Fun Days

Most people with kids know these days that trips out as a family are expensive.  Nowhere seems to offer a fun day out at a decent price and even then, if you do get through the gates relatively unharmed in the wallet area, surprises are usually lurking inside on stalls that are outrageously overpriced for naff returns.

This past weekend Berkshire Agricultural College opened for their lambing weekend.  They've been doing it for years, and for years I have planned to take the kids, then forgotten and scolded myself for having to wait another year for a countryside style day out.  This year I remembered and Saturday morning I packed four kids and a big picnic in the car and headed off towards Burchetts Green.  It was a gloriously sunny day and I was so thankful to God for giving us such beautiful weather.  The open day was 100% outdoors and would have been a disaster had it rained.  Such was the beauty of the early summer day the children enjoyed running around in T-shirts, eating ice-creams and picnicing by the side of the small fenced off show area where falconry and sheepdog shows were put on for small crowd entertainment.

It was also a thrill to enjoy a day where as a parent I didn't feel ripped off or pressured to spend lots of money.  The majority of stalls that offered raffles, tombolas and lucky dips were virtually free, merely asking for a donation in the discreetly placed bucket by the side of the table.  Some stalls offered five goes for £1.00 which is a stark contrast to most places where you pay £1.00 per go per person and come away disappointed.  The marquee behind the sheepdog area offered free face painting and the children queued up happy to wait their turn at having their faces transformed.  A simple table nearby with five paint trays and a white tablecloth where the children could paint their hands and make prints, then write their names by the side.  Small tractors for little people to ride alongside the path for a few pence in the bucket.

Animals were on show all around the college grounds, sheep were sheared, lambs bounced alongside their mothers, pot bellied pigs snuffled around snorting contentedly whilst wallowing in the cool mud.  Shire horses pulling wagons along the grass and even a ferret racing area where Sam won 20p for backing the winner!  Free tractor rides around the perimeter of neighbouring fields overlooking acres of farmland, free of modern day invasion, releasing your mind to the imagery of the pages from Tess and other Hardy novels.

Leaving the grounds we visited the Farmers Market.  Delicious smells wafted through the air of homebaked pies, hog roasts, bacon butties and rows upon rows of home made fudge and turkish delight, to tempt us as we headed back towards the car.

Six hours of fun and fresh air, four happy, but very tired kids and one happy Mum.  All for the bargain price of a tenner per car to get in.  It's definitely in the diary for next year.

Weekend Break

When your husband works in a hotel with a beautiful setting like this, you consider yourself extremely blessed that you can take advantage of the massive room reduction rate.

 Then you consider yourself doubly blessed because your very treasured friend offers to look after the children all weekend.

Front garden

Calling the front patch of land outside my house a garden is really using a bit of poetic licence. It's barely more than a postage stamp. But, saying that, it sorely needed attention. The wicker hanging baskets were worn out and last year's summer flowers were dead, jaded and overhanging. The side of the path had a trench dug out in preparation for widening the path, the pots were full of unattended bulbs left to dry from last year... and so on......

Soo... take one best friend, some willing children, a bit of graft and a few yards of weed fabric....

Just the Scottish pebbles to buy now to cover the fabric area, some pruning of the rose is required and let nature do its job with the bulbs and seeds the children planted in the small path border.

Planting narcissus and freesia bulbs and love in the mist seeds

Attempting to lift and separate the roots of the grass that's reshooted this year.

Oooh!!!! How did they get there?!!!!

I Knew I Wouldn't Manage It

Try as I might to relax, I went upstairs, looked in their bedrooms and the thought of walking away leaving them looking like squatters had moved in was too much for me.

TWO FLIPPIN' HOURS!!! Just to clear two small bedrooms.

3 pairs of boxer shorts stuffed under Sam's bed, 2 tops screwed up in the corner, folded up school trousers under the chest of drawers gathering dust, I suppose I have to be thankful they were folded. Two pairs of Joshua's pyjamas stuffed in the corner of the bed. Numerous teddies piled up on Sam's bed half dressed, pieces of games strewn around the room and flippin' BB gun bullets getting stuck inbetween my toes as I try to tiptoe through the rubbish ... ad nauseum.

And that was just the boys.

I'm not even going there with the girls, apart from to say that Madeleine took over 30 minutes to fold up all the clothes on the floor that were presented to her in the mass knot I found them in rammed in the corner of her room.

I really envy people with tidy children.

The Toil Continues Down At Plot 51

Saturday, being another gloriously sunny day lent the perfect opportunity to get down the allotment to continue preparing the ground, clearing the weeds and getting the pathway finished.

Three weeks have elapsed since I last went there and fearing the worst, having visions of two foot high weeds that I encountered the last time I left a lengthy gap between visits, I was immensely surprised to see that where the ground had been prepped previously, not a single weed had grown. It just goes to show the difference between namby pamby surface weeding and proper digging over.

To add to the joy, Michaela had bought me two rhubarb plants as a belated birthday present plus some strawberry plants that have produced runners, so they've now been put in the soft fruits corner. A gap has been prepared for the apple tree, I just have to get it from Mum's house to the plot. The red gooseberry has taken well and the blackcurrant is well established.

Sam gives the raspberry bushes a drink

Madeleine and Eleanor digging for leftover potato tubers

Sam and Joshua preparing the holes for the transplanted raspberries

In addition, in amongst the weeds on the other side of the allotment, we found an extra raspberry bush, so that was uprooted and transplanted. Then Michaela found more along the path edge where the roots had grown under the path from next door and had shot up on my side. So, up they came too. My original two raspberry bushes have now increased to six. Whether they'll take is questionable. There wasn't much rootball on any of them, but I'm hoping with a bit of TLC and the autumn/winter period to hibernate, the spring will see them perk up and yield enough growth through the summer to provide a good supply of fruits.

Michaela digging up the newly discovered raspberry bushes

The path is now halfway through the plot and the gravel that was taken from the front garden at home has now all be transported to the plot to infill the path. It's a bit wonky but it looks really good. The plot is taking shape now and I'm beginning to personalise it. It feels like my plot now, not just a piece of rented overgrown ground. There is still a lot of clearing to do and one boundary needs erecting but this will come in time.

And, I finally got to meet Sid. Sid is an a retired farmer and Sid has lots of machinery and Sid has offered to rotovate the bits of my plot that need digging over next spring, ready for the planting and sowing season. I like Sid.

More leeks were harvested and now some tubs of leek and potato soup are stacked in the freezer. The cooking apples that were scrumped last time we visited have been peeled, cored, chopped and frozen ready for winter puddings. Some have been stewed down to make apple sauce and more blackberries were picked from around the perimeter and are laid on trays in the freezer.

Timbertown

Timbertown is a unique event that takes place every August Bank Holiday in my home town. Tickets for the weekend are sold for one morning only and they are sold out every year. Last year Joshua took part and thoroughly enjoyed himself. This year he returned, along with Maddie, and myself as an adult volunteer helper.

August Bank Holidays will now be our family Timbertown weekend for as long as the event runs. With this year being their 25th anniversary, silver was the main theme and over the course of four days over 300 children, along with their teenage and adult helpers constructed various huts of differing design, size and decor.

In a world that is now suppressing children's creativity and leaving parents in a constant quandry about whether to allow their children to have freedom, Timbertown is an oddity, but the comraderie between the teams and friendly rivalry bring out qualities in the children that reflect the true nature of who they are - creative, funny, wonderful little people.

My team were fantastic. We hammered, we sawed, we nailed and we painted. We helped each other lift things, we nursed sore thumbs, we pulled out splinters and we played together. We had fun, we laughed and we became good friends.

Next year I'll be taking Eleanor along. It's an opportunity for her not to miss. The chance to be expressive and creative, but most of all, free. Free to do the things she would not normally be given the chance to do. The chance to use real tools, run around with complete strangers and have endless, limitless fun with 320 other playmates!

DAY ONE: CONSTRUCTION DAY


DAY TWO: DECORATE THE HUTS


DAY THREE: PLAY DAY


DAY FOUR: DEMOLITION and BONFIRE

The Jam That Never Was

That's what my blackberry and apple 'jam' has turned into. 2½kg handpicked blackberries, 12 cooking apples and 2½kg preserving sugar all contributed to a jam pan of sugary, fruity slop.


All because my youngest two would not go out of the kitchen after being asked NUMEROUS times to leave me alone while I boiled down some fruit prior to putting sugar in. I don't often ask them to leave me alone, only when I'm cooking boiling hot fruit that could spit up and burn them.

I was so distracted I forgot to boil the fruits down first before adding the sugar and put the whole lot in together, so I couldn't measure the fruit afterwards to work out the correct amount of sugar to put in.

I'm chilling it now to see if it will set. If not, I'll add more pectin tomorrow and boil it up again. If it does set, I'll have to give most of it away as it won't keep for long.

I suppose I could ladle it into pots and freeze it, taking out what I need and use it as a compote or make some pastry and use it as a pie filling, or bake it with a crumble topping, or puree it down and freeze to make an ice-cream sauce ..... hmmm, maybe it is salvageable after all. I didn't spend a year of my evenings on a cooking course for nothing you know!

Hangin' Out With Friends

Arrange a day out with Michelle, Katie and Ben.

Pray for sun and prepare a picnic.


Meet at a local nature reserve and take a slow walk through the country meadows. Imagine 100 years before ... a milkmaid taking the same route, a local farmer on his haywain tipping his hat as he passes her by.

Return to the 21st century and take a group shot.

Left to right: Joshua, Ben, Samuel, Katie, Eleanor and Madeleine

Head back to Michelle's to paddle in the pool and hit the Shark Attack Water Slide.





Then finish the day with bubbles.

Is There WD40 For Humans?

Because I really need to oil my joints.

After another mammoth six hour session down the allotment yesterday with Michaela, we have used wooden pallets to build the mother of all compost bins. Two in fact, side by side. One to work over the plot whilst the other rots down. They are such impressive constructions three other allotment holders came over to take a look. I spotted another two nearby taking surreptitious looks now and then checking out the progress as we went along. I think they were jealous. Most allotment holders have their compost bins neatly tucked away. Mine's on view - where everybody can see it.

Next to that are two closed top pallets to hold the incinerator and the fertilisers (yet to be bought and yet to be made, in that order). My first attempt at nettle fertiliser failed as I forgot to put a lid on the bucket - which is a bit crucial considering it needed to steep and it's hard to do that when the bucket's overflowing with rainwater. Then, next to the platform is a corrugated iron 'pen' to hold the manure when it's delivered later this year. It's also quite an effective area for putting unruly children in time out - kind of like a sin bin. 'Mess around again and you're in the poo pit'.

We've ripped out all the iron fencing down one side and refixed it in, hammering down the holding posts. It is no joke whacking a mallet over 25 metres, especially when you've got to clear all the weeds and uproot the brambles. The roots on those things are phenomenal. At one point they were just too tough to pull out so we had to take the secateurs and clip them off as far down as possible. I'll just have to keep working at them over the next few months to weaken the root system and eventually have them die down.

Along the side by the fencing we found one metal post concreted in over a base of hardcore and another three foot long piece of concrete alongside it. Lifting that has now bent my fork handle and transporting it to the skip has buckled my wheelbarrow. It's probably also damanged mine and Michaela's spines lifting them as they were REALLY HEAVY.

Last night we were exhausted and stiff. Michaela just about managed to prise herself off the sofa to go home and she looked flexible enough to get in and out of her car. Whether she's actaully managed to get out of bed this morning.....? Well, I might ring her later and listen out for signs of creaking when she answers the phone.

Birthdays Are A Family Affair

In our house everybody gets involved when there's a birthday coming up.

We wait until the Birthday Boy is tucked up in bed.

Then we wrap his presents....

... and write out his cards.



Then when he wakes up we help him open his presents.

Then we sing Happy Birthday as he blows out his candles (and Mummy feels a little embarrassed that her cake effort has left Thomas looking like the Fat Controller put something herbal in his coal bunker and caused him to de-rail).

Happy 3rd Birthday Sam!

When Krispies Have Lost Their Crunch

When I had a bowl of rice krispies this week, they'd lost their snap, crackle and pop. Only one thing for it. Today I HAD to make...

MARS BAR RICE KRISPIE CAKES: Oooh yeah!!! Yummy, yummy, yummy!!

Take 3 Mars bars and 75g margarine or butter. Melt them together gently in a pan. When melted mix in 75g rice krispies. Mix well and pour into greased tin. Melt 200g milk chocolate in bowl over hot water. Pour on krispie mix and put in fridge.

When set, cut into squares and enjoy! Nom nom nom.

Bits and Bobs

Samuel has discovered it's fun to shove your face in front of the camera just as Mummy takes a shot.

There he is again.

And again!

And again!

Sam, can you PLEASE move out of the way!

Thank you! The shot I was trying to get all along. The herbs have been planted. Now I want more pots and more herbs. At the moment I'm growing mint, thyme, basil, flat leaf parsley and chives.


After a dinner of fajitas, enchilladas and tortilla salsa melt with Andy's parents down for the day and my friend Michaela, we dived into Andy's lemon torte. Very naughty and not to be consumed if you're on a diet.