Category: summer

summer

We saw Usain Bolt’s last (good) race!

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The title pretty much sums it up! I felt so lucky to have tickets to the Saturday morning session when I would get to see Usain Bolt run in the heats of the 4x100m relay in the IAAF World Athletic Championships. It was great too that Great Britain ran in a different heat so I didn’t have to split my feelings, I could cheer for team GB and the Bolt! I have to admit that Usain Bolt is my sporting hero. I’m sure I’m not the only one!

I could not believe it when I saw our seats. We were sat right near to his starting line – what are the odds?! I was able to get some great shots even on our mediocre camera!

It was amazing and he crossed the finish line. I didn’t know at the time that it would be the last race he would finish. Bless him I felt so bad for him to finish his career that way, but he shouldn’t feel bad, he is amazing and we may not even see his world record beaten in our lifetime!

That shot is the last time he will ever cross the finish line. 

Obviously I was thrilled that team GB won! That was shocking, I even cried, how amazing, but it was bitter sweet. 

But I will always be grateful to the powers that be that allowed me the tickets to see my sporting hero. It really was a once in a lifetime moment. A major check off my bucket list!!

Days Out · summer · Travel

New Forest – Lymington and Lyndhurst

katchambers3 Comments

Last year, hubby and I had a lovely break in Brockenhurst. It was so amazing that we decided to return to the new forest, but a different part. This time we stayed in a B&B just outside of Lymington and used that as base for exploring other parts of the forest. I was initially hoping that Lymington would be the perfect mix of both the ‘new forest’ and the seaside, which is why I chose it, as Brockenhurst was a bit far from the sea, however Lymington doesn’t really have the new forest feel, there are no wandering ponies (which in my mind what is most special about the new forest) and the seafront is not the most picturesque of places, plus the beach is shingle.

However, we didn’t let that deter us and instead spent time in Lyndhurst and Burley. However, before I discuss those I do need to say how absolutely amazing the food was at a pub in Lymington called “Thomas Tripp”. The outside has pretty hanging baskets and is very welcoming, unfortunately when I stepped inside I was put-off as the ambience was not quite right, and didn’t look like a place that would have amazing food, but I am so glad I was wrong. Thomas Tripp had, undeniably, the best ribs and BBQ sauce I have ever eaten in my life! And as a foodie, I have to say I have tried a fair many. They were so unbelievable I had to talk to the owner about them, he explained that they are slowly cooked for like 12 hours, and he came up with the BBQ sauce recipe himself. It was so mind-blowing we actually travelled all the way from Lyndhurst the next day, just to eat there again. The ribs were not the only special things, the garlic and tomato bread must have been made by an Italian because I have only had better in Italy, and the chocolate brownie for dessert was absolutely scrumptious. So if you are ever in the New Forest, find this pub because you will not regret it.

ribs homemade chips corn on the cobgarlic and tomato bread

Lyndhurst

We spent a day in Lyndhurst, half of it shopping and half of it on the new forest open bus tour, which I highly recommend. We went on the red route, which was the longest at 2.5 hours. No matter how hot it is outside, if you are upstairs, in the open it gets very cold and windy, so bare that in mind. It was very beautiful and a great way to see the sights of the forest that we had yet to see. The only downside was that the bus did not have a toilet, which is tricky on such a long tour. There were lots of great touristy shops in Lyndhurst, and if you walk just 5 minutes toward the outskirts, cross over a grate, and there are the ponies, and to my great surprise, wild donkeys.

lyndhurst wild animals

We only had time to stop off at Burley on our way home (as the New Forest Show was on), it was an intriguing little witchy hamlet. Again we were lucky enough to see 2 horses, waiting to use the payphone 😉 Burley was the smallest and probably the prettiest of the places we saw on the tour. If you like a bit of fantasy, this is definitely the place, as it has witches, smugglers and “dragons” in it’s history, and due to this many of the shops sell witch/fantasy themed goods.

new forest ponies

summer · Uncategorized

How often do we do things on the spur of the moment?

katchambers8 Comments

In thinking about spontaneity I am reminded of a quote from “Will and Grace” (one of my favourite TV shows):

“You’re always saying we should be more spontaneous…” Grace

“I know, I just didn’t expect it to happen so suddenly!” Will

As a full-time working mum with a toddler, I don’t often do spontaneous things, especially those involving said Toddler – I don’t know about you – but it isn’t easy. They often come with a lot of baggage, and there is bed-time, nap-time, food, nappy changes, mood, toys – so many variables that need to be considered!

Bravely my husband suggested that after work we go for an impromptu picnic with Nate and our Border Collie. Great idea – I thought! The weather was lovely, so on my lunch break I ran out to get a few picnic items and then immediately after work, we collected Nate from nursery, rushed home, grabbed our picnic essentials (which included: picnic bag, blanket, food, toys, our dog Cali and some camping chairs). We were able to get out of the house within 10 minutes and drove over to a lovely spot in Great Linford, alongside the Grand Union Canal.

We had a lovely time! It was so nice to be out in the early evening, usually at this time we dash home, one of us cooks dinner, the other tries to entertain Nate while doing other chores round the house, then we eat, Nate has his milk and then it’s off to bed. However, last night we had a lovely picnic together, no food preparation needed, and then we all walked along the canal and followed that by playing football.

Nate is deep in his transport phase right now too, so he was eager in pointing out all the boats, bikes and airplanes that went by.

Please feel free to share with me your moments of spontaneity with your children, did it work out? It is not an easy thing to do, but when it works you get magic moments like this:

father and son laying down by the canal
Colin and Nate at the canal

sleep · summer

How to keep your baby cool in the summer

katchambers1 Comment

Since I was trying to find the answer to this myself, thought I would share what I have learned. It has suddenly gotten quite hot, Nate’s room is around 26 degrees and he has already woken twice tonight. So based on what I have read online and in one of my baby books these are some ideas, but please note that I am not a professional so if you don’t feel comfortable with any of these suggestions please don’t do them.

1. Strip baby down to just a vest or if very hot just a nappy
2. Cool baby down with a washcloth/flannel that is luke-warm-cool, not too cold as will shock baby
3. Strip bedding down to bare minimum and use cotton where possible as its breathable
4. Remove things like bumpers, cot tidies etc and anything stopping good airflow into cot
5. Open a window or put a fan on but make sure baby is out of direct contact with cool air
6. Give baby some cool water to drink or a cool bottle of milk, make sure baby stays hydrated
7. If breastfeeding you may want to put something in between the skin like muslin or a cool cloth as skin to skin contact can be very warming
8. There is a water spray called Magicool that you can spray on the face to help cool down although I don’t know how suitable that is for babies
9. For older babies/toddlers you can freeze fruit and let them suck on them. It can get quite sticky though.

Hope these ideas have helped.
Happy Sleeping!

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