August was the month where most of the summer holidays fell, and whilst we didn’t have loads of day trips planned, it still felt very busy and needed my very best organisational skills! We started the month off with a nice walk at our local woods. I’ve personally been going there for many years and have been taking the girls since they were just a few months old, so it’s somewhere that holds lots of memories for us.
As it was my weekend with the girls, I also took them to the cinema to see the new Moana film. Despite the reviews, we still like to go and see the live-action versions of Disney films, even though we almost always prefer the originals! We just love going to the cinema and taking a moment to relax and completely immerse ourselves in the movie.
As a little treat afterwards, I took the girls for a late lunch at Wagamamas, our go-to for some wholesome food. As we order from here quite a bit, I always end up with stamps saved from the Soul Club rewards programme, which is really handy as every now and again we get a main or a side for free.
Midway through the month marked the 10-year anniversary of my grandma passing. Even 10 years later, it’s still really painful and I miss her all the time. So, we went to her grave, said some prayers and put some sunflowers out – one for each year she’s been gone. It was a lovely way to remember her, although, as always, it was an emotional visit.
Whilst I was at home, the girls were off camping with their dad for their annual trip. This happened to be the week of the heatwave and I had planned to go into London for work, but it was just too hot and there were travel warnings, so I ended up staying home.
When the girls came back home for the weekend, I thought I would keep things fairly simple and relaxed. We visited another local National Trust site. We weren’t there for ages as the girls were tired from their week away, but we enjoyed a good stroll, had a catch-up and then headed home for something nice to eat for lunch.
I still worked throughout the summer holidays, aside from the very end when we headed off on our Center Parcs trip. So, I spent a good week getting everything prepared for that, as well as getting organised for back to school and, of course, the girls’ 13th birthday! We also had our annual BBQ at one of my relatives’ houses, which was lovely. It’s always so nice to see them, especially as they travel over from Dubai, so it was great to spend some time together and catch up.
Then, on my birthday, the girls and I headed off for our Center Parcs trip with one of my best friends and her daughter, who is also the girls’ best friend. We had such a lovely time and I’ll be blogging all about our experience here soon. Then, before we knew it, it was the girls’ birthday and time to head back to school – but that’s all for September’s memories blog post!
All in all, August was a lovely month. It was hot, busy and full of preparations, but also filled with friendships, family, celebrations and lots of lovely memories.
