Christmas 2015

Hello to all our friends and a Happy Christmas to you all, 

Where has this year gone?  I cannot believe that we are on the run down to yet another Christmas.  Thankfully this has turned out to be quite a good year in the end, especially as far as our health is concerned. 

We started the year with the ongoing saga of my heart problems.  I eventually saw a specialist over the New Year period and it was basically confirmed that I had Angina, the bit that was quite shocking was that it was confirmed that I have had a heart attack at some time in the past!  Anyway I finally had an Angiogram done at the Bristol Heart Institute at the beginning of March and this gave them more information about the problem.  I went in for day surgery on 9th June and have had a pacemaker and defibrillator fitted; it is amazing what keyhole surgery can do.  I am feeling a lot better and my ability to walk and breathe have greatly improved but I still need to go every few months to have some monitoring and ‘tweaking’ of the implant. 

Stephen is now said to be in ‘full’ remission, which is fantastic and he is very active.  His work as a Magistrate keeps him busy and he has sat on quite a few occasions this year.  He is also still treasurer for his flying group and enjoys the meetings and talking to others about different types of flying. 

We decorated our bedroom at the beginning of the year, which actually meant that Stephen did the painting etc. and I helped with moving things around, although this time we got someone else to fit the carpet.  Earlier in the year Stephen went up to RAF Cosford with some friends and saw the Vulcan on one of its last flights, he also saw it when it flew over Weston as part of the Air Day. It was sad to also see during its final national tour. 

Vulcan Bomber XH558 soon to be grounded for ever.

The boys are both well, although their jobs can be stressful at times.  We had fantastic news in February when Chris and Becks announced their engagement, they are getting married in late spring next year and the venue is a castle in Scotland. It will be wonderful to have a small family gathering and then they will have a large party later on in the year.  

Nick seems to have spent a lot of the year travelling around the world.  He goes to Germany on a regular basis and has been to China, USA (twice) and at least one of the Gulf States, I think it was Dubai.  However he really enjoys being at home and playing with Finley, who is now 2 years old and a very adventurous little boy (just like his father!)  We went to a fantastic pirate themed birthday party that Finley shared with his best friend in August and had a great time.

Grandson Finley takes a rest in front of Shaun The Sheep

In the summer I was able to fulfil my wish from last year and took Finley and Louise around some of the Shaun the Sheep models in Bristol.  We chose the ones around the harbour side and had a look in the ‘M’ Shed museum as well.  I was then lucky enough to get a ticket for the full exhibition of sheep up at Cribbs Causeway.  I also tried to get a ticket for the Banksy "Dismaland" exhibition in Weston, but failed miserably.  I think I should have started trying to log on to the site hours before it formally opened, but anyway I did manage to see some of the exhibits from the outside. 

We have had two trips out to Cyprus this year, but unfortunately the first was cut short because I was not very well (a combination of my condition and a bad cold meant that I had problems breathing).  The second trip was in November and it was much better.  The weather was fine, we felt well and we were able to visit all of our friends and catch up with things.  The house is up for sale but it is a very difficult market at the moment, so we wait and see. 

Villa Berengaria after external repairs and redecoration, now for sale

We will miss one of our favourite beach restaurants on Avdimou Beach and....

....regular trip for lunch at Latchi harbour

Otherwise life has just been carrying on as usual, I am now Vice-Chair of Governors at our local Primary School and really enjoy the challenges that brings.  I am also still involved with schools, publishers, author visits etc. and have a great time.  I also spend a lot of time reading books and then reviewing them for journals.  I must admit that we both seem to like this ‘retirement’ idea, although I still keep my hand in with some consultancy.  It means that we can go off and do things when we want to.  We are definitely hoping that next year we will be able to go off and do a few things, especially as we will be in Scotland for the wedding in May. 

Each year celebrity authors visit Margaret,

In 2011 the Fonz, in 2012 Simon Mayo, in 2013 Sir Tony Robinson

Last year it was the turn of Michael Rosen
This year it was Julian Clary and illustrator David Roberts

We have been lucky enough to get to several concerts this year including the Dream of Gerontius and then just before Christmas we will be at “Messiah” in Bristol, something that we have enjoyed for years and which really means the start of Christmas.  We also did get to see “War Horse” in the New Year and it was just as good as I had remembered.  However the seats at the theatre were very uncomfortable, which is something to consider in the future. 

Well I hope that everyone has a wonderful Christmas and a very Happy and healthy New Year in 2016. We hope to be able to get out and see a few people as we are so much better at the moment, so let us hope that will continue and we can meet up with some of you during the coming year,