Busy, busy, busy

Well, it's been 12 days since my last confession... but no ordinary 12 days. It included birthdays for both offspring (we didn't plan that very well did we) and a half term holiday, predominantly with husband in absenteum. The calendar of events for the 12 days reads like the contents page of one of those guides to "1000 things to do with kids before you die". A trip to London, cinema visit, Chester Zoo, at least 3 National Trust gardens, 2 indoor play barns (aka torture chambers for parents), a party for 17 six year olds, 2 clothes shopping trips (with kids in tow)... and that's all that what remains of the functioning part of my brain can remember. For some reason this period of frenzied activity coincided with my decision to seriously reduce my wine consumption, so instead of being able to kick back each evening with a deliciously cold glass (or 3) of chardonnay, I've been irritiably sipping coke, brewing tea and finding it difficult to get to sleep without the aid of an alcoholic sleep aid. On the upside I've had more energy, been clearer headed and the Wii fit tells me I've lost 2lbs!

Looking back on the activities of the last 12 days I am no longer surprised that we are absolutely knackered, to the point of functioning like inefficient and grumpy robots by about tea time and struggling to answer simple questions, never mind the multi-tasking challenge of chatting to cashier, packing shopping and keeping an eye on daughter in the supermarket. Thank goodness something like normal service resumed with the return to school today - although husband is absent again and there's still another birthday party and sleepover to brave at the weekend! However, I am much energised by the prospect of visiting the Focus on Imaging exhibition at the NEC this week - a nirvana for any one keen on photography. I'll be bursting with ideas and enthusiasm and somewhat lighter of pocket when I get back.

I've just finished loading, reviewing, deleting and editing the hundreds of photos snapped since my last blog - the collage at the top shows the best of the crop. These pictures serve to remind me that however exhausted we find ourselves, we are truly blessed with 2 incredibly funny and wonderful kids and I would not swop this mad life for anything.

By Jane Burkinshaw. Share this post by clicking on one of the Share buttons on the right hand side. I'd love to hear your comments too!

Shy snowdrops & elusive dog

Well, we still haven't had a snow event in Wincham but we had another powdering on Wednesday night and in case that was it for us this winter I decided to go in search of snowdrops in snow. Rode Hall near Congleton was resplendent with snowdrops and daffodils at this time last year and it's slightly higher than Wincham, so could have more of a snow event than here. And although we weren't exactly knee deep in snow drifts at Rode Hall, there was quite a lot of the white stuff, almost too much, as many of the snow drops were a) struggling to push their heads through the surface and b) foiled by their natural camouflage (i.e. white on white). These factors combined with the cold weather kept all but the most foolhardy visitors away - we were the first to leave our mark on the pristine white footpaths, a good hour after opening time. But it was far from being a wasted journey. It was magical to explore the gardens in such wintry conditions, snow creaking under foot (isn't that a great and unique sound?!) and I did come away with some lovely images. Little groups of snowdrops in sheltered nooks and crannies (I really must ask a gardener why crab and mussel shells were used as mulch around their base - other than offering some great contrasting colour), and early blossom flowers and daffodils wearing white bonnets of snow.

And I've enjoyed some wintry walks with Daisy. I've made it my mission this last week to try to get some shots which really show her character out on our walks - this is much harder than it sounds. She moves at the speed of light, has no particular destination in mind (in fact a previous dog trainer concluded "that dog lacks focus") and is either camera shy or is getting her own back on me for all the times I've tied her to a fence. The net result is a lot of shots of dog just going off camera (cursed shutter delay on compact cameras), blurred dog or dog's hind quarters. Never mind actually going for a well composed shot with background interest! I lined up one perfect shot of her looking back at me, standing on a narrow, snowy pathway lined with tall, golden grasses and low, raking sunlight and shadows, only to find a huge splodge of mud smeared across the lens from her last mad dash past me. Anyway, here's the best of the bunch but must try harder.

Oh - and the young swans were back, posing at the lake-side whilst keeping a wary eye on Daisy - very wise.

By Jane Burkinshaw. Share this post by clicking on one of the Share buttons on the right hand side. I'd love to hear your comments too!

Snow?! What snow!!

Well... we have had a dusting of snow and I've rushed out with my camera just in case that's all we get this winter, but I am so disappointed that we've missed out on the "snow event" suffered by the rest of the country (you can tell that I am no longer a daily commuter for whom snow is a complete nightmare). I want the kids to experience the kind of snow that we did and I also want to get some winter wonderland shots - I'm still holding out for snowdrops nestling in snow this year. On each weather forecast Cheshire seems to sit tantalisingly along the edges of any areas of snow and I find myself blaming the presenter for not giving us any decent snowfall for a change! However, even a dusting dramatically changes familiar landscapes and I got a few bleak and quite striking images of Pickmere Lake.

I shouldn't complain really - our meager amount of snow brought in some extra business - I've been photographing a beautiful old hotel and its grounds and it gave me an idea to do a mail shot to other hotels and halls in the region - although the snow has now thawed and I'm back to haranguing the BBC weather forecaster. More snow is forecast overnight and tomorrow and the snowflakes on the weather map did appear to be right over Wincham, but I won't be springing out of bed tomorrow morning as I can't face yet another disappointment (for me and kids - who have long ago stopped believing the weatherman anyway.)

Perhaps I should adopt Daisy's outlook on life - even the most insignificant amount of snow makes her daily outings a fantastic adventure. As long as there's enough to rub her nose in, roll in and make the cow pats stand out more, then she's in doggy heaven!

By Jane Burkinshaw. Share this post by clicking on one of the Share buttons on the right hand side. I'd love to hear your comments too!

Northwich Flashes

It's odd - I used to dislike the Flashes just on the outskirts of Northwich - I saw them as a flat, featureless expanse of water & manmade pathways - a poor attempt at landscaping over a industrial wasteland. It's now one of my favourite places to walk with Daisy. I don't think it's just the fact that the trees and plants have all had chance to mature and that Daisy makes almost anywhere fun to go. I think my whole outlook and mood has changed since leaving the corporate world and I am able to appreciate much simpler things (sounds a bit sickly and cliche ridden but it's so true). Instead of my head being full of deadlines and endless pages of red emails and constantly having too many plates in the air - or shattered on the floor, my mind is now free to enjoy the scenery and the fresh air, often with the result that I come up with my best ideas to grow my own business, whilst I am out walking.

I could wax lyrical about the diversity of scenery offered by the Flashes and interlinking park- and woodland - I think that's what I love about it so much. On today's short walk, I passed through mature woodland, grasslands alongside the river Weaver and had views across the wetlands and expanses of water. Today was bright and cold, with a thin haze of cloud creating the ideal light for photography, especially given the low angle of the sun at this time of year. No harsh shadows and the possibility to shoot backlit subjects. The teasels against the backdrop of tall, pale and straw coloured grasses were a great example of this. The single dead leaf, curled in on itself as if in a bid to protect itself and resist the pull of the wind, in contrast to the vibrant colours of the new wood and buds marking the start of a new year's growth.

I couldn't end this entry without including a shot of Daisy looking thoroughly miserable, partly from suffering the head collar which limits her ability to pull my arm out of its socket, and also down to putting up with the constant interruptions to her walk, when I tether her to a post and get the camera out. I am sure she wishes I would take up another interest - much like the kids do too!

By Jane Burkinshaw. Share this post by clicking on one of the Share buttons on the right hand side. I'd love to hear your comments too!

Landscapes & lazy luxury in Llangollen

We just celebrated our 9th wedding anniversary in style - an overnight spa break in one of my favourite Welsh towns, Llangollen. With a father who made canoes and paddled them, much of my childhood was spent on the banks of wild water rivers in various locations in the UK and Europe. My brothers and I would explore the river banks from dawn to dusk, seemingly with no adult supervision (although most of the canoeing fraternity knew who we were and probably kept half an eye on us). Llangollen is a well known centre for white water canoeing and conjures up memories of sunbathing on the large flat rocks in the river, with the white water swirling and rushing past us. I must say the very thought of a child being allowed on them horrifies me now - but what wonderful freedom we had back then. We hid under the platforms of the railway station and played on the tracks - I can only think that it lay disused for a while in the 70's. I'm sure as a child I didn't appreciate the scenery around the town in the same way that I do now - the drama of Horseshoe Pass with its wild moorland and racing sheep (!). Then the wooded mountains rising steeply around the relatively narrow valley and steam trains pulling in and out of the mostly unchanged train station. Narrow boats make their lazy way along the calm waters of the canals cut into the side of the valley, in contrast to the river Dee, which rushes under the 13th century bridge, its roar ever present in the background.

Phew!! Now that I've got that out of my system, more about the more luxurious side of our stay in Llangollen. We splashed out on a room with our own hot tub on the balcony - it was a very interesting experience getting in and out of it in broad daylight - I was convinced that binoculars were trained on us from nearby houses. Once night had fallen, I relaxed a bit and we sat watching the stars appear (and icicles form on our noses). In the morning we did a sprint from the warmth of our very large bed into the hot tub, admired the frosty landscape and drank the remains of the previous night's Cava (perfectly chilled on the balcony overnight). Sheer decadence. Monday morning was going to seem even worse than ever after this! The rest of our brief stay was spent being further pampered, then a drive up through Horseshoe Pass, then back down via an alternative route courtesy of the sat nav - it seems to love single track roads with grass growing down the middle! As a last act of rebellion before collecting kids and dog from various places, we spent the end of the afternoon in a cosy bar over looking the river, with a large glass of wine (locally brewed ale for Nic) and an early tea. Roll on our 10th anniversary when we'll be able to escape from the chaos of family life once again!

Inaugurations all round

Almost to the minute that Barack Obama was being sworn in as president, my daughter was making her own solemn promise to keep the Brownie Guide law. Yet another emotional landmark in her short life, with much clicking of the camera and blinking away tears. And a couple of days later her younger brother joined his own little club, as he put on his brand new jujitsu costume and stood proudly next to the other little warriors. Amazingly we have seen improvements in behaviour from both of them since attending their respective clubs. Should we find it alarming that they listen to and obey other grown ups much better than they do to us?! Sam's other guru would appear to be the Wii Fit machine - he obeys it to the letter. "Mummy, the Wii Fit says I should take a break now and get a drink of water" and off he trots. Can it be programmed to instruct him to do his homework, clean his teeth and not get out of bed 10 times before he goes to sleep?!

By Jane Burkinshaw. Share this post by clicking on one of the Share buttons on the right hand side. I'd love to hear your comments too!

Oi - get off my lake!!

A quick walk to Pickmere Lake this morning, avoiding the field where the cows were grazing as Daisy and cows spell diaster for me. I'll never view them as gentle, doe-eyed creatures ever again. When you're lying inches from their hooves in mud and fresh cow pat, having been pulled over by bolting dog, they are fearsome, lumbering, crushing machines. (Can you tell that I still carry the mental scars from this incident?). Anyway, no misadventures today. I am only bothering to do this post as the swans were particularly entertaining today. A family of youngsters were having a gentle paddle about with mum and dad when some bruiser came on the scene and was eventually forced to retreat to a safe distance by the protective parents. It was actually quite something to hear the power of those mighty wings as they flapped just enough for the swans to skim across the surface of the water, aggressively seeing the unwelcome visitor off.

By Jane Burkinshaw. Share this post by clicking on one of the Share buttons on the right hand side. I'd love to hear your comments too!