'Autumn Dream 1' by FXTC

Autumn Dream 1, a photo by FXTC on Flickr.

It's only a few days until September so I am really trying to get excited about autumn. It's not easy but here are a few of my thoughts.

I had a bit of a shopping spree at the weekend and bought myself some lovely autumn clothes. They are far too warm to wear right now so they are sadly hanging up with labels still attached in the wardrobe. Can't wait to wear them. And talking of clothes I must admit I am a bit bored of wearing ths same few pairs of shorts and flip flops. Would be good to get back into boots again and my trusty old converse of course.

I also hate the stress of trying to keep the family safe in the sun. I spend my life running around after them all (incluing my hubby) with sun cream and sun hats.

I fear I may have started to dread the words "Let's take a picnic". Warm soggy sandwiches are starting to lose their appeal. I look forward to the return of friends saying "Let's meet in the coffee shop for a hot drink and a cake"!

This photo makes me smile. It was taken on an autumn day and it looks so beautiful. A lovely blue sky with not a hint of drizzle! That light is so pretty. I hope every day in September, October and November looks like this.

Ah, who am I kidding? I've just looked out of the window and seen the beautiful sunshine and blue skies. I bloody love summer I do!

'My boy in his sun hat' by Me

My boy in his sun hat, a photo by PhotoPuddle on Flickr.

Sometimes it really annoys me that I've chosen not to share my children's faces on this blog. I am so proud of them and I would love to show the world how gorgeous they are. It does however feel right to me to keep them anonymous so however tempted I am I will keep it that way. It does mean though that I have to work extra hard to take photos of them that show them off with out actually showing their faces. I think I am managing it. I think through my pictures you can see how grown up they're getting and how amazing they are.

Here is a picture of my son that I took today at Polesdon Lacey in Surrey. I really like this picture but the more I look at it the more it bugs me that the house in the background wonky. I guess we must have been sitting on a bit of hill when I took this and was just concentrating on getting the picture of my son. Or perhaps the old building is in fact sinking and we didn't notice!

'whisper in autumn' by mayu♪

whisper in autumn, a photo by mayu♪ on Flickr.

The countdown to the end of summer has begun and autumn is on the way. I don't know what it is but there is definitely a whiff of autumn in the air already. The weather's still nice so it can't be that but there is something. Perhaps it's the shorter days as the sun seems to have all of a sudden started setting so much earlier. Or perhaps it's because my daughter now has a wardrobe full of name-taped school uniform all ready to be worn for the very first time. Whatever it is I am going to try and embrace it and not be sad that summer is over for another year.

This year I really want to take some lovely autumn photos. I say this every year but never seem to manage it. I need to find some beautiful places with gorgeous trees that will have turned every shade of brown, yellow and orange. This lovely photo has filled me full of inspiration and makes me think I should order myself some more polaroid film too.

'Bee' by floridapfe

Bee, a photo by floridapfe on Flickr.

I'm posting another insect photograph tonight. Not because I suddenly love creepy crawlies but because I got stung by a bee today. It really hurt, in fact it's still a bit swollen and sore now. I thought though that I would use my pain as an excuse to post a pretty picture. I think this one of a bee is beautiful. It's hard to imagine something as delicate looking as this could cause so much pain. And in the interest of keeping this post factually correct I wasn't stung by a bee like this. I was stung by a big fat furry bumble bee. I felt rather sorry for it when it whimpered off and died just a few feet away. Hope you've all had a less painful start to your week.

'Butterfly Vintage' by Deelicious Photography

Butterfly Vintage, a photo by Deelicious Photography on Flickr.

Because my daughter loves butterflies at the moment I am constantly looking out for all things butterfly related. That of course includes photos. Here is a gorgeous butterfly picture I stumbled across. I think it's the colours I like the most. That the beautiful detail of the wings.

Actually, as I type this I am looking at two of my little girl's fairy dolls. They have lovely wings too. Perhaps she's just loving everything with pretty wings at the moment.

'Favourite magazines' by Me

Favourite magazines, a photo by PhotoPuddle on Flickr.

I'm feeling a little under the weather at the moment and could really do with a day off. But, and here comes the sob story, as stay-at-home mum in the middle of the school holidays there is no chance of that. It has got me thinking though exactly what I would do if I could have the whole day all to myself. I have come up with three possible scenarios.

Firstly, stay in bed all day. I would snuggle up under the duvet, watch DVDs and catch up on all the programmes on my Sky box. I would also read lots of magazines (my favourites are shown the photo above), finish the book I'm reading and perhaps indulge in some knitting or crochet.

The only trouble with a day like that would be that I'd feel like I wasted it. Therefore option number two is a bit more productive. I would also like a day where I could just crack on with stuff that needed doing round the house. Jobs that are impossible to get done with an adventurous one year old in the house. Jobs like clearing out the kitchen cupboards and under my bed. A great day of cleaning and decluttering.

But the trouble with all that is that it does sound a bit like too much hard work for a day off. I think that my third idea might be better. This would involve a day out. I would take myself off to London or Brighton. I would take a whole heap of photos, buy myself some pretty things, sit in a coffee shop and read in peace and generally do some exploring.

The more I think about it the more I now realise I would like three days off! What about you? What would be your perfect day off?

'Southbank London H0X6781' by Merv Colton

Southbank London H0X6781, a photo by Merv Colton on Flickr.

On Friday we went to London for the day and had a fabulous time. First stop was the British Transport Museum which is something I've been wanting to do for ages as I'm a bit of a Tube geek. It was great and the kids loved it too. We then had a big pizza/pasta lunch in Covent Garden before heading over to Harrods for a good look around specifically at the Toy Kingdom (for the kids), the electronics section (for the husband) and the Food Hall (for me). I loved the fact that my daughter couldn't believe just how huge the shop was! To a four year old it must feel like it goes on for miles and miles. We ended the day with a stroll along the South Bank which was wonderful as there was so much going on down there. My son was mesmerised by the skateboarders and both the kids had fun in the big sand pit. We all returned home very tired and happy.

As is always the way when I go to London I took hardly any photos other than family ones of us larking around on buses at the museum and standing next to giant Playmobil characters in Harrods. Therefore here is a beautiful picture of the Southbank by someone else. I love how the night has been captured so perfectly. It makes me think that one day I need to head off to London on my own, just me and my camera. I think I would definitely return home with a lot of pictures for my blog.

I hope you've all had a lovely weekend.

'Polargram love' by Me

Polargram love, a photo by PhotoPuddle on Flickr.

Let me start by saying this definitely isn't a sponsored post. I just am really pleased with this particular photo related product and wanted to share my enthusiasm with you.

For ages I've been wanting to get my Instagram pictures printed but most companies that did it seem to be based in America and rather expensive. Then the other week I was introduced to Polargram and have been nothing but impressed with the service. It cost me £10 for 48 prints which I think is fantastic value. The ordering and payment system couldn't be more simple and they arrived much quicker than the 10 working days I was told to allow for. And most importantly the quality of the prints is excellent. The card they're printed on is great and I think the pictures themselves actually look even better than they do on my phone. I was so impressed that I ordered another set tonight. I think I'll probably keep going until I get all my Instagram photos printed. I just have to find somewhere suitably pretty to store them now!

'Keep Your Composure...' By o . live . ia

Keep Your Composure..., a photo by o . live . ia on Flickr.

Tonight I am dedicating this post to my wonderful four year old daughter because there are a few things she's said or done today that I really want to write down and remember forever.

This morning she was sat on the other side of the room with her paper and pens. I didn't really know what she was doing but then she came over with a piece of paper that said "I love you so much". This made me smile so much, and of course feel proud, after all she's only four so I reckon writing thing like that on your own at that age is very impressive.

Then later on while we were out her little brother was making a fuss because he didn't want to be in his pushchair. I was getting a bit frustrated with him but she took the situation into her own hands started a game of peek-a-boo with him. He was giggling within seconds. Where am I going to be without my little helper when she's at school all day every day?

And the last thing I want to remember is what she said about her day when she saw her Daddy that evening. She told him that it had felt like her, her brother and I had been on a little holiday today. We only went into the next town on the train. We went to the library then soft play, followed by some clothes shopping in H&M. I then treated her to McDonalds for tea. It doesn't sound like a particularly out of the ordinary day but it made me smile that she found it so special.

As my daughter is really loving butterflies at the moment I thought I'd find a really beautiful butterfly photo for her. I love this one so much. Mainly because of it's wonderful simplicity. I'll show it to my daughter in the morning and see if she loves it as much as I do.

'Swap Box' by Eccles

Swap Box, a photo by CA Eccles on Flickr.

Due to our ongoing loft declutter I have had to reluctantly part ways with a whole load of books. They've gone to the charity shop so I feel I've been doing some good but I've since learned that in some parts of Britain disused phoneboxes have been turned into fabulous little book exchanges as demonstrated by the photograph above. I think it's a brilliant idea. There is actually an old phonebox just a few streets away from my house, I wonder anyone would have minded me starting a little library in it.

'Beach huts' by Me

Beach huts, a photo by PhotoPuddle on Flickr.

I can't believe it's August already. I know it's silly of me but I always feel a bit sad when August arrives as it kind of feels like we're on the countdown to the end of summer now. Only a few weeks and it'll be September and as far as I'm concerned that's autumn. I shouldn't be sad though as the weather is still nice and I still have five whole weeks until my daughter starts school and I don't want to waste a second of that.

Before I wish you a happy weekend, here is a photo I promised you last week. These are the beach huts at Lancing beach. I definitely think we need another trip to the beach some time soon.

Happy weekend everyone!