We are a bit behind the glorious blooming I saw on my recent trip back to the country of my birth where spring showing her glory in full force with blossom, greenery and flowers abound all basking in glorious sunshine. Britain was experiencing something of a heatwave and during my 10-day visit, I was lucky enough to experience almost constant sunshine and temperatures in the 20s. I even got sunburnt (with factor 30 suncream on) and ended up peeling...not even the Caribbean at Christmas did that to me!!I had a super visit back to Leeds and stayed with my parents in their house/construction zone. As you may recall, my parent's home was flooded at Christmas and they are now emerging from four months of building and decorating work as the entire house has had to be renovated and put right. It's not quite there yet but the signs are certainly there that it is nearing completion with some rooms almost complete. Tiles and wallpaper are now going up on the walls. It's going to be great when it's all finished and I certainly loved my new guest room sleeping soundly in the new bed.
Unfortunately, my parents were both quite ill with a nasty cough/cold, probably not aided by the dust, but they were in good spirits and it was lovely to spend some quality time with them. Mum and I had a couple of good days out shopping and lunching in Leeds and Harrogate. We enjoyed our homage to Bettys Tea Rooms and spent a lovely afternoon at the Turkish baths in Harrogate Spa. 
I also went along with my dad to his Photographic Society evening about China and, together, we all enjoyed a family night out at Jamie Oliver's Italian restaurant that has now opened in Leeds.During the week, it was great to also catch up with various friends as we sampled the pubs, restaurants and fishy manicure parlours of Leeds and Tewkesbury. A highlight for me was spending an afternoon in the sunshine with my gorgeous godson and his family - he, along with all my friend's kids, is growing up fast! [Tip: Turn speakers on]
The main reason for heading back to England this Easter was to be there to celebrate my granny's 90th birthday. We had a really nice meal at a hotel in Ilkley, on the moor overlooking the Yorkshire countryside. The sun shone and is was nice to be able to share in this special occasion.I headed back to Toronto with bulging suitcases, mainly due to the large quantity of clothes and shoes that I'd purchased. I got charged fifty pounds excess but I like to think I'd been doing my bit to aid the British economy!
The Brit-themed month has continued to reign large with Friday's Royal Wedding being broadcast in almost every form of media. I have to admit to rolling out of bed at 5:30am to watch the proceedings...kind of like an annoying scratch I had to itch! Here 'in the colonies', we had to go to work though - no public holiday for us, which I think is most unfair as we also pay taxes towards the royal family's upkeep. Canadians seemed to be on a par for the level of excitement (or not) about the whole event and I was amused by a colleague who turned up to work in a full wedding outfit complete with fascinator!
I used the event as an excuse to have a tongue-in-cheek Royal Aftermath Tea Party for my female friends (ladies-in-waiting). It was a lot of fun and we all ate and drank for Canada and the UK! The food was all royal themed with Coronation chicken, Welsh cakes, Prince William's chocolate biscuit cakes, red velvet cupcakes, lady's (ring) finger tiramisu, jewel salad, BuckingHAM sandwiches, Eton Mess and Duchy shortbread all on the menu. There was a game of pin-the-tail-on-the-corgi and my ladies-in-waiting were all presented with gold crowns to wear. Stella, our honorary corgi, even came with her pearls and hat on! As my friend Darlene commented, there were "more union jacks than a crumpet factory has crumpets," and, all in all, it was a right royal knees up! [Tip: Turn speakers on]
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