Thanks to my Mum's British Airways staff travel, we are off to visit my brother and his wife in New Jersey next month. I can't tell you how excited we are and not just because the boys are staying with Granny! The woofers are off to my in laws (they are depressed when they come home as their garden feels like a park) and we will be having 4 child free nights away, 3 in 3 different hotels and 1 on a plane!

As we have been lucky enough to visit New York before we are going to avoid all the tourist attractions and have found some super cool places to discover.

My husband has planned an "epic walk" which features stops at these new stores, markets and bars. We have 24 hours and we are going to pack in as much as possible! Then it's off to the Jersey Shore.

We just have to stop in at the West Elm Market, a modern furniture, home decor, gifts and accessories store. I love these zipped cases and these glass shadow frames, hoping they are still on sale in February and I can take one back in my hand luggage!

A browse in Top Hat selling masking tape and other stationery goodies as well as design products from Sweet Bella.

A mooch around All Good Things, a craft food and goods market in Tribeca. I want to try the best ice cream from Brooklyn!

Lunch at Marlow and Sons. A menu that features Meat and Cheese gets our votes.

I love how rustic it is, how traditional. Hoping the weather will be bright so we can sit outside like these old fellas!

A drink at the bar in The Breslin, I love how dark it is.

Before we crash out at our hotel Dream on West 55th Street. It's the same price as a Premier Travel Inn in London, and for me there is no comparison!

That is Day One! I'll post days two and three later in the week! But here is a hint.

Any suggestions for 24 hours in Manhattan?! We would love to experience the real NYC so let me know of any places you think are a must see!

We are still deciding on where to go for dinner ....

If we were taking the boys I would recommend this site Red Tricycle for everything you need to know about New York with children.

Happy Wednesday!

A few months ago I met Von at a handmade fair and purchased some sweet shelves to display our glassware in the dining room. Last week our paths crossed again as she has just opened a little shop in Baker Street, Weston super Mare. The shop is bursting with everything I love. My eyes didn't know where to start!

The shop has vintage home ware, accessories and furniture. Wooden crates that can be used for all manner of things and apothecary jars waiting to be filled. Reasonable priced too, I picked up these two glass lidded jars for £10 for the pair and a crate for all our paperwork that clutters up the side of the worktop for £7.50. There is something for all budgets, so if you fancy getting lost in vintage heaven, take a trip down to 4 Baker Street!

For as long as I can remember I have lusted after a letterpress printers drawer tray to use as shelves. Vintage Von had a whole collection! I decided on a mid brown drawer, complete with handle and the original font description label. I am going to hang them in my office and display all my bobbins, twine and mini bottles of beads and bits. The bigger holes make perfect photo frames too. I'll post the finished article next week!

Just as I left the shop I saw some large wide but shallow shelves. If you don't ask you don't get is my motto, so even though they were clearly display shelves for the shop, I enquired as to whether I could take them off her hands as my first painted furniture project. (I've chosen Farrow and Ball French Gray.) Hooray the shelves were mine! Turns out we had a few more glasses than I remembered tucked away in the sideboard so I am painting these pine shelves for the extras and other bits like our cake stands and my Granny's ice bucket.

If you fancy a browse online at her goodies check out the Vintage Von Facebook page here. I will warn you it's a treasure trove!

Linking up with #MagpieMonday and A Living Space

My brother in law is 30 today and we are off to Windsor tonight for a celebratory meal complete with non alcoholic cocktails for my pregnant sister. 30. It hit me like a ton of bricks. I was breast feeding Ollie upstairs in our bedroom, above the kitchen, and all I could hear was my family busy blowing up balloons and hanging decorations (my husband did good).

I felt a rise of panic thinking thirty? How could I be thirty?! It's like I clicked my fingers and we went from being two 17 year olds excited to have their first car, to parents of two, waiting for a grey hair to make an appearance. My husband finds back hair, which seems to be an ever increasing incidence year by year, a particularly startling experience. I don't know why, the silver back male look has always been a preference of mine.

30 is when you are supposed to feel like a grown up. Responsible with responsibilities. Yet I look sometimes enviously at my Facebook friends photos and status updates. Jetting off to sunny climes, dancing on tables at weddings and climbing a lofty career ladder.

But then I creep in the boys rooms at midnight, after I've shut down the laptop and washed up a couple of milk cups ready for the morning, and see two tiny faces, snoring, vulnerable and who have my unconditional love.

And I wouldn't change it for the world.

My thirtieth year brought me my sweet second son, a family time to Barry Island I will never forget, 3 weddings, a christening, a trip to Tokyo, two visits to America, a first family holiday, the first time seeing the Red Arrows, my big boy starting pre school, my best friend and a baby girl, a new family member, a Jubilee celebration, the Olympics and I posted my first ever post on Capture by Lucy.

All in all it was a very good year. 31 was rather lovely too. Take time, just for a minute and instead of thinking about the things you don't have or are missing out on, think about what you have. I feel like the luckiest 30 something in the world.

Happy Birthday to my wonderful brother in law, scrap that, my brother, Andrew. Love you lots xx