Return of the Blog - Part 3

On Thursday we decided to visit another National Trust property and found ourselves at Shugborough Hall. Its not that far from us, just over the border in Staffordshire. Now although its a NT property, its part owned/operated by Staffs County council. So our membership got us into the Hall and gardens but not the museum, servants quarters etc. I wasn't willing to pay any more and there was still lots to see. Now, while we are glad we went and its a beautiful property, we both agreed we are unlikely to go again. Not when we have Calke Abbey up the road, and it costs us nothing! But we had a lovely time! It was just nice to sit on a bench with Paul and watch the world go by. Though its been a nice week off, I've been so stressed that it was hard at times to remember to breathe.

On Friday we collected our new car, well i use the term new very loosely. She's new to us! We are now the proud owners of a Silver Chevrolet Matiz. Who would have thought that we would own a Chevy. We are now looking for a levee to drive her too! She's a nice little car. I think we will have lots of happy adventures with her. After we picked the car up we decided to take her for a spin, and went to Tamworth. Paul and his work colleagues go to the Tame Otter for lunch every Friday and i have been saying for ages that I would like to go there. Its a lovely pub, and the food was very nice, I can really recommend the place.  After lunch we went to a little garden centre, and I bought Paul his first Christmas present. I am delighted with it! On friday evening Paul and I met up with our friend Rachel for dinner. It was nice to catch up with her, and have a natter. I believe there is going to be something of a baby boom at Burton College from what Rachel was telling us!

On sunday we went on a magical mystery tour thanks to Paul...LOL....not!! We ended up at Ashby de la Zouch castle, i love the place. We took sandwiches and had a picnic, it was the perfect day for it. And unknown to us there was a special event going on, there were re-enactors camping there and they were giving weapons demonstrations etc. It was interesting and NOISY!! The guns go BOOM!!! They were also doing free tastings of wines and preserves, would have been so rude not to stop and sample! It was lovely. Finally we went to beautiful staunton Harold garden and craft centre. Our days off are always wonderful, and mostly that is because I get to spend them with Paul, what would i do without him. He puts up with me when I am down and unbearable, and that has been a lot lately. I am sure we knows it, but to me he is perfect.

Return of the Blog - Part 2

Wednesday dawned bright and  once again sunny.....darn it!! I will never be a summer person! Paul and I had talked it over and both decided we couldn't face a trip to the city and the thought of travelling on the underground in the hot weather filled us both with horror. So instead we decided to visit Chartwell, the former home of Sir Winston Churchill. Its a lovely property and we ended up spending most of the day there. We started our visit with a talk by one of the guides. He walked a group of us from the ticket office up the long winding path to the house, telling us some of the history of the property and a few anecdotes about Churchill. When we arrived at the house it was time for us to go in (entry is by timed ticket). The house is lovely, with many things to see. You need to take your time and take it all in. We so enjoyed exploring the house, and when we left we spent lots of time in the gardens. There were so many people there just enjoying the day.

After we left Chartwell, we stopped in the pretty village on Westerham for an hour or so. That was plenty of time to stroll around the village, visit the local church and have a drink in the Inn on the Green. Nothing like a small Kent pub, the beer tasted good! 

Nestling in the valley of the ancient River Darent, Westerham's roots can be traced back to the Vikings and the Romans, and today has evolved into a charming market town attractive to residents, business and visitors. It is perhaps best known for its famous residents: amongst others, Sir Winston Churchill and General James Wolfe. Both had homes here, which are now open to the public. 

Having walked around this pretty village Paul and I both decided, we need to move. Personally I would like nothing better than to move home to the south of England. Alas, I think we will never be able to afford too....mon dieu, the house prices!! 

Finally we headed back to my parents house, and we all went to the Moon and Stars for dinner. The pub is just across the road from my parents house, but they won't go unless we are there to go with them! Dinner was good, and it was nice to get my parents out of the house!

Paul and I decided to head home on Wednesday night, while it was cooler and traffic was also lighter. We made it home in three and a half hours which is way better than the 5 hours it can sometimes take.

Its nice going away, but its also nice getting back to your own bed. And tho we weren't away long, we managed to pack a lot in as usual!

Return of the Blog - Part 1

Its been a while since i felt the motivation to write, its been a tough month and I've had so much on my mind that writing a blog was the last thing I was thinking about! But I've had a week off with Paul and despite the constant stresses that seem to be my permanent shadow these days, we've managed to have some good times. I am going to avoid the negatives and concentrate on the good and lovely things that happened this past week. On monday we drove south, stopping at Lakeside for lunch and a look around the shops. Being at lakeside always reminds me of my friend Mandy. We have spent many happy times there shopping, talking, seeing movies etc. Paul and I had a wonderful lunch at Strada and I have to say they do the best spaghetti bolognese I have had in a long time. We chose to eat there as we have recently acquired a Gourmet  Society card which gave us 25% off the bill. Lunch was good, and it was nice to walk around the mall, though we bought nothing!! After leaving Lakeside we crossed the river via the Queen Elizabeth Bridge and headed to me parents house. We arrived around 5pm and mon dieu....there was somewhere to park!! 

On Tuesday it was HOT....so we decided London probably wouldn't be a good idea, instead we headed to the sea side and spent a lovely few hours at Whitstable. We ambled around the town looking in the expensive little boutiques, and had lunch at a little pub. I have never seen Whitstable so busy, but I guess it is the summer holidays and apparently the world and his wife....plus assorted relatives....and lots of children were there!! Being there reminded me of last summer when we visited the same area, and met up with Mandy. Its funny, but everywhere we went reminded me of her this year! From the sea side, we decided to visit a farmers market in Faversham, luckily i just about remembered where it was. I loved looking around, and we bought a few things to bring home with us. I remember buying biscuits there last year to take to my new job with me, a little treat for my new colleagues....now sadly my ex-colleagues! Lastly, we stopped at Bluewater, what a lovely time of day to arrive! At 5pm, the crowds were less but everything was still open. We had coffee and a lovely couple of hours strolling thru the mall. I used to live very near Bluewater, but that seems like another life time now. We finally arrived back at base, to eat way too much Chinese food with my folks....who seemed rather glued to the TV watching the commonwealth games.