Last week I had to have a few stitches as several holes had appeared in my fur. I enjoy my adventures but don’t want to literally fall apart at the seams. So I have invested in a a jumper and a waistcoat to give my body some protection. Both have been handmade by a knitter who sells teddy Bear clothes on Etsy. Here I am in my splendid new jumper:
My human decided to treat me to the waistcoat too as she thought I would look distinguished in it. What do you think?
The clothes are really very well made and I shall enjoy wearing them. If anyone reading this has a bear needing a smart jumper see the link below.
We were all very keen to find out what was inside. It turned out to be a brand new hat for Aunt Lucy.
Aunt Lucy took off her old hat, which was very old and squashed.
She put on the new one which fitted perfectly
The band on the new one didn’t quite match her dress so she took the band off the old hat and put it on the new one.
I tried on the old hat but I don’t think I will be wearing it…
Aunt Lucy looks like a new bear in her beautiful new hat.
We will make sure Aunt Lucy’s new hat doesn’t get squashed or faded; she will have to stay out of the sun.
Aunt Lucy bought her new hat from a human who makes them and sells them on eBay. If you have a Paddington or Aunt Lucy in need of new clothes see her page at: https://www.ebay.co.uk/usr/padd-on-t-net
My human took me along on a short break to Salcombe where she was celebrating an important birthday. The balcony of the hotel room overlooked the beach and Kingsbridge estuary.
The cushions all had my initials on! HBC which stands for Horace Bear’s cushion. I enjoyed relaxing on the balcony with a glass of water and lemon. I decided against the gin as it sends bears to sleep.
I enjoy a good read so immersed myself in a book.
The next day was going to be filled with fun activities so for breakfast I tucked into a sausage and egg muffin. It was very yummy.
Each time I got into the lift the mirror reminded me what a handsome bear I am!
The humans went out for a long walk so I stayed behind at the Beach Club. I spotted a wonderful collection of wellintons in the reception area.
I like red wellies but the red ones looked a bit big, so I opted for the smaller green ones.
The green wellington boots fitted perfectly.
I set off from the hotel to explore the beach.
South Sands is a big beach for a small bear with short legs to walk around. It took me a while to get to the sea. I didn’t get too close as the tide was coming in.
I stopped for a selfie.
The rocks looked interesting so after making my way over to them I climbed up to have a look in the pools.
I saw a tiny fish disappear into the seaweed.
It was time to be getting back as the tide was coming in and I didn’t want to get trapped on the rocks.
It took a while to get back across the beach. The wellies were feeling quite heavy for my little legs.
My legs were really quite tired when I got back to the hotel so climbing the steps took a while.
I sat down for a rest then took off the green wellies. They were just as good as the red ones that I sometimes borrow from Paddington.
I put the green wellingtons back on the rack with all the other wellingtons, ready for another small bear or maybe young human to use.
When I got back to the room I had a quick nap on the very very very large bed.
After an hour or so of napping I went downstairs to find the Spa. Here I am wishing that I could get into the sparkling water. Being submerged in water is something that I avoid. My stuffing gets all soggy and heavy which could make me sink quickly.
I had a look in the sauna, which was warm, so decided to try it out.
At first it was quite pleasant but after about two minutes I was very hot so had to leave.
I cooled off on a lounger.
The humans had been saying the the steam room was very good. I wasn’t sure what went on in the steam room so decided to have a look inside.
The twinkling lights on the ceiling kept changing colour and were very pretty, but I couldn’t see properly through the steam and my fur was starting to get soggy after just a few seconds so I left the room very quickly!
I am outside the door in this photo, but the steam had steamed up the lens on the camera!
I cooled off again with a glass of water.
The spa was very quiet during my visit.
There was gentle relaxing music playing so I had another nap and enjoyed being peaceful.
Later I managed to tag along with the humans for an evening meal. I opted for some delicious freshly made tortellini.
The mini break soon came to an end and it was time to say goodbye to the view from our room.
After the big meal the night before I opted for fresh fruit salad for my breakfast.
I had a lovely time at South Sands Salcombe, the Beach Club was a great place to stay for bears and humans.
We had some clotted cream to use up so I decided to make some scones to go with it. National Trust Book of Scones seemed the best place for a recipe as National Trust scones are always very yummy.
To begin you have to rub the butter into the sifted flour to make a mixture that looks like fine crumbs. I used gloves to do this to stop my fur getting messy.
I added the sultanas and sugar, then beat an egg ready to go into the mixture.
The egg was added to the mixture along with the milk (I used oat milk). I kept a little bit of eggy milk to use later (to brush over the scones before cooking)
We managed to tag along with the humans on a winter mini-break to Mudeford at the Christchurch Harbour Hotel.
The bed was very comfy with plenty of room for two small bears.
The room was listed as having a partial view of the harbour. We found that the flat bottomed cushions made excellent seats to sit on and look out!
The bench in the hotel garden was also a wonderful place to sit and enjoy the winter sun on the fur.
There is a wonderful view from the hotel quayside. The atmosphere was very peaceful as we watched the ducks swimming on the calm water.
The hotel has a spa, but being filled with acrylic fibre we don’t like to get wet as it makes us all heavy and soggy. Saunas make us rather too hot. However, we make excellent models for robes and slippers.
A relative of Henry was having a rest in the corridor. Nuvac has a happy face like me.
We were jolly pleased to find a swing in the hotel grounds, though it was a tad big for us.
Venturing a bit further afield we wandered to Mudeford Quay and climbed up onto the piles of rope for a photo. In the main season ferries go from Mudeford Quay to Mudeford Sand banks which are just a short distance away across the water. We would have to find another way to get there!
On the beach we found a log to rest against while enjoying more winter sun.
The food at The Harbour Hotel is very good with a great selection available at breakfast. We had already eaten croissants, granola and fruit salad before starting on our cooked breakfasts. I liked the tiny saucepan the baked beans were served in.
On our last day the humans decided to drive around to Hengistbury Head so that we could walk to the Mudeford Sandbanks and see the beach huts.
Nye nearly disappeared in the long grass – can you see him?
We tried to decide which beach hut we liked best.
But we actually liked all of them.
We also quite liked this little boat!
We really enjoyed our couple of days in and around Mudeford. Before leaving the hotel we posed for one last photograph on the quayside.
The Twisty Tree made by a volunteer. The Plasterers TreeThe Gilted TreeThe Upholsters TreeThe Portait Artists TreeThe Clockmakers TreeThe Landscape Painters TreeThe Woodworkers TreeThe Silversmiths TreeThe Bookbinders TreeThe Taxidermists TreeThe Printers TreeThe Laundry TreeThe Locksmiths TreeThe Chandlers TreeThe Gamekeepers TreeThe Cooks TreeThe Architects Tree
The trees were very interesting to look at, the staff at Attingham had been very creative with the various themes. I really like the clock maker’s tree.
It is good to do something festive on Christmas Eve. The humans were in Somerset so they took us to Barrington Court to see the lights trail there.
After spending a few minutes posing for photographs on the reindeers we continued on up the path.
Once inside the barn there were lots of Christmas trees covered in twinkling lights. It all looked very festive.
We rested for a while in a little tree shelter.
The candles looked very realistic – they were fake candles powered by batteries, much safer than real candles as there is no danger of them causing a fire
We posed for a photo with some candles.
We climbed up into one of the trees for another photo…
All the climbing made our legs tired so we had a little rest before leaving the barn.
The lights trail is open until January 1st 2023, on days when Barrington Court is open. It is only short but lovely for small bears with little legs and we think small humans would like it too.
Cold weather has arrived, the humans decided to go for a wintery walk at Dyrham Park. There was a giant wreath in front of the house which made me look rather small.
I wandered off for a walk around the gardens. It is good to keep moving when the weather is chilly, it helps to keep bears and humans warm.
The gardeners were ‘resting’ the grass next to the waterfall and pond, so I couldn’t get close to the edge. They do this as during busy times the grass gets worn away by the many humans walking all over it.
The gardeners were very busy in the formal gardens and had lots of pots placed ready for planting.
They had plans to tell them exactly where to put the pots. I don’t know what was in the pots, we will have to visit again in spring to find out!
Wheelbarrows always look better with small bears inside…
At the Old Lodge there was a Christmas tree surrounded by very large presents. The boxes were big enough to contain big teddy bears.
Two rather splendid tractors were in the children’s play area. Fortunately there were no children around so I was able to try them both out…
I liked the red one best.
I had a potter about in the mud kitchen, which made me start thinking about real food.
The humans bought me a very tasty cheese and onion pasty in the tea room which warmed me up and filled up my tummy nicely. Yum yum yum.
I visit Dyrham quite often as it is near Bristol where I live and have blogged about it several times. If you wish to see my other blogs just type ‘Dyrham’ into the search box.
After being seated a waitress brought three plates full of treats for me to share with just one human. Yum yum yum.
After eating as much as my tummy could manage I went over to the fountain where warm spa waters emerge from the ground.
Small cone shaped cups were available for visitors to sip some of the spa water. Back in the late 17th century aristocrats came here to ‘take the waters’ as they believed that the mineral rich spring water could cure illnesses. I had a sip, it just tasted like warm water!
Before leaving the Waitress kindly put all the leftover cakes in a box for me to take home and share with my friends.
Horace the Alresford Bear 