Friday didn't start very well, Robbie seemed to take an age to get ready to go out. We went to Wroxham Barns, Robbie likes it there because they have a local Brewery called Uncle Stuart's. He had a pint of Uncle Stuart's Summer Ale, he said it was very nice and it certainly made him a bit more mellow. My pot of tea was nice too, it is just as well that I'm teetotal as I have to do all the driving. I have had some very good tea while in Norfolk - they could certainly teach Cross Country a thing or two when it comes to tea making!
There is lots to see and do at Wroxham Barns, shops and craft studios (including a model shop so Robbie was in his element), a junior farm, a cider and apple juice producer, restaurants and cafes, crazy golf and various rides. We enjoyed looking around and Robbie left with a selection of ales as wel as a stash of beer mats.
We had a walk on the beach when we got back, the tide was going out and the tide washed beach looked beautiful with the sun dancing on the waves and the little ripples of retreating tide running over the sea placed pebbles in the smoothe wet sand. We sat there just looking out at the sea and remembering the many special times we have spent here. I love this place.
I always look forward to spending weekends with Robbie. Weekdays are so hectic that we hardly see each other so weekends are very special and those rare Saturdays when we can just be lazy and take life at our own pace are extra special. Last Saturday we had been enjoying some 'us time' when Robbie said "Mrs J, there is nothing better than cuddling up an a Saturday morning and listening to Kate Adie on the radio". I told him that it may have been better to have left that little gem as an unspoken thought, but he didn't take the hint. He went on to tell me why Kirsty Wark was even better than Kate Adie, well I guess I should be grateful at least I always know what he is thinking!
A little later Robbie was contemplating his navel when he looked up and swore. I was startled and asked him what was wrong. He told e that his long held theory had been disproved then he held up a small quantity of red fluff fro his belly button. He said that he had believed that belly button fluff was always blue but this proved him wrong. I shrugged (wondering why Robbie has to waste so much tie on trivia) and said that it must depend on what colour clothes you wear. Later I noticed that he had made a facebook post on the subject, and one of his 'wicked' friends had decided to encourage his already unhealthy interest in the subject by sending him the link to a website about belly button fluff. He managed to put me off my meal by showing me pictures of jars of fluff - Ewwwww!! Just in case anyone is interested, this is the link http://www.feargod.net/fluff.html. Why can't he just be 'normal'!!
By Wednesday we were getting used to the lazy mornings and making the most of them, it was such a nice day that I wanted to freeze time and keep it like this for ever. I know that Robbie loves his work, but I will really miss him next week and I will not see much of him because he will be busy making up for lost time. It was lunchtime before we were ready to go out, we had one or two errands to do, doctors, chemist etc, but after that we had the day to ourselves.
One thing that Robbie is very good at is twisting me around his little finger, I find it really hard to say no to him because I want him to be happy. We were chatting about the Doc Shop and the lovely day that we'd had and we both regretted that he hadn't bought the other pair of boots that he liked. They were tan Chelsea boots at such a good price that it seemed like madness to miss the chance of buying them, so we headed back to Wollaston (by a different but equally scenic route) and he had an early birthday present!
We drove home via Castle Ashby, Robbie loved the scenery and the rural shopping yard. He got lots of pleasure from wandering around taking photos. We had only been doing fairly ordinary things but it was such a nice day, I really didn't want it to end.
Now that shopping and all the preparations for Christmas are in full swing I find myself thinking longingly of the days when I the children were little and shopping was so much easier. Back then money was still tight but almost everything wanted could be bought in one visit to Toys r Us, and when they woke up on Christmas morning their stockings were bulging. Now if their wish lists involve more effort in terms of shopping, have a bigger price tag and when the presents are wrapped and tucked under the tree they don't look very impressive, they certainly wouldn't fill a stocking!
I still have younger children to buy for, three nephews and a niece and I have to admit that shopping for them has been the most enjoyable part of Christmas for me. My niece is 10, very grown up and very interested in fashion, so the main part of her present had a fashion design theme. She also loves reading, so I decided to buy her two books that I loved when I was young. It was hard to choose just two books, but it was very enjoyable to remember so many of the books that I enjoyed as a child. In the end I chose Charlotte Sometimes and Tom's Midnight Garden, both books had a similar theme, the connection between the past and the present. I hope she will enjoy them as much as I did.
My three year old nephew will be getting books as part of his present too. I bought him a set of Richard Scarry books and when Robbie saw them I thought he was going to burst with excitement. Apparently 'Cars, Trucks and Things That Go' was Robbie's favourite book when he was little, so I am sure he will enjoy reading the books with Oliver. The other part of his present also caused Robbie to reminisce, I bought him a Tonka truck. According to Robbie they were much better in the old days, but when he thought I wasn't looking I caught him admiring the new truck which makes realistic engine noises and has a special tool to change the tyres.
I also caught my son looking longingly at my 5 year old nephew's present. I had chosen Transformers for him because he is car mad and I remembered how much my son liked Transformers. My son commented that it made him feel like adding a transformer toy to his own Christmas list - I wish he would, it would be a lot cheaper and less complicated than some of the things he wants!
It seems to me that part of the pleasure of Christmas comes from remembering the things and the people that made past Christmases special. I wonder what we will remember when we look back on this Christmas?
We are not going home until Sunday, but Saturday morning found me packing up most of our belongings and cleaning the bungalow as my mum and step father were coming to start their holiday. Every year i promise myself that we will take much less, but every year we break that promise. We were so busy before we came to Norfolk that packing was a rather hit and miss affair, but how did Robbie mananage to bring 28 Tshirts with him, did he seriously think he would wear two Tshirts every day? In reality he has only worn a handful of his favourite tops, because I have washed them so that he could wear them again.
Finally we were all packed up and the bungalow was clean and shining so we could get on and enjoy the day. Robbie was in a lot of pain and it was making him lose patients with his jigsaw, so I did a bit for him - it is so hard but I was determined that we would get it finished. I didn't do very much because Robbie took over again to finish it, it looked fantastic when it was completebut after taking a photo we had to break it up and pack it away.
we went down to the beach because I wanted to take some photos and as we stood there looking out across the beach a seal popped up directly in front of us, within seconds he was gone again, but for the next few minutes he kept popping up and then vanishing again. Robbie and I watched until he swam away along the coast. It was a very special way to mark our last day in Norfolk.
When we went to bed Robbie got me up to look out of the window at the moon and it's silver reflection on the sea -he can be romantic after all, he just hides it well!!
