A great view

A great view, a photo by Jillian DIxon on Flickr.

We went on a local walk yesterday .... and took some photos of the lovely colours on the trees.

Little chaffinch

Little chaffinch, a photo by Jillian DIxon on Flickr.

A space invader pumpkin

A space invader pumpkin, a photo by Jillian DIxon on Flickr.

Billy Joel - All About Soul

"Its all about joy that comes out of sorrow

Whos standing now, whos standing tomorrow

This life isnt bad...its gonna get dark, its gonna get cold

You ve gotta get tough but that aint enough

Its all about soul"

£10 moving deer with fairy lights.

£10 moving deer with fairy lights., a photo by Jillian DIxon on Flickr.

Water

When we got back from Manchester on Sunday night.... we realized that there was a water leak at the front of the house. It had started on Sunday morning and our neighbours had tried to sort it out...by turning off the stop cocks. At one point there were 4 sets of neighbours involved... funny how a mini crisis can bring people together. The water board came out to inspect the leak on Monday but we are still waiting for it to be fixed. There has been a big stream of water running down the hill all week.

I have also eaten way too much chocolate this week.... Tel shouldnt have opened that box of Quality Street.

I spent most of yesterday walking around and standing at bus stops in the pouring rain.... with my usual rain affected frizzy hair do.... nice!

On Wednesday Christmas came early when I spotted something at the local garden centre. It was reduced to £10. It is a deer made of wire. It lights up and also moves its head. I love it.

Neighbours tree at 9.30am

Neighbours tree at 9.30am, a photo by Jillian DIxon on Flickr.

The colours

The colours, a photo by Jillian DIxon on Flickr.

The end of October and beginning of November are the best times for colour here. Our next door neighbour has the most amazing big tree which has bright red leaves at the moment.

"All aboard"... Day out on the Bridgewater Canal Manchester.

"All aboard"... Day out on the Bridgewater Canal Manchester., a photo by Jillian DIxon on Flickr.

Untitled, a photo by Jillian DIxon on Flickr.

Untitled, a photo by Jillian DIxon on Flickr.

Untitled, a photo by Jillian DIxon on Flickr.

Just passing through....

Just passing through...., a photo by Jillian DIxon on Flickr.

This big stag came lolloping across the front garden this morning. He looked exhausted...probably after a long night chasing the females. His tongue was hanging out.... he looked like he was drunk.

Rain. Wind. Dark. Sun. Rainbows.

Rain. Wind. Dark. Sun. Rainbows., a photo by Jillian DIxon on Flickr.

Comments book

Comments book, a photo by Jillian DIxon on Flickr.

These were my 2 favourite pages of handwriting in the comments book at the holiday Lodge in Wales...(there may be a spelling error but never mind). It is sort of wonderful to see such beautiful handwriting.... and reminds me of my Mum and Auntie Edna s lovely handwriting. x

Handwriting

Handwriting, a photo by Jillian DIxon on Flickr.

The rut

The stag is on the move.... the grunting was very loud last night.

Cutting up logs

The weather was beautiful yesterday. We made the most of it and cut up enough wood to fill 2 wheel barrows. Maybe one day we will buy a small chainsaw to help speed up the process.

MADCAP VID MEDIUM

Two minutes of Noel painting. BIG SMILE.

Highs and lows

The lows.....It was a sad day for Wales yesterday as they battled hard against the French but lost the semi final in Auckland. They regrouped well after brilliant young captain Sam Warburton was sent off... Mike Phillips scored another great try...it was so tense and exciting. Wales have been brilliant over the whole tournament and we have loved watching them.

The highs.... After the game we went up to the summerhouse and attached a very long and bendy piece of wood to the front at the top. This meant we both needed to be up on the roof ... climbing up there on the ladder and then sitting on the roof... my legs were shaking!!

Cerys Matthews - Calon Lan

Calon Lan was one of the hymns at Marlenes funeral yesterday at Llwydcoed Crematorium. After the service we went back to Glynneath Rugby Club for a drink, some food and a chat with everyone. It was a very emotional day for Lisa and her Dad. They were surrounded by such warmth and affection from their family and friends.

2 sleeps till the big game....

2 sleeps till the big game...., a photo by Jillian DIxon on Flickr.

The press have woken up to the Welsh World Cup challenge this week.... and its been great if you are Welsh, adopted Welsh or just a fan....to see all the reports and photos and the build up to saturdays game. It really is a great sporting moment for Wales. The Millennium Stadium in Cardiff is showing the game live to 25,000 plus fans who HAVE to wear red on the day. I will be getting my lucky welsh dragon tea towel out and blowing up my inflatable leek as we sit in front of the tv.

James lawton writes that Wales are coached by "Warren Gatland and his defensive guru, one of the least tranquillised Englishmen alive, Shaun Edwards" . Gatlands dragons silence critics and breathe new fire into the game.

4 sleeps till the big game....

4 sleeps till the big game...., a photo by Jillian DIxon on Flickr.

Storm clouds

Storm clouds, a photo by Jillian DIxon on Flickr.

Butterfly on sedum

Butterfly on sedum, a photo by Jillian DIxon on Flickr.

The Simplehuman

We have ordered a new bin for the kitchen from Amazon today.

It is called a Simplehuman 40 litre grey plastic slimline bin.

Warren Gatland smiles

I m loving the Rugby World Cup at the moment especially as Wales are doing so well. We got up at 5.45 am on Saturday to watch the game against Ireland live from NZ. It was very exciting and thrilling to see them playing so well.... and to see the coach smiling at the end. He doesnt smile very often. My little bet on Wales could turn into a big win if they can overcome France on Saturday and then win in the final.

Woodland

Woodland, a photo by Jillian DIxon on Flickr.

A sad time for Lisa

A sad time for Lisa, a photo by Jillian DIxon on Flickr.

Lisa received the very sad news that her Mum Marlene had died while we were all together on the Isle of Man last weekend. She had been unwell for a while but the end came very quickly.
We celebrated Jims 40th birthday on the saturday...his Mum Brenda and Keith were there too and obviously little baby Anwen... and it was a lovely day for him. Sunday was very sad as we heard the news. There were lots of tears as Lisa packed her bag and got Anwen ready for the flight back to Gloucester and the drive back to Glynneath to see her Dad.
The funeral will be on Wednesday.
We are thinking of Lisa and her Dad at this difficult time. x

The lodge.

The lodge., a photo by Jillian DIxon on Flickr.

We stayed for 4 nights in this lovely little lodge near Machynlleth, on our way up to the Isle of Man last week.
The weather was amazing for the last week in September and we really felt like we were on holiday. We climbed to the top of Cader Idris .... this was pretty spectaular. We loved Aberdyfi and the Centre for Alternative Technology. We had fish and chips in Barmouth and looked in the charity shops in Dolgellau. Harlech Castle was great and the nearby beach had views over to Snowdonia.
It was lovely to be away on holiday.

The top of Cader Idris.

The top of Cader Idris., a photo by Jillian DIxon on Flickr.

Beautiful Barmouth.

Beautiful Barmouth., a photo by Jillian DIxon on Flickr.

The Centre for Alternative Technology. Machynlleth.

The Centre for Alternative Technology. Machynlleth., a photo by Jillian DIxon on Flickr.