Vintage cars on the Green

My little boy (now 34 and far from!) has always had a passion for cars, so after a sleepover with my Grandchildren the night before while Mummy and Daddy had a night out, we all went to a super little car show held on Bearsted Green at the weekend. I loved mooching around in the sunshine with my family, listening to the 1940's tunes warbling from a corner of the Green, while we admired the beautifully polished and much loved elderly cars ... I'm no car buff, but isn't it strange how old cars have the power to evoke a sense of fond nostalgia?! I must admit, I found myself recalling all kinds of long forgotten trips and visits from my youth!

My four year old Grandson on the other hand, was very impressed with this HUGE American fire engine!

We had a lovely afternoon but most of all, I loved seeing the excitement in my son's eyes, as he shared his enthusiasm with his son.

The old music was good too and my Granddaughter had a lovely little dance to the Lindyhop!

My daughter took a bit of a shine to this wacky VW Beetle ...

... and as we weren't driving, we enjoyed a crafty glass of lovely bubbles in the sunshine!

After a fab time wandering around the vintage car show, we headed to the pub garden across the road, to cool off with a pint and take a front row view of all the cars as they left the Village Green...

And one very excited little boy and his daddy, parked themselves firmly on the pavement opposite, to wave the old cars goodbye. They were absolutely delighted when the NYPD police car obliged onlookers by leaving with a very loud siren blast!

Mr Mod also kindly gave my Grandson a cheery goodbye wave, as he headed back home to his garage.

We had a very enjoyable afternoon at 'Vintage Cars on the Green' in Bearsted at the weekend. The sun shone, the cars were fabulous, the atmosphere was relaxed and fun and it was a great way for a family to spend an afternoon together!

:-)

Cosy Cables

This week I finished a very sweet teddy bear and have been enjoying some quiet time in my garden, knitting him a cosy cable jumper to wear. 

I first attempted to knit with a little pair of pink plastic needles when I was about five years old. My mother was a keen knitter when I was growing up, making many items of knitwear for my sisters and I. She tried to pass on her needlecraft skills to me, but as Mum was right handed and my left handed self didn't translate instructions easily, it didn't end very well! It wasn't until I was expecting my own daughter thirty seven years ago, that I became sufficiently competent with my knitting needles, to knit her baby clothes.  Since those first clumsy attempts, I have continued to enjoy knitting for nearly forty years, cable or Aran knitting especially ... which of course, is ideal for making cute little jumpers for my teddy bears to wear!

14" Sammie

Sweet Sammie is now looking for his special person to live with. If you would like to know more about him, please pop over to my website:

www.allbearbypaula.com

:-)

Updated: Sammie has now been adopted and will be flying off to the United States!

Lovely Lupin

I have just finished this beautiful teddy bear ...

20" Lupin

Another truly fabulous mohair from the famous Schulte company in Germany; this time, a stunning kid mohair with a soft wave to the pile ... in possibly the prettiest shade of lavender ever.

In fact, I think this is the perfect mohair with which to celebrate Summer!

Lovely Lupin is now available for adoption from my website. 

I hope she makes you smile!

www.allbearbypaula.com

:-)

Update: Lupin has now been adopted and will be flying to the US!

Life's a beach in Norfolk

Back home after a lovely week enjoying peaceful countryside and beautiful beaches in Norfolk. We knew we were almost home on Saturday, when we left quiet roads and lush green fields, only to arrive on a completely gridlocked M25 on the hottest day of the year so far ... now we are dreaming of a return to Norfolk as soon as possible!

Polly and Betty have had an absolute blast on the local Norfolk beaches and met a curious grey seal on beautiful Sea Palling beach. He popped up out of the sea to get a better view of the dogs and they all had a lovely time playing along the shoreline together. Thankfully my girls have excellent recall, so when the seal came up almost onto the beach, I popped them back on the lead, just to be on the safe side. It was an amazing experience and one I don't think any of us will forget in a hurry.

We were so lucky with our holiday this year. Taking two large bouncy hairy dogs on a self-catering holiday, can be tricky because so many properties don't welcome more than one little dog and never seem to actually have the fully enclosed safe gardens they claim to have, which of course are essential for dog owners. We have been frustrated by this many times over the past few years and a couple of years ago, even discovered our Betty in a nearby field of cows, up to her eyeballs in cow dung!

This year I searched even harder to find a perfect dog friendly property and hit the jackpot with 'Pack Holidays', run by lovely Gail.  Gail invited us to stay in her own fabulous and completely 'dog friendly' property and on arrival, we were bowled over by the care she had taken to ensure that our dogs were able to have a wonderful, safe, fun holiday.  Not only was the garden totally secure, huge and beautiful, there were dog blankets, beds, toys, tasty treats, a poo bin, food bowls, poo bags, great suggestions for dog walks, a vet, pet shop ... the list went on! There was also the piéce de resistance, a full 'doggy salon', complete with walk in, fully tiled, warm water showers!  Our girls were made to feel completely welcome and so were we.  I really can't recommend 'Pack Holidays' highly enough if you are looking for a genuinely dog friendly, 'home from home' style of holiday.  Gail really does set the Gold Standard for dog friendly.

It has been almost forty years since I last stayed in Norfolk (that was a very different holiday, as I was there working with an Club 18+ plus group, so saw nothing of the local surroundings but plenty of the nightlife in Great Yarmouth!) This time we fell in love with the unspoiled Norfolk coastline, quiet fields of corn, winding streams and wildlife.  We saw deer, swans, a hawk hovering over sand martin nests in the cliffs and those fabulous grey seals at Sea Palling!  The beaches were sandy and endless, so Polly and Betty had an amazing time chasing through waves and running along the shore to their hearts' content ... now they are back home again, they are very, very sleepy pups!

I loved seeing my girls on the beach and so wish we could play there together every day ...

Ah well, as lovely and relaxing as our holiday was, I guess it's time to return to my teddy bear workroom now and finish the pretty bear I left on my sewing table.  Will share soon I promise!

:-)