Visiting Rufford Abbey Park During The Covid-19 Pandemic

Rufford Abbey is one of my favourite places in existence. I've been a regular visitor for the last 10 years and even have old camcorder footage of me there with my grandparents when I was just a toddler. We love it so much it is our wedding destination of choice when the coronavirus allows us to resume our wedding plans. It's a place firmly etched into my heart but like everywhere it's undergone some changes recently.

Living Arrows | Peeking Through The Porthole

'You are the bows from which your children as living arrows are sent forth' Khalil Gibran.  

This picture really was captured in the moment. Iris only has one speed and that speed is super sonic. She flies around everywhere, running at top speed. She simply cannot walk despite being told to do so several times. Her head was in this porthole for a matter of seconds, I was so fortunate to get such a good picture of her before she raced off.

Gift Ideas For A Two Year Old

It's been almost a whole year since Iris's 2nd birthday. It's been quite the year for us personally and also for the world as a whole. With the Coronavirus still raging across the world and the heightened anxiety about social interactions we've decided against a party for Iris this year which is rather sad as all she's actually asked for is her friends to come and play and a cake. I hope we can still give her an amazing third birthday. Over the last year we've had the chance to work out the most played with, most used and most helpful items from last years gifts and here they are, our collection of perfect gifts for 2 year olds.

Living Arrows | Paddling Pools & Puddles

'You are the bows from which your children as living arrows are sent forth' Khalil Gibran.  

This week has really been a week of two halves. The beginning of the week involved glorious sunshine and 32 degree heat. Iris had a much needed play date with friends. They spent time in the paddling pool, had a picnic lunch and played brilliantly together for hours longer than anticipated.

Books We've Been Reading | July 2020

We haven't written a Books We've Been Reading post in a very long time. Largely due to the fact I had a rough 18 months where the blog lay abandoned but also due to the local library being struck by disaster...twice. Our town experienced extensive flooding in November, thankfully my families homes were okay but our wonderful local library was completely destroyed. A temporary library was set up in an unused retail unit in town but then Coronavirus made itself known and closed that! Those first few months with no new books were tough but thankfully our local The Works opened and took good care of us with their amazing 10 books for £10 offer. These are some of our favourites.

*please note that the books below were purchased in store and are not available to directly link online. I have therefore linked to the books elsewhere online. These links maybe affiliate links and may earn me a small commission but you will incur no charge. Thank you for supporting my blog.

Living Arrows | Sunshine & Sanitizer

'You are the bows from which your children as living arrows are sent forth' Khalil Gibran.  

Another day, another park. I'm so thankful that the parks have been allowed to open and that the weather has improved over the last week. I used to prefer Winter to Summer but since having Iris I have come to appreciate the warmer weather so much more, being able to get outside for picnics, ice creams and play dates has saved our sanity over the last few weeks.