Top Ten Thursdays - Christmas Songs

The Christmas theme is continuing for the top tens and this week it's all the songs we love but for some reason it's only okay to listen to them in December. Thanks as always to Tamara at Confessions of a part-time working mom for hosting this blog challenge.

So many songs to choose from and it's taken a bit of time to narrow it down to ten - not all of them are traditional, and there's one that I'm sneaking in that's not a Christmas song in any way, shape or form - you'll understand when you read further. So many great songs that didn't make my list - Wham's Last Christmas, Elvis singing I'll be Home for Christmas, Mud's Lonely this Christmas, Chris De Burgh's A Spaceman Came Calling, East 17's Stay Another Day, Bing Crosby's White Christmas, and of course Band Aid's Do They Know it's Christmas. Also worth mentions are the traditional carols O Come All Ye Faithful, Good King Wenceslas, Away in a Manger, The Holly and the Ivy, and O Little Town of Bethlehem.

Make sure you have your speakers turned up and I apologise if any of the videos don't play in your part of the world.

In no particular order:

1. O Holy Night: this is a beautiful song that once I hear it, it sticks in my head for hours. The words are beautiful and if it's not sung at TV carol concerts I think something is missing. This song has a really interesting history - the words were written by the French wine merchant Placide Cappeau and the music written by Adolphe Charles Adams in 1847. For a time it was banned by French churches because they felt it was too secular. Final fun fact, is that it was the first song ever played over the radio in 1906.

2. Blue Christmas: A song that is instantly associated with Elvis and yet he wasn't the first to record it and he wasn't the first to get it to number one on the charts. It was written in 1948 by Jay W Johnson and Billy Hayes, and recorded by Doye O'Dell. In fact, according to the world wide web, the song has been covered by over 250 artists. I like this version because if you didn't know better you would think that Martina McBride was actually in the video but this was created with lots of digital trickery in 2008.

3. After All: Here's my sneaky addition that's not a Christmas song but one I always listen to in December because it was mine and Ken's first dance at our wedding. It was written by Dean Pitchford and Tom Snow for the film Chances Are - love it so much and if you haven't seen it you must watch it. It's sung by Cher and Peter Cetera and I just love the words to it as it feels like it was written just for us.

4. The First Noel: one of my favourite carols and love this performance by Lady Antebellum.

5: Fairytale of New York: the anti Christmas song but it's one that I love singing along to even though the words are slightly questionable. It was written by the Pogues and features the angelic voice of Kirsty MacColl alongside Shane MacGowan's beautifully rough voice.

6. The Christmas Song: Written by Mel Torme and Bob Wells in 1945.

7. All I want for Christmas is you: Written by Mariah Carey and Walter Afanasieff and released in 1994 - I have to admit it is one of my favourite Christmas songs and I love it in the film Love Actually which would be in my top ten Christmas films.

8. Where Are You Christmas: this is the most modern of the songs I've included and was written by James Horner, Will Jennings, and Mariah Carey for the film The Grinch (2000). It's sung by Faith Hill and I love it.

9. River: I'm just going to put this out there, I'm not a fan of Joni Mitchell, which to my beloved is a total sacrilege - according to him no one else comes close to her talents as a singer. Personally I think most of her music is very maudlin and depressing, but yes, one of her songs has made it into my list, but only if Robert Downey Jr is singing it. Mitchell put River on her album Blue which was released in 1971, but it became a moment I loved from the Christmas episode in season four of Ally McBeal.

10. Silent Night: another beautiful carol that couldn't be missed out of my list and here Katherine Jenkins sings it perfectly. It's the sort of carol that feels like it should be sung at midnight on Christmas eve as it evokes a sense of peace and stillness.

This is a bonus track after the news that Greg Lake, of Emerson, Lake, and Palmer, has died. Here is his famous song, I Believe in Father Christmas, for you to enjoy.

Hope you've enjoyed this glimpse into my slightly eclectic music tastes and I hope these songs have well and truly filled you with the spirit of Christmas. Before you leave why don't you pop over to Tamara's blog to see what my fellow bloggers have come up with - click HERE to visit.

Until next time, be good, stay safe, and do something special just for yourself this week.

Pamela & Ken
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Over the sea to Skye

Recently my beloved took me to Skye for a night. Skye is an island off the west coast of Scotland and is the biggest of the Inner Hebrides, being 50 miles long. It's connected to the mainland by a bridge whereas in the past people would have used a ferry to get to the island.

On the way to Skye we had a few stops to admire the stunning Highland scenery - beautiful rivers, gorgeous man, and magnificent mountains.

Gorgeous Man

We stopped at the Clunie Inn on the way to Skye for refreshments for the three of us - Bramble had a very scenic view (above) whilst she ate her lunch.

Not long before you get to the bridge to Skye is the very famous Eilean Donan Castle - it's featured in quite a few films over the years, such as Highlander, James Bond - The World is not enough, and The Master of Ballantree which starred Errol Flynn (another Tasmanian).

We went over the bridge to Skye and our first stop was Broadford, which is one of the bigger towns on the island. There is a lovely collection of antique and second hand shops painted lovely colours and of course I found the black cat that was residing there. His name is Genie because he turned up out of nowhere just before Halloween last year, and decided to stay. He's a real sweetie and loves a fuss.

As you can see from the photo below it's quite eclectic in colours and things - I love the box with the lets attached being used as a table.

The blue building to the left is the second hand book shop, and the building to the right is the antique shop. The people on the left are making a fuss of Genie - see, everyone loves a chat with a cat.

This is a fabulous stone and antique garden feature with the names of the different book genres included in it.

Another shot of the very handsome Genie before we move on.

We then drove on to Portree which is the capital of Skye. One place we really wanted to visit was the Isle of Skye Bakery as we'd bought some of their products from a market we'd been to and they were scrummy, so it was a perfect chance to stock up. We ended up having lunch there and I had the fantastic cheese board.

In Skye we went past this plaque on a building - Mary Macpherson was a famous poet from Skye who did lots of her writing in Gaelic.

Portree harbour is really pretty with the multicoloured houses which a lot of the West Coast of Scotland is famous for, especially Tobermory on the Isle of Mull which was used as Balamory in the childrens show.

We then found our home for the night which was the Uig Hotel, overlooking Uig Harbour where ferries to the Outer Hebrides leave from. This was the view from the front of our hotel. It's a lovely dog friendly hotel and we would definitely recommend it - great food and friendly staff.

Once we'd checked in we went for a drive around the local area and found ourselves a great fixer upper - what do you think, won't need too much repair work.

Lots of lovely sheep to look at.

Beautifully restored black houses - so called because they don't have very many windows and used to be filled with quite a lot of smoke.

Another fixer upper for us - this one's quite grand and has some great windows.

We then drove down to a little bay that is obviously used to launch local fishing boats and there were even a couple of chairs there for people to sit on.

I think this boat is just a feature now or another place for people to sit - the hole in the side is quite worrying.

Shots of the bay where Ken found lots of belemnites which are the back end of fossilised squid.

Bramble and my beloved - Bramble loved having a run around the beach and would have gone in swimming if we hadn't stopped her.

On our way back to the hotel we found Kilvaxter Souterrain which is a prehistoric underground structure that historians think was used for storage as it would have kept food cool. The entrance is very low and there was no way I would fit in there.

Ken had a go at getting in the tunnel, but it turned out to be a bit muddy and as we didn't have a torch it was also a bit dark. Look at that cute little behind, and yes, the temptation was too great.

Don't worry, I didn't really kick him, I was just really tempted - it was a bit like the Father Ted episode with Bishop Brennan being kicked up the ass.

Here's a better view of Uig harbour - we had been here before, when we got the ferry to Harris many years ago.

We had dinner at the hotel and I wanted to share with you the list of whiskeys for sale - see the left hand column and the majority of the middle one which are all whiskeys.

Then before we went to bed we had a nightcap in the bar where there were some very cute dogs relaxing with their owners.

Until next time, be good, stay safe, and have a wonderful week.

Pamela & Ken
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P.S: Final photo is one of the Christmas trees in Inverness.

Top Ten Thursdays - Holiday Season Checklist

This week's top ten Thursday is all about what we need to do to be prepared for December with Christmas fast approaching and 2017 looming. Rudolph will be coming out of hibernation to help Santa deliver all his pressies to boys and girls of all ages all over the world.

Here is my list in a fairly random order - things I need to do and others I want to do to make this festive season extra special.

1. Christmas Tree: shockingly I haven't got our tree up yet!! It usually goes up on December 1st but we're having the dilemma of how to protect the tree from a certain puppy who I'm sure would see it as a giant chew toy.

2. Wedding Anniversary: two weeks before Christmas is our anniversary so need to get a suitably appropriate present for my beloved and think about what we're going to do to mark 17 fabulous years.

 3. Christmas Cards: I know a lot of people have gone to e-cards and online social media greetings, but I still enjoy choosing Christmas cards, writing a Christmas letter, and sending it to the people I love. It may be old fashioned to some but it's a tradition that I want to keep.

4. Christmas Markets: we need to find some more Christmas markets/festivities as they really help me get in the spirit of things. I love all the colour, the smells, the fairy lights, the decorations that at any other time of the year we would not go near, and I really enjoy people watching.

5. Baking: I love making sweet treats for people but especially at this time of the year. I also must make mum's Christmas pudding which is the yummiest pudding ever - it takes four hours to boil in the cloth and always looks a bit dodgy when I take it out of the cloth, but we love it.

6. Reinrabbit: this is our lovely creature that mum made for us years ago that is meant to be a reindeer but we think he looks like a rabbit, so we've decided he's a bit of a mongrel with slightly dodgy parentage. Some years we leave him out all year so that he doesn't get lonely, but he's in hibernation now so we need to wake him up this weekend (yes, I'm still totally crazy).

7. Advent Calendar: I'm so not organised this year and haven't set up the advent calendar yet, so as it's December 1st I had to be door number one so that Ken could get his treat for today (and now get your mind out of the gutter, his treat was chocolate).

8. Calm: in amongst the busyness of this time of the year we need to take some time to just stop and reconnect with the one's we love, whether human or furbie. If you need to write it on your checklist to make sure you do this then do so.

9. Christmas Movies: definitely on my checklist of things to do is make sure I watch certain movies around Christmas time. Dad's favourite was any National Lampoons movie but they're not on my list. My favourite is Scrooged starring Bill Murray - it never fails to make me laugh and I love Carol Kane as the Ghost of Christmas Present. Here's a short clip from Youtube for you to enjoy.

10. Blog posts: In between everything I still need to spend time with my lovely purple laptop writing about our days of fun and giving you my top tens. I love sharing things with those of you that bother to read my ramblings and hope my posts bring the occasional smile to your face.

So there you have it, my slightly odd checklist of things to do to prepare for this very busy but very fulfilling month. Why don't you pop over to Tamara's blog Confessions of a part-time working mom to see what my fellow bloggers have come up with - click HERE to visit.

Until next time, be good, stay safe, and enjoy the coming weeks.

Pamela & Ken

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Thanks - a photographic blogging challenge

End of the month and it's time for the photographic blogging challenge that is hosted by PJ at A 'lil Hoohaa blog - make sure you pop over and check what other people have posted this month. So the theme for November was thanks, which was a little tricky as last week I did being thankful for the Top Ten Thursdays Challenge, link here. After much thought I chose more personal things for the photographic challenge.

1. I'm thankful that my beloved buys fresh flowers to put around the home and I get particularly gooey hearted when he buys flowers that were in my wedding bouquet - I'm not sure he always realises that he's doing it but I still love it. My bouquet (nearly 17 years ago) had orange roses and purple irises just like below.

2. I'm very thankful that we have Cookie (aka Princess, Diva, Sneak, and Monster) in our lives. Cats are so good for stress relief and, unlike dogs, you really have to earn a cats love which makes it all the more special when you get it.

3. I've combined these two, my beloved and Bramble. Watching the two of them play soccer together on the beach in freezing temperatures almost brought tears to my eyes as it was such a lovely moment. Unlike the Diva, Bramble loves us unconditionally and is such a softy and just wants to be with us constantly which I hope she never grows out of. I'm a bit like a puppy when it comes to my husband, as I just want to be with him constantly.

4. I give thanks for every sunrise and sunset that we get to see - so many people do not get to see as many as they should due to them being taken from this world much too soon.

5. Christmas is so much more than the commercialism that it often becomes, and it's definitely a time to look at all we have to give thanks for. This year I'm thankful for our first year in the Scottish Highlands and all the adventures we've had and the ones yet to be.

There you are, my five photos that represent the theme of thanks. Remember to visit PJ's blog to see what things my fellow bloggers have come up with - click here to visit.

Until next time, be good, stay safe, and remember to give thanks everyday .

Pamela & Ken
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P.S: Bonus picture - this is the tree we have at work where people can write what Maggie's (where I work) means to them on a star and hang it on the tree. It's such a lovely feature and it humbles me every day when I read the comments that people have made.

Forres, Fochabers, and Santa in November

This weekend has been spent exploring early Christmas markets (it is still November) and more of the beautiful highlands. Yesterday we went to Forres as there was a Christmas craft fair on and we just wanted to have a bit of a mooch around.

This door was near the carpark and whilst Ken thought it was a bit boring, I really liked the colour of it. It reminds me of the blue that is used a lot in Greece.

First order of business was breakfast/lunch. No prizes for guessing that Ken had the sensible lunch of soup and a sandwich whilst I had pancakes with fruit, yoghurt, and maple syrup - yum.

The craft fair was very sweet and I bought a lovely material heart to hang in the house. In the stairwell there was this very tall chair - what you can't tell because of the angle is that my feet are several inches off the floor. A rare occasion for me not to be able to touch the floor.

One of the shops that we walked past had a lovely Christmas display in their window.

We then went across to St Laurence Parish Church which is a huge building and quite modern for the area being built in the early 1900's. The graveyard shows that there were much older churches on the site as the graves date back to the early 1800's, and a lot have been laid up around the wall - probably because the new church took over part of the graveyard.

Church Door

Ken wondered whether this ladies parents originally wanted a boy as Donaldina is quite an unusual name.

I liked how on this headstone they've made the stone ripple like a real scroll.

Looking across the very crammed together headstones.

This headstone is quite intriguing as it just has the year and then, J - A = S. It's almost like something out of the Da Vinci Code.

Few more shots of the graveyard.

Beautiful flowers in a whiskey barrel at the front of the church.

 Very interesting garden at the rear of a large house which has been made into apartments. Lots of unusual features - tribal masks, shells, stones, headless bodies, and some plants.

Today we headed to Fochabers and the Baxters Factory and shopping village as Santa was arriving today - why he's here in November is even baffling to me. We missed Santa's arrival but we still enjoyed having a look around. This stunning trike below was there for people to have a look at and lots of kids were getting their photos taken on it. We had a chat to the owner as we admired all the really cool little details. For those that are wondering, it is a Rewaco trike, which is a German company.

The gear stick on the trike was a snake, and the eyes were lights that flashed at us.

I loved the paintwork, it's a bit like a ripped skin effect tattoo - the owner is letting everyone know that under everything he's a true Scotsman.

Note the mirrors in the shape of an iron cross, which is a famous Prussian and then German military medal.

The stag in front of the Baxters village had been turned into Rudolph for the event.

Craft stalls in the courtyard and just to annoy Ken they had Christmas songs blasting through speakers so he couldn't escape them.

Almost life size Santa at the entrance to the food hall - he's got such a lovely face and I love his shoes.

There were some great displays in the food hall - these tea tins are gorgeous.

As expected in a Baxters shop there was a lot of soup for sale.

Loved these biscuit tins - so cute.

This tin of fudge is beautiful - love this design with the snow and the moon and stars around a reindeer.

Merchandise displayed around an old fireplace.

Next stop was the whiskey shop. Part of the Christmas festivities was a treasure trail for children which involved finding elves in the various shops - and yes there was one in amongst the whiskey. The names of these two whiskeys really amused me as they don't sound very appetising.

I then wandered into the Christmas shop which was beautiful - I'm a sucker for Christmas decorations, and the more fairy lights there are the better.

The animals below were all moving as this was the entrance to santa's grotto where children were meeting the big man and getting a present from him. I was tempted to buy a ticket and queue to meet Santa but I thought I might get too many strange looks.

 After the fun of Christmas decorations we needed sustenance so we went into Fochabers and stopped at Eats and Treats for a late lunch (I should add here that whilst I was in the Christmas shop my beloved ate four donuts!!).

The shop is absolutely fabulous with very eclectic decorations, second hand books for a donation, and scrummy food.

After refueling we went to Spey Bay so that Bramble Jelly could have a run and the sun was starting to set at 3:30pm.

There was lots of driftwood on the stony beach so a good place to go if any craft projects come up that require wood. It took us ages to get Bramble to pose for this picture - she's not very good at staying and looking at us at the same time.

Some previous visitors to the bay had been very creative and created fish shapes with stones. There were also lots of lovely piles of stones around the grassed area.

So that was our weekend of exploring and getting more into the Christmas spirit. Here's a picture of the two new tree decorations I bought at Baxters - I thought it was quite fitting for us to have a cup of coffee and a cake on the tree.

Until next time, be good, stay safe, and have a fabulous week.

Pamela & Ken

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P.S: Final picture is Princess Cookie lounging on my dressing gown - she doesn't get to feature in the blog very often so she told me I had to put her in this post.