Jules has arrived

After months, weeks and days of counting down Mum and David have arrived. Saturday morning I was up bright and early to catch the bus to meet them. I am so happy to have them here for the next 5 weeks.  I was shocked they arrived with so much energy so I had to brainstorm on what we could do. Ben was off on a boy's trip to  Paris to watch Australia vs France.

The weather was miserable so I had to consider indoor activities. We had lunch at one of my favourite food markets in Sloane Square. There are so many nice, tasty treats to choose from. Making a decision is always so hard. It always involves lots of trips of around the market circuit. After our snack we walked into South Kensington. David was in awe of all the fabulous 'Chelsea' cars. We went to the V&A and explored many of the rooms. I always enjoy my trips to the V&A. I'm always finding something new to see.

On Sunday, we woke up to very sunny Autumn weather. I thought a Sunday walk was in order before we went to the Natural History Museum to view the Veolia Environment Wildlife Photography exhibition. The walk was amazing, especially walking through all the leaves and admiring all the deep reds and oranges. We discovered a cemetery that was older than Australia. It was incredible. It was surreal and a little eery. It was overgrown and the sun was just shining through the huge trees. We spent a long time reading the head stones. It was a really incredible experience.

Our trip to see the exhibition was really nice. It was packed with Sunday visitors. The photos were incredible. The animals shot were gorgeous. There are some very talented photographers out there. There was even a section with entries from children. I would recommend going if anyone gets the chance. It is open until January.  It is very much worth the entry fee.

Following the exhibition we met Ben and his family friend Mark at a great restaurant called the Riding House Cafe. The food and wine was fantastic and just like their wait staff. I opted for the pot roasted Guinea Fowl. It was delicious. Benny and Mark ordered the exact same for both main and dessert, lobster lasagne and treacle tart. We all shared some very yummy sides. I went for a lovely gluten free option of rice pudding for dessert. It was so nice to have mum and David here. I really miss family dinners over here. Family dinners at home are always filled with so much laughing and carry ons.

We are really looking forward to the next few weeks. On Friday we are off to Ireland for a few days. We've never been to Ireland, so we're really interested to see it for the first time.

Sailing on the Solent

Two weekends ago Benny and I set sail with Melissa, Sailor Lee, James and Damian on board a lovely 40ft yacht. The conditions were better than our last sailing trip but it was definitely freezing. I purchased thermals beforehand which was a wise decision. It was weird to be on a boat with central heating. We layered up and Mossy kindly borrowed some high-vis waterproof wear for the boys. I spent £11 on hiring a very warm jacket and special sailing gumboots. A very good investment for our night away. The weather on Saturday was gorgeous, clear blue sky and a good level of wind. We made great time and only one person on board felt a bit icky. We sailed to Lymington, a little town that we had only been to a month beforehand on our engagement weekend. We had dinner in a lovely pub and spent Sunday morning wandering around. We were a bit tired as we had a gas alarm on board the boat go off at 4am in the morning. Not much fun for anyone on board. I was scared we were all going to die on board from gas poisoning. Luckily we were safe and sound. Our sail back was nice on Sunday. We left around lunch and sailed home at dusk. It is getting dark so early it is really hard to get used to again. We had so much fun and hopefully we can go on a sailing trip that is not too cold soon.

Photo taken by Melissa Moss after being hoisted up the mast.

On the weekend we just had Benny and I had big plans to clean the house in preparation for Mum and David arriving. Sadly this was not achieved but instead we had a fantastic weekend drinking, eating and walking. Friday night after a hectic day at work I met Ben at a pub. He had started earlier with his work mates. We had plans to make dinner but time got away from us and we ended up eating at a great curry house in Euston. On the way home Benny thought it would be a good idea to go past our local and play a few games on backgammon. For some reason luck was on my side and I flogged Benny two games to none. Benny's scary competitive side appeared. It was so funny to watch. I got an apology on Saturday morning.

On Saturday I spent the morning sewing a a skirt and in the afternoon we went for a nice walk to Wandsworth Park. I spent my time walking on Autumn leaves. I love the noise of them crunching under your feet. There was a nice chill in the air, which is always nice for strolling. 

Saturday night ended up being bigger than expected. We both thought we would try a pub and be home not to late. Well this all changed by about 9. We dropped into a pub which was playing good music and we ended up singing the night away. We missed the last train and ended up on two night buses. It was more successful then our last attempt a few months back. We made it home by 2:30, surprisingly good for a night bus journey. We woke up at 12 noon, Ben thought the clocks must have stopped. We had a quick breaky and off we went to meet friends at the pub for a late Sunday lunch roast and watch Liverpool vs Newcastle. It was delicious meal and sadly no win for Liverpool. All in all a great weekend.