Highclere Castle/Downton Abbey

Our good friends Laura and Hugh came to stay with us at the weekend and it was great to catch up with them. Back in February we booked tickets to go and visit Highclere Castle as it is extremely popular and tickets sell out fast.


The weather was a little hit and miss to begin with but we really enjoyed wandering around the house, Laura and I nattering away constantly about Downton Abbey and various scenes from the TV series, while the boys trundled along behind us. By the time we got outside again to have a drink at the café and wander around the walled gardens the sun had reappeared and it was a beautiful day. The gardens were very pretty, smelled wonderful as everything was in flower and then we headed off for Sunday lunch at The Woodspeen, my favourite restaurant!


Here's a few photos from our visit to Highclere Castle

Em x

Football Mad Household - I'd Better Get Used To It!

It's football mad here in our household now that the Euros have started. I'm not a huge football fan to be honest, I much prefer rugby (a sport where real men don't dive on the floor with invisible injuries, not to mention the fact that rugby players have much better manners and respect the referee), however I do like watching international competitions and cheer England on (even if at times we can't bear to watch! - 1-0 up on Saturday and then we let Russia get an equaliser, oh England you were playing so well!).

I bought Barry a little limited edition Euros football on Friday. He is obsessed with any ball, tennis balls are his favourite, but this football was extremely exciting. It took all of 2-3 hours for him to puncture the ball but he's still happily playing with it (thankfully he hasn't tried to shred it apart).

Jack is off to France at the weekend with his best friend to go and watch England play Slovakia next week in the Euros. They're both really looking forward to visiting my parents for a couple of days and they're excited for the football, though the issue of fan violence has overshadowed it somewhat. It's hard to know what to believe with what you hear through the news but I think it's a mixture of various parties causing problems, rather than any country's fans or French police in particular. That's not me trying to say England fans are angels; lots go out there with the sole intent of drinking too much, causing trouble and that ends in violence, which makes me very angry for people like Jack and his friend who are driving out to watch a sport they enjoy and cheer on their country. Anyway, I won't get started on a rant, promise! I'm a bit worried about them going out there but hopefully they'll be safe. 

While Jack is out in France I've got a quiet weekend of crafting, crocheting and house decorating planned. I'm looking forward to a weekend on my own - I can leave yarn all over the sofa and craft supplies all over the dining table, he he! Plus I have Barry to keep me company and I'm hoping the weather will be kind for us to go for some nice long walks locally.

We had a very busy weekend in the front garden, transforming it from an overgrown untidy garden to a presentable, easy to maintain garden. Another blog post on that to follow shortly.

Have a good week all!

Em x

The Coles Wedding; My Best Friend Gets Married!

This is a long overdue post but I've spent the past week hardly moving from bed due to a severe case of tonsillitis. It's the most painful I've ever had it and it's completely knocked me for six. I've got no energy, but I've been on antibiotics for a few days now and they're beginning to do their job. My throat isn't so painful, just sore and easily aggravated by eating so I'm resting up as much as I can as I want to get back to work.

Firstly I'll go back to just before the bank holiday weekend when I headed to Suffolk where my best friend Jess lives, to help her set up for her and Robert's wedding. It was great fun, though extremely tiring for all involved but we had lots of giggles and I loved spending a good few days with my Bestie. Robert's a farmer and therefore the wedding theme was rustic/countryside. We did all the flower arranging too which was good fun, but not so much with hay fever which meant I spent more time helping to set things up in the marquee for the reception.

 

The Wedding Day

Jess, myself and one of the other bridesmaids went to a hotel in nearby Newmarket the night before the wedding. We all had manicures & pedicures before having dinner out and collapsing into our beds exhausted. Saturday morning dawned with not a cloud in the sky and the weather was beyond perfect for the wedding day, I like to think Jess' Mum Jan had something to do with that, to make the day extra special for her daughter. There had been a few tears the night before and the morning of, I wish so much that Jan was still with us and could be there to see her beautiful daughter get married, but I told Jess and completely believe that our loved ones are with us the whole time, so she'd have been there beside Jess giggling as we got our hair and make up done, as I helped Jess into her dress and as her Dad walked into the room to see Jess for the first time in her dress. I feel so honoured to have been a big part of the day and to see Jess so happy too. Jess bought each of the bridesmaids beautiful pearl bracelets which looked lovely beside our dainty bouquets of flowers. Jess's bouquet was extra special, with a photo of her mum attached so Jan would be walking down the aisle with Jess.

 

 

The bride, father of the bride, bridesmaids and flower girl travelled in style to the Church just along the road from where Jess and Robert live, in the form of a cute VW Campervan, meanwhile Robert went by Tractor!

 

 

The service in the church was lovely, it's a tiny little Church in Little Saxham, but it made the ceremony feel all the more special and intimate for Jess and Rob with their families. I was Maid of Honour and witness for Jess (I was so touched when she asked me about both roles) and I also looked after her little eight year old sister Millie (flower girl) who was extremely nervous about walking down the aisle, though Millie's Mum (Jess' stepmother) Trish was close by. Millie's so lovely and she held my hand tight which I think I appreciated just as much as she did! After the service it was great to see Jack who had been sat a few pews back from me, he looked super smart in his suit. We headed back to the reception venue where a vintage ice cream van served tasty ice creams and these were followed by Pimms and canapés. It was lovely to be able to sit outside the marquee for a while to enjoy the Pimms in the sunshine and see old friends from where Jess and I grew up. We were then seated in the marquee for a tasty main course of steak pie and mash, followed by a dessert of wedding cake - they had 3; a beautiful rustic sponge tower wedding cake, a tasty fruit cake made by Jess' mother in law and an Italian wedding cake too as Rene, Jess' mother in law is half Italian. The food was all delicious.

 

My place at the table with the handmade favours Jess had done which included a mini jar of homemade strawberry jam, a tea bag and a scone recipe card, cute!

 

Beautiful wedding cakes

 

The speeches were incredibly touching, especially Robert's who made special mention to Jan and the fact she wasn't with us. He had everyone in tears at this stage and it was special to raise a toast to Jan.

 

 

And then the reception began, with lots of music, dancing, evening sunshine outside and artisan wood fired pizzas for supper. Jess and I love a dance and were up on the dance floor a lot! It was an absolutely amazing day and I was so glad to be a part of it. Jess and Rob are now on their honeymoon in the Maldives and probably having a lovely time!

 

 

 

 

Jack and I

 

 

 

 

Back to my bed I go to continue to rest, hopefully I can shake the last of this tonsillitis away soon and feel better. I hate being poorly, I feel so low and sorry for myself. Not to mention to guilt of not being at work eating me up. Being happy and positive when you feel ill is hard!

 

Em x

 

 

Hen Do & Weekend With Jack's Parents

Morning All! I hope everyone is well and that you had a nice weekend.


Just a quick update on Barry for those wondering how the poorly patient is, he's doing much better. He has been home from the Vets for a week now and for the most part has been fine. There has been the odd bout of vomiting but nothing to be concerned about and he's getting his appetite back which is a big relief (he's so skinny!). He seems quiet still but I'm hoping that by the end of this week he'll be back to his normal bouncy self. Fingers crossed we don't have another flare up for a while.. He's starting to play with his toys again which is a very positive sign, we just want him back to normal!

On the rare occasions Barry wanders off and lets me out of his sight, he can be found sunbathing!

Making friends with Harvey the gorgeous Sausage Dog on Sunday! First time that Barry has met a dog smaller than him!

We headed back to Cambridgeshire for the weekend to spend some time with Jack's parents and for my best friend's Hen Do which was great fun, I think Jess really enjoyed herself. We had a lovely meal out in Browns in Cambridge followed by some drinks in a bar. I had a really nice time and it was great to see Jess having fun before her big day in two weeks' time! I had organised goodie bags for everyone attending the hen do and I had great fun buying bits and putting them all together. The other girls generously contributed and the glow stick bracelets and personalised badges proved the biggest hits. I sorted balloons too and Jess' lovely mother in law to be, Rene, made some beautiful flower arrangements for the table too - lots of the things Jess loves to make it special for her. The wedding is fast approaching and I know she's beginning to get quite nervous and stressed, it's also hard without her Mum here who suddenly passed away just before Christmas. So my intent is to make sure my bestie is well looked after and relaxed!

Hen Do Goodie Bags

Some of the bag's contents

Beautiful flower arrangement!

Jess and I

It was lovely spending some time with Jack's parents too. They own a windmill that sits on their property and it was National Mills Weekend so it was open to the public. It was great to see lots of people coming to visit the mill to find out about its history and have a nose inside. If anyone finds it of interest, here's a couple of website links:


Cattell's Mill Website: http://www.windmillweb.net/


National Mills Weekend: http://www.nationalmillsweekend.co.uk/pages_wind/willingham.htm




We've got a quieter week ahead of us which I'm relieved about as both Jack and I are tired after lots of travelling just recently. My brother is staying tonight as he's visiting a client near Reading tomorrow so that will be nice. They completed on their house purchase last Thursday so I'm looking forward to hearing all about their new home, with a possible visit planned for this coming weekend.


Other than that we will be making the most of pottering around in the garden and getting on with some DIY jobs in the house. I'm also dragging Jack out shopping on Saturday as he needs a suit for the wedding, so I think we'll head to Reading where there are plenty of shops.


Finally, just a few photos from my walk around Willingham while at Jack's Parents, everywhere looks so pretty even though everywhere stinks of pollen!!

Apple blossom

Lilac I believe? Please do correct me if I'm wrong!

Forget Me Nots back in our garden at home

Have a good week everyone!


Em x

Lovely Bank Holiday Weekend With Family

Morning all, I hope you've enjoyed a lovely bank holiday weekend where I think the weather was pretty good considering it was a bank holiday and they can be a total wash-out.

Beautiful sunshine on Overstrand Beach, Norfolk

We loaded up the car on Friday afternoon and set off to North Norfolk to spend the weekend with my parents, brother and his partner. Usually the car journey from home to Overstrand is around four hours, but it took us well over five hours due to the volume of bank holiday traffic on the roads. I think Jack (who was driving) was rather frustrated with the constant crawling towards the end, but we did eventually reach Cromer where we picked up fish and chips for everyone from Mary Jane's (best fish and chip shop ever!) and took it back to Mum and Dad's where we ate it alongside champagne (we're not posh people, I think Mum and Dad were just very pleased to have their 'babies' home so it called for a celebration!). My brother Simon and his partner Jenna had arrived prior to us so it was lovely to catch up with them too and hear all their good news about the house they're in the process of buying. They are first time buyers so all the stress and excitement is new to them, but so far the buying process seems to be going smoothly.


We spent Friday evening having a good catch up and then we helped my parents with various jobs on Saturday to help them get ready for the garden party they had planned for Sunday. The weather on Saturday and Sunday was amazing and we can't believe how lucky we were! We all had pink faces by the end of Saturday where we'd caught the sun and it was so nice to feel warmth instead of an icy breeze. My parent's garden is so pretty at the moment; full of bluebells, tulips, blossoms, Camellias and Rhododendrons too. Jenna and I took Barry for a walk on the beach in the afternoon and it was beautiful down there and great to see lots of people enjoying the beach and sunshine. We spent Saturday evening having competitions with the Shuffleboard. I'm not sure if any of you will have heard of it, but we're all rather addicted to it now and it's great fun to play! It's a wooden table game where you push wooden discs down it and the aim is to get them through the different holes at the end of the board. I'm not too good at it but then I'm not very good at many games (I'm a sore loser!)

Sunbathing Barry - his fur is growing back slowly but surely

Shuffleboard in the sunshine

Beautiful colours in Mum and Dad's garden

The weather on Sunday was even better than Saturday and it made the party extra special for my parents. They had invited a big group of friends to come for a bbq for the afternoon and I think they all had a great time. I helped Mum with the food and we put on quite a spread. Mum's lovely friends Annie and Jenny made amazing desserts too which went down very well along with Dad's home brewed beer. Their close friend Hugh even played a few songs on his guitar including one he used to sing to me when I was very little called "The baby went down the plug'ole", look it up, very funny (lyrics here, but there are different versions and no-one is sure of who wrote it originally)! I'm glad that Mum and Dad had such a nice time with their friends and that the weather was kind to us all too. Barry was such a good boy around all the people at the party and he was very popular.

It clouded over and got a bit chilly as 6pm approached

Jack and I got up nice and early on Monday morning to take Barry for a final walk along the beach. It was low tide so you can get around the ends of the groynes rather than having to climb over them nearer the back of the beach. A fairly deep pool is always left at the end of the groyne though and Barry completely mis-judged this and ended up disappearing right under the water much to his surprise! Luckily he loves water and is a good swimmer and shook himself off before setting off again down the beach at 100mph! We then said our goodbyes to my parents, Simon and Jenna and endured another 5+ hour journey home (this time I gave Jack a rest and I drove). We eventually made it home all very weary. Sadly Jack had to go into work for a few hours so I just snoozed on the sofa in between putting on a few washes. We have a very tired pooch after all the playing, beach exploring and attention this weekend and Barry looked mighty pleased last night when we said good night and went to bed, I think Barry was asleep before we even reached the top of the stairs!

We've got a busy week ahead of us in terms of jobs to do around the house; I emptied the loft of nearly all of its contents the other weekend in order to sort through everything, throw things, bag things up for charity shops and sell other things on EBay. I've kept it all in the guest bedroom and slowly been sorting through it but now my parents are coming to stay with us this weekend I had better get a move on and finish sorting it. We've laid more loft boards in the loft so you can now walk around more easily up there and as I'm slightly obsessed with being organised, I don't want anything to just be thrown back up there and instead want to know what is in each box. My parents are coming to stay this weekend for a few days as my Dad is kindly tiling our kitchen splash back area and also tiling the conservatory floor. So he'll have plenty to do but have Jack's help too. The weather looks good this week so I'll be able to move my plants out of the conservatory too, more space again!


Finally, just a photo of my two very happy tortoises on waking up this morning to find a whole windowsill box full of home grown lettuce for them to devour! I've tried to leave it growing as long as possible and had better get some more planted ready - I'd quite like to enjoy some too, but it is a lovely treat for Squirt and Lola!

Have a good week everyone!


Em x

Hen Do Spa Weekend, Bit Of Gardening And SNOW?!

I had a lovely weekend on my wonderful best friend's Hen Do; we went to Whittlebury Hall in Northamptonshire (near Silverstone). As Jess had been here before and said it was lovely it was decided a while back that we'd go here and she was right. It's a lovely hotel and spa and I enjoyed the relaxation and giggles with my bestie. The food was wonderful too - a bonus because I adore food (just in case you didn't already know!). I hope Jess had a good time anyway; only 5 weeks until the wedding now!

I had a dessert for once! I had paid for it after all and it was delicious!

I said goodbye to Jess and the other girls on Sunday morning after we had checked out and made the short journey home. A very excitable Barry was waiting for me, crying like mad when he saw me. He enjoyed his boys weekend with Jack but was pleased his Mummy had returned. I took him for a nice walk around Sunday lunchtime and then spent the afternoon in the garden with the dog and the tortoises.

I had a good tidy in the garden; edged the lawn where it is overgrowing into the borders and path, looks much tidier now. I gave my herbs a spruce up and planted a new Mint; I went with a Moroccan mint as it smells lovely, but I did almost come away with a Strawberry Mint - amazing smell! The Montana Clematis is covered in flower buds so will look beautiful in another couple of week's time I should think. I'm also pleased to see everything has already grown somewhat in my wildflower/Alpine bed. It's already serving its purpose of attracting the bees and I saw a butterfly yesterday too. Just a few more plants to go in and it will hopefully be a nice busy and colourful flower bed. I think the bulbs that have come up are Alliums but I can't honestly remember what I planted last year!

Finally, it's Tuesday afternoon as I write this post and we've had snow showers on and off all afternoon. What's happening with the weather?! Does it not know it's May next week and we're meant to be having a garden party at my parents with family and friends this Sunday. I hope it warms up a little anyway, I've got so many plants waiting to go outside that I almost did put outside on Sunday only to have a harsh frost last night. I had to scrape the car this morning before work! I know I've moaned already about hay fever but I would rather the temperatures were in double figures!


I'm very excited for our dinner tonight; I put a beef brisket joint into the slow cooker this morning before work. I made a spice mixture of cayenne pepper, black peppercorns, mustard seeds, cumin and paprika, all grinded down in my pestle and mortar. This was then mixed with brown sugar and rubbed all over the meat before I added it to the slow cooker with some beef stock. When I got home from work a short while ago the house smelled delicious and sweetly spicy. I'm going to have a go at making a homemade barbecue sauce and then I'll mix this with the beef once I've shredded it. We're then having it in tortilla wraps with salad and coleslaw, yum! I'll let you know how it goes anyway and try and take some photos if I haven't already devoured it all.


Have a good week everyone!


Em x

Dog Walks: Greenham Common, Newbury, West Berkshire

I'm afraid I stupidly forgot my camera and then my phone went flat half way around, but I did manage to get just one photo of Barry enjoying his walk at Greenham Common.

I used to come to Greenham Common a lot when we first moved to Newbury; I missed all of the RSPB nature reserves back in East Anglia and so I was thrilled to discover this place. Walk-wise it's very easy and flat with stone track all the way around (our walk was around 2.5 miles yesterday). The gorse looks so pretty at the moment and it's great to see so much wildlife (mainly birds, but on warmer days it's quite common to see snakes). I enjoyed a lovely walk here last night with my friend and Barry enjoyed running between all of the gorse. The dark rain clouds threatened above but luckily they held off right until the moment we got back in our cars to drive to my friend's house.


We enjoyed a nice evening catching up with our friends then and Barry was completely worn out having raced around Greenham Common at 100mph! He also didn't think much to going in and out of the car so frequently but he's definitely getting better, slowly but surely.


Not a great photo but here he is fast asleep in my arms, always has to be as near to me as possible in case I decide to leave him! He'd snuggled right in and looks like a little person here! My little limpet.

Em x

Send Us Your Country Blog Swap

I have taken part in my first blog swap and it was really good fun! I took part in the 'send us your country' blog swap via the lovely Creative Chaos who hosts lots of fun blog swaps.

My swap partner was Lyn and I was very excited to find she lives in Australia! I received the most beautiful gifts from Lyn in my swap box and really she has totally put me to shame on finding such wonderful presents related to her country. We exchanged a few emails prior to our swap to get an understanding of what we're both like, what we like spending our spare time doing etc. and I'm pleased we've also found each other on Instagram where Lyn posts some gorgeous photos of her quilting and patchwork projects, as well as her lovely dogs.

Lyn's gifts to me are so perfect for what I love doing; I received two brilliant cookie cutters, one in the shape of Australia and the other a cute little Koala, I can't wait to bake some biscuits with those soon, Shortbread in the shape of Australia will be a novelty! I'm pretty sure Jack will nab the pecan nuts too, they're his favourite (you must be psychic Lyn!)

I received a lovely yarn bag which will be perfect for holding my crochet hooks when I take my crochet on trips with me; we're off to my parents soon as the crochet hooks usually end up getting lost in the bottom of my handbag! I adore the soap too, it smells divine!

I'm obsessed with stationery bits like pens, keyrings etc. so I love these bits Lyn got me, the little boomerang magnet is now on our fridge!

The tea towel is such pretty colours along with the oven glove, bright and colourful is just what I love! I love the coasters too and have already made use of them in the conservatory where I discovered mugs keep getting left on the MDF of the tortoise's indoor run and leaving beautiful rings!

And last but by no means least, I am completely IN LOVE with the mug Lyn got me! I have found it almost impossible to find a nice Jack Russell mug here and have been looking for one and this is perfect! The Jack Russells on it are so cute and I love it! It's beautiful bone china too which I love, I'm a delicate drinker and not very good with big heavy mugs!




So to say I was pleased and impressed is an understatement, thank you so much Lyn for the wonderful thought you put into the presents I received from you, It arrived on Friday when I'd had a long tiring day and I was so touched by it all. I only hope the gifts I have sent Lyn are pleasing to her, though she's most definitely out-done with me with these beautiful items.




If you'd like to take part in a blog swap then do take a look at Creative Chaos' blog; her blog is wonderful (and always so colourful) anyway, and the blog swaps are such good fun. I feel like I've now made a friend in Lyn and definitely feel like part of the blogging community. I'd definitely like to take part in another one.




Em x