(Very) Alternative Fathers Day Card

Stuck for an idea for a Fathers Day card I spotted a little tin box in a charity shop and it contained the perfect solution to my dilemma.

As children sat in the back of the car ready to head off on holiday or just for a day out, Dad would invariably start the engine and bellow "Wahey, POOP POOP!!" In the style of Mr Toad of Wind in the Willows fame (If you haven't seen the stop motion animation version of this story, then what are you waiting for!)

Much like Mr Toad, Dad is full of joie de vivre, very sociable and has a habit of buying the best kit for his latest and greatest new hobby then abandoning it shortly after! So, bearing this in mind I hope the following photos make sense.

The little tin

Message is on reverse of card which I placed inside tin

The driving goggles which I found stored in the tin.

The 'Poop Poop' is cut out of sticky back plastic because obviously he'll want to remove the lettering and wear them on a daily basis! 

Lazy Sunday Afternoon

We decided to make the most of the sunshine an took ourselves off to Painshill Park last Sunday for a picnic. I have blogged about this lovely spot Previously but I couldn't resist posting a few more photos as it really was the most beautiful day.

Meh! Mural

Well the mural is done (I won't say finished as I just gave up in the end) on the cupboard doors. It's so frustrating when I can't translate what's in my head into reality but honestly, I should just stick with 3D as painting is not really my forte. Anyhoo I guess it's better than plain ol' gloss?!

Related Post Here

And Finally from Orkney...

A few random photos that didn't fit anywhere else!

The Ring of Brodgar

Spring Squill on the Brough of Birsay

 

Fresh air =

Locally caught Langoustine 

The Fishermans Huts, Marwick

Last but not least, the posing sheep at Yesnaby! 

Buckie Bangle

I found this Groatie Buckie charm made by Fluke Jewellery at the end of my holiday. After a few unsuccessful trips to their workshop I tracked one down in the 'Made in Orkney' shop in Kirkwall.

I simply added it to an existing bangle of mine and it tinkles away as I work, reminding me of happy days.

Orkney Beaches

Away from it all on Orkneys beautiful beaches

St Peters Bay

Waulkmill Bay

Bay of Skaill

Rackwick Bay

The causeway revealed at low tide at the Brough of Birsay - the beach that began the love affair! 

Orkney Cliffs

Best steer clear of these walks if you have vertigo!

Marwick Head views from right and left

Hoy, by the Old Man

Brough of Deerness

Yesnaby

Orkney Skies

Does what it says on the tin.

Hoy & Rackwick Bay

Orkney is a series of Islands - Hoy being an island to the west of the 'Mainland' (the biggest island) It is quite different, with high heath covered hills which remind me of the Dales. It is probably most famous for the sea stack that is The Old Man of Hoy. You'll need a boat, a car and some legs to get to it but the walk up with its views over Rackwick Bay are a sweetener and The Old Man itself never disappoints, covered in nesting sea birds with the waves crashing about his feet you look across to him and wonder!

Fog recedes from the bay as we commence our ascent!

Not a bad spot for a picnic!

People on the cliffs for scale

The sun came out for the return journey

On Rackwick bay, the sand between my toes!

The G Word

Best get this over with quick - like ripping off a plaster. I may or may not have booked and planned the whole holiday around a tiny shell (I stress,nobody can prove this and it's malicious gossip as far as I'm concerned)

First, let me introduce you to the 'Groatie Buckie'

That's him, nonchalantly perched on a pebble in a rock pool

These little blighters are devilishly tricky to locate and are said to be lucky if you do manage to track one down. Now I happen to be obsessed with looking for them when I visit Orkney so it was pure coincidence that I booked to stay not 5 minutes drive from the best beach on which to find them. The fact we visited it every day...and at low tide was not engineered in the slightest!!

Commence operation 'Hawkeye'

If only they were all perched in a limpet she'll rather than half hidden amongst a billion other small shells

The final collection (57 Groatie Buckies) if you're interested

Orcadian Adventures

2 Weeks of Calm!

Orkney is a hard island to describe. Best left alone if your into clubbing and pubbing. On the other hand if you're into wide open spaces, endless skys, wild seas, and the only sound to interrupt your breakfast being the call of a Curlew then maybe it's for you. It's a place I love and have returned to several times - for peace and a change of pace I haven't found anything to rival it. Below are a few photos of the croft we stayed in. Situated on the north othe mainland it had the benefit of a sympathetic renovation on the outside and mod cons on the inside - underfloor heating being one of them (one had limitations as to how authentic the experience needed to be!) the back garden looked onto Marwick Bay and it was hard not to take a million photos as the light there changes minuite by minuite, first revealing, then concealing the landscape.