We were invited out for Sunday lunch, so we got ourselves ready. I put the rhubarb and apple crumble I’d made in secure packaging (I didn’t want it leaking all over the car) along with a bottle of wine and a bottle of something non-alcoholic, and we set off. We were heading to foreign parts, which involved a zoom up the motorway, across the River Severn (the second crossing, now called the Prince of Wales Bridge) head west, get lost going into Newport, find our way and successfully arrive at daughter’s home.
It’s always lovely to visit, of course, principally to be in her company, but also her house is an oasis of a calm, tidy and an organised home. Delicious smells greeted us, along with Reg the wonder-dog and we wandered through to her very spacious dining kitchen where we unloaded what we had brought with us. Refreshments having been offered and accepted, we caught up with all our news (as if it was some time since we’d last seen each other instead of less than a week!) We passed over the crumble and a gift for Reg (air-dried animal parts the provenance of which I won’t share, but which definitely appeals to canines as much as it repels humans)
We were joined by daughter’s partner and caught up with his news as we began to find seats around the table, dishes of vegetables, a jug of gravy and a platter of carved ham appeared before us. Then it was pretty much talk-talk, munch-munch, slurp, slurp, more talk-talk, as we enjoyed our delicious lunch. We had dessert – the crumble and custard, and coffee, and relaxed to catch up with more news and gossip.
It was a lovely day, the sun was beaming down into the garden, the sky was blue and barely a breeze disturbed the new leaves on the trees. It seemed perfect timing for a walk so we put on our shoes and jackets and headed out to Beechwood Park. There was a chill breeze in parts, but not chill enough to put us off strolling round the lovely gardens, and of course, despite our magnificent lunch, stopping for coffee and a cake in the little café.
Refreshments consumed, we wandered back to the house and then it was time for us to depart. What a lovely day we’d had, and heading home the traffic flowed freely so we were back within the hour, ready for a cup of tea. A fine day indeed!
Lois Elsden 