Tales of the unexpected with The Boy, my pride and joy.
I absolutely adore Autumn. It is a glorious time of year; full of colours and treasures, walks through crunchy leaves while listening for bouncing squirrels overheard. It's also the time of year that we start exploring new National Trust places, arboretums in the grounds of stately homes are glorious in Autumn.
Last weekend we visited Dyrham Park for the first time, and we soon realised that it was going to be first of many visits.
We spent last week on holiday in Cornwall at one of our favourite places; Coombe Mill.
This little slice of Heaven on Earth is the perfect place to revitalise and refresh, to reconnect with family and to nature. We always breathe more easily and freely, but then it's easy to feel calm when the background music is the tinkling of the River Camel enticing you to come and play.
And play we did.
We're doing really quite well with our '50 Things To Do Before You're 11&¾' project; The Boy is only just 5 years old and has already ticked off 37 of the 50 things! There are quite a few that he just can't manage yet, mainly due to physical capability or maturity. However, when we stayed in West Bay, Dorset earlier this week, there was one activity that was virtually screaming at us to do from the safety of the harbour walls:
Crabbing!
It seems like the Summer is beginning to whizz by! One minute we're busy waiting for a bit of warmth and sunshine, and the next I'm beginning to worry about fitting in all the days out which I'd wanted to plan.
But in amongst all of this, when it comes down to it, is a little boy who just wants to play in the water.
We're incredibly lucky to be able to nip to a beach whenever we feel like it, and in south Wales there is a massive selection of sandy, pebble or rocky beaches to choose from. The local sandy beach is Barry Island and fortunately it's a gloriously wide expanse of sand deemed worthy of a blue flag for cleanliness.
[Read more…]
When we first visited Cefn Onn Park last year, The Boy's first question was about the playground. At the time he still had in his head that every 'park' was of the suburban template consisting of various flora, a set of swings, see-saw, slide, climbing frame… you get the picture. It's taken him a while to realise the point I explained to him then; that there's play equipment wherever you go, you just have to work out how to use it.
We're never happier than when we're outside exploring the natural environment. We have a few favourite places around the area which we know we could happily while away an hour or two at, with plenty of things to see and so. This Spring I've noticed that The Boy is becoming fascinated with more than just the superficial surroundings and wants to know more about the creatures that live there, and to become a proper explorer.
At the grand old age of 4&¾, The Boy has accomplished 37 of the '50 Things To Do Before You're 11&¾' tasks created by the National Trust; a list designed to get children outdoors doing the fresh-air things which children should be doing in the most innocent years of their lives. The range of tasks very much encourages children to step away from technology and embrace their 'natural childhood', however there is one that does involve technology and that is geocaching.
On a wet and grey Sunday a fortnight ago, we decided to try it out for the first time with The Boy.
We're so lucky where we live.
So lucky to have miles upon miles of glorious coastline; swathes of golden sand, mounds of perfectly elliptical pebbles, an abundance of rock pools populated with crazy creatures, and a vast tidal range allowing for hours spent on the beach.
Enjoying childhood.
