To market, to market

I (very happily) headed off for the gym while the house still slept. That’s not exactly accurate because I made Mirinda a cup of tea before I walked out the door.

While I worked it, Mirinda, Fiona and Jason (he of the monstrously fluid dribbly nose) took the girls to Hankley for a beautiful morning walk. They all agreed it was marvellous…ignoring the nose bit.

The loose and not really a plan plan for today was to go to Winchester market. I had to go shopping first so it was sort of informally agreed that we’d leave at around 10:30. That was my target arrival time home. It was tough but I made it. We eventually left at about midday.

People often ask why we didn’t have kids. I now know a big reason is because you can never get out of the house. There appears to be no such thing as a “Let’s just jump in the car and go for a drive!” situation. Not that I’m bothered, I just find it intriguing.

Anyway, we headed off, Andrew sticking to the speed limit behind us making Mirinda keep to it as well, something she isn’t that used to on the roads she knows well, and parked up behind the Chesil in one of the very few car spaces in the multi-storey.

I should mention the temperature because it was icy cold in the wind. It’s days like today where the term wind chill comes from. It’s not the best weather for seasoned Queenslanders. Lauren, for example, was wearing all of her clothes. And some of Fiona’s.

I forced the twins to pose for me by the river and they obliged by doing this:

What all the kids are doing these days

We wandered along the river, walked with appropriate solemnity by the house that Jane died in and visited the lovely St Swithin’s church by the Kings Gate. And, eventually, we hit the not nearly as crowded as last year, market.

The crowds! The crowds!

There was a very surprising moment when Jason told Mirinda that he loved ice skating whenever he could. We were surprised, wondering where he would get much chance of ice skating in Burleigh Heads. It was all a bit mystifying until he corrected himself by saying he meant ice cream. That made more sense so we continued on our way.

We were going to have lunch in the oldest pub in England but, unfortunately, so did the rest of the population of Winchester. We went next door to Ask which, while not being the oldest restaurant is in a very old building.

Eventually we wandered back to the cars, various bits of rusty flowers between us (a Christmas present for Mirinda) then headed home.

There was a bit of a worrying hiccough when we arrived home and waited, and waited, and waited before the Hassells turned up. They’d decided to buy everything in Waitrose on the way home.

A lovely, icy cold day was had.

Lauren as the Christmas puppy