Spring is........

.... Well in our house it depends who you ask!!

Ask me and I will tell you that Spring is getting 3 loads of laundry (including bedding) dried on the washing lines. This to me is fabulous, I hate to dry washing inside or in the drier. There is nothing nicer than bedding that has been out on the line all day. Also the clothes etc are all so much easier to iron when they have been outside.



However, if you ask 11 month old puppy Bista, she will tell you that Spring is all about sleeping in the sun on the deck! On Saturday night after I got back from work she was sitting in a square of sunshine, on the back steps, with her face up to the sun/heat! So cute that I had to get a quick pic!

Monday 14.09.

No outfit picture from Monday (seriously it was not good - dog walking jeans, trainers and a hoodie).

My bf was away with work from Monday until Saturday this past week so he took yesterday off and we spent the day together. We had used Sunday to get chores etc done so the day was free for fun stuff. I started off by making my first pot of lentil soup of the autumn (yum - lunch today) and a HUGE pot of chilli. We then had a quick lunch and headed off to Culzean Castle with the dog!

It was a beautiful sunny and warm afternoon so we just spent a few hours wandering around the grounds. We had Bista off the lead the entire time as we are trying to train her this way - lets us see how far she is happy to go without us.

We decided that the castle grounds and walled gardens (which are stunning) were not the place to take the puppy that loves to dig. So, we took the longer walk along to the swan pond. Bista was great staying close by but still going off to explore the new smells.

About half way there she started to flag a bit (it was getting very hot) so we slowed it down a bit and got closer to a little stream.

My bf tried to coax her to come down the embankment and into the water for a drink! She could hear it and she could see it, but was just not so sure about making the jump!

Then all of a sudden she leap down into the lovely cool water (it was about an inch deep) where she cooled off and had a big long drink!

We carried on round to the swan pond where my bf and I enjoyed the biggest ice cream cones! YUMMY!! We sat by the pond for a while watching the dog, the swans and the ducks before we headed back to the car and home!

I love days like that!!

A bit of Spring!

I am starting to get Spring Fever!

It started for real at the weekend when the weather turned very nice, sunny and mild and the bf and I were able to get outside and get some work done in the garden!
In the last few days since we cleared away all of the dead leaves that winter left behind all of the Spring flowers have really started to come through.

In the back garden and in the pots at the front door the Daffodils are in full bloom and they are just so bright and cheery. I love Daffodils they are one of my favorite flowers for the simple reason that I can not help but smile when I see them!

So because of that I decided to buy some cut Daffodils for the shop - to inject some Spring cheer!
Don't they just look beautiful??

Time Off, Saturday to Wednesday.

I'm back!!!

I have had a lovely few days off, I feel very refreshed and very positive about all of the up-coming projects. I have thought a lot about what I would like to achieve from the shop in the next 12 months!

Anyway, I have said that I was off from Saturday through to today (Thursday) this was the case, but I did have to put in a very quick 2 hour shift on Monday morning. So, here is my recap of my little break.

Saturday - Wedding.

Our very good friends were getting married in their home town (Fort William- 3hrs 30mins away) and we were very lucky to be invited to join them on their special day. Our original plan was to leave from work on the Friday night and travel through and stay an extra night. However, there was a rather large Hill Walking Challenge taking place and we could not get a room anywhere.

So, on Saturday morning at 8am we set off, we planned to stop in the West end of Glasgow to get our button holes (to try and keep them as fresh as possible - silk flowers are a no-no with me) and to get a bit of breakfast. After the quick stop we headed onwards and upwards. It was a beautiful day for the drive, not too bright but nice and dry. It is a very, very winding road up the West Coast of Scotland to Fort William, but a very beautiful drive. We were both enjoying the views of Loch Lomond, Glen Coe etc when we realised that we were losing time.

In a panic, I scrambled into the back of the car to fetch my make-up, one less job to do when we reached the hotel. Eventually we arrived at the hotel........ 15 minutes before the ceremony started. We ran to our room and had the quickest change of our lives. We then asked for directions to the church. More panic when we were informed the church was 12 miles away!!

Picture of me in my dress (pale green chiffon) and heels (pewter Christian Louboutin), and my lovely boyfriend in his kilt!

We hot footed it to the car and took off at great speed. We were making really good progress when the brakes were slammed on..........
Up ahead were the wedding cars!!!!! We were following the bride!
At the church the car was abandoned, the bride was exiting on the right of her car, so we ran down the left had side and made it to the church just on time (we were not even the last guests to arrive!!).

The ceremony was beautiful, the church was beautiful, the views from the church and the location were outstanding, but the bride was stunning!
The rest of the day and night was fantastic, lots of good food, wine, company and dancing.

Beautiful view from inside the Church!
View once we got outside the church.

Sunday.

After a late night we forced ourselves to get up early have breakfast and get on the road home. We were home by lunch-time, so we went to meet my boyfriend's mum and her husband for some lunch. I then headed to see my dad and my boyfriend to see his (get the Fathers Day duties out of the way).

It was a beautiful day, so when visiting was done my boyfriend came to get me at my parents house and we stayed and ate dinner out on the patio.

Monday.
Outfit: linen crop trousers, striped vest, white cotton cardigan.

My birthday!!
As I said I went into work briefly, then I walked home in time for the lunch plans that had been made for me. I was not told what they were in advance, but I was very pleased to find out that we were going on a picnic!!

We stopped in at Tesco to get our lunch (Sushi for me, pasta salad for my boyfriend) and headed to a local park. The weather was fantastic and we spent nearly 3 hours lying in the sun chatting, eating and enjoying an extra together.
My yummy sushi.

My birthday cake!

In the evening we went to dinner at a local restaurant, where I gorged on amazing local Seafood!! Yum, yum! We had some wine with dinner and then walked home where a bottle of champagne had been chilling while we were out. We enjoyed this while watching a bit of T.V.
No outfit picture, but this is the top and necklace I wore, I got them for my birthday from my sister.

Tuesday.

The weather was awful, so we had a lazy breakfast while we decided what to do. In the end we settled with doing some errands that we had been putting of for ages. It was a great feeling when they were all done!

In the evening we had some friends round for a casual dinner (Chilli) and we then all headed out to the pub quiz. My parents came and met us for a few hours and helped us to win the quiz!!

Wednesday.

Last day off, but it was a good one. I had an appointment in the morning with one of my suppliers. So, we decided to structure our day around this. The appointment was in Glasgow, so we got an early train, had the meeting and then started our day out.

After the work stuff was out of the way we headed back to the city centre grabbing lunch to eat in the sun. After lunch we had a wander around the shops (not clothes shopping though) I bought some thank you cards to send for my gifts.

We then headed to the cinema to catch Indiana Jones. It was not starting for about an hour, so we went round the corner to a nice little bar got a drink and I wrote my thank you notes and got them mailed off.

The movie was great (I had never seen any of the other Indiana Jones movies) and it was so nice to do something a bit different in the afternoon.
Afterwards, we again, wandered about the shops and then headed for some dinner. We ended up in lovely pizza place and shared a bottle of nice wine.

We caught an early train home and on the walk home we stopped and bought some Cheesecake to have for dessert!

No outfit picture again, but I wore another new top (birthday gift from my parents) with my black skinny jeans and my red ballet flats.

Work Outfit - Tuesday.

Yesterday was a bank holiday, working for myself I get no holidays so bank holidays are just another working day for me! My very kind mum let me away at lunch time to go to a BBQ at my boyfriend's sisters house!

The weather was fantastic and it was so nice to be there. Unfortunately I have no pictures of my outfit (which was very cute) as the morning ran away from me and as soon as I got to the BBQ I had a glass of Pinot Grigo in my hand!! The outfit was a pair of mint green vintage jeans, white ribbed tank top and a pale green cotton cardigan that I did not need until we were walking home at 8.30.

Today the fabulous weather has continued (my fingers are crossed that this will last). I had a few errands to do this morning before opening the shop so I picked a nice light and airy outfit. I hate being all hot and bothered before I have even begun my days work.

Today's outfit consists of:

Cream silk embroidered tunic - Vila
Black ribbed leggings - Vila
Cream and black ballet flats - New Look