it's Friday night and i'm loving....

that although it's ages since I did a Friday night loving post...it's a great way to remember that there's so much I have to love and to be grateful for in my life...

that it's been a strange week as a dear aunt, my Mum's sister, died last week and we all met for her funeral on Monday...this involved a trip to my brother's near Penrith and he drove us over to the north east..to Whitley Bay and to a coast full of memory...then to Morpeth for a lovely service ...and a lunch with all her friends and relatives...a room full of love! It was so funny being with all my cousins again...and realising how time has past since we last all met..and how grown up all their children are...some old enough to have their own. Suddenly, obviously... we are not the 'young ones' any more!

that my aunt was a delight to know...she was such a creative person always baking and making...her full to the brim sewing room and delicious smells from her Aga were testimony...and she always gave us interesting and useful presents(!)...and was a demon at quizes and games...she was always up for some fun... 

that I have so many happy childhood memories...of big family parties, of fun and games...of those family members 'gone before' but still loved and a part of us all...and now we are all scattered around the globe...but still the thread which joins us is strong and to be treasured

that my brother and I shared some precious time as we drove and found a new and better relationship and understanding

that I had a big loving family with my parents,sister and 2 brothers,  many cousins and aunts and uncles...and now my own precious family...and many dear friends...so many people to love and be loved by and with whom to share this life and journey...

that although this isn't my usual kind of post...I hope you will  understand that sometimes a blog offers the opportunity for a deeper kind of communication and sharing...as we all share the same things in life really, just at different levels and in different circumstances

that this post is for my Aunty June and my Mum Aileen...with love and thanks for your inspiration and showing me a way to be creative and to love baking and cooking and making and sewing... and the importance of family...

love

such a small word for such a big thing!