You're Beautiful - Water

I discovered a long time ago that I am a water baby. I could swim almost before I could walk, or so the story goes.

And I swim everyday now; the water caresses me, warms me, holds me. I can even feel my aura in water, and it appears 10 feet tall, a sign that I am relaxed and content.

When we go on holiday, we gravitate to water, too. Mr B grew up inland, I grew up at the coast. But we share a love for water.

When Jenny let me know about this special one-off You're Beautiful, it just had to be 'Water'. So these are some lovely photos of water from my travels, near and far, this year.

Ka'anapali Beach, Maui; Boating on Zoo Lake, Johannesburg; livestock drinking water on the farm; Silent Falls, Drakensberg; mirror image, New Forest; cool water on a hot day, Shackleford; River Danube, Budapest; Japanese Gardens, Margrit Island, Budapest

Pop over to Cheetahs in my Shoes to find out what is beautiful in the Cheetahs' world today.

You're Beautiful

Photography by Lesley Beeton.

You're Beautiful - New Forest

We planned our getaway at the last minute. Our twentieth wedding anniversary snuck up on us, hidden underneath real life drama's involving a dog and my Dad. Not being naturally spontaneous, however, I did wonder if we were doing the right thing, as we joined the masses of traffic heading south on Friday night. We were lucky, though, as the rain cleared and we arrived in time for dinner. 


On Saturday morning, we set off on a 5 mile walk, dogs in tow, camera in hand. It was easy and lazy, stopping for lunch, stopping to snap pictures, stopping to let the poorly dog rest. Four hours later, we stopped for cream tea. It was a perfect day of togetherness, humans and dogs, husband and wife, with nature.

The New Forest is a beautiful place, and it made us feel beautiful, too. These photos are amongst my favourites from the weekend. You can see more here, and find out how the Boxers got on in the country hotel.

Pop over to Cheetahs in my Shoes to find out what is beautiful in the Cheetahs' world this week x.

You're Beautiful

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You're Beautiful - South Africa

This is absolutely the last mention of our holiday in South Africa, I promise. I met some inspirational people, saw some stunning scenery, and ate mouthwatering food. And now it's time to move on to new adventures, so just one last look at some of the photos from beautiful South Africa.

Photo collage, South Africa, May 2012, Lesley Beeton

You can see a full photo story board here, and read about two educational projects we support here.

Thank you, Cheetahs in my Shoes, for hosting You're Beautiful. Here's the link to this week's post.

You're Beautiful

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You're Beautiful - African sunrise

African sunrise, May 2012, Lesley Beeton

I woke early on the last morning of our holiday in South Africa, made myself a cup of tea and waited for this stunning sunrise to unfold. There's nothing quite like feeling the warm African sun on your face to make you feel beautiful.


So, I'm linking up with Jenny at Cheetahs In My Shoes and You're Beautiful. Pop over there to see what Jenny and the Cheetah Keeper have been up to this week. And have a look at the other blogs linked up too.

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You're beautiful - bulb layering experiment

Bulb layering, April 2012, Lesley Beeton

So, it's back to the garden, again, for my beautiful post this week. I guess I'm really enjoying the garden this year because it was sadly neglected last year when Mom was ill.

I don't quite know how I got myself organised, but somehow I did. I planted two lovely blue glazed terracotta pots with bulb layering. My husband mocked me. He said it would never work, but I knew better. I had watched Alan Titchmarsh and read Gardener's World. Both had explained how it could be done. A (not so) quick trip to the garden centre for bulbs and potting soil, and they were all planted up on a warm afternoon in late October. I left them on the summerhouse deck until January, when the first crocus started showing. Followed by the fragrant narcissus tete-a-tete, the rather grand tulip orange emperor and now the stunning tulip yellow flame. 

These hurriedly planted pots have kept the colour at our front door, throughout the winter. Welcoming visitors with their sunny faces, and drawing admiring glances from neighbours. Bulb layering - you're beautiful. I'm going to do it all again in the autumn.

So, I'm linking up with Jenny at Cheetahs In My Shoes and You're Beautiful. Pop over there to see what Jenny and the Cheetah Keeper have been up to this week. And have a look at the other blogs linked up too.

Early crocus, bulb layering, February 2012

Daffodils, bulb layering, March 2012 

Tulip, close up, bulb layering, April 2012

You're beautiful - holiday memories

I was going through my photos in search of shots of form and colour for a painting I'm working on. I found these forgotten photos of our holiday earlier in the year. It made me stop and smile, and remember how beautiful the Hawaiian island of Maui is. The holiday was particularly special because it was shared with special people. I hope this isn't a cheat, as these aren't new photos, but I think you'll agree they are beautiful.

Ka'anapali, February 2012, Lesley Beeton

North Shore, Maui, February 2012, Lesley Beeton

From Mama's Fish House, Maui, February 2012, Lesley Beeton

I'm linking up with You're Beautiful at Cheetahs In My shoes.

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You're Beautiful - new shoes

There is something so tactile and emotional about choosing and buying new shoes. I have small feet but they are very painful - a combination of extremely weak ligaments due to injury and debilitating plantar fasciiitis. So I look longingly at the pretty pumps and sandals, knowing I cannot possibly wear them comfortably for more the twenty minutes, and I certainly couldn't walk any distance in them! I hadn't intended to buy new shoes yesterday, and I actually went into the shoe shop to try on some sensible Ecco trainers. They were horrible, with no support for my floppy ligaments. And then I saw these. These things of beauty. These beautiful purple Fitflops. I have found that Fitslops are perfect for all my foot problems. I can't really say they do anything for my bum shape, but I can wear them all day. Yeah for warm weather, yeah for purple Fitflops. You're Beautiful!

Purple Fitflops, March 2012, Lesley Beeton

I'm linking up this You're Beautiful post with the busy, capable, funny, talented Jenny at Cheetahs in my Shoes. Please do go and have a look the other blogs linking up this week. (I'm sorry, but I still can't get the badge to work...I will keep trying!) 

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