Washington Old Hall

A portrait of George Washington

Washington Old Hall is a manor house situated in the town of Washington in Tyne and Wear. The manor was the ancestral home of George Washington, the first president of the United States of America. It is from here that the family took the surname 'Washington', although it hasn't been owned by the family since the early 17th century when they sold it to the Bishop of Durham. The building was turned into tenement flats in the 19th century and then gradually fell into decline until it was declared unfit for human habitation in 1936 and threatened with demolition. It was rescued by a local teacher by the name of Fred Hill, who started 'Friends of the Hall', a group committed to rescuing the building. Restoration work was completed in 1955 and the building was taken over by the National Trust in 1957.

For a relatively small property, there is an awful lot of history crammed between its stone walls and it was an absolutely fascinating place to visit. The volunteer in charge on the day we went was a very interesting and friendly man who obviously knew a lot about the place and was a veritable fount of information. The children's trail for Washington Old Hall was the most in depth we have come across in the National Trust and we all learnt a lot from helping the Podlings with it. They certainly earned their certificate on that one!

I particularly enjoyed the room that was set out as it would have been in the building's tenement days. Many of those who lived in the flats as children have been able to help out with information as to how life was at the time and how the flats were laid out. One of the old residents who was born in the flats in the 1920s apparently still occasionally drops into the hall for a cup of tea and a chat. I would have loved to have met him!

The day we visited it was absolutely pouring with rain, so I didn't hang around to take a photo of the exterior and most of my interior shots are out of focus, but we absolutely loved our visit to Washington Old Hall. It is definitely worth your time if you are in the area.

These 17th century painted wooden figures were apparently used to fool passersby into thinking the property was occupied, thus deterring thieves!

Emma with Martha Washington's fan

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My heart on a sofa

Anyone with multiple children will know how hard it is to get a picture of them all together looking more or less at the camera and happy. I was pleased to be able to get this photo of my four favourite little people when we were on holiday. Emma is particularly camera shy in group photos at the moment for some reason, so it was great to catch her on a day when she was prepared to cooperate! Love my little people!

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6 Months Old

Alexander celebrated his half birthday yesterday. How can he be six months old already? He now weighs 16 lbs 12 oz and has started wearing 6-9 month clothing. He has recently been introduced to the joys of weaning and it's fair to say that he loves his food. I have seen an improvement in his nighttime sleep since introducing some food, though he still doesn't sleep through. He goes to bed at seven, has a bottle around 1 am and then wakes up at 5 am for a cuddle. He will then stay asleep with me until around seven when I have to wake him up! I expect he will drop the nighttime bottle once he is on three meals a day. I can't say that I mind too much, knowing that he is my last baby. I'm not in a hurry for him to grow up and whilst sleep is nice I am well aware that they don't stay little for long. I shall enjoy my nighttime cuddles while they last.

Alexander is a delightfully happy baby. He smiles all the time and has the most delightful giggle. Lily can get the most fantastic laughs out of him. He is very laid back and whilst he loves to be held, is quite capable of entertaining himself if I put him down with a teddy or a rattle. He adores his siblings and has a special smile for his Daddy. He is an absolute delight and we love him very much.

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Cragside Again

Cragside is an impressive Victorian country house, home of the inventor and industrialist, Lord Armstrong. We explored some of the specatular grounds during our weekend visit to Northumberland in September, but didn't have time to see the house on that occasion. We were keen to rectify this omission this time round, so made sure we got to Cragside in plenty of time.

I love the Victorian era, so the house was a real treat for me. I could have moved straight in! It was an absolute delight to explore. Photography is allowed, but trying to take decent photos in low light with a point-and-shoot camera, no flash and a baby in a forward facing sling proved challenging. Most of my photos of the rooms were unfortunately really blurry, so I have just shared a few of my decent shots. Luckily I have the lovely photos in the guide book to remind me of the beautiful interior.

After exploring the house, we took a walk through the grounds to the formal garden, following the science trail for children that the National Trust were running during half term. The Podlings had fun finding the steps on the trail and answering the questions and were thrilled to receive a sticker and a badge as a reward for the their efforts. These trails are a great way to keep children interested and engaged during our visits. We were followed along the trail by two different cats, much to the delight of the children!

The whole family have fallen in love with Cragside. It has utterly captivated us and I feel sure that we will visit it whenever we are in the area.

 

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Halloween 2014

My happy little pumpkin on his first Halloween

Obviously, we were in a caravan in Northumberland for Halloween this year, but that didn't mean we let the day pass by without a little fun. The Podlings were greeted by their usual pile of Halloween treats when they woke up. I don't allow them trick or treating, so I fill a basket of treats for them every year by way of compensation. Plus I love to treat my Podlings!

When we got back from Holy Island, where we spent the day, the big Podlings changed into the costumes sent to them by their Nanny and Grandad. Alex wore the Happy Little Pumpkin babygrow that I bought him all day. He was hard to miss in bright orange! The pictures are rather out of focus, but they do show how much fun the Podlings have dressing up!

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A Week in Northumberland

We spent half term week in a caravan in Northumberland with Mark's parents and we had the most wonderful time. We were blessed with mild weather for the time of year and it was so nice to just get away and spend time together as a family in such a beautiful part of the country. It will probably not surprise you to learn that I took a lot of photos on holiday, so I will be dividing them up into several posts and will intersperse them on the blog as and when I get around to it. We had a lovely week and I don't want to forget any of it!
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The Snatchabook

We love picture books and have a firm collection of favourites that I am happy to read to the children over and over again. A recent addition to this exalted selection is 'The Snatchabook' by Helen and Thomas Docherty. We borrowed it from the library and loved it so much that I immediately ordered our own copy after just one reading. It's that good!

Books are going missing all over Burrow Down and the little rabbit Eliza Brown is determined to catch the culprit. What kind of terrifying monster could be responsible? It's just a little Snatchabook, who is compelled to steal books because he doesn't have anyone to read to him. We LOVE this story and the Podlings love the adorable little Snatchabook. Even baby Alexander enjoys the rhythmic, rhyming text and stares intently at the delightful illustrations. This story deserves to take its place amongst the great classic picture books and should be enjoyed over and over again. It certainly is in our house!

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