Just Loving Autumn #3 - Trentham Gardens, The Lake, Stoke-on-Trent

Hi there everyone

There really is nothing better on a crisp 🍁Autumnal🍁 day than managing to pull in a bit of outdoors time and after meaning to visit, for what seems like forever, we finally managed to find our way to Trentham Gardens for the day. Seriously, I can not understand why we have never visited before.

It's about an hour away from us, so definitely within distance for a day out and from the minute we entered we were like kids in a sweet shop. We were just so excited, there was just so much to see that we didn't quite know where to start.

I will warn you now that this post is very photo heavy. I took absolutely loads of pictures and I promise I have tried really hard to be selective in those that I've included, but there were just so many amazing things to see that I got a bit carried away.

As soon as we entered the gardens we just didn't know where to look. There was so much going on in all directions. Literally above our heads was the first of the fairy sculptures that we were really looking forward to seeing ... 

... off to the left there was the lake, alive with all manner of ducks and birds, looking hazy in the 🍁Autumn🍁 sunshine...

... and to the right, yellow grasses, interspersed with winding footpaths, as far as the eye could see.

There was only one thing for it ... Tea room for breakfast where a plan of action could be decided upon.

In the short walk from the entrance to the tea room we couldn't help but stop to take pictures of this hare sculpture, which was nestled in the grasses ...

... this cheeky little frog ...

... the lake and these bird sculptures ...

... another amazing fairy sculpture ...

... and these snowdrop sculptures ...

Fuelled with Staffordshire oatcakes for me and a bacon ciabatta for Martin we decided to start our visit by walking round the lake.

The lake is a mile long with a well defined footpath and takes in the rest of the fairy sculptures and a number of other sculptures currently on display.

Being absolute lovers of all kinds of outdoor sculpture we spent plenty of time stopping along the way to photograph pretty much everything, starting with these amazing carved pumpkins ...

Then there were the dandelion clocks, which were just beautiful ...

... one of which was home to another ethereal creature ...

The path wound through the woodland, alongside the lake, with plenty of signs of 🍁Autumn🍁 to be seen ...

We somehow managed to miss the next two fairy sculptures 😞but we did see these mushrooms, which really blended in well with the 🍁Autumn🍁landscape ...

... and these deer, which were just beautiful. They were so realistic ...

There was an enormous carved scarab beetle, which was a little freaky, but fascinating all the same ...

We did manage to find the last fairy sculpture on this side of the lake. She was sitting on a log, in a stream, just taking in the 🍁Autumn🍁 sunshine. Personally I think she might be washing her hair ...

We were now at the far end of the lake and it was time to begin our walk back. There is another cafe here if you fancy a breather, but we were saving ourselves for lunch, so did not avail of the facility.

There was just as much of interest on the walk back along the other side of the lake.

More fairies, which we loved, they were just enthralling ...

... and plenty more sculpture ...

There was also still a surprising amount of colour, considering the time of year ...

So, we'd finished our circuit of the lake ... time to explore the more formal Italian garden, but I think I will save that for another post ...

Just Loving Autumn #2 - Butternut Squash Soup, with a hint of Bacon

Hi there everyone

I've got another of my real 🍁Autumn favourites🍁 for you this week ... home made soup.

We had a soup maker for Christmas a couple of years ago and, after spending a while wondering whether we would ever use it, it has definitely ended up earning its keep.

It has been languishing at the back of the cupboard over the Summer months but the onset of  🍁Autumn🍁 has seen it back in full force, working overtime.

One of the most popular posts on my blog ever, is one of my favorite soup recipes, so I'm guessing you guys are loving it too. If you've not tried it yet you can find the recipe for Dad's Tomato Soup here.

Over the last few weeks I've been experimenting with another favourite, butternut squash, and I think I've now got another recipe worth sharing.

Butternut squash is a real winner as a soup ingredient. It always turns out thick, smooth and creamy and it has a real taste of 🍁Autumn🍁, reminiscent of Halloween and bonfire nights. That extra bit of smokiness from the bacon, really just finishes it off nicely.

Ingredients
Serves 4

4 slices lean smoked bacon, cut into small chunks
Half a decent sized butternut squash, cubed
1 medium size sweet potato, cubed
1 large onion, chopped
2 sticks of celery, chopped
1 tsp ground ginger
1 pint vegetable stock

Our soup maker is a Morphy Richards Saute and Soup and I always start this soup off by searing off the bacon for about 3 minutes.

Then I just throw in the rest of the vegetables, sprinkle with the ginger and continue to sear for another 5 minutes, stirring regularly.

It's then time to add the stock and switch over to the soup making function.

21 minutes later and here you go ... The smoothest, creamiest, 🍁autumnal🍁 bowl full of goodness you could wish for with just a hint of smokiness from the bacon and just the right amount of heat from the ginger. It really is 🍁Autumn🍁 in a bowl ...

Not got a soup maker? Don't worry, you can still easily make this soup on the hob. Just saute the bacon, add the vegetables and ginger and saute until the veg starts to go softer, add the stock and simmer until all of the veg is fully cooked through. Then blend to the consistency you like.

Enjoy 😋

Beautiful Britain - The Needles, Isle of Wight

Hey there everyone

We are still on the Isle of Wight for this week's post, at a place that became a firm favourite on our day trip over last year, whilst staying in the New Forest. We loved it so much that we couldn't not visit again.

This time we are at another of the 'Wonders of the Isle of Wight' ... 'Needles' you can not thread. We had friends with us, but we followed pretty much the same route as we did last year, I can't imagine ever tiring of it.

A quick wander round the craziness of the attraction at the bottom, taking in the viewpoint ...
... and deliberating over whether or not to take the cable car to the beach and, again, deciding against it.

Opting instead, as on our last visit, on taking advantage of the NT membership discount for the Island Breezer open topped bus up to the New Battery.
The views from the the top deck of the bus, looking back across Alum Bay, certainly make braving the breeze worth it, especially on a clear day. 

At the New Battery we were treated to the familiar, but amazing views ...
This time we were also treated to the delight of a spitfire buzzing around, being shadowed by a helicopter, we just couldn't look away ...
Research back at base told us it was likely that this was some lucky people taking part in a Spitfire flying experience out of Goodwood.

After the engines of the Spitfire had faded into the distance it was a walk down to the Old Battery for more amazing views on the way down ...
There was a bit of larking around in the old Anderson shelter, before having lunch on the Parade Ground, where we nearly got blown away.

We finished off with a wander down the tunnel for, what we believe to be the actual best view of the Needles to be had.

It was then a short walk back to the stop for the Breezer and not long to wait to catch our ride back.

Thank you National Trust for another lovely day out, we really enjoyed our return visit and sharing this very special place with our good friends, who absolutely loved it 💜💜💜

Beautiful Britain - Ryde, Isle of Wight

Hi there everyone

Welome to the second of my posts about our recent holiday on the Isle of Wight. Today I want to share our thoughts of one of the 'Wonders of the Isle of Wight' ... 'Ryde' ... where you walk 😀

For some reason, and I really don't know why, we had low expectations of what to expect from Ryde, so we were blown away from our first view of the front as we drove in. It was of those really surprise reveals ... where one minute you are just driving along a residential street and the next the coast just appears before you. Sadly I didn't capture this moment on film, but I do have lots of other pictures to share with you.

As it was a glorious day with plenty of blue skies and sunshine we decided to start our visit on the front, saving the town centre for another time.

We managed to park up fairly easily along the esplanade, about half way along, and decided to explore the wooden pier end first.

Before walking out along the pier we had a wander along the front and spent a good while enjoying the sunshine and taking in the views, which were pretty amazing in all directions.

There were cafes, the old railway station, which runs out along the pier, the hoverport and plenty of places to sit and just take it all in.

Having had a bit of a wander we decided to head out along the old wooden pier.

It's not your traditional seaside pier, full of amusements and all kinds of tat. It is an absolutely fascinating structure and has been here since 1814. It is currently about half a mile long and is open to both people on foot and motor vehicles, with parking at the sea end. There is also a train service between the coast and the pier head.

At one point there was also a tramway and you can see the old tracks to the right in the picture above.

We were so lucky with the day we had, the weather was perfect and the colours really took our breath away. The rusty tracks of the old tramway against the bluey green of The Solent made it worth the walk alone.
Walking out along the pier gives a real sense of how busy The Solent actually is and the level of traffic to and from the mainland.

To the West we saw the regular ferry from Portsmouth to Fishbourne ...
... and to the other side, directly next to the pier is the hoverport with a very frequent service, also across to Portsmouth ...
At the end of the pier you can also watch the passenger ferry docking and the train trundling back and forth. Seriously, if you like transport, this pier is definitely not to be missed.

So, we had a beautiful day, a beautiful old pier and plenty to watch, all we needed now was somewhere nice for a sit in the sun and some light refreshments.

We found this at the end of the pier where we stumbled upon one of the loveliest spots we've ever come across to have a coffee and rest awhile.

Walking through the old Victorian station building took us to a Costa Coffee. Now, we are not really frequenters of Costa, although I know they do have a staunch following. However, they seriously have an amazing spot at the end of the pier.

We grabbed our refreshments and headed out the back to find a perfect little sun trap, from where we sat and watched the comings and goings of the boats, the hovercraft and the train.

It was a real treat. There was hardly anyone there. It was really tranquil and somewhere that did get a return visit later in our holiday.

After a fair while just sitting, enjoying the sunshine and watching the world go by, we decided it was time to have a last look round the end of the pier ...

... before having a wander back. 

Of course we couldn't miss a photo opportunity of my man with a train ...

Back on dry land we had a wander the other way along the esplanade towards the small harbour ...
... and the beach, which was just vast and soooooooo sandy ...

Whilst the pier is not quite so traditional the rest of the esplanade is more of what you would expect from an English seaside town, with plenty of places to eat or buy an ice cream, games for the kids and a few bits of amusements, all set against the backdrop of the beautiful beaches and the blue of The Solent with its intriguing and mysterious forts in the distance.
That was all we had time for on this visit. We had spent a good afternoon here and hadn't finished our wanderings along the esplanade and hadn't even begun to look at the town centre.

We will definitely be back, so watch this space ...