Chocolate is not the only fruit

We had an impromptu after school play in the park with friends today. With the sunny weather it's easier to decide on a whim to detour to the park and I get on with the mum so I have company while the kids run around and keep each other busy.

There were the inevitable tantrums when it was time to leave, but the promise of ice cream at home seemed to quel the worst of it. As we were saying bye I told my friend I'm going away for the night tomorrow. On my own. I had planned to have a night away a month ago, but it didn't happen in the end and as a result I really need the break now.

I am having a rough time with Brown Bear and we aren't getting on that well a lot of the time. I know it's a stage and will be over at some point, but I'm also not at my best so I'm not coping as well as I would like to. Having this bit of time to myself is much needed.

It's taken me a long time to allow myself time away by myself without feeling guilty. It really is the case that you have to put on your own oxygen mask before you can take care of anyone else. I've let myself get tired, run down and have little patience. Just one night to myself isn't too much to ask is it ?

I go to the theatre by myself sometimes and I love it. I don't have to talk to anyone if I don't want to. I'm not worrying if the other person is having a good time. I can immerse myself in the show and at the end of it I don't have to discuss it with anyone. Don't get me wrong I enjoy the company of other people, but sometimes I just want to do my own thing in my own time and without anyone else around. It's a rare treat to have genuine 'free time' where I don't have to pick anyone up or take anyone to a party or have thought about what other people are going to eat.

This afternoon the boys had separate pick up times so I collected Blue Bear and when we got home he sat watching youtube videos of volcanoes (his current fascination is with lava and all things volcanic) while chomping on ginger nut biscuits. He asked me questions about lava and chose the next video he wanted to watch all by himself. It was fascinating to see how much he has grown up.

After picking up Brown Bear we went to the park and the boys went off with their respective friends. Blue playing with his 'girlfriend' and showing consideration and kindess as he helped her learn how to go on the big slide. It was touching and sweet to see how he took care of her. Brown Bear took it in turns to ride his friend's bicycle and kicked his football before joining us in the play park. He was climbing when another kid was behaving unsafely. I looked over and said, "Leave it, let's go now." He got down, came over to me and said, "He's being an idiot Mummy." I agreed and enveloped him in a big hug. He was hot and sweaty and didn't resist my unexplained affection. He just hugged me back and then we walked together to catch up with the others.

A lot of the time it isn't like this. Often it is difficult, tiring, unrewarding and just very, very loud. I love my children and I am so lucky I've been able to be with them so much. However, I also need to have time and space without them. I am sure that having some time away from them helps me be a better Mum.

This afternoon I got it right. It felt lovely and relaxed and fun to be with the boys and their friends. I am sure that knowing I will be away from them tomorrow evening was a big part of that.

We've already had one week of half term and spent it in Cornwall. I love taking the children there and we have a few days out that we do every time we go.

The first is Lappa Valley which is the most wonderful day out for a family with train obsessed children. The steam engine takes you from the starting station into the valley itself and we rode on Ellie to get there, passing the boating lake and taking in the scenery as we enjoyed surprisingly good weather for October half term. We've been to Lappa many times before so the boys know pretty much which things they like to do and where to go first. We changed things up a bit this time though with a trip on the diesel engine which runs along a track that goes through forest land with some animal figures hidden in trees and on branches on the route. The day we went the train was held up a few times by 'leaves on the line,' but our driver was very patient and good natured about it and soon got us moving at speed again. Straight afterward we went on the intercity train that does two loops of the park and we spotted a shark in the pond !! Blue Bear did point out to me that I shouldn't be scared as it wasn't real.



As well as the trains there is a massive play area at Lappa Valley with practically a life size pirate ship and the best castle and pipe slide I think I've ever seen. The boys love it there and even on poor weather days they are happy to run around and play on this for ages. It's a great place to run off a lot of excess energy and with a cafe serving cornish cream teas and ice cream you can quite easily let them do their thing while enjoying the break. Well until the inevitable, "Muuuuuum, he pushed me," shatters the momentary peace that is.

For half term Lappa are celebrating Halloweek with spooky trains and plenty of themed events to celebrate Alongside all of the regular great attractions will two Spooks trails, one for Little Monsters (3-5 years) and for Big Beasts (6 years plus), children’s Halloween quiz, spooky colouring and a prize for everyone who comes in fancy dress! All of our activities are very family friendly and suitable for young children.  Best of all, all additional activities are included in the standard ticket price and it's such good value for what is always a great day out for us.

Lappa valley opens at 10am and Halloweek runs until 29th October.

I've been visiting the Eden Project since 2000 when it first opened and love it so much. In the years since my first visit I've seen the site grow and change and now I have children I also enjoy sharing it with them. Last week we booked a rainforest trek and Brown Bear and I walked for 45 minutes with our knowledgable guide Adam. We learned so many interesting facts about the rainforest and Brown Bear was fascinated and asked lots of questions. This is the longest he's spent in the rainforest biome as he's always found it too hot before, but the added interest of learning about the plants and ecosystem kept his mind off the heat.



Every time we go to Eden we have a few traditions. Hubbie goes to the Pukka tea tasting (and often has a pasty too), I get to have a cup of tea and a slab of delicious cake and the boys have delicious Cornish ice cream. One of our favourite things is storytime as the storytellers are amazing and really capture the magic and intensity of the spoken word. That's why I am so excited that Eden are hosting the first ever Halloweden event to celebrate half term. The Roald Dahl themed week of activities includes some of the best loved stories brought vividly to life in this brilliant setting. You can find a giant sleeping in the grounds, learn how to spot a witch and of course there is the Little Monsters Halloweden ball and disco on Saturday 28th October to celebrate the end of half term.

The ice rink is now open for the winter season and we have been a few times. There is an additional charge for ice skating and it's a good idea to pre-book as it can get busy. On the day we went the toddler session was about to begin and it's a non skating session for under 5s to encourage them to play safely on the ice. We asked Blue Bear if he fancied it, but he was adamant he didn't want to go. Maybe next time.

The Eden Project is open from 9.30-6pm and Halloweden is running until 29th October.

Disclosure: The lovely folks at the Eden Project offered us a family ticket to visit. 

Brown Bear has been going to tennis lessons with his friends. He did this last holiday and really had fun so I thought we'd book for him to go again. Today, however, we did something extra special. I contacted the BBC about the listening project a while back.  I suggested a conversation between me and Brown Bear about how his brother came to join our family and how he felt about it all. We've been talking about it for a while and today was the day we went to record it. I wanted to make it a special day just for us so first I surprised him with a visit to the new Lego store in London.

We took the bus from Victoria to Picadilly Circus and walked through Chinatown. I didn't tell him there even was a lego store so it was a complete surprise when we arrived there. Apparently people have queued for hours to get in, but we timed it pretty well and didn't have too long to wait to get in. The numbers are managed quite well so it's not too busy when you go in and there is plenty for the children to play with as well as some stunning lego models to admire too.

There are some iconic London models and Brown Bear tried to make a phone call and to post a letter - I was impressed he even knows what a phonebox is for !


This Pick and Build wall is amazing and while I can't see how you could reach the top storage units it is a great idea. There are some model ideas to get you started and there's also a build your own minifigure bar that was very popular.

It's been a lovely sunny day today and I've loved spending it with my boys. I started out with early morning yoga with my boys, met Hubbie for lunch then had some park fun with Baby Boy this afternoon and a swim with Big Boy this evening. It made me think about the special things that make us all feel happy.

It's no secret that my boys are big fans of fire engines and a visit to the fire station is still their best day out ever:


For me and Hubbie any chance to spend the day together is fun. Especially when Big Boy takes a photo of us together:


The boys love to do things just like Daddy so Baby Boy wants to use a computer and Big Boy is keen to learn to play guitar like Hubbie. They are such cute mini-mes:


The boys also have their own interests. For Big Boy it's his love of Lego and for Baby Boy it's his obsession with his Scuttlebug or as he calls it, "bike."


And never forgetting this guy. Neo loves sunbathing, purring and cuddles:


Finally there are the things I love. Well all of these guys - of course - and the special things they do for me. Like breakfast in bed:


And the things I do for myself, like yoga on a sunny morning:


Oh and this song:

Inside the Mediterranean biome there is room to roam and my boys like to explore. It's colourful and spacious and you will often see school parties taking part in challenges that encourage them to visit all the different zones. Last time we visited I took Baby Boy to the Rainforest Biome with me, but this time I asked Big Boy if he wanted to come with me. We left Baby Boy with Daddy to listen to stories and went for a wander.


In the past we have had to cut short visits to the Rainforest Biome as it does get very humid and on a hot day this can be very difficult to deal with. When Big Boy was younger he really didn't like it at all. This time we took our time and it wasn't too crowded so we were able to take it at our own pace. I showed Big Boy the waterfall that provides a dramatic centrepiece for the biome and showed him the highest point you can stand to view the whole thing. We've made a deal that when he's older we will climb all the way to the top.


I'm very proud of my boys for taking an interest in something that I love so much. As a reward we had planned something very special for Big Boy to do with me at the end. Because he enjoyed the ice skating so much at Christmas we booked to go again this time. The rink is open now and there are sessions every day with sessions for toddlers, lessons and half price times. We booked a penguin aid for Big Boy to help him skate and he did amazingly well. By the end we were gracefully gliding across the ice - sort of. Baby Boy and Hubbie watched from the side and popped outside for a stroll when they got bored. While we were skating a wheelchair user also joined us on the ice and she was having a whale of a time. It was fantastic to have the room to enjoy the rink on a not so busy day.


We were lucky to be able to visit on a day outside half term and I imagine it will be much busier next week, but even when we've been during the summer months it's always a great day out. We have lovely food, walk lots and spend time together doing fun things.


You can book tickets online for the Eden Project and get a green travel discount if you walk, cycle or take public transport.
You can gift aid a ticket so it's valid for a year and you can visit as many times as you like - it's worth it ! You can also book Ice Skating online.

Disclosure: The lovely folks at the Eden Project gave us complimentary entry and ice skating. 

I love my boys. No really I do. It's just that...

Well, you see...

Sometimes we dress up and role play doing housework - it passes the time and makes me smile.






Of course by this time next week I'll be feeling bereft that they're not around all day. I'll also be able to access the internet during daylight hours, pop to the post office during the day and maybe even sneak an episode of Castle or Hawaii Five-0 when Baby Boy is napping.


At least I'll still be able to pop in to check on them at night and find Neo sleeping with Big Boy - which is just adorable.

Meeting the farm cat

Last week we took the boys to stay with Granny and Grandpa. We are so lucky they live near the New Forest so we take a 'staycation' every year where we use their home as a base and go on trips with the children during the day and have the option to go out in the evening with babysitting on hand. It's lovely :)



So this year we had two boys to entertain and one who hasn't done all the exciting things that are there so we had big plans. One of the days we decided to visit a farm that is just the other side of the New Forest and it turned out to be a lovely sunny day in what was an otherwise patchy week for weather. Of course our boys love farms with Big Boy being a fan of tractors and Baby Boy with his love of animals. Hubbie was delighted it took only 20 minutes from Granny's house and Grandma joined us for a day with her favourite boys. I packed a picnic for us all and spare 'farm shoes.' Something for everyone.

greedy goats

First up was the animal feeding and Baby Boy and Grandma helped feed baby goats. Up until now we've only had experience of feeding Rocky the goat at Coombe Mill. At Longdown Farm it's a very different proposition. While you queue you are handed bottles of milk (which Baby Boy thought were a snack for him !) and then you are led into the barn where you sit on hay bales. The goats are then unleashed and they charge forwards heading for the bottles. It's hilarious.


The animal handling was next and Big Boy decided he wasn't too keen on this as it was 'too smelly,' so he went off for a play with the digging equipment that they also have for children to play at driving. Baby Boy loved handling baby guinea pigs, chicks and brushing the goats. I really do think he's going to work with animals when he's older.

face painting

No day out with Big Boy is complete without face painting and while we were in the soft play barn he decided he wanted his face painted as Spiderman - of course. There was also a pre-school play barn for Baby Boy which was great as there were enough of us to enable the boys to play in different places. At one point me and Big Boy went off to play on the trampolines as it was very quiet in the play barn and we had a great time.

I can highly recommend Longdown Activity Farm if you are staying near the New Forest. They do a reasonably priced family ticket (£30) and kindly allowed us to count Granny as a child for the purposes of the ticket. They also have pony rides (£3.50) a picnic area and tractor rides. We spent all day there and would go back to try all the things we didn't get to do. Next week I'll tell you all about our trip to the Isle of Wight.

a rare photo of me and the boys

This post is being shared with the #countrykids linky hosted by the lovely Fiona of Coombe Mill - our favourite family farm to holiday at.