Lately

The weather here this last week has been utterly mental - beautiful sunshine & bbq weather one day & then torrential rain & woodburner-going foul weather the next!  It's a well known fact that you can experience 4 seasons in one day in Scotland - and we do frequently! - so when we do have a lovely day, we just have to get out & enjoy it.

We're so fortunate to live in a lovely village with a huge country park just a 2 minute walk from home so this is where we usually head with smallest child on his bike & mad hound in tow.  Conveniently, it's also the walk we have to take en route to the pub, not that it's been warm enough to sit out in the beer garden yet!

However, Murphy (aka Turtle, for some unknown reason!) is happiest just sat at my feet as I sit in my office typing out my blog posts & updating the school website I run (www.monikieprimaryschool.co.uk in case you want a peek!!)

I've been feeling like a need a project to work on again since finishing the school library & after talking to my friend the other day, we've decided we're going to start restoring & updating furniture again.  She used to do it years ago before she had children & I used to do it when we lived in France so we've decided to join forces & start up a wee enterprise.  When I think of the beautiful old pieces I used to find in brocantes & vide greniers, I could cry that I'm so far away now!!  My speciality back then was to revamp old beds, particularly lits corbeille & lits bateau.  I loved transforming  them from manky old pieces that looked like they were fit only for the bonfire to beautiful, repainted & reupholstered beds.  I'll try & hunt out some old before & after photos.  I also had some stunning old armoires too but unfortunately, when we moved back to the UK, we had to sell most of the pieces we had, booo!  I also did an upholstery course years ago but I might do another course to refresh my memory.  I've still got the kit though so I'm part-way there!

Anyhoo, we've stocked up on our first few pieces of furniture, fabric & Annie Sloan supplies & tomorrow.....we paint!!  I'm actually really looking forward to it & just from talking to a few friends about it, we've already got 3 people interested to see what we do & one lady has specifically asked if we can find & restore a dresser for her!  

So watch this space folks, there could be a new business about to be born!!  Exciting stuff......!

Days out with kids #1 - The Scottish Deer Centre, Cupar

Last Monday we had our pre-school summer trip & this year parents had the chance to vote for their favoured place to visit.  The place that came out on top with the most votes was The Scottish Deer Centre in Cupar, somewhere we've not yet had the chance to visit so I was secretly quite pleased!  And most unlike the weather we've been having recently, the skies were blue & the sun shone all day, making it a beautiful day out for all.

 

 

 

 

 



 

There was plenty here for the kids to see & do & we started off by walking round the park with our maps spotting all the different types of deer.  They also have a wolf enclosure but it's situated right next to a small adventure playground so the kids were like "look Mummy it's a wo......THERE'S A PARK!!!!" & off they ran!  I, on the other hand, love wolves.  I find myself absolutely mesmerised by their eyes & I could watch them all day long!

 

After we'd escorted a small group of children over the treetop walk, we headed back towards the ranger centre where we were viewing a midday bird display.  We were shown a tiny white barn owl (who Alfie was convinced was Hedwig, bless him!) & a falcon (I think!) & although there's no denying their beauty, I'm really not fond of birds of any sort so to have them flying within millimetres of my head was not the most pleasant thing in the world for me!  The kids however, thought they were amazing!  We then enjoyed a picnic in the sun before heading back to the ranger centre ready for our ranger guide to take us all into a deer pen.

 

This particular deer was a beautiful tame deer called Izzy who took a real liking to my bag, as you can see from one of the photos above!  The ranger asked if I had an apple in my bag & when I replied that I didn't, he asked if there'd been one in there in the last couple of days.  I'd actually just taken one out that morning so she could smell it & was desperate to find it!  He told us they're not allowed to eat apples as they ferment really quickly in their stomachs & make them drunk, hence they all really want them!!

 

Anyway, take a look at the link at the top for The Scottish Deer Centre as it was a lovely day out & has plenty more to see & do than what I've mentioned here.

 

Now I have to make a list of other places to visit during the school holidays which begin in 4 short days.......& then it's time to prepare for 'proper' school, wahhh!!!

 

 

Spring has sprung!

Well, it's taken an age & just when I was losing the will to live, it would seem that Spring is finally here!  Anyone that knows me knows that I love winter & all that it brings (you know, roaring log fires, steaming bowls of comfort food, getting into my pjs at 5pm, Christmas etc!!) but I really don't want it to extend into the middle of April!  It was only a few days ago that we still had snow on the ground, eeek!!

 

We live in a beautiful rural village about 8 miles from Dundee & are fortunate enough to have a huge country park about a 2 minute walk from home.  I blooming love this park & it was one of the deciding factors in us wanting to live in this village, as opposed to closer to the city.  There's 2 great play parks for kids with massive wooden forts & zip slides built in amongst the forest & reservoirs for fishing, boating & water sports.  My teenage girls spend several sessions a week windsurfing & kayaking in the school holidays, a welcome break from mooching round the shops with their pals!!

 

 

 

 

 

With the evenings getting lighter by the day now, we love to have a wander round the park after dinner, sometimes stopping in at the park's wee café/bistro for a cheeky vino!!  Last month, the engine in our car went kaput (that's a whole other rant though, I'll save that for another day!) so I was forced to do the school run on foot via the park rather than the usual 2 minute journey by car.  Even though it was still bitterly cold, the sun was blasting through the clouds, illuminating the park in all it's glory (oooh, went all Nigella there for a moment!) & it reminded me what a beautiful place I live in.

 

 

 

 

So in preparation for a lot more woodland, park & beach walking, I treated myself to a new pair of wellies the other day.  I do find it odd that I get so happy about things like wellies these days....is it an age thing do you think?!  Anyhoo, I usually find it insanely difficult to find wellies, or any boot for that matter, that fit correctly as I have wide calves but skinny ankles & feet.  I've tried so many pairs of wide-calf wellies but the manufacturers seem to presume that everyone with wide calves also have feet the same width & they just don't stay on my feet!  That is why I was pleased to come across these Joules wellies in my local Dobbies garden centre the other day.  I tried them thinking they wouldn't fit my calves but they did, oh happy day!!  I went up a size to a 6 so I could fit in some squidgy memory foam soles for comfort & warmth & they really are very comfortable & a great fit.  And to top it off, they're just so pretty, they're crying out to be worn to many festivals!

 

 

 

 

But right now I'm off to get some lunch (rare roast beef & horseradish rolls, in case you're wondering!) & then I have a mammoth baking session planned for this afternoon.  Bring on the sugar overload!  Until the next time mes amis!