So we’ve done it – we’ve survived the first week of the summer holiday! We’re finding it a little different from school holidays in the past, but we’re determined to make it a good one! The main difference I find is having to plan in advance to go somewhere.
A lot of places we would normally use to death over the holidays are still closed, and a lot have certain rules we need to stick to in order to be compliant with government guidelines. Its a bit of a minefield to decide what to do! So we thought we’d help a little. Each week we’ll give you a round up of what we’ve been doing with the family – either going out or staying in. In the hope it’ll give you inspiration and a bit of insight into what the new normal is at some of our fabulous local attractions.
Its been a busy first week and this is what we’ve been up to:
Sally took the advantage of a child free morning for the first time since March and her and Mr Mumbler went to one of our favourites – Farmhouse. Even before social distancing, one of the great things about this place is the space. So theres no problem with social distancing! They’ve also got a few tables outside with windows open. All staff were wearing face masks and the food was as it is always is – delicious!!!
Sally also took her youngest daughter – who turned 9 over lockdown, to get her ears pierced this week! They went to Keith Hammonds at North Star Tattoo to get it done. They were super impressed with it all. If you want to get your child’s done, you need to pre-book and wear a mask. There are additional Covid procedures but Keith will talk you through all that! The cost for piercing was £20 inc a choice of studs.
We’re just back from a trip to Billy Bobs with family. We booked in advance for a table outside, luckily its good weather. They can’t move you inside if the weather does turn. If you do book a table outside they’re under umbrellas. There are also a few unreserved tables outside – but be warned these have no covering! You now also need to book a slot for your children to play in the outdoor play areas. There is a one way system, lots of hand santiser dotted about and screens by the ice cream parlour. You can even order and pay from an app – so zero contact required! The staff are great – always cleaning down surfaces etc. The menu is slightly smaller than normal but we didn’t notice. Their indoor play areas are currently closed, but they have the outdoor play area open. It’s for diners only and you need to pre book, £2 per child. They get an hours slot and after every hour along comes a ghostbuster to kill all those germs! Play times seems to be on the hour, so my advice is book your food an hour before or after your playtime session starts in order to get maximum use! We loved our day out here, we went with our extended family and it was just fab – if this is what the new normal is like we’re fully onboard!
On the way back from Billy Bobs we popped into Mackenzies Smokehouse Farm shop. Its a great place to pick up local produce, and all their Covid 19 safety measures were brilliant. Gloves, masks and hand santisers available for customers, as well as clear signs and perspex screens at checkouts. We picked up some fab things for dinner, and I also got some bargain kitchen utensils in their sale!
Pre-lockdown me and my little girls were big fans of classes – from messy play to tennis we loved them! Unfortunately not many are back open yet but as soon as we saw Born of the Forest was back we got booking. It’s an hour of unstructured play in the forest. There are mud kitchens, fairy houses, painting stations to name just a few. They’ve got hand washing stations and hand santizer dotted about everywhere. Once your child has played with something you’re encouraged to place them in the black buckets and someone will come and anti-bac them and put them back out for other’s to play with. There’s is so much to play with that you never feel like your missing something! A great way to spend the morning, come rain or shine! I’d recommend wearing wellies whatever the weather!
Evie and Eddie have been staying with her parents in the Midlands this week. Eddie has been busy gardening with Granny and making some delicious looking raspberry and white chocolate cookies. They loosely followed this recipe!
Kate and I (and our kids) have started collecting the Marks and Spencers Little Shop 2 items. I love collecting them and our kids are playing such inventive games with them! A great hit – and an excuse to treat ourselves to some yummy Marks and Spencers Food!
That’s it for this week – we’ll let you know what we get up to next week! x