Some favourite things...

Because it's always nice to remember! Here goes:

Driving in the sunshine - I'm making the most of it before I sell little car in August.

Butterflies - I'm seeing lots around the garden at the moment.



New shoes! I bought some beautiful pink flower canvas pumps and some red tartan ones too. I loves them! :-)




Waking up to sunshine!

Spending time with my pupils just chatting and chilling. Lessons are great and I adore teaching, but I also like just hanging out with them, seeing what's up with them.

This video. Eeeeee! So cute! Squirreltacular.

Clinique 'Happy'. The scent I wear the most, and one that I just adore. It reminds me of fun times, and holidays, and cuddles with the boy, and a million and four good nights out.

Packing and sorting, when it's for a good reason (I can't wait to be in London, baby!).



Veggies. I'm on a total veggies kick lately, eating lots of spinach and tomatoes and peppers...gorgeous.

Really unashamedly cheesy pop. Sometimes, even an indie girl like me can dance to Cascada! I think I like it mainly because it sounds a bit Britney...

Summer dresses and skirts. I love floaty comfy pretty clothes!

Sanctuary toiletries. I adore this brand! So rich and creamy and smells gorgeous.



Good books. I'm on a real reading kick. I'm reading two at the moment - The State of Africa and Adventures on the High Teas. A Claire with a good book, a cup of tea, and a spare half hour, is a very happy Claire indeed!

Sharing meals - don't you just love long conversations over a meal with a glass of wine and some good friends (or a handsome boy?).

Yellow roses. Oh, how I love them! They always look so friendly and awesome.



Summer socialness! Lots of picnics and meals and drinkies ahead, and now I am off to get ready to go celebrate Miss Bryony Boo's first birthday! Jelly, ice cream, and cuddles, huzzah!

Have a lovely day!

Strange times...

So here we are, the last few days of June. Midsummer's day came and went, as did demi-Christmas (making my favourite festival nearer than it is far away...), and life is proving topsy turvy, to say the least. Finishing up at one school, and preparing to start at another one is giving me a bit of a mushy head at times - my life is lousy with to do lists and plans and packing schedules and new names and faces. Exciting times...but strange too.

A whole host of "lasts" have rounded up on me...my last proper boarding duty in the house with the girlies...my last rounders match (we won! Yay! :-))...and I'm just about to go head off for my last Saturday morning school. Last night was the first of the farewell meals, a giant curry get -together after our leavers revue. And as happy and excited as I am for the move and the change that London's going to bring, I'm also all too aware how much I'm going to miss my friends and the children here. I've had a marvellous four years here, I just hope I will enjoy school # 2 as much. Next week gets even crazier with goodbyes and events and I just know I'm going to cry at some point. Strange times...

The move to London is definitely at the best time for Matthew and I though. Sad as it is, I miss him an awful lot when we're apart, and I can't wait till the time apart becomes the exception, rather than the rule. Yes, living in the same place, same space is going to prove challenging at times, but I'm ready for it. I feel like I'm a better person, a happier person when I'm close to him. Yeah, feel free to gag at that last statement...but it's true! Exciting, different, wonderful, strange times...

The King of Pop passing away. It broke Thursday night, as I was sat in the sitting room with Matthew, Dave, Assiz (my flatmates to be) and Chloe (a girl who's crashing there until I arrive), watching the news. It still wasn't confirmed when I went up to bed. Friday morning, I got on the tube to head north and every paper facing me was blaring the news. I think it's really sad - he was such a tragic figure, and just a musical genius. I grew up dancing to his music with my friends, singing songs in choirs, with his music everywhere. On the soundtrack to my childhood, Michael Jackson would be a major feature. Strange times...

Right, time to get out the door to school - may your weekends be fun, and just strange enough to keep things interesting!

Cure for the blues

Silliness.

Cuddles.

Fun.

Friends.

Good food.

Good company.

Sunshine.

An extra day on the weekend.

Drinks with FIRE!

Music.

Fun new people, loved known people.

Hugs.

Kisses.

Fresh air.

Cake.

Sleeping in the middle of room full of friends, falling asleep as the party continues.

Thinking.

Reading.

Early morning cheese toasties, tea, and the paper.

Planning.

Love.

How was your weekend?

Happy Snaps: June 18

Hmmmm. Less "happy" I guess, more pensive. One of those evenings where I just needed a cuddle or a cuppa, but neither were forthcoming at that precise moment. That big old desk of doom I photographed earlier this week had me down a little earlier, hence the self portraits. I'm off to go do the dishes to 80s hair rock now, and hopefully improve my mood (I'm down due to pure and simple overwork, with a shot of loneliness. Ready for a change!).

Ah well, at least it's Friday tomorrow!

Sending blessings.

Happy Snaps: June 15, 16, 17

After a long day, Tubbs the hippo and some good books request my attention.

That thick wodge of paper? Would be the reports I had to proofread yesterday evening...

Crazy desk of busyness!

Made by one of my pupils. Who may be a Kelly Clarkson fan? "Life will suck without you"

Haha, this one requires a head turn.... the time I got in from work today. Exhausted more or less covers it!

Flying saucers! Nom nom nom. These + wine = a fun evening in! :-)

Happy Snaps: June 13 and 14

My face after a five hour teaching stint on a Saturday...

My face upon realising it's time to go off and enjoy the weekend!

Matthew's parents' beautiful garden - perfect to relax in with a beer on a sunny Saturday evening! :-)

We always have good chat on this bench. :-)

Love the palm tree!

Sunday's photo, Olympic breakfast. Om nom nom....

Happy Snaps: June 11 and 12

Thursday saw the start of the 'New Home' card bonanza - I wanted to make a big start before the end of June when they are due in the mail!

If I have your address, I'll probably be mailing you my new contact details. If I don't have your address and you'd like them, feel free to email me your addy and I'll pop you on the list! I love mail far, far, far too much!

My sunshiney shoes on Friday! I really like them, they cheer me up. And make me a whopping 5'7" too. :-)

Andrew, Rosie and Harriet in my classroom at school. So cool to see them down here, even if it felt a little like two worlds colliding! :-)

Me, Harriet, Andrew. They are such a cute couple!

Hahahaha. I totally can't recall what was so gigglesome.

Please do note my clutter strewn desk - this point in term my classroom tends to look like it's been hit by a paper hurricane!

Not Me Monday, 15th June

Yay! It's '"Not me!" Monday' time! The gorgeous Mckmama runs the show....won't you join us?

I did not wake up yesterday after a nightmare, nearly in tears. I was not so upset because I'd dreamt one of my colleagues had described me as a horrible person at my leaving party (in my dream). I did not spend a good five minutes trying to decide if it was a dream or if it had actually happened. Nope, not me!

I did not manage to spill a whole bottle of water down my front the other day, due to a faulty bottletop. I did not then have to stand below the hand-dryer for a good ten minutes to dry off. Not me!

I did not eat a ginormous calorific Olympic breakfast at Little Chef at about 7 pm last night, after a week of being good food-wise. Like I would eat 1,000 calories and about ten tonnes of fat... No, not me!

I did not forget to brush my hair for an entire day last week. Like I'd forget something like that. Not me!

I absolutely completely did not buy a new box of 5 pairs of tights last week because I could not be bothered to do any laundry that evening. Totally not me!

I did not panic somewhat when I realised that the end of term is less than 3 weeks away. So not me!

What didn't you do, friends?

Romping along

Life has been pretty busy, but in a good way. Like a sky scattered with stars or a picnic blanket strewn with tasty treats, in between all the work and paperwork and hassle and long phone calls to banks, phone companies, stores etc., there's lots of beauty to enjoy, and fun to be had.

It's a sunny and warm Saturday here, after a week of truly random weather. Yesterday I'd decided I'd had quite enough of the cold and rainy June, so decided to dress optimistically in a blue and white sundress, and my cute yellow heels (which I love! Think Dorothy's heels in the Wizard of Oz and change the colour :-)). And it worked - yesterday was gorgeous and today seems to be shaping up quite nicely too.

Yesterday I also had an unexpected visit - three of my lovely friends from home in Scotland, Harriet, Andrew and Rosie, were randomly in the shire and popped in to see me at school (photos in my next Happy Snaps post!). It was so nice to catch up with them over a cuppa - I'd been feeling really homesick, so a brief Forres break cheered me up no end!

I'm blogging briefly on my break between classes (as much as I will miss my lovely school, I'm going to love having my Saturday mornings back), before heading off for a weekend of fun. Matthew and I are heading up to his parents' in the north east of the country. They are about four or five hours north, but luckily Matt and I love to roadtrip. We will probably even stop off for some awesomely greasy food at a Little Chef en route. I love Little Chefs - remind me of being wee! Then we'll have dinner and drinks with his family. I'm looking forward to seeing them again, they are really nice. Then we are off to a christening tomorrow for two of Matthew's friends little boy, Joseph. I'm excited to meet him!

Well, my class will be here any minute, so I will close. I hope you are all very well and have a pleasant weekend planned. Have fun!

Happy Snaps: June 10

Because sometimes Wednesdays are just made for goofing off with a camera and a bathroom mirror....

Once again, check out how tired. I look as tired as ScarJo does on the front of the current French Elle!
My cameraeye.

Fogged mirror.

The last two are me jumping up and down and snapping sporadically. And evidently having a whale of a time!

Happy Snaps: June 8 and 9

The view across our paddock on a summer's evening.

I pulled up to take a picture of this - the view down our drive. A.K.A. The Road Home!

Looking out across our field.


Driving home in Jessika - check out the eyebags! They've been working me too hard!

Pirate cakes! The birthday treat from one of my tutees! Om nom nom, yarrrr!

Happy Snaps: June 7th (part 1)

Derek Duck checks out my twitter on Matthew's computer.

Bathtime buddies!

Manuel, the incredible battery-free torch!

Derek and I, chillaxing!

Oh man, so much mail to send!