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The photograph I’d have as my album cover. I’m going to make a confession here. I was that little girl who stood in front of the mirror, hairbrush in hand, using it as a microphone, while I sang along to my latest record, dreaming of one day being a pop star. Well guess what? My dream has come true, thanks to my youngest son, who bought me a popstar experience for my birthday. My friends on…

Just believe that good things are on their way.

I have a question. Where has 2015 gone to? It seems like only yesterday that I was thinking back on 2014. It’s been a bit of a funny old year. We started the year knowing that my brother-in-law was terminally ill, and I’ll be starting 2016 by going to a funeral of a friend who passed away before Christmas. My brother-in-law passed away not long after his 60th birthday  my friend had also not long…

The Scratch Messiah, my adventures continue.

A couple of weeks ago I was excited because my singing group had just performed in the great Hall at Blenheim Palace. It was an amazing experience to be able to sing in such a beautiful setting. What could possibly top that? This time last year I was in the process of recovering from a bout of pneumonia. It was particularly frustrating for me as I fell ill only a few days before I was due to take…

Where is your escape?

Where is your escape? Do you have somewhere either real or imagined that you can go when you need some Isabel-time? This is a blog challenge I was set by a fellow Open University student quite a while ago. I’ve had a couple of attempts at answering this question, but gave up as I didn’t really know what to say. The real answer to this question is the bath. I love to pour myself a deep,…

The first scene filmed at Cogges, aka Yew Tree Farm Earlier this year I mentioned that I was deferring from my Open University module due to a combination of ill-health and family issues. The email to the Open University confirming my deferral had barely been launched into the ether when I was asked if I would be interested in doing two things. One, was to help produce a new guidebook for Cogges,…

Downton Abbey’s back.

The autumn equinox has passed and with it has come the return of two of the highlights of my year; Strictly Come Dancing and Downton Abbey. Who cares if it’s cold and dark outside when you can sit in the comfort of your own living room and lose yourself in the glamour of spray tans and sequins on a Saturday and dramas of the people at Downton Abbey, both below and above stairs, on a Sunday. I’ve…

Drawing of Wadard on the Bayeux Tapestry This season we have started doing Downton Abbey tours at Cogges and I’m one of the tour guides. One of the facts I like to tell the visitors is that we have over a thousand years of history to our name. Some people believe that the mounds and bumps in the field beside the walled garden are the remains of a Saxon settlement down by the river, from around…

Kick Up the Butt.

We all have dreams. some bigger than others. We also know that sometimes it can be hard to hold on to that dream, especially when it looks like it is an impossible one. I’ve recently been going through a time of doubting my ability as a writer and this has stopped me from actually sitting down to work on the book I dream of writing. If anyone needs a “kick up the butt,” it’s me. I recently…

‘Worry is a down payment on a problem you may never have’

‘Worry is a down payment on a problem you may never have.’ Joyce Meyer. A couple of months ago a routine visit to the dentist resulted in me being referred to the hospital. On a previous visit the dentist had told me that I had something called Leucoplakia, which is like an area of dry skin on the tongue. She told me that it was nothing to worry about and not to google it. Reassured by her, I…

Not a mid life crisis…

I love looking at all the photos and funny sayings that people share on Facebook and Twitter. I’ve even been known to pinch a few and share them myself; well quite a lot if I’m honest. The one on the left, of someone doing a sky dive, made me laugh as I’m considering doing one next year for a ‘significant birthday.’ If this is a sign of a ‘mid life crisis,’ then I’ve been having one for a few…

Elizabeth, one our longest-serving volunteers. The week beginning Monday the first of June is National Volunteer Week. Cogges relies heavily on its volunteers and I thought I’d take this opportunity to write about the roles played by our dedicated team of volunteers. I’ve been a volunteer at Cogges since it re-opened in 2011. I work on the welcome desk and also pop in five days a week to feed the…

When doing nothing is the best action.

Ever struggled, when in a difficult situation, to figure out what’s the best thing to do? I know I have. There’s been many times when I literally found it hard to, ‘see the wood from the trees.’ I also found that at times like that, struggling to find the answer, or the way out, only seemed to make things worse.

This morning I decided to wear a necklace my hubby had given me as a present. It’s…

I’ve been a volunteer at Cogges ever since it re-opened to the public on the 17th June, 2011. I remember the opening day very clearly. It was a typical English Summer day, the rain never stopped. But this didn’t seem to dampen the enthusiasm of the hundreds of people who turned out to support us. There were lots of events going on. I remember that I was given the task of standing beside the…

A few years ago, I was on a plane bound for Edinburgh. I was going to attend a reunion with my school friends and was travelling on my own. Sitting next to me was a tall, blond-haired, American gentleman, aged about 40. Shortly after take off, we fell into conversation and what he told me has never left me. In fact, it is probably one of the biggest factors in my deciding to ‘get off my backside’

Dancing in the rain.

Life is not about waiting for the storms to pass. It’s about learning to dance in the rain.

I read this quote on Facebook and fell in love with it. I’ve now adopted it as my new motto and am trying to put it into practice. My website has the title, ‘Sunshine after the rain.’  I called it this as I started writing my blog when I had not long come out of a difficult period in my life. I’ve been…

How Cogges becomes Downton’s Yew Tree Farm.

Anyone who follows my blog will be well aware of the fact that I’m a Downton Abbey fan and that I’m immensely pleased that Cogges is used as the setting of Yew Tree Farm, the home of Farmer Drewe and his wife, Margi. Having seen Lady Mary and Tom Branson visit the farm in series 4, in series 5, we found out that Farmer Drewe and his wife, were looking after Marigold, the illegitimate daughter of…

The next step along my path of New Beginnings

Well it’s almost a month since I decided to take my own advice and be kind to myself. The relief I felt at taking the decision to defer from my Open University course for the time being has stayed with me. I did the right thing. It wasn’t until I removed that stress factor from my life that I realised how badly I had been affected by it. For a while there, everything I needed to do seemed…