How To Spend A Day In Bourton on the Water

Friday, July 27, 2018 Permalink
View of the Motor Museum across stone bridge at Bouton on the Water

We've just got back home from a week in the Cotswolds, where we stayed in Bourton on the Water. We loved exploring the Cotswolds, with it's pretty little villages, and although I worried that basing ourselves in Bourton on the Water might have been a bit too touristy, it was perfect for us as a family with young children, as there was so much to do right on our doorstep. Bourton on the Water is the perfect place to spend a whole day, as there are numerous tourist attractions, none of which take very long, so even the shortest of attention spans can't fail to get bored!     Parking at Bourton on the Water Parking in the Cotswolds towns is always difficult, but ...

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A Visit to The Cotswold Wildlife Park

Wednesday, July 25, 2018 Permalink
Giraffes at the Cotswold Wildlife Park

The Cotswold Wildlife Park wasn't originally on our list for things to do in the Cotswolds, but after a day where I'd dragged Max, my 4 year old, around a National Trust garden where nobody ended up having a good time, we decided it would be a good idea to do a day that was more geared up for him. It's a place I remember my Mum taking me as a child, but that was a long time ago, so I wasn't sure what it would be like now. We arrived at 10.30 and made our way straight to the penguins, which are Max's favourite. We'd timed it really well, as we didn't have to wait long until it was feeding ...

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Fields of Dreams – The Confetti Flower Fields

Monday, July 16, 2018 Permalink
Confetti field at Wick, Pershore

This time last year, my Instagram feed exploded with photos of the most beautiful pastel coloured flower fields - pinks, blues, and purples as far as the eye could see. I love a flower field of any description, so I headed straight off to look up the Real Flower Petal Confetti Company, who own the fields, and discovered that for just over a week every July, they open their flower field to the public, who can wander amongst the delphiniums. I actually had a diary note for the start of June to check when they would be opening the field this year, so when I looked it up and saw that their open week this year coincided with our trip ...

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A Family Visit to Kew Gardens in Summer

Wednesday, July 4, 2018 Permalink
A family visit to Kew Gardens

After months of agonising, I finally took the plunge earlier this year and bought a membership for Kew Gardens. We live reasonably close, but given that I'm already an RHS and National Trust member, it seemed like it might be overkill. But 4 years of visiting the same gardens have left me craving somewhere new, and when the new Temperate House opened, it was the final push I needed to take the plunge. A single membership to Kew Gardens is great value for money if you have a young family, as you can bring in a guest with you for free, and children under 4 go free. So I bought my husband as my guest and we only had to pay ...

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A Trip To Canons Ashby National Trust

Wednesday, June 27, 2018 Permalink
Wildflower meadow with cow parsley at Canons Ashby National Trust

When we were staying at Chicheley Hall a few weeks ago, I was keen to make the most of our time there, so when I saw Canons Ashby was just down the road we made a beeline for it on our route home on the Sunday. It's a National Trust property that I've seen photos of in people's instagram feeds, but when I'd researched it, it didn't seem to have a lot there, so we've never made the trip as it's a fair drive for us. This was the perfect opportunity for us to see what it had to offer. We were some of the first visitors to arrive, so it was lovely and quiet, and we were greeted at the ...

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Strawberry Picking at Crockford Bridge Farm

Friday, June 22, 2018 Permalink
Little boy wearing red wellies and blue shorts, holding a strawberry punnet which is full of ripe strawberries. He is standing in a strawberry field, with straw on the ground and strawberry plants lining either side

I remember back in January one day, I asked Max what he'd like to do and he very excitedly told me "strawberry picking". The poor guy has waited patiently until finally strawberry season is upon us and our local PYO farm at Crockford Bridge announced their strawberries were ready for picking. My husband took the boys a few weeks ago while I was away, but on a drive back from a weekend away last week we drove past the farm and Max piped up from the back "we go on a strawberry hunt today?" And so we did! Crockford Bridge is one of the best PYO farms around - they have a huge range of crops and are great at updating their ...

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Rainy Day Activities for Preschoolers in Surrey… {That Aren’t Soft Play!}

Monday, April 30, 2018 Permalink
Little boy dressed in yellow rain mac, stood in huge puddle, throwing yellow rubber ducks in the air

All this rain we've been having lately has forced me to have a good think about what we can do to get out of the house on a rainy day. Crafts and baking are all very well, but there comes a time when you all need to get out of the house! Here are our favourite rainy day activities for kids in Surrey...   Mercedes-Benz World {Weybridge} This one is a well kept secret! Mercedes-Benz World at Brooklands in Weybridge have a wonderful Little Learners activity for ages 3-5, where they can learn all about road safety and driving. They get to drive small motorised cars around a track, with an instructor to help them, and even get their own little driving licence ...

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A Visit to the Snowdrops at Welford Park

Friday, February 23, 2018 Permalink
Carpet of snowdrops in front of fallen tree, covered in moss, at Welford Park

I love seeing the snowdrops start to peek through - their little white heads truly are the first sign of spring, and, after a long winter, they're always such a welcome sight. At the end of January, I found a diary note that I'd popped in the calendar from last year, reminding me to visit the snowdrops at Welford Park. Quite a few people had told me last year how spectacular their display was, and having missed out then, I was determined to make it this year. It wasn't quite as easy as that though! Welford Park isn't that near us, and the weather and illness seemed determined to prevent us from visiting. But last Saturday we finally made it.     If you've ...

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Oh Help, Oh No, It’s A Gruffalo!

Tuesday, November 28, 2017 Permalink
Max running towards the camera, holding a huge handful of leaves

We love the Gruffalo trail at Alice Holt, but for some reason it's been absolutely ages since we last did it. Now that Ben is feeding a bit less often, I'm finally feeling able to head out with both children on my own, so we ventured out last week for a trip to seek out a Gruffalo. Since our last visit, Alice Holt have installed lots of other characters from the Gruffalo story around the trail and that worked so well for encouraging Max to keep on going. It's 1.5 miles, which, for a 3 year old, can be a bit hard going at times, but the thought of seeing the next sculpture kept him going (along with the bribe of ...

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Harvest Time at The Lost Gardens of Heligan

Wednesday, October 25, 2017 Permalink
Max standing with his back to the camera, looking at a display of autumn harvest vegetables

The Lost Gardens of Heligan has to be one of our favourite places to visit in Cornwall. We visited last year, and we all loved it, and I was so excited to return, with Max being that bit older, and to see it at a different time of year. We visited this year at the end of September, and the gardens were still looking fabulous, with some amazing autumn displays. Located near Megavissey, the gardens had been a hugely impressive part of the Tremayne estate, producing fruit and vegetables for the household, as well as the formal gardens themselves. But they fell into disrepair after WWI when most of their gardeners were called up to fight in the war, and were ...

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