We decided to take advantage of the girls having an inset day with school the other Friday to book a long weekend away at a really nice Airbnb holiday house (that it turns out has been in a channel 4 show!) so we could spend a few days with James’s Dad & explore the area.
Unfortunately the weather took a turn and after a few days of snow and with storm Bert on the horizon any plans to spend time out of doors were cancelled, including our booking for the illuminations at NT Croft Castle. Even our vague replacement plan to at least visit on Sunday to see the castle done up for Christmas was ruined by the mud and floods.
We did end up stopping on the way and braving the cold for an hour on Friday, in order to explore The Falconry Centre which is based around half an hour from us at Webbs garden centre in West Hagley. We had a great time wandering around the enclosures looking at the different birds, and they very kindly did their daily demonstration just for us, despite the snow on the ground. I enjoyed the chance to test out the camera on my new iPhone 16 pro and I can say I am very happy with it!
On Saturday we ventured out into the rain to take Grandfather to Ludlow Kitchen for a delicious lunch, and enjoyed a good browse around the gift shop, farm shop, and art gallery.
I found an artist I really liked who makes greeting cards and gifts, so made a note of her details for some birthday shopping next year – you can find her work at Alice Draws The Line. We picked up a Christmas gift for a family member from the gift shop and some yummy treats from the farm shop – including a ridiculously delicious chocolate cake we took back to our airbnb.
Driving home was a bit of an adventure with lots of extreme puddles, even more extreme floods, having to turn around or divert several times, and basically doing two sides of a triangle to eventually make it home. It took a bit of extra time and our car was absolutely filthy when we did get home!
The weekend may not have gone to plan, but we did get in some quality (and mostly) tech free family time together and with the girls’ grandfather, including playing some board game classics with a twist – my bright pink cancer charity scrabble set and the RSPB edition of Cluedo (which to be honest was a quite confusing variation, even if it was fun). Plus, the view from the barn was stunning – when it wasn’t obscured by rain.
