A New Season With Radley

An old colleague once told me that the Greenday lyrics "wake me up when September ends" were written for her. I never understood why she felt that way as I LOVE September, with it's warm light, crisp air and the gentle shift to cosier days. Don't get me wrong, it's always sad to say goodbye to the carefree days of the Summer holidays, but there seems to be a general feeling amongst parents and kids alike of needing a bit of routine again. Chaos of the school run aside we're all starting to settle down and enjoy the start of the new term now.

When I was younger, one thing I used to love about September was the prospect of getting a new bag for school. I am and always have been a bag fanatic and if Sam ever complains about the countless numbers he stumbles across, I'll give him a full low down of EXACTLY how it's different from all the rest! So when Radley London, a classic British brand, got in touch to see if I'd like to try out a bag from their new season collection, I of course didn't have to think twice.

I've been looking out for a backpack for ages, something that'll keep all my essentials in one place but also give me two free hands (usually for catching Anwen as she leaps into any number of precarious situations.) This style is the Postman's Park Medium Zip Top Backpack, and fits the bill perfectly. I love that a backpack can be pretty casual in style but with this one, with it's soft black leather and gold zip, I know I could easily use it on dressier occasions (a girl can dream of those can't she?!) It also has loads of pockets so no need for emptying the entire contents to find the keys/phone/bank card I've thrown in!

This September Anwen has started nursery school every weekday morning. Sam works flexibly every Tuesday, working from home while she's at school and then ventures out for some fun with her in the afternoon. This week I decided to gatecrash their party of two and join them for a trip to one of our favourite cafes in Cardiff, Penylan Pantry.

I love everything about it here, the coffee is GOOD and the Portugese Tarts are just too tempting to resist. If you saw my Instagram stories this week, you'll know what I'm on about! Having taken the photos above just before we went in, it was lovely to have my camera to hand and be able to step back and capture their Daddy/Daughter date.

Yes, in case you were wondering, the bag was swiftly moved away from old 'sticky fingers' here. I fancy keeping this in pristine condition for just a little while longer!

Next year she'll be joining her brother and starting school full time and, if I'm honest, I'm not sure I'll find that new term the easiest. So Greenday, there'll be no need to "wake me up when September ends" this year because I want to be present, and savour every afternoon we have together.  I'm sure if I ask these two nicely they might just let me gatecrash one of theirs again!

This post was written in collaboration with Radley London. As always, all words and opinions expressed are my own. Thank you so much for supporting these posts and the little maldod blog through reading today.