autumn weather

Review of 2017

~ Making Stitches ~ 8 Comments

Crumbs, it’s looking awfully like we are on the cusp of another New Year, it surely can’t be a whole year since the last one, it’s gone far too fast. I guess now’s as good a time as any to have a look back at some of my Postcard from Gibraltar highlights from the past 12 months….

January 2017

A new year meant a new challenge for me this year, a photo challenge. Last year I read Nana Cathy’s blog and was intrigued by her weekly photo challenge. When January came around I thought I’d join in myself. It’s been such fun and quite inspiring throughout the year to have weekly prompts to find pictures for. If you fancy joining in check out Wild Daffodil’s blog for more information.

Also in January I joined forces with my friend Kate of H and FlossieDoodle to start the Gibraltar Crochet Collective. We did meet weekly to crochet and chat over coffee although our meetings have got less and less frequent due to other commitments lately. Our mascots Gib and Rocksy went for a bit of an adventure.

Another new project for me this month was my podcast, you can find my blogposts and the related podcasts here.

February 2017

In February I ran my Creative Gibraltar series looking at some of the very talented craftspeople who live in Gibraltar. I began with my lovely watercolour teacher Deborah M Lawson and ended with local craftswoman and up-cycling guru Sue Orfila. February also brought us the 2017 installment of Gib Talks. I was also fortunate to be able to speak to Gib Talks organiser Julian Felice before the event for one of my podcasts.

March 2017

March was a month for Lenten crochet (far easier than giving up chocolate) which helped support the Sixty Million Trebles effort, a beautiful Suffolk family wedding and a sad goodbye to our rescue bunny Snowflake.

April 2017

April began for us in Southwold in Suffolk, one of our favourite places and involved a lot of Med Steps training, which was very handy for burning off those seaside fish and chips! I was also able to finish another Sixty Million Trebles blanket – this one from the Gibraltar Crochet Collective.

May 2017

May meant Med Steps 5 Challenge again this year and I even managed to beat my time from last year! You can hear my podcast about it here. We also flew back to the UK for our second family wedding of the year.

June 2017

June started for us in Wigan in Lancashire, the location of our latest wedding and the perfect setting for a lovely walk. It was also the Calentita! food festival in Gibraltar. (For some reason the same aerial photo of Gibraltar appeared in May and June’s collages – not sure why that was. It is a good photo though don’t you think?).

July 2017

In July our big summer of travel began with a trip up to the North West of England and a flying visit to North Wales. We also drove to Portugal.

August 2017

This has got to be my most cosmopolitan of all months, featuring travel in Portugal, Rome, France and of course good old Gibraltar. Which reminds me, I have loads of holiday photos on my phone and camera SD card which are crying out to become blog posts – watch this space in the New Year.

September 2017

September is a big month on the Rock, this year more than most as Gibraltarians celebrated the 50th anniversary of the 1967 Referendum when they voted overwhelmingly to remain British. Gibraltar National Day on 10th September coincidentally happened to be the day of my 100th Sunday Sevens. We also had a fabulous music festival.

October 2017

October brought with it some interesting weather, beautiful sunshine, murky mists and exciting lightning storms.

November 2017

November was a good crochet month for me as I finally got around to making last year’s Little Box of Crochet autumn wreath. I also greatly enjoyed this year’s Gibraltar Literary Festival with talks by Nicholas Parsons, Patrick Gale and local photographers and naturalists Clive, Geraldine and Stewart Finlayson.

December 2017

December seems to have rushed by in a flurry of end of term carol concerts and panicked making of Christmas presents (some of which failed to get finished in time). There have been some opportunities for peace and quiet though, namely the last Saturday before Christmas when we avoided the shops and headed for the beach for peace and tranquility.

Summer craft challenge

For the second year running, during the long summer holiday we get in Gibraltar, I decided to set aside a little time each day to do something crafty and I documented this with my Summer Craft Challenge. Each day I featured a photo on Instagram and each week I wrote a blog post on my progress.

At the beginning of the challenge I made a little amigurumi unicorn which I got the kit for in an edition of Simply Crochet magazine. I christened her Europa and she became my Summer Craft Challenge mascot and came on our travels with us. There were several occasions when the Little Postcards thought Mummy had lost her marbles posing a crocheted unicorn in various European locations for photographs…

This year, I returned to work part-time after 13 years as a full-time, stay at home Mum. I have to admit that during the last few months I have found it hard to make time for Postcard from Gibraltar alongside my new commitments and at times I’ve wondered whether I can actually keep it up. I have had some really lovely comments and support from my online friends and that’s kept me going. Thank goodness I have Sunday Sevens and the weekly photo challenge to keep me ticking over during ‘dry’ spells.

I think I would really miss the community I have ‘met’ through Postcard from Gibraltar, and if I’m honest, it’s you and the support you’ve given me which gave me the confidence to apply for the job in the first place. Thank you very much to everyone who’s taken the time to read my posts over the past 2 and a half years, and for the virtual friendship you have given me too – it’s not taken for granted. Every comment and like is very much appreciated.

Here’s to 2018 and all the wonderful challenges it may bring!

Best wishes to you and yours for the New Year x

Sunday Sevens #111 26.11.17

~ Making Stitches ~ 13 Comments

Hello there, I hope you have had a good week. It’s been as busy as always Chez Postcard and I’m staring down the barrel of a frantic few weeks with all the pre-Christmas antics there are are for the Little Postcards. There’s actually one day next week where I need to be in 4 different places at the same time…. I may be calling on the services of Dr Who and his Tardis to get everything done!

Here’s this week’s Sunday Sevens…

A sunny start to the week

There was an in-service day for some of the Little Postcards on Monday. I haven’t been feeling too great for the last couple of weeks and they behaved so well for me letting me have an easy day, that we did a late afternoon trip to the park at Europa Point for ice cream as a reward. (My fluey cold from the other week turned into bronchitis 😕). The weather was glorious, as you can see, with just the hint of a Levanter cloud forming on the top of the Rock.

It’s finished #1><

Ta-dah! It’s finished at last! I have actually completed a blouse in my Dressmaking class, with a collar, cuffs and buttons (although I was tempted with velcro when the button holes weren’t behaving as I wanted them to). It’s a bit ‘loud’ colourwise so I’m not sure when I’ll wear it… perhaps under a cardigan!

Cloud free skies!><

We had more beautiful cloud-free skies mid-week. We have been so lucky to have a warm, dry autumn here in Gibraltar so far. I’m dreading having to dig the waterproofs out when the rains come….

It’s finished #2><

It’s been quite the week for finishing things, I managed to finish my autumn crochet wreath – before the end of autumn (a miracle!). I’m thrilled with how it turned out, it looked great in the autumnal sunshine on our front door. The kit came in a Little Box of Crochet and the designer was Kate Eastwood of Just Pootling.

Not much watercolour progress…><

I guess I can’t finish everything at once, so I’m still working on my watercolour painting of town. I’m getting there slowly but surely.

A new project><<<<<<<<<<<<<<

Yesterday I treated myself to starting a new crochet project. I was very disciplined and waited until I’d finished my wreath before cracking open another little box of crochet…

Christmas is coming>

<<

The Gibraltar Christmas lights were turned on on Friday night and yesterday we took a trip into town to visit Gibraltar’s first ever Christmas market. There are artisan stalls set up in little wooden huts, you can even get mulled wine – it smelled lovely (I shall have to go back once I finish my antibiotics!).

I’m linking with Natalie (the proud Mummy of a beautiful new baby girl) from Threads & Bobbins for this weekly Sunday Sevens blog series.

Sunday Sevens #110 19.11.17

~ Making Stitches ~ 8 Comments

Hello and welcome to this week’s Sunday Sevens (or in this case Sunday Sixes). I hope you have had a good week…

Sunny Sunday

Sadly I wasn’t feeling too well last Sunday. I was laid low with a bad fluey cold. Mr Postcard went out though and took this lovely sunny photo. Look at that blue sky!

Buttonholes

by Tuesday I was feeling much better and back at sewing. The time had come to put buttons and their button holes on my blouse. Slightly daunted by the fact I haven’t done one in about a year, I practiced on scrap fabric and put off doing it until next week!

I must clean my windows

Tuesday’s sunset through a dirty sash window – sorry Mum, I’ve let you down! It still looked lovely despite the muck!

Coffee & crochet

Two of my favourite things in the world beginning with ‘c’ apart from … chocolate! I had a lovely catch up with an old friend who’s new to crochet this week. We have to spread the love haven’t we?!

Gibraltar Literary Festival

The Gibraltar Literary Festival was back this week. I only managed to get to a few events this year, as I was busy with other things but a post about my experiences this year will be on its way soon.

Watercolour rooftops

At watercolour class this week, I did some more work on this painting of Gibraltar’s town and Upper Town. Striking the balance of what detail to include and what to miss out is proving tricky.

It’s just a Sunday Six this week I’m afraid, a lot of what I got up to wasn’t really photo worthy, so I shan’t bore you with the mundane stuff. I was hoping to have my autumn leaves crochet project finished by now but that’ll have to wait until next week…

I’m linking with Natalie of Threads & Bobbins for this weekly blog series.

Sunday Sevens #109 12.11.17

~ Making Stitches ~ 6 Comments

Hello there. Please forgive the underwhelming nature of this week’s Sunday Sevens, I’ve been a bit under the weather of late (autumnal sniffles) so my photo taking opportunities have been rather limited this week…

The last rays of sunshine 

Last Sunday afternoon we spent a little while on the Eastside of the Rock at Sandy Bay. You can tell we are heading towards winter as the sun disappeared behind the Rock sooner than it did a few weeks ago…

A posh boat


While on a walk in Ocean Village at the start of the week this rather posh boat caught my eye. I thought it looked unusual with its black hull.

Setting in my sleeves

At my Dressmaking class this week, it was time to set in my sleeves. Amazingly they went in perfectly, at the first attempt!

Under the weather


By midweek I was feeling a little bit off colour. Since then, I have spent a lot of time in bed. It’s just a cold, but I’m a reluctant patient and I’m feeling decidedly frustrated that I’ve run out of energy to achieve anything beyond the basics. Poached eggs are just the ticket when you’re feeling run down don’t you think?

Friday night dusk

I caught sight of this beauty out of the window on Friday evening. You can’t beat a lovely sunset to lift the spirits. 

Autumnal leaves


It has felt decidedly autumnal here this past few days (and I don’t think it’s just because I’ve felt ill). Bright sunny skies yesterday made me yearn to kick through piles of autumn leaves at a National Trust property. I started working on this delightful project from Little Box of Crochet at the end of last week, when we were on holiday and yesterday I added this cute amigurumi toadstool to my autumnal crochet leaf collection. It’s been such fun to work on. 

Thank you for joining me for this week’s sniffly and sneezy edition of Sunday Sevens. I’m linking with Natalie from Threads and Bobbins for this weekly blog series.

Sunday Sevens #108 5.11.17

~ Making Stitches ~ 14 Comments

Good morning and hello from a very sunny Gibraltar! You join me as we calm down after a very pleasant mid term break in Spain and and prepare for a return to the usual routine. Here goes with this week’s Sunday Sevens…

And relax…..

We were so lucky last weekend to be able to return to our favourite nearby holiday destination. This resort is on the Costa del Sol, very close to Marbella. We often debate about trying somewhere else, but are drawn back to familiarity and love the fact that as soon as we arrive it feels like coming home and we totally relax. Ahhh, bliss 😊

Spooky shenanigans 

Tuesday of course was Halloween and we took a trip to Puerto Banus and had lunch in the very  spooky Hard Rock Cafe. We were served (or should that be severed) by a zombie. Not sure about the waiting staff recruitment but the food was good, even if it was devilishly loaded with calories….

Boo!

I finished Gloria the ghost, who came free with the Halloween edition of Simply Crochet Magazine from last year. As my copy always arrives too late to be totally relevant for the season, I was astonished that I managed to unearth the kit and correct magazine for instructions in time!

Midterm break sunshine

A new month, meant a new project using a new stitch. I can’t say any more about this as it’s a secret.

Nooo! Too soon!!


I don’t know about you but I’m not ready to be faced with Christmas merchandise in the shops yet!! This was one small section of a large Christmas shelf in a Spanish supermarket…

Thunderbolts & Lightning 


On Friday night we experienced a very long and dramatic thunderstorm. I didn’t manage to catch a photo of fork lightning this time but these two photos were taken about a second apart. An amazing amount of rain fell, just in time to remind us to dig out the waterproofs in time for this winter’s rain.

Homeward bound


The rains continued into yesterday morning but less heavy and there were glimpses of sunshine too, so we saw a couple of rainbows 🌈. Can you spot the faint one over the hill?

October mosaic

Here’s a few of my October highlights….

I’m linking with Natalie from Threads & Bobbins for the Sunday Sevens weekly blog series.

Sunday Sevens #107 29.10.17

~ Making Stitches ~ 7 Comments

Hello there, I hope you’ve had a good week. We have had a very busy one again as we headed towards to the end of the school midterm. We are now officially on the midterm break after building to a Halloween themed crescendo on Friday! 

Sea mist

This time last week we were enjoying a beautifully sunny day and decided to head down to Europa Point for some fresh air and scooter riding for the Little Postcards. As we were about to leave, one of the boys suddenly said “where’s the lighthouse gone?” Sea mist had rolled in and the lighthouse had vanished, everything looked very mysterious!

Rule Brittania


As I took care of the recycling on Monday morning I spied quite a collection of different vessels out in the Bay. The white-sailed yacht looked dwarfed along side the Brittania cruise ship which brought loads of visiting passengers to Main Street!

Sunset through the Levanter

The Levanter cloud has been back in force this week, I heard the weather lady on the radio say that there had been 22 Levanter days so far this month. On Wednesday we had a lovely sunset which we could see around the cloud.

Watercolour rooftops

In watercolour class this week I started a new project attempting to paint a view of town. It was a nice change from the orange and black of the last few weeks! 

There are worse places to have swimming lessons…

Sometimes I look up from where I am and I realise how lucky I am to live where I do. This happened on Friday as I was standing outside the municipal swimming pool waiting for swimming lessons to end. When we lived in England and I took our eldest to swimming lessons, the view from the pool wasn’t as impressive as this!

Sea mist’s back!

This week’s Sunday Sevens are book ended by sea mist. Yesterday we woke up to a Bay full of mist. It is indeed the season of mist (but perhaps not mellow fruitfulness) in Gibraltar.

Mid term begins now!


As I mentioned at the beginning of this post, we have had a very busy week, with school dress up days, a bake sale, and all sorts of other exciting time consuming things. But it all came to an end yesterday after our final commitment (a football match) ended and it felt like we could relax. I had a beer to celebrate, my first alocoholic drink this month. I have had a dry October so far and I’ve been feeling very very virtuous.  

So that takes us to the end of another week, one that began with some lovely comments and messages from you lovely lot out there. Thank you to everyone who took the time to like and comment after my last Sunday Sevens. 

When I said I’d been struggling to find time to blog, I wasn’t fishing for compliments but I received some lovely messages. Thank you, you have all bouyed me up and I will continue blogging when I can – you have all made my week!

I’m linking with Natalie from Threads & Bobbins for the Sunday Sevens weekly blog series. 

Sunday Sevens #105 15.10.17

~ Making Stitches ~ 11 Comments

Another week has flown by and it’s already Sunday afternoon – do you ever want a pause button just to stop the world for a moment or two? We’ve had such a busy week in our household this week and I could do with another weekend to catch my breath and take stock (you can probably appreciate the state of mild chaos I find myself in if you noticed that my previous post was published almost a month early by accident – so far, last week’s photo challenge photo is as yet untaken!).

Anyway without further ado, here’s this week’s edition of Sunday Sevens….

Another Sunday, another beachy crochet pic…

Last Sunday was another glorious autumnal day, perfect for heading down to the beach again, crochet hook in hand. I’m busy working on a Christmas gift, but time’s running away with me already and I’m really not as far along as I would’ve liked to be by this point….

Monday morning Med Steps

The lovely weather continued into the start of the week and I had a lovely trip up the Med Steps again on Monday. I glanced up at one point and saw the Europa Point Lighthouse framed beautifully by the branches of a tree.

Technicolor Tuesday sewing

In my Dressmaking class on Tuesday I started working on the sleeves of my blouse. The photo shows the slit at the cuff of my sleeve which is just waiting for a cuff to be added.

Misty Med Steps 

Wednesday began rather murky and misty. I really enjoyed my walk back down the Rock from the summit of the Med Steps. Looking out to sea from the road, there was nothing but mist and cloud, it was as if I was on the edge of an abyss. I love it when it’s like this, it’s so atmospheric and magical looking.

Light show

After the mist cleared on Wednesday, we had a scorching hot afternoon. Standing outside school waiting for the Little Postcards, I could feel the sun burning my back through my shirt. By dinner time however, the clouds had rolled in and we were treated to a fab lightning storm and then rain shower. Talk about four seasons in one day.

Sunset skies in watercolour 

I’ve been working on sunset skies at watercolour class… this is about the third attempt. Mixing that correct shade of orange has proved tricky…

Mini Olympiad 

Yesterday, hundreds of middle school children from across Gibraltar came together to participate in the annual Mini Olympiad. Organised by the Royal Gibraltar Police, the event is aimed at introducing young people to the joys of sport as a way of avoiding bad life choices later on (ie drugs).

The Olympiad began with a congregation in the Piazza with an address from the Head of Police, Mayor and a priest’s blessing before a parade through town to the Victoria Stadium. The Parade was led by the drums and bagpipes of the Sea Scout band and the members of the historical re-enactment society and their very loud cannon. 

After an opening ceremony and the firing of the cannon, the sports began. It was a great event and was enjoyed by us, although a certain young man was feeling rather achey and tired today after his exertions yesterday!

(Thank you to my friend Sarah for taking this photo for me – I managed to leave home without my phone, but she saved the day!)

I’m linking with Natalie of Threads & Bobbins for this weekly blog series. 

Sunday Sevens #104 8.10.17

~ Making Stitches ~ 4 Comments

Good morning, I hope you are having a good weekend. This week has seen a return to my watercolour class after a very long summer haiatus. It was so nice to be back…

Sunday afternoon on the beach

Sandy Bay

Last Sunday we did something rather out of character — we went to the beach. We aren’t huge beach goers normally as we don’t enjoy the crowds or the heat at the height of summer. We do, though, rather like sneaking down there out of season.

As you can see from the photo above, we weren’t alone, but there was loads of open space where we could sit, chat, splash and dig without upsetting anyone else. 

My neighbours may not agree with me but I really do try to keep a lid on the level of noise coming from our apartment (I don’t think I’ll ever get used to living so close to other people). Being somewhere where the Little Postcards can scream and shout without upsetting anyone is a very valuable space for me.

Oh, and I got a bit of crochet done too…

Monday Med Steps

Last week on one of my Med Steps trips I was surrounded by a pack (troop?) of apes, on Monday it was Barbary Partridge bingo! There were loads about. This pair were very tame and I got very close before they scarpered.

Dressmaking whoops

Don’t you just hate it when that happens? I was making great strides with attaching my collar to my blouse at Dressmaking class when I managed to accidentally sew my underarm seam to the collar by accident – whoops!

Med stepping into the Levanter 


These two photos were taken about 20 minutes apart. One below the cloud in bright (and rather hot) sunshine. The other at the top of the Rock and slap bang in the middle of the Levanter cloud.

I started Wednesday morning’s walk in hot sun but was relieved to hit the cool, damp Levanter near the top. I almost took an amazing photo at the top… as I gazed up at the misty summit, on that low bit of wall to the right of the fence was the silhouette of a mother ape with a baby on her back. By the time I’d got my phone camera on, they’d vanished into the mist. Never mind…

Watercolour refresher

Thursday morning saw my return to watercolour class.  I didn’t realise how much I’d missed it over the summer. Our teacher began the new term with a refresher lesson on washes. It came just in time for me to get back to a picture I was working on before summer which had a very dodgy wash for the sky. My new aim for this term is to be less wishy washy with my colours – I need to embrace BOLD!

Beautiful Botanic Gardens 

You may have noticed that my excercise levels have gone up in recent weeks. After a rather sedentary summer I have a good few kilos which I need to shed. On Friday I took a trip into town and on the way home I opted to walk rather than catching the bus. I was rewarded by with a walk through the beautiful Alameda Botanical Gardens.

Autumnal WIP-along

On Instagram recently I have noticed lots of  crafty people publishing photos of the WIPs (work in progress) they have completed as part of a WIP-along with Gosling & Plumb. Check out the blog post in the link above  to find out more about it.

When I finished my last crochet project (Jenny’s Mandala from Little Box of Crochet) I almost started something new but I could hear some of my many WIPs calling me from carrier bags hidden in my secret hidey hole. So far I have worked on three; circles in granny squares (see beach crochet photo), a green granny square blanket and a cute crochet cactus pin cushion from a Simply Crochet Magazine kit.

Thanks so much for stopping by for a read about my week. It’s been lovely to have your company.

I’m linking with Natalie of Threads & Bobbins for the Weekly Sunday Sevens series.

Sunday Sevens #102 24.9.17

~ Making Stitches ~ 6 Comments

This week feels like a return to normality after a very long summer of excitement. We had a full week of school, no special events and a routine seems to be developing. There is a lot to be said for a routine, and I’m quite happy that we are settling back into one again after almost 4 months!

Sunday lunch

White Chocolate and Vanilla Creme Brûlée-mmmm! It was as tasty as it looks, in fact I wouldn’t mind another one now!!! 😉

Last Sunday was our last Sunday with my Mum and Dad. They had been over for almost 3 weeks and were able to help us with childcare so we could attend the Music Festival without the two youngest Little Postcards who weren’t over keen to attend. They also enjoyed the National Day classical concert (with the Royal Philharmonic Concert orchestra) along with National Day the following day. 

As it was our last Sunday together, we all went out for a lovely Sunday lunch. We waved them goodbye midweek. It’s been strange without them around…

Life’s a beach


Now that’s what I call a Monday morning. After making beds, doing the school run and finishing my errands in town, I treated myself to an hour of Crochet on the beach! Shh, don’t tell the Little Postcards I went without them 😉

Back to dressmaking class


Talking of routine, it was so nice to return to my dressmaking class this week on Tuesday. I ended the last academic year by cutting out my fabric for a blouse all ready for my September return. Princess line seams are now done!

Breakfast by the boats


On Wednesday morning I was invited to join some lovely friends to celebrate the safe arrival of a lovely little baby. We had a celebration breakfast down by the marina at Queensway Quay and it was a beautiful morning as you can see.

Crochet mojo relocated!


I haven’t got round to doing much Crochet since my summer craft challenge finished at the end of August, but my Monday morning beach Crochet and a tight deadline worked wonders for relocating my crochet mojo! This little chap hopped off to join the new baby who the breakfast was for.

Med Steps magic 


It’s been literally months since my last trip up the Med Steps (May I think) so I hauled myself back up them on Thursday morning. By heck, it was hard work – it took about as long to get to the top as it did to go up and come back down when I was at my fittest in May. I won’t leave it so long before my next trip up there. It was worth the effort though, autumn crocus were dotted around and only the very tops of the boats out in the Med were visible above the sea mist.

Interesting Levante

We have enjoyed some time without the Levante cloud recently but it didn’t stay away for long. It was creating an interesting swooping effect on Friday morning!

That’s all for this week’s Sunday Sevens. I’m aware that lately my only posts have predominantly been my weekly ones; Sunday Sevens, photo challenge and my craft challenge in the summer. Things have been a bit hectic of late, and they don’t show any signs of calming down (all good things though thankfully). I have a mountain of photos from our summertime travels and other posts up my sleeves but time has not allowed me to sit down and write them, I have also been pretty crumby at keeping up with everyone else’s blogs too, for that I apologise. 

Fingers crossed things will calm down and I get can get busy blogging again properly before too long…

I’m linking with Natalie of Threads & Bobbins for the Sunday Sevens weekly blog series.

Sunday Sevens #101 17.9.17

~ Making Stitches ~ 16 Comments

Good morning! Welcome to this week’s edition of Sunday Sevens, a look at the past seven days with seven photos…

National Day 

Last Sunday was National Day here in Gibraltar. 10th September 1967 was a very special day in Gibraltar’s recent history as it was the day that the Gibraltarian people voted overwhelmingly to remain British in a sovereignty referendum. For that reason, National Day is celebrated on 10th September.

As usual, there was a political rally, concerts and lots of celebrations and partying while everyone is dressed in the national colours of red and white. We headed into town to soak up the atmosphere and then headed home to have a family barbecue. It was a lovely day.

More summery weather

Full days restarted at Gibraltar’s schools after National Day but the weather still thought it was the height of summer this week! It was the perfect opportunity to hit the beach and take the advantage of it being so quiet! Sadly I just had time to admire it from above before heading off.
Levanter

The Levanter was back this week too. Despite the cloud and wind it was pretty muggy and warm. It does cast a moody atmosphere over the Rock at times. 
Whoops!


You know those moments when you want the ground to open up?? One morning I was on my way into the multistory car park in town (if you have a Gibraltar ID card you can park there for free during the day time). So I was sitting at the carpark barrier waving my ID card in front of the card reader attempting to make he barrier lift and let me in. It wasn’t budging.

A very helpful young security guard made his way over to the car ‘what’s the problem madam?’ he asked. ‘The machine won’t let me in!’ I explained. ‘That’s your driving license madam!’ was his reply…. whoops! That’ll be why it wasn’t working. (Hangs head in embarrassment and hurrily digs out ID card) thank goodness there wasn’t a big queue behind me at the time!


Sunset on the East side 

One evening this week I was over on the east side of the Rock as the sun was going down behind me. The pretty colour of the sky behind the flowers from the aloes (I think) just looked so lovely.

Birthday party fun

We had a birthday party here yesterday. The birthday boy asked to decorate his own cake (using sweets and in the design of a Pokeball). I can’t tell you how pleased I was to hand over the cake decoration responsibility to him. No stress for me and he loved doing it – win, win!

Sunday morning 


This Sunday Sevens I only had six suitable photos to include, so here’s my view just now. I love Sunday mornings like this, there’s no rush to get people ready for school, it’s bright and sunny and I have the time to sit for longer than necessary to digest my toast! I opened the window and there is just that distant hint of autumn on the breeze, that clean, damp smell. 

Regular readers to the blog and those of you familiar with Gibraltar will know that the seasons we enjoy here are not at all like those you get in Britain. I really miss that. So these fleeting moments when you get a hint of a season (other than pouring rain and lashing wind in winter and hot, hot sun in summer) are very precious. 

When I caught scent of it this morning I was immediately transported to the National Trust properties I visited in my childhood and with my boys before coming to Gib. Brown damp leaves, conker and acorn hunting and raindrops on cobwebs. Ahhh….

I’m linking with Natalie from Threads and Bobbins for Sunday Sevens.