Trip to Helmsley - Days 3 and 4

On the Sunday morning of our weekend away I had a shower in the fancy rainfall shower before getting ready and going downstairs. We didn't have breakfast because we'd booked for lunch out. We had asked Lee's mam and stepdad to come and meet us for lunch and I had looked at all the pubs and decided The Feathers had the best vegetarian choices, so I booked a table for all six of us. 

Bev and Gary arrived at our cottage at about 11.30 and we had a chat and a hot drink before heading over to the pub for 12.30. It happened to be the same chain as the one Lee and I ate in in Thirsk on Friday, which was nice. I had mozarella and tomato salad to start with and then roasted cauliflower and all the trimmings, which was lovely! We all had Sunday dinner except my stepdad and Lee, who both had fish and chips. Lee and I shared a mint chocolate sundae for pudding. 

After lunch Bev and Gary went straight back home as Gary was working later on, but it was really nice to see them. Bev had never been to Helmsley before and she really liked it and said they might go back with her sister and brother in law. It is a really lovely place, it's all close by and there's a ton of nice places to eat.

We went back to the cottage and did more relaxing. It was obviously getting dark early so it was nice to stay in and just chill out. I did some cross stitching and we played some games. 

On the Monday morning I suggested we go to La Trattoria for breakfast. It's an Italian cafe/restaurant, and they had excellent breakfast choices. Everyone agreed with me and it was a lovely end to the weekend. We left the cars outside the cottage and set off back about 11. We went straight to pick up the cats who were glad to be home! 

I was wearing a new pink skirt on the Sunday. It used to be a dress, but the lining didn't sit right on me and it exposed my bra, so I finally got round to asking my mum to make it into a skirt. She bought the gold glittery elastic while we were away camping in August, and I think it looks really nice, and looks good with a plain white t-shirt. 

I love tomato and mozarella salad, I often order it

I also really appreciate a decent vegetarian Sunday dinner. There were seasonal vegetables alongside too

Chocolate and mint sundae

This huge clock was on the wall in the cottage living room

Pink lace skirt and white top

We were hot when we went to bed so opened the windows, which was lovely because we could hear the stream rushing by!

And my breakfast of scrambled eggs and avocado on sourdough toast - delicious!

Trip to Helmsley - Day 2

On the Saturday of our trip to Helmsley we had made plans to walk around the village, go in all the shops, maybe have a drink in a pub, and then have a takeaway for tea. This was one of the main reasons why we wanted to stay so close to the village centre - so we could walk in and not have to move the cars from in front of the cottage. We were staying on the High Street and it was indeed within walking distance to the market square. 

Lee and I made a cooked breakfast for everyone to start with. Bacon for my mum and stepdad, fake bacon for Lee and me, fried eggs, scrambled eggs, hash browns, beans, mushrooms and toast. It was so nice! Lee did most of it but I did scramble the eggs which were really nice. We finished that around 11.30 and got ready to go out. It wasn't too cold which was good, and it didn't rain on us either. 

There were a few shops just down the road from our cottage, opposite the church, so we went in those, and down as far as the bridge before crossing the bridge. There was a little fair on in the town hall, but not the bigger one that there's been on previous visits to Helmsley. Not to worry! We decided to go and have a drink so we went into Cafe Crema which is one of my favourite cafes in the town. 

Then we went into more shops, including the deli which I really like where we bought some Christmas presents. We went in the book shop and all the rest down that street. We had all noticed a new micro brewery at the bottom of the town, near the bridge we came in on, so we decided to go in for a drink. It's only got a few tables inside so we sat outside. There was a heater near the table and as I say, it wasn't cold, so we were all fine outside. I had a lovely strawberry gin and lemonade, my mum had one of those little bottles of prosecco, and my stepdad had a Helmsley bitter I think. It is a lovely little place and I'm glad we supported it!

We then went into the remaining shops up the right hand side of the square before calling it a day. It was about 4pm and my mum told Lee and I to go into the bakers and buy some cake to have with coffee. However, because it was late on, there wasn't much choice, so we also went into 42nd East Bakehouse on the way back to our cottage. It sells those massive ridiculous cookie cakes that are SO delicious, so we bought a chocolate chip cookie and a cookies and cream massive slice, and went back to the cottage.

I cut all the cakes into four so everyone could have exactly what they wanted. It was so nice! We played a game and did some quizzes, and then about 6.30 we ordered Indian food from a takeaway in the next vilalge along. There is an Indian in Helmsley but it didn't have very good vegetarian choices and the one in Beadlam did. We set off for it about 7.15 but they were so busy that it took nearly half an hour for it to be ready - I'm glad we ordered it early! I had paneer pakora and vegetable korma, both of which were really good and I'm glad I got them. Everyone else enjoyed their food too I think.

After tea we played more games. It was so nice to just chill and not have to go out anywhere. My mum and I shared a bottle of champagne that she bought me for my birthday in January 2021, I thought it would be nice to share it and it was indeed delicious! 

The view of the stream from our bedroom window

And the front of the cottage just as we were leaving, it was so cute

Walking along our street towards town, past the stream

Helmsley Castle - I've never actually been any closer than this to it

The stream goes all the way through the village

I love this little bridge - that's the town hall to the right of it

And I love how the backs of the buildings touch the water. I'm standing on the bridge here

Looking the other way

Strawberry milkshake in Cafe Crema

And a strawberry gin in Helmsley Brewery! I thoroughly recommend it

Lee and I sitting outside

Gin glass bigger than my face. I'm wearing my tie dyed hoodie from Yours Clothing

Walking back up into the village - I'd love one of these houses!

The market square

Ridiculous cakes from 42nd East, they were both delicious

And here I am with my champagne - cheers!

Baby Ariel's Dedication and First Birthday Party

My friend Michelle's baby Ariel was born in September 2020 but because Michelle lives in London and because of lockdown I'd not been able to see her or the baby. Plus I've never met Michelle's husband Sam as we weren't able to go to their wedding three years ago. So when Ariel's dedication (to their church) and first birthday party were in Leeds/Birstall, I was pleased Lee and I were able to go! 

The service was at a church in south Leeds and was really lovely; there was a lot that was really personal to Michelle and Sam which was good. Afterwards the party was held at Gomersal Park Hotel, which also happens to be where Lee and I got married sixteen years ago! It was lovely to go back. We met up with one of mine and Michelle's mutual friends, Gillian, and her family. The party was held in a suite upstairs which also had outdoor space. We sat inside and were glad of the airconditioning!

The food was a barbecue so Lee and I joined the queue. He had chicken which he was happy about because he doesn't eat much meat now I don't eat meat. I had veggie sausages and everything else, it was pretty nice. There was cheesecake for dessert and then later birthday cake too. We posed for some photos before Gillian and Tom left. Lee and I didn't stay too long after that but it had been a really nice day. I relaxed in the evening and had a currant teacake to eat!

I'd put contact lenses in again; I'm still getting used to them but I do really like them. I put some make up on too, I don't often wear it but I like the blusher effect. I was wearing this old Scarlett & Jo dress which is one of my favourites for a party like this, with a green cropped cardigan that was from Peacocks originally I think, many years ago. 

I bought these pink sunglasses while we were camping at the end of September. I think they're so cute - loving this new sunglasses life

Here I am with make up on! I used some illuminating drops on my cheeks and then blusher, I think the effect worked well

Here's the hotel - Lee and I got married in that suite on the ground floor with the bay window! We had a barbecue on the lawn to the left

Ariel's cake

Michelle and Ariel both looking gorgeous

Ariel was such a good girl all day, despite all the fuss and strange people wanting to cuddle her

Twinkle twinkle little star!

Greenhead girls assemble! Hard to believe we've been friends for over twenty years now!

Weekend with Von

At the beginning of September Lee had booked to go to London for a thing - don't ask me what cos I don't fully understand it, but it was some kind of comedy geekery and he was really looking forward to it and looking forward to meeting people that he's only spoken to online before. Plus Sooz Kempner was there and he got to meet her and took a photo with her, which I think is pretty cool cos she seems a pretty sound kind of person!

Anyway, I invited my friend Von to come up for the weekend. I haven't seen her since my birthday in January 2020, so it was beyond time to see her. She arrived really late on Friday night - she'd been late leaving the office - so we didn't get much chance to speak then, but then Lee left early on Saturday morning. Von and I chilled out for a bit, playing with the kittens, and then set off around midday for Holmfirth. There's a vegan ice cream shop there that I've been wanting to try, and as Von doesn't eat a lot of milk I thought it would be ideal for her. We stopped at the shop and bought sandwiches and drinks, then carried on to Holmfirth. It wasn't as busy as I thought it might be, so we parked easily. We sat on a park bench eating our sandwiches and then went into the ice cream shop, which is called Lick.

It's all dairy free; they had maybe 18 flavours of ice cream and several different flavours of cone. Then they had maybe five toppings too. The whole place is very Instagrammable - there's a very cute neon light and wall for you to take photos. We were spoilt for choice, I went for bubblegum and chocolate with a pink sherbet topping. Von had stem ginger and something else. It was SO nice - the bubblegum was really refreshing. 

We didn't stay long in Holmfirth, but then drove over to my mum's. She was busy watching firstly the Formula 1 qualifier, and then the first of six rugby league matches as part of Magic Weekend, but we chatted anyway, and I don't mind watching the rugby league cos I do sort of love it. 

We left my mum's at about 5pm cos we were going to Meadowhall to meet Sam. I had invited her for the weekend too, but she works Saturdays and she was over in Doncaster so it was easier for us to go to Meadowhall to meet her. We went to Las Iguanas for something to eat. I haven't been in forever but their vegetarian offerings are okay, so I knew it would be fine. Sam and I had some cocktails which was nice. I had some fried cheese for a starter and then mushroom fajitas.

After two courses each we were stuffed so we set off back to mine, stopping off to buy wine on the way home. We decided it was pyjama time and then we watched crap TV and drank wine and chatted until bedtime. 

On Sunday we each got up and got ready, and chatted for a bit before heading to Yummy Yorkshire for lunch. It's another ice cream place near me, but they have a restaurant too with delicious food. I went for a veggie hotdog. We had ice cream outside in the sunshine. We took Sam to the train station in Shepley nearby and then came back to mine, where Lee was home! Von left not long after but it was so lovely to see her - it felt like old times again.

Me and Von in Holmfirth. I'm wearing contact lenses again!

Inside the ice cream shop

Hashtag selfie

My dairy free ice cream

Cocktails in Las Iguanas

Poppy waiting to be fed last thing at night, isn't she so cute? 

My veggie hotdog at Yummy Yorkshire

And my ice cream there - prosecco and summer fruits, which was delicious, and chocolate

Trip to Ilkley - Day 2

We had booked into breakfast at 10am on the following morning of our weekend away, so we were up just before that. Unlike in May when we had to have breakfast in our room, this time we went down to the dining room in Craiglands and could order anything from a full English breakfast to all different continental bits. We both chose a veggie breakfast and some other bits, and when it came it was delicious and just what we needed. 

We checked out at eleven and drove just a little way into the centre of Ilkley. We parked and went in a few shops. Lee checked out the charity shops. Then we joined the queue for Betty's, which is iconic in Yorkshire. I've been in most of the others, but not this one. We had to queue for quite a while as it isn't huge inside and I think they've taken out a couple of tables thanks to Covid, but we decided it was worth it. Once inside, we ordered a milkshake and a piece of cake each - it was around lunchtime but we'd obviously had a big breakfast. I had a chocolate eclair which was lovely.

After that we set off back as we were both tired. We took my mum and stepdad a cake each from Betty's as a thank you for looking after the kittens. They had been good girls except when my mum was trying to put them to bed in one room - Poppy hates going to bed and resisted my mum shutting her in! Too funny cos she does that at home. 

It was a lovely trip away and while the spa wasn't huge, it was worth the £15 for three hours that we each paid. We had a lovely time!

Danish pastries for breakfast which were delicious 

Breakfast with a veggie sausage

My chocolate eclair

And my really yummy chocolate milkshake

And finally Lee's vanilla slice

Weekend in Sheffield

For Christmas I bought my friends Sam and Jac vouchers for afternoon tea at Jameson's in Sheffield, and a voucher for myself too. I've been before but neither of them had, and Jac hasn't been to Sheffield that much at all I don't think. We decided to make a weekend of it and thought we would book a hotel in the city, have nice food on the Saturday night, and then have afternoon tea for lunch on the Sunday. We booked into the Kenwood Hall hotel, and Jac and I arrived there at 2pm on Saturday as we wanted to go swimming.

Our room wasn't ready which was kind of annoying, but we finally got checked in and then got down to the swimming pool around 3pm. The pool was tiny and the surroundings were in need of refurbishment. The whole hotel was a bit like that, actually - it looked okay on the surface but needed a facelift when you looked beyond. We swam and went in the jacuzzi, but only stayed around an hour. However, by that time Sam had arrived so we chilled out in the hotel room for a while.

I got a shower and then we went out to Amigo's on London Road. I've never been but I've heard it's really good. It doesn't serve alcohol but you can take your own and they'll charge you £1 corkage which is pretty good. We each had a mocktail strawberry margherita which was nice, and the wine we took.

We shared nachos and jalapeno poppers and then I had mushroom and vegetables fajitas. I don't often go for fajitas but I fancied them. The mushrooms and vegetables were delicious - really well-seasoned and spicy. It was a good vegetarian meal!

We headed back to the hotel after that and had a drink in the bar. There was a 25th wedding anniversary party going on, so it was busy. We went back into the room to chill out in pyjamas, and the TV was broken, and then the disco started downstairs and it was SO LOUD. The soundproofing was terrible. We played Heads Up on Jac's phone which is always really funny. The disco thankfully finished at midnight so we could go to sleep.

I wore this Scarlett & Jo dress to go out in, I haven't worn it in ages and I'm not sure why as I really love it. I must wear it more! I'll share my photos from Saturday here:

My nail polish was Barry M Pacific, it is one of my favourite colours and a really nice polish

Sam brought these cans, it tastes really nice, it tastes of sherbet!

Here we are in Amigos

Strawberry mocktail

Jalapeno poppers (one of my favourites!)

Fajitas

And my dress. I don't often wear this shade of blue but I like it

On Sunday we got up and watched bad TV until check out at 11am. After that we drove around Sheffield a bit before going to an antiques emporium. It was absolutely huge, there were rooms after rooms and an upstairs. I bought my grandma a birthday present. We went to Jameson's for 12.45. The food was nice enough but I felt that the service was a bit lacking. It was busy but there were several members of staff. We had to ask a couple of times for more drinks. It was fine, we enjoyed ourselves, but I wouldn't go again.

After that I just dropped Sam and Jac off at the train station and came home. I was absolutely exhausted as I hadn't slept well, so I had a nap!

I love old signs like this on the end of buildings

Our afternoon tea - the hame sandwiches clearly weren't for me!

The fruit scones were delicious

As was my slab of Victoria sponge

Sam took this of us in the tea rooms, isn't it lovely?