todays photo is..

of one of the shops in town - Accessorize. I plan to take one photo a month of local shops and I had planned to use independent shops - not chains, but I thought the window display here was so lovely that I could not resist this one.

Another day out...

Considering January is usually the coldest and wettest month I have been lucky to go out again on a delightful day, which was a little chilly but dry with blue skies. Today Thelma and I went to Barmouth & Arthog to do some hillwalking and geocaching - which included the strangest cache I have ever done - in the middle of the sea - well a slight exaggeration - it was sited in the Barmouth estuary and the tide was out - but it was a bit unnerving walking across sand that is usually submerged under the sea. Thankfully Thelma had done her homework and we had a few hours grace before the tide came back in.

Me in the middle of the estuary!

These rocks in the middle of the picture are where the cache was hidden and are only accessible for a few hours each day when the tide is out!

We walked up this huge hill behind Barmouth itself - Cader Olau, which was very hard work and involved scrambling over rocks etc - not bad for 2 old women! but with very rewarding views at the top of the Snowdonia mountains and Cader Idris.The gorgeous sight of Cader Idris as we arrived - thankfully we were not climbing up this snowy capped mountain today!

The old wooden toll bridge (60p) between Arthog and Barmouth

The Cache at Frenchmans grave halfway up Cader Olau.

Out and about with friends

I have had a couple of days out walking with friends lately. Last week I walked up Caer Caradoc with Rachel - it was huge but I did it. The summit is behind the clouds at the right hand side of this photo - so it was a very good work out.
I was so chuffed with myself but as you can tell from this photo -I am still not fit enough to go climbing hills - my face is so red I look like I am fit to burst. Rachel is not even pink!

It was cold and frosty so we did not hang around for long - managed to admire the views - clouds in one direction (we were above them!) and clear skies in the other.

Yesterday I was out with Cathy and we went to Tyrely locks at Market Drayton - we did 3 caches around there and had a lovely walk along the canal. Cathy had new walking boots so managed the walk much better than last time when her hips really played up.

We had lunch at the lovely canal side pub (the Tavern wharf) I had seen a few weeks ago - it was gorgeous food. Then we did a picture cache around the village of Hinstock in the afternoon to wear the huge dinner off.

I have been away..

staying with my sister and her family in Hemel Hempstead for a few days. I had a lovely time - did lots of walking, lots of geocaching (28 finds!). We walked along the Grand Union Canal and I introduced them to geocaching. Sian was quite good at finding them and got a bit annoyed when I was the finder of one really hard cache that we had spent ages looking for! Here they are getting to grips with the GPS.and here is Sian still looking happy before I beat her to the cache!There are some lovely pubs along the canal - I would love to come back here in the summer.And I saw some lovely wildlife - lots of Herons but no kingfishers sadly.We came here to the tree cathedral. Someone planted all these trees in the 1930's in the shape of a cathedral And we walked around Dunstable Downes - which looks a lovely place but the mist was down when I visited but you could still see that it was an impressive place - again I want to come back here in the summer.

We went to the cinema to see Slumdog Millionaire - which was brilliant - one of the best films I have seen in ages - loved it. I had planned to go to a Photoshop Elements workshop at Willow Tree Crafts in Watford, but got the day wrong and it was Sunday not Saturday as I thought - but I still popped into her lovely shop and bought a few goodies - more stamps - I think I am going mad - I keep buying stamps but never ever use them!! Perhaps I should make a concentrated effort and try to use them - I hope you will see some appearing on some layouts very soon.

Back to Oxford

I spent a lovely day in Oxford yesterday, finishing of the canal geocaches that we did not manage to fit in before Christmas. Had a lovely time even though it was raining. Todays photo is taken in a lane outside New College at dusk. I was here starting the University Challenges geocaches. Found this one without trouble, but had to lurk around looking very suspicious whilst waiting for people to disappear so that I could return it to its hiddy place.

This photo is taken outside the Bodlean & Sheldonian - I thought he fading light highlighted the gothic spires and this photo below is in total contrast. Ancient verus modern - this is the new Said Business school which looks gorgeous day and night - I had not got my tripod, so I am afraid this pic does not really do it justice.

Great crop

I went to the Skrapz crop today and managed 3 layouts - not bad for very little preparation.These first 2 are complete scraplifts from someone from UKS. I must look back and find her name so I can acknowledge her - suffice to say the ideas were all hers - I just copied.

This 3rd one - I quite like. As soon as I saw the photos I knew that I had to scrap them. They are of Eleanor in her lab - which is her second home - hence the title - what ever time of day or night, weekend or weekday we ring Eleanor and say 'where are you?' the answer is always the same 'the lab'. She is such a conscientious student and I was so grateful to Jessica for taking these photos of Eleanor when she and Aaron went up to visit her. The lab is such a big part of Eleanor's life and I had nothing to document this stage of it.

catch up..

I finally succumbed to the dreaded flu bug which has laid me low for a few days and knocked off my big headed crown for proudly proclaiming I must have super immunity, as I kept well whilst everyone else was falling ill left, right and centre. Big slice of Humble Pie eaten!

I have been taking my daily photos just not posted them. I have finalised my list of photos to take each month. I have not set a date for any of them - just as long as the list is ticked off by the end of each month. I chose things that I would like to be recorded and am looking forward to a 31 page album - each page showing 12 similar or different, but linked things, at the end of the year.

The list is as follows:-

what am I reading

what am I listening to

what am I watching

a family member

Steven

Liam

a room in the house

a place of interest in town

a shop in town (before they all disappear!)

geocaching

a geocoin

people I have spent time with

the weather

landscape

scrapbook layout

places I have visited

new scrapbook stash

self portrait

what have I bought today

what have I eaten

home baking

what makes me smile

toiletries

its midday - what do I see

post through the letter box

garden

modes of transport

my neighbourhood

sweets

Todays photo will be from the 'what have I bought today' section. I hate buying clothes - but I was down to my last bra so it was a case of necessity.