Charlotte moves house at last!

Having got home from Italy at 3:30am Wednesday, with Charlotte and Hugo finally set to collect keys on Friday we made plans for a Warwickshire weekend. We really wanted to help out and the next available time, with medical appointments etc, was a way off and John's energy was at a good level, so we decided to go for it.

So, Thursday lunchtime (a civilised time) we set off aiming for Amber's house - smooth journey and we were there just after 7pm for fish and chips.

Friday we dropped off a red squirrel for taxidermy to Amber's friend (courtesy of Flo) then popped into Fox for an hour so Liz could show her face, seeing as it is a work day for her, then headed to the Stag at Offchurch for lunch with Richard and Jody. A lovely meal with great company, and they graciously listened to tales of Italy accompanied by photos.

In the afternoon we helped out with some small bits of DIY at Amber's, fixing the kitchen kickboards and the light fitting in the lounge, then a quick curry and on for a pint with Marco and Nicki who were struggling with uni choices and 18th birthday party dilemmas for their daughter. To allow alcohol, or not..... it had felt like a big decision for us at the time too, just a bit earlier for Charlotte! We discussed strategies...

Saturday was a full on move day and we were able to get everything moved from Hugo's parent's, and collected from Ewan's and Chris's. By the end of the day their bedroom, kitchen, bathroom and living room were all set up - bed, dining table, sofa (only inside due to the monumental effort of three men lifting it over their heads, down the back passage, through the garden and in through the French doors!) and chairs. Charlotte has a good eye and some savings, which she blew on Denby crockery, cutlery and casserole dish and some throw cushions, lamps and a couple of bargains off Facebook market place - all on offer with special discounts - good girl! We had also managed to get the unwanted, abandoned bedroom cupboards gone via a Facebook ad.

After this we headed to see a friend of Liz's, Mandy, a lady she used to give a lift to here and there - she was on good form and we stayed a couple of hours talking about everything we were going through and what she (her sister passed away with cancer not long ago) had been through, but with good humour mixed in.

Sunday was a washout day in Warwickshire - where is the spring let alone the summer? So, wild swimming with Amber was cancelled - I had been pleased to be asked, but feeling a little pressure to go in water of about 12 degrees to prove my wild swimming credentials.

We headed off about 10am after a last minute game of Uno with Amber, aiming for Holywell on the north coast of Wales, kind of on the way home. We'd seem this on a TV series called 'Pilgrimage' (a really brilliant 3 part series featuring Sonali Shah, our Escape to the Country presenter.) St Winefride's is one of only a few holy wells in the UK where you can fully immerse yourself. John is still really feeling the cold - today he was wearing two jumpers and a t-shirt all day - so going in quite cold water was difficult for him. But he managed (with Liz's firm 'persuasion' and a strong hand-hold) to walk round the well up to his waist the required three time - definitely not up for a full dunk, but Liz did dunk three times, swearing that it wasn't that cold really.

The Legend of St Winefride

Accounts vary in detail about the story of St Winefride but the main features of the legend are as follows...​Winefride (Gwenffrewi) was the daughter of a local prince named Tyfid and his wife Gwenlo. Her uncle was St. Beuno. One day, around the year 630, Caradoc, a chieftain from Hawarden attempted to seduce Winefride. She ran from him towards the church which had been built by her uncle.  Caradoc pursued her and cut off her head. In the place where her head fell, a spring of water came up. St. Beuno came out from the church, took up her head and placed it back on her body. He then prayed over her and she was restored to life. A white scar encircled her neck, witness to her martyrdom. Caradoc sank to the ground and was never seen again. Winefride became a nun and, after her uncle’s departure from Holywell for the Monastery of Clynnog Fawr, joined a community at Gwytherin where she became the Abbess. She died there some 22 years later.

People have travelled to her shrine for over 1400 years in search of healing and there are many tales of this happening. Whether you subscribe to this or not, we decided that at this point anything is worth trying.

We dried off in the lovely sunshine and then headed home, munching strawberries, to see the poor cats who we have neglected terribly for nearly 2 weeks!