11th September 2014 - Blah.

Going back to work after time off sucks.

Both Paul and I said to each other before we even could be bothered to get out of bed, that we wished we had taken the whole week off work, rather than going back on a Thursday. Stupid Thursday.

So in I went. It was...ok. So very busy but ok. Trying to get on top of everything that had gone on whilst I had been off wasn't the most fun ever but I got on with it as best I could. Loads more tomorrow. Terrific.

We had an in-house meeting first thing to discuss what we wanted to get done and where we were at. We were given the opportunity to get things off our chest if we needed to but we had pretty much already done it so all was well.

I wish I had been given the opportunity to bring more stuff up later on but never mind!

Paul picked me up from work and when I got home I had to keep on tidying and getting things done. Downstairs was getting most of the attention from me and I was pretty satisfied with my evening's work.

We had dinner and watched some tv, then Paul did the washing up and I pulled out the futon and mattress to air for our guests tomorrow night.

How comfy does that look?! Yeah...it's not. Spoiler.

Turns out it wasn't going to get aired. It was going to get slept on. By a certain house panther.

Belly up! It's his bed now!

After the finishing off of our jobs, we headed to bed, hoping for a decent sleep.

PREVIOUSLY...

2013

10th September 2014 - Day (not) Off!

It was quite nice to wake up without an alarm this morning. I had set one for while we were away so we didn't miss breakfast (as Paul would never have forgiven me!) so it was good to be able to laze in our own clean and comfortable bed!

Barney agreed!

We had a good laze and then Paul went to do some shopping. I got up and dressed and started my epic tidying up mission! We have guests on Friday night so need the house to be spick and span by the end of today, as we're both back in work tomorrow!

I got quite a lot done first thing, although I did notice that the carpet in the back bedroom was wet. Seems our dehumidifier decided not to auto shut off, which meant it leaked all over the floor.

It wasn't too bad, as the carpet managed to soak the majority of it up, but I ended up doing all my ironing whilst stood on a towel trying to soak up the wetness.

I had a quick doctors check up in the afternoon, then we popped to the shops to pick up my inhalers (still under Caroline Kirk, which still makes me lol!) and some other bits and bobs.

We bought this, which is fun!

It's a new floor cleaner with built in cleaner spray! Our old one broke and so we're having to polish the tiles in the kitchen and bathroom by hand. Not the most fun. We're not big fans of mops and buckets (too messy) so this is ideal!

We cancelled #Whedonsday this week as we didn't know when we'd be home from our holiday, but it was probably for the best as there was so much that needed to be done. I kept noticing things that were out of place and needed sorting out!

We eventually had dinner and relaxed a little before heading to bed. Work tomorrow. Boo.

PREVIOUSLY...

2013

9th September 2014 - On the road again!

Woke up this morning feeling tired. Even though we had a larger bed, I don't think either of us slept all that well. WELL, that's not strictly true, as I was out like a light! I just woke up a lot after having weird dreams!

We headed down for breakfast, lamenting that it was our last breakfast there (although I think Paul was looking forward to getting back to the land of us-sized portions again!) and then headed back to our room to pack up. Luckily for us, since we had moved rooms the day before, there wasn't that much to pack! WHOOP!

Our room was pretty much up to where that bay window starts, complete with the extendy window on the left! Twas big!

We really enjoyed our little stay at St Aubyn's Guest House in Burnham on Sea. If any of you fancy a little jaunt to Somerset, then you should try to stay in this quaint B&B. We'll probably go back!

So, once on the road again, we headed back oop north to the home land, stopping once again in Lichfield. We had a quick hello with Mum, then headed to the local pub (no surprises there!) for lunch.

The Hedgehog was once a manor house, which was converted into a pub while I was at school. Many of my classmates worked there for a while! As it's up the road from Mum and Dad's house and pretty much en route to the motor way, we decided that it was the best location to have some food.

It was a nice afternoon, so we thought we'd sit outside to eat.

We waited.

We waited.

We waited some more.

We waited even more than that.

45 minutes later our sandwiches arrived.

Credit where it's due, they were good sandwiches, but they gave us no warning that there was a wait on food, which having worked in that industry is a bit of a no no. We were very polite about it but my arm was starting to burn a little in the lunch time sun!

From there, there was one absolutely necessary stop off to be had.

We needed to see Annabel and the gorgeous little Ted! :)

Not so sure he was as pleased to see me, but we had a play all the same! He likes his ball pit full of toys!

Such a cutie pie! I just adore that little face!

You might have guessed that I managed to catch this snap as the phone was heading towards his mouth!

Ted selfie!

We were getting a bit tired towards the end so we headed back to the car and onto the motorway back up the M6 to Manchester. Want to get back to my babies! :)

They greeted us at the door but didn't seem to have missed us very much! We sorted everything out (naturally forgetting a few things, as we noticed when we got home) and got the show back on the road. We wanted to be at our own home and in our own bed after so long. Ok, it's not been ages, but there's something about your own bed, right?!

We had a chilled out evening in front of the tv. I also got out my anniversary present to me! I saw this in Cheddar and decided I had to have it as a feature for our coffee table.

Just a shame that I didn't have smaller candles to out on it. Ah well.

We watched Stargate for a while but were both shattered so decided to head up to bed.

PREVIOUSLY...

2013

8th September 2014 - Where the brass band play tiddly-om-pom-pom!

We woke up and made it down for breakfast. They were surprised to see us, thinking that we'd had a skinful the day before! They clearly do not know us!

We had a bit of a rest after breakfast then decided to head out to Glastonbury for a bit of an adventure. We hadn't been before and it was only half an hour's drive from where we were staying so it would be rude not to!

We had a little walk around the quirky town and had a quick coffee and snack while deciding where to go. We chose the ruins of Glastonbury Abbey, where King Arthur was buried! After paying a small fee to enter (which goes to the upkeep of the ruins, which is not a bad thing so our great great great grandkids can still see them) we had a look around. Thankfully it was a lovely sunny day so we got to enjoy the time and peace outside.

Here are some of my pics.

Glastonbury Tor in the distance.

There were current restoration works in the Lady Chapel above. It's good to see where the money goes into keeping this sort of thing in good condition for the world to see.

After we were done with the history of the Abbey and looked at a miniature mock up of what it would look like, we did what anyone who is us would do and headed to the oldest pub in Glastonbury for some of the local scrumpy. Which is totally an ace name for a ginger cat. Must remember that one!

The old bay window. Pictures don't do it justice at all.

After this, we were kinda done with Glastonbury. As much as I love a good healing crystal and incense, when every other shop sells them, it gets a bit old! Ah to be a barefoot free spirit! This is certainly the place to do it!

We decided to completely change the mood of the day and head for the beach! Instead of the relaxed quietness of Burnham, we headed to Weston-super-Mare which is a little bit more what you'd expect a seaside town to be like!

For some reason, I didn't take many pictures...or maybe they're all on the damn disposable cameras I'm trying to use up! Not sure!

Anyway, we had a bit of a walk along the prom prom prom, then went for a cheeky drink at a local hotel. We sat out the front with a view onto the beach. It was lovely and sunny! I could have just put my head back and fallen asleep! I pretty much did, to be honest! I caught the sun a little, which is always nice! No harm in a bit of a tan from early September sunshine!

From the hotel we walked further along the prom, then decided to do what the rules dictate that you must do when you go to the seaside - stop for fish and chips!

They even had mushy peas, which officially makes them awesome!

It was right good food as well! We shared it, so we didn't get too full and not want dinner later on!

We then went for a stroll on the beach!

The water is about a mile out from the sea wall, so no paddling for us, sadly. Bet it would have been freezing though!

Lovely sandy beach! While we both love the south of france, there is such a difference being on a sand beach. Anyone know why some beaches are sand and some are pebbles? I'm curious!

After we had our fill of the beach, we headed back towards our little homestead, with a quick trip to a cider farm my Dad had recommended to us to get some mead as presents!

I started to not feel so good (some of the country roads were rickety indeed) and when we got back, we had been upgraded to a much bigger room with a much bigger bed! So I curled up into a ball and had a rest. We had a brew and watched some Stargate (yeah yeah!) for a while before getting ready to go out.

England were playing football in the European Cup qualifiers, so we headed to a local pub to have some food and watch most of the match.

We thought it would be typical pub grub. Were we mistaken!

We had a ploughmans-y board to share for a starter (bit obsessed with these at the moment!) which was massive!

It was very nice too!

Then for main, I had steak on mash with sweet onion and tomato sauce. It was really nice. Really filling as well!

Paul had pork and black pudding in cider gravy, which was also very nice!

He said when he saw the size of my food that I wouldn't be able to finish it. I nearly did but decided not to as I would be too full! So technically he wins. This time!

After we had finished our drinks, we paid up and walked back to the b&b, stopping to get some gin and tonic so we could chill back in our room. We watched some tv, drank some gin and I was so tired I fell asleep almost instantly!

PREVIOUSLY...

2013

7th September 2014 - Year One = Done! :)

It's our First Wedding Anniversary today! WHOOP! We survived the first year! I think that's a pretty amazing achievement if you ask me! :)

We went for breakfast before we started our day. It was ok. Not the massive plate of breakfast that Paul is used to, but that probably just means that it was normal person portion size!

We then got ready and headed our into the countryside! Big day of fun ahead!

First (and technically only) stop: Cheddar Gorge! Beautiful countryside and lots to do! Starting with Gough's Cave, which had an audio commentary. Not like the retro old days of a cassette walkman, this was a digital phone-like prong!

We got the full story and it was very interesting! The caves themselves were visually stunning! Nature is weird!

It's weird walking through as some of it sort of looks a bit fake! Like you're walking on a movie set of a cave, as it's all shiny and looks plastic. It's just wet! So cool though!

From there, we went to meet Cheddar Man! Ok, not really, as he's just a skeleton, but it was a museum of Prehistory. It was quite interesting, although learning about cannibalism is a little icky!

These are recreations of mammoth tusks. Taller than Paul. Scary.

Then there was the bit that gave me nightmares. Or would if I hadn't been merry when I went to bed...

Sorry if this haunts you too...but seriously, is there any need?! Reading the visitors' book at the end of the museum seems to suggest that I'm not the only one who thought this!

From there we had a look in a few shops and headed down to the next cave, Cox's Cave. This was far smaller and just something to look at really.

Through the cave is a game thing, what was billed as a 'Lord of the Rings' type mission. Sounds right up my street, no?

Yeah, it sucked. Got to be honest. Just walk through a bit of cave, listen to some story line which was pretty much a direct rip-off from Lord of the Rings, just with a few tiny alterations to the name and then into a cavern with a dragon and all you had to do was touch the crystal.

I'm sure kids would enjoy it. Adults in their 30s who weren't merry...not so much!

From there we headed straight up 'Jacob's Ladder' which were 274 steps uphill through a forest. On the way up there were little signs explaining the evolution of the planet as we know it. Including the dinosaurs. We were most amused by this one in particular.

He looks a little miffed, no? "Oh drat!"

At the top of the steps there is a watchtower to give 360 degree views over Cheddar and surrounding area. Where I stood to take a few pictures amused me!

Only I would stand somewhere that reminds me of home!

Fantastic views.

We walked for a while, pausing to admire the beauty of the surrounding area...and to take an anniversary selfie!

We had a really nice walk and felt that we were walking forever but as it was pretty, we didn't mind too much...we were just a little thirsty!

Some goats. Because.

We eventually got back to the village and decided to find a good local pub in which to have a drink and a bite to eat. Cheddar is actually really pretty, not just quaint and full of tourists!

Lovely!

We had a massive ploughmans' lunch (which I didn't take a picture of as we were so famished!) and a couple of ciders while we decided what we wanted to do with the rest of the day. We also celebrated the moment (ish) that we had been married a year. We guestimated about 2:30pm but as neither of us can remember exactly how late I was, we can't be certain!

We headed out to some more shops and looked around a cheese shop, sampling loads of different cheeses, which were amazing! Naturally we had to buy some as gifts for people!

Instead of taking an open-top bus tour around the area, we decided to head back to Burnham.

Our lovely B&B had got us some prosecco so we sat out on their back patio, played some music and enjoyed some sunshine! It was lovely!

Through that glass door ahead was the indoor heated swimming pool! We could have used it but didn't have time! Maybe next time, should we go again! :)

I also logged into Facebook on Paul's iPad (my phone was charging in our room and I had forgotten it all day!) and Facebook even wished us a happy anniversary!

Ah, memories!

I had also been trying to use up one last remnant from our wedding which seem to be lasting forever!

I still had 3 of these bad boys to finish off! We've been snapping pictures for AGES on these! Still have about 12 to be developed as they weren't finished. Plus they're expensive to develop! Especially when there is no guarantee that every picture will come out.

It started to get a bit chilly, so we headed back up to our room, fizz in hand, to relax and prepare for our evening's excursion! When we got in, we discovered that the owners of the B&B had left us a little something!

Aw! so nice of them! We decided not to drink it tonight though. Don't want to waste tomorrow with a sore head!

As it's Sunday, a lot of the town was shut. The nicest restaurant we could find that was open was a curry house! It was very highly rated on Trip Advisor, so we decided to go for it! We like curry and were planning on going there tomorrow, so why not tonight?!

It was fairly quiet in the curry house. We had some poppadoms to start and then our main courses arrived.

I had the Chandni Burnham on Sea Special...which was (needs to load menu to remember exactly!) lamb tikka, chicken tikka and tandoori chicken in a 'special' sauce. So when it arrived I was a little surprised!

It hadn't mentioned an omelette on the menu! Still, it was a nice addition!

Paul had something that I can't remember the name of which was labelled hot. It wasn't hot. I could have eaten it no problem. Shame really. My boy does like his hot curry!

Food was very good though and the biggest surprise was that we both ate pretty much all of it! That never happens! I normally wimp out but it was so delicious that it all was eaten!

Paul even had room for pudding! He ordered a hazelnut bomb (I think it was called - it's not listed on any menu!) and was a little bit surprised with what he got!

Tiny bomb! Thankfully, they had given us two spoons so I could help him eat that mountain of pudding! :)

We had a quick drink before heading back to the B&B. We were both shattered! The sea air is clearly getting to us! Nothing to do with the alcohol at all. No, sir!

PREVIOUSLY...

2013 & 2013 (Aw! Memories!)