Well hello again my loves. I hope you are all doing well? How are we in May already? I'm not quite sure how that happened?? But here are some photos from December last year for you to enjoy. Clearly I am still behind with this Blog, but I've been enjoying reminiscing about this trip, and all the fun I had with family and friends.
As always when I'm back in Shrewsbury, I try to catch up with as many friends as possible. So, there were coffee meet-ups, brunches, lunches, dinners, festive frolics, and of course, lots of pints of cask ale to enjoy. It was lovely seeing so many good friends. I know that Christmas is often a difficult time to see people, as everyone is so busy, so I was grateful for everyone who made the time to see me.
AND! It was my Mum's 80th birthday mid December, so we had to do something special for that! My sister and I arranged a family meal for her, and my brother came up from London the evening before to surprise her, which she was absolutely delighted about. The next day, on her actual birthday, we went for the meal at the beautifully historic Henry Tudor Inn in Shrewsbury. My aunts and uncle traveled from Coventry and Ireland, and had arrived early to surprise her, and then spent the rest of the evening with us. It was tricky and stressful, negotiating all the different arrivals and keeping everything a secret for so long, but I'm happy to say that everything went according to plan, and Mum was completely surprised and delighted. Yay!
I had organised my friend's Hen Do at the Henry Tudor Inn a couple of years ago, and knew that it would be the perfect venue for my Mum's surprise party as well. The staff did an incredible job, the food was amazing, and the private room we were in could not have been more special for a small family function. You can see in the photos a glimpse of the beautiful timber framed building, stained glass windows, and stunning furniture. And since everything was all decorated for Christmas already, we didn't even need to bring our own decor. It was perfect, and everyone really enjoyed their food. Honestly, I can't recommend that place enough. It's now my go-to venue for any events I organise, and I told them we'd be back for my Mum's 90th, haha!
I have always loved the lead-up to Christmas, when the shops are all decorated, the town is lit up, and there are all sorts of fun, festive activities to do. In fact, I think I prefer the lead-up to the actual day, which can sometimes feel like a let down! This year, I got to go Christmas shopping with my sister, and decorate gingerbread houses and cookies with my niece, as well as go to her school Christmas concert. I also got to meet my best friend for the annual Carols In The Square, that is broadcast live on the radio. This has become quite a tradition for us, and if I'm around at that time, we always go together.
It was a very busy couple of weeks, as always, and I had a lot of fun, but I was glad to get home to Ireland, and was looking forward to a quiet Christmas, the first one spent in my new home.
Hello again my loves, how are you all doing? It has been a while since I've posted, obviously. All my good intentions failed, as I've been struggling with my mental and physical health again/still. But these photos span the time from the 10th of November to the 5th of December 2025, so theoretically I'm still catching up with myself.
During that time I mostly only left the house to go to appointments or run errands, so I don't have a lot of interesting photos to share. I did make it down to the shore for a walk one wild and windy afternoon though, so I do have a collection of photos and videos from that day. Being greeted by a bright rainbow next to Glashedy was a real treat!
On the 15th November I was selling at the Clonmany Christmas Craft Fair at the Clonmany Community Centre again. I have gotten a lot of good feedback from my newer "Peace of Pollan" brand pieces, and it feels good to be using things that I found on the beach, and to be doing my part to help keep our beautiful Inishowen cleaner.
I had some tests done earlier in the month, and was back at the Doctor to discuss the results by the end of November. And, I was officially diagnosed with Lupus here in Ireland. It was already suspected, from over a decade ago, when I was still in America, but due to further tests being "inconclusive", the official diagnosis at the time was UCTD, an "Undifferentiated Connective Tissue Disease". Now, the tests are conclusive, which was both validating and disturbing. It's good to have conclusive proof of something that was suspected for so long, but to know that I should have had this diagnosis a long time ago, and perhaps some help for my issues, is disheartening. So many people dismiss my health issues, since I "look fine"... and it's just another struggle to have to deal with, for anyone with an invisible illness.
Knowing that as I age, my health issues will only get worse, is not a good feeling. I had an aunt who died from complications from Lupus, and she was only in her 50s, which is a sobering thought. Between the Lupus, Fibromyalgia, PCOS, Arthritis, and Lymphocytic Colitis, I am in pain all day, every day. The fatigue that I experience is overwhelming, and impossible to explain to anyone who has no experience of these things. On top of all of this, I am now perimenopausal, and the hormone fluctuations make everything worse. So, my physical health has been poor, and my mental health has been no better. Trying to come to terms with all these diagnoses, knowing that my life will never be the same, is difficult. I mourn for everything I was once able to do, and the active life I used to lead.
All in all, 2025 was an extremely difficult year for me. If I didn't live where I do, and have these views, I don't think I would have survived. I may be able to go out and do things far less often, but at least I can sit and enjoy the views from my windows.
Oh, and yes, I put my Christmas Tree up in mid November. After the year I had, I felt I needed some sparkle in my life!
Well hello again my loves, and happy Friday. I hope you've had a good week so far? These photos are from the last two weeks in October, and past the first week in November 2025. Between the days getting shorter, and my continued ill health, I didn't get out much during that time. However, I think you all enjoy my local vistas almost as much as I do, so I'm sharing some pics taken on different days, in different lights. I will never, ever get bored of these views. How can I, when they are ever-changing??
The days that I did leave the house, I went a little further afield than usual, as there were three separate occasions to go to Derry! First was my cousin's baby's first birthday party, hosted by my aunt and uncle. That was lovely, and I got to catch up with a few of my cousins and their spouses, and celebrate baby Riley.
The end of October was of course Halloween, and I stayed with my lovely friend Avril for a couple of days. If you're like me, and love any excuse to get into a costume, you might be as surprised as I was to learn that Avril had never worn a costume or done Derry Halloween before, despite living there for years. Well, I am a good bad influence, and she agreed to dress up to go out with me, but I was to be in charge of her costume! I was going to go easy on her and just bought a few very simple witchy accessories, but she went all out and got the green makeup, wig, and everything else! As you can see, she looked AMAZING, and was getting compliments everywhere we went. So, now we need to do even better this year, haha!
The week after that was a sad occasion, as one of my mum's cousins passed away, so I went to Derry for the funeral, and to be there for the family. In Ireland, they do not tend to embalm people, and funerals are usually held within 2-3 days after the death. I do think that this can provide closure, and help the grieving process, but if you live far away, it can be very difficult to get to the funeral in time. I definitely missed several because I was overseas and could not get a flight back so quick, so this is another reason I am glad I live where I do, and can be there for family on such sad occasions.
