Family Archives - A Simple Life of Luxury https://www.alananna.co.uk/blog/category/family/ Tales from a down-shifted family - Making the most of modest means in West Wales Mon, 08 Jun 2026 15:04:55 +0000 en-GB hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=7.0.1 https://www.alananna.co.uk/blog/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/cropped-favicon-160x160.jpg Family Archives - A Simple Life of Luxury https://www.alananna.co.uk/blog/category/family/ 32 32 2696646 A Long Weekend in West Wales https://www.alananna.co.uk/blog/2026/06/a-long-weekend-in-west-wales/ https://www.alananna.co.uk/blog/2026/06/a-long-weekend-in-west-wales/#comments Mon, 08 Jun 2026 17:58:00 +0000 https://www.alananna.co.uk/blog/?p=48620 West Wales isn’t a bad place to spend a long weekend at home. Both Anna and I were off on Friday, so after an early-ish run around the dunes for me, we headed into town for brunch. We decided to try somewhere new and ended up at Kwizinn, which serves Caribbean-inspired food. It was excellent...

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]]> https://www.alananna.co.uk/blog/2026/06/a-long-weekend-in-west-wales/feed/ 1 48620 Isle of Man Trip https://www.alananna.co.uk/blog/2026/04/isle-of-man-trip/ https://www.alananna.co.uk/blog/2026/04/isle-of-man-trip/#respond Sat, 25 Apr 2026 13:04:57 +0000 https://www.alananna.co.uk/blog/?p=48229 We made another quick trip over to the Isle of Man this weekend. I say “quick,” but I think we actually had an extra day compared to usual — which made a difference. This time we took the boat. In some ways it’s better: we have our own car, can take more with us, and everything feels...

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]]> https://www.alananna.co.uk/blog/2026/04/isle-of-man-trip/feed/ 0 48229 Morgan’s Travels https://www.alananna.co.uk/blog/2026/04/morgans-travels/ https://www.alananna.co.uk/blog/2026/04/morgans-travels/#comments Thu, 02 Apr 2026 14:53:34 +0000 https://www.alananna.co.uk/blog/?p=48093 We don’t have huge amounts of detail, but I thought it was time for an update on Morgan’s travels. Since leaving here and flying to Japan in October, he spent a month or so in Tokyo, getting to grips with the culture, the food, the shopping, travel, and the general day-to-day life in a new...

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]]> https://www.alananna.co.uk/blog/2026/04/morgans-travels/feed/ 1 48093 The National Memorial Arboretum and the Shropshire Hills https://www.alananna.co.uk/blog/2026/03/the-national-memorial-arboretum-and-the-shropshire-hills/ https://www.alananna.co.uk/blog/2026/03/the-national-memorial-arboretum-and-the-shropshire-hills/#comments Tue, 24 Mar 2026 07:33:14 +0000 https://www.alananna.co.uk/blog/?p=48063 We had a busy weekend last week, with a trip to the National Memorial Arboretum near Lichfield and a night nestled in the Shropshire Hills, courtesy of my uncle Paul and Anne-Helen. A Visit to the National Memorial Arboretum Anna had been invited to play the Last Post at the unveiling of a new memorial...

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]]> https://www.alananna.co.uk/blog/2026/03/the-national-memorial-arboretum-and-the-shropshire-hills/feed/ 2 48063 Cosmo https://www.alananna.co.uk/blog/2026/01/cosmo-2/ https://www.alananna.co.uk/blog/2026/01/cosmo-2/#respond Fri, 23 Jan 2026 13:18:48 +0000 https://www.alananna.co.uk/blog/?p=47828 Just a photo of Cosmo chilling at home – nothng more, nothing less.

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]]> https://www.alananna.co.uk/blog/2026/01/cosmo-2/feed/ 0 47828 Seeking Clarity: My Contact Lens Journey Begins https://www.alananna.co.uk/blog/2025/12/seeking-clarity-my-contact-lens-journey-begins/ https://www.alananna.co.uk/blog/2025/12/seeking-clarity-my-contact-lens-journey-begins/#comments Thu, 18 Dec 2025 08:50:09 +0000 https://www.alananna.co.uk/blog/?p=47486 Yes, I’m getting older, and I’ve been wearing glasses for a while now. I need varifocal lenses as I can’t be bothered to carry more than one pair around or keep swapping between them. My distance vision isn’t too bad but does need a little help, while my near vision needs quite a boost these...

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]]> https://www.alananna.co.uk/blog/2025/12/seeking-clarity-my-contact-lens-journey-begins/feed/ 1 47486 An Early Start to Christmas https://www.alananna.co.uk/blog/2025/12/an-early-start-to-christmas/ https://www.alananna.co.uk/blog/2025/12/an-early-start-to-christmas/#comments Mon, 01 Dec 2025 08:31:42 +0000 https://www.alananna.co.uk/blog/?p=47426 It’s December, just, but we kicked off the Christmas events slightly early this year with a pre-Christmas trip to family in Bristol. Logistics meant going a week or so earlier than usual, so we weren’t quite in full festive flow yet, but it turned out to be a good way to get things started. It...

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]]> https://www.alananna.co.uk/blog/2025/12/an-early-start-to-christmas/feed/ 1 47426 Morgan’s Next Adventure: A Winter in Japan https://www.alananna.co.uk/blog/2025/11/morgans-next-adventure-a-winter-in-japan/ https://www.alananna.co.uk/blog/2025/11/morgans-next-adventure-a-winter-in-japan/#comments Wed, 19 Nov 2025 12:53:42 +0000 https://www.alananna.co.uk/blog/?p=47326 I’m sure I must have mentioned it here at some point, but Morgan is currently in Japan. After spending the best part of a year in Canada — working in the kitchens at a ski resort in Banff and then heading out to Vancouver Island — he came home for a year, and has now...

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]]> https://www.alananna.co.uk/blog/2025/11/morgans-next-adventure-a-winter-in-japan/feed/ 1 47326 The Isle of Man (Take Two) https://www.alananna.co.uk/blog/2025/10/the-isle-of-man-take-two/ https://www.alananna.co.uk/blog/2025/10/the-isle-of-man-take-two/#comments Tue, 28 Oct 2025 06:13:59 +0000 https://www.alananna.co.uk/blog/?p=47218 Well, we finally made it to the Isle of Man this autumn. After an aborted trip a couple of weeks ago, when the plane turned around mid-flight and landed back in Liverpool due to the weather, we tried again at the weekend. This time we flew from Manchester to visit Anna’s mum, Pat. We drove...

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]]> https://www.alananna.co.uk/blog/2025/10/the-isle-of-man-take-two/feed/ 3 47218 From Ynyslas to Urayasu – Morgan’s Japanese Adventure Begins https://www.alananna.co.uk/blog/2025/10/from-ynyslas-to-urayasu-morgans-japanese-adventure-begins/ https://www.alananna.co.uk/blog/2025/10/from-ynyslas-to-urayasu-morgans-japanese-adventure-begins/#comments Fri, 17 Oct 2025 15:05:16 +0000 https://www.alananna.co.uk/blog/?p=47174 It’s been a big week or so in our household. We’ve dropped Morgan off in Manchester as he sets off on another adventure — this time to Japan. He’ll be spending four weeks in Tokyo before heading up to a ski resort on Hokkaido for the winter, working and exploring as he goes. It doesn’t...

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]]> https://www.alananna.co.uk/blog/2025/10/from-ynyslas-to-urayasu-morgans-japanese-adventure-begins/feed/ 1 47174