A HUGE photo catch up from the last few weeks if you'd like to see {the beginning of May until now}, I've been rubbish with blogging recently - whilst I've had some spare time waiting for this baby to arrive, I just haven't really felt like opening up my laptop. So anyway, a huge photo dump of happy memories for me to look back upon - alas they're not really in any order but I've kind of given up minding right now. You've probably seen most of these on Instagram/stories but I wanted to have them on here too. And er, sorry not sorry for the amount of bump photos it includes, she's just getting so big that I want to capture it at every stage! Also, can we talk about this crazy amount of rain we've been having? Looking back on these photos makes me seriously miss the rare sunny, warm days that we have had so far. And I feel like most of these photos could be captioned 'before it started pouring down'. Please come back soon summer! 

Wait, it's September in just a few days! How did that happen? The heatwave and the World Cup feels long gone, the nights are drawing in and I've suddenly realised that I have a huge backlog of photos from the last couple of months {!} that I haven't posted. I'd got out of the habit of posting a weekly round up this summer so instead have decided to have one big photo post on here of photos as I clear my phone. I guess you guys know by now how this blog has always been partly for me to look back upon and these are the photos, and days I want to remember and reference easily! Allll the photos below, you've probably seen most of them on Instagram stories so feel free to skip! test

Last week, it was SO hot that we were desperate to escape to the beach. We'd planned to get up early on Sunday, but then realised it would probably be really busy and my parents were going out that way the next day to look at a greenhouse that they wanted our help deciding on. So we made it a cute little family day out on Monday instead. Unfortunately my brother had to work but it was a nice treat for the rest of us to spend time and go for a day out on a Monday {although I did manage to get some work done in the two hours it took us to reach the coast!}. It was scorching. 

A few photos from that ridiculously sunny day where we played hooky before our anniversary a couple of weeks back and spent the day reading by the lake and revisiting Daylesford {two of our favourite ever places}. You know me and sharing photos by now to know that I couldn't resist posting these that I couldn't fit into our anniversary post yesterday....

England is at her very very best right now. We're two weeks into a heatwave that shows no sign of shifting, full sun and 28c+ on the weather for the next ten days. No cloudy skies, no muddy fields, no grey. I LIVE for days like these. When you wake up and can smell the heat in the air already, you pull out clothes you normally only wear on holiday, you have so much energy and want to be up and out, savouring the outdoors. You cover over 20k steps daily without even trying, you pick summer produce from the allotment, you eat summery berries, frozen watermelon, you BBQ, this is no time for proper cooking that will make you hot. You enjoy the garden you've worked so hard to create, you eat dinner alfresco, hell you eat breakfast and lunch alfresco as much as you can, you go on picnics, you go to the markets, you sunbathe and soak up the Vitamin D, your skin goes brown and you wear sun hats and picking up your sunglasses on the way out the door becomes second nature. You only wear socks to run, instead picking out sandals each day, your legs haven't been covered in weeks. You sleep with the windows wide open, waking up to that bright sunlight as the sun rises at 4am every morning. You feel like you're on holiday in your own garden. You have less spare time and you sleep less {longgg light days}, battling to keep the garden watered and fit the allotment in but you wouldn't swap it for the world. You know it won't last forever. But that makes it all the more special. Please stick around summer! {and if you're reading this in Winter on one miserable February day where summer feels world's away, KNOW that this will come around again}. - note to readers, this is full of photos I've shared on my Instagram stories over the past few weeks for me to look back on, but I warn you it's full of countryside photos that might be boring to some! But I just can't get enough of those views. 

I'm in the middle of writing up the travelogue from our couple of nights in Cornwall last week so in the meantime, here's some photos of when we stopped off in Bristol on the way home - well Clifton in particular. In which I fell in love! It helped that it was such a glorious day, England at her finest. Bright blue skies, a sunny Saturday, the trees all green and leafy, everyone sitting outside brunching, young beautiful cool couples wandering hand in hand, people buying BBQ gear, picnicking, enjoying the summer. If only we lived closer or in Bristol! When you think about it, it's just 2 hours from Cornwall, 2 from London give or take, near to the Cotswolds, on the coast, near Bath, such a perfect location. But I think I'm getting carried away. We won't leave our beloved Hertfordshire or house for a long time but Bristol just seems SO cool. It was the perfect half way stop off on our journey home and the perfect way to extend our trip a little. We were also here for Wahaca after seeing their new menu launch on Instagram earlier in the week. A dreamy Saturday all round! 

A few photos of the garden over the past couple of weeks as requested by some of you fellow garden lovers on Instagram {and mainly for me to look back on as a record to remember what flowered where!}. This is our third summer here, and I think it's the prettiest yet. Definitely also the wildest yet, we haven't had much time to spend on the borders recently but I feel like as long as the grass is neat & well cut, the wild beds and overflowing flowers {and probably more than a fair share of weeds} compliment each other. It's just been SO hot and dry these past few weeks though so everything could really do with more watering, or some really good rain. If you have any specific gardening questions then please let me know for future posts, a post dedicated to roses is still on my to do list but most questions that get messaged tend to be able to be answered with these past garden posts {like how we planted/planned the borders here or what jobs to do when - this post}. 

Earlier this week, I threw a little garden party with Hobbycraft for a few girlfriends & I ready to celebrate midsommar and the longest day of the year next week, and make flower crowns for wearing this summer. With Hobbycraft stocking all of the crafting materials and party decor {I definitely didn't realise just how many fab things they sell these days}, it was super easy and a really fun evening that you could host for a whole number of occasions this summer. From bridal showers to baby showers to birthday's or just because, we loved getting our craft on, and eating cake al fresco for the evening. A little how to guide below.. {p.s. you can use the code DIY15 for 15% off everything, except sewing machines, until the end of the month}

One of my favourite clothing brands, Fatface, turns 30 this summer. And to celebrate, they're bringing out thirty of their most iconic products which they've perfected over the years. From what started out as two guys selling t-shirts on a ski season back in 1988 to becoming one of the UK's most loved brands stores allll across the country. For men, for children and of course for us women, it's about quality, adventures and flattering fits. I was thrilled to be asked to take part in their Birthday celebrations and showcase some of their 30 iconic pieces built with quality, comfort and classic style in mind. I'm sharing some of my favourites below...

Last bank holiday, we'd planned to be mainly at home other than going out for a couple of BBQ's we'd been invited to. Yet Saturday came around and was far hotter than we expected so we decided to be spontaneous and jumped in the car for a trip to Mersea Island {remember this post?}. 

I'm sure you know what a huge fan of Chelsea Flower Show I am after these past posts? Last week I was lucky enough to be invited with Joules for the day and I thought I'd share a few photos, and some of the gardens which inspired me this year.

A long-overdue photo catch up from the past few weeks! Picnics, Royal Weddings, Summer Dinners and all...

Morning! I hope you're having a lovely week so far? I can't quite believe that we're so close to being in June already. May has flown by and suddenly it's time to think about Father's Day which is fast approaching {Sunday 17th June this year}. My Dad will always say 'don't get me anything' for both Birthday's and Father's Day - I think it's a Dad thing?, but my brother & I want to at least get him something thoughtful or fun as a reminder of how much he means to us. It was his Birthday a couple of weeks back and he was away for it, so I wanted to combine both for a joint celebration in the middle of the two dates. For unique, personalised gift ideas I turned to notonthehighstreet {a brand I've loved for years and years} and was so thrilled when they had such a big range of BBQ products to choose from. My Dad is a total BBQ king and some of my happiest memories together have been him cooking a BBQ for us all with family and friends over the years, whether it's pouring with rain in the middle of March {we start early!} or a balmy hot summers evening, at home or on holiday, you can find him outdoor grilling. I was so impressed with the wide range of personalisable gifts to choose from to celebrate him, and all of the years of him BBQing for us. You can see more below;

Happy Friday! Are you as excited as I am for the Royal Wedding this weekend? And the weather forecast for that matter. This week I've been sharing outdoor living inspiration with The White Company and we've talked about hosting in general {and flower prep} along with BBQ and recipes. Today I wanted to quickly share some ideas for your garden decor, probably the most important 'room' of your house in the summer. I know that for us, the minute that it's a warm sunny day, we just want to spend as much of it as possible outside. For hosting dinner with friends & family, making an outdoor office or just taking five minutes to soak up a little sunshine in the middle of a busy day, I'm sharing the products that we can't be without this summer...

The change in season gives me so much new enthusiasm for cooking and coming up with new salads, fresh easy BBQ food and summery desserts. There's so much to celebrate food wise at this time of year too with asparagus, the first of the courgettes, Jersey Royal potatoes, summer berries and warm, al fresco evenings to enjoy it all. It's not just about the food though, I'm always on the lookout for serving dishes and platters to share it all with friends & family when entertaining - naturally I turn to The White Company. This weekend we hosted the first BBQ of the season at ours and I wanted to come up with something different to the usual burgers and sausages that we'll all no doubt do to death this summer. After a little reciple planning I created a feast and it was SO delicious - if I do say so myself. Lots of you were asking for the recipes so I've shared all the food below;  {this is part two of three in this outdoor living collaboration with The White Company}.