Marbella

Sunday Sevens #75 19.3.17

~ Making Stitches ~ 7 Comments

This week’s Sunday Sevens begins with a look back at our Commonwealth weekend trip up the coast…

A Sunday morning walk

Making the most of our bank holiday weekend last weekend we headed out for a lovely walk on Sunday morning. It was so lovely and bright and we walked a loop from where we were staying (near Marbella), along the beach and then back inland.

Breakfast with a view of home


On Monday morning we enjoyed this gorgeous view from our breakfast table. Never before have I seen so much on the horizon from this part of the world. 

The bumps on the right hand side of the horizon are the hills and mountains between Marbella and Gibraltar. The bump on it’s own above the street lamp is Gibraltar and the one to the left of the boat mast is Morocco across the Straits of Gibraltar. 

You could also see a lot more of Morocco’s mountains but sadly they could only be seen by the naked eye and didn’t show up on my phone camera.

It was a fab end to our last minute getaway. 

Stormy weather 


My word it’s been stormy – at the beginning of the week (back in Gibraltar) we had gale force winds. Our plant pots got blown over and there were chunks of trees and debris in the road. The authorities had a big cleanup operation on Wednesday morning. 

It certainly wasn’t the kind of weather when I’d like to be out in a boat. One day I parked on the edge of the new small boat marina and it effectively takes you out into the harbour. I got an up close and personal view of some of the boats without leaving dry land.  The pilots and tugs which work in Gibraltar’s waters have a heck of a job to do.

Franks for the post

I got this locally posted envelope in our mailbox this week. I have never seen a postmark like this before. We share our home with “wild Barbary Macaque Monkeys” in case you didn’t know that…

HMS Ocean

The Navy’s largest warship called into the port of Gibraltar this week. HMS Ocean is the flagship of the Royal Navy. 

Med Steps

I’ve been too busy this week to make a trip up the Med Steps while the Little Postcards were at school, but I managed to fit a trip in yesterday afternoon. It was glorious. I even managed to spot my first sighting of Gibraltar Candytuft (one of Gibraltar’s National flowers) for this year. 

Snowflake 


Unfortunately we have lost our rescue bunny, Snowflake. She hadn’t been well for a few weeks and seemed to be making improvements but she went downhill again and she was put to sleep by the vet. We only had her with us since autumn last year, when we found her abandoned at the Alameda Gardens, but she soon became part of our family. 

If you missed the tale of how she came to live with us, you can read all about it here.

We still have little Diamond, who we got just before Christmas. He is missing his pal but is getting lots of attention and cuddles.

Sunday Sevens is a weekly blog series created by Natalie from Threads & Bobbins blog. 

Sunday Sevens #74 12.3.17

~ Making Stitches ~ 10 Comments

Hello there, I’m pressing the publish button on this edition of Sunday Sevens in Spain. It’s a bank holiday weekend in Gibraltar and we have taken the opportunity to get away for a couple of days.

Without further ado, here’s this week’s Sunday Sevens…


A first attempt at corner to corner


YouTube is a wonderful thing… I have used it to learn lots of different crafty things. My latest tutorial to watch was one on corner to corner or ‘C2C’ blankets. It was presented by Bella Coco and I can highly recommend it for clarity and being easy to follow. You can find a link to her channel here.

I decided to have a go at making a baby blanket with this new found skill, and I rather like it. It’s very addictive though – you have been warned!

A new project…

I’m trying my hand at patchwork quilting. I have made a few quite basic ones in the past, and this one will be similarly basic too. I love the look of the really intricate ones but the thought of how to make them makes my head ache. 

I had a few hours spare on Monday so I decided to set about cutting out my fabric pieces and laid out the pattern on the dining room floor. My word, it took such a long time to cut out and figure out the pattern that I only had an hour left before the school pick up. Unfortunately that’s as far as I got with it this week. I hope I can get a bit more done on this soon.

Zip’s in!

I missed my dressmaking class last week because of a poorly Little Postcard. Part way through this week’s class I received a phone call from school to go and collect another Little Postcard as he’d had a mishap. I’m pleased to report that he’s fine and was none the worse for his sporting injury by bedtime. I’m also pleased to say in my brief time at my lesson I managed to insert the invisible zip into my dress. 

A walk in the clouds 

In case you missed my post midweek, here’s another chance to see my view from the top of the Med Steps. We climbed up through the clouds to get to the summit. You can see the post I wrote about it here.

Flower making at football training 

So at football training this week I struck up a conversation with one of the other mums as I sat crocheting in the afternoon sun. She really surprised me by telling me that she had read Postcard from Gibraltar and it was one of the reasons why she’d moved here! Holy moly, I did not expect to hear that!!

It’s the weekend!


It’s a bank holiday weekend in Gibraltar this weekend. Schools are closed on Monday because it’s Commonwealth weekend (a fact I find befuddling given that it’s not celebrated in the British Isles). Anyway, we made most of it and ran away for an impromptu couple of days along the coast. 

The Little Postcards didn’t know we were going, although they did question why we were crossing the frontier into Spain straight from school. It was a gorgeous afternoon and so clear. We could see the Rock getting smaller and smaller as we drove along the coast to Marbella. 

Saturday night rock and roll


Hibiscus and strawberry gin and tonic with a side order of crochet, that’s how I roll on a Saturday night these days! Perhaps it’s my age… Did you spot the fact that I’m on my second C2C blanket already?? I warned you the are addictive!!

Thanks so much for stopping by, whatever you’re up to this weekend I hope you’re having a good one!

Sunday Sevens is a weekly blog series created by Natalie from Threads & Bobbins.

Sunday Sevens #56 6.11.16

~ Making Stitches ~ 5 Comments

Sunday seaside stroll


We started our mid-term near Puerto Banus on the Costa del Sol, I do like it there, but not for the reasons most folk do. It’s very glitzy and has very posh designer shops jostling for position along the marina quayside. The super rich clientele park their large posh cars on the waterside next to the super yachts. It’s a place for people watching and being ‘seen’. 

My favorite part though, is away from the razzmatazz. There’s a lovely promenade which follows the coast from the edge of the glitzy marina along the beach and across the Rio Verde. We’ve had many walks along here over the years with Littlest Postcard at just a few months old and on several different mid-term, Easter or Christmas breaks since.

On Sunday there was a fishing competition going on and we watched the fishermen preparing their vast array of technical equipment – who knew it was such a science? I thought a rod, line, hook and bait was all that was required!

Heatwave colours 


I’ve been waiting for the right time to begin my Weekend Bag kit I bought from the Attic 24 stall at Yarndale in September. I bought two kits, but wanted to work on this one first because I thought the colours were more suited to the autumn and winter.

Our home for the first bit of our holiday really matched the ‘heatwave’ colour scheme don’t you think?

Border Queue fun


On Tuesday we had to return to Gibraltar for a few hours before being able to continue with our holiday. Thankfully we were only an hour away and the border queue into Gibraltar was only 20 minutes or so. In the evening, though, it was a different matter. We were put into a kind of stacking system and had to wait more than 40 minutes before we could cross back into Spain.

I don’t think it was anything more than volume of traffic, but crikey I’m so glad I don’t have to do that every day! I feel sorry for those who have this to contend with on their commute to work. I’m afraid we do avoid crossing over to Spain a lot of the time because of the queue, it’s just not fun with small people in the car.

Giant chess anyone?


I ‘played’ (if that’s what you call it) chess with my Littlest Postcard on Wednesday afternoon. His rules… which meant walking around the board with a knight under his arm and basically claiming all of my pieces. I lost, needless to say. I have only played the game a handful of times but I’m pretty sure that’s not the official version….

Poolside crochet


I quite like swimming, when you are allowed to actually swim. However, these days, trips to the pool invariably end up with me being pummeled, dive bombed or used as a vehicle to transport children around the pool. Perhaps that’s my lot in life as a mother of three boys… 

I struck lucky on Thursday when Mr Postcard offered to ‘take one for the team’ and went in with the boys and let me stay on the side to crochet and observe the usual high jinks from the safety of a lounger. For the record, I did go in the pool and suffered the usual abuse on the following two days… 

I was working on my shawl from the summer after the arrival of the last ball of wool I needed to finish it…. on the final straight!

2 WIPs finished



Oh the joys of holidays and having the time to sit down and crochet! Two of my works-in-progress (WIPs) were completed on Friday. My newly started Attic 24 weekend bag and my first ever lacy shawl begun back in August during my  Summer Craft Challenge – I was waiting for the arrival of the final ball of yarn before I could complete it. Many thanks to Marisa (aka @mariwish on Instagram) for the shawl-making & pattern reading lesson and for the yarn delivery last week!

End of our holiday


Our week away began with lovely sunshine and blue skies, but ended with heavy thundery showers and even tornados a few kilometers away! There were some sunny spells though yesterday and this was one of them. The beach was pretty empty yesterday with the inclement weather but we still managed a table tennis marathon, football, basketball, chess, swimming and I ran for 4kms at the gym without stopping – go me!! I ate my dinner guilt free last night! 🙂

October 2016


Sunday Sevens is a weekly blog series created by Natalie at Threads & Bobbins blog.

Sunday Sevens #55 30.10.16

~ Making Stitches ~ 6 Comments

Remembering Trafalgar


Last Sunday saw not only the climax of the Gibraltar Literary Festival but also the annual service of remembrance for the Battle of Trafalgar. Each year, on the Sunday nearest to Trafalgar Day (21st October) the Royal Navy hold a service in the Trafalgar Cemetery. Just a few of those who lost their lives are buried here, but wreaths are laid on those graves. The service is quite a spectacle with sailors in ceremonial uniform lining the paths of the cemetery. 

Wildlife

The lovely Shazza at Sunshine & Celandines has been posting some beautiful wildlife photos on her blog throughout October. She lives in Clitheroe in Lancashire, a beautiful market town on the edge of the Trough of Bowland. The area is believed to have inspired JRR Tolkein’s Shire in the Lord of the Rings (his son was at the Stoneyhurst boarding school there and he was a regular visitor). We were lucky enough to live in Clitheroe briefly and I fell in love with the place – it’s truly beautiful.

I fancied having a go at taking some autumn wildlife photos too but circumstances have prevented me from getting out on a walk up to the top of the Rock. This stunning praying mantis was having a rest on the wall outside the Garrison Library this week though, so Shazza, this one’s for you 🙂

Dressmaking class


At last sewing has begun on my princess-line top at my dressmaking class. By the time I’d cut the fabric, made a mistake, had to get some more, and cut out the lining, I only had time for a bit of tacking on the first seam. Slowly but surely… I hope to get there eventually! 

Multi-tasking

You know those weeks when there just aren’t enough hours in the day? I’ve had one of those. The above picture was taken post hospital appointment (nothing serious just a check up) I found myself with half an hour spare so did a quick trip to Morrisons (unexpected hence the crappy plastic bags) and even had time to make some notes for something else while I waited for my lift home. I’d call that a multi-tasking win.

The wheels fell off


After the previous photo the wheels kind of fell off my week. The Littlest Postcard was struck down with the same chesty cough, bad throat, fever etc which Middle Postcard had last week. All plans went out of the window, having my poorly little companion by my side all day meant putting in a few late nights as that was the only time I had child free to concentrate. 

As a consequence, there are no photos for this part of the week. Ironing, hemming long school trousers for post mid-term winter uniform, sewing on yet more name tags and other general monotony aren’t the most inspiring things so here’s a view of Parson’s Lodge and the Bay from our place.

Sixty million trebles blanket heads to the UK


This week, I waved goodbye to my sixty million trebles blanket. My friend Marisa of Mariwish on Instagram took it back to England to be joined with lots and lots of others for a world record attempt yarnbombing in London. The yarnbombing will then be split into blankets to help charities both in the UK and Syria. Each of the sixty million treble stitches represents one of the sixty million displaced people in the world and it’s hoped that the project will help raise awareness about the plight of these people. 

Search for #sixtymilliontrebles on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to find out more about this great awareness raising project.

Hooray it’s a holiday!


And relax… thank goodness it’s mid-term! We’ve run away up the coast to escape for a little while. 

Whatever you’re up to this week, have a good one!

Sunday Sevens is a weekly blog series created by Nat at Threads & Bobbins.

Sunday Sevens #25 3.4.16

~ Making Stitches ~ 19 Comments

Sunday Sevens is a weekly blog series created by Natalie at Threads & Bobbins. It features seven photos from the past seven days, if you fancy joining in pop over to her blog to find out more.

The joys of a kids club 

And relaxxxxx! This week, we took advantage of the school holidays and drove along the Costa del Sol to just beyond Marbella for a fantastic week. We stayed close to the resort for most of our stay as it had many of the things we needed, a park, an indoor family pool, peace & quiet, easy access to the beach for walks – and best of all, a kids club. 

Most days, one or two of the little postcards decided to partake in the entertainment it had to offer for an hour or so, and twice, yes, twice all three spent an hour there AT THE SAME TIME! That mean time off for Mum & Dad – hurrah for holiday!
 

Nocturnal chess 

Also on the resort is this giant chess set, it really captured the imagination of our youngest and we had regular chess matches under the tutelage of our eldest (I haven’t got much of a clue about chess I’m afraid). The nocturnal one we played on our second evening was the most exciting for the littlest grand master.

Beach walk

 

We were blessed with beautiful weather – what better thing to do than have a leisurely stroll along the beach. It was so nice. Only one child fell into the sea (fully clothed) so I see that as a victory.

Dragon blossoms

 
Very close to where we were staying there was a beautiful tree covered in a blossom which looked like little dragons. I have never seen anything like it before – it was just beautiful and against the deep blue of the March sky, it was stunning.

A trip into the mountains   
We didn’t stay put completely at our holiday base for the whole duration of our stay. We ventured out to the shops at Marbella and on Wednesday took a drive up into the mountains to visit the beautiful town of Ronda (more on that coming soon).  It was so nice to escape to a place so totally different to what we’re used to. Long winding roads climbing up through forested areas and past rock falls, the valleys stretching out below us and huge birds of prey circling in the skies above. It reminded me a lot of holidays to the Highlands of Scotland (apart from the weather – sorry Scotland).

Crochet on the beach 

  

Ooh get me with my holiday nail polish! Well, as you can see, so far this week I have filled my cosy stripe blanket sized hole with two new projects. A rainbow coloured scarf and a magenta amigurumi dinosaur. The latter began life on the beach this week after the happy news that a friend of mine delivered her healthy baby girl this week. Will I get it done in time to give to the new arrival before she takes her driving test? Watch this space!! 🙂

Sunset on our last night…  

 
We are safely back home in Gibraltar now after our lovely Easter break away from home. We didn’t really stray that far, you can actually see Gibraltar in the picture above (which was taken from our resort). If you follow the horizon from the left of the shot, the first ‘lump’ (apologies Gibraltar) is the Rock and our home. We did give her a wave regularly to remind her we would be returning soon. And here we are, another week done, another family holiday to look back on and it’s back to school tomorrow. 

It’s a milestone for me, because our littlest postcard begins 5 days of full-time school tomorrow. So for the first time in almost 12 years, I will have five full days per week, child-free. Imagine that? I guess I’ll have to do a bit more crafting then… Until next week, have a great one! 

Review of 2015 … well half of it!

~ Making Stitches ~ 8 Comments

 

2015 was the year I took the plunge and decided to have a go at blogging. For several years I have followed blogs including Attic24, The Patchwork Heart, Bunny Mummy and  Just Pootling and I have admired the beautiful photography, their ways with words and their beautiful crafts. A couple of years ago I decided I had a long way to go before attempting my own blog but set myself the challenge of taking a photo each day and writing a bit about it. Obviously on some days (like holidays, trips out & special occasions) it’s incredibly easy to snap away and you’re spoiled for choice, on others you are forced to think hard and be a bit creative about what the daily photo might be. This turned out to be good practice for  my blog posts, especially Sunday Sevens.

  Convent Garden, Gibraltar June 2015

Since I gave up (paid) work on the arrival of my first child, I have struggled to find something to entertain my brain, I’ve dabbled in crafts & craft fairs, done a bit of voluntary work and tried and failed to get a job which can work around my main job as a Mum.   

July 2015 (Manchester, Cheshire, Berkshire)

Recently, I guess my friends have picked up on my need to stimulate my brain and a few have independently suggested I try blogging (I hadn’t told them that I had previously considered and discounted it). I guess the planets came into alignment as when the most recent suggestion was made, I thought ‘why not?’ and set off on my Postcard from Gibraltar journey. In order to protect my boys from future ridicule, I decided to keep my blog anonymous for now.

August 2015 (Algarve & Gibraltar)

And so my Postcard from Gibraltar adventure began in June, hence the review of only half a year! We are very fortunate to live in a vibrant and interesting place, so there is never a shortage of things for me to write about, I also now have an outlet to talk about my various crafty fascinations of crochet, watercolour and sewing (friends and family heave a huge sigh of relief).

  September 2015 (Gibraltar)

I have thoroughly enjoyed it so far, I am thrilled when I look back at my old posts and see photos of things we have done and seen as a family, it’s almost like an online journal or photo album (both are things I have started many times but failed to complete).

  October 2015 (Gibraltar)

I have met some really supportive and kind people through the magic of the blogosphere and found inspiration for future projects and positive criticism for my own crafty endeavours. I used to think I was just a frustrated crafter who never had the time to create the things I want. While I admit I still get a bit frustrated at times as there are so many ideas in my head of what I want to do, but looking back at the makes I have documented I can see that I do churn out quite a bit as it is!

  November 2015 (crafts) 

Away from the world of the internet, blogging has also helped me build some networks in real life here in Gibraltar. There are some very talented people residing on this great Rock and I am pleased to have met some more of them during the past six months.

  November 2015 (Gibraltar & Marbella)

I won’t ramble on any more, but will leave you with my thanks for taking the time to stop by and read my blog, I’ve had a great time with it so far and very much look forward to what 2016 holds. Happy New Year!

  December 2015 (Gibraltar)

Sunday Sevens #5 8/11/15

~ Making Stitches ~ 4 Comments

Sunday Sevens is a blog series created by Natalie at Threads and Bobbins. It’s a weekly series featuring seven photos from the past week. Here’s mine for this week: 

  

Our midterm break in Marbella started with a cracker of a storm. Oblivious to what was approaching across the skies, we ventured out for an early evening drink in the nearby poolside bar, it looked a little grey overhead. As the minutes ticked by it got more and more sultry. The first few big spots of rain came down so we moved indoors to shelter. Then it really lashed down. After about an hour, as the iPad was running low on battery and we knew our time with the boys was limited, the decision was taken to pull up our hoods and make a run for it. We ran uphill against the current of the river running downhill towards us and made it to our apartment where we stood under the cover of our balcony roof and admired the lightning show overhead. It was exhilarating and just a little bit scary.

The following day was equally sultry and damp but not quite as theatrical. 

 

So if it’s wet, there’s nothing better to do than stay indoors and crochet, right? (My Attic 24 Cosy Stripe Blanket WIP has long needed some attention, so it got plenty!)

  

Then the sun came out again, so crochet on the balcony (while smaller members of the family were entertained at the kids’ club) was just the ticket.

As the weather improved, we decided to brave the poolside bar again one evening (no waterproofs this time), of course the crochet came too! G&T? Don’t mind if I do!
  

Then the weather really made a turn for the better. Check out this sunset…
 

Ahhh I love holidays 🙂 ❤️
 
  

If you’ve had a midterm break recently I hope it’s been a good one for you. Thanks for stopping by, and thank you to everyone who’s taken the time to like or comment on my posts, it’s really lovely to hear from you. 🙂

 

An outdoorsy sort of day

~ Making Stitches ~ 4 Comments

  
Hello! I hope this finds you well and happy. We’ve been treated to a beautiful day today, the weather has really made a huge improvement after a stormy start to the week. So far this midterm holiday has meant for us (well me) quite a lot of sleeping, in a big comfy bed without the sound of traffic (specifically scooters/mopeds) buzzing past the window, reading, crocheting, eating nice food, 5 exercise classes (I’ve not been totally lazy) and generally not moving very far. Today though, we decided to change our routine slightly and managed to leave the apartment by 10am and headed off up the A7 to Fuengirola to visit the BioParc Zoo.

  
Our first and only previous visit to the zoo was about 5 years ago, back in the days when we were still a family of 4. It’s an unusual sort of a place, like a verdant oasis in the centre of a busy town. It has a relatively small footprint for what it manages to pack in, and although I’m not a huge fan of keeping animals in captivity, the organization does at least appear to look after the inmates well. 

  
We were amongst the first to arrive at our destination which meant we almost had the place to ourselves to start with. 

   
Apparently these birds look a lot like me?! I’ve been told my hair stands up like their feathers when I’m cross. 

I also bear a passing resemblance to this orangutan according to certain family members….  

Gee, thanks boys. 

The zoo has an erm ‘interesting’ history, it was once the site of a very poorly run establishment which kept it’s animals in small and cruel conditions. The BioParc now prides itself on being a much healthier place for the animals to live and teaching the public about preservation.

The highlight of the trip for all of us was seeing the gorilla. My, he was big, and he was sitting, almost waiting for for his visitors right by the window of his enclosure. He must have known we were there but he appeared to take great pleasure in not acknowledging our presence. 

   

Second favourite was probably the crocodiles, although one member of the family was convinced they weren’t real as they were as still as statues!
  

The trip was a really nice morning’s entertainment for us all, not too big but large enough to keep the boys engaged for a few hours. And I just loved the grounds, they are so lush and green!

 
After the zoo, it was high time to return to our holiday apartment, regroup and have lunch.  By the time all were fed and watered and number one son had completed his English Comprehension homework it was late afternoon, high time for a stroll along the beach…

  
So off we headed, with the plan of walking for one hour in one direction and then turning around and walking back for a hour…

   
    
    
    
    
    
  

Coooo-eeee, Gibraltar, we can seeeee youuuu!!!

  
Ahhhh, sunset!

I shall not tell you about the copious sibling arguments which erupted along our walk, nor shall I point out the fact that it took us 2 hours to cover the distance ‘normal folk’ without small people would cover in approximately a quarter of the time. I’ll just leave you with those idyllic images of a family stroll…  😉 

 

Midterm in Marbella 

~ Making Stitches ~ 6 Comments

  
This midterm holiday we decided to go away for a break and have a proper rest. Our summer holidays are generally full of visiting relatives and friends (which is great but at times exhausting) and trying to entertain three boys with very different interests in a very hot climate. As much as we look forward to the summer holidays, I am usually counting the minutes down to school starting again a week or so in. Since we moved to Gibraltar, we have regularly taken a few days to drive up the coast (the Costa del Sol) during midterm. This year we landed in a resort by the beach just outside Marbella. As you can see above, we haven’t exactly had beach weather, but we’ve still had a great time. 

 There’s been lots of sleeping, exercise (2 Zumba sessions and an Aquafit class so far – got to counteract the wine & chocolate somehow), eating, reading and crochet. It’s been bliss (between the sibling arguments which go hand in hand with family holidays).

 

This morning, while Mr Postcard played chess with our two eldest boys, I went for a walk on the beach with our youngest. It was beautiful although perhaps more North Sea or Irish Sea than Mediterranean Sea in appearance. 

 
We collected sticks and wrote in the sand…

 

Then something caught my eye – can you spot the green plastic in the sea in the photo above? ‘What a shame’ I thought at first, ‘it’s spoiled my photo’. But then I thought actually, that’s really bad it shouldn’t be in the sea in the first place. Then I took a closer look around, and there was loads more plastic. My son then found a stick for his collection and it had fishing line caught up around it.

   

Together, we managed to gather this pile of rubbish, including plastic bottle tops, lolly sticks, cellophane, netting, polystyrene and the plastic used to join drinks cans together.


This little lot was gathered from an area of approximately 1.5 square metres. 

   
Isn’t that sad? Appalling even? If we could gather that much rubbish in moments from a tiny part of the beach what else must be out there damaging the environment and killing the wildlife. I’m truly disgusted that my fellow human beings could be so careless with our environment. 

That walk on the beach this morning taught us more than just how good it is to stretch our legs and take in the sea air. It showed us just how fragile our environment is. The little pile of rubbish we collected and disposed of doesn’t even scratch the surface of the problem, but hopefully my boys will now appreciate how easy it is to damage our beautiful environment and will grow up doing their ‘bit’ to help. 

Sunday Sevens #4

~ Making Stitches ~ 2 Comments

Time flies when you’re having fun, I can’t believe this is my forth installment of the Sunday Sevens series. I have linked up with Natalie at Threads and Bobbins to let you see what I’ve been up to during the past week. There was no watercolour class to share this week and my dressmaking class didn’t offer up any exciting photos so I’m craft free this week in Sunday Sevens.

1 Let’s go fly a kite

Last Sunday, we all jumped into the car and headed off up the coast to just outside Estepona. We had a great family day out visiting my brother and his fiancée who had just flown over to stay for a long weekend with her family at a beautiful villa right on the seafront. My boys absolutely loved playing in the huge garden there, and spent most of the day tearing around the enormous lawn. Although the weather wasn’t perfect, it didn’t dampen our spirits, the windy conditions were perfect for kite flying. We were also able to handover the frog & fox hats I’d been working on for a few weeks.

2 More rain!

The wet, autumnal weather of the last few weeks has continued here in Gibraltar. Thankfully it hasn’t been as wet as it was last week and the landslide I mentioned in my rainy weather post has been cleared up and the road reopened thanks to some frantic work. The rain brought this little chap out and was a focus of much attention on the school run by my own little bug hunter. He was fascinated by the snail, and we had to look out for him each day to see if he was still there, sadly he has moved on…

3 Lunch with a view 

I went for lunch with my parents to the Eroski supermarket café one day this week and had front row seats for the activities going on at the airport. We sat out on the roof of the supermarket and watched the comings and goings. This photo shows the EasyJet to Gatwick taking off and for those of you not familiar with Gibraltar and it’s unique airport arrangements, it also illustrates how the main road from the Rock to the border with Spain bisects the airport runway. The traffic is brought to a standstill with traffic lights and barriers each time a plane needs to take off or land. Well, almost each time, my in-laws were once on a plane which was forced to pull up at the last minute and take a brief detour as the pilot saw traffic still on the runway as he was coming in to land! That, thankfully, is a very rare occurrence.

4 Sunset at the marina

One evening this week, I found myself walking through Queensway Quay marina at sunset. It was really lovely and I couldn’t resist taking a photo.

5 Ocean Village Marina 

Another of Gibraltar’s marinas is Ocean Village, it’s the largest and busiest. I walked through on my mission to buy some more school uniform ready for the soon to come winter weather and thought it looked glorious in the afternoon sunshine.

6 Street art

This beautiful wooden sculpture appeared outside a frame shop in Gibraltar this week. The shop is called Face Frames, so it perfectly illustrates the name don’t you think? How refreshing to see something so beautiful to advertise a shop instead of the usual neon or plastic signage. It sits right at the end of a road off Main Street and has instantly become a landmark, dominating the end of the street. I love it!

6 Hallowe’en

Now, if you read my previous post Trick or Treat? Hallowe’en – bah Humbug!, you might find this photo a surprise. I am not quite the old misery I perhaps made out, so when my boys asked if we could carve a pumpkin, I couldn’t say no. Here’s our very simple effort. With more time I would have liked to make a more intricate carving but time didn’t allow. (The face was designed by my 8 year old, he wanted a cheeky face, not a scary one :-)).

7 Midterm getaway

  

It’s midterm in Gibraltar now, school broke up on Friday. We decided to go away for a few days so yesterday we reluctantly said goodbye to my parents who have been here for the last couple of weeks, we packed up the car and drove a short distance along the Costa del Sol to just outside Marbella.  This magnificent palm tree is right outside our home for the next few days. 

I believe strong winds and rain are lashing Gibraltar this morning, luckily for us the bad weather hasn’t followed us here. 
Have a great week all of you.