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You don’t have to go away to have a great time….

It was my birthday on Saturday and I have been celebrating by having a mini holiday from home. It is amazing how many things I managed to do without having to go away.

I started out by going to Chessington, a theme park close to my house. I’m not a fan of the scary roller-coasters, but had great fun taking my little boys on the gentler rides.

We went to a ‘pick your own’ farm and got our first strawberries of the season. (That is my little boy on the right and my nephew on the left)

In the evening I went to see Leona Lewis sing at the O2. She has the most amazing voice! Fans of fantasy will love her performance too – the costumes and stage props all looked as though they’d stepped out of a fairy tale. 

To finish off my weekend we paid a little trip to a doughnut factory.

We also managed to squeeze in an amazing Japanese meal and a few bottles of wine! I’m afraid that I haven’t done much reading for the last few days, but my parents bought me a few books that were lurking at the top of my wish list.

I am now the proud owner of:

In Cold Blood – Truman Capote
The Housekeeper and the Professor – Yoko Ogawa
The Affirmation – Christopher Priest

I hope you all had a fantastic weekend too!

41 replies on “You don’t have to go away to have a great time….”

Happy birthday yesterday, Jackie! It certainly looks like you had a great time. I’ve heard a lot about The Housekeeper and the Professor, I hope you like it.

Happy belated birthday! It sounds like a load of fun. I love exploring things close to home — all too often you don’t get around to them unless you have out-of-town guests.

Happy birthday! Glad you had fun. I remember going to strawberry patches with my parents when I was a kid, so I hope your kids have great memories of this. Enjoy your new books!

Happy belated birthday! Looks like a great time – especially the donuts. I’ve been craving donuts lately but have no idea where to find them. Being in an unfamiliar town can be a trial. :p

I know our birthdays are very close! It sounds like you had a great one…oh those donuts! I’ve not had lunch yet and right now I could eat them all. In Cold Blood is one of my favorite books, not only because it is pure, unadulterated true crime, but the whole back story is just as compelling. I hope you like it!

Looks like a wonderful birthday! Sometimes the attractions close to home are just as much fun as the ones far away–and all without the annoyances of long-distance travel.

Happy Birthday! I’m a big fan of the birthday week, which means my birthday runs into Father’s Day most years. We had a wonderful bbq tonight, and saw Toy Story 3 last night. We’re practically twins – mine was Friday, and I had the same sort of wonderful few days with family and food and will spend my book money later this week. Now I’m craving donuts tho!

Happy Birthday (yesterday) Jackie. It sounds and looks like you had an amazing time. I think many of the best places are right in our own backyards no matter where you live. Your little ones are very cute.

Happy birthday Jackie! What a fun day. Pick-your-own farm is one of my favorite things. Hope you get to read In Cold Blood soon and tell us what you think 😉

Happy belated birthday! I love just staying at home and discovering all the city has to offer.

My husband and I have our birthdays 5 days apart so we like to make a week of it. This is the first year that he won’t have to work (he’s a new teacher) and we won’t have a brand new baby so we’ll be able to celebrate proper!

Absolutely, you don’t have to go far to have a great time! My idea of near home great time is picnic by the thames, steam funfare in prospect park, or simply hang about in Waterstones!

I live in Reading.

Happy Birthday!! What a great day … donuts, amusement park and books! What’s not to love!? And I don’t think I’d ever seen a photo of you before so it is nice to put a face with a blog!

Happy belated birthday! This looks lovely (plus, the problem with actually going away is that you feel like you need to relax AFTER the actual holiday…I’m in a little post-holiday slump myself right now, actually).

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