Out and about this week ...

Half past four on Tuesday. 

We were down on the shore at Thurstaston - a ten minute drive from home.

Inca loves it here, and careers round like a big puppy instead of the sedate seven year old lady that she has become lately. It gives her opportunities to get wet, which is her very favourite thing to do.

We caught the last rays of the setting sun, bathing the whole world in a golden glow.

Although we haven't had any snow, it has been very cold. 

The lake at the Visitors Centre was frozen solid.

On Wednesday we were in North Wales, near Betws y Coed, and visited Fairy Glen. This is a hidden gem of a pretty gorge tucked out of the way, but easily reached down a twisty path. Apparently, it was very popular with Victorian tourists. We had the place to ourselves .... not another soul in sight.

When the sun was out, it was warm enough for our first picnic of the year. 

Inca had her eye on those chicken sandwiches.

This was a lovely place, and we wondered, yet again, why we'd never been before.

Our next little walk took us into fields with views of the Snowdon range, 

looking  magnificent all covered in snow.

We had come to find the Neolithic Burial Chamber at Capel Garmon ...

... and here it is.

No big signs to it, no fuss. 

It is just here, in a farmer's field -

 pretty much undisturbed, over two and a half thousand years after it was constructed. 

How cool is that! 

You would never chance upon it, if you didn't have a map.

It was lovely to see bright blue skies, even if was pretty cold. 

But with Snowdrops are out at last, Spring must be just around the corner.

Fingers crossed.

So far, so good

As we're just about at the first six months mark after finishing work , I though it might be a good time to have a little look at how it's all been going.

To be honest it was all a bit mad in the months before before Christmas and we wondered if the lovely relaxed retirement was ever going to happen. We spent most of the autumn in one long round of hospital visits and appointments, as my Mother-in-law was very ill. My husband had to move in with her for a while when she first came out of hospital, while I stayed home with our dog and provided a sort of meals on wheels service. Thankfully, she has made a remarkable recovery and for now, she is back on her feet and quite independent again.

Then we decided that, as we were not going to be away in our caravan as we originally planned, we might as well start getting the house sorted out instead of leaving it till 2015. So, we had workmen in for about ten weeks as we replaced the bathroom and en-suite, had lots of decorating done and had the front driveway paved.

I began to long for a day .... just one day .... when I could just be in the house on my own preferably with nothing to do. I'd had more time to potter around when I was still working!!!  But, all things pass, and the disturbance was worth it in the end, as we now have the house pretty much as we want it. And it won't be getting done again for a long, long time!!!

On the plus side we did manage to snatch a bit of time away.

We had a few days in Marrakech in November

I had a short winter break in Llandudno with my own parents

and we visited Paris just before Christmas.

It was freezing, but as wonderful as ever. Paris is always a good idea.

And then Christmas came and went in its own flurry of 'busy-ness' and we've started the New Year afresh.

At last, we've begun to settle down into some sort of a semblance of a 'new phase' as we finally have time to ourselves.

I joined a watercolour class back in September and for two hours each Tuesday I struggle with the complexities of colour washes and backruns. I love it, but I'm not ready to share my masterpieces just yet.

I love cooking and baking. Now I have the time to try out lots of new recipes. I can spend a whole afternoon just pottering in the kitchen. We've probably never eaten so well.

My husband continues to climb .... indoors at the moment ..... with a whole crew of climbing buddies who had retired before him, and have been waiting for him to join in the fun.

We're a bit hemmed in by winter weather at the moment, but on bright days we get out for a bracing walk with our dog. She's loving the new locations and new sniffs.

We can visit exhibitions and the cinema mid week and in the day time if the weather is too bad to get out. It doesn't really sound like we are doing a lot, but I can honestly say there hasn't been one day yet, when I haven't known what to do with myself. 

At the moment, we still find greatest pleasure in getting up after 8 o'clock and having a leisurely breakfast, while reading the paper properly. After a lifetime of rising at six, and rushing out the door by half seven, it just makes us so happy. 

Simple pleasures!

Best laid plans ....

So, at the end of August we should have been here ....

starting our special three month retirement trip round France and Spain.

Well it was not to be ... sadly, real life got in the way with a long sorry tale of hospitals and an aged parent and impending surgery. So trying really hard to put a brave face on things, we managed to get a few days away in Yorkshire before the op. Not quite the south of France, but perfectly pleasant.

We stayed in Knaresborough, which was so lovely we wondered why we had never been before.

 The woodland walks around Nidderdale were wonderful...

We especially enjoyed a sculpture trail one evening.

After hosting some stages of the Tour de France in July, Yorkshire is still yellow with bikes and bunting everywhere.

The remnants of an amazing party. Wish we'd been able to join in at the time.

 One of the highlights of our little trip was a visit to Brimham Rocks. A weird and wonderful ancient landscape which is great place to explore. When we were there it was still the summer holidays, and the rocks were filled with children scrambling all over them. What a great place to let off steam.

Inca loved it too and scampered through the rocks checking out new sniffs ...

but as always, she reverted to what she loves best and found the only water for miles around for a spot of dog snorkelling.

SPLASH!

Some photographs ...