Back in Blogland!

Cherub bust
Hooray, hooray, hooray! My blog is working once again... a technical gremlin got into my blog system about 10 days ago and it got progressively more difficult to upload pictures and finally it just ground to a halt a few days ago. Dave has finally managed to sort it out, but I now have to do something hideously complex to put images onto my blog. Do I care at about the added complexities? ... no siree, it is great to be back in the world of chatter once again.

Thanks to Jayne over at Country Cottage Chic for letting people know that I was having difficulties and if you haven't discovered Jayne's blog yet, it is well worth a read. She is jolly creative and has loads of energy so is regularly out and about doing things.

Today has been an endless task of uploading images to the website and creating adverts for items (this is not the most interesting, fun or stimulating part of my job, but it is an essential one, so I won't moan too much) and after almost 10 hours of it, I finished for the day and am delighted to be able to blog for a little bit.

Parisienne house tidy
Last week was totally different to my usual routine, I spent two days doing local deliveries, well actually not so local, two of them were over 100 miles away, but that's almost local when you consider that the 'local' Sainsburys is 50 miles from home! Unfortunately, one was 100 miles north and the other 100 miles south, but I did get to rent a huge van to drive, which was good fun!
One of our suppliers usually delivers to us on a Thursday or Friday, but last week they arrived on Monday afternoon (which was great because we were able to get people's orders out to them earlier than usual).
A friend has hurt her back, so I helped out in her shop a little towards the tail end of last week, it was nice to be able to help her out a bit as she has always been so supportive to me.
We had friends to stay with us over the weekend and although I couldn't spend very much time with them, it was lovely to see them. But all in all, my usual gentle routine was sent to ruin, so this week I am looking forward to getting back into my usual work rhythm and domestic routine.
Country chic spongeware mug

And as usual, my tea mug is empty, so it must be time to put the kettle on, chat soon, Liz
All images and text copyright Pretty Practicals 2006 - 2008 except where stated.

Family, friends and food

Just arrived, 2 angels figurine at Pretty Practicals

It's been a busy few days, but full of fun and laughter.
On Tuesday evening I went out for a meal with my mum and my sister, her partner and a couple of friends. We went to the Rattlebone Inn in Sherston on the Wiltshire Gloucestershire border. The food was superb and we had a lovely evening. My sister was celebrating one of those significant birthdays that I won't reach for a little while longer yet and I just want to say for the record, that if I look as good as she does when I reach her age, I will be delighted. I certainly didn't look too lovely when I got into the car at ten past six the next morning to make the two and a half hour journey home, so that I could be back in the office before 9.

Dave and I have continued to make in-roads into the garden and I can see that it won't take too long to get it back into shape. I am already starting to look at some lovely ironwork for the garden, I would like a gazebo or summerhouse out there but haven't decided on which one yet. The wonderful weather of the last few days has really spurred us on to make it a beautiful place for us to relax and enjoy this summer.

Work has been really busy. I love it when things are buzzing at work, the day just flies by and I get a real sense of acheivement from seeing people's orders leaving us with the couriers. I have been selecting a range of summer garden items for Pretty Practicals and am looking forward to leisurely picnics by the lakes with the Green Rose Picnic Blanket and the Deluxe Picnic Basket Set.

I've added new items to the website and new stocks of some old favourites and Dave is still busying himself in the background creating a project I have asked him to work on... I will reveal all soon. The response to our postcard on the front of Period Living magazine has been amazing and I am methodically working my way through the hundreds (and hundreds!) of requests for more information about Pretty Practicals. So if you have requested more info, please bear with us, your catalogue on disk (for the computer) will be with you very soon.

Well, it's time for a fresh cuppa, chat soon, Liz
All images and text copyright Pretty Practicals 2007 and 2008 except where stated.

Lots to say about nothing

View of our shop 2007

Hooray ~ I have been into work today; okay so not everyone's idea of a reason to celebrate, but after so long lying around, I was overjoyed to head to my office, sort out a few bits and pieces and remind myself just how much I love my shop and my work.

I spent a couple of very pleasant hours, amongst paperwork and boxes (okay, so now I know I am starting to sound a little weird) and did a little gentle tidying. I was incapacitated when our last delivery arrived, so I enjoyed opening some boxes to check the new arrivals.

Regular visitors will know that I watch very little television, but do watch lots of DVD's of old TV series and I have managed to completely confuse myself this week. I have been watching (loads) of Buffy, 'cos I don't really need to pay attention to it, but I have watched the different seasons out of order and the episodes out of order too. It's very funny that in the mornings one character is being mourned and in the afternoon they are busy fighting monsters! Not helped by drifting in and out of sleep on a regular basis, half an episode can disappear in the blink of an eye (and a few snores). Note to self: next time I am bedbound, find something else to watch.

The following pic was sent to me by a friend, it came on an email entitled 'what our pets do when we are at work' and is pretty much how I have looked for the last couple of weeks (without the beer bottle)

With thanks to the copyright owner
If we come back a second time around, I would like to be a cat please, in particular this cat!

Cecily is coming home again on Wednesday for a few days visit ~ yippee! One of the ongoing themes of my blog is how much I miss my children now that they have both left home. I wonder if it gets any easier as time goes on... I'm not convinced it will; my mother and I talk daily (most days we speak at least 3 times!). I hope Cecily will still ring me and chat about nothing much in particular when I am almost 80.

Emma Bridgewater Polka Dot tea cup and saucer

Well, my favourite tea cup is empty once more, I'm off to persuade Dave that it must be time for a refill, chat soon, Liz
All images and text copyright Pretty Practicals 2007 and 2008 except where stated.

We have just added our name to several directories so that more people can find us, this includes
free classifieds web