Sunshine & Snowdrops

Hi there everyone 😀

Today’s post is a bit of a novelty for me at the moment … it’s actually about today 😜

It seems that most of us in the UK have experienced nothing but rain for weeks on end and when I saw the forecast for today I just felt we should actually get out.

We were lucky that the weather decided to be good on a day when we had no other commitments so we decided to have a drive over to Calke Abbey, a National Trust property in Derbyshire, and not too far away.

As it’s Shrove Tuesday I had actually been very organised and made pancakes yesterday so we started our day with these before heading out …

Whilst it was bright it was still pretty chilly but we got well wrapped up and headed out. The house wasn’t yet open for the season but that was ok …

We were in search of snowdrops …

… and we certainly found plenty …

They were abundant in the woodland …

… and whilst the walled garden was looking very tidy it was very different to how we usually see it in the summer time …

The pièce de résistance was the plant theatre, which was laden with snowdrops of all varieties … just looking lovely in the sunshine …

Having had our fill of snowdrops we headed back through the woodland, making the most of the winter sunshine …

We had a quick walk up to the church … to find the heather in full bloom …

… before making our way back up the hill for a warm up in the tea room … where jacket potatoes were the order of the day …

We were both quite pleased with ourselves on a number of counts … we hadn’t used the National Trust buggy at all … normally we would take it either to the gardens or back from them. We’d really enjoyed the walk and both weren’t feeling too achy for it either.

We’d also managed to stick to the diet with our jacket potato … no butter and no dressing on the salad. I know it sounds a bit sad but it was a real achievement for us. I even took my own grated cheese so I knew how much I’d had. My goodness I feel like I’m turning into a diet bore 🙈🙈🙈

To finish off our day out we had a call in at the Staunton Harold Garden Centre and the Ferrers Centre for a mooch.

We came home agreeing that we need to make the effort to get out and about a bit more … whatever the weather. We don’t need summer days and sunshine to enjoy a bit of fresh air … as you will find out when I get to tell you about our visit to the lantern show at Twycross Zoo a week or so ago ☔️☔️☔️☔️

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Christmas Charm & Historic Halls #8 :: Attingham Park

Hi there everyone 😀

I bet you thought we would have had enough of Christmas Charm and Historic Halls by now … but we did sneak a couple more in on a few days away in North Wales with mum back in December.

We pass Attingham on the way to our lodge so it’s a really easy place to call into and, as mum had never been, we thought it was worth a visit. We did visit at Christmas time a few years ago so it would be interesting to see how different it would be this time.

It was a nice bright day and we spotted the first of many Christmas trees in the main courtyard …

… before walking up to the main house …

This year the theme of the event was based around activities that used to take place in the house at its heyday. I can’t quite remember what they all depicted but will do my best … starting with card writing …

There was often a tipple to be had at Christmas time and the decorations on this tree include big baubles made from champagne corks and, if you look closely, you can even see glasses of sherry …

I can’t quite remember the significance of this one but it could relate to the fact that Attingham was used as an auxiliary hospital for the wounded in WW1 …

This one definitely reflects the posh balls that used to be held …

And this one is all about present giving … and opening …

There were banquets …

… and card games …

… and the very traditional … definitely bringing back memories of 70s childhood Christmases …

There was hunting on the estate …

… and lots of cleaning going on behind the scenes …

There was also plenty of making do and mending going on …

The dining room was set for a feast …

… and the wine cellar was looking festive too …

Even the boot room had its own themed tree …

Finally we got to see the Christmas preparations well under way in the kitchen …

Though sadly we didn’t have time to wait to see if there were any samples on offer as it was time to continue our journey on to North Wales … 

… though there was time for a quick visit to the cafe and a wander round the shop 😜

We’d all loved our visit … especially the way the trees had been decorated to reflect the activities that used to take place in the house. It was so different to how it had been on our previous visit and made for a really interesting reflection of life in a country house at Christmas time. Can’t wait to see what they do for 2026 😀

🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄🎄