Monday 1 October 2018

A Busy Weekend



Although autumn officially arrived last week, these last few days it has become much more apparent. When I step outdoors, it now looks, feels and smells like autumn. That cold, damp earthy smell that only occurs at this time of year, occasionally tinged with the faint aroma of wood smoke from a burning fire. The air feels much fresher now, and just this morning I was scraping frost from the car windscreen. The walk to school is paved with fallen leaves and acorns.

This last weekend we have been busy. Good busy. And it has been such a heartening change from spending our time catching up with chores which have been missed during the working week.

On Friday, with the promise of a calm, clear evening, we made a last minute decision to go to Blackpool to see the Illuminations. It's been a few years since our last visit and it's been on my list of things to do for a while now. We parked at Bispham, and after a delicious meal of fish and chips (and a glass of wine for me!), the sun had already set, the Illuminations had been switched on, and we made our way through the colourful lights and tableau displays towards the Tower and Central Pier. As luck would have it, we arrived just in time to see the World Firework Championships, so we made ourselves comfortable and watched as the sky was lit up with a spectacular display set to music.








Expecting to be a little weary from the previous evening, we hadn't made any plans for Saturday, but the temptation of a walk in the fresh air was too much, so a picnic was packed and we set off once more, towards a nature reserve on the coast. It was very breezy down by the shore, the wind whipped at our hair,  and along with the constant roar of the waves, at times it was difficult to hear each other speak. We enjoyed some obligatory pebble throwing and climbing of  sand dunes and Lily managed to return home with a significant amount of sand in her pockets and boots. I should probably realise not to expect anything less by now. 




In contrast to all that sea air, on Sunday we made our way to Grasmere. A restorative finish to our weekend, it is always such a lovely place to visit and never fails  to provide the most beautiful backdrop for a walk . A gentle stroll by the lake followed by a warming lunch in our favourite cafe, with some seasonal hot apple and cinnamon to drink. The autumn colour in the landscape becoming much more obvious now, and the pathways through the woods are carpeted with leaves. We collected a few conkers from the side of the lane to add to our growing collection.

J. X

54 comments:

  1. What a beautiful two days you had, I do like Autumn, fresh air and woolly jumpers. Stunning photos to remember your weekend.
    Amanda xx

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    1. Thank you Amanda. It will take a lot to beat it, I'm sure. X

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  2. Some amazing photos there. I especially love the seaweed on pebbles photo.
    xx

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    1. Thanks Joy. I loved the shape and colour of that seaweed. X

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  3. Great photos as always. I was born and bred in Liverpool and would visit Blackpool regularly to see the lights. I loved it.

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    1. Thank you Tania. It must be around four years since I last visited. The fireworks were fantastic. X

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  4. Looks like beautiful Autumn days to me. Love all those gorgeous pebbles on that beach. I love round, flat pebbles that fit in the palm of my hand. Meg:)

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    1. The pebbles were lovely and smooth, although it was hardly surprising given how much they were being tossed around by the waves. There might now be a few of them on my coffee table :) X

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  5. Lovely photos of a busy but restorative weekend. We were at St Annes the weekend the lights were switched on and they go off again on the 4th November-how time has flown! We have booked for a few days on the east coast the week after next and at the end of October we are going to Pitlochry to The Enchanted Forest which your wee one would love. I’m treating us to an overnight in a B and B because I think it will be too cold for the van. Love reading about your adventures as you visit many of the places we like. What’s the favourite cafe in Grasmere? We always like to go to places that others have liked.

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    1. Thank you Catriona. You're right, September has flown by, but it sounds like you have some lovely trips planned for the coming weeks. It's good to have something to look forward to.
      Years ago we visited Grasmere on a weekday in January, when much of it is closed. The one café we found open at the time was The Grasmere Garden Tea Rooms. The menu isn't extensive, mainly baked potatoes and sandwiches, but it is always delicious, especially the soup. They have some fabulous cakes too. You can also sit outside overlooking the river. Since then, we've always returned there when visiting the village. X

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    2. Thanks Jules-I thought that would be your answer! We stayed at The Grand at Grasmere last October and were trapped for a day due to flooding! We managed to walk to here and had a simple but enjoyable lunch too. Thank goodness we are back to touring with our own accomodation-motorhome now instead of caravan.

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    3. Oh my goodness! That must have been a shock. We usually walk past that hotel as we set off on our walk along the lake shore. X

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  6. I would love to go to the illuminations I haven't been for many years. Sounds like a lovely weekend - it is good to get out now before the winter takes hold and limits where you can go.

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    1. It must be around four years since we last visited - Lily was tiny - so it was nice for her to see them properly. X

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  7. It looks like you had a great weekend and some good weather too. I love that first sunset shot and the seaweed and pebbles - that one reminds me of one of those large modern canvas prints you can get from various stores :P

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    1. I really loved the seaweed and pebbles so I couldn't resist a photograph. It was just a shame I missed the actual sunset, too busy eating my fish and chips! X

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  8. Hello!
    Happy Autumn!
    I so enjoyed your beautiful photos of your amazing weekend.
    And your description of autumn...the way it looks and smells...is perfect.
    Perfect!
    Have a cozy week. : )

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    1. A Happy Autumn to you too, Billie Jo. I think its going to be a good one. X

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  9. What a lovely break for you Jules, we went to Blackpool year before last as part of our 25th anniversary tour, I have never seen the lights before. I love fish and chips it is a real treat.xx

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    1. We really enjoyed the weekend Marlene and it felt good to do something a bit different. I don't often eat fish and chips but I always make an exception when I'm by the sea, they taste so much better somehow. X

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  10. What a wonderful weekend! I'm so glad you were able to enjoy some fun activities, together. The photographs are beautiful.

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    1. Thank you Bless, we had a great time. It felt good to get out in the fresh air. X

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  11. Sounds like you had a wonderful weekend and your photos are lovely. It's years since I've been to see the Blackpool illuminations, how exciting to see the firework displays, I hope Lily enjoyed them. Household chores can wait, these weekend breaks make precious memories.

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    1. The fireworks were fantastic Eileen. I do love to see a proper display. November 5th will probably be a let down for us now :)
      Funnily enough the chores did wait and I've spent much of the week trying to catch up. X

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  12. Wonderful photos from a wonderful weekend, you sure packed a lot in. We visited Blackpool Illuminations on the same Friday last year and saw the fireworks too. Yes, autumn is definitely here to stay now, I think we've seen the last of the warm weather, it's blowing a gale here today.

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    1. It does seem like we packed a lot in, although we didn't feel rushed at all. It was a nice surprise to see the fireworks too, and it was the perfect evening for them. The display should have been the previous week but they had been cancelled due to the bad weather. X

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  13. That sounds like my kind of weekend. I love the outdoors at this time of year, beach and woodland alike, and there is something special about the quality of October sunshine. Having said that, it's so dark today that I had to put the lights on before lunchtime! Ridiculous. I have some knitting to sew up but it may have to wait for a lighter day. x

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    1. It is dark here today too. I much prefer the bright sunny days. X

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  14. What a lovely weekend. It does look fairly bracing down by the water...lol.
    Grasmere looks so nice in the Autumn sunshine with the trees just starting to turn. I really do think that Autumn is the most beautiful season of the year.
    Hugs-x-

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    1. Bracing is the right word for it Sheila, although someone still insisted in taking off their coat!
      Autumn is beautiful, especially when you see the changing colours of the countryside. X

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  15. That brought back so many memories of trips to Blackpool to see the lights. How wonderful to catch the fireworks too. Beautiful photos Jules of a beautiful time of year.

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    1. Thank you. It seems like many of us have fond memories of trips to Blackpool. X

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  16. I love your photos.
    Looks like you had a wonderful weekend.

    XX

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  17. What a lovely weekend you had, full of different (and most enjoyable) things.
    I always love to see your photographs - Grasmere looks wonderful.

    Enjoy these Autumn days, it really is the most wonderful of seasons.

    All the best Jan

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    1. Thank you Jan. We certainly kept ourselves busy. X

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  18. Now that looks like a wonderful weekend packed to the gunnels with fun and memories...I know come Sunday evening I would have been worn out though! x

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    1. We had a great weekend Jackie. The start to another working week is always a bit of a let down. X

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  19. gorgeous. Descriptions of autumn air, and photos. I don't know if I want to walk by the sea or through a forest, your pictures make me want to do both! xx

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  20. Love the firework photo. Glad you had a good weekend x

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    1. I was surprised it came out CT. I couldn't manage to capture a decent shot of the illuminations. X

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  21. It sounds and looks like you had a wonderful weekend! The beach looks so pretty. Enjoy these lovely, autumn days!

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    1. We had a lovely time, thank you Julia. We don't usually manage to fit so much in to our weekends. X

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  22. A great adventurous weekend, lights, fireworks, woodlands ... perfect.

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    1. We managed a little bit of everything and really enjoyed the weekend. X

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  23. lovely photos :) How is Lily enjoying Year 1?

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    1. Thank you. It seems to be going well for now. The parent and teacher meetings are coming up soon, so I'll find out more then. X

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  24. What a lovely weekend Jules. We missed every firework display there was this year, but I'm determined to get to one next year. Have to say I was wondering where the pebble beach was on the Fylde coast until I scrolled down and read you were somewhere else by then lol. Hope all is well with you and the family. Not long til half term now, which I'm doubly excited about if plans come off :) xx

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    1. We really enjoyed it Suzanne, especially after our previous weekend's seemed to have been mainly taken up with mundane chores.
      I can't think it's almost half term, although I'm definitely ready for it, and yes, lots to be excited about. X

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  25. Wow, what a lovely display and a great introduction to autumn and the darker nights xx

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    1. The fireworks were a real joy to watch, while snuggling up with Lily. The whole weekend felt like a lovely start to Autumn. X

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  26. Oh to be able to walk along the ocean!!! We are land-locked, and have not been able to drive long distances, to the ocean, in years. You are so lucky.

    ✨🍁✨🍎✨🍁✨

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    1. I couldn't imagine living so far away from the sea. We are so fortunate where we live. X

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