Easter Weekend

So Tabitha, Gareth and Cally came out to Chesterfield on the train, and The Builder went and collected them while I finished a bit of digging I had embarked on just before Tabitha had told me which train they were going to be on.

It was a lovely afternoon, so we all spent most of it outside

The Beer Fairies smiled benignly upon The Builder for his birthday, and brought him more beer

It was a merry evening with beer and wine and prawn curry.  Even Cally had a bit of the curry, and a whole load of rice!

I had intended to give the new barbecue its inaugural flight for the Easter Sunday feast.  I had prepared some spicy pork burgers and some tomato and beef burgers.  I had marinated strips of chicken in soya sauce and mirin. I had marinated strips of lamb in olive oil and oregano.  I had held back some of the prawns for barbecuing.  We had bought a load of Turkish bread to have with it all, and I had made a big bowl of salad.  There was more beer, more wine and a whole load of soft drink.  But at 9:00 on Easter Sunday morning I looked out the kitchen window and saw this:

We didn't use the barbecue.  I used the griddle and the fry pans and cooked in the kitchen instead.  Ginger Rich joined us for lunch and we made a good feast, the rain notwithstanding.

Fortunately, the weather was much, much better on Easter Monday so we did get to go out for our planned picnic, at the Abbeydale Miniature Railway in Sheffield.  It was warmer and sunnier than it looks in the photos:

I hadn't known that the little trains were there until Tabitha had mentioned a while ago that they had gone there for a birthday party.  I didn't really know where they were, and it's the kind of thing that The Builder and I enjoy, so we were very pleased to go and make its acquaintance.  And it's really cute. A hidden tiny gem, which I believe people sometime stumble across by pure serendipity while out walking in the woods on weekends when the trains are running.  Cally, who had been before, was absolutely beside herself with excitement and joy and glee.  There were little trains to ride on, even littler trains to watch. There was a picnic.  And there were FRIENDS.  Several children from her nursery turned up.  Some friends of Tabitha and Gareth also turned up with their children, some as a surprise to us all, and some who we knew were coming (although Cally did not).  She was ever so, ever so happy!

It was very, very fortunate that we had planned to have the picnic with the little trains on the Monday!

Tuesday was awful. The rain sheeted down.  The wind blew.  At 8:30, I sent a text message to Bea, who we were due to meet in Chesterfield for lunch, to see if she still fancied it.  The plan had been for everyone to travel by various buses so no one had to worry about having a pub lunch, a few drinks and driving home.  She said that she might just as well so we went ahead with it. And mercifully by lunch time the rain had reduced to a steady but not torrential rain and we didn't absolutely drown getting into town. Nor getting home again. There seemed to be a small umbrella over Chesterfield between around 11:30 and 2:30, which allowed us all to get to town, drop my books off at the library, have a quick potter around then lunch in The Rutland, and for The Builder and me to get home again before the heavens opened once more.  I hope the umbrella accompanied Bea back on her way home too!

And so that was the Easter weekend.  Back at work now.  And Cally is coming to stay with us again this coming weekend.  This time on her own!!!