Out and about...

This week we've had a lovely week off of work and have been blessed with decent weather.

After a day of rest on Sunday, we caught a bus to Cissbury Ring

It was bliss, being in the heart of the countryside, so peaceful

Just surrounded by the sounds of nature

with views of the rolling fields in one direction, and across the town to the sea in the other

We weren't just there to take in the beautiful surroundings, but we knew there were plenty of Geocaches to find

It was a fabulous place for finds, and we bumped up our total by finding 11

The next day was another rest day, but we did take a trip to the cinema to see Miss Peregrine's home for peculiar children

Midweek and we were on the bus to Brighton. I really wanted to go once I'd heard there were a trail of snow dogs

It seems we're always hunting for something whilst we're out!

It was great searching the lanes and seafront for these amazing doggies, all looking so different as they've been transformed by different artists

The following day we spent more time at home, but with lovely weather we did take some beach strolls, but can definitely feel that its Autumn now as the temperature has sure dropped

I took a trip to the hairdressers for a much needed colour. I've gone back to red to cover those 'natural highlights'

At the weekend we had a visit for hubby's sister and had a lovely day around town, stopping for afternoon tea and fun on the pier

Although we've been out and about a lot, on our rest days with our feet up in front of the tv, I've been beavering away on the mandala

I've managed to complete 3 rounds which I'm very pleased about

To give you an update I'm currently on round 94 out of 111

Despite a change of routine I've still kept on track with my eating

So a great week, relaxing and fun, but tomorrow it's back to reality and work :-/

Seaside walks and washing lines...

We had another great Geocaching session along the seafront. It gets us out and about, and fun to do and in a great setting too!

We invited my Mum to visit our new place, on Mothers day. She enjoyed having a look around, and we had a lovely seafront stroll.

We cooked dinner, and gave her a present, but she arrived with homebaked goodies for us! A malteser cake and marmite cheese straws, yummy!

Last time I showed you my neon crochet squares, these were supposed to help get my creative flow going again, but they failed to do so. I thought by making simple squares, the ideas and passion would come back, but I ended up disliking them, so put me off doing any at all.

I had in my stash some washing line, that I found at poundland. I had bought this with the intention of having a go at making a basket. Now, I was itching to give it a go

 

No plans, no pattern, just having a play and see what happens

It's working up quite quickly, and I'm thoroughly enjoying it!

I know there's not much colour going on here, but don't worry this will change, as this is just the base. As i'm making this up as I go, I thought I would make it for my own use, ideally to keep whatever my latest project is. So I thought I would choose colours suitable to match our living room.

I have a rug that i'd bought in Morocco many years ago and I thought I would use this as colour inspiration

So I've chosen an oatmeal colour and various tones of red, and the black of the washing line will be seen through.

I'm looking forward to continuing with this project, and fingers crossed it will end up resembling a basket in the end!

Today was a beautiful sunny day, so of course we ventured outside to enjoy the coastal views.

We also went to find some local Geocaches. This took us inland a little, around the local streets and park, following clues and various coordinates to get to the end result.

It enabled us to have a look around the area, and spot other things

These two had a great vantage point

And we stayed out till we saw the sun go down

It was so lovely to see the sun out and to feel a touch of Spring in the air

Out of season...

This week was our holiday, ok so not across the water to sunny shores, but out of season, damp and chilly uk. But hey we were at the beach, and would enjoy our time away.

We had an enjoyable 1st class train journey and on arrival at Weymouth we were greeted by the Olympic mascot.

We walked down to the seafront and had a walk along the sandy beach, and the first spits of rain came down.

We found a fabulous sand sculpture depicting the last supper and a war memorial.

We found our hotel on the seafront before setting out to explore the town.

We wandered around the town centre, and down to the marina, but the weather sadly got worse and worse, till we ended up soaked through and frozen, to the point of wondering why we had chosen this town.

We hid out in the amusement arcade to brighten our spirits before venturing back to the hotel to dry out.

The following day was brighter so our spirits rose. Everything thing looks better when the sun is out, so we went back down to the harbour, as the plan for the day was to visit Nothe fort.

It was a steep climb so we stopped for a tea break to take in the views and give hubby's knee a rest.

We managed the steepest finish to the top only to find it was closed, only opening on Sunday's when out of season. We were gutted especially after the effort to get up there.

At least there were gardens at the top so we could rest and look across the sea.

Whilst walking through the park we found the most tame squirrels. They literally came right up to us, to the point of shocking hubby as one leapt up his leg!!!

In the evening we found a bright and cheerful pub, where we ate the most amazing steak and ale pie.

We were off to the Sealife centre the next day, where we took a long stroll the opposite direction down the beach front. It was overcast but fairly bright and blustery. We started at the Ray pool.

On to the nursery section with cute seahorses and the most amazing Weedy Sea Dragon.

After a quick pit stop, we went in the shipwrecked section, I was mesmerised and fascinated with the Moon Jellyfish. There were changing coloured lights, which made you notice different features with each colour. We were lucky to be there when the keeper came to give them their food, and stopped to give us some knowledge on the creatures, which made it more special.

When we came to the outside section with the Penguins, of course the heavens decided to open. But we stayed to see their feeding and the keepers talk.

After seeing the turtles, it was time to see the Seals get fed and show how they are trained, with going to specific rocks, touching balls, waving and jumping.

The last section was the Ocean tunnel, where there were large sharks, Rays and turtles swimming around and overhead.

Before leaving we had a much needed hot drink to warm us up after the rain had chilled us again, but we thoroughly enjoyed our day.

We finished our day with dinner at the local Wetherspoons.

The last day we checked out, and made our way to the Sealife tower.

We had to wait as it didn't open till 11. Up we went up 173ft, and rotated to see the views across the whole Jurassic coast. The clouds were quite low so we couldn't see to far into the distance, but it was still a good experience.

We went back to a couple of shops that I wanted to revisit and try on some clothes. We had a late lunch and spent our last moments back in the arcades before catching our train home.

On our return I had to do a large food shop, which took ages and I spent too much, but I did come up with a wish list!!

I'm determined on our last few days off at home to try to get up to date with my 'Mood blanket'. I was very good at the beginning, doing my square each week and sewing in ends and joining straight away.

Sadly in the past few weeks my focus has been on other projects, which has made fitting in my square harder with my limited spare time, so I've rushed the squares without joining them. The problem I've made for myself, as I've been trying out different patterns and stitches, is all the squares are different shapes and sizes, which will make the task harder!

I've also been making up another plain background, in moments when ive needed easy, no thinking crafting. This is a textured yarn that was in my m.i.l stash, though I don't know what exactly it is, I will be turning it into another style of flower cushion, but I will be trying something different....