Winter woodland walking

Hasn't the sunshine been glorious this weekend? We thought so and made the most of it by traipsing up to the woods this afternoon. Chilly but so, so lovely. We found lots of little dens to explore and various muddy puddles to splash in although that was mainly J!

Hearts and flowers

It's a simple activity, I lay out a heart-shaped tray of ice cubes, a muffin tin and a tea towel. Together J and I pop the hearts out and he fills up the muffin tin, then puts them back in the heart tray. And then back again, making a couple of puddles on the floor!

And all four of us walked to the top of the hill at Blaise to find the folly open and so we walked up, up, up. Sadly, the photos from up there are rubbish... BUT once we got to the bottom, J went a-runnin' and noticed some yellow flowers. We naturally began collecting them, as you see. 

our weekend

I have been looking forward to the Balloon Fiesta for months. So, on Friday we got up at 5am (well, I was already up!), got everything ready, hit the road and arrived at Ashton Court at 6am. It was then we were told that the balloons weren't going up. Sad face. But that was before we'd paid the £15 parking charge. Happy face. Hence, if you'd have walked past Blaise Park at 7am, that's where you'd have found us. The climbing frame was all ours! Drinking hot chocolate and eating brioche; what a healthy start to the weekend!

And then Sunday was my parents' 40th wedding anniversary, in honour of which we all congregated in the Wye Valley, most of us wearing red. Here my niece hands out my auntie's excellent idea: DIY pavlova. Meringues, cream, raspberries. Assemble. Consume.

Hmm, that sounds like a really unhealthy weekend...!

September glimpses

September has been and gone. What did it hold for me?

A chance to get out some paint and make a chalkboard...

I introduced J to light play (roll on hanukkah!)...

We bought some cooking apples during a visit to the National Trust, which I transformed into apple chutney. The jury's still out on its success though...

J's wooden-themed treasure basket...

A lovely week in Pembrokeshire. Warren has begun imparting essential life skills; in this case, skimming stones...

Naturally J and I went on holiday with Warren, which also means that, naturally, it was boaty...

J started on solids over the summer and has somewhat overtaken the freezer...

Day 155/2

Sad story - we eagerly arrived at Dyrham Park, ready to enjoy a picnic and our National Trust passes, when the half term reality hit us. The overflow car park was far too overflowing and far too far away from the house, so I took some photos of the field, Warren took a photo of me taking a photo, J kept sleeping and off we went again!

Day 160/2

Happy birthday to me! Warren's (perfect and delightful) birthday idea was lunch at Jamie's Italian, so off we waded through the rain (on my summer birthday) and found a lovely spot in the restaurant while this precious bundle slept for two whole hours! My husband, my son. The best gifts.

Day 138/2

Here we are taking a little break on our drive back from the south coast. I fed J while Warren ate; Warren fed J while I ate.

Day 137/2

We're sharing a cottage with Warren's cousin and his family for the weekend. Nevertheless, J and I had his morning bottle and went out for an early walk; at home I feel the need to get dressed, clearly I don't feel that way on holiday!

Day 136/2

Today is Warren's mum's wedding ... J is catching 40 winks with his daddy just before the reception.

Day 58/2

A quick shot snapped through the rain looking up on the Severn Bridge.

Day 6/2

This was taken at the petrol station on our way back from visiting Warren's family; we've been given a buggy, a car seat and some clothes which is brilliant. Having a baby now seems very real in a whole new way!

Day 3/2

Driving back from Warren's mum this very dark and very rainy Boxing Day.

September

Here are some moments from my September...

Spending time with the scrumptious Z; playing with bubbles ...

 and making Lego cars.

W and I went walking, celebrating Rosh HaShana; eating apple dipped in honey as a symbol of the sweetness of God's blessing on the year to come.

We topped off the month by marking 3 months of marriage by sharing a fruity breakfast, exploring a Museum of Astronomy and eating lunch at a little place Helen showed me last year.

honeymoon in Cyprus

Well, we're back! We really enjoyed our lovely wedding, had a couple of days to recuperate before heading off to northern Cyprus for a week; it was gorgeous, just stunning.

 We spent a lot of time eating by the coast, here enjoying fish straight from the sea. Well, Warren did; I was slightly more in denial!

I took a little walk one afternoon around our hotel resort and found one of the cats mid-afternoon nap, then snapped a van as it zoomed past me on my way back.

This I loved: we caught the bus into Gilne, then - where is the timetable? - drawing-pinned to a tree, of course! 

 We visited Nicosia (or Lefkosa) the capital and discovered this iconic street with shuttered windows and scarved old women on chairs outside their doors. It was magical.

 .... of course, there was also a statue of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk.

I'll be honest, I'm still getting used to Warren's wedding ring...

Not a great photo, but I like it! Our feet caked in hot sand after we came out of the sea.

We went on a cruise one evening, out of Girne sailing into the sunset. Obviously this was taken before the sun went down, but not before I broke my lens - see bottom left ... Oops! 

Mezze, mezze, mezze by the sea ... Yum! And yum for halloumi, I say!

Visiting a 1000 year old abbey in Belapais, set high up in the mountains ... a pillar, some chairs and the English sockets that Warren kept noticing!

Although Cyprus is hot and dry there are delightful shocks of colour, often red or pink, but sometimes sunflowers (one of my three favourite flowers).

Not a great photo, but the sunrise taken through the bus window at 6am on our way to the airport. 

our wedding day

The other reason for my recent blog absence is that Warren and I are getting married. Today! So, here I am in the calm before the busy-ness of the day, taking a moment to pause and photograph the symbol of it all.

wood walks and camping

Sorry I've been away for so long - again! I moved at the beginning of June, still have boxes stacked up and - phew! - the internet is now sorted ... hurrah! But, just before I moved, it was time for F's birthday present; she wanted to go camping and wood-walking, so off we went...

The campsite was a stone's throw away from a sculpture trail through the woods...

The newly 9 year old F running into the distance!

 F's right, you never know when you'll need a Swiss Army Knife. She came prepared!

We laid a blanket for breakfast time and noticed some bees buzzing around behind us...

Then we went for another walk, during which F pulled out a contact lens case which I had apparently given to her last year. As we walked she started collecting flowers to keep in the case and I remembered all over again how much I love her! Happy birthday, F!