Return to Longleat

My first trip was back in 2011, blogged about here, and I loved it. My return trip yesterday was with Sian and Jasmine and was brilliant. When we got back we heard the miniature train had derailed and a woman broke her leg! We saw the air ambulance take off but were in the Safari Park by then.

The Batcave was closed when I originally went so I visited twice this time. I love bats! Jasmine was pretty thrilled too and loved it when they flew about. There were lots of other fun sights.

Longleat is 100% child, buggy and wheelchair friendly but my word it is expensive to get in - £31 each for adults! We were very lucky that Sian has a friend who works there who got us in free or you can swap £8.50 of Tesco vouchers for a ticket too. Regarding children - Jasmine is 15 months and was quite interested in things that move. But really for that amount of money you probably want them to be 4+. When we went on the safari (a drive through one) Jasmine came to sit in the front and was consistently more interested in the dashboard buttons than in the animals.

It was only when they were very close she perked up.

On the car did make her a little wary though. But then she laughed when one started trying to chew on the plastic nugget thing (technical term) on the bonnet.

What she most loved was sticking her head out of the window as we drove slowly through the Park, much like a cartoon dog, with the breeze ruffling her little hairs.

I had a bit of time to look about, when not being trampled by the tiny explorer. This was my favourite sight.

There were lots of fun moments, but this was one of my favourites!

Knit Knit Knit...Button Button Button

My last post reported two sewn finished objects. This post has got two knitted ones. I first knit the free pattern 'Autumn Cardigan' (Rav link to free pattern) for Jasmine when she was about 6 months old. My sister adored it but it was almost immediately outgrown. The pattern only goes up to a year or so old so I sized it up to take her to 2ish.

I used an acrylic I thought would machine wash well since if I've learned one thing from this visit it is that she is a mucky puppy. No worse, I'm sure, than any other littl'un wanting to feed themselves but somehow she makes a beeline for her aunt-shaped climbing frame only when her little hands are at their most ghastly. Usually I'd wear a pair of trousers a number of times before washing - but not this visit!

I got both yarn and buttons from a shop in Minehead last week so this has been a very local project.

As I was finishing the cardigan I asked my sister whether Jasmine needed anything else and she asked for a very plain beanie hat. A trip to her local craft shop (Only ten minutes walk away! Lucky thing!) and a few hours and we have...

It is a wool/silk blend but still machine washable. It looks like it will pill if washed too often but then winter hats don't get yoghurt on them that easily or that often. Surely? Actually, with this little one you never know.

As I was casting off the hat I did a final check with my sister about whether anything else was needed. "Well...." she says, and gets Pinterest up on her phone. I didn't even know she was a fellow-addict until this trip! She showed me a number of cowls and I explained their construction - either a collar type or a longer loop with multiple wrap arounds. A hop onto Ravelry and we settled on the Lovely Ribbed Cowl by Purl Soho (Rav link to free pattern). She also asked me to knit her another of these hats. (Rav link to free pattern).

(That's me modelling it, obvs, not her - she'd be mortified if you thought it was her.) But this time in plain old dark blue. It is rather pleasing to be asked to knit something again because the original was worn so much :) . So that too will be going on the needles although I doubt I'll finish those before I return to Japan. You never know though...I seem to be knitting up a storm recently!

Made in England

I didn't have a chance to post these finished objects before I left my Mum's. The first is a dress.

I last made her one in 2011 and actually cut this one out a year ago before leaving London. I got as far as sewing the whole thing together but didn't do the bottom hem. The dress got packed, taken to Japan, unpacked, hung up, folded up, packed, brought back to the UK and finally finished in the intervening year. She loves this style and I kept the pattern (I think it is a Simplicity one) but it is now packed up and in storage so when I come back for good I'll have to dig it out again.

The second item was something new for me and which I mentioned a week or two ago - a smocked peg bag.

Once I had read the tutorial it went along pretty quickly and I really like the effect. I can just imagine this on a little dress for Jasmine or maybe a traditional top.

I also smocked the handles, although that was probably overkill.

I definitely want to do some more of this.

Currently on the needles I have a final cardigan for Jasmine and then Sian has requested a hat to finish off her Autumn/Winter wardrobe. Onward!

Holiday in Charlestown

My sister, niece and I spent 3 nights in the most amazing fisherman's cottage in the cornish village of Charlestown. Apart from anything else, Jasmine stood up all by herself for the first time!

She was getting very good at it by the time we left and it can only be a short while now before she is taking her first steps. But first, more of the cottage. 

There was a lovely private garden as well with a washing line and an old boat, with carpet in the bottom, where the little one played. 

I found it on AirBnB here and if you are not already registered you can do so by using this link which will give you (and me) money off our next bookings. I chose to search for somewhere where we would have the whole property, but you can rent spare rooms and even sheds. I have used the same site for my stay in London next week when I will be in a spare room of a lady's house in East Dulwich. 

The owner of our cottage lived next door but was away so I very happily agreed to take on the feeding of their cat, Rudy. 

What a guy! One year old so still very playful and we had play fights in the mornings where my hand would be alternately attacked and licked. He kept his claws and bites light enough not to hurt and we paused every now and again for little strokes which he didn't object to. We could have kept the cat flap and/or bedroom doors closed but you know how I am about cats so I was doubly thrilled to find he loved sleeping on my bed where he spent most of the day times. 

He did come and lie on my shoulder in the middle of one night and purr loudly in my ear but apart from that we only saw him while it was still light. 

Charlestown itself is pretty unspoiled by the tourists it attracts. There are numerous camping sites in the area where many have their own beaches so I guess it doesn't get enough traffic to go too twee. The harbour was lovely and there are stone beaches either side. 

We also visited Pentewan - which has a campsite but is also unspoiled with a huge sandy beach. 

The only issue was that the sand was more like gravel so it was tough going on the feet. 

Jasmine wasn't too thrilled by her first paddle!

But she had great fun with Mummy and did lots more standing too. 

Such a cutie! 

We all had a brilliant time and our only regret is that we couldn't stay longer. 

Minehead, Just Minehead

I had a little promenade around the nearest town to my Mum today. It's never been quite the same for me since the fudge shop closed down, but it does still have steam trains.

And the arcades.

And tonnes of plastic beach stuff, such as we used to have all over my hometown when I was growing up.

Not to mention the beach itself.

I thought about getting some bits for my ickle niece, who I will be holidaying with next week by a beach, but then who knows what the well-dressed 15 month old is accessorising with this summer?

Then I saw a man sharing his ice cream cone with his dog.

Alternate licks.

Seriously.

It all seemed downhill after that so I went home.

My Little Niece

I last saw my niece in the flesh back in April when she was only just starting to crawl, and mainly going backwards.

Now she is on the verge of walking and the crawl is so high speed it is hilarious to watch.

She and my sister came over to my Mum's for the weekend and Mum has stone floors downstairs. Jasmine's little hands went 'slap slap slap' as she sped off across the floor, which I am sure is just what noise a running penguin would make were we to have one handy. She has added some new faces to her repertoire, of which I captured this one.

I also got her looking like a young Wonderwoman, with some help from me.

I got some great shots of her and my sister playing together too.

It was lovely to see them, and I'll be moving over to their house for a couple of weeks in just a few days. We have a few nights near St Austell booked so if it stops raining we are looking forward to paddling and making sand castles!