Gardening Time

Time to start thinking about vegetable growing again. Digging in manure and giving the 4 eager helpers explanations as to why it smells and why we dig it into the veg plot. No Oliver, we don't eat the manure we just eat the vegetables and yes we do wash them first! Spades and forks at the ready - you guys can do the hard work!

Montacute House

The National Trust opened up all their properties for free this weekend, so to save ourselves

£50 or so, we came to Montacute House in Somerset. It is an Elizabethan mansion built at the end of the 16th Century. It houses a large Gallery where they exhibit a collection of Tudor portraits. Since Oliver is studying the Tudors at school and is completely fascinated by it we thought it would be good to show him the pictures. Unfortunately we were not allowed to take photos inside the house and in usual National Trust style, there were plenty of Stewards around to make sure we didn't! It is a beautiful house with amazing views of the 25 acre garden and 300 acre parkland. The Library was an amazing room which the children thought was fantastic. It had nothing to do with the exquisite furniture, book collection or the huge windows to let in the light, but because they found a large nest of ladybirds on the window ledge and spent ages watching them all!

View from the bottom of the garden.

Studying the map to find the front door. At least Jacob was on the ball!

Picnic time! It had to wait until Oliver and Bethany had played a game of snakes and ladders, which was printed onto the picnic table. This was the family picnic area but there was also a quiet picnic area. We know our place!

Climbing frame antics.

A Redwood Totem Pole. Not even Muir Woods has one of those! A Woodland gnome dancing round the bottom.

House and garden.

Beautiful view in the garden.

Mummy & Twins at Abbotsbury

It rained today, but Mummy needed to see some greenery, so suggested a trip to Abbotsbury Gardens. It was not met with very much enthusiasm, but since Mummy has the casting vote, we went anyway and we had a fab morning! Mummy is always right afterall.

Sitting in the Japanese tea house(wishing I had some tea), while Jacob examined his fir tree "brush".

Who's that trip-trapping over my bridge, said Jacob and Rebecca? It's Mummy the old Troll (I get to play all the good bits)!

Beautiful Jurassic part of the garden where we have to go dinosaur hunting.

Feeding the fish, but Rebecca was a little peckish.

Victorian Day

This school term Bethany has been learning about the Victorian era, and her class had the opportunity to dress as Victorians and visit Kingston Lacy house to learn more about how they lived. I managed to find some ancestral photographs to show Bethany how she should dress.

This is my great great grandmother Eliza Hammond (age 24), she also had a cracked tooth, its amazing what you can pass down through the family!

Eliza's twins Albert & Victoria

Jefferson Hammond waking up in the morning

Bethany dressed and ready for her school trip, amazing the resemblance between her & Eliza

Water Play

Jacob and Rebecca wanted to play with water today so we got out Jacobs activity table, the wheelbarrow, a few cups and they were away! Jacob getting down to business.

Jacob concentrating while Rebecca is bossing!

A time of togetherness, sharing and caring.

Spot the poorly knee from a fall on the way to school, that I was not allowed anywhere near.

Caring and sharing time over!

Busy little hands.

Mothers Day

Mothers day consisted of opening the childrens hard worked crafted cards, and then travelling to Colehill to celebrate the day with Granny, Grandad and Rachel. As expected the food was out of this world and the sun was out, which meant the children could play outside. Play consisted of water spraying, bouncy balls, football and tractor rides. Sorry for the lack of photos, batteries went flat!

Jacob - ready, aim, fire!!!

One day my prince will come! and push me!

From an early age of 7 Katharine new what she wanted!! wine & funny shaped bottles!

Emily's Birthday

Today we were invited to Emily's third birthday, at Manic Monsters in Blandford. The children thoroughly enjoyed themselves and had a wonderful time. The bumpy slide was a big hit for all ages, but sadly NO grown ups allowed. Sorry there are not many photos as I was only allowed to take photos of my children, Manic Monsters policy! I tried to explain I had children everywhere! but the owner did not seem convinced.

After the playzone we convoyed to Kate & Steves house for party food & games! There was plenty of food and the cake was amazing!

The humpy bumpy slide

Multi burst action photos of Bethany in action.

Emily Cinderella opening her presents.

Party Pudding

Oliver's avatar look

Easter egg treasure hunt... surely they are not all in one place.

Avatar & a space hopper.... the world has gone mad

Emily you've been tangoed

Yes this is the cake, its a cakerella half cake - half dolly

Ginger Cake

Our house has been Enid Blyton mad for a while now. We have read Oliver the first 11 Famous Five books and have almost finished the Adventure Series, with a couple of the Mystery books thrown in too. The main thing we have in common with Enid Blytons characters is their love of food! So Rachel very kindly lent us her cook book which has recipes from Enid Blytons' books. Ginger Beer is top of our list of things to make, but I found the recipe below and couldn't resist.

Came out a treat! Aunt Fanny would be proud! It is going to Colehill with us on Mothering Sunday, so until then its tightly wrapped up and away from prying fingers, eyes and noses!

Cubs

Oliver was invested into Cub Scouts today. Not quite sure how that happened as Mummy and Daddy haven't got used to the fact that he's old enough for Beavers yet!

Home Play

We made gingerbread men today. Yes they were all men as we don't have a gingerbread lady cutter but we tried to do the PC thing and said maybe some of them were ladies wearing trousers! Jacob and Rebecca did an excellent job putting on the raisin faces and buttons. As you will notice most of them also have raisin hands and feet, although they tend to be the ones that don't have faces. Oh well, you can't have it all. By the way they taste delicious!

Just a few photos of playing trains. It is always a very serious and intense playtime when we have the train track out and it all has to be done just right with the correct pieces in the track. Woe betide anyone who doesn't play within the secret rules and regulations that Jacob and Rebecca have that are known only to them. Woe betide Mummy basically.

Its all too much.

Moreton Walk 2010

A beautiful sunny afternoon in Moreton Plantation.

Jumping tree stumps and searching for wood ants.

Nearly at the top.

Doing what every good boy scout likes to do!

What goes up must come down!

We did let them rest just for a couple of minutes!

Woodland Sprite.

We got fed up of taking photos when we made the fatal mistake of going "Off Piste" to find our way back to the car and ended up traipsing through thick mud on a path we made ourselves by trampling down holly, gorse and bracken. The children lost their sense of adventure at this point and spent the remainder of the walk begging for the car to be round the next corner and moaning about the prickles!

No permanent damage done and one day they will realise it was all in the name of "good fun!"

Creative Streak

I really would like a real blue car!

Da Da!

Jamming session on the balcony.