Below Stairs

Mrs C and I had a lovely day out at Blenheim today. Mr C was in nursery so it was just us and we thought we'd take the opportunity to book one of the 'Downstairs' tours.
I went to Mrs C's first and we drove over in her car as mine has a warning light for a flat tyre and no matter how many times we pump it up it's staying on. Booked in for new tyres next Friday so I hope it lasts until then!
We were going to go for a bit of a walk before our tour but it was so bitterly cold in the wind we decided just to go and drink tea and hot chocolate instead!
The tour was really interesting. I'm a bit obsessed with Downton Abbey at the moment and I was beyond excited to walk down the steps (through the 'luggage entrance') and get a teeny glimpse of life below stairs. 
I only took this photo and one of a room with lots of dinner services in before I got told off for taking photos!!
Interestingly, many of the rooms are still in use by the staff of the current Duke and Duchess of Marlborough who have private apartments in the palace. We saw the current butler!! We saw his dirty washing in the laundry room and there was a chef in the kitchen - amongst all the old copper pots and pans - cooking food for the Duke's dinner tonight! It smelt amazing!
It was fascinating seeing all the little details behind the scenes. The housemaids bells, the livery, the monogrammed sheets, the fire buckets, the rainwater collection system, the silver store. 
It wasn't a museum or a re-creation of downstairs in a 1920s house but a glimpse behind the scenes of a working country house. Very interesting!!
We had lunch before leaving. I threw caution to the wind and ordered mushroom soup. It was tasty!!
A quick cup of tea back at Mrs C's then it was time to get to Miss E's school for her class assembly at 3pm. It was about the destruction of the rainforest and very sweet. They all remembered their lines and moves perfectly and sang beautifully. Nana and Papa came too and it was lovely for them to see. Miss E clearly enjoyed it!
It felt a bit odd looking at a class of children I don't know at all!
Sleepover chaos tonight involving a den made from dining chairs and every single pillow, duvet, patchwork quilt and blanket we possess. It's quite a feat of engineering but it remains to be seen whether they manage to sleep under it all night without the whole thing collapsing!