In bloom

 Sorry for the unexpected mini break. I didn't mean to be away quite so long. We had a lovely weekend. Saturday was spent catching up with old friends in London. It had been a while since I'd headed into the City. Having lived there for so long I had a bit of an anti-London thing going on for a while. I think I'm over that though now and am longing for another visit. We're actually so close, just half an hour on the train but with two little ones in tow it's not always so easy. In fact on Saturday we didn't go right to the centre but to West Hampstead. It was still lovely to feel that different buzzy atmosphere you get in London. My friend who was hosting the get together lives in a lovely flat down a pretty leafy street. She has no kids of her own but was brave enough to welcome 10 children ranging from 3 months to 7 years, plus 11 adults! It was such great fun and so good to all be together again. I've missed a few meet-ups recently due to baby producing but I hope to see them more often in future. 

Sunday was a chilly day but after the usual delicious roast cooked by lovely S we decided we all needed some fresh air. We're very lucky to have a beautiful park just a few minutes drive away. It is actually walkable but it's down a very steep hill and the walk back is hard work with a pram in tow. So we naughtily took the car and walked lots when we got there. The park eventually joins up with National Trust land so it's possible to walk for miles. 

The park is particularly lovely at the moment as all the daffodils are out. They look really stunning. 

There's also a great playground so little F had fun on the swings and slides watched with amusement and longing by Little H. 

 

Something that's been occupying me a lot at the moment is the garden. 

 

My father-in-law came over with his jet wash to clean the patio and I've been re-arranging pots. Just need to get them filled now!

There's still not a lot of colour but we're really winning the war on all the weeds so it's all looking very neat and tidy. But there is one area that is starting to look pretty and colourful. There were already dafs here and a pale pink primula so I decided to turn it into a little Spring area. My Mum bought me another deeper primula and some cowslips last week and I've moved some forget-me-knots that I found in the soon to be veg plot. 

I'm pleased with how it's looking so far but plan to have a lot more in here next Spring.

 

Throughout the rest of the garden there are definitely signs of life. The roses we were bought by my in-laws for Christmas from David Austin at starting to come into leaf and grow. I'm hoping for a splash of colour with these. Bit by bit we'll get there. It's a slow process this gardening lark(unless you've got pots of money to throw at it!) but I'm loving starting to see the small changes every day.

There's been a little bit of sewing going on lately in odd spare moments so hopefully I'll be back again soon to share that with you.

Have a lovely week.

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The last day of the holidays

It's been a funny Easter holiday. Hoping so much for lots of sunshine and warmth to get out into the garden and out and about. But instead getting quite a bit of rain and a LOT of cold!

We did have Little H's Christening which was a lovely family occasion, and the sun shone weakly. He was a very good boy and only cried for a moment or two when his Great Aunty splashed his head with water.(Lovely S's Aunty is a Vicar so was supposed to be splashing him with water!) 

We had a couple of afternoons pottering in the garden and started to do a good bit of clearing and planning but it was sooooo cold and not the most fun in the World. 

So yesterday, with the promise of higher temperatures and a little more sun in the forecast we decided that we had to get one great fun day out of the holidays so headed off to lovely Dorset, one of our favourite places in the World. Luckily it was a great deal warmer than of late but unfortunately the sun only peeped out for a few short spells. Still, it was lovely to be out and about in the fresh air. We walked along the sea front at Swanage then hopped on a steam train to Corfe Castle. I did take photos but due to the lack of sun they really do look a little drab. The ride on the train had been a much looked forward to treat as little F is a huge Thomas fan but it nearly turned into a disaster as the sight of the huge engine coming into the platform was rather too scary for him. Luckily we managed to calm him down and once the train got going all was well and he loved it.

We had a lovely potter around the village of Corfe Castle and ate yummy pasties while being rained on for just a moment or two! Then it was back on the train to Swanage and into the car again to drive up to the lovely village of Worth Matravers. We normally camp just a mile or two from this pretty village so it's one of our favourite spots. We had a little drink in a favourite pub which has stunning sea views then wandered down the village green which was looking lovely despite the dullness of the day. Don't you just love the red phone box and the cute duck house. There was no sign of the ducks so either they were tucked away inside or have gone away to nest elsewhere. 

At the bottom of the green just behind the phone box there is a sweet little memorial garden that was bursting with spring colour. I couldn't stop snapping away at the pretty things that gave me hope the Spring is just about here. 

Finally we headed back to Swanage and went for the obligatory fish and chips. Unfortunately by this time it really was rather chilly so we sat on one of the little tables inside the chippy to eat, although still out of the paper of course. Poor Little H sat in his buggy looking longingly at the three of us tucking into our yummy fish and chips. I can't believe he will be five months at the end of this week and I think the time has nearly come to try some solids as he constantly looks longingly at what we're eating!

Finally it was back into the car for the ride back home. Little H was a little unsettled so in order to save Lovely S's sanity by not having to drive with a screaming child in the back, I squeezed in the middle at the back between my two lovely boys. It wasn't long before the sea air worked it's magic and I had two sleepy heads either side of me. 

So with the holidays behind us I'm feeling refreshed and ready to get back into our normal routine. Often I feel a little down when Lovely S goes back to work after the holidays but with the promise of Spring and Summer I don't feel so bad. I don't mind admitting that these last few months did at times make me feel very down in the dumps. Terrible winters and new babies do not mix well! But as I sit here now, I have windows and the back door thrown open and I can hear birds singing. I've had a row of washing on the line this morning and without getting boring on the subject(or getting into too much yucky detail) it has done wonders for all the baby washing. Washing dried on the line smells so wonderful don't you think?

Hope the Spring has arrived where you are. 

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