Busy Lives

This last month has been really hectic ..... busy busy busy ..... various events have happened that have kept me away from the blog .... yes ... I have neglected it.


Yet in hindsight, the busy, eventful periods of life are those when I really SHOULD be blogging .....It's a little like a diary ... a record of what's happening in our lives, but when we are really busy we don't have the time to record it .... although these events remain happy memories ...


Such as... the beautiful birth of my granddaughter. It was emotional and great to have another grandchild, and a granddaughter too! There is so much I could blog about that - but all very similar to when Kovu was born and full of the joy that a new baby brings to a family.


There has been the European Football - that we have all been glued to the seats with (and off the seats when we would score a goal !!)


Then the "Usuals" .... earlier on in June was Father's Day - we popped to see my Dad, Mark's Dad and went to the cemetery. This weekend has been the annual Family Party - a tradition held in honour originally for my Gran - all the family joined together for her 80th birthday over 20 years ago. Initially this was held at a local pub that had a large garden....... 60 + Chandler family members gathered together to wish her a happy birthday and, as we all enjoyed it so much, we carried this on, getting together every year to celebrate with her.


After her death we decided to continue meeting up once a year to keep in touch - as members of the family are scattered all over UK (and some abroad too!)


In 2006 (I think) the pub had a disaster ..... a fire started and engulfed much of the building just a couple of weeks prior to the party. As an emergency, and as everyone was already coming to Bedford, Mum suggested (or rather volunteered) our garden, and home made buffet food etc. This worked so well that since then, the party has been held here and has been just brilliant ! It takes a day or 2 for me to prepare, more than that for Mum and Dad to get the drinks and food sorted, a small committed group of lads (plus my sister-in-law and I) to set up a party tent and a couple of gazebos (yes ..... thankfully my garden IS that big) and then a day to recover and tidy up ...... although most people that come do alleviate the burden by getting the washing up out of the way ! As always, despite the rain, we all had a great time!


Of course another get together is one that I MUST dedicate a whole blog to soon ..... my Granada gang ...... friends who have been there through tick and thin ........ almost 30 years ........ and who, when we were all a lot younger, we would get together at weekends and party !!


Then, as a group, and individually, they held me up after Mark died. 


Mark died on a Wednesday, so they started meeting up at mine every Wednesday to help me through the initial and toughest patch. Then it became once a month, varying the venue and being with others in the group as they needed support with different transitions in their lives. Now although we only get together 2 or 3 times a year,we do keep in touch through the magic of facebook and emails.


I will never be able to thank them enough for their friendship and all the memories we share together but will just continue to enjoy their friendship, even though we don't meet as frequently as before ......because of our busy lives !