Life is very strange at the moment, like nothing we have known before. The majority of our time is spent indoors, other than essential trips, so there is lots of time to think about what we’re going to enjoy doing when the lockdown is lifted and we can get back to normality. I’ve made a list of all the things I want to do around my home city of Sheffield and I thought I’d share it with you, maybe it will offer some inspiration for things to do in your local town or city too.

Go out for the whole day, eating every meal at my favourite eateries

I’m going to get ready early doors, put my face on and some comfy shoes, catch the bus into town and have breakfast at Tamper Cafe, eggs benedict with a side of smashed avo to be precise. After a few strong coffees, I’ll walk around, taking in all the beautiful free stuff that Sheffield has to offer, like the Winter Gardens, Millennium Galleries, have a look inside Sheffield Cathedral – which I’ve never done! By that time, I’ll be ready for more food so lunch will be at The Forum; I think I’ll be ready for a cider by then and I love their food – so colourful and tasty. After lunch I’ll go and find somewhere where music is playing and I can sit in the sun (fingers crossed) and people watch. People watching has got to be even more entertaining after lockdown, I’m predicting. I’ve got all day, so I’ll walk out of the city centre and head down to Kelham Island. The sun is out, so I need a beer garden and The Riverside ticks that box and does proper good homemade chips, I’m going to want a snack after my 15-20 minute walk. When don’t I want a snack? When I’m ready for another gander, I’ll head back up into town, burn off some of the alcoholic calories and have an hour or two in the shops. The new-ish large Primark on The Moor is always quieter than Meadowhall so I’ll see if anything takes my fancy. I love a mooch around John Lewis too; I’m a touchy-feely kind of buyer really so it’s more fun for me being in the shop than buying online. I’ll be at least an hour in there, lusting over the home department, bedding, cushions, rugs and their gift section is always fantastic.At this point, it’s hard to choose a restaurant to go to for tea (dinner for anyone not northern), but what I do know is I want some dirty food. Lucky Fox, Fat Hippo, The Common Room – how am I going to choose? I bet we’re going to have to be really organised after lockdown and book a table at wherever we want to go to because everyone else will be having the same ideas.

Have a Summer house party

How long has it been since I’ve seen and hugged my family and friends by this point? A trip to the butchers for all the BBQ goodies, asking each guest to bring round their fave side dish and plan a playlist worthy of such a celebration. We did it! We stuck together! Time to party!

Walk around The Peak District

It’ll just be nice to be able to go wherever we want to go, for as long as we want to be there. Things we have taken for granted throughout our lifetimes, maybe we’ll appreciate them even more after lockdown. I can’t wait to go for a long walk and then fall into a country pub and ravish a proper pub meal (home cooking is not something I enjoy!), heck I’ll have a starter, main and dessert! I really like the food at The Yorkshire Bridge Inn near Ladybower Reservoir.

Walk up and down Ecclesall Road and visit every charity shop

The tree-lined road near the centre of Sheffield perfect for fans of coffee shops and independent retailers has an abundance of well-stocked charity shops. Just think about what gems you might find after lockdown, when many people have had the time to sift through household items and clothing they no longer want. I personally have two large bags of clothes, shoes and bric-a-brac to donate. Spending a few hours on a Saturday morning hunting for treasure is something I’ve always enjoyed and I’d like to support these charities as much as I can when I’m able.

Go to a supermarket at whatever time of day and not have to queue outside

I mean, that will just be a doddle, right? It’s such an effort right now; planning the right time to go, when will it be quieter? Will they still have stock of a seedless batch, frozen spinach and chick peas at this time?

Book a holiday as I planned!

What with renovating the house since I moved in late April 2019, other than a week in Cornwall last August, I didn’t get on a plane to go somewhere hot last year – my kind of holiday! I’ve been looking forward to booking a holiday to somewhere luxurious for 2020, Mexico, Aruba or Antigua but being in lockdown and being unsure of what the travel plans are going to be like if I want to leave the UK, I’ve done nothing about this so far. I hope the message becomes clear for us all when we start to get back to normal, as I’m sure we’ll all be wanting to get away somewhere near or far. Where do you fancy?

On the flip side, what really matters, what we should be thankful for, is having a roof over our heads and somewhere to call home. Although I’ve never been at home so much and as much as I can’t wait to do these things, it’s lovely being at home during the day to spend lots of time with the bunnies and having the extra time to do lots of final bits of DIY on the renovation.

Have you made your own list of things to do after lockdown? Leave a comment below or message me on Insta.

Until next time, take care.

Natalie x