A round up

It's been a busy few weeks since the start of February. And here we are already halfway through March. I wish I could tell you I had been immersed in some fabulous creative activities but alas for the most part it was a slog of redecorating, putting Ikea wardrobes together and other such exciting pursuits. 

There were some highlights.

Some welcome and wonderful early Spring Sunshine. As the sun gets higher it means my washing has a chance of actually drying instead of hanging lifeless in the shade. This makes me feel enormously happy. Probably more than I should admit in public.

I rediscovered my bread making mojo last week. Some simple white bread rolls along with bacon and cheese rolls courtesy of BBC Good Food and Paul Hollywood

There was a new line in silly hats.

A beautiful cake just for me made by my mum <3

To make myself feel less old I chose to go visit things that are significantly older than I am.

Old Wardour Castle where hubby pretended to be Robin of Loxley and I pretended to be Maid Marian and re-enact scenes from Robin Hood Prince of Thieves.

You don't get much older than this in the UK. We didn't sadly visit the new exhibition (the pups had their fill of giant stones by this point) but I must say the timed ticketing worked well. Obviously we weren't the only ones there but it wasn't heaving. Even managed to bump into a foreign gentleman who seeing me in my rather charming hat (Pup2 and the man in the ticket office insisted I wear it everywhere) delighted in telling me it was also his 40th that day too. Clearly he did OK as he got a foreign holiday for his birthday whereas I got a ride in the car for an hour to Salisbury Plain.....

And finally KC aka Mia the Killer Cat sums up how I feel right now, tired enough to sleep on the bed using a laptop bag as a pillow. And I am sure turning 40 has nothing to do with it at all ;)

Looking forward to Easter and slowing down the pace of life a little. 

Winter Sunshine

Not the jetting off to a hot climate while the Northern hemisphere shivers under a cold snap sort of winter sunshine......I mean lovely, gorgeous sunshine in Winter.
It was that lull between Christmas and New Year and the post festive lethargy was getting on my nerves along with a smidge of cabin fever. There were some protests about going for a WALK but I promptly countered with the promise of a flask of hot chocolate to take with us. It would appear that hot chocolate can be a bit of a deal breaker in these situations.
I already had a destination in mind and it was the perfect day for it.

The Ridgeway. Supposedly Britain's oldest road.

We weren't the only people out taking advantage of the fine weather.

The recent cold spell meant lots of frozen puddles waiting to be smashed.

It stretches for miles over the downs.

The perfect spot to linger and drink in the views

Although the sun was out visibility was quite hazy. In the very far, far distance is the Lansdowne Monument at Cherhill.

The sky was an amazing shade of blue.

I felt positively rejuvinated. Perfect winter sunshine.

Some Enchanted Evening

Pre kids one of our Christmas traditions was to go to the Symphony Hall as a family and go to a Christmas concert. As with many things once kids were on the scene family traditions changed so this year we decided to mark the festive season by going to The Enchanted Trail at Westonbirt.

A tree. And its green ;)

Although most of the trees weren't decorated with actual fairy lights like you would expect the uplighting definitely added a nice dimension

Really no idea what this was but it looked pretty....

Ghostly looking Acer

A thousand pictures later and I finally captured the shot I wanted. How did we cope pre digital cameras?!

Yes. Giant balls of possibly polystyrene. They looked better in the flesh. 

New Year resolution no. 1: read camera instructions and learn how to do manual exposure

A fairy blowing smoke filled bubbles. Whats not to like?

Bolts of electricity. Which were handily powered by kids riding stationary mountain bikes. Wonder if I can get that set up for my home.....

I know these are not technically trees but they are my favourite type of lights. Multicoloured. Bright. Simple spiral shape. Magic.

At the end of the trail there were tables upon tables of oranges, cloves and ribbon with which to make your own pomander. Perfect end to a festive walk. 

Smooth Christmas is back on my DAB radio this year. Half the presents are wrapped. Cards have been written (although not technically posted yet). Turkey has been ordered. Christmas I am ready for you :)

365 Days

A year ago today my entire world upped sticks and moved 90 miles south. That day I stood in the kitchen of my old home and wept. I left behind family, friends, familiarity and I was excited and shit scared in equal measure.

So what has the last 12 months been like?
If I am honest it's been the best of times and the worst of times.
I feel like I've come home. Of course I don't live in a rural village (more's the pity) but compared to the 'Burbs in the West Midlands it sure feels like it. The scenery is stunning, the people so friendly and best of all no scrap metal men endlessly trawling the streets blaring their hideous wobbly tape recordings of an unintelligible call.
However the move has come at a price and it's been a bit of a rocky road for the pups; trying to break into established relationships at a new school and adjusting to complete new surroundings. It's been a steep learning curve for us with Pup1's autism and dealing with his behaviour but hoping a recent purchase of a kick dummy will give Pup1 a target for his frustrations.

 Life has recently thrown us a mahoosive curve ball (I know it's a baseball term but it's such a good analogy) which are we are picking ourselves off the floor from. So the roller coaster continues but I wouldn't have it anywhere else. Where else would I get the joy of sitting inside St Michaels Chapel ontop of Glastonbury Tor watching Luna's ears flap in the breeze :)

Here's to the next 365 days and whatever they will bring :)

Canal Mania!

I loved history at school. However when I did my GCSE's the Industrial Revolution was far less exciting and glamorous as the word revolution would suggest. Townshends Four Course Rotation and Abraham Darby I, II and III. And then there were canals and canal building which at the time seemed boring as hell. Lets be honest its hard to get fired up about something that, back in its day, was probably the equivalent of the brand new M1 being built.


Over the last few months I have been exploring the local canal network here and I am learning a greater appreciation for canals outside their decline as a transport network.

There is a thriving community living on the water. Not all the boats admittedly are in great repair but some of them have some gorgeous features about them :)

Some people are fantastically inventive. This is the first, fully towed garden I've ever seen. Genius.

The wildlife :)

A mixture of different pasts co-existing together. For some reason I have a thing for WWII pill boxes and I am lucky that Wiltshire have plenty. There are two alone on this short stretch of canal.

The little helpful details. Brick footings to help you push. And boy do you need it those lock gates are heavy! (we assisted a lady that day who was doing her second ever lock!)

The tranquility. A slow pace of life. Sounds very enticing although I am not sure I am cut out for minimalist living in a tiny narrow space.

If you're like me and aren't quite lucky enough to live right in the sticks....a home on the water can give you some amazing views :)

And what would life in the UK be like without the ubiquitous pub :) Nice to see even life on the canal means you don't miss out on your favourite tipple (J2O that day) and a pigs ear for the dog.

Long may canal mania live on :)

It's all in the details.

When we mooched in Corsham a couple of weeks ago I got to indulge in my favourite pastime of drooling over old buildings. I (not so) secretly yearn to live in an ancient cottage or Georgian house. Sadly my house (as lovely as it is) is about a decade old. Which means I have to look on with a tinge of envy at other peoples who do live in them.

Grandeur. Without being too OTT.

 

I love the quirkiness :)

 

I love this. My pups would not for fear of all the heinous beasties that might lurk within the bush and I myself am far to lazy to maintain something like this. But I still like it.

 

This would do me nicely.

 

But best of all was this door.

Such a fabulous colour. The majestic door knocker (I mean its a lion for goodness sakes) and lovely shiny letter box.

The stone work. The windows. For some reason modern housing just lacks that finesse that these gorgeous old buildings hold.

It's all in the details for me :)



 

 

 

 

 

Half Term

Another half term draws to a close. This week all redecoration and reloction plans were suspended and myself and the pups took a much needed breather. The week has been gloriously full of the following.

The Circle

 

The Royal Crescent

 

 

All that glitters........(is gold paint)

 

 

Endless swooning at gorgeous Georgian architecture

 

 

Lots of science courtesy of @Bristol

 

 

 

Autumn weather strikes and trees go to sleep

 

 

Experimenting with making stained "glass" windows. I knew there was a reason I kept those old sweetie wrappers :)

 

A tiring but happy week had by all.

 

And in more exciting news Smooth Radio Xmas on my DAB is back on the airwaves so I can indulge my festive urges to my hearts content :)