Days Out | Bassetlaw Museum

I live in an ex mining town in the district of Bassetlaw- I've lived here all my life and I grew up thinking it was boring, bland and there was nothing to do. I couldn't have been more wrong. Bassetlaw is a district steeped in rich history, from the cave drawings nestled deep in Cresswell Crags to Robin Hood's rumoured residence, Sherwood Forest and The Major Oak. It's the district that birthed the Pilgrim Fathers and is home to The Harley Gallery and the untouched Mr Straw's House. There's walks galore at Clumber Park, Rufford Abbey and Idle Valley and action packed attractions like Sundown Adventureland and Yorkshire Wildlife Park are on the outskirts. I've lived in the centre of a hive of activity for many years and really didn't appreciate it. 

Living Arrows | Getting Dressed Up

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

Well I completely overestimated my ability to keep a regular blog schedule throughout the summer holidays! We packed so much into the holidays, we had a trip to London, days out at Sundown Adventureland, sleepovers at Grandmas and trips to the seaside. It was fun but actually kind of exhausting, I'm very glad to be back to the daily grind. 

Accommodation | Nox Kensington

I am a big fan of a city break and I love to visit London. We live around 2 hours away via train and are fortunate to have a direct train route depart from the neighbouring town. Being from 'up North' means London accommodation prices always come as a shock. We look for something affordable, comfortable, clean and practical. We're not bothered by luxury when it comes to a city break as we spend most of the time out of the hotel exploring the local sights and as we travel by train we don't need to consider our parking options. I'd never heard of NOX hotels before but there are quite a few branches in the London area. We were travelling with Iris this time and had planned to spend the majority of our time around the museums so we chose to stay at the NOX Kensington branch. 

Review | The Boy In The Striped Pyjamas by John Boyne

The Boy In The Striped Pyjamas is a classic must read novel so it's hard to believe that this is the first time I've read it at the grand old age of 33! I think a lot of people read this book at school alongside other classics such as Of Mice and Men, The Diary of Anne Frank and To Kill A Mockingbird- can you believe I've never read any of those? I'm starting to understand why the secondary school I attended was closed down after my year group left and ultimately demolished. The reading list seems to be severely lacking but secondary school gripes aside- is this book as powerful as I've been led to believe?

Days Out | Graves Park, Sheffield

Graves Park was our first destination on our mission to complete the Sheffield Bear Hunt. The bear hunt is a charity event in which individually designed bears are placed around the city. You can sign up on the website to track your progress or collect a paper trail map from various places. We chose Graves Park as our first stop as it has so much more to offer than just bears.

Review | Blue Ticket by Sophie MacKintosh

Blue Ticket by Sophie MacKintosh imagines a world in which your parental destiny is decided by the luck of the draw, I suppose in the real world whether we are able to have children is predetermined by genetics, health and personal fertility but imagine if it was decided literally by a draw. White ticket means your future includes children. Blue ticket means it does not. No questions, no re-draws just blind acceptance of your fate depending on the ticket drawn. What ticket would you wish to be?