Well, here it is. The Summer holidays are drawing to a close. I have one more day to go and then I’m back to work. Moogle has a few more days before she starts Year 1! How scary is that?
What exactly is a girl supposed to do when she realises that her holiday days are numbered? She crams as many family, fun-filled days in as she possibly can.
My new blogging schedule goes live tomorrow and I don’t have enough time to go into detail about each of my adventures so I thought I would just give you a quick summary, with the addition of a few photos. After all, a picture paints a thousand words…
- Another trip to Chatsworth, this time taking advantage of their Summer evening opening. It really is lovely being there later in the day, when everything starts to get very quiet. Moogle was desperate to have a trip on the little train that was making trips around the garden, and she got an extra special treat when she got the chance to sit in the drivers seat.
- The second photo was taken by a lovely gentleman called Angus who happened to catch a shot of Moogle running through the gardens in her princess dress. It was so magical I couldn’t resist sharing it.
- I wrote a whole blog post about how much I loved The Pantaloon’s version of Pride and Prejudice so I won’t bore you by going back over it. All I will say is that I went back for a second go and I loved it just as much. I can’t wait to see what they’re going to be doing next year.
- I finally made it to a new National Trust property last weekend. This time I travelled down the A1 to Belton Hall in Lincolnshire. Sadly, it was the hottest day ever, there was a traffic jam on the way there and the girls were definitely not on their best behaviour so we didn’t exactly have the best time. Still, the house and gardens were stunning and I would love to go back on my own one day to get a better look.
- A long time ago, I purchased a Groupon voucher for afternoon tea on a heritage train in Derbyshire. However, it was a close call whether or not the universe would align with babysitters and work to actually allow me to go. Everything worked out ok in the end, though, and last Tuesday I finally got to take tea on a train. The food and drink was absolutely beautiful and I shared a compartment with a lovely couple who had many interesting stories to share. I’d highly recommend it to anyone.
- I’ve often visited Hopton Hall in Derbyshire for their annual Snowdrops display, but I didn’t realise until recently that they also open up their Summer gardens. I took a quick walk around (without the children for a change) and enjoyed looking at all of the beautiful flowers. A particular favourite of mine was the beautiful rose garden that you can see in the bottom, right hand corner.
- I’ve been a ridiculously spoiled lady this week and got to go on not one, but two spa days. The first was with one of my Burlesque buddies, Gemma. She found an offer at The Clifford Day Spa in Long Eaton and invited me along. We had a hot stone massage and facial treatments, which were sublime, and then got to spend the day in the spa facilities, consisting of saunas, steam rooms and pool. I forgot to take a lot of photos but I did get this photo of the gorgeous coffee and cake we had in a Thorntons cafe on the way home.
- The second spa day was spent at an old favourite of mine – Eden Hall Day Spa. It was a joint 30th birthday/Christmas present for me and my best friend, Faith, and it was just the thing for two tired mummies. It should have been a very relaxing day but Faith wanted to do the Outdoor Bootcamp. I enjoyed it a lot more than I let on, but I am paying for it now – two days later and I can hardly move my legs. We spent the morning recovering in the spa, pool and hot tubs before having a glorious lunch. I treated us both to manicures – you can see the results in the picture. As usual, Faith went for something subtle while I went for a more in-your-face look.
All in all, I don’t think I can complain at all the wonderful things I’ve done over the holidays. There may have been the odd dud day mixed in there, but on the whole it has been a summer to remember. I feel I can go back to work feeling refreshed and rejuvenated, ready to knuckle down and get the job done.
At least until the next holiday in October….6 weeks to go….