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Holidays

Afternoon tea at
Hestercombe with Zsara
It's second Thursday of my 2 weeks off and the time has flown by. Although I didn't think we had much planned, we have packed in something every day and if I think back (if I can remember it all) then I've actually done pretty well at ticking off some of the things I wanted to do. Importantly I've not looked at my work emails and I've managed to see plenty of friends including Zsara, Lucy and Nicki, as well as spending lots of time with family. I may not have cycled massive miles or run (at all), but I've walked miles and miles and miles (average steps per day over the last week: 27,000). 

The one place I can certainly say I've spent plenty of time is the stables. Abi has made the most of me being off and we have been almost every day (I think I managed to skip out once) and we have found some lovely walk / rides for her to do on her own once I'm back at work next week. She and Nula are getting along brilliantly and we have committed and paid for her so it's official - we own a horse! It seems we fell on our feet with her - she's kind, sensible and funny. She loves her treats and when I see some of the other horses who run away when their owners come to get them I have to laugh at Nula who trots straight over in the hope we might have something tasty for her. I suspect we may not be helping her drop those extra pounds!

My turn!

One of the lovely things about being off is that we have had the chance to see Kerrie, Ryan and Elsie a number of times. Kerrie and Ryan are brilliant first time parents, taking everything in their stride and just getting on with it. The result of this is that Elsie is a very relaxed baby and sleeps soundly much of the time. On Monday they came over for lunch along with (Great) Nanny Di and Alby and she was an absolute star. Today we had planned to do Hesteracombe for afternoon tea but the kitchen was closed so instead we went to The Rising Sun in West Bagborough (blast from the past!) and again she was brilliant. We all love her so much already and it's a bit of a fight as to who gets to hold her. To date poor Izzy has always drawn the short straw and got her just as she's got hungry and fractious but today she must of had her for an hour or so without a single murmur - she was very chuffed.

The visit on Monday touched on the important subject of what we will be called as Elsie's grandparents. I certainly didn't want to be Granny and I also didn't want to be the odd one out given Elsie there are 3 of us to distinguish between. Elaine and Debbie had already been christened Nanny Pompi (for the Portsmouth connection) and Nanny Staffie (for obvious reasons) so in the end I thought I might as well fall in with the theme so I've said I will be Nanny K. It's easier all round and actually it sits ok with me. 


These two weeks have also allowed us to sort some house stuff out, particularly the troublesome front windows which through the recent heatwave let so much light and heat in we just cooked. Its a lovely idea to have floor to ceiling windows but quite frankly its not very practical if you only have one living space and nowhere cool to retreat to. The way the house is angled we also don't have any shaded spaces yet outside so it has been relentless. This has led us to make some drastic decisions and we have decided to take out the top windows (which will also help with heat retention in the winter), put in the bi-folds which had always been planned, and finally to build on a pergola to provide a much needed shaded space and also to provide shade to the living space. To give us some temporary relief Glenn very cleverly knocked up a wooden structure onto which we can put sail shades. Immediately it went up the kids and dogs moved in underneath it and a space we hadn't been using is now one of the best spots in the house.  After some debate we have decided the permanent option will be (much more expensive of course) all singing and dancing aluminium version with remote controlled front and sides and a louvered roof which will enable us to optimise light and shade and make the most of the space. This of course will be installed in November - so it will then be months before we put it to the test properly but I think it will be a real statement and a massive improvement to how we enjoy our house. 

So last few days to enjoy. Tomorrow is a Jurassic Coast cruise with Mum and the girls (in the rain) and then the weekend is given over to the kids choices. Both get part of the day with me on their own - on Saturday Izzy and I are off to Glastonbury to go crystal shopping and on Sunday Abi and I are going to some racehorse thing with Amanda and Laurie. I may even squeeze in a final bike ride with Glenn but it's looking doubtful - August is proving to be a very rainy month so far and we are getting very used to torrential downpours followed by bright sunshine - only in the UK!

 

Holiday hot tub - staycation at its best

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