Friday 10th June 2011
Today is the second day of our holiday and it is also three months today until David and I get married!!
The babies had us up before six today and so we made the most of our early morning by exploring the village of Carleton. It was a beautiful crisp sunny morning. David and I talked about moving to a little Yorkshire village but our hearts are firmly rooted in Kent at the moment. There is something lovely about a little Yorkshire village though.
David went wild swimming at Grassington Weir before we drove over moor and down dale from Yorkshire to Northumbria. Our destination? Eglingham, near Alnwick, where we were to spend the next 7 days.
The Forge is a small cottage on a farm estate above the historic town of Alnwick. Harehope Farm, straight from the pages of a children’s story book! Though no longer a working farm we were surrounded by fields of cows with very cute calves, horses and curly horned sheep. It was great for Esther and William as they love animals. A week of animal sounds, songs and stories lay ahead.
Our holiday home was called The Forge and was set on its own near to the other residential farm buildings.
When I booked this holiday Esther and William were mere babes in arms, barely able to support their own heads let alone sit or think about cruising furniture! Needless to say I did not think too much about safety and I had not thought that much about the booking since. Imagine my panic then to arrive to our holiday house on 3 levels of hard floor! Lounge on the laminated ground floor, 3 steps up to a flagstone kitchen and 2 steps down to wooden bedroom. Oh dear, oh dear.
Thankfully David is incredibly resourceful and I brought with me every padded blanket, quilt and rug that we own. Our first night’s mission was to make this charming little cottage toddler proof. Where have my little babies gone?
It really is a beautiful cottage set in gorgeous gardens with a private swimming pool overlooking the hills around. It is a perfect secluded setting for some quality r and r. It is just going to need careful managing now that our little ones are on the move!
So here we are, settled in to The Forge, let the holidaying begin!
