Category Archives: Holidays

Easter holidays

I have been erratic as usual in blogging what we have been up to, which often happens when we are too busy doing it to write about it.  I am really tired at the moment, and have been going to bed as soon as the children finally settle, but I have made myself stay up tonight in an attempt to catch up.  The holidays started with a relaxing and fun Easter weekend at Granny and Grandpa’s.  The children enjoyed lots of arts and crafts, cooking and playing, and I enjoyed having time to blog about it all – a one to one ratio is very civilised!  Since then life has been a little more hectic.  I had two days at home, mainly occupied with washing and packing before setting off annual trip to Butlins in Minehead for Spring Harvest.  It is a… well I’m not sure how to describe it… Christian holiday/ conference type thing.  I’m sure there’s a better way of putting it.  We are the group organisers for our church, and we enjoyed spending time with the other families in our group, as well as meeting new people.

Our Spring Harvest highlights this year:

  • soft play and Bob the Builder world – we spent a lot of time there, as always
  • the children settled in well to their group activities in the mornings, and had a lot of fun
  • I managed to attend four of the adult sessions this time – a significant improvement on my previous best, and a testimony to the fact that life is getting easier as the kids get older (though that did make me a bit sad – it was weird being at Spring Harvest without a little baby)
  • the Big Start in the big top – an all-age introduction to the day’s theme
  • the evening all-age worship – a very chilled out end to the day
  • having two extra children with us for 24 hours while their parents’ drove home (four hours each way) for their eldest son’s confirmation.  This was a lot of fun, and also a highlight because it felt like quite an achievement that it all went so smoothly, and it was nice to be able to help our friends out.  Six children? Easy!
  • some evening socialising with the other parents (thanks to Supergirl) and daily chats over coffee
  • swimming (for the children) and not swimming (definitely a highlight for me and thanks – again – to Supergirl.  I love swimming but not the kind that involves standing at the bottom of slides getting cold and hoping your children will emerge safely.)
  • setting foot on the beach (for about 15 minutes, in between all the other things the children wanted to do – there is never enough time to fit everything in!)
  • feeling proud of Owl who had a little more freedom to explore this time, in the Skyline where the book stall and exhibition stands were, and was very responsible about coming back when he said he would (usually only about 5 minutes at a time, but it was a good experience for him.)
  • twinning our toilets (I kid you not)
  • Tiddler’s birthday, which was the last full day.  All four children were extremely lucky to be chosen to dance onstage in the final Big Start in the morning (the link is to someone’s video from Week 1 and we were there in Week 2 but it gives you the idea!)  Later on, to celebrate Tiddler’s birthday we had lunch with three other families (19 of us in total) in one of the restaurants on site.  And for me another highlight of the day was catching up, briefly, with my lovely friend (Owl’s godmother) who came for the day and joined us at the all-age worship in the evening.

I always come back from Spring Harvest feeling tired but happy, and inspired about something new.  This time I got most excited by a conversation with others from our church about the idea of starting a “messy church” service, which we have been wanting to do for a while.  It was good to discover that the others liked the idea too!

Since then, we have had a quiet few days at home, trying to catch up with laundry and housework, but also having fun with the children and enjoying unstructured time before the term-time routines start up again.  They have played with their trains and cars, Lego and puzzles, and set up a shop selling toy food.  We have enjoyed time together drawing, colouring and working on sticker and activity books, and playing with playdough.  Monkey, Rabbit and Tiddler made food, and Owl made a red planet with a space police prison on it (apparently this is based on the Lego Clutch Powers movie!)

On our way to and from Spring Harvest we drove past Stonehenge, and the children drew some great pictures for our Prehistory project when we got home.

We have also started a new project based on a Friends and Heroes DVD which we bought at Spring Harvest, along with a curriculum pack for home educators.  And today we have been making the most of the sunshine with a whole afternoon of messy play in the garden, involving rice, split peas, flour, shaving foam and water.  I really need to blog that separately I think.  Tiddler hasn’t been very well for the last few days, but he seems to be getting better and he really enjoyed playing in the garden today.  I hope Spring is finally here!

Half term

We have had a good half term break, and done lots of things that I would like to blog separately, but I don’t think it’s going to happen, so I will just put them all here in one place.  On Friday 15th, we had a second go at the ice and water play.  We froze sparkles in the coloured ice cubes and watched them melt, freed a plastic seal which we had frozen in a cup of water a while back and forgotten about, and added a fishing net and fish from the bath toys collection.  It was a lot of fun, and we will be doing it again, I’m sure.

Saturday 16th was a busy day with Dramabuds, haircuts, choir practice and housework.  On Sunday 17th, after church we went to the Thomas Day at the Kent and East Sussex Railway.  It was a day of ups and downs, though overall a great success.  We arrived and the children were very happy to see Thomas.  Then they were very disappointed that the train we were booked on was being pulled by a different engine.  Once we got over that, they really enjoyed the train ride and were all keen to come again another day.  It was all going so well until Tiddler got his little finger trapped in the train door as we were about to get out, and it took daddy a very long 5 seconds to undo the door.  He was checked out in the first aid tent and thankfully it was not broken, but looked very nasty which distressed him as much as the pain, I think.  So while the big three watched a magic show, in which Rabbit was picked to go up to the front and sing “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star”, daddy and I took turns to try to cheer Tiddler up.  Having another look at Thomas helped a bit, a go on a roundabout nearly worked but then he cried and they had to stop the ride to let him off, but in the end a packet of Smarties just about saved the day.  The big three had a couple of goes on the roundabout, then watched a Thomas video while waiting for a platform ride on Thomas.  All four children really enjoyed that, so the day ended well, and I’m sure we’ll be going again before too long, but we’ll be keeping Tiddler well away from the door.

After all that, Monday was a much needed quiet day at home, and the children enjoyed plenty of play time and computer time, while I caught up on washing and housework.  On Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday mornings, the big three went to a Dramabuds holiday camp, finishing with a brilliant show, as always.  Tiddler had a Dramabuds session on Tuesday afternoon as well.  We also enjoyed lots of visits from family on those three days.  My aunt came on Tuesday morning, with my cousin and her very new baby, which was lovely.  Then in the afternoon, daddy’s cousin came with his son for a sleepover.  All the children had a good time, and played really well together, so we are hoping they will come again soon, as it was such a success!  On Thursday, it was Grandpa’s birthday so he came for the show and stayed for lunch.  Granny F came for the show as well, but had to leave shortly afterwards.  Just as she was leaving, Granny B arrived, and the children were pleased it was a two granny day, even though they weren’t there at the same time!

On Friday, the big boys had their violin lessons, and then Granny F took Monkey and Rabbit shopping for birthday presents, and Supergirl looked after Owl and Tiddler while I did the birthday party food shopping.  In the afternooon, all four children had a wonderful time with our very good friend and occasional childminder, while Supergirl and I made cakes.  Suburban dad came home from work early to cook an amazing Middle Eastern meal for a family who had bid for it in the auction of promises at our church fair.  He made enough for us too and some more friends (Tiddler’s godparents) came and ate with us.

Saturday, was party preparation day, with several last minute shopping trips for all the things we had forgotten, and lots of cakes to ice, as well as Dramabuds and choir as usual.  And on Sunday, after church, it was time for the party.  It was a joint party for Monkey, Rabbit and another friend from church, and there were over 30 children, but also plenty of helpful adults so it went very smoothly and the children had a lot of fun.  And a lot of cake.

Today was Monkey’s birthday, and he spent most of the day playing with his new Lego, taking a short break in the afternoon to play with his Hornby set.  We also had piano lessons, followed by lunch at Pizza Express, and a very enjoyable family evening with Granny F, and daddy’s aunt and uncle who called in to deliver presents, and ended up staying for supper, cake and bedtime stories.  It was a good day.

Some photos

After Owl’s excellent round up of the last few weeks, I think I’m about ready to start from where we are, but I have a few photos to post before I move on.  The first is of some pictures which the children made for daddy for Christmas.  (Owl’s is a Lego minifigure daddy.)  The next two are a robot made by Owl from a kit he got for Christmas, and some collage pictures which Rabbit and Tiddler did while Owl and Monkey were out to play with a friend on the last day of his school holidays.

Daddy pics

robot collage

And finally, better late than never, here are our Winter and Nativity displays.

winter display nativity display

Christmas and New Year

Owl’s round-up of the highlights of December and January so far

On the first day of December, we opened the first door of our Lego city advent calendar, and in the afternoon we went to our church fair.

On the fourth, we went to see Rabbit’s Dramabuds show.  Rabbit was very good as the witch, Horrid Hagrid.

I sang in my choir concert on the ninth of December, and Mummy, Daddy, Granny and Monkey came to watch me.

The next weekend, on the 15th, it was Mummy and Daddy’s choir concert and Granny and I went to watch.  The following day it was our Home Ed group nativity, talent show and party.  After the party we went to the Christingle service at our church.

On the 21st we went to the theatre in the afternoon to see the Elves and the Shoemaker, and in the evening Monkey and I performed in our violin concert.  The next morning, we went back to the theatre to see another show, called All I want for Christmas.

On the 23rd, we went to the Italian restaurant near our house for lunch with Mummy’s aunt, uncle and cousin.

On Christmas Eve we went to see Father Christmas at the Garden Centre.  On the way there, our car broke down, but we were very lucky because Granny and our friend came to take us all there in two cars.  Then Daddy managed to get a minibus from a car hire company just before they closed for Christmas.  In the evening we went to church for the nativity service.  Tiddler and I dressed up as shepherds, Monkey was a sheep and Rabbit was a king.

On Christmas day we woke up very excited.  We opened our stockings, had breakfast and then set off for Granny and Grandpa’s house.  When we got there we opened our presents and had smoked salmon sandwiches for lunch.  We played with our new toys and in the evening we had Christmas dinner.

A few days later, we went home for the family Christmas dinner at our other Granny’s church.  Then we went back to spend New Year at Granny and Grandpa’s.

On the third and fourth of January, Monkey, Rabbit and I went to the Dramabuds holiday club, ending with a winter wonderland show.

On the sixth we went to see a pantomime at Epsom Playhouse.  It was Snow White and we all really enjoyed it.

On the seventh, Monkey and I had our piano lesson and then went to play at a friend’s house.  We made a big Lego city scene out of his new and old Lego.

Now we are staying at Granny and Grandpa’s house again.  We have been on treasure hunts inside and out in the village, and we have played with Lego, games and cars.  We have been doing Maths and English websites and lots of reading.  We had to hire another minibus for this week because our car is still broken.

Half term and Halloween, Fireworks and Toffee

I’m still rather behind on blogging but before I forget everything, here is at least some of what we did in half term week…  I spent most of the week trying to catch up on washing and housework after our weekend away in France, and I wasn’t feeling full of energy to do lots of creative things with the kids.  Luckily Dramabuds came to the rescue.  The big three went on a drama camp for three mornings (Tuesday to Thursday) finishing with a brilliant Halloween performance.  Owl was a wizard, Monkey a ghost and Rabbit a bat, and they all had a fantastic time.  On the Tuesday afternoon there were also two Dramabuds parties, one for the little ones which Tiddler and I went to, and one for the older children afterwards.

On Tuesday evening, Suburban dad carved a pumpkin lantern, and on Wednesday Rabbit and I made pumpkin soup.  We lit the lantern when it got dark and we decided that it would look even better with Monkey’s Diwali candle beside it.

On Wednesday afternoon, the little two went to Home ed group without me, at their friends’ house.  They had fun doing Halloween activities, and enjoyed having their own outing without the older ones.  While they were out, I did the flour cake game with the big two, and they played with the flour for a long time afterwards (the handprint is Owl’s.)

In the evening, we all played the apple game (standing on a chair and dropping a fork into a bowl of apples – like ducking for apples but easier!) and then the big two went to the rainbow party at church, and little two had a “party” at home.  This was Rabbit’s idea, and I didn’t mind, as all she wanted was to choose her own supper (fishfingers followed by maltesers and pineapple pieces!) and then play musical statues with Tiddler.  Best party I’ve been to for a while.

I can’t remember what else we did that week, but I know it involved a lot of Lego.  Among other things, Rabbit made a Duplo model and Monkey and Owl made Lego vowels.

 

We had a quiet weekend at home, as Owl and Tiddler had a tummy bug.  We had planned to have a bonfire on the Sunday evening, but we had to postpone it as the boys weren’t well, and also it was a rather wet day for building a fire.  We did have fireworks and sparklers though, and Suburban Dad and Supergirl made bonfire toffee and toffee apples.

Center Parcs

I’m a bit behind on blogging what we have been up to – well more or less two weeks behind in fact.  So I’m going to try to follow some sensible advice from Suburban dad and just write something, even if it’s fairly brief, rather than trying to catch up all at once.  Two weeks ago today we were frantically packing for our trip to Center Parcs in France.  On the Friday morning, we set off very early and drove to Dover.  We had breakfast on the ferry, then drove to Laon.  We did a big supermarket shop (food for the weekend and a lot of random stuff just because French supermarkets are so much fun), and then drove to Center Parcs.  We had a late lunch, settled in and unpacked, then went down to the main building to book some activities and explore a bit, before coming back to the chalet for a very late supper.

On Saturday, straight after breakfast we set off with the children on their scooters, and went to the Pony club.  Rabbit and Owl both had a lovely ride, but Monkey and Tiddler weren’t quite brave enough to do it.  We also went to the little farm, the playground and the beach, before heading back for lunch.   In the afternoon, Suburban Dad and Supergirl took Tiddler swimming first and then Owl and Monkey.  Rabbit was still recovering from her chest infection so she wasn’t able to swim, and she was very disappointed.  The big boys played with Lego and Rabbit had a bath so she could play with her Playmobil swimmer – which was fine, but she wanted me to come in the bath with her.  I agreed just to cheer her up, and it was rather sweet but oh it is very cold sitting in the bath at 4 year old depth!   She then asked to play battleships, which was too difficult, but we just about managed it with some help from Owl.  After that she did some colouring, and she and Tiddler watched some French children’s TV.  In the evening we had a very nice supper at the creperie, which we remembered from our visit three years ago, and it lived up to our expectations – good fast food and great service.

On Sunday, after breakfast the children went riding again (Rabbit, Owl and Monkey – but Tiddler was not to be persuaded), then back to the farm and playground.  The boys, Suburban Dad and Supergirl went swimming again, and Rabbit and I played on the beach and made a sandcastle.  We had lunch at another restaurant, and all enjoyed our steak/ burgers/ chicken and lots of chips.  In the afternoon we went on a motor boat on the lake, then to the soft play area.  We had a quick play on the beach, before going bowling, and then back to our chalet for a late supper again.

On Monday we had breakfast, packed up, had a last play on the beach, then lunch at the creperie again before setting off for Calais.  We nearly missed the same boat twice, first because we had to get out of the car for our passports to be checked (they couldn’t see all the children clearly as one of the headrests was up too high) and then because we were waiting in the wrong lane, but realised at quite literally the last minute.  Thanks to Superdad’s quick reactions we made it but only just – we were the last car on the boat.  We had eaten our sandwiches in the car, which was probably a good thing as the weather wasn’t great and several of us felt sick on the boat.  So we spent quite a while out on deck, which was rather cold, but fun to see the lights of Dover as we came into the port.  We arrived home very late at night, completely exhausted but happy after a very successful trip.  Center Parcs, you may not be very exciting but you are reliably good fun, so I think we’ll be back!

Summer Holidays

This summer seems to have gone by in a bit of a blur as we have been so busy.  I usually enjoy the holidays as many of our term-time activities stop and we have more free time to play with, but it’s been a bit different this year.  The first part of the holidays was dominated by our kitchen being redone, which was very stressful, though the results are definitely worth it.  What with that and a couple of weeks of holiday clubs (not altogether successful), there wasn’t much time to relax.   From the middle of August, things improved as Suburban dad had two weeks holiday, of which we spent a week at home and a week at my parents’ house.

We did our annual day trip to France which is always good fun, and considerably cheaper and easier than many other family days out.  The children love going on the ferry, and we bring a breakfast picnic (the remains of which are eaten on the way home for supper!)  This year we went to Wissant, a village just south of Calais, and we spent the morning on the beach.  We had a late lunch in a restaurant then drove back to Calais just in time for a supermarket sweep of Carrefour before getting back on the ferry.

We went swimming twice which is something we seem to find ridiculously difficult to fit into our term-time schedule.  When the children are older, I’ll be able to take them myself but for now it takes both of us to do it, and it’s hard to find the time.  The children loved it of course, and we have good intentions of trying to go more often, but in case we don’t I have booked them all in for lessons (to add to the logistical nightmare that is next term’s schedule.)  It’s only taken me a year since the local swimming pool closed to find an alternative.

Another easy family day out was the Cotswold Farm Park.  We went there a lot when the big boys were little, and I wanted to give the little ones the same opportunity as well.  They all enjoyed it, especially the sandpit, climbing frames, ride-on tractors and bouncy pillows.  They quite liked the animals too!  We watched a cow being milked, bottle fed some goat kids, and fed grass pellets to some of the other animals.  I suppose it is a little bit commercial but as these things go it is pretty good.  I didn’t know how lucky I was growing up with grandparents who owned a farm.  I can’t give the same experience to my children, but the farm park is better than nothing.  Owl has just come to me now and asked “If a cow is grown up when it is 8, is it a teenager when it is 6?”  So he remembered something from the milking talk!

Also this summer we finally took the children to Thomas Land at Drayton Manor.  It was much less stressful than I imagined and I wished I had taken the big boys there when they were at the height of their Thomas phase a couple of years ago.  However they enjoyed it anyway and so did the little ones, so it was a good time to go as it appealed to all four of them.  It felt more organised than some theme parks and though it was busy it was somehow manageable.  There were plenty of rides that all four could go on, as well as a few that just the big three did with daddy.  They went on a rollercoaster (albeit a fairly small one) for the first time and all enjoyed it.  Owl and Rabbit are very keen to do it again.  Monkey is not so sure but is pleased that he did it!

We spent a lovely peaceful morning at the Rollright stones near Long Compton on the Oxfordshire/ Warwickshire border.  It is a complex of three Neolithic and Bronze Age monuments, called the King’s Men, the King’s Stone and the Whispering Knights.

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Part of the King’s Men stone circle

We also went to Warwick Castle which was alright, but a bit too much of a Merlin “attraction” for my liking.  I suppose I should have seen it as a warning sign that the website describes it as Britain’s “Ultimate” Castle.  We saw (through the crowds) eagles and jousting, and the firing of the trebuchet which was amazing, and looked around the state rooms.  But it was cold and wet and we had optimistically gone without coats.  The little ones had had enough by mid afternoon so we decided to leave, which upset Owl who still wanted to see more.  So for a little while no-one was happy.  But then we called in on the excellent Toy Shop in Moreton-in-Marsh and suddenly everyone was happy!

Much more to our taste was Chastleton, a small National Trust property.   I love the description from the website: “With virtually no intrusion from the 21st century, this fascinating place exudes an informal and timeless atmosphere in a gloriously unspoilt setting. There is no shop or tea-room, so you can truly believe you have stepped back in time.”  And even better, the church next door have spotted this gap in the market so we got tea and cake after all.

We spent the Bank Holiday weekend at home, had a delicious lunch out at an Italian restaurant and visited our local Environmental fair.  After all that excitement we needed a quiet week at home, and it has been good for us all.  We have been trying to sort our house out and get rid of stuff (well we are always trying to do that, but recently with a bit more success, I would say, although there’s a lot still to do.)  All in all it has been a good summer, if a little busy, but now I am looking forward to settling back into our term-time rhythm and enjoying Autumn, my favourite season.

Holiday clubs

I spent quite a while agonising over whether the children should do holiday clubs this summer, in my usual indecisive way.  It is tempting to take advantage of some of the opportunities that are on offer, but on the other hand I look forward to the holidays as many of our regular activities stop and it’s good to enjoy really free time together.  This summer, my decision was influenced by the fact that we are having a new kitchen put in, and there would be so much disruption that I thought the children might as well be in holiday clubs, as there would be no peace and quiet at home.  Last week’s dramabuds club was a success, and two hours every morning was about right, I think.

This week Owl and Monkey have been in a sports holiday club which was full time (really long days) and the little ones have mainly been at the childminder’s (and Rabbit had a day in London with Granny on Monday to visit the National Gallery.)  We had planned this so that I would have the best part of a week to sort the house out after the kitchen was done, but there have been many delays and the work is still not finished.  I have found plenty to do and thoroughly enjoyed sorting out mountains of clothes, books and toys to give away, but I felt that it came at a price (and not just the several hundred pounds it all cost.)

After one day at the sports camp, the boys came home overtired and emotional.  The first thing Owl said when he walked through the door was “The thing is mummy, it’s just too long to be away from you” and Monkey said “I thought it would be fun but it’s not.”  Owl also commented that when he asked to go to the toilet he was told to finish tidying up the balls first and this upset him.  As he doesn’t go to school, he was totally confused by the concept of not going to the toilet when you need to.  I was so tempted to tell them they didn’t have to go again, but as the kitchen work was still going on it didn’t feel like a realistic idea.  As a compromise I told them they wouldn’t have to go on Friday as I would have the little ones at home anyway.  It really went against all my parenting principles to make them go when they didn’t want to.  They did it and survived but enthusiastically took up the offer of staying at home today.  Owl spent the whole day in his pyjamas playing with Lego in his bedroom and was completely content.  The others played in the garden a lot as well as their bedrooms, and had three friends over to play in the afternoon.

So what have I learnt from this?  Full days are too long, especially for a whole week.  No matter how good the activities sound they probably can’t compete with what we can do at home.  Some holiday clubs are fun, but we need to choose carefully.  I think this week’s one was a bit too big and impersonal.  We need to have some space between organised activities, otherwise life feels out of balance and the children are unhappy.  We are all really looking forward to next week, when we will be at home with most days free for us to decide what to do on the day.  We can go out if we want to or stay in if we feel like it.  I am really looking forward to playing with the children, reading to them, talking to them and having time to listen.  I hope the kitchen work will be finished early in the week, and I know that we will have a lot of things to sort out when it is done, but I am determined not to let that interfere too much with what is really important.  Will somebody remind me of this when I am tempted next year by holiday clubs that sound really good?  Please tell me to stay at home and play with my children instead!