We collected O’s brother and his girlfriend from the train
station and then I swiftly dropped them at the shops so they could actually
purchase the birthday girl’s gift. We were soon on our way and had a relatively easy drive up
the road stopping at Fort William for a sandwich and a toilet break. Then we
turned off and headed towards Mallaig. We soon pulled up at the beautiful wooden lodge type esk building with a
field of ponies and a stream outside.
We had an explore, went and petted the very friendly ponies
and helped O’s mum prepare the dinner for that night. The house was really,
really lovely but we soon realised that it was impossible to take a single step
without the floor boards creaking. There were wooden floorboards throughout,
which meant you couldn’t get anywhere without someone hearing you. We even had
a competition later that night and no one managed it without a squeak. We ate a
lovely meal and once baby nephew had been bathed and put to bed we settled in
for a tense game of trivial pursuit (O’s family is hugely competitive). O was
teamed with his brother in law and they were very smug over their victory.
The next morning breakfast was eaten and the shops were
popped to. Once everyone was back it was time for the birthday girl to open her
presents and us to have a slice of cake (of which there were several). Then in
order to work off the morning cake we headed to beach leaving O’s dad who was
making another cake. We were very lucky with the weather the whole weekend and
it was quite mild. The others played frisbee and football as we walked along
the beach. Back to the house
for a bite to eat and a lazy afternoon playing with our nephew while
preparations began for dinner.
That evening we had:
Cream of mushroom soup – made by O’s brother and his
girlfriend
Beef stew and dumplings with roasted veg on the side – made
by O’s brother in law
Vanilla cheesecake and baked key lime pie – made by O and I
Birthday cake for those that weren’t bursting
The rule was that O’s mum didn’t have to lift a finger. Once
the dishwasher was stacked and the pans were cleaned we put on plenty of layers
and wrapped up as warm as possible. We made a torch lit procession down to the
beach and stood well back as the boys arranged the fireworks. We didn’t have
many and had purposefully chosen the ones which we thought would be quietest
(yup we were after quiet fireworks). Baby nephew did very well to start with
but soon got a bit upset and started saying “all gone” “no more” to which we
responded “just one more” “oooh isn’t it pretty” “yay, you like fireworks” he
remained unconvinced. Once the last one had gone off the boys with their
torches scoured the beach to pick up the debris. Back in the warmth
we played a couple of rounds of a game similar to call my bluff, O was very
smug to be on the winning side again.
Unfortunately during the night I started to feel unwell and the next night O and his brother followed suit. After a day in bed the following day when we were due to leave I was still feeling pretty ropey but I was
the best out of a bad lot and we needed to get home somehow. Throughout a very
slow packing process which included one sock on, sit rest, other sock on, sit
rest, bend pick up jumper, sit up, rest, place jumper over head and arms
through sleeve, realise you’ve moved too fast and your brain is hitting off the
sides of your skull, sit and rest etc. etc. We eventually got all of our
belongings and O’s brothers belongings into the car. I drove very slowly down the road, which was thankfully the road was very clear. There were a few stops for fresh air but we finally
made it home in one piece. We collapsed onto the sofa with the duvet and
switched between sleeping and watching TV.
A lovely, lovely weekend which was unfortunately spoilt by a
stomach virus, we had a great time up until then.
(photos mostly by O apart from the rubbish ones which are by me)
(photos mostly by O apart from the rubbish ones which are by me)
