When @ngorlly posted her snazzy new print she had bought off Etsy at Christmas, I got very excited and just as nostalgic as she was with it being our old stomping ground Auntie Annies. The now closed down pub and club was home to my favourite Saturday night indie dance club, Skibunny, DJed by Mark Gordon and Tanya Melotte, with the occasional appearance by Rigsy. Quite frankly I would have gone to Skibunny seven nights a week if they would have indulged me during 2004-2006.

The print in question was the work of PaddyDraws, who has a splendidly quaint Etsy store described aptly as ‘nostalgic Northern Ireland’. One of his other standout pieces is an ABC of Northern Ireland, with the ‘J’ of course being for ‘our Julian’, and 'T’ for ‘Tayto’.

Check out Paddy’s store for prints in various sizes, including locations like The Cabin in Donaghadee, and Bangor’s kebab sauce legend Piccola Pizza.

A week into school and summer already feels like months ago, but in July we were jumping down the sand dunes on the North Coast at one of the National Trust’s beach properties, Portstewart Strand.

We stay in Portstewart for a week every summer in a house there, quite close to the beach. The beach is free to walk down on to, so you can park on any of the surrounding streets and carry your beach supplies down with you, or you can pay £6.50 to drive your car down on to the sand and along as far as you want in front of the dunes to find a space to make your own.

The beach is really popular for surfers, and there’s always lots going on. The sand dunes are another great attraction, especially for kids who love to explore and jump down the slopes.

Even though the summer has ended, the beach is still great for autumn walks, and during half term there will be a whole week of free scavenger hunts, more details on the National Trust website here.