It's been the Easter school holidays and my daughter Elizabeth and I have had two weeks off school/work. The first few days were a whirlwind of activity beginning with a trip to the V&A to see the wonderful exhibition of Cecil Beaton's photographs starting with his first photos taken of a young then Queen Elizabeth (later the Queen mother) and her family, including Princess Elizabeth.
My own little Elizabeth bought this postcard to send to her Nanny. It's Princess Elizabeth in a recycled dress that used to belong to her mother (well it was the war)! Nanny was delighted to see a picture of how the Queen looked when she was 5 year's old in the 1940s!
It's a wonderful exhibition and I recommend a look if you can make it there before the end of the month. You can see how his approach changed over time from fussy backgrounds reminiscent of the old Victorian photographers to the modern approach focussing on the subject. My favourite picture was the last in the series: the Queen in an Admiral's cloak.
After the exhibition we went for tea in Kensington before Easter egg hunting in Green Park. In our searches we found 36 eggs in St James' Park, Green Park, Covent Garden, Trafalgar Square and the South Bank. My brother also sent us details of eggs in the city. We thought we were doing well until we found out there were over 200! The eggs were gathered together in Covent Garden and auctioned off for charity over the Easter period.
Next was a trip to Croydon to meet friends, then a day out in Richmond and Petersham Nurseries with an old friend. We took a pleasant stroll from the railway station through Richmond, along the river and over Petersham meadows to Petersham Nurseries. There were had a wonderful lunch and tour of the nursery. Despite promising not to spend any money I came home with some terracotta pots, postcards and a plant.
On Wednesday after a day at the allotment/in the garden we headed of to Scotland for Easter, stopping in Staffordshire to break the journey overnight. We spent the next week enjoying the pastoral delights of Galloway. This often overlooked part of Scotland is well worth a visit.
Now our two weeks off are nearly over, just a 6th birthday party and the allotment AGM to go. Sigh. I look forward to half term!
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