Hmmm just the sort of news I love to hear when I've been dodging the raindrops and had dug out my winter woollies, and have the halogen heater on!!!!!! Mandi sent me a text to say that it was really ever so hot out there, full sunshine and Dogan was melting but she was just lapping it up - how kind of her to inform me of that eh? Still it would be lousy to be in a strange country and have it rain and be cold, at least when you're in your own place you can suffer in comfort!!

Went out in the car again today - it's really strange how it doesn't seem to be nearly 7 years since I last drove properly. It feels so natural to be driving, and I'm so relieved because a lot of my former pursuits have been taken from me when I had the brain haemorrhage and then the stroke, that I was really scared that I might not be able to drive again. My right foot is achey a bit, but that's from holding it an an unnatural angle for the accelerator, that should soon be better after I get used to using it like that.

Anyway I thought I'd take myself up to the Value Shop, for come compost and anything else that took my fancy. Fred the Shed is coming tomorrow morning with his grandson Joshua to plant some bulbs for me. I want the daffodils put directly into the ground if possible, but Fred recommends the tulips go into pots. So I had to buy some compost to put in the pots and boy were they heavy - 60 litres each. Don't ask me what that means, but all I know is that they were very heavy but not too expensive. I was very lucky that a very nice youngish man lifted them into the car for me and I'll let Fred take them out!!!

Well I decided to have a browse of the shop - it sells everything you could imagine except food. They had the most wonderful display of Christmas decorations and there were some really lovely mock trees of lights - expensive but so effective because the lights were in leaf shapes and green. I found some plain white lights and got 100 of them for the second tree at the bottom of the hall. Then I saw some lovely picture frames. I managed to find 6 the same size and coloured frames which will mean I can display my photos en-masse and have it as a feature on the wall.

Then I saw some lovely photo albums with ingenious pockets for the pictures and a place to write what the picture was about etc. I thought Mandi and Dogan might like them for their own photos, so I got two of them. I'd already got them a large photo album, but it was only for small photos and had PHOTO/CARD ALBUM in large letters on the front of the album which is not exactly what I want to see on it. I'll use it for my own photos.

I soon tired of pushing the trolley around because it was very heavy with the compost and the frames in it, so I decided to stop shopping and go home. It was really nice having that freedom of going when I wanted to.

Got home and sat down on the sofa. Boo immediately came up to me, loud purring and plonked herself right next to me. What a lovely welcome. Even better was that both Pippin and Boo welcomed each other this morning with tentative kisses, a quick game chasing the red laser dot and sharing a bowl of food. I do believe that they will soon be good friends - thank heavens for that.

Not terribly interesting blog I'm afraid but I just thought you may like to hear what I got up to today.