Here are some of little things that we have been seeing and doing daily over these last few weeks...little holiday rituals and observations that make us happy.
- Watching the tiny harvest of raspberries ripen in the garden. These just pop up every summer. I do nothing to them and each year we get a handful, enough for Bella and I to eat straight from the plant.
- Playing with the cars - one of Angus's extra special car parks on show here, it kept him quiet for about an hour.
- Dipping strawberries in chocolate.
- Baking a cake for Free Cakes for Kids. A wonderful charity where volunteers provide birthday cakes for families who, for whatever reason, can't provide one themselves.
- Brewing endless cups of tea in my 50p car boot mug. How much tea is too much tea?
- Admiring, picking and photographing these sweet peas. They are the only thing that I seem to be able to grow, and they are especially pretty in the late afternoon sunshine.
- Building train tracks in the early morning. Yesterday I challenged myself to use every piece of track we had. John said maybe it's time I went back to work.
- Making a friendship bracelet for my sister, Katy. I love the fresh, summery colours she chose.
- Watching the sky. Sun hats? Sun cream? Raincoats? Wellies and waterproofs? Honestly, you never know with the British summer. It is true that we are a nation obsessed with the weather.
The days are starting to blur together now, but in a nice, unhurried way. I am never sure which day of the week it is. I just want to say hurrah for the little things. It's always the little things that make me most happy. And wine.
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One last thing - we have finished a bit of Christmas craftiness. I don't know whether people find the mention of Christmas a bit offensive at this time of year. I don't. I LOVE Christmas and, as John works in retail (and I used to work in retail), we are used to thinking about it and planning for it and deciding where we spend it months before normal people. So, would you like to see the project, or shall I save it till a more appropriate time? Thoughts please. :-)
Great post, lovely photo's!
ReplyDeleteI love the friendship bracelet, v,pretty :)
And your cake looks scrummy too.
I would love to see your christmas project, i love it too i usually start my shopping in september! lol.
Vanessa
x
Thanks Vanessa. I am always thinking about Christmas early but know that not everyone is the same! Maybe I'll hold off until September at least!
DeleteLovely photos, as ever ... but please, please, PLEASE, DON'T MENTION THE C WORD UNTIL AT LEAST LATE NOVEMBER! When you've had as many Christmases as I have (closer to 70 than 60) you do get the feeling that the whole thing is overblown and over commercialised. Well, it was even when I was a child in the 1950s - my parents had a shop and the Christmas stock would arrive before I'd started the new Autumn term at school, nothing's changed, but I really don't want to think of Christmas in August. OK, I'm just an old miseryguts!
ReplyDeleteOh, seeing the little cars too me right back to when our sons played with them. They also did book tumbling, like domino tumbling, lining up their huge collection of Ladybird books on end, and then setting them tumbling!
Ok, sorry Margaret, I will try not to mention the C word much. It will be hard. I do love Chr....the festive season. Yes it is overblown and over commercialised but having small children does make one rediscover some of the magic - the little rituals and family traditions like opening the advent calendar and putting out mince pies and carrots for Father Christmas and Rudolph...just seeing the joy and wonder on little faces - it is contagious!
DeleteI will try book dominoes, that sounds like a lot of fun! x
Love Angus' carpark. It's so carefully arranged and almost forms a perfect sprial! Mum has requested that any toy cars that we've borrowed from her house be returned ASAP for the arrival of Angus.
ReplyDeleteSweet peas and cake are stunning.
I too challenge myself sometimes to use all the pieces of the train track and it is so frustrating when they don't join together properly. Sometimes the angles are all wrong. I hear myself saying to the girls, "Look, just move out of the way until I've finished, please, no you can't put the trains on yet." What a bore...
Don't really mind about about the Christmas post. Might give me some ideas for some festive crafting.
Yes it is a spiral...hmm, maybe he will grow up to be a maths genius...
DeleteI am also a train track bore. I have to tell myself not to take over! Angus is very, very excited about the visit to Nana's and keeps saying "my come too?" - does he think we would leave him behind?? xxx
I am thinking of Christmas too as I need to make some stockings for my little shop. So I would like to see your secret project.
ReplyDeleteOh good, I'm glad it's not just me! It's not really that secret, more a bit of silly fun.
DeleteAs the summer holidays start to come to an end, Christmas thoughts do start to creep in - I love Christmas too! That chocolate cake with strawberries looked so delicious. x
ReplyDeleteI didn't get to taste it, so I hope it was ok!
DeleteDear Gillian
ReplyDeleteI have sweet pea envy! Mine are rather pathetic and riddled with aphids, although they are gallantly attempting to keep flowering. What a lovely mix of photos and thoughts.
If you want to talk about Christmas, go ahead - this is your blog, after all!
Best wishes
Ellie
My sweet peas are the only thing flowering sadly. I had high hope for my dahlias but they look very feeble. I may hold off on Festive thoughts for a few more weeks, I don't want to annoy the lovely people who take the time to read and comment!
DeleteAhhhh, lovely pics. That cake looks amazing. As do your sweetpeas! Jude x
ReplyDeleteThanks Jude. Cake and flowers - always good. x
DeleteI love the colours your sister chose too, always wanted to make a friendship bracelet but have never gotten around to it. I've already got loads of Christmas presents in so don't mind about seeing you craftiness at all :-)
ReplyDeleteThe bracelets are very easy and fun to do, I have enjoyed making a few this summer. Well I haven't started any Christmas shopping yet, but I do need to make a start on any homemade gifts to save last minute panics!
DeleteLovely photos of lovely times! Ada :)
ReplyDeleteThanks Ada. Back to routine and normality soon!
Deletelooks like a nice summer
ReplyDeleteHi Kay, thanks for stopping by, good to meet you.
DeleteSo far so good. We've even had some sun! Got to make the most of the last couple of weeks.
Oh those piles of cars and trains look all too familiar! And that cake - amazing! x
ReplyDeleteHi Anna, thanks for stopping by.
DeleteWhat is it about little boys and those piles of cars? Or lines - he does love to line them up veeeery slowly and carefully. Woe betide anyone who touches them!
Wow, the cake looks deliiiiicious!!!!... and I love the variety of photos from your post. Hugs from Spain.
ReplyDeleteHi Sopa, thanks, I didn't get to try the cake so I hope it was tasty! x
DeleteLoved reading that! Thank you for sharing that info about cakes for kids. What a fantastic idea! I am definitely going to see if I can help somehow. I had a look at the site. How often do you need to make a cake?
ReplyDeleteAlso you can share Christmas anytime because I LOVE it and the preparation is the best bit! I get excited about autumn starting to arrive at the end of July ;)
Nick xx
This was our first cake! My friend set up the Leeds group a couple of months ago but it takes a while for word to get round to charities/support workers/care workers so they can recommend FCFK. We are hoping to have lots more queries now that we've done our first cake.
DeleteYou could set up your own group if there isn't one locally -that's what we did. You need one person to act as coordinator and then some volunteer bakers.
Glad it's not just me who loves the Autumn/Christmas build up! xx
I love that list! Reading it made me happy. :)
ReplyDeleteYour star mug is lovely, btw and the cake looks totally delish
Thanks Trishie. Love that mug. It's by Emma Bridgewater and I covet them all and am slowly collecting different ones. x
Deletethat cake looks yummy! I'm working on Christmas items for the shop at the moment, I love Christmas :-) I'm not quite ready for the end of summer yet though! x
ReplyDeleteNo, I don't want summer to end yet. Just a little bit longer. I feel like I've only just broken in my sandals! x
DeleteFirst of all, you can NEVER have too much tea, and secondly (is that even a word?), I would love to see your Xmas project please. Oh, and The Toddler loves his car too and would go mad for that train set! It's the one thing he doesn't have (although he does have a birthday coming up soon)... x
ReplyDeleteThe train set is great, we started off with a basic Brio one and add to it every birthday. Glad you share my Christmas love Col and yes, I believe secondly is a word, but I'm sure you've noticed how bad my grammar is so I'm probably not an authority! xx
DeleteLovely photos, LOVE the raspberries, but yes, I'm a bit offended about the Christmas mention. Very, in fact. Enough! ;)
ReplyDeleteSorry Greer - I will delay all mentions of the C word until...oh, September at least. xx
DeleteLove that cake! The bracelet colours remind me of the blocks of Neapolitan ice cream my dad sold in our shop years ago. As for thinking about Christmas, it can never be too soon!
ReplyDeleteMy husband said the same! A Neapolitan bracelet - that must be why it reminds me of summer so much.
DeleteWow! That's some cake -it looks delicious. I love Christmas too- I also worked in retail and loved it when the Christmas stock and merchandising came in - I'd love to see what you've been working on. I'm working on mini knitted stockings now as I usually leave it too late to make all the festive things on my list :)
ReplyDeleteI would blame retail for my early Christmas planning but I think it has something to do with my control freak tendencies too! Mini knitted stockings sound very cute, I would like to see those. My Grandmas knitted lots as tree decorations, and we get them out every year. x
DeleteOoooh, can I come round to your house & play- I'm good at drinking tea, eating cake & raspberries, making things, arranging cars & building train tracks...?!
ReplyDeleteOh good, I do believe that you have all the required skills and experience to come and play. I also support "free play" ie sitting on the sofa with tea and cake while ignoring the shrieks coming from the train set area... x
DeleteOh that cake looks too yummy to eat! And I haven't even begun to think about Christmas. I better start soon since we have our little one to buy for!
ReplyDeleteI am starting to think I am a bit weird to think about Christmas so early. But I want to make some gifts so I need to get cracking! x
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