Here we are Again - 2013 Is leaving the building

It's December 31st 2013. This has to be one of the shortest years ever. I have no idea how it got from January to December so quickly. As a child a whole year was like... forever!
I'm not going to announce any new year resolutions as they never happen - too many distractions for an easily distracted person. However, I really would like to focus on something. The last couple of years I have wandered aimlessly through my spare time, itching to do something creative but not sure what. I have to admit to being attached to a laptop/ipad/tablet/smartphone a lot of the time, and to be honest I enjoy it. So perhaps thats where I should look for something new or inspiring.  I feel another post coming on...which reminds me that I ought to make a note on Google Keep whenever I have an idea for a new blog post. That way I might actually write it!
So...2013.  What did you have to offer?

Much of the year was spent on doing things to the new house.  After finally moving all our stuff from the old house to this one, we left it empty to be sold by the estate agents. We completed the sale early February and became lodgers in the new house, awaiting the authorisation of the Board of Trustees to buy the house from hubby's parents.  That eventually happened in June!

The house now looks and feels like home, with it's new windows, doors, gutters etc and 'things' are in 'places' rather than piled up in the garage. There will always be things to do, but 'touch wood' all the expensive constructional work has been done. Spring will see a major garden renovation, involving removal of a wonky greenhouse housing a wayward fig tree and a million hydrangeas. (adds another post idea to Google Keep).

Alexander started drumming, passing grade 2 and getting a lot of credit for his natural talent from a local tutor.  However, by October he had decided he didn't want to have any more lessons...his drum kit was packed away in the garage. I hope at some point he decides to take it up again. He did start playing for a local football team and has been improving rapidly. To think just two years ago he wasn't all all interested in the game.

My eldest son Jordan (now 20) finally got a decent job with the company who he had been with as an apprentice for a year. So now we can rob him of rent and have no need to sub him for nights out and trendy gear. More treats for me...

In March I was sent on a road trip to the south coast to do some work for a new training contract with Yodel. In 5 days I drove from Newcastle to Bristol, Poole, Southampton, Portsmouth and Brighton. It was a long drive but the schedule meant I had quite a bit of spare time, especially in the Portsmouth area - where I had spent most of my time in the Navy 20 odd years ago.  I met up with my back then best mate, who I hadn't seen since 1989. We had a great afternoon wandering around the old haunts...that had changed considerably, catching up and recalling memories. I also met some Twitter pals who coincidentally happen to live in Lee on the Solent, practically next door to my old naval base. Surprisingly they were normal people too! (Hello N,S,P and E)

The whole drive took me along routes and through places I remembered well. I wish I had been able to stop en route and take a more leisurely pace, but I had places to get to and snow was forecast. It really was a trip down 'memory lane'.

 The downside to the trip was the accommodation. My 'ex' employer allowed for just £25 a night - meaning pretty grim hotels like Travelodges for the most part. The less said about that the better.

HMS Daedalus - Lee on the Solent. Now a sad, derelict place. Goodness knows how many times I walked through this gate as a trainee and later as Ships Company. It was a very emotional experience coming back here, but so glad I had the chance.

Our 'probably last trip to Florida for a while' took place in August. A fantastic deal had us staying at the Animal Kingdom Lodge for two weeks on a free dining plan and part of the trial for the new Disney wrist bands. That in itself was a bonus as we got in and onto rides a lot quicker.  We still have a pang to return whenever we see an advert or Florida crops up in the conversation but these days we aren't  accustomed to staying in cheap accommodation and so any trip across the Atlantic will be costly...and we need a new hall/stairs carpet, new doors downstairs and the garden doing.  It was a great holiday, especially the food we ate in top notch restaurants. In particular Jiko in the Animal Kingdom Lodge. Superb, African/Indian cuisine.

Animal Kingdom Villas - fire pit

Blyth started to change for the better this summer. For too long the town centre has been run down and soulless. Big stores like the Co-Op and long time family businesses,  known for specialist goods closed down. People on the outskirts had no reason to come to the town to shop, so they went elsewhere.  This year Morrison's built a new store to replace the old concrete block that had been there for decades. Shops were offered a grant to improve the front of their buildings, Wetherspoon started work on restoring the old cinema 'The Wallaw' ready to open early December and Subway opened - practically overnight.  Yes, it's early days and there is a lot more work to be done, but we have hope now. Optimism that 2014 will see more new business to brighten up the place. We have a beautiful beach, quayside and park. We had a great summer fair and firework/halloween night showing that the town centre planners are trying to inject life into the place. Blyth is getting better.

The old Morrison's store being demolished

The huge new windmill

The derelict old Wallaw cinema now Wetherspoons

and we even got a Subway!

In July we celebrated our 25th Wedding Anniversary. No big party, but we did wear a badge for a couple of days when in Disney to get a few extra treats now and again.

In October I also celebrated my half century. Another quiet affair thankfully, but with some fantastic gifts from family and friends. Including  a set of much coveted Mont Blanc pens.
In December my Christmas present from hubby was a gorgeous little whippet puppy, Kizzy.

Which finishes off this years review nicely. 

All that is left to say is..

Happy New Year, All the Best for 2014, 

Health and Happiness to you and yours and see you next year.