Time for a Break

Hello there, I hope you're enjoying this rather lovely autumn so far. Here there have been golden days with chilly mornings and evenings, bright flowers, fruit and foliage and shorter days. A wonderful season, rich with things to feast the senses on. And yet in my head it's still summer. I can't quite get to grips with autumn this year and am unwilling to let go of those long, light-filled days.

This term has flown like never before, and life has been very, very busy. Our weekends have been as busy as the weekdays at work, full of lots of lovely visits and celebrations. Life has changed again for my little family in recent weeks. J is going to spend an extra year at his university, D has started her A levels in 6th form and last week B set off on a long-planned and saved-for adventure on her own, beginning with Thailand, Hong Kong and then New Zealand. She will be gone for up to a year and will, I am sure, have the most wonderful time. Staying in touch on Skype and instant messaging has been a godsend, and already we have heard from her and seen her fabulous photos. The house seems quiet again with just the three of us here.
On the day B left P took me to the Walled Garden at Mells for an end-of-season cup of tea after work. I was feeling a bit sad and the beautiful early autumn colours were soothing and beautiful, like a rich tapestry.

P and I went away to London for a weekend for his company's birthday celebrations and enjoyed a fabulous dinner in the Science Museum followed by a sunny day in Bushy Park watching the rutting red deer among the oak trees. It really is a beautiful place, and we were there on a lovely golden day. We ate breakfast in the park's cafe, a place we've been many times with the children. This time we sat eating toast and drinking coffee while watching the squirrels and wild fowl around us.

In amongst all of this excitement I turned 50 last week and was treated to a lovely family celebration at a beautiful pub in Hampshire (my home county) next to the River Test. It was a warm day filled with flowers, laughter, good food and stunning scenery. Those clear chalk streams are something I miss in Somerset.

P presented me with these lovely flowers in shades of purple and dark pink, and some lavender too. I was thrilled with them.



 My birthday itself was spent at work where I was spoiled by some lovely colleagues, in between breakfast in bed from P and a delicious birthday tea at home. I felt very happy and lucky indeed.

So many lovely things and so much change. It's been a bit overwhelming, in fact. I have to admit that I am frazzled and have lost much of my oomph. For the first time ever I am finding it very difficult to blog or find anything to say. I've run out of steam, and I'm afraid that I've not really been around at all in Blogland lately (despite having things I made in the summer still to show you). Instead in my time away from work I'm trying to concentrate on things like going to the gym (which I've managed to do all year), keeping the house relatively clean and tidy, and being creative and musical when time allows. That's enough to be getting on with for now. I hope to return when my batteries are recharged and I can blog properly, visiting your lovely blogs as well as writing my own.
If you're on Instagram you can find me here:

 https://www.instagram.com/bluedoor5/

I find the combination of photos with not too many words about right for me at the moment!

See you all in a while x