365 #22 {Half Term}

A perfectly timed break to recharge the batteries and spend some quality with my two lovelies.
We made the most of our local favourite places and took the time to chill and enjoy.

365 #22

Day 145
I walk by these flowers every time I go to and from my front door but never take the time to fully appreciate them. Such a shame as they are so beautiful.
Day 146
We spent a couple of hours at The Courts on Bank Holiday Monday and the boy loved the ship in the Forest School area. There's more about The Courts here.
Day 147
A day out at Stourhead. Such a beautiful place. You can see more here.
Day 148
Report writing for most of the day but I gave myself a break to watch Star Wars with the kiddies. I can't believe it has taken me this long to actual get into the whole Star Wars thing. Ewan McGregor helps.
Day 149
Back out today, this time for a few hours at Dyrham Park. So much space and gardens to enjoy here, even though we got soaked on the way back up the hill to the car.
Day 150
A friend popped round today who I don't see enough of since she moved away. The children played while we drank lots of tea and talked. It's so good to just sit and talk sometimes.
Day 151
I think the National Trust membership paid for itself this week as today we did our fourth visit, this time though to somewhere new. We headed up to Gloucestershire to visit Newark Park. We didn't go around the house but we loved the gardens and woodland estate walks. I just loved the colour of the door on the property with the flowers growing wild in front.

Linking up here...

x x x

#CountryKids at Dyrham {National Trust}

Our third, and final, National Trust visit this week took us out of the county to Dyrham Park.
The amount of space here is perfect to run, play, clear your head and just relax.

Stourhead {National Trust}

Always a favourite place to go, and often mentioned on here, Stourhead was frequented by the three of us again this holiday week.
I never tire of the place and always spot something new.
This time we ventured into the house, somewhere I haven't been since holidaying this way as a child.
Now it's my children's turn to be taken around these fantastic properties.

The Courts {National Trust}

Half term weeks never pass by without a visit to a National Trust property.
I've been a member pretty much since childhood and have a lot of memories of walking miles around the National Trust parks and properties back home in Norfolk.
Now I'm doing the same with my two children albeit in a different county or two.
Just like back home Wiltshire, and the surrounding counties, have plenty of National Trust properties to keep us busy.

On Monday we whiled away a couple of hours at The Courts...

365 #21 {Changes for the good}

I tried it but it didn't work out.
This was the final week of full time work for me for a while.
I'm trying to not to dwell on it as the pay slip was good.
But there's more important things in life than a fatter pay cheque.

365 #21

365 #20 {More relaxed}

As the week went on I became more relaxed.
Changes have been made to make life easier.
Money will be less again though.
Can never win!

365 #20

365 #19 {Birthday Boy}

This week saw the sixth birthday of the boy which led to some mixed emotions on my part.
But I discovered that lots of cake is always a good medicine for that.
The work/life balance continues to elude me  - not quite sure if I'll ever find the solution to that. Answers on a postcard please.

365 #19

Chicken & Butternut Squash {Recipe}

Before the cake was consumed this week at the boy's birthday party the grown ups had a tried and tested treat on the Saturday night.

Following our shop at Morrisons I put my feet up whilst the husband cooked.

The recipe below includes costs from our Morrisons shop earlier that day.

2 Signature free range chicken breasts (£15.00 kg) £4.48
Half a butternut squash £0.50
King Edward potatoes £0.90
1 chilli pepper £0.09
150ml double cream £0.40
4 rashers Signature smoked bacon £1.99
Brocolli £0.49

Total for two = £8.85

Wrap two rashers of bacon around each chicken breast and place in individual baking dishes.
Peel and slice the butternut squash and place around the chicken breasts.
Pour the cream around piece of chicken.
Chop and sprinkle the chilli over the chicken.
Bake at 180c for approx.

 

Meanwhile, boil and mash the potatoes and prepare the broccoli.

Serve and enjoy!

 



x x x

Disclaimer: I received £80 vouchers to carry out my Bank Holiday shop at Morrisons. As always, views and opinions are my own and are honest.

From Morrisons:

This is the start of a new cheaper Morrisons.

From today (1.5.2014), we’ve cut the prices on over a thousand of your favourite products. Not temporary reductions or supermarket smoke and mirrors, these are new every day low prices on the things you buy every week. So you’ll notice the difference with every shop.

And although we’re cutting prices, we’re not cutting corners. You can check our pricing at www.Morrisons.com/pricecuts.

You’ll still get award-winning meat and fish, still get trained butchers and bakers, still get the best of fresh on Market Street and still get friendly Morrisons service.

Look out for the yellow markers when you shop in store and online at morrisons.com. If it says I’m cheaper you know it’s staying cheaper.

Best Birthday Cake! {Recipe}

Last weekend the sun was shining and we headed out to do the Bank Holiday shop in preparation for the boy's 6th birthday.
The economic dent to the wallet was softened by, the gratefully received, shopping vouchers from Morrisons.
For this weekend I became a #MorrisonsMum.
Morrisons is not my usual supermarket of choice purely due to the geographical location and ease but I always liked them as a store ever since shopping in one when up North many years ago, when they were an unknown store down in the South West.

As with any new store it took longer to get around and there was a lot of going up and down looking for the items on the list. We were doing our weekly shop as well as buying for party food and cake.

Ah, the cake...

I picked up some offers for this; £2 for a 500g tub of Cadbury's drinking Chocolate and £1 for butter.
The recipe follows with pricing based on my shop from Morrisons - it includes online prices for items I already had in as well as the eggs that I get free from the chooks!

250g butter £1.00
4 lg eggs - free range £1.40
170g dark brown soft sugar £0.42
250g drinking chocolate £1.00
55g SR Flour £0.06
200g icing sugar £0.40
1 tbsp. cocoa £0.18

Total cake cost = £4.46

First grease and line two 8" sandwich tins and turn on your oven to 170-180 c.

Cream 170g of butter and dark brown soft sugar until light and fluffy.
Add the eggs one by one and beat well.
Sieve the flour and drinking chocolate into the mixture.
Beat well.
Pour into the two tins.
Bake for 30 minutes.

When cool beat the icing sugar and 70g of the butter and sandwich the cake together.

To make the topping, gently melt the remaining butter and 1 tbsp of milk.
Beat in the icing sugar and cocoa powder.
If the mixture is too stiff just add more milk.
Pour over the cake.

Decorate as desired.
We used 60g of Morrisons mini marshmallows - £0.30 and 40g of Morrisons Chocolate Dots - £0.38.

AND ENJOY!

x x x

Disclaimer: I received £80 vouchers to carry out my Bank Holiday shop at Morrisons. As always, views and opinions are my own and are honest.

From Morrisons:

This is the start of a new cheaper Morrisons.

From today (1.5.2014), we’ve cut the prices on over a thousand of your favourite products. Not temporary reductions or supermarket smoke and mirrors, these are new every day low prices on the things you buy every week. So you’ll notice the difference with every shop.

And although we’re cutting prices, we’re not cutting corners. You can check our pricing at www.Morrisons.com/pricecuts.

You’ll still get award-winning meat and fish, still get trained butchers and bakers, still get the best of fresh on Market Street and still get friendly Morrisons service.

Look out for the yellow markers when you shop in store and online atmorrisons.com. If it says I’m cheaper you know it’s staying cheaper.

Project Wild Thing {Camp Bestival 2014}

I'm so excited about the latest announcement from the Camp Bestival team for this summer's festival...

TAKE A WALK ON THE WILD SIDE AT CAMP BESTIVAL
CELEBRATING THE GREAT OUTDOORS WITH PROJECT WILD THING(UK FESTIVAL EXCLUSIVE) 

 OUTDOOR CRAFTS / NATURE WORKSHOPS / WILD EXPERTS / MUD KITCHEN / FIRE BUILDING / HILL ROLLING / DEN MAKING / BIRD WATCHING / STORYTELLING / FALCONRY / WILD PLAY / CAMPFIRE COOKING AND MUCH, MUCH MORE 

www.campbestival.net 

 

 

When was the last time you climbed a tree? Or picked wild berries? Or followed a stream up a valley? Or slept out under the stars? At Camp Bestival - which takes place from July 31st to August 3rd at Lulworth Castle on Dorset’s dramatic coastline – we’re already passionate about bringing people of all ages together to connect in the fields. But we want to do more to help.

Us humans are losing our connection with nature. We spend more and more time inside looking at screens and less time in the wonderful, great outdoors. We are turning into glassy-eyed zombies. And for the first time in history, our kid’s generation will have a lower life expectancy than their parents.

Something has to change, and fast!  

So, in a festival exclusive, Team CB have teamed up with Project Wild Thing: a new and unique, people-powered movement to help children and adults reconnect with nature. We all need ‘wild time’ in the great outdoors to keep our minds and bodies healthy, and Project Wild Thing is leading the way in encouraging, provoking, supporting and campaigning for ways to help us get back to nature.

Rob da Bank says: “OK, so here’s the sketch. I’ve got three young kids and lots of screens in our house. Luckily, we live in the countryside but they’re still strangely attracted to these blinking screens. When I watched Project Wild Thing, I immediately clicked with what the Wild Thing crew were trying to do… get kids outside and communing with nature in a nutshell! I’m so pleased to be teaming up with them at Camp Bestival and we’re so excited about this Wild side of Camp that the whole site will be infiltrated by Wildness and Wild Things. Prepare to go Wild!"

Exclusively at Camp Bestival and for the first time at any festival ever, we will be taking over the Dingly Dell and beyond to present a Project Wild Thing Programme of nature-focused activities, workshops, gatherings and talks across the whole weekend. These will be hosted by leading partners in the Wild Network: the group of organisations and individuals who are committed to the Project Wild Thing movement.

Project Wild Thing’s David Bond commented: “Project Wild Thing is all about how children need to get outdoors and into nature. We’re really passionate about connecting young people and adults with the outdoors because it makes them fitter, it makes them healthier, it makes them happier, and it makes them develop better. So there’s loads of reasons to get outdoors, it’s really exciting”.

Throughout the weekend you and your kids can enjoy a whole plethora of outdoor crafts and nature workshops, learn how to build a fire, identify plants and animals, build a shelter or make a den, identify birds and listen for birdsong. Practice tree climbing, campfire cooking and rolling down hills. Gather together under the trees or around a fire for story-time. Enjoy the wonders of falconry, learn from Wild experts and be inspired by nature’s greatest adventurers. Become confident and armed to explore the great outdoors once again and reconnect with the incredible world we live in.

To find out a bit more about Project Wild Thing check out this video! See you on the outside!

Everything you need to know about running away to the circus - website, Facebook, Twitter.

Ticket Info

Ticketline / 0844 888 4410 / www.ticketline.co.uk/camp-bestival

Check out my experiences here.

x x x



 

Disclaimer: I am receiving family Camp Bestival 2014 tickets in return for previews and reviews of this year's festival. As always, views and opinions are my own.

 

 

 

365 #18 {Looking on the bright side}

Sometimes it's hard to stay positive.
I chant mantras in my head that things could be a whole lot worse.
And they could. Easily.
But this isn't the place to get miserable so I've looked for things to brighten up my week.

365 #18