trip was a very special belated birthday present for him. We left Mr Postcard at home with the two youngest and ran away!

Obligatory sunset photo!

This was sunset over Stockholm last Sunday. The tower in the distance belongs to the City Hall, which is where the post-Nobel prize giving ceremony celebrations take place; a banquet and a ball are hosted there. Our hotel was very close to the Hall. The weather was a lot colder than what we left at home!

When in Rome… err Stockholm

You can’t go to Stockholm and not visit the ABBA museum can you?! It was fab, a trip down memory lane, with lots of wonderful ABBA tunes playing.

All that glitters

How’s that for bling? This is the Gold Hall inside the Stockholm City Hall. It’s a mind blowing place to visit. Completely covered in mosaic tiles – this room took just 2 years to complete!

Textiles & Swedish folk art

For some reason we saw an awful lot of crafts when we were visiting Stockholm, from dressmaking to hand made household items. I haven’t had the time lately to do much craft (aside from my regular sewing and painting class) and I’ve really missed it. I think this trip has given me the inspiration to get back to it.

Our last Swedish sunrise

Our trip was wonderful, we loved it so much and have already looked at ways to return to Sweden with the rest of the Postcard family. This photo was taken on Wednesday, our final morning, just before dashing off to the airport to catch our flight home. Thank you Stockholm! ( A post about our trip will follow as soon as I get the chance!)

We have a kitchen again!!

It’s not finished completely yet, but I’m thrilled that we have a fully functioning kitchen again after a month without one. Our first proper dinner (roast beef & Yorkshire puddings) are in the oven now – I can’t wait!

The last few days have been a little uninspiring for photos after our 3 nights in Sweden, so Sunday Sevens is a bit Sweden-heavy this week. I have a feeling next week will feel a little mundane after all our excitement, but at least we have a kitchen to cook in! Whatever you’re up to this week, I hope it’s a good one for you.

As always I’m linking with Natalie from Threads and Bobbins for this weekly blog series.

Friday photo challenge (Week 8) Architecture

February 22, 2019 ~ Making Stitches ~ 4 Comments

I’ve been on an adventure this week, to Sweden!

A place where even the station benches are thoughtfully designed…

And I’ve seen some beautiful ceilings….

…and I hope to share more about it soon…

I’m linking with Alison in Andalucia for this #52FridayPhotos challenge.

Sunday Sevens #175 17.2.19

February 17, 2019 ~ Making Stitches ~ 2 Comments

Hello there, I hope this finds you well and that you’ve had a good week. Mine has been full of jobs and not much that’s been worthy of photos…. I promise next week’s will be more interesting! 😉

An early evening stroll

Last Sunday was spent pretty much at home doing housework and lots of washing. We are in the midst of a kitchen renovation at the moment and I have only had limited access to the washing machine. That meant a frenzied washing session for a family of five!

By the time early evening came, I was craving a walk so headed out with Eldest to enjoy a golden hour stroll…

Dressmaking class

Do you remember that jacket sleeve from last week? It came off, went back on again and came off again at this week’s lesson…. I’ll get it right eventually!

Submariners visit

We were visited by another Royal Navy submarine this week. It always facinates me watching come into port. Not sure I’d like to go in one though…

It’s finished…

At my watercolour class this week I finished my watercolour painting of the ceiling at Sacred Heart Church in Gibraltar. It’s been a fun project, started way back in November! Got there in the end!!

We have fruit!

Our citrus trees are doing well at the moment – I don’t want to tempt fate, but for the past couple of years we’ve lost our fruit before it was ready to pick. Fingers crossed we’ll get to enjoy these in a G&T before too much longer…

Kitchen update

Progress has been made in our kitchen… we have a floor, plaster on the walls and even the beginnings of cupboards. I’m so looking forward to washing up in a sink rather than a bath!!

That’s it from Sunday Sevens this week. I hope the week ahead is a good one for you!

As always I’m linking with Natalie from Threads and Bobbins for this weekly blog series.

Friday photo challenge 2019 (week 7) Love

February 15, 2019February 15, 2019 ~ Making Stitches ~ 1 Comment

Love is in the air for this week’s Friday photo challenge… food is a big love of mine and so it had to feature this week. The above pizza was a special Valentines Day takeaway eaten by Eldest last night. Not sure he was too impressed with his quirky shaped pizza!!

I have so many favourite foods I love, but battling for top spot has to be proper fish and chips eaten out of the paper in the fresh seaside air. Oh and chocolate of course!

#52fridayphotos is curated by Alison in Andalucia

Sunday Sevens #174 10.2.19

February 10, 2019February 10, 2019 ~ Making Stitches ~ Leave a comment

Hello there, I hope you’ve had a good week! Here’s this week’s Sunday Sevens…

Another sunny Sunday stroll

Last Sunday we took a wander through the Alameda Gardens and Eldest realised it was the fourth consecutive Sunday that he’d done this… we’re nothing if not predictable!

Monday at the dentist

I’m not a huge fan of the dentist – well I’ve nothing against him personally – but being prodded, poked and scraped first thing on a Monday morning isn’t my favorite start to the week. On the plus side I do go a dentist in a marina so I get to see this lovely view when I step out of the front door – so it’s not all bad! 😉

Chinese New Year

Gibraltar had its lanterns out this week in honour of the Chinese New Year. There was a proper celebration with a Chinese dragon dance in town on the big day.

Dressmaking class

I tried and kind of failed to set my sleeves into my jacket this week. They were a bit wonky – so they came back off again…

Bees in the sunshine

On Tuesday evening a nasty bug struck Littlest Postcard. The rest of the week, I was pretty much housebound. We have had some lovely sunny days, so one afternoon I snuck out onto the balcony for a cup of tea in the sun and found myself mesmerized by the bees buzzing around our money tree.

Is that a tortoise I see?

On walking past the register office garden in town yesterday, I spied something on the grass… a tortoise! What a lovely spot for him/her to wander at will!

Seagulls attack!

I got the fright of my life yesterday while out for a walk. I heard some seagulls overhead making a right racket above me. Then suddenly I heard a plop on the road in front of me. It was a outside round of a loaf of bread – dropped from a great height!!! It gave me the fright of my life… imagine getting hit on the head by that!!

And on that wholemeal note, I shall end Sunday Sevens. I’m pleased to say Littlest is fully recovered from his illness, and so far (touch wood) the rest of us have managed to dodge it.

I’m linking with Natalie from Threads and Bobbins for this weekly blog series.

Sunday Sevens #173 3.2.19

February 4, 2019 ~ Making Stitches ~ 2 Comments

Hello! Greetings from a sunny, slightly chilly Gibraltar. It’s been a week of wild weather all over the shop. Thankfully we just had torrential rain and gales and no misplaced polar vortexes or cold snaps! I hope you’ve managed to stay warm and dry this week.

For the first time ever, this is Sunday Sevens on a Monday – I forgot to press publish!! ….whoops! 🙈

Here’s this week’s Sunday Sevens…

Surprise trip

Last Sunday I made a last minute surprise trip back home to see my parents. My Mum hasn’t been too well since New Year, so I headed back to try and cheer her up. I left Mr Postcard in charge at home and ran away for a few days. Mum was rather incredulous when my face appeared at the lounge window – but after the initial shock she was pleased to see me!

Sunshine

Coming from Manchester I have faced a lifetime’s torment about the fact it always rains there… here is proof that that’s completely untrue! It’s funny being back at home, within moments of going out to the shops I bumped into an old school friend and a friend’s husband. I had to message the friend to say that her husband wasn’t seeing things, and that yes, I was waving at him from my Dad’s car!!

Snow!

On Wednesday morning we awoke to a surprise blanket of snow. Little did I know the impact it would have on my day ahead and my trip home… if you saw my Friday photo challenge post this week, you’ll understand (2 hour long drive to the airport which normally takes 20 minutes and 5 hour delay for takeoff).

Where’s my kitchen gone?

So while I was dashing off home to visit my Mum, poor Mr Postcard not only had three young men to look after, he also had the builders in. After 6 years in our apartment, with a kitchen which was falling apart, it was ripped out this week. We’re living off very simple meals, takeaways and leaning heavily on the microwave!

Art class

I escaped the dust and power tools on Thursday to get to my watercolour class. It was bliss to get away from the chaos!

Stormy skies

On Friday we were greeted with gale force winds and torrential rain, just in time for the morning school run – it was rather grim! Fortunately the rain subsided later on, so we had a dry afternoon school pick up. It definitely felt like winter after a long run of good weather here. Not as bad as snow and ice though!

Food!

We had a gorgeous dinner last night – we went out rather than cobbling something together in our makeshift kitchen. It was delicious and I didn’t have to wash up in the bath afterwards!!! (#firstworldproblems)

I hope you’ve had a good week and that wherever you are in the world, you are dry and warm. Until next week, bye for now!

Friday photo challenge (week 5) Nature

February 1, 2019February 1, 2019 ~ Making Stitches ~ 3 Comments

This week, I made a quick trip home to see my family. On Wednesday morning I awoke to find everything covered in a light blanket of snow.

It was beautiful to see everything brightened by the dusting. Little did I know what an impact nature would have on my day…

Not only did it mean a 20 minute journey to Manchester Airport would take 2 hours…

It also lead to a delay of 5 hours to come back home to Gibraltar… I was one of the lucky ones – at least I got home. Many didn’t.

It’s hard to believe that such a little bit of snow could cause such disruption. But it does remind you that nature is always capable of disrupting our well made plans.