Stressful start, relaxing end

 Last week I alluded to the fact that I’d had some car trouble. It pretty much plagued me for most of the week, it seems every garage in Scarborough is full at the moment so I had days of doing school runs in taxis, or trying out the alternative of a 2 hr bus journey. One day I was saved by getting a lift from one of the other Mums, but honestly, it’s not easy having no wheels.

Having thought the issue was resolved Thursday, it seemed to come back Saturday evening so this week will be fun too.

Obligatory selfie in the office loo in London

Midweek, I had a trip down to London for some meetings. The weather was lovely, and it was actually quite nice to be in the big smoke for a change.

That said, I’m always happiest to get back ooop North, and always exhausted after it all.

It was a useful trip though and the rest of the week was very focused and productive off the back of it.

Today was Mother’s Day in the UK, typical the clocks went forward and robbed me of my Mother’s Day lie in. We still had a fairly relaxed start though. Little Miss had made me a lovely card at school, and I got some beautiful flowers from her (subsidised by the chap lol).

At lunchtime, along with my Mum, we caught a train down to York. We’d got a table booked at the Ivy for afternoon tea, but Mum wanted to peruse a couple of shops first. 

The Ivy was super busy, so we were really happy to be shown to a nice little tucked away table. Mum and I ordered afternoon tea (mine with champagne) whilst little Miss had a delicious and generously portioned burger from the children’s menu.

It was so relaxed and luxurious we had a fabulous time. Both me and Mum were presented with some lovely pink tulips too.

Afterwards, we took a wander through York. Even though the shops had shut it was still busy and bright. We walked up to the Minster, before heading back towards the train station.

It was a wonderful day, and a perfect tonic to the week.

Coastal Adventures

 Wednesday already. How time flies, I thought I’d share last week’s adventures while I sit waiting for my train to London (business not leisure), before we run headlong into another week. I read an article somewhere that as you get older the days and weeks do indeed feel like they pass faster and it’s due to the ‘sameness’ of our weeks. Nothing new to learn or new to see. That’s why children always think everything is ages away, because they are going to have so many more new to them experiences in the timescale. I digress.

Early in the week, the chap surprised me with another lunchtime visit and another beautiful bunch of flowers. We popped out for a spot of lunch and it was a lovely, if fleeting visit.

Wednesday I booked the afternoon off work to go and collect my new glasses, and also because little miss was bringing a friend home from school. I’m absolutely in love with my new glasses. They are Gucci, my prescription has changed meaning that I need to wear them even more often, so I wanted something statement and stylish for my face furniture. These definitely fit the bill. 

The rest of the week was much of a muchness, as usual, until the weekend arrived. Saturday morning, little miss had a friend’s party to attend. She got to play with her friends, I got to drink coffee and catch up with some of my mummy friends. I had also brought my knitting to do while chatting. 

After the party, we headed up to Whitby. After borrowing ‘The Artists Way’ from the library a couple of weeks back I’ve been following the tasks and activities designed to help me rediscover my creativity. It’s encouraged me to rediscover my love of knitting, baking and aromatherapy. So, I needed to go to Totally Natural Skincare in Whitby to stock up on essential oils and herbal teas. 

The weather wasn’t great when we got there, as so often is the case in Whitby. We headed straight for a tea room for crumpets and a pot of Yorkshire Tea, before taking on the shops.

Despite the weather, we had a lovely day perusing the jet shops and gift shops. Aside from my massive stash of oils and herbs, and a new silver ring for little misses forthcoming birthday, I didn’t buy anything.

We finished up with fish and chips, obviously, and a little wander on the massive sailing ship in the harbour before heading home. 

Back at home, I couldn’t wait to start blending up some of my oils. So far I’ve made a relaxing roller ball blend and some nail oil. 

Sunday, I was due to be heading up to Saltburn on Sea with the chap. Alas, my car had thrown a warning message on my way home from Whitby the night before about engine overheating, so we changed our plans and the chap came across to Scarborough for a day of beach walks and arcades.

He arrived mid-morning, and we decided to take Thelma for her second day out of the weekend. It was cold at the seafront, and I immediately regretted not having brought my big wrap scarf. Hardcore would be surfers were having their Sunday morning lessons, and  the beach was strewn with branches, driftwood and debris, indicating rough seas from the night before.

It was a refreshing wander, I’ve said before, these out of season and slightly cooler days are my favourite time to live in Scarborough. 

We walked out to the lighthouse, which is having some maintenance work done. Wandering along the harbour, we picked out the boats we’d like to own. I love the idea of having a little boat to escape to now and again. I’m not even sure I’d take it out on the wild North Sea, I think I’d just sit on it, drink wine and watch the world go by. 

After some restorative homemade (and delicious) soup at the Sunrise cafe, we wandered along the front, stopping to look in some of the shops along the way.

We’d already decided we would spend some time (and money) in the arcades. We’re children at heart, so the 2p push machines, and the giant space invaders are the things that capture us. We won loads of tickets, and some cheap plastic junk too, which really is the thrill of the 2p push machines.

We were surprised when we went to trade or tickets in at how big the shop had got. It used to be just a booth, but it’s much nicer and had much better prizes. Little miss wasn’t with us, but of course we traded our tickets for toys for her.

Then we went to the top floor, which has recently been done up. I had a cheeky Long Island Ice Tea, and we played darts. Despite my surprising fluke bullseye, the chap still won all of the games. 

We wandered off to get our Sunday dinner, which was a rather delicious roast chicken with all the trimmings, before heading home. It had been a perfect day out, despite our last minute change of plans.

Busy Doing Nothing

 It’s been a busy couple of weeks, but one where nothing much noteworthy has happened. Well, noteworthy is the wrong word, because I did buy a new phone after mine started behaving erratically. I decided to opt for a new iPhone, which really is a treat. I have to say, the camera is incredible. All of my photos in today’s post have been taken on it (and some filters used too). It won’t always replace my camera, but it’s definitely a viable option.

I’ve also had an eye test and I’m waiting for my new specs after my eyes got worse, AGAIN. Aside from that though, it’s mostly been concentrating on learning my new job. 

I did get home after a trip out for lunch this week to find the chap had sent me some lovely spring flowers. I think I fell for false spring with such joy, that this week’s grey skies and cold temperatures have really thrown me. These thoughtful flowers brightened up my day again, and continue to brighten up my living room.

Yesterday we popped out for some shopping. Just down to one of the out of town shopping places near York. We decided to stop off at Mama Doreen’s, which is a delightful little tea room, for lunch before hitting the shops. Whilst I didn’t plump for the afternoon tea, little Miss did. 

The joy of pouring your own apple juice from a gold teapot can’t be bettered. 

I did plump for this Pavlova though

I mostly bought bits of junk, including this fabulous little bag charm that’s gone straight on my handbag, which this week is my beloved Mulberry Bayswater that I bought around 5 years ago, preloved. I love hanging tat on my bags, Jane Birkin style. The other decoration is a bracelet that little Miss made for me ages ago.

Today, the weather has been hit and miss, so I put my raincoat on and Thelma’s too and we went for a walk to the beach.

It was delightfully quiet with just a few other dog walkers, and getting caught in a couple of rain showers didn’t bother us at all.

I had cockles, just because it’s ages since I’ve had some. Then I sat outside a cafe with an Americano and watched the world go by. It’s these out of season days that remind me why I moved to Scarborough in the first place. 

Thelma’s sleeping all of the walking off now, but I’m sure she’ll wake up when dinner is served. 

A Tale of Two Minsters

 The past week and a half has passed by in a whirlwind. A hectic last week in my old job, including a lovely send off by my old team, followed hot on the heels by starting my new job and all the reading and familiarisation that entails and all of a sudden, it's Wednesday and we're careering into the following weekend. So, time I updated on what I've been up to, because it hasn't all been work. 

Fab piece of street art

Last Monday I paid a trip to York to work from the office. The first hints of Spring were in the air, so at lunchtime, I decided to take a wander around York. A short wander along a more industrial part of the river, and some interesting street art and I was back in the town centre. In high season, I tend to avoid the Shambles. It's a beautiful road of medieval buildings but, as the inspiration for Diagon Alley in Harry Potter, it definitely draws the crowds. 

I may have to have a rethink though because my absolute favourite patissiere (maker of the best macarons I have ever tasted) Florian Poirot, has expanded his operation from Malton to The Shambles. My heart skipped a beat realising every trip to York could result in Macarons. 

Of course I bought some to take home and enjoy later. Later on, when the working day was over, I was met by the chap for a very long overdue catch up. He'd been on holiday the previous week, so we hadn't seen eachother in ages. It was lovely to have him back. 

We decided we'd try somewhere different, and opted for Zizzi on the other side of town. It always looks so nice when we're walking past. I'd booked us a table, but it wasn't too busy, so we could have just walked in. 

The chap ordered a pizza and I ordered a seafood pasta dish. Our drinks came, and then we waited. We waited some more, when the server brought us some 'complimentary nibbles'. We looked around to see that everyone's tables were lacking in food, meanwhile every time an Uber or Deliveroo driver came in, they seemed to leave pretty quickly with the order. 

40 minutes later, our food arrived. At last, we were ravenous. Despite the fact that my seafood pasta had more chilli in it than a Vindaloo, I scoffed it down and dealt with the fire in my mouth afterwards. We definitely won't go back there again. In spite of the food, however, we'd had a lovely time just catching up, oh, and of course, the chap had brought me presents back from his holiday too, which I'm sure will make an appearance in a later blog post. 

The rest of the week passed in a blur of busy, punctuated with Little Miss receiving a lovely headteachers award at school. The Spring like weather persisted and by the time Saturday came, I was itching for a day out. We decided to go to nearby Beverley. 

Beverley's a nice little town, less than an hour away from Scarborough and with its own Minster. We arrived around lunchtime, and little Miss was quick to spot an amazing craft cafe that was both dog friendly, and cheap. Impressive. 

Cool display in the crafty cafe

We had some delicious snacks, before wandering around the shops and heading towards the Minster. Unfortunately, Thelma wasn't allowed in, so I waited outside in the sunshine and took photographs of the beautiful building. 

I wandered around the different sides, when a lady stopped me to tell me how fabulous I looked. I'm sure it's the coat. I always get complimented when I wear this coat. A lady had stopped me earlier, insisting she knew me, and that I had lived with her in a house share some years ago. I've never lived in Beverley, but I was certainly attracting a lot of attention there on Saturday. 

Once Mum and Little Miss came out of the Minster, we wandered back into town for a peruse of the shops. Antique shops, high end high street shops. I didn't go crazy, but I did treat myself to a product I used to swear by from SpaceNK, a Caudalie refresher spray for my face. It's amazing stuff, but I was shocked that it had almost doubled in price since I last bought it. 

After tea and cake in a quaint tea shop, it was time to head home.

Sunday morning I was up bright and early to head down to York to meet the chap and some of our friends. We were spending a very wholesome Sunday together. First stop was York minster for a Sunday mass. I've never been to mass in the Minster before, and it was absolutely beautiful. The choir was heavenly, and as a Christian who doesn't get to church nearly as often as I would like, I very much enjoyed this. 

After mass, we took a slow wander to the Judges Lodgings where we were meeting more of our friends for Sunday dinner. I had roast chicken, washed down with a gorgeous glass of Malbec. I'm not usually a red wine drinker, I have to be careful since sometimes it triggers my migraines. It was a particularly delicious wine though, and thankfully didn't cause any adverse side effects. We sat around talking, laughing and catching up. Neither me, nor chap actually thought to take any photographs but I can assure you, a good time was had by all. 

We wandered around some of the antique shops of York, and finished off with one last coffee before heading home. That was an incredibly full week, and weekend, but my word it was fun! 

I thought you'd forgive my lack of Sunday photos if I showed you my Macarons