Resting and Recharging

15 June 2016










A week or so ago we had a bank holiday weekend here in the UK.  What that means is that we get to have Daddy at home for an extra day.  Now I don't know about you but often I get to the weekend and I want/need a rest and time to catch up with all the jobs around the house that I don't have time for during the week.  Saturdays start with gymnastics in our local town which seems to make the morning disappear in a flash, the afternoon seems to end before it has started and before you know it is Sunday night, my list of jobs is done and we are on the cusp of a new week.  Whilst I need weekends like that to keep on top of things it is good to occasionally to put the chores aside and do something completely different.

I know that everyone will have their own idea about what they would do to have a rest and recharge but for me it has to involve the whole family, be outside and away from our house.  It is all to easy when you are at home to be distracted by the wafting dust, the ironing pile or the sewing lurking on a chair, all things that I need and (sometimes) love to do but not all the time!  Doing something completely different is a good change.  When we saw that the bank holiday weekend was forecast to hot, sunny and dry we knew that we had to go bivving somewhere. The children, when asked, opted to canoe rather than walk, so canoeing it was.  The weather forecast was right it was wall to wall sunshine and the winds were light making canoeing a dream.  Despite the busy car parks once on the lake it was much quieter, there are a few hot spots where people congregate, but we mostly had the lake to ourselves.  This is somewhere we have camped over night before, so after pootling up and down the lake we went to our favourite spot to set up camp.

Life is pared back to the simple.  Gathering wood for a fire, collecting water for cooking and drinking, cooking and eating simple food.  There is time to stop, to watch and soak up what is going on around you.  Each time I went up stream to get water I paused to watch and listen to the birds, mostly listening as the leaves provide the perfect cover.  On one occasion I went back to 'camp' for our binoculars and Cameron as I could see a bird flitting about but couldn't be sure what it was.  We woke to sunshine streaming into the shelter and the soft slap of an early morning swimmer, despite the early hour we got up to soak up the beautiful morning, Alice and my husband took a dip whilst I cooked date porridge and sipped my cup of tea.

Arriving home later we all had a skip in our step and finished the three day weekend with lots of jobs completed and feeling happy and most definitely recharged.  What is your favourite thing to do to put the bounce back in your step?

26 comments:

  1. It is wonderful when things feel so simple ... easier to really notice what's happening around you and to deeply appreciate it. I find walking on the beach a really great way to recharge...I do this often and I know if I've left it too long! I think it's the sound of the waves, the feel of the sand and the big, wide sky above. There's peace and rhythm and beauty and that always leaves me feeling replenished. Meg:)

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  2. Your camping trip looks great fun and your spot on the lake idyllic. Here's to many more fun weekends. xx

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  3. What a fantastic weekend, made even better with the sunshine. We definitely need to cast aside routine and chores occasionally and just enjoy being. The ironing and dusting will always wait. Knowing where those quite places are is quite special too. X

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  4. A Swallows and Amazons Camp! Ahoy there :-) What a fab weekend x

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  5. You describe my favourite type of recharging the batteries! It sounds all just wonderful and I want to pack my tent immediately and head off into the great wilderness that is Scotland. I am glad you have such a lovely time together. x

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  6. your weekend looks so special, and so wonderfully sunny you lucky thing! all last week it was lovely and sunny here then the weekend came and the weather turned thoroughly miserable!
    my favourite way to rest and relax is just to take myself off upstairs for half an hour or so, lie on the bed and read in complete silence, away from the Bearded Wonder and the cat. I find if I take that little bit of time I'm happy the rest of the week lol

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  7. What a fantastic weekend, your batteries must have been fully charged again after that. I've never heard of a bivvy before, I had to look that up. Your view from inside is just beautiful.

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  8. Oh wow, how lovely. You are making me want to book a camping trip :) Sounds like it was the perfect way to recharge and connect.

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  9. I so agree that when you are home you end up doing home chores or tasks. Getting away helps forget about that stuff, quite easily for me!! I like how when we go away we don't talk about his work or home improvements. It's a nice change. love your photos and glad you had a good getaway!!

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  10. Such a good idea to carve out time to recharge. And yes, pressing the pause button on everyday life, taking a deep breath and just enjoying is so very refreshing.

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  11. It sounds wonderful. Since we recently acquired a canoe, we've been talking about different trips we could take. Do you sleep under that tarp next to the canoe or do you have a tent?

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  12. Your way of recharging is my absolute favorite one! There is really nothing better for me than get on a road trip with my husband and our dog. We usually take a couple of apples, water, turn on Queens and drive into the wild. I always feel so refreshed and energized after these trips.I need them at least once in 2 months, like a breath of fresh air! Your getaway place is so beautiful!

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  13. Sounds like the perfect getaway. I'm with you, if we stay home for a long weekend, vacation etc... we wind up doing chores and getting caught up on things. This sounds like a great way to recharge your batteries.

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  14. It looks fabulous - although not for me, at my age I want a comfy bed and an ensuite loo!!! You are right, to properly relax you need to be away from home, or you will be sidetracked by things you think you ought to do. We enjoy going for walks, whether in the country or on the beach - and of course we have to eat scones!!

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  15. I love this post so much, it just inspires me. My rest and recharge depends on so many things - but being outside, water, and sun usually work. :)

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  16. Sounds divine! I love your tarp-tent-shelter. Looks so taught and cozy!

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  17. Oh this sounds lovely a great way to relax and be one with nature. I used to love camping but my husband won't here of it now - I think he's missing out - oh well.

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  18. That looks to me the perfect recharge. I love being in or on the water and to wake up within a step or two of a lake swim is my idea of heaven. The Lakes at the end of March this year were freezing, it was so so cold it's hard to believe you're swimming in mid-June. Hope to be packing my tent soon.

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  19. I have the same taste in vacations and relaxation. I'm happiest with a trip that involves being outdoors, swimming, a little light hiking, fires, simple cooking of our own meals, etc. I'm glad you had a nice time, your photos are lovely.

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  20. Beautiful photographs. What a peaceful place and I love the colour of that water-worn wood. My idea of relaxation would be a walk in the woods or just pottering about in the garden for a few hours :)

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  21. This sounds absolutely idyllic. Lovely!

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  22. What a lovely weekend, I can see why everyone felt happy and recharged... Being close to nature does it for me too.

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  23. What a wonderful trip. I feel peaceful just reading it. Glad you felt relaxed and recharged by it. I think you're right. Getting away from the jobs like dusting and washing, that never stop needing to be done, and simplifying life, is a great way to recharge.

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  24. This sounds idylic. Your lovely decription of life being totally pared back reminds me of the beautoful song 'Montana' by James Taylor, particularly my favourite verse: 'Enough for today....the demands of the moment/ the thing on my mind is the work in my hand./ Wood for the woodstove, and water for coffee/ something I can still understand' x

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  25. Sounds like you had a lovely bank holiday. I agree about needing to get out of the house in order to relax. I am the same. I find it very hard to relax in the house. Too much stuff needs doing here.

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