Hamm House.

A million years ago when my Dad was in his early twenties, he was kindly left £1,000 by his uncle. Most twenty-something's would blow this on a car, jaegerbombs or an all inclusive holiday to Las Vegas, but what did my dear old Dad purchase? A life time membership to the National Trust. I remember scoffing at the thought of this when I was 18 (and drinking jaegerbombs on a daily basis), and thinking that it was a ridiculous amount of money to spend on looking at ancient houses, trees and gardens. Why would anyone in their right mind want to gain lifetime membership to something so boring when there was a world of vodka shots and hangovers out there!?

Four years later and I'm past the 18 year old binge-drink phase, worryingly into 'home decor' blogs and pretty obsessed with home-baking. As well as this, I've recently been spending a large amount of time getting to know Dad's National Trust membership card. I've grown up so much in the past few years that I even entertained the thought of a 'national trust checklist' yesterday. I know - stick me in some crocs and hit me with a zimmerframe, right?! Never did I think I'd see the day when spending my Saturday's wandering round a landscaped garden would be something I actually looked forward to doing.

I also like to drag my boyfriend on these excursions. So we went to Hamm House in Richmond last Saturday when the sun was shining. It's a 45 minute ish drive from my home so we rolled the windows down, turned the music up and took the scenic route. On the drive home, we were treated to the most gorgeous sunset and spent the evening in pyjamas drinking tea and watching rubbish television. Perf.

If you've been to any National Trust places in Surrey - I'd love to hear about them and get your recommendations! I was only half joking about that checklist...