Mom and Dad's visit II

On Wednesday all four of us headed to Coniston for a 8-mile walk up the Old Man of Coniston and Swirl How. This was the first time any of us had been hill walking in the Lakes so we all were rather nervous and excited.

The warm weather and clear skies made for some sweaty walking but some spectacular views.





The final ascent did require a bit of scrambling but we all made it up in one piece.





The views were pretty spectacular.





I love this picture of Lee. Maybe it's just the wedding band.



We sorely underestimated the amount of water we would need (we're such rookies) so this Coke I had at the pub at the end of the route was the tastiest Coke I've ever had!



We could see England's highest peak in the distance, so Lee and I will definitely be climbing Scafell Pike soon!

Mom and Dad's visit

My Mom and Dad left today after a fantastic week-long visit. I loved the fact that I was able to celebrate Father's Day and my Mom's birthday with them for the first time in years.

I had to work on Monday but early Tuesday morning we all packed into our car for a trip up to the Lake District. We stayed in Ambleside, which is a cute little village on Lake Windermere. Lee was in his element as there were more camping/outdoors shops than I have ever seen in one place.









We lucked out with the weather and enjoyed a few drinks beside the lake. We then hopped on this bad boy for the mile-long trip into town.



That night, Mom and I convinced the boys to try out a vegetarian restaurant in the village. It was really a cool setup. You get a two-course dinner and a cinema ticket to the old-school style cinema above the restaurant.

We saw a cute little British film called Waiting for Eric. It introduced my parents to Eric Cantona, a Frenchman who is famous for playing for Manchester United, strange proverbs and the kung fu kick on a fan. We were in bed early in preparation for a day-long hike.

Goodbye to Royal Worcester

I bought this Bialetti Moka pot yesterday. First designed in Italy in 1933, it sure does work like a charm! Lee and I both like enjoying our espressos in our cute little Royal Worcester cups.



On the way home from a walk along the river, we thought we would stop into Royal Worcester to see if we could get a few more of the cups. I had realized that they were closing down and selling off all of the stock, but I didn't realize that the very last day was today!





The shelves were pretty bare but Lee managed to buy quite a few sets of bowls, mugs and plates for Christmas gifts for his brother and sister.



I bought myself a sweet plate from the Spode Christmas Tree line for only £2.10.



I left feeling rather sad that the entire site is closing. We can see the whole complex from our flat and I've always enjoyed telling my Nana that we could see where some of her china was made. There has been porcelain production in Worcester since 1751. I'm not sure what will happen to the site itself - I really do hope that the city council won't allow some developer to completely demolish the old buildings.

This sign was displayed throughout the buildings.

258 years. Canada isn't even that old.

Back to normal

After two weekends of sun and high temperatures, things are unfortunately back to normal around here.

As seen by the view from our kitchen:



I think these kinds of rainy Saturdays call for housework and baking. I completed the former begrudgingly, but rather enjoyed the latter. I made these granola bars using a recipe found on this lovely blog.



My bars were very tasty, although still rather brittle. Some of the bars collapsed when I cut them so instead of shoving them in my mouth in the name of 'taste-testing' I decided they would make some lovely granola for breakfast.

I stored the granola in one of my favorite containers for keeping things fresh.



I have a guilty secret where these containers come from: instant coffee. I know, I know. The horror. Please don't judge. Instant has nothing on the coffee we make in our cafetiere but sometimes the convenience just wins out. And of course, I love the jars.

The jars themselves are very practical for storing all sorts of things. I use them in the bathroom for q-tips and cotton balls and in the office to store all sorts of bits and bobs.



P.S Carrie - remember making the car in the back of the picture in Grade 7 shop? I was so mad when Jeremy one the speed competition as he cheated! Ha ha.