It's like a whole new world.

I wrote this a few days after living in our new house in a small town just outside of Scunthorpe in North Lincolnshire. It feels so different than Ashington in Northumberland, for the better.

I don't know we're just in the honeymoon period or it's because the weather has been amazing but we all feel so much happier here. We feel more relaxed and calmer. 

There is so much greenery! Our house backs out onto fields. It is amazing to look out of the window and see this! Looking out of the bedroom window in Ashington all we could see is the house over the path. Straight into their bedroom. lol

We have walked around the village all of the gardens are beautiful, the grass verges are cut and there is random pots and huge tubs of planted flowers. The only downside is that I have been suffering more with hay fever. Every morning I wake up like I've got a cold. I am sure I will get used to it, I suppose I have to.

On our first night here we walked to the chip shop and we saw 3 random kids with a black bin bag randomly picking up rubbish. There was no adults with them and they didn't have any uniform on like Brownies or scouts. It really warmed my heart to think they were doing it just because they wanted to keep their town clean!

I also haven't noticed any dog poo on the streets. I am amazed! There is tons of people walking dogs too but they all seem to have the sense to pick it up. The dogs all seem a lot calmer and nicer here. No more snarling, barking beasts scaring my girls.

People seem friendlier here. Everyone we pass seems to say good morning/afternoon. I have always lived in big towns where people keep themselves to themselves so it is taking some getting used.

I do feel like we stick out like a sore thumb though. Everyone seems to have lived in the village their whole life. The streets are filled with parents in one house and their grown up children a couple of doors down. There is our accents too. We sound Geordie everyone else doesn't. I have given up correcting people when they ask if we're from Newcastle. I just say yeah, near there. lol We were in town the other day, in the bank and the woman serving us told Stu to keep talking to her as she loved the accent. lol

There is a few things I am missing though. It isn't all perfect living here.

Pease pudding!! I swear no one sells it down here. I've checked all the main supermarkets. Before we left my friend was joking that she will post me some every now and again and her daughter said we needed to start a charity to keep me stocked in pease pudding. lol

I am also missing my friends. We used to all meet for coffee on a Friday and my Friday mornings are not the same now.  

I am also missing being close to all the shops. I used to moan about our high street but it was only a 10 minute walk away. The shops weren't great but we could get just about everything we needed. Now there is only a small Tesco, a Co-op, Happy Shopper and Spar. There is no just nipping out to get something random like a paintbrush, a mop, or Microfilter for the internet, we lost ours for a short time when we moved house and thought we were going to have to go into Scunthorpe which is about 20 minutes away by bus until it turned up. 

All in all we're loving it here. It is like a whole new world!