8 Reasons Why I Don't Want To Be An Aristocrat

1) Let's face it, the only way you can survive is by inviting paying plebs to traipse around your ancestral pile

Not a bad gaff, though, right?

2) You can never re-decorate and are stuck with the wallpaper and/or taxidermy some great-aunt once chose

3) You have to give your children traditional family names and can't go for something nice and modern like Kai or Beyonce.

4) You have to wear silly costumes on dreary state occasions:

5) Your rooms are ridiculously large and very draughty, and therefore must be terribly difficult to keep warm.

6) You have to pretend to still be into religion.

7) Imagine having to walk from one end of a room to the other to fetch something - let alone just "popping to the loo" down three miles of corridors. I suppose you'd be fit. Unless you had loads of servants.

8) You are unable to hide the fact that one of your ancestors was fond of wearing a onesie:

No, I wouldn't want to be a toff for love nor money....but sometimes...just sometimes... it's nice to pretend...

(an early birthday present - if you want to find out about where we stayed, pop over here soonish...)

Review: Cottage Croquet Set

Before I start, I can almost hear you exclaiming - "Croquet? In December?!" To be honest, it was also my first reaction when I was offered a croquet set by Garden Games for me to review. However, I have always wanted a croquet set and I also figured there could be no harm in finding an excuse to get the kids outside in the garden at this time of year. (I must confess my imagination got a little carried away and I had visions of "ice croquet" on a blanket of crunchy grass. Any excuse for a nice hot toddy afterwards...)

Anyway,  back to the set. The set contains four mallets, four balls, metal hoops, a winning post and a set of rules in a nice sturdy nylon bag:

(as you can see, someone was so keen to get going, she refused to keep out of the picture so you'll have to take my word for it that there are four of each...). The quality of the mallets and balls feels really great, but in a silly way it was the metal hoops that impressed me the most. A lot of croquet sets I have seen in the past have included basic wire rings, but these ones are solid and sturdy and definitely won't end up bent out of shape:

The set retails for £79.99, which may seem like a lot I suppose, but I do think this set would certainly last. This is a good thing, as to be honest the only downside I could see what that I think my children (4 and 6) are still a little young for it, and could probably do with smaller mallets. It is definitely intended for adults or older children, and I can see us getting more use out of it in future when they are a little older.

All I need now is for someone to buy me a house with a large lawn so I can do it justice...

#SilentSunday - 27 March 2011

The Gallery - A Novel Idea

This week's Gallery Theme by Tara over at Sticky Fingers is "A Novel Idea". To quote Tara:

"A photograph which you think represents a favourite book or novel or even children's tale."


My chosen book this week: The Secret Garden, by Frances Hodgson Burnett, as it was a particular favourite of mine when I was a child. 


We are lucky enough to live relatively close to Bowood House, which every year opens up its "Rhododendron Walk" for a limited period only. We went for the first time a few weeks ago, and it really did feel like a secret garden, as there were very few people there at all (we hardly saw a soul), with lots of lovely nooks and crannies - great for playing hide and seek in. 

A Walk Around My Garden

This week, I thought I would try participating in the Writing Workshop, hosted by Josie over at Sleep is for the Weak. Josie hosts this workshop every week, and I have not really found the courage or the time to participate before. However, when I saw one of the prompts this week, I had to give it a go. (It also fortuitously coincides with hubby being away on a business trip and me having time to myself of an evening to think and write in peace).

Each week, Josie gives several prompts; the idea is to choose one and write a post around it. The prompt I have chosen is:

3. Take a walk around your garden. What do you see there? Or tell us what you dream of seeing when you step out of your back door.

If you have read this blog before, you will know we are currently in the middle of project "New garage and garden makeover". My post is therefore about what I imagine the "after" to be like.

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Nature is wild, nature is unruly. For the last three years we have not really attempted to tame it - it has had the upper hand in our garden since we moved in to our current house. Occasionally I look enviously at our neighbour's garden. In comparison to theirs, ours has been a veritable jungle. Their garden is clean and orderly. There have been complaints about leaves (leaves!?) and rotten pears dropping over the fence. Their garden is almost clinical. Actually, I know I do not want a garden like that. So what do I want?

Yes, I dream of order and clean lines, but I also dream of a space that is not so shackled that nature cannot flourish. A space where nature plays its part. To me, a garden is a living thing - the beauty of it is that it evolves and changes over time and with the seasons. I dream of beauty, but mainly I dream of colour - all the colours of the rainbow; deep purples and pinks, vibrant reds and oranges against a sea of green. I dream of year-round colour and interest.

I dream of a space for family. Somewhere for the children to play - to play in safety. Somewhere where the blasted swing/slide combo doesn't obscure our view of everything!

I dream of a space for me. Somewhere to sit and think, just staring into space. Somewhere to listen to the sounds of the world - our strange little suburban world, where the sound of birdsong from the nearby park mingles with the traffic from the urban streets. I can smell lavender and freshly mown grass. I can hear the buzz of the bees as they go along their merry way.

I dream of a space for friends, of finally being able to properly "entertain". Somewhere for the barbecue, a place for the table and chairs. Gentle lighting to illuminate the warm summer evenings*. Jugs of Pimm's, glasses of wine and laughter.

That will be my garden. Soon.

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(*I'm an eternal optimist, 'kay?)

Before...

I may be a little pre-occupied over the coming few weeks. Project "new garage and garden redesign" starts on Tuesday. Yay! As you can see, it is long overdue:

All this is coming out, with a nice shiny big double garage across the back of the garden. It is a little sad in some ways, as we will lose quite a bit of the garden, but given that on-street parking is not really the best option with small children (plus the fact that it is nigh-on impossible to find a space), it is totally necessary.