Hi Holly,
I hope you had a great Christmas - I can't believe it's that time of year already - it seems like about 2 months ago since I last wrote, but I see now that it was May!! Sorry about that - I'll do better next year...
I got tired of having my Christmas presents to you returned unopened - it tends to make me rather emotional when that happens, so I didn't send one - but I was thinking about you a lot, as ever. I am sending you a birthday card for your 12th - so hopefully you will at least be allowed to see that.
It's Mikey's 18th birthday today, so we're going out for a meal and his first ever legal pint of beer tonight - actually it's more or less his first pint anyway - he's always been more of a diet coke than a beer man, but as it's traditional for my boys to have that first drink with me, he's going to have one anyway. Maybe in 6 years...
It's been a very busy year at work, and my business, Hudson Bay Financial has done quite well. We seem to be getting more work in than ever, which is good, but it has meant 6 day weeks and less holidays than I would have liked... We did however get to go to Washington DC for a week, which was great fun - you should put that on your list of places to go one day... I can recommend a good hotel..
Ian has got his finals in June and will be leaving university with a good degree, so it looks from all his results so far. It's all down to getting a job for him then.. Mikey's got his A levels this summer and then he's going to Warwick University too (That's where Ian is).. He's looking forward to it.
Jasper the bionic cat has fully regown all his fur now and looks normal again, although he does walk with a bit of a limp. We've been very lucky with him and he doesn't tend to wander far now, so I think he may have learned a lesson...
Well I've got to go as we're about to go out for Michael's meal. I'm still thinking of you every day and I miss you more than I can tell you. I hope the day when we can be together again is not too far away...
All my love, and enjoy your birthday Holly,
Dad. xxxxxxx
Tuesday, December 27, 2005
Sunday, May 15, 2005
Another year on...
Hi Holly,
I've just noticed that it's a year since I started the Hollyblog - another year with no word, no photos and not being allowed to even give you a present... How much longer will it be before the vindictiveness stops and some reason ensues... I miss you so much...
I wish you'd been with me yesterday - I started learning the tenor saxophone about 2 years ago (can't remember if I've already mentioned that?). It's the musical instrument I'd always liked the sound of and it's been great fun learning to play - although the most difficult bit has been learning to read music! I wish someone could invent a simpler way than all those lines and crotchets and quavers and minims... Anyway, for the last 6 weeks or so, I've been practising for my first big performance - in front of about 1000 people!! I was part of an orchestra of 130 people playing sax, trumpet, trombone, flute and percussion who played in the Royal Pavilion Gardens - a newly written piece called 'This Beautiful World'. It was quite scary as we were surrounding the audience and the people in front of us could hear if we got it wrong - which I did on a couple of occasions! Pip was playing her flute in it too, although she's been playing since she was a little girl, so she's really good! Katie and Michael came to watch (Ian's away in France at the moment), which was nice, but it would have been even nicer if you could have been there too for my first ever performance...
I was wondering whether you've learnt to play an instrument... I wish I'd learned when I was your age as it's taken me until I'm 47 to find out what fun it is playing in a band! If I was in touch, I would definitely be encouraging you to learn something - Mike's son has taken up the drums and he had his first gig in a band last week at the age of 12 - he was really good!
Anyway, apart from music, life here has been hectic. Michael has his AS Level exams coming up over the next month, so he has been revising like mad. It's all change at work as we are becoming part of a new organisation on June 1st, so there has been loads of preparation work to do, apart from all the normal stuff. Pip and I are going away for a week's holiday next Sunday (now that I'm getting really old, I like to get out of the country for my birthday so that there's as little fuss made as possible..!), so I've got to get extra stuff done this week too. All fun and games...
The other bit of excitement you missed out on was the Seagulls staying in the Championship on the very last day of the season... It was very tense - I'm sure your Dad genes would have made you a Seagull fan if life had been different - maybe one day you'll become one anyway - it would have been nice to have gone to the games with you, like so many other Dads do with their daughters..
Anyway, got to go to work now so I'll sign off here - I hope everything in your life is good and I hope one day you will know that I was always thinking about you and always missing you... I love you always..
Dad.
xxx
I've just noticed that it's a year since I started the Hollyblog - another year with no word, no photos and not being allowed to even give you a present... How much longer will it be before the vindictiveness stops and some reason ensues... I miss you so much...
I wish you'd been with me yesterday - I started learning the tenor saxophone about 2 years ago (can't remember if I've already mentioned that?). It's the musical instrument I'd always liked the sound of and it's been great fun learning to play - although the most difficult bit has been learning to read music! I wish someone could invent a simpler way than all those lines and crotchets and quavers and minims... Anyway, for the last 6 weeks or so, I've been practising for my first big performance - in front of about 1000 people!! I was part of an orchestra of 130 people playing sax, trumpet, trombone, flute and percussion who played in the Royal Pavilion Gardens - a newly written piece called 'This Beautiful World'. It was quite scary as we were surrounding the audience and the people in front of us could hear if we got it wrong - which I did on a couple of occasions! Pip was playing her flute in it too, although she's been playing since she was a little girl, so she's really good! Katie and Michael came to watch (Ian's away in France at the moment), which was nice, but it would have been even nicer if you could have been there too for my first ever performance...
I was wondering whether you've learnt to play an instrument... I wish I'd learned when I was your age as it's taken me until I'm 47 to find out what fun it is playing in a band! If I was in touch, I would definitely be encouraging you to learn something - Mike's son has taken up the drums and he had his first gig in a band last week at the age of 12 - he was really good!
Anyway, apart from music, life here has been hectic. Michael has his AS Level exams coming up over the next month, so he has been revising like mad. It's all change at work as we are becoming part of a new organisation on June 1st, so there has been loads of preparation work to do, apart from all the normal stuff. Pip and I are going away for a week's holiday next Sunday (now that I'm getting really old, I like to get out of the country for my birthday so that there's as little fuss made as possible..!), so I've got to get extra stuff done this week too. All fun and games...
The other bit of excitement you missed out on was the Seagulls staying in the Championship on the very last day of the season... It was very tense - I'm sure your Dad genes would have made you a Seagull fan if life had been different - maybe one day you'll become one anyway - it would have been nice to have gone to the games with you, like so many other Dads do with their daughters..
Anyway, got to go to work now so I'll sign off here - I hope everything in your life is good and I hope one day you will know that I was always thinking about you and always missing you... I love you always..
Dad.
xxx
Thursday, February 24, 2005
No presents for you, then...!
Hi Holly,
I hope you had a good Christmas and birthday - the present I sent you (by registered post so that I could be sure you'd get it) was returned undelivered, so I guess someone in your household is still determined to make sure that I have no part in your life... They could have just signed for it, couldn't they..... Well, your life won't be so full without a moo-ing clock on your wall and I hope they can live with themselves for denying you the right to have one...
We all had a nice time and there were 10 of us at home on Christmas Day, with all your Aunt Diane's family and my Mum over. I cooked for us all and we had a really nice day - shame you weren't with us though..
Anyway, soon after Christmas I went to Italy on the St Christopher's skiing trip. We took a party of 30 children to the delightfully named Prato Nevoso in Italy, where we had a week of sunshine and just about enough snow to last the week. The only problem was that there were lots of Italians still on holiday, so the resort was quite full and as a result the lifts were very crowded. What fun we had trying to keep 30 kids together in a queue of 3-400 people, all waiting to get on a 2 man chairlift... My friend, Mike and I are going to Austria next month for what I am sure will be a much more relaxed week's skiing.
Talking of being in the freezing cold, it's been snowing here this week and temperatures have dropped to below zero - an impeccable time for our boiler at home to die... we've had no heating for 5 days and we're all starting to freeze up! The plumber starts work today installing a new boiler and heating system, but it'll be another week before it's all done. And the forecast is... more snow! Why can't these things ever happen in summer??
Work has been very busy this year, but we have settled into our new office, and I really like it here. I've got someone coming in to see me in 5 minutes, so I'm afraid I'll have to cut this short...
I hope you are well and that all is going well at school... I hope lots of other things as well...
Love you, Holly...
Dad x
I hope you had a good Christmas and birthday - the present I sent you (by registered post so that I could be sure you'd get it) was returned undelivered, so I guess someone in your household is still determined to make sure that I have no part in your life... They could have just signed for it, couldn't they..... Well, your life won't be so full without a moo-ing clock on your wall and I hope they can live with themselves for denying you the right to have one...
We all had a nice time and there were 10 of us at home on Christmas Day, with all your Aunt Diane's family and my Mum over. I cooked for us all and we had a really nice day - shame you weren't with us though..
Anyway, soon after Christmas I went to Italy on the St Christopher's skiing trip. We took a party of 30 children to the delightfully named Prato Nevoso in Italy, where we had a week of sunshine and just about enough snow to last the week. The only problem was that there were lots of Italians still on holiday, so the resort was quite full and as a result the lifts were very crowded. What fun we had trying to keep 30 kids together in a queue of 3-400 people, all waiting to get on a 2 man chairlift... My friend, Mike and I are going to Austria next month for what I am sure will be a much more relaxed week's skiing.
Talking of being in the freezing cold, it's been snowing here this week and temperatures have dropped to below zero - an impeccable time for our boiler at home to die... we've had no heating for 5 days and we're all starting to freeze up! The plumber starts work today installing a new boiler and heating system, but it'll be another week before it's all done. And the forecast is... more snow! Why can't these things ever happen in summer??
Work has been very busy this year, but we have settled into our new office, and I really like it here. I've got someone coming in to see me in 5 minutes, so I'm afraid I'll have to cut this short...
I hope you are well and that all is going well at school... I hope lots of other things as well...
Love you, Holly...
Dad x
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