Fathers Day

I had a simply great Father Day yesterday. Having had such a long and tough week at work, I have to admit that we didn't go to church, but A let me to stay asleep. On waking I had a lovely stroll to the shop to get the morning newspapers, something that I have always wanted to do but never seem to. It's a nice time to check out all of the other gardens along the way, making me something of a nosey neighbour I guess, but I like to think that as long as I keep moving then I won't look too much like a creepy guy. Then it was a whole morning with the sunshine, our garden, a big cafatiere of coffee and the papers.....aaahhhh! such a rarety!

At about one thirty, my eldest daughter Claire arrived, with her family, husband Dom, Joshua and little Ella. I had a really lovely card from her and also some real treats as you can see in the picture above. A gorgeous bottle of Rioja, some organic rye bread (absolutely yummy), pickled artichoke hearts, olives stuffed with garlic and some pickled hot peppers. It was quite a supper that night after I added some smoked german sausage and ham.

Of course there had to be lots of cuddles with Ella!

We all decided to take a trip to Hengistbury Head. This is a lovely nature reserve headland that culminates in a sandy spit. As the area is protected, no cars are allowed and so after parking up in the car park we all caught the land train, the blue one in the first picture, to the end.
Joshua and his dad just had to get their feet wet!
We all had a much needed drink at the cafe here.

This is a view of the seaward side of the spit, a place where when it's quieter, I find a nice retreat to catch up on a little fishing.

This is the harbour side of the spit. The beach huts are fiercely sought after here as they come with permission to sleep in overnight and some even have a modest upstairs bedroom. One recently sold for £130,000!

We all then had a very leisurely stroll back through the reserve, with the obligatory tree climb thrown in, before saying our farewells. It had been strangely tiring for such a relaxed afternoon and so a little nap at home was needed before we set off for the Haven Hotel at Sandbanks to spend the evening with As dad and his wife for a few coffees and beers and the usual good conversation.

The view from our table that night, with As handbag in the foreground for that extra something!