Monday 15 December 2014

Chilly Walk in Clevedon

We love Clevedon in North Somerset. It is a special place for us because it's where we tied the knot back in 2009.

We went to Clevedon on Saturday for a Winter walk. It was a very chilly, crisp December day...but unbelievably still. I happened to turn around just as we were about to climb the hill and the Marine Lake on the seafront was so calm it looked like a mirror.

For years we've been visiting Clevedon and turning right out of the car park to walk along the seafront. Lured in that particular direction by the views of the elegant pier, ice creams and the amazing shops in Hill Road.

Today we decided to turn left out of the car park and walked up the hill towards an area called Poets Walk.

It's a bit of a climb, but once at the top you are rewarded with views across to Wales, the Mendips and the Somerset Levels. You also pass a pretty church and graveyard, in fact, it is the church used in the ITV drama Broadchurch.

The area between Weston-super-Mare and Clevedon is a beautiful part of the levels, it is virtually untouched by roads and probably hasn't changed for hundreds of years. Sustrans have been campaigning for a cycle track to be created on the section of the coast between Weston & Clevedon for over twenty years. It would create a much needed link between the two towns and I would love to cycle along that particular stretch.

Now we've discovered this part of Clevedon, I can safely say we will be back for many more walks in the future...

I'm linking up with #countrykids fun over on the Coombe Mill blog

Country Kids from Coombe Mill Family Farm Holidays Cornwall

I'm also linking up with the Magic Moments link-up on the Oliver's Madhouse blog

And linking up with the Brilliant Blog Posts link-up on the honestmum.com blog

Brilliant blog posts on HonestMum.com

Wednesday 10 December 2014

Christmas Jumper Day

I've just spent the last half hour sewing a felt Christmas tree onto an old jumper of my daughter's

They are having 'Christmas Jumper Day' at her school this Friday to help raise money for Save the Children

I was reluctant to go out and buy a new Christmas jumper because they only get worn for a few days of the year

Parents were invited to decorate an old jumper if they didn't want to go out & buy one

I have a house full of fabric, felt and goodness knows what else, so thought would be better to get my needle and thread out

It's not my finest piece of sewing, I had to rush making it, because trying to fit it in amongst the 101 other things I have to do at this time of year!

But, I think it's fun and festive and I'm sure my daughter will love it when she gets home from school later...

Monday 8 December 2014

Monday 1 December 2014

Vintage Love: Paddington Book

We took our five year old daughter to see the new Paddington film at the weekend.
I adore Paddington, I've always loved him. His duffle coat, his wellington boots, his obsession with marmalade and his general clumsiness...what's not to like?
vintage paddington children's book illustrations by Barry Wilkinson 1970s
vintage paddington children's book 1970s
One of the best things about having a child of your own is getting to indulge in the things you enjoyed as a kid all over again. So with this in mind I dug out some of my Paddington books to share with my daughter.
The cover image shows Mr Curry leaning over the fence watching Paddington striding off with some plywood and a box of tools. You just know it's not going to end well, Paddington and "do it yourself" do not mix...
vintage paddington children's book illustrations
This book dating from 1977 is based on the TV series I watched as a child. It was endearingly entertaining and employed stop-motion animation. I was always intrigued as a child by the way Paddington was a 'real' 3-D bear and the other characters were 2-D drawings. Somehow it worked and I can still hear Michael Hordern's distinctive voice bellowing 'bear!' every time Paddington messed up...which was quite often.
The illustrations are by Barry Wilkinson. The pages make up a really beautiful collection of ink and wash drawings featuring lots of bright colours, perfect for children.
vintage paddington children's book illustrations by Barry Wilkinson 1970s
The new Paddington film is really rather lovely. The styling is suberb and I fell in love with the Brown's house. I feel inspired to paint a blossom tree on the wall on my stairs after seeing the film. The new Paddington film is about acceptance, family and love...with lots of clumsiness, marmalade and mess along the way.
vintage paddington children's book illustrations by Barry Wilkinson 1970s
vintage paddington does it himself children's book illustrated by Barry Wilkinson 1970s













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