Happy Halloween!

Yeah, it's one of my favorite days of the year! I don't know why I like Halloween so much but it's always been one of my favorite times. I like seeing the kids dressed up and the feel in the air. We had no idea how many kids we'd have so I started with 2 bags of candy which equated to 50 chocolate bars. By 6:30pm I was out the door to buy more. I bought 2 more bags and within an hour and a half I had to put a sign on the door that we were out of candy. I am guesstimating we have about 75 trick-or-treaters. We were generous with the first few kids, but after we saw how many were coming, we cut it down to one candy per kid, otherwise we'd be broke. I had a lot of fun greeting the kids. Some year I'll get into the true spirit and dress up to.

Speedy and Rach came over and we ordered Indian. I'm going to turn into Indian food this week. The we watched a very bad horror flick. We turned out the lights, lit the fire and prepared to be scared, but it didn't happen. Don't waste your time or money on 'The hills have eyes'. So bad! But it was a good night!

Pumpkin Carving

A few weeks ago I bought 2 pumpkins and have kept forgetting to carve them. Tonight is my last chance so I made sure I remembered. After supper I spent an hour or so carving the pumpkins. I love Halloween and this time of year. As I was carving them, it took me back to when Matthew, Graham, and I use to carve them together. Oh, how I miss those days. They're lucky they weren't here or they would have been helping. Every year I make sure we have Jack-o-lanterns. In my mind, they make Halloween.

Back to Work

Happy 29th Birthday Jamie! We'll have to make up for it when you're here for New Years!

work busy again, which was great. I'm always happy to be busy. Makes the days go by faster and I find it harder work to make it look like you're busy!

A few things that have come to me lately. Anyone who knows me, knows I don't like Gin or olives. For some reason in the past month I have developed a liking for gin! Julia would be so proud! I have no idea where it came from but one night - actually when Dale & Olivia were visiting in September, I made Keith and Dale gin & tonics and for some strange reason they looked good. So I made myself one. then 2 weeks ago I had another urge for one and have been enjoying them since. Same goes for olives. I have tried them several times with no luck. A few weeks ago I went out after work with the guys for a drink and they ordered a few munchies, including olives. They actually looked appealing so I tried one, and another, and another. Now I guess I like olives. Bizarre!

Hangovers Suck

Why do I drink? keith and I didn't get out of bed until 11am. The time went back last night so if it hadn't, it actually would be 12pm. After a night out, my body's requires sleeeeeep. We didn't have too bad a mess to clean up. Maybe it's a good thing not as many showed up! We cleaned up and enjoyed a pretty relaxing, lazy Sunday watching 'Talladega Nights' starring Will Farrell. Even being too slack to cook supper, we ordered in Indian.

James Bond Night

Keith and Speedy went surfing this morning, so Rach came over and we crashed on our new cozy couch and watched a chick flick, 'An Unfinished Life'. It was pretty good. When the boys got back, early afternoon we cut Keith's birthday cake and it was pretty good. It can't be judged by it's appearance! Keith and I spent the afternoon getting the house ready for the James Bond party we're throwing tonight. Once the house was ready we had to grab munchies and prepare them. We cut it pretty close to when everyone was arriving. Only 9 of us in total turned up as several of the guys were out of town for the weekend. We didn't know this when we planned it for today. Oh well.


We still had a good time. Everyone was dressed up, mostly in suits and dresses as a formal affair. Speedy even showed up as Vespa from Casino Royale! I have to say he doesn't make a very hot lady. Mostly because he has hairy legs showing under his dress and his pearls were tangled in his chest hair. I don't remember Vespa being so hairy? Haha. It was great. Keith made lots of crazy concoctions and people drank them. Some were scary and one even involved cheese! I don't know, don't ask!


To end the evening we headed out to Big T's and danced our drunkeness away. Okay, not really as I think most of us were more drunk by the time we came out of the heat of the place. Keith and I supported each other on the walk home. So funny. We had a good time though. We definitely have to have another one when everyone is around.

Keith's Birthday

Happy 31st Birthday Keith!

This week ended up being a busy one for both of us. I had a few longer days at work and of course, Keith had even longer than me. We were both glad to see today come. I got up early again and drove Keith to work. Decided again going to Tesco this early was a good idea. Since today is Keith's birthday I wanted to bake him a black forest cake. It's his mom's recipe and the cake she always baked him and Dale for their birthdays. It was quite the adventure I had making this cake. Somedays I just shouldn't be allowed near a stove/oven and this was one of them. But it is all attributed to our lovely oven that a dislike so much. The cake ended up not cooking completely on the bottom so when I went to take it out of the pans, it stuck. This didn't make for a very pretty cake. One layer was so torn, I had to cut both the cakes in half and make a three layer cake instead of 2. The fourth half was mangled so it got tossed. Rachel came over to visit and to have a good laugh watching me put this thing together. It was such a sight for sore eyes. I got the cake together with the layers and the cherry filling. I ended up ruining the first whipping cream so decided to use the spray on stuff I bought, which was really good. Within minutes of putting this on the cake, it turned to liquid! Oh my God! Thank-God Rach was here as she went to Tesco and bought more whipping cream for me. I finally finished the cake and even though it looked funny, it tasted pretty damn good.

Our new couch got delivered today. Yay! And we were able to get rid of the two very uncomfortable military issued blue chairs. There was just no room for our huge couch and those chairs. When I called to have the chairs picked up I asked for a cot to be delivered at the same time. Then we'd have an extra bed when everyone comes for New Years. Little did I know that a cot in the UK is a crib! Very funny! So now we have a crib. We're getting rid of the thing as soon as possible incase it's contagious! Keith and I had quite the laugh. So did Rachel as she was here when I discovered this.

Colonel Neil, the new Air Force Advisor arrived today to meet Keith and Mark and get a tour of the base. We knew weeks ago he was coming and that we had a dinner date with him and his wife tonight. Not the best way for Keith to spend his birthday. We met Doug and Kate at the Falmouth Hotel at 7:30pm. Mark and Laura couldn't come as she's on bed rest for the remaining months of her pregnancy. Keith and I weren't looking forward to this dinner, but it ended up being a great night. The Colonel and his wife are super down to earth people and it was like hanging out with friends. The food was fantastic and it was all on the Canadian governments dime. How nice! We ended up spending the entire evening with them, not arriving home until after midnight. Excellent night.

Yup, My Head Hurts!

Ooooohhhh, this is why I don't drink. We slept the entire morning away then we got up to be ambitious and actually were. Spent the day cleaning and Keith mowed the lawn and trimmed the hedges. It was surprisingly productive considering our state last night. Keith made sausage and peppers for supper - one of our favorites. Then he spent the rest of the evening preparing for tomorrow's flight.

Rugby World Cup

Happy 31st Birthday Angie!

Keith and I spent the afternoon running errands here in Helston. We didn't go far as the taxi was picking us all up at 5:15pm to go into Falmouth to watch the Rugby World Cup final game. I decided I wasn't spending this Saturday night at home, so I went too. There were 7 os us that went - Me, Keith, Holly, Andy, Mike, Ferg, and Barry. Kev and Blue also met us for a bit later on in the evening. We went to Weatherspoons pub and watched the game there. It was quite the experience as the pub was packed with ruby fans, and with England playing it was even more exciting. Unfortunately England lost to South Africa. This was my first rugby game. Wow, what a rough game!

After the game we went to a small pub called Fin McCools (I think). To finish off the night we went to Club International to dance the alcohol away. We had a great time. My head is gonna hurt tomorrow! The pink shirts are the guys' course shirts with their name and a number of the back.

Welcome Lynden Doyon!

Aimee and Kris delivered a beautiful baby boy very early this morning via C-Section as the little guy was breach. They named him Lynden Henry and he weighed 7lbs 5oz. Congratulations Pookie!

I got up and drove Keith to work for 7 this morning. When I dropped him off I figured I may as well get the grocery shopping done since there would be no crowds. When I got home I then started a steak and guinness pie for supper. I completely forgot how long a process this is. While making the pie, I got even more ambitious and made banana muffins. I finally finished it all at lunch time.

Rachel and I have been planning to do a girl's day all week. When I was finally finished being Aunt Jemima, I picked Rach up and we went to Porthleven to the Harbour Inn. What a nice restaurant/pub. We hung out there for a few hours having lunch and a drink. As we were having a girls day, Keith and Speedy went off surfing after they were finished work. After the Harbour Inn, Rach and I decided to go back to Helston. We dropped the car off here and then walked into town. We did some shopping, then went to the Seven Stars pub. It's actually not a bad bar/pub. Once the guys were done surfing they met us at the pub. By then we were feeling no pain. We had another drink with them, then we all came back here to have the steak and guinness pie for supper and watch a movie. We watched 'Scent of a Woman' as Rach and Speedy hadn't seen it before. What a great day!

Dinner with the Padre

The Canadian Detachment in London have a variety of support personnel for the military members and their families posted here. Because we are considered remote families in Cornwall - because we're so far away from the detachment, the Padre decided she would take a few days to visit the remote families. Tonight we went to Mark & Laura's (the other Canadians) for dinner with them and the Padre. It was excellent. We sat around and chatted for awhile then had a fantastic dinner. The Padre is quite the character - mostly because she's a Newfie! I had met her when we did our in clearance in April, and knew immediately she was a hoot. She also brought us down some duty free booze, which was a bonus. It was a good night and it was nice to spend some time with Mark and Laura too.

Really Long Day

Keith was at work this morning at 6:30am and I picked him up at 10pm! He ended up being on duty today and since there was night flying he had to stick around and continue duty. Poor guy.

A Bike Ride

Happy Anniversary Michelle & Ian!

What a beautiful fall day. Mike called early afternoon to see if we wanted to go for a bike ride. Sweet! I finally get to go on the bike. One of Mike's buddies is in town and he wanted to take him out to Sennan Cove. I haven't been yet so this was perfect. Once we arrived at Sennan Cove (about a 30 minute drive) we sat on the outdoor patio of the restaurant on the beach and had hot chocolate. Afterwards we headed back home. It was such a perfect day to be on the bike.

Since Chris was still in town we took him out for supper. He came to Helston to meet us and we tried out an Italian restaurant I didn't realize existed. It was really good. Chris came back here for a bit and hung out, then he was off.

St. Mawgan

This morning we decided to go to St. Mawgan's to the RAF base which has an American exchange store. As Canadians we're allowed to shop here. Which is great as they stock only American food and goods. We had a field day! And Keith tells me this store is quite small compared to others. We bought chips, Kraft Dinner, porridge, pickles, popcorn, etc. I think we ended up spending about $100 US. We'll definitely be back. Unfortunately, it will be closing next year, so we'll have to enjoy it now while we can. On our way to St. Mawgan we drove through Newquay. Newquay is famous here for its surfing. More beautiful beaches. I don't think there's any shortage of nice beaches here. Newquay is relatively large and is very surfer driven and you can tell by all the surf shops and the surfers walking down the road on the way to the beach carrying their boards.

On our way back we dropped into Truro - St. Mawgan is an hours drive from here and Truro is on the way. We checked out a few furniture stores than came back home. Keith was going out with the boys in Falmouth tonight to watch rugby. I didn't want to go so I stayed home and cleaned. What an exciting Saturday night!

Shopping!

Graham's birthday is coming up in a few weeks so I figured I should get shopping and get his gift in the mail. Mostly because there's been a few postal strikes over the past week and a few more to come over the coming weeks. I headed into Truro as I knew of a few shops I wanted to check out. I got lucky as I was able to get everything for him in one store - including a few tops for myself. Once I finished shopping I headed into to Falmouth to meet Chris. Chris flew in yesterday and is back just for the weekend. We met at Gylly's Cafe (I think that's what it's called). It's a good size restaurant that sits right on one of the beaches in Falmouth. We hung out for a bit then I headed home.

My birthday gift from Mom & Graham finally arrived today. Good 'ole postal strike! It was a variety of Cape Breton and Nova Scotia items. I called Mom as I opened it so we could enjoy it together. It was great. Keith and I spent a very lazy evening ordering Indian and watching 'A Beautiful Mind'.

Movie Night

Happy 30th Birthday Aimee!

This week has been another busy one for Keith. It looks like the coming weeks will be the same. Since they've been so busy at work and putting in long days, we haven't been able to do movie night. Today they actually got home at a decent hour so Rach and Speedy came over and we watched 'Fly Boys'. Speedy you're not going to live this bad choice down. It could have been a good movie, but it was a bit disappointing.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving! Keith and I decided a few days ago we would have a big Thanksgiving dinner. We have never cooked one as we've always been home with our families, but this year it was time to do our own. Mostly since we couldn't be home for it. We spent all day cooking the turkey and preparing the fixings. We invited Rachel, Speedy, and Dave over as we wanted to share it with friends and also to show the Brits how we celebrate Thanksgiving, as they don't have such a holiday. Dave was unable to make it due to his sleeping on the bathroom floor last night. Hehe. Rachel and Speedy came over and we had a great feast. I made apple crisp for dessert and then we sat and gabbed for awhile It was the perfect day.

Birthday Dinner

Keith and I went out tonight to celebrate my birthday. We went to Portminster Cafe in St. Ives. It had been recommended to me by the guys at work. It was fantastic. It is literally right on one of the beaches in St. Ives and has a really nice atmosphere. It is a bit pricey but it was well worth it because the food was so good. Next time we go I want to sit out on their patio. They have it set up so cozy with large heaters and a basket of blankets so you can wrap up and keep warm on cool nights while overlooking the beach and ocean. Not a bad deal!

After dinner we went to Dave's as he was having a gathering to celebrate his new place. I didn't really know anyone as it was all the guys on his course which is the course ahead of Keith's. Keith knows them all. I was quite surprised when we went in and everyone is hanging out in the livingroom and Keith stands me in front of them all and announces 'this is my wife Mandy' and then he introduces me to everyone. I'm sure I turned several shades of red. I felt so shy with all these strange people. I was expecting an individual intro to each of them not a whole announcement! Haha. We stayed there until about 1:30am and then drove a few of them home. I didn't drink. The others got a bit messy as Dave brought out 3 bottles of vodka for them to shoot during a drinking game. What a bad idea! Dave was on the bathroom floor when we left! That's what he gets!

TGIF for Keith

I had to spend the morning at home as a guy was coming to do a survey on the house & property and another was coming to fix our over. And to make things even better, Southwest Water was doing work on the water mains so the Helston residents were asked not to turn on their taps between 10am-4pm. Oh well, I was able to accomplish some things I planned for today.

Keith arrived home early at 2:30pm with Speedy. Speedy had to come in for a beer before he went home. Well deserved after the week they had. Keith and laid pretty low and relaxed for the rest of the day and evening. We cooked up a feast of nachos for supper, the Keith attempted a batch of Mushroom Soup. It also turned out pretty good. To finish off the evening we crashed on the couch and watched Die Hard on TV.

Work, Work, Work

Happy Birthday Norma!

Today the guys at work found out yesterday was my birthday so they got me a card and chocolate for everyone. It was very nice. It was such a beautiful day today, it almost felt like summer. I grabbed some lunch and sat in the park and had to peel myself away to go back to work.

Keith was in at work at 6:30pm this morning, home at 7pm and worked until 11:30pm for his flight tomorrow! And he has to be back in at the same time as has a really early brief. This week he may as well be living at the base. He has been working 10-12 hour days, with early starts every day. He is very anxious for the weekend to come.

Happy Birthday to Me!

I can't believe I turned 31 today. I would swear I just turned 29! I don't know where the last 2 years have gone but my grandmothers are right, time passes quicker as you get older. I also realized last night/today that I turn 31 4 hours sooner here than if I was home in Nova Scotia! Damn time difference is making me older quicker!

Keith's week so far has been as painful as he expected and they are inundated with loads of work again. He wasn't sure what time he'd be home tonight or if he'd even be able to pick me up a cake. I ended up being at work until 6pm instead of 5:30pm as we were preparing a tender that had to be sent tonight. It worked out really well as Keith had enough time to get to the grocery store (via Speedy), grab a cake and flowers and get home and have it all set up when I arrived. It was great! It made it all the better because I didn't think he'd be able to get anything and then when he was able to, I was so surprised and happy.

We decided not to go out tonight for dinner as it would be too rushed so he went out and picked up Indian takeout. After we ate, Rachel and Speedy came over for some cake. We actually had cake and tea. Haha. I'm so old! Well, they had tea, I had milk. It was quite funny to see the 4 of us sitting around the table eating cake and drinking tea. They brought me a card and novel, The Color Purple. It was so sweet.

I talked to most of the family and received a ton of emails and birthday wishes. A few cards have made it but the others that are on their way will be a bit delayed due to Royal Mail striking tomorrow until next Wednesday. No rush though, it'll just feel like my birthday all over again! Thanks everyone for the cards, gifts, emails, and phone calls! It was a perfect day thanks to everyone, especially Keith.

6 Month Mark

It's October! Holy cow! 6 months today since we left Canada. Guess I should stop counting the days/months now.

Work was again more enjoyable as it was busier and I was entertained for the day. Keith has another very busy week ahead of him that he's not looking forward to.

2 more days until I'm 31...YIKES!!