Picture attached of fave auntie Hilary opening one of her Christmas presents on Sunday. I travelled down to Swansea to see her and it was great to catch up. As I left, she gave me a precious gift - her home made mince pies (with home made mincemeat) and some of her homemade sausage rolls. She makes these with sausagemeat from her butcher, who makes it himself, and the quality is excellent. Andrew and I usually end up fighting over them!

A quick praise for the local GP surgery. I decided to register, as I needed to renew a prescription. To my amazement, the surgery has a clear, helpful well laid out website. When I got there, the building was clean, bright and welcoming with smiling,helpful receptionists. They have an open surgery system. After completing my forms, I saw a GP and was out in minutes. Wow! No fuss, no bother, no grumpy dragons on reception, no phoning for hours to get an appointment three weeks next Tuesday - just wow. Why can't this be the norm? Anyway, it just adds to the growing list of reasons of why I'm glad we moved to the country.

Afterwards, we popped into Hay and Brecon Farmers (rapidly becoming my favourite store) for some supplies. Picked up some dog kibble, and industrial sized bottles of fabric conditioner and washing tablets at ludicrously low prices. Andrew got himself a new pair of boots, and again commented on how cheap they were. Anyway, got to the checkout, paid and the guy cheerfully picked up some of the boxes and carried them out to the car for us, without being asked. Would this happen in Cardiff? I think not. So, reason no. 73 joins the list.

Have been pottering in the kitchen this afternoon as Andrew's parents arrive tomorrow for a new year stay. Have made some roasted vegetable soup for lunch tomorrow and played around with a bread recipe, that involves greek yoghurt, maple syrup, oats and pumpkin seeds. Watch this space to see how it turns out. I love experimenting with different mixes of flours and recipes. Andrew has also been making a lamb and date tagine for tomorrow evening, so the kitchen smelled wonderful. While we were cooking, two happily hopeful hounds were perched by the kitchen door with that expectant look on their faces.... aaah.

Gosh, it's already Saturday. I hope you all had a wonderful, peaceful Christmas, as did we. Thanks to all for the bumper array of cards this year. Christmas Day passed quietly and happily for us. The woofs have been enjoying the turkey, and Andrew has boiled up the carcass to make large quantities of stock, which is now in the freezer, ready to enrich our risottoes in the months ahead. Boxing Day passed quietly too, with nibbles and books to read. Went down the Cardiff house today. The journey this morning was enriched by the spectacular views through the Brecon Beacons. Frosted tops on the peaks, frozen waterfalls and low winter sunlight that blazed over the hills. Gorgeous. On the way back, we were horrified by the traffic queues that had built up around the Cyfartha Retail Park in Merthyr. Fortunately we were heading north so were able to sail past the long miserable queues. What kind of lunatic would want to go shopping so soon after Christmas? On the way back we listened to the CD by the Killers, that I bought for Andrew for Christmas. Really great.

I must say I love these days between Christmas and the New Year. There is an agreeable sense of all normal rules being suspended, with time for pottering, and meals at odd hours, and visits to relatives, and new books to read. In our family home, it was always like this, with long daytime walks with dogs, and evenings spent in front of the fire with books to read and glasses of enjoyable drinks, and a pleasant absence of clockwatching. So much of our normal life is governed by time - appointments, routine, a sense of rush and busyness - it is a precious gift to enjoy a few days that are pleasantly without these, especially as the run up to Christmas is a time which is always busy if not frantic. I like the sense of relaxed companionship with Andrew, with the dogs snoozing gently. As I write this, Booty is napping behind me, her legs stretched out contentedly and Andy is on the sofa with Andrew.

I attach some festive photographs. Tomorrow I am travelling down to Swansea to visit favourite auntie and possibly to visit friend Liz on the way back. Finally, I must say that I loved the new Wallace and Gromit film and Doctor Who was great.

It's Christmas Eve!! We are all excited and hope you are too. Andrew went to work this morning, so I got busy doing lots of last minute cleaning and tidying, so the bungalow looks nice (well, as good as it ever will, with the hideous decor). Listened to lots of cheesy Christmas music as I worked. Andrew came home lunchtime, and went for a run. He did an experiment by taking Andy with him for the first two miles, slinging him back in the house before continuing on his way. Andy was panting when he returned, but seemed very happy. Appears to be a successful experiment. Listened to 9 lessons and carols from Kings on the radio, and the turkey is now cooking happily, smelling wonderful. When we last went down to Cardiff, I cut huge bunches of fresh herbs from the garden, and have stored them in the fridge. Some of the rosemary and sage has gone in the bird.

Now I'm drinking a glass of gin, and will be having a few nibbles in a bit, followed by some linguine with lobster. We will be following tradition and watching Muppet Christmas Carol (and singing along, badly) later on, with a glass of champagne. So, wherever you are and however many greyhounds you are blessed with, may you and your loved ones have a happy, peaceful Christmas, filled with joy. I'd also like to thank all those readers who have taken the trouble to pass on their Christmas wishes - it's appreciated very much.

Now the difficulty will be tonight - somehow it's impossible to get to sleep on Christmas Eve.

An exciting start to the morning. Readers may recall my success a little while back with my cranberry buns - made with a Chelsea bun dough and a filling of fresh cranberries and pecans. Inspired by these, I made some more CBD this morning (bless my little breadmaker) and have just filled it with home-made mincemeat, recently given to us by Penny, a greyhound friend. The buns are now in the oven, smelling gorgeous as they bake. When they are cooled I will ice them, and they'll then be ready to eat. Andrew won't like them, as he is not a mincemeat fan, so I will make him some festive cake tomorrow before he comes home from work. Probably a sponge, with a buttercream icing. While I was just sorting out the buns, the doorbell rang and I went and signed for a mystery case of wine. Earlier, the bell went while I was in the shower, but fortunately the courier was able to leave the parcel on the doorstep. I had ordered a pair of pyjamas in the Lands End sale (you definately need them on these cold nights up here) and treated myself to a fleece top - bright red with snowflakes. This is no time for taste and restraint.

Just been listening to Womans Hour, featuring the wonderful Mary Berry, queen of Aga cooking and cake baking. I bought one of her cake books years ago, via the Book People in work, and it was a fantastic investment. The book has become more and more splodged, splattered and flour-dusted - always the sign of a well-used and loved cookbook. Her recipes are simple, reliable (unlike some celebrity chefs I could name!) and clear. Over the years, I have had great success with her traybakes, her sponges and she even provided the recipe for our wedding cake - a wonderful chocolate confection. Now it's time to brave the threatening pile of ironing - I could swear I just saw movement in there!

My thanks to Jan for the pointer to some festive blog layouts. What a great idea. Took Andrew to work this morning and stopped by the butcher on the way back to pick up the turkey. How exciting. What was also good is that instead of wrestling with a big bird in a carrier bag or a parcel, they gave it to me in a large, sturdy cardboard holder with handles, a bit like the bottle holders you get from the supermarket. Also collected the Christmas edition of the Radio Times. Like many people this is the only time I buy it, and it seems as much a part of the festive season as sprouts and the tree. Had a look at it, and so far the obvious must sees are Wallace and Gromit (hoorah!) in their new adventure as well as a re-run of Curse of The Were-rabbit. Also of course Doctor Who. Otherwise, not a huge amount that is grabbing me, except of course the season finale of CSI Miami tomorrow night, featuring what the RT amusingly calls the Sunglasses of Justice on H. It really is the most stylish year-round pantomime - gloriously over the top. I msut admit the current season has some very whizbang computer things that I yearn for and I'm not normally much of a gadget queen. So,unless the house is burning down tomorrow night I will be glued to the sofa and not answering the phone to anyone.

Yesterday, we went down to see Aunty Floss, my much loved great-aunt. When I was little,we'd usually go and see her on Christmas Eve and I have particular memories of this being the first time we would be allowed to eat Christmas cake during the holidays. Aunty Floss is a great baker and slicing into a huge, rich fruit cake with royal icing on it, served on delicate china plates would be the curtain raiser, so to speak, on the feasting to come. Although my mother would make and ice her own cake, this would not be cut into until at least the afternoon of Christmas Day, and would usually sit on top of the piano in the dining room tempting me and my brother before that. Anyway, this year we were sandwiched in between her hectic round of engagements, with a pantomime the day before in Pontardawe and another visitor expected after we left her in the afternoon. She's then off on a fortnight's holiday in sunny Porthcawl. What I can't get over is the way that she describes the holiday hotel she goes to, which is full of senior citizens, all of whom seem to be busy dating and flirting. The last time she went a gentleman caller to one of her friends came unstuck, as another of his squeezes (unknown to him) was also staying at the hotel and a tricky situation ensued. It actually sounds very much like being back at school. What also made me nearly choke on my lunch was when she was describing another friend (aged 88) who announced to the man on their first date "I'm not ready for sex yet" and apparently this drove him away. So, all in all, it was fabulous to see her. As we drove back up the A40, it seemed incredibly Christmassy somehow. The afternoon was damp and misty, and just occasionally you'd see glowing yellow lights from farms and houses as we drove through the countryside, all browns and purples in the low light. It just made you think of woodsmoke and fires and comforting pots of tea. Lovely.

This week has flown by. Time is definately elastic. Christmas preparations are now virtually complete. This year, we've decided to brine the turkey before cooking it, a la Nigella, so I'm collecting the bird on Monday from the butcher and then dunking it into a bucket full of good things before roasting it on Christmas Eve. Always tricky to do a big meal in an oven that you don't feel completely bonded with - and I LOATHE the blasted hob, which is one of those funny solid ones, that doesn't glow, takes forever to heat up, and even more eternity to cool down. Grrr. Can't wait till we get our own house up here. Anyway, the stove will not prevent a goodly range of delicious festive baking. Yesterday we went to the farmer's market, and stocked up on a range of goodies, mainly meat, eggs and vegetables. Delicious free range pork and local Welsh Black beef, handmade sausages and crisp green leeks - what could be nicer?

The bungalow is looking quite festive with a range of lights, pretty candles, lots of cards and various decorations. Sadly, there's simply no room for a tree - this is the first Christmas I've EVER not had a tree, and it seems really odd. I miss that gorgeous smell, the resiny feel of the needles, the satisfaction of decorating it with baubles that each have their own history. For instance, I still have some I bought on a pre-Christmas trip to Brittany in the winter of 1991, and some others which are even older and go back to my living in Swansea in a flat in Mt. Pleasant.

It's been a while since I included any gratuitous shots of the dogs - so pray indulge me. Sensitive viewers should immediately go elsewhere......

As I write this, there are seven long tailed tits on the bird feeder in front of the window, munching seeds with a small gang of blue tits waiting for their opportunity to move in. Great.

Lots to say. Important news first. Went down to Cardiff last night and stayed at the house, in preparation for my annual oncology checkup this morning, the most important day of the year. Difficult to describe the range of emotions, especially as Jonathan's blog (see sidebar) had been much on my mind recently with different aspects of cancer. The checkup incurs a range of feelings, from straightforward terror ranging to anticipation, eagerness and even a kind of resignation at some points. Anyway, as usual, I slept appallingly last night - this always happens in the run up to the date - although I did have the excuse that Booty had jumped on my bunk and had nailed down the duvet, ensuring a draught about my extremities. As always, I choose the earliest available appointment in the morning - partly cos I want to get it over with, and partly to avoid delays due to late running. Anyway, I turned up on time (I have never been late for a medical appt in my life) and the waiting room filled and filled and filled with more and more anxious women. The tension was palpable. Nobody comes to an oncology clinic without good reason and we all looked more and more miserable. No doctors for three quarters of an hour, then they began seeing people. Ho hum. What's particularly miserable also is that you have to access the clinic via the antenatal services - everywhere you look there are hugely pregnant women, shops selling balloons, posters about baby care and midwives and then there's us - there's not even a sign to the clinic, almost as though they want to keep us quiet. The award for sensitivity should go to the person who planned the layout. Anyway, as usual, once you get into the clinic, the staff are wonderful - so warm, so reassuring and very helpful. When my time came, met with a very young doctor, who hadn't yet got the physical skills of some of her colleagues (both nursing and medical) but was very thorough. Back in a year, all being well, when I will, if all appendages remain tightly crossed, then "graduate" from oncology checkups and return to "normality", although in the privileged position of being able to ring the clinic for an emergency appointment if I ever notice symptoms. This has been drilled into us repeatedly, but once one of the doctors explained that not everyone who notices symptoms comes in even though they have a good idea of what they mean - especially because, I guess. The thought of going through it a second time may just be too much for some people - I used to be very gung-ho about it, but over time I have become much more understanding of this position.

After we came out, I felt the usual mixture of emotions; elation, relief, exhaustion and a combination of wanting to burst into tears and do star jumps round the car park. Instead I waddled across to the car, found my phone and began texting the good news to the usual suspects. Back to the house, via a sustaining and completely unhealthy breakfast at Greggs (which I shared with the woofs) and then a parting of marital ways as I disappeared for a dental hygienist appt and Andrew met the first of the scheduled estate agents. When I returned, all agents had been seen, and we went over to Culverhouse Cross to do a quick canter round Markles and Sparkles food hall for some Christmas goodies, some for freezer. Also took the opportunity to stock up on knickers and socks - in this respect, I am an entirely typical British woman. Then back to the house again, loaded up the car and thence to vet for Booty's repeat prescription for her Previcox and another look at her eye, as she appears to have scraped it on one of her squirrel chasing missions. Vet has issued eyedrops and a selection of festive dog chews. Then finally back to the A470 and the long journey north to our new home. As we drove, the most beautiful stars were visible - lovely. Now just about to catch up with last night's CSI Miami and then it will be time for bed - I am so exhausted that I will sleep like a log tonight.

We think we've selected an agent so we just need to sort out the stupid bleepety bleep HIP issue and then the house should be on the market just after Christmas.

Finally, this is the 201st blog post - 200 posts seems like quite a milestone. I'd love to hear what your favourite post is and what you like about the blog. Do you want to see more photos? Do you like the way all the craft stuff has been hived off to Silver nutmeg? Would you like to see more whizbang features, with feeds, links etc? Tell me your thoughts.

Update on the pudding. Well, it looked good to start with. When you put the spoon in, there was a golden and yummy coconut crust (that bit worked) then underneath was a moist, sweet custard, rather like the stuff you have in bread and butter pudding, with that slightly jelly-like consistency. No sign of any crust layer on the bottom. I ate a bowlful after our pasta and was slightly bemused - edible, but definately not one I think I'll repeat in a hurry. Andrew was completely put off by the look of the custard, even though he loves things with coconut. The finale of this tale is that while I was hoovering this morning, a certain well known greyhound who will remain nameless got into the utility room and decided to help themselves to the remainder of the pudding. At least somebody liked it. Now just off to make some cous-cous for when Andrew returns from running club later. It is bitterly cold out there tonight, but the full moon looks wonderful.

A busy weekend. On Saturday, Penny and I were volunteering on a GRW stall down in Pontardawe, at their Winter Festival, organised by the Round Table. We heard about it through Arena Pontardawe, with whom we partner for the May dog show and fun day. The lady who organises it is lovely, and one of those Renaissance women who just take your breath away. She is a very accomplished professional artist, and also a well known teacher. As well, she is passionate about horses, in particular those beautiful Spanish Andalucian ones, and she has some which she trains, rides and schools, not for the faint hearted, as they are very high spirited. On top of that, she is active in a number of Welsh equestrian organisations, which is how Penny got to know her, and now she's involved in the Arena project. You can see more about it at their website at www.arenapontardawe.com Just to make me feel even more inadequate, she's gorgeously glamourous and blonde, and also incredibly nice.

Anyway, there we were on our little stall but of course we had to get there first. This meant leaving home at around 7.15, driving down to Glynneath to meet another Greyhound person to pick up some merchandise and doing a handover in the McDonalds car park. When we got there, to our amazement, it was heaving with people and police as the Welsh Rally was passing through, and every rally fan in the land seemed to be in the car park having a coffee. Then down to Pontardawe via the Heads of the Valleys road, which was looking magnificently wintry. When we left home, it was -8, and down in tropical Ponty it was a balmy 10 C. Set up the stall with Andrew, as Penny was still doing morning stables. Andrew then left me to it, drove all the way up to Cardiff to visit the house, did some Christmas shopping in Cardiff, got some groceries and then drove all the way back to Ponty to pick me up. He thinks he did about 200 miles in total. What a star. So it was then back home, watching the car temp gauge fall steadily as we climbed higher and higher, till back home we were back down to -2 on arrival.

Sunday we spent very quietly as we were both tired, as were the dogs. Andrew decided to put up some Christmas lights, and they look wonderful. I like the house to be visible from space at this time of year, none of that mimsy tasteful nonsense for me. I'm busy with a variety of Christmas crafty things at the moment, mainly cross-stitch. Watched Dawn on QVC this afternoon, my regular Tuesday afternoon treat, and picked up Andrew around 5.

One of the things I bought at the fair was a little cook book put together by the ladies of St Peters Church, and today I have been trying out a couple of the recipes. One was for a chocolate fudge made with cream cheese, and the other was the reason I bought the book, a dish called Impossible Pie! With a challenge like that who could resist? I've just taken it out of the oven, and it looks puffed and golden with a coconut crust, so we'll be eating it later and I'll report back. What made the recipe slightly harder was the quantities were given in cups, which is how most American recipes are, so I needed to do some conversions as I prepped it. Andrew has just returned from his run, so now it's time for our pasta and spinach with pine nuts.

We've had our first snow, and the weather is still freezing. Most of the back garden and a lot of the front is frozen solid, with frost that does not disappear during the day. When Andrew was driving to work yesterday, the temperature was -6. Brrrr. This morning, Carwyn the postman was saying we are due to get more bad weather at the end of the week.

My plans have been disrupted somewhat. For some weeks, I've been struggling with a very painful problem in my right foot/heel. I even stopped walking the woofs with Andrew for a while. It was starting to get a lot better, and in my impatience, we went for a lovely walk on Sunday (as reported in previous post). Anyway, Monday was payback time, and I was in agony. My plans to go to the Winter Fair were scuppered, especially as outside was like a skating rink. Fortunately, had my first appointment today with the physiotherapist. After a great deal of stretching, prodding, squeezing, bending and extensive note-taking, it appears I have plantar fasciitis. Nothing uncommon about it, nothing exciting. Anyway, we've got a multi-pronged plan of attack with exercises, stretches, ice, heel inserts and a rethink on shoes/boots. Also, I'm banned from dog walking for three weeks. Top marks to the physio for being very professional, reassuring and able to answer all my questions. The trouble with being a cancer patient is that you have to get into the habit of asking lots of questions, and that hasn't left me. More excitingly, his partner is also a keen cross-stitcher and knitter, and regularly takes part in a local Stitch and Bitch session over in Hay-on-Wye. Hopeful that we can get together at some point.

Card requests are coming in, more of a trickle than a flood at the moment - don't forget, if you'd like one, please email me, especially if you are overseas.

Another very cold weekend. Yesterday was cold and foggy. We went over to Erwood where there is a craft centre to scope out some possible Christmas presents, but were not successful. Took a rather meandering route home which was beautiful and wild, with the hedges still thick with hoarfrost, looking quite spooky in the mist.

This morning, we went over to the Elan Valley through Newbridge-on-Wye, in a bitterly cold but sparkling morning. Walked alongside Caban Coch Reservoir, which we seemed to have to ourselves, apart from a lone mountain biker who was incredibly wearing shorts!! We were wrapped up in fleeces, hats, scarves and vests. Saw some gorse in bloom and was reminded of the saying "Kissing's in season when gorse is in bloom", and suited the action to the word. Got back to the car and ambled home. Saw icicles and red kites. Up here of course it is their stronghold, and I am already getting used to seeing them as a normal part of the bird life. I attach some photos of the walk - I think they make the move to mid Wales self-explanatory. Out very shortly to a matinee performance of Brideshead Revisited. It hasn't had the best reviews but will be interesting to see what they've done with it.

Off to Brecon this morning with Andrew, who had to travel there for work. Took the opportunity to do a quick shop in Morrisons - to stock up on things like buttermilk and coffee. While Andrew was in his meeting I had a waddle round. Brecon is a nice town. What makes a delightful change from Cardiff is the ludicrously low parking charges - £1 for two hours - hurrah. Visited the post office, which for some reason was hidden inside the local Co-op. Of course, Thursday is pensions day, so it was a long queue full of elderly people. Anyway, I posted a parcel and got some Christmas stamps. Also visited a local butcher where I got some duck breasts, some diced lamb (which I'll do in a Moroccan style with some couscous) and some enormous bones for the woofs. They've been contentedly munching all afternoon, although sadly eating bones has terrible consequences in that it leads to severe flatulence for some reason. Andrew, sensibly will be running tonight so should avoid the worst of it. Just been fiddling about on Facebook and now off to do some chopping for a stir-fry later when Andrew returns from his run.

DON'T FORGET THE FREE CHRISTMAS CARD OFFER - JUST EMAIL ME.

I've written before about the Stat Counter on the blog, and its many amazing features, especially if you have any form of anoraky tendancies (which I do). One of the fascinating tools is a global map which tells you in some detail the locations of my readers. Shown above is the table for the past week, and I love the variety of countries represented. Who would guess someone from the Republic of Korea would be reading my blog? Anyway a warm welcome to you all. As we're coming up to Christmas, here's a thought.

If you're one of my readers, send me an email with your address, and I'll send you a home-made Christmas card. My other blog over at http://silvernutmeg.blogspot.com/ is where I tend to showcase crafty bits, so unless you pop in over there, you might not know I enjoy card-making, as well as fiddling about with a whole plethora of other crafty bits. If you live outside the UK, then get those emails in fast so I can post in good time. My email address is silvernutmeg@btinternet.com . Right, let the card-fest begin.....

The weather has turned very cold here. There was frost in the garden this morning which I tried to photograph at about 9. I also attach a photo of our anniversary gnome. He is photo-voltaic, so his hat and lantern glow automatically when it gets dark. I like knowing he is out there. Also out there are many, many squirrels, masses of long tailed tits and a squadron of blue and coal tits. Our robin is also usually hopping around. At the front, the heron frequently glides past. The owl is audible most evenings and early mornings. The bird food we are putting out (both fat balls and peanuts) is essential now and it's good to see it being tackled with so much enthusiasm.

I've begun Christmas shopping, mostly throught the internet, which is proving less tiring than tramping round shops. I did a lot of present wrapping on Sunday afternoon while Andrew was out for a run, and was assisted/hampered (depending on your point of view) by a greyhound who was determined to sniff and if possible nibble everything to ensure it was wrapped securely. Eventually, we had to have words. His perspective (which does have some merit, admittedly) is that if a parcel can withstand him, it will be safe in the hands of the Post Office.

To be fair, our regular postie is lovely - really cheerful and friendly, reliable as clockwork and doesn't seem fazed by the woofs at all. Now just about to go and enjoy some CSI action - last week was a vintage episode of Horatio machismo - a classic.

The weekend. On Thursday night, Andrew went to his first meet of the local running club. A successful six miler, and he reported a really friendly, welcoming bunch. So much so that they invited us to their social evening at the Greyhound on Saturday night. Nice to be able to walk there and meet a good bunch of friendly people. The organiser came over for a chat and she and Andrew were talking about preferred length of run. Very casually, she said she liked doing marathons, and had recently done the Snowdon one, at which her eyes lit up, and she enthused over it, mentioning there were a "few" hills. Hmmm. We are not worthy. I was awestruck. Rather like the film "Local Hero" it also turns out that half the running club wear a variety of different local hats. One works at the estate agent we rented the bungalow from, another sells us our morning paper and my cross stitch magazine, the list goes on.

Sunday was a long day as it was the AGM for GRW. We got up early, fast walk with woofs, then into the car and down to Cardiff house. Sorted out post that had arrived, including some nice ATCs for me and woofs had a good sniff. Picked up friend Paula and then trundled up to Ponty for the AGM at the Commercial Hotel. Last year, it was freezing, so I wrapped up warm, but this year they actually had the heating on, hurrah! Good turn out and great to see lots of lovely hounds. Sadly the guest speaker wasn't able to attend at the last minute. Felt very emotional seeing Sandra stand down as Chair, although Penny is lovely and I'm sure she will do a good job. It was my first public outing for my reading glasses - I'm still mastering the art of peering over them so i can see anything more than two foot away! After the AGM, we held an Exec meeting, and then we travelled back down to Cardiff. Woofs delighted to see us, loaded them in the car, and then back up here. Roads quiet and empty and beautiful views of mountains at dusk on the way back up. Andrew had been super-organised on Saturday and had pre-cooked a beef casserole with Pumpkin Ale, so he reheated that and did some potato boulangere while I had a large gin and looked at the paper, being exhausted after all the travelling and the AGM. Early night and a very quiet day - I must admit I actually nodded off while doing the crossword. Now made an attempt at the minutes, and will hopefully complete by tomorrow. The heron was on the river this morning, opposite the window, fishing - I really enjoyed watching him for a while.

Well, I found the camera, and tried to upload the photos, then the battery was flat! So after charging here we are. A few pics of the move attached and one of the dogs making themselves at home on the sofa.

A busy weekend, with appalling weather on Sunday, including torrential rain and an impressive thunderstorm. Saturday was our 11th wedding anniversary. We exchanged cards, and Andrew bought me a cyclamen and a garden gnome with an illuminated lantern. He's now sitting very proudly under the bird table in the back garden.

On Saturday evening, we visited our nearest cinema at Wyeside Arts Centre to see the new James Bond movie, Quantum of Solace. It's a tiny, friendly little place, with the civilised habit of allowing customers to take drinks from the bar into the screening, so Andrew enjoyed a pint of Guinness while watching the film. Because it's so small, nearly everyone in the audience seemed to know each other - they even had the old custom of selling icecream at the front during the interval before the big film. What to say about the film? Clearly the influence of the Bourne films has been felt - there's a rather frenetic quality about it. Daniel Craig is excellent, and very fit in both senses of the word. Judi Dench is glorious as M, and their dialogue really crackles - much more sparky and engaging than his dialogue with the rather wooden female eyecandy who appears on the posters. A smaller role for another British actress is a little better - not only does she get to shag Daniel Craig (well, it'd be rude not to) but he then supplies her with a party dress - my kind of guy. I'd read about the Prada dress in question and although it was attractive, it didn't have the "Wow" factor i'd hoped for.

Afterwards, we came home for an Indian takeaway . On Sunday, we decided to do a supermarket run over to Hereford. The Tesco there is awful - one of the most soul destroying shops I can remember. It was freezing cold, dark and gloomy and crowded with other miserable shoppers. Although we can buy our fresh meat, fish, veg, eggs and cheese here, we'll still need to do some sort of supermarket sweep for stuff like baked beans. We may need to think about either Merthyr or Brecon.

We've put up the bird food in the back garden, and we have a great range of birds here. There are masses of long tailed tits, blue tits and coal tits, as well as our friendly resident robin. We've seen a heron on the river, heard an owl this morning when we took the dogs out in the dark and yesterday I saw a bullfinch in the trees at the end of the garden. As I'm writing this, one of the local squirrels is hurtling around the garden. Attempted photo attached - I need to think about and practice taking shots of birds through glass.

Well, a busy few days. BT turned off our broadband at the Cardiff house much sooner than we expected. Apologies for the gap in service. Anyway, on the 30th fave auntie came up from Swansea. Went to our annual craft-fest at the CIA on the Friday, and made the effort to get there early. Definately better as we could get round very well. Both bought lots of wonderful goodies - very happy with our spoils. Then home to the woofs and a relaxing afternoon on the sofa, examining our booty with glee. Chinese and a bottle of wine in the evening. Fab. Saturday we took Hil to Ikea - as usual, a good opportunity to stock up. Bought some candles and wrapping paper, and an extra fleece for the woofs. Hil returned to Swansea late on Saturday afternoon.

After that, the great pack began. Move went on Tuesday as moves always do, and even though it is now Friday, am still slightly out of kilter and will probably take a few more days to get properly settled. The dogs were clearly disturbed by the move and have been quite clingy but also very good. They are now settling in slowly too.

So, our new home. What to say? It is smaller and colder than Cardiff. On the way up here, we were impressed by the number of hills that already had snow on them. Outside flows the river and yesterday morning there was a man fly-fishing opposite the house for ages. Around us is beautiful countryside, although we are outside the boundaries of the National Park. From the bungalow windows, I can see the steeply sided valley, covered in trees and a field of sheep.

So far, we've been focused on the house and packing and cleaning. But by this morning, we were ready to get some supplies. There's a few market stalls on Friday morning, so we were able to get fresh fruit and veg there. Also found a fresh fish caravan, where we bought some lovely bream fillets that we had this evening, cooked with thyme and garlic, and servedwith chickpeas. Another useful find was the WI Market - lovely home made pies, cakes, shortbread and treats. Fab. In the main high street of the town, there are not one but two excellent butchers, each able to display the source of this week's beef and pork. Bought a variety of meat and have ordered a free range bronze turkey for Christmas. Hurrah! Most of the meat appears to be very local, and with high quality stock such as Welsh Black beef. One of the butchers also produces their own sausages and bacon so we've bought some to try. The town also has a Co-op store, for basic and emergency groceries.

We've also done some time testing for next week when Andrew starts his new job. Basically, it looks as though if we get up at six, we've got time to take the woofs for a walk by the river, return home, have breakfast and then for Andrew to arrive at work in good time for his official start time. We tested the times this morning and it was beautiful walking in the early dawn by the river. Fortunately Andrew knows me well enough by now not to expect scintillating conversation at that time of the morning.

One of the other things I've noticed is the different dress code. We were out and about today and Andrew was wearing his hoody. Several people in shops asked if he was from away. Dress code for men here is fleece, tweed, wellies and either a flat cap or a battered baseball cap. Generally accessorised by either a LandRover with Ifor Williams trailer, sheepdog
or 4x4, both liberally spattered with layers of caked on grime.

Went this afternoon to Hay and Brecon Farmers, a useful farm supply shop practically next door and it was a cornucopia of rustic clothing, along with various sheep tags, fencing, nails, sheep paint (tarting up the girlfriend, according to the old jokes....) assorted cow remedies and boxes of Persil so big you'd need a 4x4 to get them home. Andrew is constructing a wondrous fence in the garden to ensure safe canine play (hence the visit to the shop for fence supplies) - but once that's done, he'll be going back for some wellies. Strangely, he's not keen on the flat cap. I'll work on that I think. Any other ideas or suggestions for country living very welcome. I am course primed to avoid anyone playing a banjo. Photos have been taken, but can't find my camera (temporarily) - that's the thing in a new house, usual storage places are altered. Will post pics when available and downloaded.

I was awoken this morning at around 7 by Booty, insistently barking and demanding urgently to be let out. I stumbled downstairs with her, still half-asleep and let her out into an amazing sight - the garden covered in a thick, silver white frost, the first of the year. A bit later, we took the dogs over to Tredegar, also frosty and beautiful. The sky was an amazing clear blue, with loads of vivid red leaves on the trees - really spectacular. Andy and Booty were breaking the ice on puddles. As we walked round the lake, we saw the usual quota of ducks and swans. Just as we reached the end of the circuit in front of the house facade, we saw a flash of vivid turquoise. Stopping dead, we could see a kingfisher in the branches by the boathouse - wonderful. Unfortunately, at that moment, Andy spotted a squirrel, and so began his high pitched squeak of excitement. Not surprisingly, much too loud for the kingfisher, but we got a grandstand view of it flying across the lake like a jewelled torpedo.

Rest of the day spent in various activities to do with the move and visit tomorrow from favourite aunty for the craft show at the CIA over the weekend. I've now reached the pre-move stage of muttering to myself and wandering in circles checking on where I have put things, looking for things, then putting them down again etc... Not long to go now though.

This evening, marinaded some free range chicken thighs and drumsticks for tomorrow evening. A Nigella recipe - with the chicken in a mix of vegetable oil, buttermilk, garlic, cumin, salt and pepper and a dash of maple syrup. It smells divine, and the buttermilk should make it incredibly moist. All I have to do tomorrow is roast it for around half an hour. Serving it with a home-made pecan coleslaw and probably a variation of potato boulangere, with a syrup roly-poly pudding to follow.

Andrew looked at me this evening and told me gently but firmly that I needed to relax and have a bath. As usual, he was absolutely spot on and I had a good soak in some Molton Brown Heavenly Gingerlily with enough bubbles to make the bathroom look like Ibiza. After 11 years of marriage (anniversary very soon!!) he is brilliant at spotting when I am working myself into a tangle of worry and even better at unwinding me.

Well, what a nice weekend. On Saturday, we were visited by Andrew's parents, Rita and Roger, and A's aunt, Heather (Roger's sister). She had flown down from Scotland (where she and her husband live) to Bristol and been met, thence all three came over for a leisurely day. It was great to see her and good to hear about her hounds too. We made a nice vegan lunch - started with pumpkin and apple soup, accompanied by festive chestnut rolls. Then golden vegetable casserole with sage dumplings, followed by melon with a stem ginger dressing. Everyone seemed to enjoy it. I was particularly pleased with the dumplings, as they fluffed up very well. Caught up on all the news and saw a variety of photos of Rhona (her grand-daughter, daughter of Andrew's cousin) and many of her dogs. Some photos attached. We were also able to present Roger with his birthday present, and Andrew received his from his parents (some detailed OS maps of the area we are moving to, plus a bottle of white port).

Today, managed a walk with the dogs between showers. This afternoon, visited the new Hobbycraft store that has opened near the new stadium. Slightly chaotic in that the entire store seemed to be over-run by unaccompanied small children. Anyway, I was able to buy a couple of nice things as we received a flyer for the store yesterday with a £3 voucher, so I decided to use it. Came home, and crafted Christmas cards for the GRW shop, then downstairs for a roast chicken and a dose of CSI Miami. Lovely. Young master now reclining in the bath.

A fairly quiet day, still harumphing to myself over the nonsense with the food waste. Interestingly, today is our bin day. Nobody from the Council has officially told us that our collection time has moved by 12 hours and today, not a single one of our neighbours had their green bins out. This is a "nice" area and should be a shoo-in for participation - if we can't get it right here, it doesn't look good.

We spent most of the day waiting in for a non-appearing BT person or courier who was supposed to be delivering a black box to us for our broadband at the new house. First, we were told morning delivery. By noon, no sign so another call. It'll be there by 2 - yeah, right....

Meanwhile the dogs are squeaking with frustration and I am too, as a number of things by default are done after we walk the dogs. BT still have some way to go to really polish their customer service. Anyway by 2, we gave up, went out and had a good walk over at Tredegar. Amazing coloured berries and still a few late campions in flower. Not too many squirrels though, much to Andy's disgust.

Tomorrow is a busy day, as on Saturday we're hosting a visit from Andrew's parents and aunt, who's flown down from Scotland for a short trip. Interestingly, she also has greyhounds but has galgos, the Spanish ones. They are sadly treated even more appallingly than a lot of British dogs, so a number of rescue and rehoming groups are active across Northern Europe. Anyway, her husband will be staying at home to manage the pack, and she is coming for a trip, via Bristol airport, so it made sense for her to come to us first. As she's a vegan, it's always interesting and enjoyable to cater for her. I've decided on the first two courses -doing a pumpkin and apple soup, with festive chestnut rolls, followed by golden vegetable casserole. For dessert, I'm dithering over a coconut icecream made purely with coconut milk/cream or a fruit compote. Watch this space. I love menu planning, especially at this time of year, when there are so many nice things around. The challenge when you are entertaining a vegan is to provide something that dedicated carnivores will also enjoy. Generally, I try to avoid what I call "pretend" veggie food - tofu or quorn that is pretending to be meat, or vegetable margarine that is pretending to be butter. I loathe soya milk to drink although it works quite well in recipes especially if there are other flavours to mask it. I have in the past made a successful chocolate pudding with soya milk that was delicious as the cocoa and melted chocolate provided good flavouring. Anyway, catering issues aside, it'll be great to see her and catch up with all the news.

Some good news to start. I phoned the kennel today to check on the progress of our stray friend. Happily, he has been reunited with his owner. The lady in the kennel wasn't able to tell me much more, as it is the local authority who hold all the info, but it's great to hear a happy ending.

We travelled this afternoon to the bungalow we are going to be renting shortly, as we wanted to do lots of prosaic things like work out where our fridge will live (we have one of those big American style ones), count the sockets, sort out what furniture will fit where, you know the sort of thing. A very successful trip. I had planned on taking my camera and indeed did so, but when I pulled it out to take some pics, realised that I'd left the battery at home in the charger - doh! The garden is nice too - amazingly, there was a huge clump of wild strawberries, still with berries on, so I ate one (!) and we were welcomed by a very friendly little robin who didn't seem to mind either us or the dogs. Once we move in, we will of course be erecting a cornucopia of peanuts, seeds and fat balls for our visiting birds. There probably isn't much we can do about the dining room carpet, except not wince too much every time we see it. The dogs had a very good sniff of everything - it will be interesting to see how they adjust to the move.

Got home to read the Echo, which led on the front page with a story about food waste collections in Cardiff, and how the waste is being transported 150 miles to be composted. To add insult to injury the hapless spokesman had tried to defend this as good environmental practice, as it was portrayed as a means of filling potentially empty lorries. At this point in the story, I could feel my brain straining. Using this logic, I would never take the train or the bus anywhere, since I'm helping to fill seats in my car......... hmmmmmm. It's very rare for me to agree wholeheartedly with Friends of the Earth but on this occasion, their scorn is fully justified. Of course, this is the same Council (the same Directorate, which is even worse) that is trying to promote green transport - way to go, guys! And of course it coincides with the Cylch Conference in Cardiff (community recycling sector in Wales) - what a great way to showcase our capital city as a model of sustainability. More worrying about this story are two facts - firstly, the council should have been on the ball when the contract was let - I can't believe nobody could have predicted there would be an outcry when this mad story broke. Care should have been taken to pre-empt a firestorm with a sustained briefing for Councillors and local media to explain the reasons, likely duration and costs saved. And somebody who really understands environmental issues should have been involved with drafting the press release. The fact that this seems to have broken in this way indicates very poor leadership within the council and of course will now adversely affect participation.

Secondly, the Council is quoted in the story as saying that it could only reach its 2010 recycling targets if it introduced the food waste collection early, before its own IVC is built and comes on line in either 2009 or 2010. This is actually most concerning, since it implies that a city with four Civic Amenity Sites (some brand new or refurbished) and universal kerbside cannot hit its 40% target. Someone wants a good slap. Powys has achieved its impressively high recycling rate by doing well at CA sites - on a cost per tonne basis, this is the easiest and fastest way of gaining percentage points on recycling rates. Cardiff now has full kerbside for dry recyclables - why can't we reach these targets? Either the expensive white elephant MRF isn't performing up to scratch and giving the diversion it should or we are not getting the participation rates we should be. And I'll bet hard cash, that participation rates are not being monitored. If our own experience is any guide, getting replacement green bags for recycling is a tortuous affair. Generally you have to call three or four times before they are delivered. To do that you have to be keen. We are, but how many householders are? Cardinal rule of successful kerbside is to make the service reliable and easy to use for the householder. Instead, the Council is wasting its time on feelgood vanity projects like real nappies and segregated bins for recycling street litter. Interestingly, when this was first mooted seriously, I enquired about the tonnage already generated by the award winning Thanks Banks in the city centre, and mysteriously none could be found. Hmmmm. Anyway, rant over for now, but it is frustrating to see millions of pounds of public money being used in a way that could be charitably described as sloppy.

The weekend turned out to be slightly more adventurous than we had expected. To Swansea on Saturday, to see our favourite great aunt. We went out for lunch, to the West Cross Inn which has a dining room with a wonderful view over the bay and the Mumbles. Enjoyed catching up with all the news, then back to drop her off before returning home to take care of the woofs.

Leaving Swansea, we drove out on Fabian Way, a busy duel carriageway that leads to the M4. Just after passing St. Thomas, we saw a loose, collarless dog on the other side of the carriageway, wandering, looking confused and lost. We turned round as quickly as we could, and by then the dog had actually wandered into the carriageway. Miraculously, nobody hit it, so we were able to pull into Bevans Row, and then attempted to catch it. Andrew was able to and then carried it back to the car where it would at least be safe. Fortunately, we always carry a water bowl and water for our two, so we gave it a drink. It was painfully thin, in fact emaciated, with sore paws, muddy, and with a strange lurching gait, suggesting problems with hips/back legs.

At this stage, a man approached us, who said that he thought he recognised the dog as belonging to his neighbour in Danygraig Road, Port Tennant - so we agreed to at least try to return him. Oddly,when we got there, nobody knew anything at all about the dog, even after talking to neighbours on both sides. By this stage, we decided to return to Cardiff, to at least help our two, so our new friend travelled peacefully in the boot.

Cardiff Dogs home refused to take him in when I phoned them, and we were prepared to have him for the weekend if we weren't able to find emergency accommodation. Gently placed him in our dining room, with bed, water and very small quantity of food, then looked up Swansea arrangements. Fortunately Swansea Council were far more helpful, and have an emergency dog reception point at Pipehouse Wharf depot, where I used to work over 20 years ago. Andrew, bless him, then drove our visitor back to Swansea, while I stayed with our two, who were confused and intrigued by new canine smells from dining room. I then did a thorough room clean and washed all the blankets and towels he'd been using. The woof has now been taken to the Council's contract boarding kennels and when I phoned today to check on his progress, he was at the vet being assessed.

I cannot even begin to describe the rage I feel when thinking about abandoning a dog in such miserable circumstances. As a charity, GRW often helps responsible owners who for all sorts of genuine reasons (some absolutely heartbreaking) are no longer able to care for their dogs. There are a wide range of other charities and welfare organisations who can help too. The dog clearly was quite old, poorly and starving, and literally inches away from being roadkill. Over the years, having been involved in a variety of animal welfare issues, I still can't help being surprised by the casual cruelty that is so common, and I really do struggle at times to remember that human beings are not all unmitigated bastards, who leave a trail of suffering and trash in their wake wherever they go. Although we've been given a pretty amazing planet, there seems to be no bit of it we can't decorate with a decaying pile of fly-tipping, McDonalds wrappers and graffiti tags. As I age, I am more and more convinced of the Catholic approach that man is definately fallen, and needs all the help he/we can get.

Photos attached show much loved great aunty and a couple of pictures of our unexpected guest.

A busy couple of days. I don't usually post my craft stuff on this blog, as that's what my other one is for, but thought I would include a photo of the latest sampler, which is just back from the framer. We're taking it to Swansea on the weekend to present to a much loved great aunt as a present for her 90th birthday.

Also include the muffins I made yesterday for the young master's colleagues. They turned out very well, although I have made more cream cheese frosting than I need, so now have some spare in the fridge. Photo attached of me in domestic goddess mode. You can just my greyhound sous-chef's nose in the bottom of the pic.

On Thursday night, we went to Swansea for a greyhound meeting to talk about the new website for the charity - Andrew has been doing some work on this. We've now agreed on the layout and the look and feel of the site, and the key headings/timescales, which is a lot of progress.

Took the young master to the train station this morning for the 6.55 a.m. train, and it was still dark at that time. It was just getting light as I took the woofs round Hamadryad afterwards and nice to see the dawn coming up over the St. David's Hotel. It is noticeably much colder now in the mornings - definately can feel winter on its way. Coming home, the bird feeders are awash with sparrows and blue tits - they are getting through the fat balls at great speed. Have done battle with the ironing - helped to tame the mountain a bit, I think.

The main news is that I've been to the optician for a routine eye test and am getting some reading glasses. She said that I am at the stage where it's not yet imperative I wear them, but is recommended. I will be wearing them, as I had begun to notice difficulty when stitching, and I don't want anything to prevent that. To me this is one of those milestones - so yes, I am now officially middle-aged. What else? I was thinking about it, and here's my list - I'd welcome comments.

• You prefer a wine merchant to a happy hour.
• You prefer Sunday morning to Saturday night.
• You hate Radio 1.
• You find yourself voluntarily listening to Radio 2 (I can't stand Steve Wright though).
• You go to bed at the time when you used to go out.
• You think it's a good idea to wear a vest.
• Hair colour is about covering grey as much as the choice of shade.
• You realise you remember fashion references from the first time round - aargh!
• The 80s bands you liked as a teenager are now doing nostalgia tours....
• You drive an estate car (although of course it's a badge of honour for middle aged men to go through a sports car phase, usually followed by a torrid affair with a blonde phase)
• When the Lancome lady gives you a trial pot, it's for the anti-ageing cream, not the one for young skins..... sigh.....
• Students look ridiculously young - are they really old enough to leave home?
• You become invisible to younger men.
• You are intensely irritated by speech littered with "like" every third word, excessive use of "Know what I mean?" and you hate mumbling. The soothingly articulate sounds of Radio 4 announcers are as honey to your ears.
• Speaking of honey, you worry about bees. And butterflies. And birds. And biodiversity in general.

A good weekend. On Saturday night we went out for a meal to Le Gallois, to celebrate Andrew's forthcoming birthday and his new job. As usual, a lovely time. Gorgeous food, great wine, good service and glorious people watching. On one side of us we had two fat bitchy old queens who were having a whale of a time and enjoying the waiters (must agree, good quality eye candy) and on the other a middle aged man of around 50 surrounded by three adoring skinny blondes. I am 99.5% sure the man was a well known Welsh media presenter but cannot be certain - that would certainly explain the skinny blondes who were obviously competing for the honour of sharing his duvet. Almost choked on my food a couple of times as they went in for wildly competitive flirting including feeding him by fork, photographs of them nestled on his shoulder, all pouring his wine every time he took a sip etc etc - highly amusing.

Walks with the woofs have been full of squirrel adventures - masses of them around. Andy tries to climb trees via his vertical take off leaps - Booty just does a generalised twisty leap of exuberance. Her eye continues to make excellent progress. Although the slogan has it "Chicks Love Scars" I've told her that she's now channelling the Pirate Queen look.

We popped into town this afternoon. The young master purchased a suit from Aquascutum and I bought him a book for his birthday ( a new Peter F Hamilton) which he will have to pretend to be surprised at when he opens it on the big day. Coincidentally, he's in Birmingham at a meeting with his colleagues, so tomorrow I am making a tray of Maple Pecan muffins with cream cheese frosting to take with him to celebrate. Fortunately, there will be enough for the cook to reserve some for herself and the attendant hounds too. What's your favourite flavour? Let me know.

Also treated myself today to a new lip gloss - masses of wonderful sparkles, fantastic. On a beauty related sidetrack, I wore my new Chanel nail varnish on Saturday night. It's one of the new season colours called Kaleidoscope. It's a glorious pewter/gold/metallic that picks up colours around it, so I am constantly checking it out against what I'm wearing. Wonderful. Has just started to chip now, so will probably remove tomorrow morning.

Another week that seems to be flying by. We were concerned about Booty's eye, as even with the lampshade on her head, she was trying and succeeding in scratching the eye area. It was also looking a little weepy, although there was no visible sign of infection. Anyway, to the vet this morning for a check-up, and he concluded that her scratching had in fact led to a small lesion on the surface of the eye which now needs some eye drops and another visit next Monday to assess progress. Lampshade must also continue to be worn. Apart from that she is doing very well. Her appetite is fully restored and she is full of beans when we go out, this morning on the river Rhymney and across the rugby club.

More frustratingly, none of the rental properties we viewed on the weekend are available. We have placed "Wanted" ads in some local papers, which has led to a few phone calls, some quite bizarre. One man demanded to know if Andrew spoke Welsh - anyone who's met him will know that's like asking me to speak Serbo-Croat. Another lady called very late last night after Andrew was in bed and suggested a property some sixty miles from where Andrew will be working, on the basis she liked dogs too. Hmmm. Anyway, we viewed another bungalow yesterday afternoon which although decorated in the most hideous style is eminently suitable, so I think we'll be taking it. All you can hear is the sound of the nearby river. I won't say too much though as we thought we'd sorted something out on the weekend - when the paperwork is complete I'll say more.

Finally, a big thank you to everyone who's been sending their best wishes to Booty and has expressed their concern.

Booty has been doing very well today. She had a peaceful night and an enjoyable walk this morning, enlivened by a standoff with a miniature Schnauzer with an attitude problem. Admittedly it was wearing a hideous dog Tshirt ( a hanging offence in my book) but really, that's no excuse. What kind of deranged lunatic thinks it's OK to dress up a dog in a baby style romper suit? The women walking it were also majorly overdressed - a big no-no for dog walking. We're talking fancy handbags, fancy gilets and high heeled boots!! Madness. The correct dress code for dog walking is of course minimal or no make-up, a woolly hat for most of the year, sensible boots/wellies, a shapeless waterproof coat or fleece and the only bag that you should take must be one to contain poo bags, dog water etc... certainly not some jaunty little patent number. Generally, you should be endeavouring to channel a combo of Valerie Singleton via Countryfile rather than SJP or similar fashionista.

During the day she has been trying to scratch at her eye, so we called the vet and Andrew collected the dreaded lampshade. She is not at all happy about it - she either gives us the most evil looks or what's worse, the "How could you?" look with the full-on big brown eyes that are designed to melt an iceberg. She isn't able to master stairs with it on, so we've brought her upstairs for the night now, and she's on the bed with Andrew. She's been eating well, drinking too, so I'm confident she'll continue to recover swiftly.

An eventful day today for Booty. When we took her to the vet last week for her annual booster, we discussed a small cyst that had appeared on her right eyelid. So far, it has not been bothering her, but the vet felt it would be better to remove it via a minor operation. So, no food for her last night, which led to her belly rumbling very loudly while she was on the bed with us last night. I didn't sleep very well thinking about her, and then this morning Andrew took both woofs out for a quick constitutional before we took her into the vet at 8.30. Leaving her there was awful - she really doesn't like it there - her tail goes between her legs and she shakes - I felt utterly miserable. Andy was incredibly subdued without her - spent most of the morning glued to me, sat on top of me on the sofa when I watched some QVC Craft Day and was not his normal self at all. We eventually picked her up around 3.30 - she was delighted to leave the vets. The nurse said that she had been sweet but stubborn - yes, that's our Booty. She has a small shaved area on the front of one of her legs, and hardly any visible evidence on her eye - the vet had done a very neat job. We've given her a tiny amount of food this evening, which she's enjoyed and she's mainly been asleep. Tomorrow, we'll see how she's recuperating. I think she deserves a couple of days of taking it easy.

Another golden autumn day. After a deep sleep last night, needed by all of us, we went out for a walk up in the Forestry Commission at Rudry. We like it up there - it's usually very quiet, the woods are beautiful and we see lots of birds and other wildlife. Andy spent most of the walk looking up into the trees in case he saw a squirrel. On previous walks we've even seen foxes crossing the paths in daylight. Today we saw some mountain bikers, robins, blue tits, long tailed tits, buzzards and chaffinches. Around us the woods were full of birdsong and we couldn't hear any traffic so it was glorious. I've previously mentioned my love for the film "Pan's Labyrinth" - one of the reasons is the film captures the magic of woods, an enchantment willingly undertaken. Today also I felt as though I was in middle-Earth - that glorious, hazy out of time sensation that comes with deep peace, relaxation and contentment. The book is on my mind at the moment, as for some reason, I usually re-read it every autumn. Of course, I read it at other times as well, but there's something about this time of year that drives me back to it. My relationship with the book is long - I first read it aged 9, fell in love totally and re-read it so much that the book fell apart. As an adult I take a slightly more critical view - for instance, the lack of strong female characters is irritating (except Eowyn, of course, and even she goes in for a bit of hopeless yearning at times) and I still find Sam annoying but on the whole it still utterly captivates me, and it would seem, many others as it frequently tops the list of favourite books whenever polls are done. At the same time, unlike say Pride and Prejudice, it is deeply unfashionable and is never liked or admired by any literary critic that I have read. Maybe because it is un-ironic and heroic, qualities not liked by critics? Attach a couple of photos - some attempting to capture that Shire mood and one comedy one of Andrew looking as though he's sniffing Andy's bottom - not really sure what's going on in that one.

A long and tiring day, but I think it was productive. Our aim was to view a number of rental properties in the hope that we would be able to pick one and hence sort out where we will be living and I THINK we have succeeded. As it was going to be a long day we took the dogs with us, and I must say I was very impressed by how well they coped with the travelling and behaving in new places. To celebrate we bought them a sausage roll each and they appeared to appreciate it. On the motorway first thing, it was incredibly foggy with temperatures down to 4 C. As the day continued, the sun appeared and it turned into the most beautiful golden sunshine with a clear blue sky and turning leaves everywhere. A couple of photos attached. Some of the houses we saw were lovely but very unsuitable - fortunately we've seen two today that were fantastic, and one, a bungalow with secure garden that we are very keen on renting. Andrew, with his usual impeccable logic reminded me that the other possibility, a remote and isolated farmhouse would be fantastic to buy, but less promising as a rental when we still have questions about the daily commute, access to local services etc. As usual he is right, so the less romantic but eminently more practical sensible bungalow will probably win out. When this is confirmed, probably on Tuesday, I will be emailing family and close friends with the new details and likely dates. If any readers wish to receive contact details but are unsure if they are in the close friend category - drop us an email and I'll add you to the list. This evening, we returned home and are both shattered. Dogs are quiet too, so I think we'll all soon be heading for bed and a relaxing lie-in tomorrow.

Yet again, the Woodhouse pack is on the move. Andrew has accepted the offer of a new position, subject to usual medical and references etc... so will probably be starting in early November. To ease the process of moving, we've decided to rent somewhere in the area, allowing us to sell our place in Cardiff as a vacant property, and eventually purchase without being part of a chain. The idea is that this should minimise stress.... we'll see. Now begins a period of busy list-making, packing, tidying and so on. Hoping to visit some shortlisted rental properties this weekend - of course, renting with dogs is proving more difficult than I imagined. God forbid we were smokers as well - we'd be homeless.

Once paperwork is completed, I'll write more on the details as they unfold. Although the actual process of moving is never particularly pleasant, I am always someone who enjoys living in new places. Have just been doing a little research on the internet, and it appears that one of the places we're likely to view on the weekend has a very good pub, in easy walking distance with a wide selection of real ales, open fire, and home cooked food. The village also has a medieval church and is only about 2 miles from where the young master will be working, raising the possibility of cycling into work. So, before I get too excited, I'll stop here, and will probably write more on the weekend when we have hopefully resolved some accommodation issues.

Another astonishly beautiful day. We went down to Swansea for the Bay 10K - Andrew's third time in this race. Took the woofs as it is too long a day to leave them unattended. Arrived and parked in good time, and walked the dogs around. Andy was on full squirrel alert. Watched Andrew set off at the start, then back to the car for a read for a bit while waiting. Went over to meet him at the finish - chaos as the normally efficient funnels were completely clogged up. Eventually cleared and returned home in more glorious sunshine. Just about to enjoy a roast chicken and the victorious athlete has had a hot bath to soothe his tired limbs. Some photos attached. Will get Andrew's chip time when they are uploaded onto the race website - he thinks it's around 52 minutes.

Went to the hairdressers today. Had it coloured and cut. As I usually do for the winter, selected a deep purply brown. The cut features a fringe and choppy layers made with a razor. I'm very happy with it, although I always only feel really bonded with a new haircut, once I've washed and styled it myself.

The weather this week has been lovely. While Andrew's been away sadly, I've been walking the woofs over at Tredegar House. This morning, I saw Marianne, wonderful quilt tutor so we had a brief chat. The dogs go loopy over there as at the moment it is awash with squirrels. Andy is convinced he can climb trees and does a vertical take off - impressive height achieved. The temperature this morning coming back was as high as 22 - it felt positively tropical after this miserable summer.

Just taken the dogs out the garden for their evening ablutions - cool and starry overhead with the most beautiful gibbous moon, a glorious champagne colour with bats flitting around. I love bats and wish I was better at identifying them. Tomorrow looking forward to a relaxing day with Andrew.

A long day today, but happy and successful. The GRW show down at Pembrey Country Park in Carmarthenshire. We left home at 8 and arrived at the site just before 9.30. We marked out the rings, car parking areas and areas for stalls etc... By 10.30 the first entrants needed to be registered and from then till 1 it was a steadily building crowd. In fact by 1, we still had a long queue to register (see photo below). Two lovely judges worked their magic, and I helped to keep the supply of rosettes coming. We also had a stall from Ferret Rescue with some lovely little ferrets on it, an animal painter, and a couple of other animal rescue organisations. Amazingly, and I am still shocked to write this, the weather was wonderful. It didn't rain. Judging finished around 3.30 and we packed up. Left around 4.45, both knackered and happy. Dived into a nice hot bath and drank the most enormous gin, then watched a Johnny Cash documentary. Blimey, what a sexy voice he had, and a real presence. Now off to bed, to snore contentedly.