How to make pretty picnics

For my birthday, I asked for a picnic basket, and we have already been out in the sunshine making good use of my present. In the summer holidays my 4 year old niece is coming to stay, and I can't wait to create some pretty pink picnics. She is quite the picnic connoisseur, and is often seen setting one up on the living room floor. Therefore I'm going to have to pull something out of the bag to make it special.

1. Pink hearts melamine plate by Emma Bridgewater.

2. Linen sprig acrylic tumbler by Cath Kidston.

3. Linen sprig melamine bowl by Cath Kidston.

4. Linen sprig acrylic wine glass by Cath Kidston.

5. Children's melamine tea set by Emma Bridgewater,

6. Pink hearts melamine bowl by Emma Bridgewater.

7. Pink Tweed Dress by Oasis.

8. Linen sprig plate by Cath Kidston.

9. Linen sprig melamine stacking mug by Cath Kidston.

10. Butterfly bunting by Laura Ashley.

11. Pink rose girl's dress by JoJo Maman Bebe.

1. Polka dot dress by Mod Cloth.

2. Provencal rose bowl by Cath Kidston.

3. Picnic basket by Next.

4, Rose earrings by Mod Cloth.

5, Provencal rose flask by Cath Kidston.

6. Melamine 3 tier cake stand by Laura Ashley.

7. Pink gingham dress from JoJo Maman Bebe.

8. Provencal rose bowl from Cath Kidston.

9. Provencal rose beaker by Cath Kidston

10. Floral tea set by Argos.

I'm planning on utilising my masses of pretty pink material, lace and ribbons that my husband berates me for buying. I also have flower garlands and fairy lights for in the trees. I'm hoping to get some butterflies and fairies to hide around. This would make a great idea for a little girl's birthday party. You could pick their favourite park and organise treasure hunts and games without worrying about them smashing into your furniture or trampling your flowerbeds. 

Happy Father's Day

How long do I have to sit like this?! When is Daddy getting up?!

Happy Father's Day! This is my husband's first Father's Day, so the household is very excited and ready to celebrate! William bought his Daddy some leather-bound Children's classics. We have most of the adult Barnes and Noble Classics. I think you will agree the illustrations are beautiful.

I have many leather-bound books and my apartment smells of rich mahagony - Ron Burgundy.

Mummy also couldn't resist making this Superman themed card. Super cute! We also made Daddy a mug with footprints on. I hope you have all spoiled your Dads. We got my Dad tickets to see the mighty Yorkshire cricket team for Father's Day. What presents did you get for your Dad?

Is it a bird? Is it a plane? No it's Superbaby!

Yorkshire bloggers

As well as this blog I also run Yorkshire bloggers, which is a site that was created to highlight all of the wonderful blogs that there are based in Yorkshire. It is a place to find new blogs, find hidden Yorkshire gems and connect with other Yorkshire bloggers. It features guest posts from Yorkshire bloggers, has posts that will highlight local blogs, help bloggers to share information, feature inspiration for day trips out and photography, and events where Yorkshire bloggers can meet. I have been overwhelmed by the positive feedback and support this has received in such a short space of time. There are already twenty seven blogs that have signed up to be featured on the site, since it started in April. If you are a Yorkshire blogger or love Yorkshire blogs then please visit the blog. I am very excited to announce that I have just launched a photography competition and cannot wait to see the entries! Please stop by and take a look. 

Newmillerdam Country Park.

Just a quick post about a pleasant spot to have an afternoon stroll.  My husband and I visited Newmillerdam Country Park on a sunny afternoon and took a few pictures.

As I was taking these photos, I was a little concerned at the overly friendly ducks and geese. (I'm a bit of a scaredy cat) My husband has decided he will be coming here as part of his training for the Chester Marathon in October.

We ate at the reasonably priced Fox and Hound, which is across from the Newmillerdam car park. I had a chicken, bacon and barbecue sauce baguette, and my husband had a delicious (I wished I had picked this) pork and stuffing sandwich with a separate gravy boat and perfectly seasoned potato wedges (the ones I managed to prise away from him were just scrummy!)

There is also a cute little Italian that we are planning on going to next time. I think the building looks like a little castle and inside seems to have a cosy, intimate feel. We will let you know what we think when we go.

For further details please visit Newmillerdam site.

30 things to do before I'm 30...

This week it was my 29th birthday, and as I creep ever closer to 30, I thought it would be nice to come up with 30 things that I would like to have done before this time next year.

1. Learn how to take better photographs.
2. Learn a second language.
3. Sew an outfit.
4. Send a book I have written off to publishers.
5. Get fit, thin and healthy.
6. Make something to sell and give money made to charity.

7. Write a book of nursery rhymes or poems for my baby boy William.
8. Try eating fish.
9. Throw a themed party for friends for no reason.
10. Enter a competition and win something.
11. Make a kite and fly it.
12. Stop wearing my hair down everyday- find some nice updo styles - try a new one once a week.

13. Put together a family cookbook.
14. Take a disposable barbecue and have a barbecue away from the home (Ladybower reservoir).
15. Have a beach picnic.
16. Regularly go and have girly time with family and friends.
17. Have regular date nights and find a favourite local restaurant.
18. Take a photo every day of the year.

19. Do a piece of art once a week.
20. Solve a rubik's cube.
21. Learn a new word each week.
22. Have a national themed meal and evening once a month.
23. Make family beach footprint casts.
24. Make a time lapse video of William.

25. See Stonehenge.
26. Do something nice for a random stranger.
27. Keep a plant alive and make my garden pretty.
28. Find nice recipes so you can eat green veg.
29. Watch top 30 movies on IMDB.
30. Create a jar and place notes in of all the good things that happen throughout the year to open next year on your birthday.

Okay so I'm not sure how ambitious this will be, but my theory is even if I only do half it should be fun! I'll keep you updated as to how I get on crossing things off my list.

My weekly sketch...Baking

My weekly sketch of things I love this week is.....Baking. Nothing makes me happier than the smell of cake batter. During pregnancy, the lack of alcohol never fazed me, but the idea that I couldn't lick the spoon whilst baking a cake was simply mortifying. Some of my earliest memories are baking with my Mum or Grandma. To this day, the smell of cocoa powder reminds me of my late Grandmother. I have never been able to replicate her amazing chocolate cakes, but not for lack of trying.

One of my husband's most inspired gifts was my kitchen aid. I am not usually one for exercise, so anything to save effort on my part is greatly appreciated. However, I now have plans to get fit and healthy, so I suppose if I am going to be decadent and bake a cake, the least I could do is exert some effort whisking.

Later this month, I am very much looking forward to attending Forge in Sheffield on 23rd June. It is an art, design and craft fair that has been put on by Hallam Roses W.I to raise money for Roundabout and the W.I. I hear their baking is legendary and urge anyone in the area to join them. You will find me resident at the cake stall eyeing up the tasty treats! More details found here.

Roche Abbey

Trying to utilise my corporate membership to English Heritage, I decided to have a look on their site for a new place to visit in our area. I came across Roche Abbey, which I had never heard of or been to. My father had some reservations, as he is a creature of habit, and I think would have much preferred a visit to the old faithful Brodsworth Hall. We arrived with trepidation of the impending 'I told you so' s, when it did not live up to much.

The road down to Roche Abbey is narrow and bumpy, with only room for one car. There is not a great deal of parking, but we went, on a busy bank holiday Monday, there was still some spaces left. Without English Heritage membership, you must pay £3.50 for entry, which I initially felt was very reasonable. I had been concerned about accessibility, but we meandered through the ruins with ease with our pushchair. There is a small sign warning visitors not to climb on the ruins, which we had not seen until we left. I admit I had no desire to clamber atop a pile of stones with questionable stability, but witnessed others being chastised for doing this. It would have been nice for this warning to have been made more clear, as one gentleman looked mortified when he was told by security not to stand on a stone to get an unobstructed picture of his daughter. This is not to say that the staff were rude or unpleasant just that this should have been made clear before entry.

Roche Abbey is nice for a small walk, a picnic or a nice place to go and read a book sat on a bench. It had a peaceful tranquility even with several visitors walking round. The view of the Abbey is beautiful and I'm sure a more talented photographer could have captured some stunning images. To walk around the Abbey only takes around 10 minutes, but as we wanted to take advantage of the sunny weather we were planning a barbecue for the afternoon, this was ideal. I would propose tagging on a visit to the nearby Conisbrough Castle, if you are wanting a more substantial day trip out. My main issue with Roche Abbey is that I do not think that I would actually go inside in hindsight. There is a public footpath down the side of the site leading to a field that has a comprehensive panorama of the Abbey and plenty of space for picnics. Although, £3.50 is not a lot of money, if a whole family was visiting, I would suggest exploiting the fortuitous public footpath. The English Heritage site includes a shop stocking gifts, books and refreshments.

The effect on my final image was accomplished by using the program GIMP. (my favourite free to download image editing tool) I did this by going into Colors and then Threshold. I really urge you to try GIMP, as every time I use it I stumble across some great effects. My ambition is to really try to get to grips with all of the endless capabilities it possesses. 

Visit Roche Abbey website for more details.