We took the Bun's back in time this week for a tour around where it all started. Although Miss Rosey was born in Brighton, we've never taken her there since we moved when she was a baby. There's no family left there to visit and friends have moved on so it just never happened. In our heads it remained as it was. It was the magical place where Mr Bun's childhood was played out, where we fell in love, made our first baby and talked about our dreams for the future.
We've told the Bun's tales of all our favourite places and so we tried to show them as many of them as we could. First stop was the Devil's Dyke and to sit atop the South Downs, then we headed down to the seafront to promenade from the Palace Pier towards Hove.
It was hard seeing the West Pier obliterated with no chance of being restored. Even in it's poorly state before the fire it had a romantic beauty about it. I used to love watching the birds swoop up and down into the crumbling theatre while we sipped drinks on the shore.
The next day we whizzed them around the Pavillion and Brighton Museum, followed by a spot of shopping. My favourite place is Preston Manor and Park and I was so glad the Bun's loved it too. Really it was a tour of old places. We love history and tell the Bun's endless stories about people and the past to help it all come alive to them. Preston Manor is a real gem as it feels as if the family have just stepped out for a walk while we nosy about their home.
We managed to fit in a tour around Lewes where we used to go treasure hunting, but that was pretty disappointing to be honest. Most of the shops and cafes we loved had closed down and I found it pretty unexciting. My favourite was this old shop front with a divine cooker sitting in the window. Plans to head off to Charleston and see the De La Warr again the next day were cut short when Little Bun got so homesick missing her animals and home, so in our usual style we chucked our stuff in the car and hit the road Northwards.
We've never stayed for the full holiday anywhere. We love the life we've made here and just get itchy to get back to it and if the weather's beyond rubbish I prefer rubbish weather while I'm comfy at home. Maybe we've become old farts, but to be honest we're just content and happy in our world. For years we travelled here and there looking for the place where we'd feel happiest. Now we've realised it's where all the people and animals we love are so we can stop searching.
It felt good to be back in the small piece of heaven we've made. I fed my hens this morning, cuddled Pip and Ollie our cats, sat with Pixie our bunny for a while and just felt good. Mr Bun bought some dahlia's from the honesty stall in our village for me and got a big kiss back.
I arranged some new treasures here and there before sorting out breakfast.
Favourite china came out for coffee and dippy eggs, before we headed off to Grandma's to get our boy Alfie Blue back. A whole week nearly without the boy has been hard. We're softies for our world and I guess that's just the way it is when you're happy with what you have.
There's no place like home. Lovely to get away and realize the magic and contentment of home.
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Time to embroider 'East, West.. home's best' on a cushion, I think! I still haven't got as far as Brighton on my trips to the South Coast, and the one time we decided to visit Lewes there was such a traffic jam on the road in we turned round and headed back to Bexhill! Enjoy the rest of the hols...x
ReplyDeleteOh Lisa what a lovely thing to do for your girls! Mine love our 'before them' stories! We too travelled lots before the girls came along, mainly in the Far East, I loved waking up in a completely different world, not knowing what would happen next! They love our stories of India, China and beyond.....sadly we don't have the funds to take them there! Glad you had a great time, I never thought I would ever say it but I love my home so much ( would still like the sea at the bottom of the garden though!). Glad you had such a great family holiday! Ada :)
ReplyDeleteOld farts! I love that.
ReplyDeleteI haven't been back to Brighton in years - it sounds like it's changed a lot.
Happy holidays
Nina x
My friend's just moved to Brighton, so may be viisiting soon ... but agree with you, why does everyone think you HAVE to go on holiday, when you know you'd rather be at home? We've got a couple of weeks off together and just enjoying pottering about at home, doing jobs, eating nice meals and generally just relaxing ... Bliss! Enjoy your weekend, Claire xxx
ReplyDeleteHome is where the heart is! Lovely post Lisa!
ReplyDeleteVictoria xx
I love how you say it like it is for you all in this post.
ReplyDeleteI think in all honesty we are still searching for our happy place, so being away is still important to us. But can actually imagine if I was living in my dream life (Devon/Cornwall border) Why would I want to go or be anywhere else?
Loved this post and all the memories it invoked for you all!
P x
Loved this. If home is where you're happiest why leave say I! Nice to visit new places for a day or two though. You get the best of both worlds that way :D
ReplyDeleteSounds like you definitely have found your happy place Lisa and that is GOOD. I do love being home too and despite loving to travel I always love coming home xox I am pleased you got to bumble around some of your old haunts in Brighton and for your girls to get a feel of your history. Alice was also born in the Royal Sussex County Hospital (in Sept 2000). Andy's mum and siblings still live in Brighton and hove and as much as I like to visit I justlove getting back to the quiet of Bexhill! Guess you can call me an old fart too :o) xox Penelope
ReplyDeleteIt looked like you had fun while you were in Brighton - I went to Art School there and now very rarely go back (I doubt whether my old haunts are still there). I want to cry when I think about the West Pier crumbling into the sea - it was the backdrop to many happy times on the beach.
ReplyDeleteGoing on holiday is an adventure and it's good to widen your horizons - but I know what you mean about home being the best place.
Celia
xx
What a lovely post.How lovely to feel so happy and content in your own home.I must admit I don't think I have ever felt totally content in any of our different homes.I've always hankered for something more.But I love where we live in a small market town in North Wales with mountains and sea not far away and a theatre on our doorstep.
ReplyDeleteOh, looks wonderful!! Such fun photos!! xo Heather
ReplyDeleteHow lovely ... glad you all enjoyed your holiday but that you enjoyed your homecoming more ... I can relate to that ...we did the same thing last year and popped home one day early ... it was lovely to arrive home and snuggle in ...don't get me wrong ... we love to travel but home will always be home ... Bee x
ReplyDeleteLisa we are exactly the same, after so many years bringing up a family while my husband was in the Navy, wandering around the country/globe we were desperate to put down roots. The fact that when we eventually did it was a place where neither of us had grown up or knew, has made no difference to the fact that we feel totally at home in Norfolk now, and really miss it when we go away. Yes, we dream of returning to Northumberland sometimes, and the hills of either Wales of Derbshire sometimes beckon, but we both know it's never going to happen. East west - home's best!
ReplyDeleteBrighton is definately on my wish list of places to visit. Looks like you had great weather whilst you were there.
ReplyDeleteKnow what you mean about going away......"nice to go away but even nicer to come home"
Home Sweet Home
Natalie
x
No matter where you go it is always nice to come home and I can understand your girls missing their animals!
ReplyDeleteIt's about 5 years since I visited Brighton, I did love it. :)
Vivienne x
Thanks for the honesty, as always-I felt a bit of a holiday failure recently whilst reading stories of amazing & relaxing vacations around blogland but this post is refreshingly sincere. We took our 3 kids for their first ever holiday to the Isle of Wight this year. It was lovely to experience a new place, but being on holiday can be hard work, especially for the person responsible for packing, catering, laundry etc. The children are too young to appreciate the effort and money involved, hence usual levels of rivalry and bickering occur due to disrupted routines, late nights & long car journeys. We were all glad to come home to 'normal' life and were totally exhausted! We live very near to Lewes and Brighton, love them both, but my small seaside town is cosier and much less cosmopolitan/commercial.
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