I wrote recently about the National Trust's list of Fifty Things To Do Before You're 11¾, adapting it, as The Boy's birthday is next month, to Five Things To Do Before You're Three!
On the weekend we attempted to tick off number 1: 'Fly a kite'.
And failed.
It was actually too windy. I know, can you believe that's even possible? It's like the wrong type of rain is causing a drought in parts of Britain at the moment.
Anyway, it was too windy because it kept gusting and eventually the kite broke, I stomped off and nearly fell in a river. Ok, it was a stream. Ok, it was a trickling tributary. Nonetheless, it didn't go well and we need to buy a new kite as a result. However, one of the things that did happen while we were trying to find the perfect place to not-fly this daft kite was that The Boy fell over and rolled down the hill. And he laughed. He didn't roll very far and unfortunately wouldn't try it again because he was distracted by the kite, but he inadvertently crossed off another things from the NT list.
This rolling is also part of Bear Gryll's Top Ten Things To Do Before You're Ten handbook created in conjuction with Persil's Small & Mighty. He seems to have the technique perfected a little more than The Boy though.
With other activities like building a den, being a hide and seek champion and counting the stars, it's a great and achievable list of activities for children to attempt, encouraging them out into the great outdoors and to get mucky!
To celebrate, TheBoyandMe is offering one reader the chance to win a copy of the handbook and six month’s worth of Persil Small & Mighty. It's designed to take on the toughest of stains, like mud and grass, so kids can take on the toughest of outdoor adventures- just like Bear Grylls!
In order to be in with a chance of winning this, please fill in the rafflecopter form below. All entry mechanisms must be completed in order for your entry to be valid!
Create and cook on a camp fire. My first experience of camping wasn't until I was 25! x
Hmm, good question! Maybe invested my pocket money in Google or something lol
Hmmm just lots more of everything! Including tooth brushing and studying…
Life's too short, if I could go back I'd cram a lot more in. More going out with friends, more sport, more school work, more experiences.
Mostly though, I'd see more of my grandparents.
Oh and invent Instagram 😉
Said yes to going in a hot air balloon with Right Said Fred!
I wished I'd gone camping with my dad before he passed away x
What would I have wished? To have had the opportunity to spend more quality time with my parents, and to have studies harder at school.
worried less!
I wish I had passed my cycling proficiency test!
Learnt to rollerblade.
i wish i'd spent more time playing and less time studying
Learnt to ice skate
Learned to ride a bicycle (I was always too afraid)
Go fishing…
I wish I'd spent more time playing and being care-free!
I wish i'd have been less shy and more outgoing.
I wish I could off seen my bullies for what they really were. I may have saved me lots of heart ache @jessws2011
I wish I had done more camping with my parents
I wish I had been braver and tried all the scary rides at the fair / theme park
I wish I had believed in myself more
I wish I had made more friends – I was really shy and didn't make any real friends until I was a teenager (I'm so sad!) 🙂 @pipersky1
tried harder at school,best days of your life
Done better at school
I wish I had the idea of making a thing called 'facebook' then I would have the money to do a more now I'm older!!!!!
climbed a tree
I wish I'd learned ballet!
i wish i had started saving then maybe by now i would have been rich! lol
Whoops, think I did that wrong first time. I wish I had learnt to swim as a child so I was more confident in the water now with my lil boy.
Wished i had learnt to ride a bike
I wish I had believed in myself more when I was a kid and pushed myself to acheive what I really wanted to do
I wish I'd gone to martial art classes, my son is going for his black belt in Ju Jitsu and I'm so jealous. Also wish that I had trained as a mechanic or builder although in 'those days' there were no courses like that for girls.
I wished I'd of listened and learnt more at school xx
I wish I'd learnt to speak French and Spanish
I wish I'd found/gone on a Goonie adventure!
I wish i'd never grown up.
I wish I had done more sport. I love outdoor activities and being outside as I grew up on a farm. We were always active, so I didn't really particpaye in team or indoor sports. Now I miss the physical fitness that came naturally on the farm.
Climbing trees was the simplest, most enjoyable pastime as a kid
I WISH I WENT TO SCHOOL LONGER
I really wished that i'd built a tree house – one day I will attemot one for my son 😀 x
been nicer to my brother and sister
Learned to ride a bike!
I wish I had learned to ice skate. I would love to be able to do it but Im too nervous to learn now.
Asked Claire out 🙁
Studied a musical instrument!
Worked harder at school!
Leant how to cartwheel. I could never do it and would be impossible to try now lol
Spent more time with my Dad as he died when I was 9.
I wished I had slammed less doors.
I think I did everything I wanted to as a child, perhaps save my money rather than spend it all on sweets!!
I wish I'd learned to play a musical instrument.
Been more patient and kinder to my parents – now I'm a Mum, I understand!
I wish I had learnt to swim 🙁
I wish I had stuck up for myself more when I was at school
worried less about what other people thought of me.
Built a tree house
wish I'd carried on playing the guitar
worked harder at school!!
I wish I had taken my exams seriously. (O' levels)
I wish I had stopped wanting to grow up so quickly and spent more time enjoying being young.
I wish I had learned to ice skate.
I wish that I had learnt to do a cartwheel so that i could wow my children now.
I Wish i went to school more. i had to redo my GCSE's in my 30's again but so glad i passed 🙂
I wish I'd been able to learn to ride a bike. I grew up in a very rough area and not only did my parents not have much money for such things, we were not allowed to play outside as there were 2 pubs at the end of our road and there were drunkards around always. At 26 now I know I still have time but I think it's easier to learn the correct balance when you're younger and more fearless.
I had the best time at school but I always wished that I had taken my cycling proficiency test
I wish I had learnt to swim earlier, I had lessons at 11 but these days kids have lessons at age 3.
The one thing I would have loved to have done as a child is learn to play an instrument.
If I could have afforded it I would have loved to have tried some winter sports….learnt to snowboard in my 20s and haven't looked back!
stuck in at school more and got more gcse's
I wish that I had participated more in my PE lessons and learnt how to play more sports.
Gone on holiday alone with my parents
I wish i'd tried harder in sports, who knows I could have made it to the Olympics!
I wish I had saved money, even with small amounts of pocket money it would have given me a better start. My children save thanks to me pushing them to do it now though.
i wish id have spend more time with my parents
LEARNT TO SWIM….
Wish I had had more holidays with my parents
learned to play piano
As a child I wish I'd learned to play an instrument or learned a second language
Wish I had left school earlier
learnt to play a musical instrument and stick to it!!!
learnt a foreign language
I dont think there was anything I wished I had done I was quite happy the way my childhood turned ou although I was bullied. Maybe I wished I had stood up to the bullies.
I just wish I had listened more to my parents, you know the saying"school is the best time of your life". You think yes right. Now I say that to my teens.
I would have loved to have taken horse riding lessons as a child
"If only. Those must be the two saddest words in the world." (Mercedes Lackey)
I wish I'd been able to spend more time with my Dad, after a messy divorce I saw him about twice maybe 3 times a year from the time I was 3. He died when I was 18 and just getting to know him so I wish I'd spent more of my childhood with him
Wish i hadn't be so incredibly shy & had made more friends 🙁
Been more daring and used a tree swing!
I wish I'd paid attention in school…….
Wish I had gone camping, now I'm an adult I know how much fun it can be 🙂
Learned a language sooner.
I wish I'd learnt to play violin – it was on offer but wasn't seen as particularly "cool" at the time.
My son loves Bear Grylls
Joined the Brownies
divorce from my awfull abusive parents
I wish i had been more confident in trying new things
travelled more, we never left wales!
I wish I had been more confident and joining in with groups such as the Guides etc; I was too shy and retiring and missed out on a lot as a result.
not cared about a thing, as a child it really does not matter
went on a plane, it took me until age 50 to get on one
I wish I had gone to dance classes – I would have loved to and was so jealous as all of my friends went.
definitely worked harder at school and not drifted into a dead end job
wish id kept up with my ballet lessions
I wish I had learnt a language as a child. I'm terrible at them now and have always been hugely jealous of anyone who can speak another language fluently. I just couldn't convince my parents to take us to live in Spain for a year 😉
i wish i had ignored those bullies 🙁
Wish I had the courage to go camping
Played Ice Hockey or went to Ice Hockey School
I wished I'd believed in myself and practised sport more!
Worried less, it all worked out ok in the end.
I wish I'd learnt to swim. Didn't learn until i was in my 20's and you miss out on so much as a child if you can't be safe in water.
would have like to have gone swimming more
I wish I'd ate less sweets.
I wish i had thought about the career i chose more than i did. Maybe i wouldn't hate it as much!
I have to say, I was really lucky and had a very adventurous childhood, my parents are very outdoorsy and we would often just decide to go camping in the local woods for the weekend. I also got taken to a lot of motorbike rallies and drag racing weekends, I remember sitting in a giant marquee and watching two Hells Angels have a race to shimmy to the top of the tent poles holding the marquee up!
I have to say, if there's one thing I wish I could have done as a kid, it would have been to go abroad – I didn't until I was 16 and went off my own steam, but I was very jealous of friends who got to experience Disneyland when they were young enough to succumb to the magic of it.
I wish I'd climbed a tree, all my friends would be up in the leaves and scaredy cat me would be stuck on the ground
I had a great childhood, I was very lucky and I am grateful for that but I do wish I had learned to ice skate
Wish i had learnt to swim as a child, am 33 now and still cant swim, will get round to it one of these days 🙂
I wish I had been more confident
I wish I'd appreciated the sacrifices my parents made to give me such a wonderful childhood
wish I'd had a sister to play with
Stuck to my chosen career path
@littleboo_21
Be fearless and try everything! Especially try harder to swim!
Learnt to swim as I still can't now.
I wish I had listened to my Mother more! @Bobbity666
paid more attention in school
I wish I would have learned another language besides french, which I hated in school. My son is bilingual, he is only 2 and manages it brilliantly! 🙂
I wish I'd enjoyed school more than I did because boy, I miss it now lol. All that learning with no responsibility. If only we could go back.
DO better at school
I wish I had learnt to swim.
Learn how to swim. I'm tall so got away with not trying, now I can barely swim. It's an underrated skill to posess
My biggest regret as a child is actually not applying myself at school. I was very under confident and as such I often gave up before I started.
Been more sporty and concious of my weight, I think it would have been easier to take control if I'd started earlier!
I wish I'd worried less and enjoyed more! Now going through these lists of things to do so myboys don't miss out!
Owned a dog!
Wish I had tried harder to learn a foreign language
Wish I'd learned to ride a bike
Learned a decent skill to improve myself later in life
I wish I'd followed my heart & become an interpreter & travel the world
played more sport
Learned another language
Easy… learned to play the piano.
successfully learn to ride a bike! I fell off during my cycling proficiency test & never got back on (I wish I were joking)
Been more adventourous instead of never dong anything!
Learnt another language ! 🙂
Learned a musical instrument
Persisted with my piano lessons.
Listened
I wish I had learnt how to horse ride. always wanted to but family circumstances meant it wasn't possible. now feel a bit too old (and would feel for the poor horse that had me on top!)
I was lucky enough to do lots of stuff as a kid. I suppose the only thing i wish I had done was run away with the circus
I wish i'd climbed more trees, you can never climb enough trees and I was always too scared!
I took life way too seriously, I just wish I had more fun and not tried to grow up as fast as I did!
I wish I had tried synchronised swimming when I was younger – it always fascinated me but I never had the guts to try it!
I wish I had worked harder at school !!!!
wished i had gone fishing. x
Learnt to swim
I wish I'd had more confidence in myself! Other than that I wouldn't change all the dens and mud pies and sandcastles and camping and mixing potions!
I wish I'd learnt to play an instrument – always wanted to be in a band!
I wish I'd listened more and asked more questions when relatives talked about the family. I'm now trying to do our family tree and most of the people who could have helped are sadly no longer with us.
I wish I'd learned to play a musical instrument.
I wish I'd taken singing lessons.
learned to play the piano
i wish i played more football – then i could have been a rich premiership footballer !
I always wanted a 'walkie talkie' doll, can't imagine why now 🙂
Played more outside
Took things less seriously
I wish I'd been nicer to my little sister, we fought a lot 🙁
Bear Grylls – can't be his real name, can it?
Taken a different academic route through school – would have liked a different career.
Worked harder at school
Enjoyed my time at school more
Learned to ride a bike! My mum always said it was too dangerous for me to have a bike as we lived near tram lines. So I didnt learn to ride a bike until I was 15 or 16!! I spent my childhood pushing round peoples spare bikes behind all my friends, very sad eh?
I wish I'd been more fearless
I wish I played more as a child. I spent far too much time studying during my childhood! 🙂 x
@LilinhaAngel
Wish I had persevered in learning to ride a bicycle – one headlong tumble into a hedge and I gave up!
i wish i hadn't worried so much as a child.
I wish i'd never discovered chocolate! I might've been slim now!
Now looking back I really wish I'd learned to swim, but as a child the one thing I wished I'd done was fly like a bird 😀
Definitely learned to swim properly. Once we could swim 5 yards the lessons stopped at school.
camping! i have never been camping and my kids went with friends and i am so jealous!
Tried harder to learn at school
i wish that i wasn't in a hurry to grow up
I wish I had spent more time with my dad.
Learnt to swim
I wish I'd been a bit more adventurous – climbed some more trees and rode my bike more!
I wish I could have learnt ice-dancing. Sure, I did go ice-skating occasionally, but I really would have loved to have learnt to skate backwards and do all the twirls that the professional ice-dancers do.
listened to my parents about life – maybe then i would not have made so many mistakes!
i wish i had being more confident, i was painfully shy and didnt make many friends
I love my life now and think if I'd done things differently than I wouldn't be where I am now… Even the painful bits have helped to shape me. Perhaps not have started smoking as a teenager, but I've even packed that in now!
Climbed a tree, learnt to dance and maybe paid a bit more attention at exam time! 🙂
horse riding!
I wish i'd done more swimming and learned to swin confidently, i have always been afraid in the water!
I wish I had climbed a tree, I was always too scared and am still scared of heights now
Gone to dance classes I never did
Gone to summer camp 🙂
I wish i had stood up to the bullies that picked on me in seconday school!
I wish I had told my dad i loved him more. He raised me alone and I am now doing the same with my 2 kids. they say it to me many times a day and it brightens my life. Even if i am down, just them saying to me makes it better, so I wish I could have done the same to my dad x
Have a treehouse!
I wish I'd been nicer to my big sister
I wish I went to Disneyland with my family. Would love to see all that with kids eyes and imagination..
I wish i appericated my parents more than what I did.
Taken the educational opportunities I was offered.
Learned another language as it is so much easier as a child!
studied more especially my languages
Spent more time with my dad.
I wish I had learnt to play the piano
Learned to swim & spend more time with my lovely Dad, he passed away suddenly just after my 14th Birthday I still miss him terribly after all these years.
I wish I sat on roller coasters as a child so my fear would have gone..I cannot sit on roller coasters now!
I wish I was more confident and outgoing and made more friends and enjoyed my childhood more. They say school days are the best of your lives and I realised it now!
learned to swim!!
I don't wish i'd done anything else as a child.
I had an awesome childhood – loads of outdoor playing and being adventurous. We built loads of dens and my sisters and I played together well.
I wish I'd have gone skiiing. I've never been skiing before and I think if I'd have had a go as a child then it would have been something that I'd have continued to do as I grew up.
I wish I'd been more into sports. I enjoyed it but wish I'd enjoyed it more.
I wished I had learnt to swim
I had a great childhood, but i wish i had spent more time studying and taken my education seriously
I wished I could be like the actresses on TV
Played a musical instrument
I wish I'd argued less with my brothers
I wish I'd studied art and become an art teacher (instead of listening to teachers who told me I was too clever for that). I may have a much better paid job, but I know I would have been so much happier.
Taken horse riding lessons
not spoiled him as much
learnt to run 🙂
I wish I had respected my parents and treated them better than I did!
Took dancing lessons.
I wish I had spent more time playing outside!
had more fun and not given up ballet because was uncool
learned how to play the piano!
Done what I wanted to and said what I think
I wish I had more time with my Dad