Eighth Blog Anniversary Giveaway And A Little Getaway

It's my big birthday on Monday, the big 5 0. I'm not one for parties, being the centre of attention or grand gestures, but I decided that I'd like to celebrate this birthday with my family around me, so Mick's organised a little getaway for a few days.

Daniel has been living and working in Surrey for the past couple of years and I haven't seen much of him. He's in the process of moving to Essex so that he can live with his girlfriend. He still has to work some days each week in Surrey but the rest of the time he's able to work in London, so he'll have to commute but he thinks it's worth it rather than seeing his girlfriend just on the weekends. It's hard living apart when you're young and in love!

So tomorrow we're heading down to spend a few days on the Essex coast. Eleanor hasn't gone back to university yet and Daniel and his girlfriend have taken a few days off work so it will be nice to spend a few days over my birthday with my family around me. Such a treat.

Tomorrow is the eighth anniversary of when I started this blog so, as is now a tradition on my blog anniversaries, I'm having a little giveaway. Meteorological autumn begins on the 1st of September so I've put a little prize together which will help you while away the autumn evenings as the nights draw in and the heating is needed once again.

A ball of Stylecraft Head Over Heels in the Eiger colourway. This yarn is durable enough for socks but it's also fine and light enough for shawls. There's lots of lovely sock patterns to be found on Ravelry and also shawl patterns which only take one skein so the choice is yours.

I love to cosy up and read when the evenings draw in so I've popped a book in the parcel. I've chosen a book which I haven't read myself but one which is on my list of books to read, The Keeper of Lost Things by Ruth Hogan. I've read some good reviews of this book so I hope it's an enjoyable read. If the winner has already read this book then I'll choose a different one to pop in the parcel and keep this one myself, I really don't mind as it's one that I want to read anyway.

Something I love doing in autumn is planting bulbs ready for the spring. I'm not a lover of winter so seeing those shoots poking through the soil lets me know that spring is on the way and makes the coldest months of the year a little more bearable. I've included a pack of tulip bulbs, and also a Yankee Candle votive in the Winter Morning scent. I do love burning scented candles when the nights start to draw in.

There's also a selection of yummy treats and hot drinks for you to enjoy.

The giveaway is open to all readers of this blog, old and new, near and far. You don't have to be a follower but it would be lovely if you would click on the link in the sidebar or follow on Bloglovin'. Please leave a comment on this post by midday on Tuesday the 11th of September 2018, after which, a winner will be drawn at random.

All that's left to be said is Thank You. Thank you for visiting my blog, thank you for all the lovely comments you leave and thank you for the friendship. I really do appreciate everyone who takes the time to read my ramblings, especially those who leave comments so that we're able to build up friendships. I think I say this every year but the blogging community really is the best.

See you soon (on the other side of 50, eek!).