Tick tock, tick tock... I'm sure the clock is ticking faster than it should be!!!

I can't believe it is the end of the summer holidays, can you?  One week today, and the children will be back at school and everyone will be settling back into their daily routines... well, not quite for us as we are going to have a sneaky trip to Cornwall at the end of next week for a few days!!!

I feel so out of touch with my blog at the moment, which is a real shame as I do like revisiting my posts as time goes on... it's like a record of what I have been up to... my diary :-).  I post more frequently on my facebook page, so if you would like more frequent updates on what I am up to, please do feel free to pop over and like my page so that you are included in the news feeds.

Soooo, what have I been doing all summer?  Let's have a brief look back.

We started the summer holidays with a trip to stay with my brother and his family.  The weather was glorious while we were there, and most of the pictures are similar to this one.  It was fabulous being able to sit in the garden and watch the children play whilst relaxing and experiencing various 'o'clocks' ('Pimms o'clock', G&T o'clock and 'Wine o'clock'!!!)

We also had a few family days out.  This was Skipton castle, which was okay, but a few too many signs saying we weren't allowed to do things (e.g. stand on the grass which was mown so that it had perfect stripes across it... aghhhh!)

I've also done a bit of paper cutting (more than I thought actually!!)...

 ... a Family Tree Commission (which you can find more details about here)...

... a Baby Name Memory Tree (click here for more details)...

... and a few of my new Wedding Day Memory Trees (these have been really popular and there will be more to share with you once they have been given... click here for more details!)

I also did a little bit of doodling... 

... and shared my 5th wedding anniversary with my hubby.

And then we (me and the children) visited my sister in her New Castle (as the Tinker says), where we had a lovely time with her and the children...

... eating ice-cream...

...having a trip to Whitley Bay to eat fish and chips, before climbing a multitude of steps (with an 8 year old and 3 children under 4!?!?) to the top of St. Mary's lighthouse. 

We also had a trip to a farm to pick some strawberries (they turned out to be the most expensive strawberries we had ever eaten!).

In the evenings when the little monkeys were in bed, we had a good natter whilst drinking wine and doing a spot of sewing (my sisters first sewing project!).

 Fabulous times and ones to be treasured.

Hope you had a good summer too :-).

A Trip To Skippool Creek

A Trip to Knaresborough Castle

My other half is a bit of a historian on the sly.  Even after... er... eighteen years, he amazes me with his knowledge.  And it's not that he has studied History in an educational establishment, he really does have a passion for it, and it is all self taught.  One thing he really seriously loves, are castles!  When ever we go away, he always checks to see if there are castles in the area, and then puts them on his mental list of places to visit.

Last night it was decided that we should go out today as the forecast was looking good, and it was looking like we were heading for a historical trip out!  After spending a while debating whether Richmond Castle was too far away, I decided that it was.  Although I would love to go to Richmond Castle with the children, I didn't want them cooped up in the car for hours on end.  We decided on Knaresborough castle, near Harrogate, as neither of us have been before and we both love the beautiful drive through the Ribble Valley, past Pendle, and out towards Harrogate.

We packed a picnic, blankets and suncream, set out, and had a fabulous day.  Unfortunately I didn't manage to take many photos, and the sun prevented me taking a photo worth showing of The King's Tower (the only building in the castle that remains after most of the castle was demolished in 1648 after Parliamentarians gained control during the Civil War in 1644).  We did however go into The King's Tower, and down into the 'prison' (originally used as a cold room, but later used as a prison).  We were also lucky enough to venture down into one of the Sallyports, underground tunnels used for secret entry or exit from the castle.

I also managed to find myself a doorway.

I do like doorways!

We contemplated how many people had walked these steps for them to look like this.

My favourite part of the day was sitting on the grass, on our picnic blanket(s), eating and chatting in the sunshine.  My favourite view of the day was this...

... what a very special view, and one that I could sit and look at for a long time... if the children could sit still long enough that is!!!  The boat you can see are rowing boats you can hire.  Something I would love to do when the Tinker is a little bigger, with not so many ants in his pants!!!

If you haven't visited Knaresborough, it is definitely a place I would recommend.  Beautiful, although a little too busy with traffic on a sunny Saturday in the middle of the holidays!

Happy weekend.  Hope that you manage to visit somewhere as lovely this weekend!