Creative Mummy Bear: September 2021

Hello Friends,

I was reflecting the other day that alongside the really important, and Big Things in life - such as family, friends, a home, food on the table - the Little Things often bring us such a lot of pleasure.

It was our wedding anniversary recently, and we are still relative newlyweds, having both been widowed before and marrying each other a few short years ago. We decided we have everything we need, so we agreed a special token gift would be perfect. One of my favourite shops is Fortnum and Mason, and on a recent visit to London to visit my daughter, my lovely husband had sneaked off and got me a beautifully wrapped little package...

Inside were two gorgeous bars of Nesti Dante soap. I have a thing about beautiful soap and derive such pleasure in selecting and using the next tablet. These two are called Romantica (how apt!) and Lavanda. I wish we had such a thing as sniff-a-blog as they smell amazing!

Last week we found ourselves with a free day so we hopped in the car and took ourselves to Ilkley, in Yorkshire, and settled in Betty's for tea and a Vanilla Slice apiece. One of my absolute favourite places to go, as regular readers will have gathered by now! We chatted, and sipped tea, and had the most relaxing afternoon.

One of my other favourite things to do is truffle around nice charity shops in search of Treasure. I've been very fortunate recently and found this beautiful Bunnykins birthday plate for the princely sum of of just £2!

In the next shop I found two boxes of handkerchiefs for a £1 each!prefer handkerchiefs over tissues, (tissues make me sneeze!) and these are already washed, pressed and in use. Is there any lovelier smell than a cotton hankie, dried in the fresh air and ironed? Bliss.

I also love to poke around in antiques shops. It's nice to look at the beautiful silver and fine art, but what I really like is to rummage around in the baskets of odds and ends - the items on low shelves - and see what I can find. We drove out to a lovely antiques place on Saturday, called Holden Wood. It's in a converted church, so plenty of corners to explore. I admired so many beautiful things, but was happy to leave clutching my modest purchase - six vintage coathangers to pad and cover, for hanging up my vintage knits. £4 well spent!

Lastly, the simple pleasure of growing food. Here are my pride and joy - the chilli plants!

Oh, and let's not forget the pleasure of finishing a WIP! After my Blog Posts of Shame, I have several items to show you that are now FINISHED! So next time, expect Harry Potter, socks, and cardigans!

Donna xx

Hello friends,

I lived in Canada for many years and at the end of the summer was 'back to church Sunday', when the choir would return to wearing robes instead of shorts and t-shirts, Sunday School reopened and generally life returned to a normal pattern of times and places to be. I was reminded of that today as I drove through my local market town and saw children on their first day of school. That reminded me of the changing season, and all through the rest of the drive home I was reflecting on the summer that is slowly drawing to its close.

It has been a very good summer indeed, with many reunions, a lovely holiday, and time spent with loved ones. Will you indulge me and come on a photo reflection with me? Here goes...

July took us to the Llyn Peninsula in North Wales. I absolutely love this part of the country, with its beaches and hills, fields and sea...

The beautiful deep blue se

A view from the Welsh Coastal Path

Dipping my feet in the tranquil St Cybi's Well

Plas yn rhiw house and garden (National Trust). A little piece of heaven, overlooking the sea.

It was the hottest week of the year, but Daisy was happy under the parasol with a bowl of ice cold water

Every evening we sat in the garden of the cottage and watched the sun go down

I had a most wonderful reunion with my dearest school friend! We have been best friends since we met on our first day of school - aged five! We went for a good walk with husbands and dogs, and the rain poured down! It didn't stop us having loads of fun and we laughed almost all the time, so happy were we to be together again.

The husbands were striding ahead but my friend and I were too busy giggling!

I also walk most weeks with very good friends, and we explore footpaths and hills in our local area. One of the highlights of the week!

So lucky to have these views on our doorstep

My step-family came to visit for a few days and we had fun by the river, fishing for tiddlers, and flying a kite, and a picnic that lasted several hours! It was a lot of fun.