Sally and David Hello Lauren, We haven't dropped off the Earth - yet - no excuse for not writing but just that we have been away to Spain and Bruges plus several other things happening, like boring severe back problem and poor David's shoulder. Also the builders have ripped out our downstairs cloakroom to give way to a bright and white suite as it was more than obvious that Avocado went out a long time ago! Simultaneously to the builders turning off the water and losing a lu, at the end of the same day, I opened the lounge door to find that the toilet in our bedroom decided to break down and the carpet was a mass of water and the ceiling full of water pockets and the paper splitting - great, that was all we needed. On top of this the new garden shed has lost most of its roofing one side and leaked inside over our garden furniture, one of which was quite milduey and had to be scrubbed!! All sorts of other things have happened too but I won't bore you with these. I am sure you are by now having a real chuckle at the above! Apart from all that we are well and looking forward to going to our usual Italy at this time of year - well - beginning of June. Karen is doing really well and has been seeing someone since last October. The girls like him too. Greg continues to be Greg - pass. Reading all your exploits makes us smile. How very courageous you all are and we are so glad that you are safe and enjoying the experiences. It will seem quite strange I guess when you finally arrive home to all things Western and working! We have two very smart Weddings to go to this year and an invite from our friends to stay at their Villa in Spain at the end of August. After that we have Karens Birthday and in November we are off to S.A. which will be nice to get into the warm. We are going to do a Safari whilst there this time for 3 days. Barley continues to give us hours of pleasure and keeping us fit. He is so sweet when we take him to see G.G. You will see a great difference when you see her again, although having said that they have altered her medication a little which seems to have helped marginally. Her memory goes against her more and more which is very sad. When I saw her a few days ago she really looked lovely - a good day. I found a picture of her whilst clearing out a cupboard in my office when she was in her twenties - it is so beautiful. I put it a picture frame and took it over to her. She gave a very big smile when she looked at it. She wanted me to leave it there for a little while. I expect it will bring back a few memories! Well time for moi to wash her hair and shower. Keep well, enjoy, and look forward to reading further news. Very much love to you Lauren David and Sally xxxxx

Grandma & Pop Hi there, Grandma and I are begining to feel lonely. Does nobody else get in touch with you through this site?? Today is St Georges' Day and at the moment the rain is coming down in buckets. A good thing for the crops and Gardens you say. I am sure that you are right. However, our First practice on the outdoor rink at Wrotham Bowls club is scheduled for tomorrow afternoon and I do not think that the Green Keeper will let us loose on his pride and joy the Greens just yet. Not to worry there are worse things happening at Sea so I am told. Great Grandma is well installed at Winchester House. He health gives the family cause for concern. She seeems to spend a lot of time sleeping in her Chair and when each of us arrives it takes her a little time to fully come round. She does not eat her full meal but always finishes off her pudding. Once G.G has settled in fully, things may improve. We shall have to wait and see. Nothing out standing has happened since I last got in touch. It reminds me of a line from a monologue " Albert and the Lion" A very matter of fact North Country Family had gone to Blackpool pre 1939 " Next they went to the Ocean, the waves were all fiddly and small, There were no shipwrecks or nobody drowning; in fact nothing to laugh at at all" I hear that Ausralia is in the midst of a very long drought. Water for washing is restricted. I bet Tom wishes he was with you. Take Care. Our Fondest Love Grandma & Pop.

Gandma & Pop Hi, From the depths of my gloom I greet you. My persecution complex has taken yet another bashing this week. Monday morning and I was more than looking forward to our Weekly Bowls Roll Up. Left the house happy as a lark. Backed out the Car. Yet another puncture instant despondance came down. It would be at least an hour and a half before any assistance was available. Bowls subsequently cancelled. However there is a silver lining to every cloud. I was scheduled at a Masonic meeting which I thought started at 5.30, but on a closer look at the invite it was 15.30. I had an acupuncture appointment at 1.15. Into the Car and off to the Acupuncturist post haste to see if I could bring forward the appointment. Success there; only the Bloke who was to give me the treatment was not there. A substitute was fielded who really knew his business. However when it came to the massage part of the session I came to the conclusion that he had learnt his art as practioner in previous life as part of the Spanish Inquisition. I dragged my aching/damaged body away ready for the next bout of deadful things. I was wrong the meeting went off well. The meal afterwards was first class and I avoided indigestion troubled sleepthat night. We moved Great- Grandma Peg to a new care home last Monday that is the 4th. Grandma's Brother John. Sally, Alex and we two all mucked in. Most amicabley I am glad to say. Poor GG is a little confused and has found it a little hard to come fully to terms with her new surroundings, but bit by bit all is working out. Grandma has been to see her several times since the move as has Sally. Those at Winchester House where GG now is say it will take a fortnight or so before she settles in. Her new room is light and airy. About the same size as her one at Rogers House. The food is good and the staff some of whom come from Eastern Europe are attentive. The Ratio of Staff to Residents is 1 to 5. At Rogers House it was 1 to 8 Not much more to write at the moment. The top of my typing finger is beginning to throb. Tom tells us that you have now reached Oz. Cairns to be precise. It used to be said that Cairns was the only place in the world where white men cut sugar cane. I wonder what happens now? Take care and enjoy. All our Fondest Love. Grandma & Pop

Tich Hi Lauren, Here we are in April and as usual the English weather has come up trumps and today we had 3 inches of snow here in Sutton. Sarah and Katie enjoyed the snowball fight with their aged parents, and now the sun has come out and we are fast losing our white covering! In 2 days time we are off to the Red Sea for a week lying around in the sun, perhaps we will do some snorkelling/diving as well. Can't wait! Hope you are all still having a great time - look forward to hearing all about it, Love Tich xxx

Grandma & Pop Well, what great adventures have befallen you this week? You must have done better than we have. I am sure this is true as all the misfortunes possible appear to have happened here. I won't list them by numbers as I would soon run out of them. My computer decided to sulk. This meant all sorts of mucking about improving and then finiding it was the wrong improvement. Grandma went to see Grandma Peg last Friday evening and on the way back decidied to fill up with Petrol only to find that the Petrol Cap flap would not open. No Service Garage open so repair would have to wait until Monday. Bowls match Sunday at which every Rink except ours won.So; after our bowls roll-up on Monday straight to the Renault Agent in Sevenoaks. Sorry, could not help this morning.not until Wednesday. Sorry no Car that they could lend us even though we pointed out that we were running pretty low on petrol. Monday afternoon I went to Bluewater for an acupuncture session - I have a frozen shoulder- then on Tuesday Grandma had to go out twice. by which time the gismo on the car control box said we had some 70 miles worth of Petrol left - Renault Garage is some 12 Miles away- I strode very confidently to our Garage on Wednesaday morning and when I backed the car out found a puncture and completely flat front tyre. Being old and infirm I called the AA who arrived well under the hour. Grandma in the mean time rang Renault and told them of my delay. On arrival at Renault, the reception staff with whom I am on very good terms expressed their sorrow at my misfortune. I am not sure if this was sincere as they were all grinning like Cheshire Cats. Still yesterday afternoon went into Sevenoaks> there is a new Cafe Rouge there invested in a Large Coffee each and drank you r healthwith them. I am sure all is well under control your end and that your sun burn and insect bites cause not too much trouble. Take very great care. Our very fondest love. Grandma & Pop.

Caroline Hi Lauren, I'm unable to send e.mails [email protected] although I can receive. Have temp solution sending from [email protected]. Need you to contact me about Student accomodation and loan please. Thank you . Hope you are all enjoying the well earned Islands and sun bathing. Much love to you and Happy Easter Cass,Steph and Lauren xxxxxxxxx

Grandma and Pop Dear Lauren, A Happy Easter to you and we hope all is going well. Pop and I keep well and busy . I have bowled four times this week and pop once. Ialso managed to get in a swim between doing other things. This afternoon we are popping over to see Gr.Grandma Peg who is 93 today. I managed to find a lovely diddy Birthday cake and we are going to put a candle on it. Gr.Grandma is getting very frail now and as a consequence will be moving into a Nursing Home on the 7th April as Rogers House can no longer give her the level of care that she needs. Take care, Lots of Love G.and P.

Grandma and Pop Dear

Grandma & Pop Hi there, all this having to solve a sum before I can send you a blog is realy straining my knowledge of Arthmetic. You may have noticed also from my previous efforts that the spelling isnt all that brilliant either. We assume that all is going well with your venture and that the local climate and insects are not getting you down. In my African Bush days I use to put a sock over the top of my shoes/boots to prevent residence being taken up by any one of an enormous range of Bugs and what have you. Anyway enough of your troubles. Hear some of mine. Went to a Charity Bowls match with Grandma: we did well. Our team won the Booby Prize, a Bottle of Wine each. A cake was put up for auction, as second bidder I said I was prepared to commit two pounds. I was asked to make further bids and yelled out ot the Auctioneer some 50 feet away that "Iwas a poor man and could afford no more". I thought I was out of the bidding and was chatting away to those at my table, when tha Auctioneer appeared with the cake saying its yours!!. "How come" I said "I told you I was a poor man". Oh was the reply I thought you bid FOUR anyway it is too late: cough up. Which as there was no way out I did. Grandma said she had no sympathy for me. I was always joking and upsetting people with my remarks. Served me right. The hardest cut of all was when she saw that the cake was a Lemon and coconut one. I don't like coconut she said so I have to eat the "^*%+ all on my own. Life is cruel. Take care and as Moses did,keep on taking the tablets All our love Grandma & Pop.

téa and harvey hello darling hope u had a nice birthday missing u lods loving the pics your so smily went to thorpe park on sunday dad went on stelh and this other scary ride i could hear him screaming it was really funny talk to u soon lots of love téa and harveyxxx

Caroline BRILLIANT PHOTOS GORGEOUS SMILES FABULOUS LOCATIONS

Caroline BRILLIANT PHOTOS GORGEOUS SMILES FABULOUS LOCATIONS

Grandma & Pop Hiow are you Lauren? From the Postcard that you sent from Hong Kong and the photos we get the impression that all is well. The Shots of what we used to know as Bamboo Bashas - local dwellings - are in themselves most certainly a culture shock but if you are stuck with them for a while they are surprisingly cool but not all that Mosquito and sundry other insects free. Life here is trudging along very much the same as always. The M.20 has been blocked for some 6 days with large trucks awaiting the chance of returning to the continent. Sea France is on strike. I think the block has been cleared now, but, as there are severe channel storms on at the moment and the Port of Dover has been shut as a consequence it is perhaps only a question of time before Operation Stack as it is called starts up again. Put your money in mal de mer pills. Grandma & I went out for lunch with her pal Marjorie and a friend of hers another John to celebrate their birthdays which are a day or so apart We went to the Wheatsheaf near Bough Beech Reservoir. One of the old world sort Deer's heads on the walls the occasional Fox head etc, but the food was terriffic. Pity I was driving as I could have slept all the way home. We have of course played a couple of games of Bowls in my case the first went very well but the second brought me back to the realms of reality. At a dinner the other night one othe guests in his reply speech said that that his host was a War Baby. The host claimed he was not that old. The guest said he should learn to spell. When the Hosts mother took him out in his pram people looked in and said "WAH". I laughed any way. Enjoy and don't miss anything enjoyable or memorable. Very much love. Grandma & Pop xxxxxxxxxx

Lee WELL done. It all looks amazing and I think you're all fantastic. Love the pictures of the night train. Can't believe you have only been gone three weeks and you have done so much already. Love to all

Caroline So good to hear the tales from Thailand. 9 days.......PHEW!!More soap,more shampoo,more photos!!!! Lots of love to you all xxxxxxxxxxxxX