Attic24

Dorset :: a flying visit

Hello, hello my lovelies! Good to be back in the Attic after an unexpectedly long break, it's been half term week for us here which has meant my time has been taken up with the Littlies, oh and a home-from-work husband too. We've been quite lazy actually, staying close to home and using the time to recharge a little. We've all five of us had the same head cold, I'm the last one to get it so am just starting out but the others have been in full snot-mode all week.

But this post isn't about germs or staying home, it's about scooting up into the wide blue yonder and gazing at the clouds!

Yes, I've been away again, snook away by myself to spend a few days with my parents, much as I did in July. I booked my flight a few months ago so I've had the pleasure of looking forward to it as the weeks have passed and Summer has slipped into Autumn.

I absolutely love to travel by plane, it never fails to thrill me. The sky was beautifully clear when I flew last weekend, allowing me to spend the entire hour gazing out of the window watching the changing landscape unfolding below.

Travelling by myself is a real pleasure, it always feels like so much more than simply getting from A to B. I love the feeling of lightness and freedom it brings, stepping off the plane, walking to the nearby train station, knowing that ahead of me lies ninety minutes of pure Time Out. A time to sit quietly, sip a latté and gaze at the passing landscape. Maybe a weeny bit of hooky, or a chapter of a book. Or maybe just allowing time to drift in and out of thoughts and memories.

The train takes me to Dorchester, the "County Town" of Dorset where I indulge in some minor retail therapy and treat myself to a new necklace in the sale at a favourite shop. From Dorchester I ride by bus through the familiar patchwork of fields, waiting for the exact point when I can finally see the sea, just like I did as a child. What an enjoyable four-part journey :: car, plane, train and bus.

The following morning I wake to the sound of seagulls overhead. It's such a novel sensation to wake of ones own accord, I am so used to being pulled out of my dream-sleep by Little B calling me "Mama! Mama! Mama!" 

Mid morning and I set out walking, through Bridport town and out across the green fields to the coast. I'm headed for the harbour of course, the place I am always pulled to on any first-morning-in-Dorset. 

It's very windy at the coast, great gusts of wind whip around the small harbour, tossing the boats to and fro on the water. The sky is heavy and grey. But oh my, it is completely deeeeeeeeeeeelicious. It is wild and windy and salty and fresh and invigorating, the best Sunday morning tonic e-v-e-r. 

I am heading to my favourite cafe to meet with family, to chit and chat over coffee and a bite to eat. This is only the second time I've been to this cafe, but it has really crept into my heart and taken hold. I love love love it here. I love that the condiments are kept in bright plastic seaside buckets. I love the light and airy decor, the strings of fabric bunting, the sweet artwork on the walls, the bright splashes of vibrant colour. And I love that on this day there is an incredible bucket of fresh scarlet amaryllis sitting on the counter. It's just my kind of place, the cafe of my dreams.

We are a tad too late for the breakfast menu, so we order lunch :: I go for "griddled halloumi and roasted butternut squash skewers". I am with my family :: my Dad and his partner, my Mum and her partner, and they are quite stunned when I get out my camera and photograph my lunch before eating it. But, I say, just look at it! It's so good to look at!! The colours are stunning - golden orange and vibrant green against red and white checks! And besides, I really want to remember this delicious lunch and the best way I know of remembering is to take a photograph. I forget sometimes what an oddity it is to record life in this way. Oh, and in case you were wondering, lunch was deeeeeelicious.

After lunch we head out to take a wild and windy walk along the pier. My-my, it is AWeSoMe to experience the sea in high winds. It smashes and crashes onto the shingle beach, the very noise of it is loud and energetic and fantastic.

We venture to the very end of the pier and prepare to get a little wet as the waves splash up and over. The feel of salty sea spray on my face and the taste of it in the air is something I vividly remember from childhood. It fills me with joy, truly it does.

Evidence of the local fishing industry is piled high around the harbour.......

......and I love to see all this paraphanalia here, love to be reminded that West Bay is still an honest, working harbour at heart.

This is my Mum's cottage beside the river, and I had the pleasure of staying the night here last Sunday. When I'm down in Dorset with the rest of the family in tow it's not possible for us to sleep here as it's waaay too small. But on my own I was able to stay in the small single bedroom, and I really appreciated the quality time spent with my Mum. She is remarkably well and in good spirits these days, so hard to believe that we almost lost her in June.

Would you like to have a little peek around my Mum's place? It's an incredible little patch of rural England, I'm sure you'll love it.

See in the picture above, the painted door in the old stone wall there? Well that's actually the entrance to a secret little bit of the garden, let's go through.........

...........this is a weeny little secret garden with a small patch of grass  and a beautiful view over the river. To the left is the log store, and in front is Grandpa B's shed which he built himself entirely from recycled materials. 

To the back door now, this is where you come into the cottage.......

......you have to walk through this old lean-to before entering the cottage kitchen. I adore this working part of the cottage, love that Mum has all sorts of plants growing away in here including an olive tree and a climbing clematis which scrambles right up and across the roof.

This is a corner of the small sitting room, the walls of the cottage are very thick making for deep, cosy windowsills.

And this is the magnificent old Esse multi fuel stove. There's no central heating in the cottage, and being so close to the river makes it prone to feel cold so the stove is often lit, even in summer. It's the cosiest feeling to sit curled up on the sofa in front of the stove with a hot cuppa to hand. Add in a bit of hooky and it reaches high on my Pleasure-o-meter.

This is the little bedroom window looking out onto the field beside the river. Such a lush green view to wake up to, and I adore those curly-wurly old window latches.

I slept so soundly that night, cosied up in the little single bed with a hot water bottle in it's crocheted granny-square cover. Lovely memories.

I was away from the Attic for three nights, it was so very good of J to suggest that I take this wee break away to see my folks. He is a such a sweetheart. In some ways the time whizzed by, but in other ways it felt like I'd been away for ages. I alternated between revelling in my freedom and missing the children like mad.

When the time came, I enjoyed travelling home, I really did. J and the Little Peeps came to meet me from the airport, and I got the distinct feeling that I'd been desperately missed. I was bowled over with so many hugs and cuddles, it made me feel great!

Ahhhh I'm one Lucky Lady I'd say, such a great little family I have.

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Dorset :: August 2011

DAY 1 weather report :: heavy grey skies, chilly and blustery.

We awoke to very unsummery weather on the first day of our Dorset holiday. Nevertheless, we still made our customary first-morning-of-the-holiday visit to the sea.

We wrapped up warm and went for a bracing walk out along the pier. Well that's to say that J and I walked. The Little Peeps did speedy things on their scooters and Little B ran his little legs off.

We stood at the end of the pier and watched as a fishing boat sailed into harbour over the choppy grey sea with a cloud of seagulls following in it's wake. It felt quite exciting to witness real bonafide fisherman in action.

I must have walked around this little harbour a gazillion times in my lifetime, and it never, ever, ever fails to lift my spirits. As a child it was all about the taste of mint choc chip icecream. As an adult it's all about the colour of the boats. This little turquoise boat (my Ultimate Favorite Colour of All Time) with it's pinky orange buoys made me swoon.

DAY 2 weather report :: a brighter sky but still quite chilly and breezy.

We headed out to Stonebarrow Hill to view the views and eat a picnic lunch.

The Little People went off exploring nearby and came running back to tell us about the wonderful trees they had found to climb. We followed them into the woods and watched as they climbed and nested themselves proudly in the branches.

Through the woods and out the other side was a huge bramble patch with a narrow pathway running through it. The blackberries were just coming ripe and as they were growing near to the ground they were easily picked by small hands.

We filled a tin mug with glossy black fruits, a small but very delicious harvest.

I love coastal views so much, to me they are the best kind of views imaginable. The colours of sea-meeting-sky does wonderful things to my inner self. Kind of a schizophrenic mixture of complete calm coupled with crazy excitement. And then there is the smell of salty fresh air, the feeling that one's body is being filled to the brim with something intoxicating and wholesome and good.

DAY 3  weather report :: rain, rain and more rain. Buckets of it threw down from leaden skies in a torrential downpour.

Our planned beach picnic with family was cancelled. We set ourselves up for a day of indoor recreation.

My indoor activity of choice is pretty obvious. I sat in my jammies on the bed listening to the rain hammering against the window and lost myself in soothing sea-coloured ripples. The morning was not exactly peaceful (the Little People were at Full Volume for some reason) and there was a slight tense, cooped up kind of  stress-vibe hanging about the place but it wasn't too bad.

Miraculously, the weather made an incredible about turn by the end of the morning and we hastily re-scheduled our beachy picnic plans. It was still really windy mind you, but our trusty windbreak was pulled out of the car and pressed into service. We hunkered down behind it and enjoyed a really lovely outdoor lunch.

High Winds make High Seas, and the waves came crashing into shore.

We were here with my sister-in-law and two nephews who love the sea as much as we do. We sat for a long while as near to the water as we could get, enjoying the salty sea spray making our faces wet. Little B absolutely loved it. He kept laughing to himself every time a wave crashed in. He picked up handfuls of shingle and hurled it at the sea. It was a really lovely, simple, pleasurable way to spend an afternoon.

DAY 4 weather report :: heavy rain through the night, a day of unpredictable sunshine and showers.

The morning of day 4 was spent in Bridport. Visiting the toy shop in Bridport is now a holiday ritual of ours, the LP get very over excited with this particular bit of our Dorset holidays. This year was no exception. We also had Little B to contend with this year though, and to say he loved the toyshop would be a huge understatement. He went completely crazy over an extensive display of plastic ride-on vehicles, he absolutely couldn't believe his little eyes. Unfortunately when we had to remove him from the display it caused a humongous meltdown. It was impressive, the full works. It would've been quite stressy/embarrassing if it hadn't been so funny. His little body was so full of indignant rage at being physically removed from a source of pleasure, he was rigid with anger. Poor wee mite. How unfair to have such killjoy parents.

After a very lovely pub lunch with family, Little Lady and I skipped off together to visit Bridport Arts Centre to see a touring exhibition. As you can see, it was an exhibition of the Knitty Variety, and it was completely fabulous!! I took lots of pictures so will write about it in a separate post I think, it deserves it's own write-up.

Mid afternoon on day 4 and the weather was suddenly incredible. Warm, bright, sunny and perfectly summerish. We headed down to West Bay to meet with my sister-in-law and two nephews for a spot of crabbing.

Oddly enough we have never thought to try our hand at crabbing before, but my sis-in-law had it all in hand. She had The Kit. And she knew just where to go and what to do with it.

The kit consists of a crabbing net on a long line and some very stinky dead sealife to act as bait. You choose your spot and lower the net carefully over the harbour wall until it touches the sandy bottom and you wait. You wait until you think you'll burst with impatience. Then you haul the net up and hope for A Successful Catch.

A Successful Catch causes much squealing and cheering, it's surprisingly exciting to catch a crab. After The Catch you then have to transfer the crab from the net to a clear crabbing bucket. You then get to watch the crab Close Up. And you also get to show it off to many passers by who all want to share your Successful Catch with you.

You repeat this process as many times as you need to in order to satisfy four Little People who all want to have a go at hauling in a Successful Catch. Seven crabs were caught in all, seven crabs were admired, and seven crabs were released back into the harbour to enjoy the rest of their day.

After all the excitement of the crabbing experience we headed further round the harbour for icecream/cappuccino refreshments. You can see how stormy the sky still looks in the distance, I think we were really lucky with our patch of summer sunshine on this day.

DAY 5 weather report:: blue skies with sunshine, breezy winds and skuddy clouds.

In the morning we drove up to one of our much-loved high up places to take in the expansive skies and breathe in the fresh country air.

Driving down from the High Hill I spotted these gorgeous flowers. They were sitting in a jug on a table outside a picturesque thatched cottage so I yelled at J to swing the car in to the hedge, then leapt out to investigate. There were bags of green beans, plums and apples for sale, as well as these beautiful garden flowers. I was totally bowled over by them and bought all three bunches :: orange and pink dahlias and a bunch of sweet peas. I popped the required £2.40 into the jam jar by way of payment and skipped back to the car with a broad grin on my face. As we were on the way to visit my Mum, I gave the sweet peas to her and kept the dahlias for myself.

This is my Mum's cottage, a simple two-up-two-down with an abundant front garden. My poor Mum was complaining at the state of it, that due to her spell in hospital it had all gone "to wrack and ruin", but to me it looked absolutely beautiful.

The cottage sits in an idyllic spot beside a small river where trout jump. We like it here. A lot. We ate a lovely lunch of soup and crusty bread, followed by mugs of tea and Dorset shortbread. Have to say it was completely wonderful to find my Mum looking so well and in such good spirits. She's making a remarkable recovery and spending time with her this holiday was very positive, happy and heart-lifting. So different to the feelings that dogged me through the early summer when she was so dreadfully close to slipping away. Thank goodness. Thank goodness.

Later that afternoon we headed back to the coast to meet with my brother and his family at the campsite they were staying at. What a campsite it is, it's hhhhhhhhhhhhhuge. Mahooosive. Hundreds and hundreds of tents. Hoards of people, kids, dogs. It was ever so slightly mental in my opinion. The location though is unbeatable, it has access to a lovely unspoilt stretch of Chesil Beach. More big crashing waves and salty air to enjoy, followed by a dinner of chips at "The Jurassic Fun Centre". Mmmmmm.

DAY 6 weather report :: an amazing sunrise promising a fine summers day ahead.

Our last day, and we managed to rally a whole family get together. Eight adults and five children. 10.30am at The Watch House cafe on East Beach for coffee and cake.

Thanks to Joey who's lovely blog I recently discovered, I learnt that this once rather shabby and fairly rubbish cafe has now been taken over by the same folks who have The Hive at Burton which I adore. What a vast improvement! Fresh and delicious coffee, homemade cakes and an inspiring food menu. Not to mention the location (perfect for the LP to play in the shingle while the adults sit on the terrace).

The interior is simple, fresh and charming. Large unadorned windows, whitewashed walls with blue tongue and groove below, checked table cloths, wooden chairs, strings of colourful fabric bunting and some delightful artwork on the walls (Joey it looked wonderful!).

And the view from the terrace over the top of a frothy cappuccino??? Fabulous of course.

We decamped from the cafe to the pub (with a spot of crabbing in between) and enjoyed a wonderful family lunch. There's my lunch look :: a heap of crispy whitebait served with warm granary bread, homemade tartare sauce and a salad. A glass of chilled white wine to the side. It was deeeeeeeelish.

So that about sums up our time away....it looks and sounds delightful when I see the images and let the words flow. And mostly it was really good, yes it was.

There were a number of quite stressful times though, most of which revolved around Little B. At 20 months old it can be quite difficult to accommodate him easily in certain situations ie, lengthy cafe/pub sessions where he understandably gets bored. It was also hard work spending time at other peoples houses where they are not used to having small children about the place. Houses with a huge number of precious/breakable objects all at Little B's level. It was blooming hard work keeping a check on what he was up to in this sort of environment. He broke a few things, smashed a plate, ripped a book. You get the picture.

J found it all very trying and it led to a few heated discussions about the nature of our family holidays these days where there is no time to actually r-e-l-a-x. What can you say to that? He is quite right in many ways, taking three young children on holiday IS hard work. It's not relaxing. It's tiring and stressful at times. But maybe he's losing sight of the good things they bring to the proceedings. Their excitement, enthusiasm, zest for life, energy and discovery that is such a joy to be a part of. Maybe I'm just more used to the limitations and frustrations of daily life spent with Little Peeps. Maybe I'm just more accepting of the Way It Is. Who knows.

Ah well. I'm not wishing to sound down hearted about the holiday. It was lovely to spend time with my family, and that for me was the most important reason for being there. To reconnect with loved ones and to touch base with a place that holds my heart. I'm already looking forward to next time.

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Sea and Sky

We are away down to Dorset today to the gaze at the blues of sea and sky.

To say I'm looking forward to it is an almighty understatement, I've been feeling inexplicably homesick of late for this little corner of the world that holds my heart.

I absolutely cannot WAIT to breathe in these coastal colours, to reconnect with dearly familiar places and faces.

Sending you all lots of love wherever you are in the World, I hope you enjoy a fabulous week full of happiness, laughter and good times with those you love.

See you soon my lovelies ♥

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Late Summer Landscape

A Sunday evening post-dinner walk to enjoy the late summer landscape.

First photo 6.26pm.

Last photo 7.09pm.

Forty three minutes of late summer evening sun, mild breezes, gentle exercise, beautiful vistas.

Forty three minutes of happy, chattery, laughter-filled family time.

Happy days.

♥

Tales from Connievan :: Lakeland Coast

Do you remember us taking Connievan to stay at "Bunnyland" last year? After that wonderful holiday we became enchanted with this type of small, rural caravan site. Known as "Certificated Sites" they are limited to a maximum of five caravans, with a sprinkling of tents also allowed. They have to provide cold running water and waste water disposal facilities, and many also provide electricity, but that is usually the extent of the facilities on offer. The idea is that you experience a "get away from it all" feeling in a beautiful rural location.

There are more than 1200 CS sites in the UK, and choosing a Good One is tough work, it really is. The sites are listed in a comprehensive directory, in tiny print with no pictures. You have to basically have a rough idea of your destination/area, then spend some time scrutinising the listings to work out whether the place will suit. I delegate this job to J, place the directory firmly in his capable hands and instruct him to Choose a Good One. 

So at the end of May/beginning of June we had a weeks holiday from school/work and took a little jolly up country with Connievan. J selected this site for us (and blow me, it took him all of two minutes to do it) and we had high hopes for it. After all, it had a lot to live up to after the Bunnyland experience.

It took us about 90 minutes to get there with Connievan, the roads getting smaller and more countrified the closer we got. Finally we turned off down this narrow track leading to Templands Farm, to see where we would be living for the next five days.

It was absolutely delightful. A down to earth, unpretentious working farm surrounded by glorious open countryside, with a spacious field for the caravans and an old stone outbuilding which contained a toilet and a rather rustic shower room. But more than anything else there was fresh air, expansive green views and the intoxicating feeling of open space. So different from the built-up, hemmed in Victorian Terrace living that we experience day to day.

And being a working farm there were animals in residence, oh the joy!! The Little People absolutely loved all the animals around and about in the surrounding fields, but in particular they completely adored the free range chickens. Every morning we would wake early and open Connievan's curtains to find them pecking around outside, it caused Little B to shriek with excitement at the sight of them so close by.

Ahh caravan life is just sooo warm and cosy and sweet, I continue to love love love it. A comfy, cosy bed to sleep in, crochet blankets to snuggle in and a red enamel mug of steaming hot tea :: pure delight.

My stack of Rice tumblers make me smile every time I open this cupboard, well all of Connievan's enamel and melamine does. The tumblers are a recent purchase, but the assortment of melamine plates and bowls have been gathered over many years. I think I've always secretly dreamt of owning a caravan or campervan.

A jam jar of freshly picked hederow flowers, what could be prettier? Connievan wouldn't be complete without them, I pick some to have inside on every trip.

As you have probably sussed by now, I am still completely bowled over by Connievan, I love her to bits. These sweet little family holidays that she's providing us with are such a dream come true. I'm very slowly beginning to add some decorative bits and bobs and am slowly making changes to her interior (I'll show you the curtain progress soon)...like I said once before, this is sure to be an ongoing and enduring love affair. And just whilst I'm on the subject of caravans and love affairs, if you've got a spare minute or two, click on "this link" Go on, you'll be transported into a world of complete loveliness on two wheels!!

But of course, the week wasn't all about sitting inside a 14 x 7 foot box on wheels, as cute and cosy and lovely as it is. It was also about exploring the local area and enjoying the great outdoors. The nearest town to Templands Farm was five miles away :: Grange-over-Sands. And what a lovely, simple, quirky and pretty place it is. Walking down the main shopping street (above) makes you feel almost as if you've stepped back in time, it's very English and decidedly traditional and old fashioned, but I liked it very much.

It's a bit of an oddity though, in that although it's labelled as a seaside town, there isn't actually a seaside. There's no beach. And you can't actually get to the water either, even though you can see it.

There's a super-duper long esplanade designed for the old fashioned pleasure of promenading. It's one mile long.

One side of the esplanade is planted with an inspiring mixture of trees, shrubs and flowers, and is absolutely breathtakingly beautiful.

The other side of the esplanade looks out over the Sands to Morecombe Bay beyond. You can't actually go down and walk on the grass/sands as there are numerous signs with red writing in capital letters warning of dangerous quick sands and fast incoming tides. The Little People were hugely intrigued by this Potential Danger, they were fascinated by the idea of quick sand. Luckily we managed to divert their attention with this........

....a wonderful and imaginative play area (Little B adored this wooden train) with adjoining tea room serving local icecream. We were all suitably wowed by the thunder and lightening flavour, it was amazing. Described as "chocolate with an explosive cinder toffee crunch" trust me, it was a complete Taste Sensation.

On a couple of days we ventured further afield into the Lake District proper. Life at Templands Farm was so quiet and tranquil, it came as a bit of a shock to find ourselves suddenly amongst so many hoards of people. The car parks were jam packed, the cafe's and shops were heaving with tourists, I can't say it was very pleasant. On this particular day we had set out early to visit the home of Beatrix Potter, but on arriving at 10am (the house opens at 10.30am) we found the car park already full, with a possible four hour wait to tour the house. After getting over that disappointment, we decided to drive on a bit further and visit the village of Hawkshead instead. The cafe pictured above is in the centre of Hawkshead, and was a sweet spot in an altogether bonkers and over the top place. Walking around Hawkshead is like walking round an overcrowded, overrated, overpriced, twee, fake village. It wasn't our thing at all.

But this cafe was sweet.

 A bit over the top, but I liked it. J, on the other hand did not like it. He hated it. He balked at the £14 it cost for our drinks and cake, he said the chairs were uncomfy, he said it was cramped, he said his coffee was not nice. He was in a Bad Mood. He walked out.

We winded up eating our picnic lunch by the amazing church which is high on a hill overlooking Hawkshead, and thankfully the views and peaceful atmosphere did help ease the tensions of earlier. We decided there and then that it would suit us better if we stayed clear of the Popular Destinations of the Lake District, and head to the more untrodden places in future......

.....such as Ravenglass. Now what a gem this little place is. Much more our thing. We arrived here early one morning and I was immediately captivated by the quiet, sleepy and unpretentious atmosphere of the place.  The above picture shows the main street of Ravenglass, see how deserted it looks (hoorraaahh!)

You know how much I love little seasidey places, and this one really did make my heart skip. I just loved how there were boats parked up alongside the cars, isn't that something?

Many of the gardens were beautifully planted, such an abundance of colour spilling out over old stone walls.

Further on towards the end of the main street we passed this stack of lobster pots and realised the sea must be somewhere close by.....

....and sure enough the street suddenly ended and there we were on the beach. Kind of unusual to find grass and flowers growing right on the beach, it was lovely.

As you can see, the tide was way out when we arrived, the boats stranded and lopsided on the sand. We spent quite a long time just pootling about on the beach and in/near the water (aren't crocs great for just this sort of thing), breathing in the fresh salty sea air and enjoying the simple pleasure of hurling big fat pebbles into water with a satisfying plop.

As the morning moved on, the tide began to come in, lordy, it really does rip in at quite a pace here. Luckily we were safely off the beach and sat outside a wonderful little tea room having a spot of lunch with a sea view. Delicious homemade soup with generous hunks of homemade tomato bread. Just as well lunch was delicious as it made up for the huge barny J and I had earlier when we discovered we'd left the picnic behind. Correction....HE had left the picnic behind, although of course he swears that I never gave him the bag, that it was all my fault. But you and I know full well that of course I DID give him the picnic bag. That he took it from me and then absent mindedly put it down and left it behind. Nuff said.

Ravenglass is definitely somewhere I'd like to return to (with full picnic facilities next time, I love eating lunch on the beach). We'll be back one day I'm sure.

We drove away from the coast in the afternoon, J deciding that he'd like to take us up up up over this famously high piece of road called the Hardknott Pass. It's one of the steepest roads in the whole of England, with a gradient of 1 in 3. Not only that, the roads are narrow with some stomach-churning hairpin bends, this is not a road for the faint hearted or nervy driver. J is neither fainthearted or nervy, but cripes, I certainly am. I sat in the back seat and tried not to squeal with terror.

But the views from the top.....oh my. Breathtaking. Absolutely breathtaking and I admit that yes it was worth the nail-biting and breath-holding.

We stopped a while up here, it was unbelievably quiet and peaceful. Felt like the top of the world.

Back at Connievan HQ, life was for the most part peaceful and relaxed. We did have a few minor issues with Little B intent on running off across the field and down the lane in search of the chickens, but then that's where the Little People were marvelous assets. They would happily go running after their wee brother, grab his hand and persuade him to stop harassing the chickens and come back to the van.

There were some very hot afternoons during that week. It was wonderful to return from our excursions to the cool green grass of Templands Farm and enjoy the hot summer sunshine. Blankets and chairs for sitting/lounging upon, cold juice/beer/wine to hand, and nothing whatsoever to do excepting for a little bit of light cooking and a smidge of lazy childcare. It was amazing how long a bowl of water and two cups kept a certain someone entertained for. Joyful.

We cook very simply when we're in Connievan. We eat a lot of pasta with pesto and salad. Sometimes it's a simple do of crusty bread,salami, cheese, fruit, crisps, chocolate. And sometimes I do decide to actually rustle up a little something more substantial...in this case it was noodles, peppers and chicken in a chow mein sauce. We ate it out of bowls, sitting outside on the grass, slurping and nomnomming the noodles. It was such fun!! Little B was so, so happy eating this meal, he was a complete messy delight.

Most evenings after dinner was all done and dusted, we would walk the mile or so into the local village to visit this lovely little childrens playground. It was a sweet way to round off the days.

I really enjoyed walking back to Templands Farm and Connievan each evening after our playground trips, it felt like coming home. The light at this time of day (between 7 and 8pm) was warm and golden and it made the grass look extra green and the views extra beautiful.

We would settle down in Connievan for the evening with books/radio/crochet and wait for the ducks to arrive. Every evening they would waddle up the field to come and take a drink from the old stone trough. And every evening the Little People would wait patiently for them to arrive. It was lovely to observe how these little routines of Caravan Life formed according to what was happening in the landscape around us. Chickens in the morning. Ducks in the evening. Lovely, happy memories.

It's been a great experience for me putting this together, I've enjoyed it so much! It means a lot to me that I'm able to use this patch of cyberspace to record these precious times. I hope that one day the Little Peeps will enjoy this peek back into their childhood. Hope so. xxxxxxxx

Edit to add :: I've been writing this post over the course of two or three days and hadn't quite realised how long it had become until I read it through just now! I hope you're not yawning and falling asleep over your kepboard. Thanks as ever for dropping by to share and indulge me in my memory-preserving. Lots of love xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

 

 

 

 

 

Christmas Eve :: 2010

It's been a most beautiful and glorious clear-blue icy day today. A perfect winter's day.

I ambled into town this morning to get a few last minute bits and bobs. I really enjoyed getting out in the cold crisp air, walking along the canal and marvelling at the water still in a state of deep freeze. The town was buzzy and lively with the market in full swing, and I felt so glad to be there and be a part of it.

Last night I sat by the fire until midnight for a marathon present-wrapping stint. The resulting piles under the tree were greeted with very, very excited squeals from the Little People this morning, and a relieved sigh from me. (Also I have to tell you that my late gifts posted to family only 2 days ago actually arrived this morning yiippppeeeeee, so happy about that!!)

This afternoon has been cosy and leisurely and homely, and I've loved every bit of it. Oh I do LOVE Christmas Eve so much!! So exciting and peaceful and warm and cosy!!

We lit the fire early on and nearly all of our days activities have been carried out in front of it, including most meals. Little Lady and I always paint our toenails together on Christmas Eve (excepting last year when Bump24 made it impossible for me to reach my toes)..we've gone silver this year instead of our traditional bright red.

I squeeezed in a teeny bit of sofa hooky time this afternoon too, blissful. I'm making a small doll blanket for Little Lady, well not for her exactly, but for her rag doll. It's nearly finished, I'll show you when all's done, I can't wait to show you the doll too.

My cosy winter pj's are all laid out ready for tomorrow (yes, I do like to spend much of Christmas Day in my jammies if I can get away with it). I've also treated myself to some new fluffy socks, I am stupidly excited about putting them on in the morning, I really cannot wait for that moment! I'm having a mild dilemma about whether to go for the stripes or the hearts?? I'm thinking stripes, like Christmas candy canes.

The Little People are tucked up sound asleep in bed now (it's 10pm) and the mince pie, glass of wine and carrot (for Santa and Rudolph) are sat waiting on the hearth. Stockings are hanging in place, and all is as it should be. Lovely.

Here's hoping you have a bright and magical Christmas, I wish you love, joy and happiness in abundance. Enjoy!!!!!

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Toilet Roll Project (TRP) :: Ta-dah!

 

Hello! As you can see, we are Ta-dah-ing today and I am so so so happy to be here!

I love writing my Ta-dah posts. Like really, really L♥O♥V♥E it. I guess I must've written quite a few of them in the two and a half years since I began this blogging lark, and I always get such a thrill out of sharing with you all. I mean, it's fun sharing the ideas and the inspiration and the on going creative process, but revealing the Finished Object is the most fun of all. Nothing like a pretty successful Finished Object to make one feel accomplished and really rather good and heart-skippy all the way down to ones toes.

What often surprises me about my ta-da-hing is that I tend to feel the same huge surge of excitement no matter what the size of the project. In other words, it could be a big crochet blanket that's taken more than half a year to complete, or a batty little craft project which comes together in a matter of days :: the excitement factor is generally as huge for both.

So yes :: toilet roll tubes then, here we go....

This quirky little project began back here if you remember. Nothing major, just a spot of spontaneous late summer crafting with the Little People. A fairly pointless project really if the truth be told, but oh my, how it captivated me! How I LOVED making it happen! This little project (the TRP) really got me excited to the point where I seriously began to feel extremely un-normal. I mean, I was stopping my neighbours in the street and talking nineteen to the dozen about toilet roll tubes, and that's not normal behaviour is it, to get so excited about bits of cardboard?

But excited I was, and then some. I think it was a whole combination of things really that made this little project so top notch for me. It was the fact that I was doing it with the Little Peeps, and it felt like a long while since we'd been creative together. It was the fact that I could get out all my lovely crafty bits of fabric and trims and buttons and beads which had not seen the light of day for a fair old while. And it was the fact that we were making and representing Our Family, which happens to be something I am passionate about. And to somehow see us all set out, all Five of us really made me think about my children and the fact that there are now three of them. Cos in many ways I am still somewhat getting used to the fact that Little B is here and that we are indeed a family of five. Not four. Five. Yikes! Those innocent toilet rolls proved to be quite a reality check!

Lovely isn't it when you go skipping through blogland and you discover a new voice, a new creative spirit? Sadly I don't have time to pootle through Blogland like I used to, but I do still love seeing what other folks are getting up to creatively. I like to feel inspired as much as the next person. So I was delighted to discover Jane over at Teawagon Tales and to feel inspired by what she was doing. And in fact, it was she who suggested I needed to make my own Toilet Roll Self something crochety to wear. Oh the joy! Hooking those little mini granny squares was the best fun ever. My cup did runneth over!

I am really excited to be showing you the TRP.

Like ants-in-my-pants-yippety-yeeehaw excited.

Can you tell?

Nearly time.

I didn't take many photos of the work in progress cos truthfully I was way too engrossed in it to pause and go get the camera.

The Little People really did me proud you know. They somehow sensed that this project was important to me and they put a lot of effort into making it work. They really thought hard about how they wanted their clothes to look, and they got sheets of paper and practiced drawing all kinds of different faces for themselves until they were happy with what they came up with. I assisted them with the hair, but mostly the rest was down to them.

So.

You wanna see?

OK, a little peek..............

.....ahhhhhhhhhh there we are look, the Attic24 T-roll family, looking all cutey on the mantel.

They look right at home don't they?

Sorry?

You can't see them very well?

You need me to go closer?

Zoom in you say?

Show you some detail?

OK, of course....

....just for you....

Ta-dah!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Do you think we did good, the Little Peeps and Me??

Love love love love love love LOVE my Cardboard Family!

Let us introduce ourselves...........

This is Me, modelling my very own dinky little crochet cardie, isn't it just a teeny bit super? I made little one-round granny squares using embroidery thread worked on a 2.5mm hook, joined on-the-go. A button to finish. Oddments of fabric and ribbon for my outfit, felty brown hair in a very Fetching Style. And to finish off, a little pretty hair clip cos that's what I wear most days.

Little Lady and I look remarkably similar in real life so I'm told, only her hair is much darker and her eyes are blue (mine are green). She chose the fabrics for her outfit and even drew a picture of exactly how she wanted herself to look. We worked on our faces together on paper first, drawing out lots of different variations until we were both happy. It wasn't spontaneous. It was very well thought out. And a little nerve wracking actually doing it for real, with Non Adjustable felt tip pens. Oh the strain! I held my breath the whole way through when Little Lady did hers, I honestly did, but she did great. She got herself in a little bit of a tizzy when her rosy cheeks didn't line up, but oh I was so proud of her.

Ahhh Little Man...my Big Boy. It took a bit of gentle persuading to get him in on the TRP, but when he finally did join in the fun he really enjoyed it I think. I allowed him to chop up some of Little B's grown-out-of dungarees so that he could have some denim, and he designed his top based on one that he actually owns. The 8 is cos he has just turned eight. But what really got me was the way he drew his face....awww, so cute, with tongue out and freckles and everything, this is so very him I tell you, he really did great.

And this is of course our Little Baby B. I made him first before I made myself and honestly, I was squeeeeealing with delight just making his little outfit (the sleeve from an old vest of his). Then once I got to drawing on his little cheeky baby face, well that nearly sent me over the edge. I've no idea why I was soooooooo excited, but I honestly was beside myself with happiness when TR-Little-B was born.

And last but not least, here is J. He was great fun to make. Easy hair cos he has None. I made his shirt from one of Little B's teeny tiny old baby shirts, and J's amazing face was drawn by Little Man. I asked him to draw his Dad's face on a piece of paper first as I was really curious to see what he would come up with and knew instinctively that it would be miles better than anything I could do. How right I was. It's fabulously accurate, even down to the wonky glasses.  I LOvE it.

Incidentally, I also had Little Man's assistance during the Photo Shoot :: I wanted to do it in similar style to Jane's, with some sort of prop to represent each of us. He chose all the props excepting mine which I was quite adamant about, it had to be fresh flowers from the back yard for me. I was really stumped with what to use for J (couldn't put a computer on the mantel), and it was Little Man who thought of this "Dad's Army" DVD box set which is a current obsession with J right now (yawn, that show drives me demented with boredom, but hey-ho, each to their own and all that). Just so you know.

So :: there we are, the Attic24 Toilet Roll Family. All complete and looking fine and dandy. Oh I have enjoyed writing this post, hope you've enjoyed sharing this daft little bit of Creative Nonsense with me.

Now then, just before I love you and leave you and head for bath and bed, can I quickly show you my picture that's also up above there?

I treated myself to it a month or so ago and it makes me so incredibly happy every time I look at it (which is often). It's a small print taken from an original by the supremely talented and very lovely Julia Crossland. Ahh it just makes my heart sing, it really does. You can find this print along with others in her online shop, do go and take a look. Lovely.

Right-o my Lovelies, I am out of here and off to run me a hot bubble bath, followed by clean pyjamas and a little bit of hooky.

See you all soon xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Famlee

This little drawing was made by Little Lady (age 5) yesterday...I was tidying up a bit around here earlier this morning and came across it.

I've just about managed not to bawl my eyes over the complete sweetness of the picture.....

 

.....what really, really, really got me was the fact that she has drawn herself holding the baby look. I'm taking that as a good sign for things to come.

Oh, how I Love my Famlee !!!!!

Just to let you know, I am still in the process of climbing the Clutter-Mountain here at number 24. Still. It sure is a disgracefully Big Mountain, and is taking a lot of energy and time to get to the top. But I am slowly, slowly getting there and it feels Good.

When I'm done, I'll be able to spend more time at Attic24. I've got some lovely posts, photos and projects lined up to share with you, as well as the circle scarf pattern to work on for you, oh and the Granny Square tutorial too.

If time allows, and if I'm feeling stable on the slopes of Mt. Clutter, I'll try to find time to upload my bathroom photos for you tomorrow.

Its all Good.

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Rest:&:Recreation

Morning all! Ahh Monday morning and all is rather snug and content in my little world I have to say. It's the first day of our half term week and so far we are doing OK, even if the day is already (at 10.3am) seeming rather long. I've deliberately made no plans for this week, so we have five schedule-free days stretching ahead of us, and it feels good. After seven weeks of pretty full-on schooling, the Little People are really in need of some quality  Rest:and:Recreation this week, and I am more than happy to accommodate. Suits me just fine.

The weekend for us as a family was also very much about enjoying some quality R:&:R. We all really felt the need to stay close to home after what has felt like a long run of social engagements and planned activities/outings/arrangements throughout the weekends of September and early October.

There's something extraordinarily good about embarking on a day that doesn't contain a single plan or arrangement, nothing pressing that needs doing, no obligations to meet, no appointments to keep, no time schedule mapped out. Its not very  often that you get to go through a whole day in this way, and oh, I do LOVE it when it happens.

So these photos today were all taken at various times during our stay-home weekend of R:&:R. As you can see, the weather for most of the weekend was grey and wet, but in many ways that made it even better. It meant that we could concentrate on staying indoors without feeling that we should be going out anywhere. And Indoor Weekends, for me anyways, are always a Good Thing.

I start my weekend by spending as much time in bed as I can get away with. Tea and toast bought up to me by my lovely hubby, followed by some lengthy in-bed hooking. Quite a blissful start to the day, wouldn't you agree?

 

As you would expect, crochet is very high on my personal list of Things To Do during a weekend of R:&:R, and I did indeed manage to while away many hours with hook and yarn. I'm really enjoying working on my baby granny blanket. It's starting to become quite blankety now, even though it still needs to grow quite a bit more yet. I've decided I'm going to need 9 x 12 squares altogether to make this blankie the right size, and after the weekend's hooking activity I've done 60 so far, so 48 left to go.

Of course, weekends spent at home do not all revolve around me-me-me. Little People are also about and need to be occupied, although mostly these days they pretty much take care of that themselves.

There was lego construction taking place....

....and colouring too.

And there was quite a lot of snuggly blanket action on the sofas accompanied by TV/film watching.

The Little People weren't the only ones indulging in snuggly blanket sofa action either...

....I spent some really enjoyable time over the weekend reading and browsing and oohhing and ahhing my way through a couple of gorgeous and inspiring new books. Oh yes I did!

And to accompany my crochet and bookish activities, there was some rather indulgent (but completely necessary) chocolate consumption too. Oh yes there was!

Now before you begin to think that I spent the whole weekend lounging about reading, hooking, drinking tea and scoffing chocolates, let me tell you I did manage to carry out a few light domestic chores in the kitchen. Oh yes, really I did!

It's not all about idle laziness around here you know. Even during R:&:R weekends.

I baked a batch of fruity flapjacks....

....and made and bottled up some refreshing lemon drink.

  

So that pretty much sums up my take on our weekend.

It was simple and homely and pleasurable.

Much needed and much appreciated.

Yes, I can heartily recommend a weekend dedicated to Rest:&:Recreation time.

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Summery Days

 

Ahhhh hello one and all....I've been away from the Attic this past week, due to said Attic undergoing something of a miraculous transformation from rather messy hovel to simple guest accommodation, complete with Guests in residence.

The day my Dad and his Lady arrived (Weds of last week) it was hot and sultry and thundery. In the afternoon we experienced a terrific thunderstorm with huge great ploppy droplets of rain pouring from the skies, yet by evening time when it most mattered, it was balmy and summery and very thankfully suitable for my intended outdoor plans. We did indeed enjoy a lovely, simple al fresco supper, and stayed out till midnight chatting by candlelight. Oh I do love it when a a plan comes together, makes me feel quite accomplished (not a feeling I am used to).

 

Its been a lovely week actually :: relaxed and summery and outdoorsy for the most part, and having folk staying was really enjoyable. We did indeed spend a lot of time outside in our little back yard and most meals were eaten outdoors. My recently planted up pots of flowers looked  beautiful, and during last week, the first of the lilies bloomed.

I have two lily plants, and they are planted in some troughs that sit on top of our boundary wall to give a little extra height and a minuscule amount of extra privacy. But although they are proving very effective up at this height, its not possible to get really up close and personal with the blooms, which I have found frustrating. So one day, on the spur of the moment I strode out with a pair of Little Man's craft scissors and snipped a flower off :: snip :: just like that. No hesitation. I'm confident like that sometimes. And popped into a little glass jar of water, this gorgeous flower could then be admired by all. It looked stunning against the blue of my outdoor table runner I thought.

 

I continue to adore my flowers, I step out each and every morning to check on them and marvel at their unfurling petals.

 

Such intense, saturated colours....

 

....and such summery prettiness!!

 Talking of flowers, I made this little lot yesterday morning at the cafe during my weekly Knit and Natter get together. The patterns came from Lesley Stanfields book, but I ended up tweaking most of them to make them a little more compact. I'm using up my Rowan Cotton DK yarn, and  have an idea to use these flowers for something....not a cushion, nor a bag or blanket, nor a garland. No, none of those usual things, but this is going to be something decorative and creative, which will be completely useless, but nevertheless very pretty I hope.

Yeah, you see I needed a new small and portable project to tote around with me cos BB quite frankly is getting too damn hefty to take out and about. In fact, BB is looking marvelously Blankety these days, very foldable and drapeable and stackable. I am three-quarters done with joining the blocks :: 28 joined in harmony, and only 8 remaining loose. It's really looking veeeeeeeeeeery handsome indeed. And yes, we are still in love, me and BB.

 

Ahhh but crocheting time has been limited to the odd hours of evening time of late, because when one has Guests in residence, one has to be out and about doing things you know. Can't sit around crocheting all day when family have traveled 300miles to visit!

However my lovely Dad and his Lady are the most undemanding of guests, content to potter, read and take it easy. But we did have a few outings, dodging between the thunder claps and lightening bolts :: we had a lovely day at Bolton Abbey, taking in the lush greenery and ancient scenery, and even paying a trip to The Money Tree (more about that soon).

And there was a trip to Salts Mill too, to take in the wonderful works of David Hockney. His paintings of the Yorkshire Landscape are stunning (postcard above is of an oil painting simply titled "North Yorkshire 1997", and I love it very much)

So my Dad and his Lady went home the day before yesterday and have left a bit of a gap and a distinct lack of routine in their wake. It's been difficult to get on and do the things that need doing, but this morning I donned my pinny and got stuck in to necessary domestic duties.

It's hardly been a chore mind you, as I've been joyfully zesting lemons and making a lemon drizzle cake as part of my contribution towards a PTA fundraising event that I'm involved with tomorrow. This afternoon, there will be carrot cake production, followed this evening by chocolate/caramel shortbread manufacture (I'll give you the recipe for that next week, you won't believe your luck, it's utterly divine I tell you).

 

Earlier this morning, before the zesting of lemons and the creaming of butter and sugar began,  I sat outside to drink my morning coffee and agonise over the latest copy of Country Living magazine, which landed on the doormat yesterday. It is, quite frankly, driving me crazy with desire. I have had the quickest of necessary flick-throughs and oh-oh-oh, what an issue this looks to be! But for now, all I can do is stroke the cover, because, as you well know, I am not permitted to immerse myself in the pages Properly and Fully until the Perfect Moment presents itself. I have a busy and potentially stressful day ahead tomorrow, yet I am hoping the Perfect Moment might arrive smetime during tomorrow evening. Or possibly early Sunday morning....and I will be ready.

So before I go and begin carrotty-bakey things in the kitchen, I leave you with another picture of my Beloved Blanket......ahhhhhh so scrumptious it makes me go weak at the knees ;o)

Have a wonderful weekend everyone, and I'll see you next week.

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