Rainton Meadows

Grandma and Grandad came for lunch with me and Anna today - I made probably the biggest lasagne I’ve ever made, but it served the three of us meat-eaters and four portions for the freezer so all good there!

We went for a very lovely walk around Rainton Meadows after lunch, a nearby nature reserve built on the site of a former colliery. There’s lots of these dotted around the northeast, built on old coal board land. This one has lots of ponds, and that’s where we saw this swan in the distance, on her giant nest. I’m not sure whether I’ve ever seen a swan nest before, but it’s far bigger than I was expecting! We’ll have to come back in a few weeks to spy the cygnets.