National Coal Mining Museum

We're always on the lookout for new places to visit where we can take Archie with us. We see the National Coal Mining Museum signed as we pass by on the motorway but it's only recently that I've actually looked to see if it's somewhere we could go and was pleasantly surprised to find that dogs are allowed in the outdoor grounds. As we woke to beautiful sunshine on Saturday, and with no plans already made, we decided to go and explore.

Based at the site of Caphouse Colliery in Overton, Wakefield, the museum opened in 1988. The colliery here was sunk in the 1770s or 1780s and the Hope Pit in the 1820s. The pits became the Denby Grange Colliery.

Dotted around the site is all manner of machinery used in coal mining, each exhibit is well signed with information given about its purpose. This rocker shovel mechanically reproduces a miner's shovelling action.

This double ended shearer cuts coal underground.

Free steered vehicles were used underground to move equipment and materials.

Diesel locomotives were used to move coal around the colliery.

We weren't able to visit the indoor exhibits, nor take a tour underground, but there was plenty of interest in the outdoor exhibits for us.

We took a walk in the woodland surrounding the museum. I should think it's lovely here once the trees are once again covered in leaves.

The museum pumps out the water in the mines but as it mixes with chemicals and minerals it becomes dirty so it's cleaned before being released.

The Pony Discovery Centre tells the story of working horses.

The museum is home to Eric and Ernie, two Welsh mountain ponies who were rescued from an abandoned coalfield area by the RSPCA, as well as Bud, a blue and white cob.

Finn, a Clydesdale, is also cared for by the museum. He's typical of the type of animal that would have worked above ground transporting workers and coal.

The Miners' Memorial Garden celebrates the individuals and groups whose lives have been touched by the coal mining industry and its communities.

Looking back to Caphouse Pit from Hope Pit. We really enjoyed our visit, there was plenty to see outdoors and the woods are a nice place to walk a dog. There was lots we didn't see indoors so a reason to return at some point in the future.

February 2025

I never look forward to February, I always imagine a cold, dreary month, and that's exactly what it was for the most part, though we did get a few warmer days towards the end, and the hours of daylight are now getting noticeably longer.

We saw that Aysgarth Falls was hosting a planet and constellation trail as part of the Yorkshire Dales Dark Skies Festival so we decided to go along and take a look. After a period of very cold and dull weather we were lucky, the sun decided to shine, though the temperature was still very low. Located in Freeholders' Wood, which runs alongside the Falls, it's a self-guided trail where you can learn fun facts about the planets and constellations in our solar system. Archie enjoyed himself having somewhere new to walk and sniff, and he seemed interested in the planets too, haha.

We've had some other lovely days out this month. We visited Knaresborough and saw that an artisan market was being held in the Castle grounds so we had a mooch around that. We also visited Dunham Massey which I wrote about previously, Hebden Bridge, and as the sun was shining last Saturday, we even visited Filey on the Yorkshire coast so that Archie could have a walk on the beach.

I've read three books this month.

Although I've previously read Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë and the two books which Anne Brontë wrote, Jane Eyre is the first novel I've read by Charlotte Brontë. I already knew a vague outline of the story so there was nothing of a surprise for me, other than the fact that I enjoyed it far more than I thought I would. Saying that, I still think The Tenant of Wildfell Hall by Charlotte's sister Anne is my favourite of the four Brontë novels I've read so far but I shall definitely read more by Charlotte.

The House at Sea's End is the third book in the Dr Ruth Galloway series by Elly Griffiths. Another great read by this author. Not only are the cases interesting but so are the character's private lives, and gauging how this story ended, things are going to get even more gripping in the next book.

I've never read anything by Libby Page before but I picked up The 24-Hour Cafe in The Works as part of their 3 for £6 deal. It was an interesting concept, the story taking place over twenty four hours in a cafe with characters coming and going, but with flashbacks of the two main characters lives to reveal their backstories. An enjoyable read.

I usually put an amaryllis on my Christmas wish list and Mick usually obliges. Last year I forgot and shock horror, I didn't get one. I ended up buying one myself from a local shop. It had been just starting into growth but it seemed to stop once I brought it home and it certainly didn't get anywhere near flowering. This year I didn't make that same mistake and I found this beauty in my Christmas stocking. It's named Ferrari which is quite apt given its colour.

Although we visit Lotherton, a country house near to where we live, on a regular basis, we rarely venture into Wildlife World, which is on the estate, as we usually have Archie with us. We'd heard last year that they'd added six female wallabies to the collection of animals and birds that they host and we finally made the effort this month to go along and see them. Taking a photo wasn't the easiest, Lotherton have, over recent years, changed the wire fencing surrounding the enclosures, they're now more substantial than they used to be so it's challenging to take photos through the bars. Instead, I held the camera high above the fencing and this is what I got, not the best but it could have been worse.

I wrote about Archie's Passport, a promotion being run by the National Trust, back in October. This month Archie collected his sixth stamp in the passport and received his reward of a packet of treats. Archie's a greedy dog and never turns his nose up at food so I was expecting him to like them more than he did. He started off by spitting them out, but did eat them in the end, more through greed I expect rather than actually relishing them.

I had a big surprise when I watched Ali's latest Little Drops of Wonderful podcast as my name was called out as one of the winners of the Strictly Sockalong. I won this Christmas Stocking Bunting set from Wensleydale Longwool and a lovely project bag. Ali also popped in a You Are A Little Drop Of Wonderful pin and sticker and wrote me a lovely note on one of her postcards. I've enjoyed taking part in the Strictly Sockalong for a number of years now, it's a hugely popular knitalong.

So the month ahead, spring at last. It seemed it would never come! Let's hope the weather obliges and we get some lovely spring sunshine, I'm already enjoying the lighter evenings.

Nella Last

I read Nella Last's War back in 2019 and Nella Last's Peace the following year. I knew that a television film had been made which was based on Nella Last's diaries and I'd intended to watch it but it's only recently that I got round to doing so. Housewife, 49 is written by and stars Victoria Wood, greatly missed since her death in 2016. After finishing the first two books, as well as intending to watch the film, I'd intended to buy the third book in the series but it's only since watching the film that I've done so. I'm really looking forward to reading it.

Nella Last lived in Barrow-in-Furness and wrote diaries for the Mass Observation archive from 1939 till 1966. If you want to know more click on the link at the start of this post.

I can resonate with Nella Last as I've kept diaries my whole life. I don't still have them all but the ones in this box go back to 1994. These are pocket diaries and Filofaxes, I always use a Filofax now. These are diaries where I jot down birthdays, appointments, places I've been etc.

I'm also a journaller. I write about my life, quite insignificant things in most cases, but my journals are interesting to look back on. I suffer from anxiety and I find that writing things down can really help, it puts the jumble of my brain into some kind of order. 

I've used different brands and sizes of books for journalling. I've sometimes decorated pages in different ways but I started the large grey A4 size book you can see here back in 2006 and that seems to be the one I always go back to, no decoration, just straight forward plain writing, it seems to work best for me.

Do you keep a diary? Do you keep a journal? What works best for you?

Dunham Massey

It's been a dull weekend but we didn't let that stop us crossing the Pennines on Saturday to visit Dunham Massey in Greater Manchester. A National Trust property, it hosts one of the largest winter gardens in Britain.

We thought it would be a good time to visit with the snowdrops now putting in an appearance and we weren't wrong. The scent as we approached the garden filled the air, it was amazing.

Snowdrops carpet the ground in many areas of the garden.

More than 200,000 bulbs have been planted so there's plenty to see at this time of year.

Winter Aconites.

Lots of different varieties of irises. These are just a couple of them.

There were a few daffodils blooming here and there but many still in bud. They'll put on quite a show in a few weeks, I'm sure.

Camellias are flowering at the moment. This one is St Ewe. All the plants are very well signed in the garden.

There's a whole patch of hydrangea Annabelle where the flower heads have just been left to fade and they look so pretty.

Witch hazels are striking at this time of year with their ribbon-like flowers.

There's some really interesting trees at Dunham Massey too. These Himalayan Birch trees have a bright white bark which really stops you in your tracks, although they haven't come out as well as I'd have liked in my photos and you don't get quite the same effect.

This gnarly old tree is covered in burrs.

We were serenaded by a robin as we wandered round.

Dunham Massey is set on a 300 acre estate and as well as the formal gardens, there's a historic house and deer park.

We don't get to see as much of a place as we'd like these days as we have Archie with us and being an elderly dog, he can't walk as far as he used to. We always have to be mindful of how much exercise he's had, but it does mean that we can return to the places we've already been and see something new.

We were lucky with the weather for although it was very dull, it stayed fine. It had rained during our journey there and it rained again on our journey home.

Dunham Massey is somewhere we'll definitely go again. The garden has got so much interest just now and I think there will be more to see over the coming weeks. It would be good to see what it's like during the summer months when the spring bulbs have died back. We had a very enjoyable day out.

January 2025

The first line of my January 2024 post started with the words The new year started here with illness, and the same can be said of 2025. The whole family, apart from Eleanor, had been ill over Christmas and for me, Mick, Daniel and Jasmine, the illness continued into the new year. We all had some kind of virus which wasn't quick to leave. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that we can enjoy the festive season this year without any bugs spoiling it for us. I'm pleased to say that we're all fully recovered now.

Even though we were still feeling ill, Mick and I had a couple of short walks at Lotherton that first week of the new year. We do what we can to shake off any illness but sometimes that just doesn't work. The temperature had dropped quite a lot as winter, so far, had been quite mild and sure enough, our first snowfall of the year followed on the 5th of January. The photo was taken from one of the bedroom windows, I wasn't going to go out in that. Brrrr.

Our first trip of the year to the coast was on the 19th. We hadn't planned it, we just got up that morning and decided on the spur of the moment to go to Bridlington. It was so cold though, we just had a short walk and didn't even venture onto the beach. It was still a nice drive out, and we got a taste of the sea air.

I've read four books this month.

I'd like to get back to reading more classics again this year so to that end, the first book I read was A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens. I read my first Dickens book in 2022, this is my fifth and I've enjoyed every one of them. For me, A Tale of Two Cities is a tale of two halves. I found it quite slow going at first as the scene is set but Dickens is such a great story teller that you're pulled in and once you're invested, it's hard to put down. A brilliant story with twists and turns, and the ending will have you weeping.

I read the first book in the Dr Ruth Galloway series by Elly Griffiths at the back end of last year. The Janus Stone is the second book in the series and for me, even better than the first. There are some great characters in the books, a regular cast, and the two stories I've read so far have definitely held my interest. I'm looking forward to reading more from this series throughout this year.

The Teashop Girls at War is the third book in this series by Elaine Everest. I really enjoyed the first two but because there was a gap of over three years between the second and third books, I'd forgotten the character's backstories, how some of them are related to others and how they all fit into each other's lives. It's a big part of the story and so it was spoilt a little for me as so many names were quite confusing when I couldn't remember who each of them were.

I was given Winter's Wishfall by Ceri Houlbrook as one of my Twelve Days of Christmas 2024 gifts. I often keep any Christmas books to read around Christmas time but I decided I'd read this one right away, after all it's only January and Christmas is still in our minds. A story of magic and mystery, set on an island north of Scotland, which is definitely far-fetched but perfect for the festive season. There's a little romance thrown in for good measure, after all, it wouldn't be Christmas chick lit without the boy meets girl narrative, but the story is more centred around mystery and folklore. A magical read for any Christmas lover.

I love a good puzzle. Do you? For Christmas 2023, Mick bought me the first Murdle puzzle book. This last Christmas he bought me another from the series. There are 100 logic puzzles in the book so I do one per day, that will take me into April. They start out very easy and become more challenging as you go on. I enjoy Wordle, the web based game where players have six attempts to guess a five letter word. I'm usually successful and guess within three or four attempts usually. I also enjoy Globle where players have to guess a country. My geography knowledge isn't all that good but it's definitely improved since playing this game. I also enjoy crosswords. I often attempt an online one but have a book I use too. I think it's important to keep the mind active, my dad was doing crosswords till the day he died and his mind then was a sharp as ever.

One of Eleanor's friends had a baby girl earlier this month, they've called her Owena. I couldn't miss the opportunity of knitting a little something for a new baby and I thought the 50g ball of Pearly Pink Sirdar Snuggly DK I had in stash would be perfect. Unfortunately, I ran out right at the very end but I managed to find an online retailer who had the same dyelot number in stock. You can tell how much of that new ball I used as it still weighs 50g. I bought a pack of pretty sleepsuits to go with the cardigan and the new mum was pleased with the gift.

Here's Jack wearing the Big Bearly Bonnet by Pure Stitches which I knit for him before he was even born. Such a cutie. He's learnt to crawl this month and he's into everything. We need eyes in the back of our heads!

So that's January. Onto February, my least favourite month, I'm just glad it's also the shortest month. I'm looking forward to starting wedding dress shopping with Jasmine, celebrating having a child reaching their 30s (goodness, how old do I feel) and watching Jack continue to reach new milestones. Oh, and knowing that spring is that little bit closer!

The 2025 Growing Season

I don't grow many things from seed these days, it's just as easy, and often cheaper, to buy small plants and grow them on, but it's fun waiting for germination and watching the subsequent growth so I do still start a few things off each spring. I used to have an allotment so when the growing year started, my greenhouse and every available indoor windowsill used to be covered with seedlings. These days I'm down to a seed tray or two.

I had a bad growing year last year. The tomato seeds were very slow to germinate and hardly put on any growth so I ended up buying a couple of plants from a local nursery. Even these didn't do very well and I hardly harvested any tomatoes at all. This year I'm going back to my favourite Maskotka, a trailing bush variety which produces medium to large cherry tomatoes. I've never found anything to beat the taste of these.

When we had the allotment, Mick's favourite thing to both grow and eat were climbing beans. He does love a wigwam structure on which to grow climbing plants, so I'm going to leave it up to him this year to grow these Blue Lake climbing French beans.

I grew mahogany coloured sunflowers last year, I'm not sure why as I've always preferred the traditional yellow variety and no, my opinion didn't change. Whilst looking through my seed box the other day I came across a packet of sunflower seeds my niece gave out at her wedding back in 2021. I forgot all about them so I hope they're still viable. Her mum and her auntie grew all her wedding flowers and these sunflower seeds came from their gardens so it will be fun to see if they'll still grow.

Of course, I'll be buying plenty of plants too but I think these are the only things I'll be growing from seed, unless I see something else which takes my fancy. How about you? Do you buy plants or do you grow from seed, or like me, a bit of both?