Wednesday

We had earned our 100 marbles class treat again, so it was bring your gadgets and wear your pyjama party in the afternoon.  I took my phone and decided against my laptop.

It was proper hot today, so once Ned was done at quadkids we headed for the outdoor pool with a picnic, brilliant.

There were a few people there, one of which was a man from mum's work who's son has just joined the same football team as Ned.  They had a great time leaving me with mum and dad all to myself which was really nice.  We dived and played ball, with the ball more often than not causing a menace in the serious swimmers lane......

We stayed until it closed at 7pm:

Thursday

We had a school trip the Faccombe Estate today, a farming place.  It was cool because we got to wear our own clothes (apparently white jeans are not a good idea?) but it was certainly not cool as I didn't really like it.  I understand that the animals are their products to sell and make money on, but I can't not see them as cute pets really.  The doggies were really lovely though.

Friday

Mufti day at school....another serious fashion decision to make!  Its a good job I've had a birthday recently and got plenty of good stuff to choose from!

Once school was done for the week we had an important mission on....Party shopping!

With just one day until my party we obviously hadn't left everything until the last minute.....not quite everything anyway.....haha.

We hit town, picked up the last of supplies we needed (including our very own chocolate fountain) and then sent Dad off on a solo errand so we could buy him some fathers day cards (all a bit of a panic after getting badly let down by an online retailer).

Once we were home we put the finishing touches to our home made limbo set....it was looking good!

We played up at the park while Ned did football training again, Dad and I did our best to maim ourselves on the exercise equipment while mum tried to take it easy in the sunshine.

Saturday

Party day was upon us.  How exciting.  I got Dad to work early doors making a massive batch of cupcakes, then put Ned to work with his nice new icing bag set I got him for his birthday decorating them....cakes done!

Meanwhile mum and I were blowing up balloons and the first inflatable guitars and microphones we had bought.  Next up we had to pack all the food and drink provisions, make sure we had the ipad with the music, the back up ipad with the music (thanks Ned) and about another three thousand bits and bobs we thought we might need.

We nipped out to the school summer fete for a bit, that was a bit of an oversight on our part in regards to party planning.  It was pretty good, as usual I was only interested in the lucky dip, oh, and the bouncy castle slide thing.

It was a scorching hot day, the ideal thing to do on an afternoon was surely to have a disco!

We had hired a place called Ace Space down in town, a couple of Ned's friends had parties there in the past.

It was surprisingly cool in there actually, and nice a and dark for maximum disco lights impact.

The man showed us around and we get set up, all four of us got busy and we soon ready to get going,  the DJ was raring to go:

My friends arrived in dribs and drabs and we got stuck in.

Our limbo set went down a storm, as did the balloons and the inflatable instruments.  

It as pretty warm so after all that activity and warm chocolate fountain action the ice lollies were a lovely  chill out session:

Before Ned's party bangers selection kicked off, he filled the floor, even the adults got involved (there were quite a few in attendance and I think some of them might have had a cheeky drink).

All too soon it was over, and everyone was getting picked up, hot and sweaty and squinting into the sunshine outside.

Nate hung on until the end which was cool:

I had an absolute blast, it was so much fun and went really well.  I'd like to thank everyone for coming, it was lovely to see all of you, I really do appreciate a get together!  We should do it more often.

I also got some great gifts too, thanks a lot everyone.  Special mention to my friend Jess for the custard Creams!

Ned had been feeling a little bit under the weather so had battled bravely on all day so we dropped him off at home to watch Iron Man 2 while the rest of us went to McDonalds for supper.....quarter pounder with cheese for me.

Sunday

Fathers day, we let him have a lie in, well Ned didn't surface for ages anyway.

We gave him some very insulting cards which we found hilarious.  We'd got him a longboard as a present as he's constantly badgering Ned to have a go on his.....and I can use it too!

We'd arranged a trip to Hollycoombe with Alan, Hayley, Nate and Joel.  Shame it was a steam fair on the hottest day of the year.......

We started off with the hottest picnic of the year, then on to the rides:

It was lovely to take Nate around and go on the stuff with him, we even took him through the ghost house!

The little railway was running for the first time ever as well:

We loved the big wheel, even if it was accompanied by 'I wish it could be Christmas everyday' how seasonal!!!

I wasn't allowed to drive home though....

I started on one of my birthday craft kits when we got home.....it didn't quite go to plan as I ended up with glue all over my face and in my eye?  This caused mild panic it has to be said.  Mum sorted it out soon enough though with no lasting ill effects.

Monday

Still scorchio....badgered Dad to get the paddling pool out.....result!!

Loved splashing about in it....cant wait until tomorrow as it was a bit too cold fresh from the tap!

Tuesday
Gymnastics badge week has seemingly been a long time coming round again? Woth the wait though as I have now gained the Silver Apparatus award.  I nearly lost it again as soon as we left the gym though as the wind my certificate clean out of my hands and blew it up the road.  I managed to bring it's escape bid to a halt by trapping it against a tree.....made it a bit dimply.

Wednesday
We did PE today, athletics stuff and then afterwards when back in class looked into the science behind our athletic actions.  Friction, wind resistance and all that sort of thing, I loved it.
While Ned was at Team Kennet I went for a bike ride around the Common, trying out the new cycle helmet I had for my birthday.

Thursday
We had a taster day visit to Park House school.  It was great fun, we did soem archery, made some tissue paper flowers and as it was a Japanese themed day we also did some yoga, meditation and learned to count to ten and beyond in Japanese using sign language too!

Friday
My trip down the park after school with my friends was cut short as we had to go and pick the car up from the garage so that was rubbish.  Ned is still doing his football club after tea, we discovered a whole load of that outdoor gym equipment stuff when we went to pick him up a bit early.  We had a right old laugh trying that out.

Saturday

The thing I very much wanted the most for my birthday was my ears pierced.....well, second most wanted thing, but i'm realistic enough to accept that there won't be a puppy anytime soon.  Mum rang the jewellers on Saturday morning and the lady said they had a slot available at 11 o'clock.  So we had to get our skates on and get down the town.  I was so excited to finally get it done.  I had to choose my first set of earrings form a reasonably small selection....so after a small amount of deliberation I obviously picked the largest, blingiest pair of studs on offer.

Then it was time to get in the chair and decide exactly where the holes were going to go.....this was decided by committee with me giving the final nod of approval from looking where the pen dots were positioned in a mirror....

So, we were all set, earrings chosen, position chosen......all that was left was the act itself.  The lady was very nice and asked if I wanted a countdown or whether she should just go for it....I told her I didn't want a countdown so she she just got on with it.

One then quickly the other and it was all done.  It did hurt, I won't lie, but it really wasn't that bad at all.  So that was it, all done a d a trip to the chemist to get some cleaning clobber and some micropore tape to cover them up for sport and I was all set,

Dad reckoned it would gurt like hell later......

We checked out an upgrade for Andy on the way home:

But apparently he's on the mend and out of his boot and off the crutches too!

We went out for a bike ride inthe afternoon, to explore a route for Mum to get to work along the canal.  We rode along the footpath taking in the sights, it was really quite lovely actually.. I loved exploring the locks and using them as bridges and scrabbling accross them.  We did find a route to Mum's work too in the end so it was a successful mission.  There was also a world war 2 pill box by the canal with a nice little gap over to a bridge that loved jumping across, Dad took some slo-mo video that i'm sure will surface here at some point in the future.

We started the ride home and things went a bit awry when I got my bike hooked up in a rut, fell off it and got the end of the handlebars shoved firmly into my lower stomach as I lurched forwrd and the front wheel rapidly swung to the side. Mit really, really hurt.....way more than the ear piercing! It was a bot of a slow and steady ride home afyer i'd picked myself up and dusted myself down

With all the usual Saturday night shows finished we ended up watching the film Iron Man, which at forst I wasn't overly keen on the idea of.  It was however brilliant and I loved it.

Sunday
We had a project to build a limbo dancing set, using two broom handles, a load of wooden dowels, a drill,a work bench and a hammer.  I decided to leave the bulk of the drilling to Dad while I made myself useful using the hammer to bang the dowels in.  Initial testing went very well and now we just need to work out how to make it stand up nicely.

We spent the whole morning outside just pottering about, it was lovely to be outside and use the picnic bench.

Nate and Joel came round in the afternoon, with my birthday present:

We had a lovely time with them of course, obviously the Nerf guns came out......

On e they had gone I got busy with the Hama beads!!!

Monday
Darcey came round after school for a bit, we played games and had a mini disco to road test some potential tunes for an upcoming event.

We haven't had an earrings picture yet have we?  

There, and despite Dad's continued concerns they still don't hurt!

I got stuck into the Hama beads again, my bedroom door is looking much better as a result!

Half term week was upon us, so it was the usual mix and match approach to childcare.....

Tuesday

A trip to the Cotswold Wildlife park with Auntie Christine, Laura and Darcey.  What a great day out.

We really enjoyed ourselves, the highlight had to be the very new puppy, oh, and entering the competition to name the baby Lemur.  I chose Leo and Darcey chose Lolly, we'll have to wait and see how we do.  We were having such a good day we were too late getting back to go to gymnastics.  Thanks girls!

Wednesday

We looked after Andy for the day, seeing as he's still off work with his leg.  It was a nice morning, we did jigsaw and generally just hung out, chattering and that.

Thursday

Cornwall trip? That sounds like a good idea! We waited until Andy had his hospural check up and took him along with us, only fair as we were lucky enough to get to stay in his caravan.  The traffic was good and we were soon down there, it was a glorious scene, a beach full of people enjoying the sunshine and waves.

We had a nice walk (or shared riding the mobility scooter) and then had a barbecue for tea.

Friday

We had a nice lie in before we finally got up.  A trip to Gary's, then on to St Merryn to grab a cake for tomorrow.......

Afternoon dip in the sea.

We had a drive out in the evening to Fistral beach, the waves were big and there were some really good surfers out which was great to watch.....for a short while.

Saturday

The big day was finally here.....my Tenth Birthday!

We were up a little earlier than yesterday, ahem.

I unwrapped my presents which Mum had wrapped and Dad had managed to shoe horn into the car along with all our other stuff.

It was a decent haul it has to be said.

Pancakes for breakfast....then onto the Go Kart track in an exact copy of Neds birthday a few months ago....it was all my own choice though.  I love karting:

Next up, lunch at the youth hostel:

Thrn back to the van for cake:

I did share it honestly....

Then we got out my present from Ned, Wet Head:

It's like Russian Roulette, you spin a spinner then do as it says....removing straws or missing a go or whatever.  One crucial straw though will cause the water stored I still de to empty.....over your head....and diwn your back.  It was great fun, we can't wait to t to play it again next time we have a get together on a warm day.

We went for a bit of a surf session.  It wasn't my greatest success it has to be said.....I got turned over twice and wasn't over,y happy.

What better way to round the day our than watching the Brirains Got Talent final, with a sweepstake and a £5 prize for the winner....Ned was lucky this time.  Still, cant have it all, even if it is your birthday.

Sunday

The Last day of our short break, another lay in then out in the sunshine for a wander.  

I also got this limited vely new green waterproof jacket from the surf shop.

We of course loved using Andy's scooter.....until it ranout of batteries and we had to push it back up the hill!

The boys went back in the sea while Mum and I sat on the beach, enjoying the sunshine.

Then it was all hands to the pump to get packed up,cleared up and head for home.....

Monday

Back to school....urrgggh.

Once I got home I assembled one of my presents, a dressmakers mannequin:

Then started to get creative:

After tea I got busy designing my party invites on my laptop, with a bit of help from Mum and a lot of help from Ned, who is something of a Word guru rather surprisingly.

Cornwall June 2017 from Part Time on Vimeo.

Wednesday

After school rugby went well this week, especially when at then end of the session Mr Toal decided we couldnt go until we'd taken a place kick and got the ball over the football goal cross bar for a bit of fun.  We watched everyone have a go with varying levels of sucess before it was my turn.  I placed the ball, didn't take a run up at all and hoofed it.....straight over the bar...by miles.  I think its fair to say there were a few surprised faces as I just left the filed without even looking back!

We had a bit of Pizza banquet (home made of course) before we packed Ned off on his history trip to Normandy.

Thursday

We got up bright and early to make sure Ned actually went away...ha ha. He took it all in his stride of course and disappeard quite happily onto the fancy looking double decker coach, we couldn't see him once he was on board because of the blacked out windows.

We waved him off anyway.  So, four days of peace and quiet for the rest of us, time to take it easy with a bespoke garden recliner to my own design:

It was Alans birthday and for the first time in years we weren't away on hoilday.

We took him his present round, Nate supervised:

Joel was his usual calm and quiet self.  I had to have a cuddle with him of course.

It was still quite early when we were done so Dad and I took the skateboards to the park, the paths have been freshly tarmaced so we had a lovely sunset cruise:

We did a few few runs down the slope behind the skatepark, where we got spotted by Kierans mum.

Friday

I got a Special Award in assembly, so Mum was in attendance.  It was for my massive improvment with my school work across the board.

It was the last of of the half term too, so that was nice.

We were still Nedless of course, so after tea we went over to the Craven Arms for a drink and a kick about:

Saturday

We had a bit of a garden clear up and then headed off to buy a picnic bench for the garden. So a trip to B&Q it was.  I did a great job steering the heavy and hard to control trolley with it on to the checkout and then the car.  When we got home Dad and I set about getting it built.....

We did a great job even in I do say so myself.  We didn't get any of it wrong, we didn't even shout at each other or even raise or voices.  We did manage to break two screwdrivers though.  We tested it out at lunchtime:

In the afternoon we had a low key Barbecue, Andy came round on his mobility scooter and was joined by Emma, Max, Leo and then Alan, Hayley, Nate and Joel.  We had a lovely time, cuddling Joel, playing with Nate and doing laps of the close on the mobility scooter, trampolining and burning stuff with Leo.

Sunday

We had a bit of lazy one today, we headed to the retail park to get some picninc things and bumped into Nate again.  He looked pleased to see us so we took him around Marks and Spencers for a bit until Alan and Hayley caught up with us.

Once we'd bought our provisions we headed off to Donnington Castle, pit hed our blanket under a tree and enjoyed the sunshine and a lovely view over town.

I helped Mum with her jigsaw in the afternoon, we are finally starting to make some sort of headway with it at long last.

Then it was time to go and pick Ned up, it seemed to go by in a flash.  We had all sort of missed him, a little bit anyway......

It was quite exciting to go and pick him up even though he was pretty tired and had a long day travelling.  He had been to see some cool war stuff by the sounds of it and had got himself some proper smart souvenir bullets.

Monday

I woke up in a pretty sorry way today, all poorly and under the weather.

So we didn't do much, more jigsaw......and then a McDonalds for tea followed by Britains Got Talent semi final on telly.

Tuesday

The trampoline had dried out today, so as soon as I was home from school it was time for a good old bounce!

This continued on to gymnastics where we also did trampolining.  

Don't ask me ask Britain was on tonight, one of my current favourites.  I love voting on the app on my phone!

Wednesday

We had a school visit to a Sikh temple today, fir aome reason I really wasnt looking forward to it but it was brilliant.  It was so quiet and peaceful, not words usually used when im involved I know.  The catering was also top notch with lovely curry and bread.  It was actually the place where my friend Evie was baptised.

Things took a turn for the worse when I got home, it was chili on the menu and I still hate it with a passion.

Neds fidget spinner finally turned up in the post, thank god.  Dad tried to do him a favour and get him one from Ebay that he thought would be sent quickly.....sadly it took a while and we never heard the end of it.

Thursday

We had two teams going to the giris six-a-side Football tournament up at the Rugby club after school.  I was in B team, team manager Mr. Swan.  He was brilliant fun but also got us playing and kept us in line from the sidelines.  We won our first match 1-0, won our second match 1-0 and drew our third match 0-0, an exact replica of our A teams results too.  We lost our final group game, which was a shame, but we thought we'd done enough to make it to the quarter finals.  We had......but we had to play our A team.  They beat us 2-0 but it was actually a pretty close game and we gave a good account of ourselves.  The A team made it all the way to the final but just lost out.  It was a brilliant afternoon though and we were all buzzing:

Friday

Film night at school, been a while since we've had one of these.  The film was Moana, which i'm sure was really good but I couldn't really hear the dialogue above the general chitter chatter.....

Still, I looked the business in my dress and shoes combo, especially as plenty ofothers had turned up very casual or evening in onesies......can you imagine?

Saturday

I Awoke to exciting news of the arrival of my brand new cousin Joel.  How massively exciting.

I supervised Dad fitting the new dishwasher......finally!

We did a bit of shopping and then it was time for me to go to Lilly Yeomans bowling birthday party.  It was great fun and I bowled pretty well too. 

We went straight from picking me up at the bowling alley to the hospital in Reading to see Joel.  Officially kids weren't allowed in, but as usual Uncle Alan was prepared to bend the rules a little bit so we could get a cuddle with the little man:

Well, he was very cuddle-able:

Nate was on great form too, he seemed happy to have a little brother:

Sunday
A DIY morning again, this time I oversaw the resealing of the work tops against the tiles.

Ned went off to London with his friends to watch the Sidemen play football at Charlton Athletic stadium so we had a Ned free day.  Swimming the, the Oasis with my friend Lilly Newman along too.  We had a great time, even if the flums were closed.  We did a lot of jumping in and had loads of goes in the other slides.  Tge highligt though was the wave machine, washing us up and over the pool edge, then washing us around the wall of the baby pool....i'm surprised neither of us got hurt!
We were home in time to watch the second half of the sidemen match, it seemed quite fun.  We had been in text contact with him, but it all went quiet at the end when the pitch invasion took place.....

Monday

Dentist check up, she was very complimentary of my brushing!

Mum and I spent the evening planting some marigolds in our pots which was lovely and mucky!

Just need to make sure we water them now.....especially in this sunny spell we're having.

Well i'm in very real danger of getting up to date here!!  Hope you've all kept up?

10th May Wednesday

I've d cided to take a rest from athletics at Team Kennet, so we go up on a wednesday to watch Ned.  Well, we don't watch much of him as Mum and Dad make us go for a walk on Greenham Common.  It was pretty cool this week though as there were a lot of mummy cows with their calves dotted about, they were soooo cute and I loved trying to pair up mother and child based on their looks.  What I didn't like though, is having to pass too close to them, up close they are massive and quite scary!

11th Thursday

I helped Mum and Dad wash the cars after school.  It's usally a bit of a fraught affair as Dad often doesn't appreciate my cleaning methods or free and easy approach to hoespipe use. This week though it went much better, a bit of understanding on both sides goes a long way I reckon:

12th Friday

Ned started football training for a club outside of school this week, this wreaked havoc with our tea schedule especially as he had a Rugby tournament in the afternoon too.  I was quite happy about this though as I got to have a chicken and mushroom pot noodle and a toasted cheese wrap...perfect!

13th Saturday

Today was a big day, Ned's birthday outing to Thorpe Park.

He was bringing three friends, Kieran, Charlie and Harry.  We were going to get them into the park and then let them go free for the daywhile Mum, Dad and I would have our own day out.  Great idea, all I had to do was survive the journey with those super annoying boys......

In all honesty, they weren't too bad, maybe they had grown up a bit in the last year?

We arrived with perfect timing just before the park opened at 9:30 which was a surprise as we thought we were majorly early for 10:00 opening.  We got in, wished the boys a good day and after a brief discussion headed for Nemesis.  Being so early there was no queue to speak of and we walked straight on.  It was brilliant, so brilliant we walked straight back round for another go.  As we left the station the boys appeared in the queue so we gave them a wave as we moved off.

Next up the Flying Fish, a bit tame maybe but great fun, thenon to Swarm.  Certainly not tame but totally brilliant, my new favourite I think.  The ride layout was brilliant, like a disater zone, all crashed vehicles, planes and helicopters, wrecked buildings and all the rest of it. The start is amazing as it turns you upside down before the first drop!

We continued zig zagging around the park, taking in Rush (massive scary swing), Zodiac (enterprise wheel), the Vortex, Detonator (drop tower, made Dad squeal audibly), Dodgems (too many on the track but fast), the tea cups (we had the fastest spin of course), X, an indoor rollercoaster that promised much and didn't really deliver, storm surge (like riding in a paddling pool, half full of water, tricky to keep your feet dry) and then the biggest challenge of the day for both Mum and myself, Stealth.

Stealth involves sitting in the car, putting your head back against the headrest and then being launched at ridiculous speed (80mph in 2 seconds apparently) along the track and then up this:

It was amazing, so fast.  Mum reckoned all she saw was sky, then ground!  Ha ha, we knew Ned would be very proud of us.

We rounded the day out with a go on Samurai, which was quite frankly like being in a washing machine, attached to a merry go round or p something, brilliant fun!

We tried to get on Saw too, but the queue closed just before we got there...next time!

We met up with the boys back at the car, they were soaked but buzzing.  I think they had a fun day. We had a bit of a car picnic before heading for home.

Now the real fun started, we were geading cross country through Aldermaston towards Kngsclere to drop a couple of the boys off when we came accross a dog, all on his own, in the road.  Dad slowed down, put the hazards on and Mum got out to see if she could find his owner or see if there was a number we could call on his collar.  There wasn't, she came back to the car and opened the door to talk to Dad and the dog jumped up into the passenger seat, sat himself down quite comfortably and looked out of the windscreento see where we were off to.  This obviously caused mass hysteria to rest of the car passengers,which didn't phase our new friend one bit.  He was a lovely dog, a bit greyhoundy, quite big with lovely soft pale brown fur.  Mum tried ot encourgae him into the footwell but he wasnt having any of that and wouldn't budge so she had no choice but to share the seat with him, cuddled up all cosy.  This caused the rest of us to up the levels of hilarity another couple of notches and we were in fits of laughter by now as we drove along, all 7 seats taken in the car and a dog in the front with Mum.  We planned on dropping the Kingsclere boys off and then getting our new friend, who had been christened Alfie Weed by this point (no idea why) into the freed up boot space so we could comfortably take gim to the dogs trust place near home.  Once we arrived at Charlies house though he was quite keen to see what we could do to get the situation dealt with and called his Mum (who was out with her friends for dinner), she suggested ringing the Police non emergency number which was a good call.  Unfortunately he rang NHS direct instead, who weren't much use dealing with a lost dog.  The police then managed to hang up on him which was also great.  Through perseverance he eventually got a message through to council approved dog warden.   He wasn't going to be able to pick Alfie up for at least 4 hours though!  At this point, Charlies Dad said that he may as well stay with them until he was collected and got a spate dog bed for him and some food and drink.  He was a little bit thin looking but wasn't intertested in the food.  Reluctantly we left him there, despite both Ned and I desperatley pleading our case to keep him and made our way home to drop off Kieran.

This had made us rather late for our visit to Abi and Fayes to watch the Eurovision Song Contest!

14th Sunday

So latest update on Alfie the dog.....

He was picked up earlier than expected and was microchipped! He was apparently registered in Ireland so has one way or another come a long way.  Lets hope no one claims him and we can win Mum and Dad round......

Had a bit of a quiet day today, Nate came round in the afternoon which was lovely. Still no sign of his little brother though.....

15th Monday

Helped Mum cleanthe trampoline off for the summer season.....brilliant, I love a good bounce!

Sadly, by the time we'd given it a good old scrub it was too wet to bounce on.....

1st May Monday

Another bank holiday.  We went to the cinema, to see a full price film! Unbelieveable for us but Gaurdians of the Galaxy 2 was on so it was special circumstances.  I loved it, loved it, loved it loved it.  My favourite character is still Rocket, the trash panda, the triangle faced monkey.  Although baby Groot was great as well.

5th May Friday

Andy came to babysit so Mum and Dad could go out for Slim's birthday.  How is that fair? Only kidding Slim.  It was nice to look after poor old injured Andy for the night (im not really grumpy, just pulling a face):

Happy birthday Uncle Slim x

6th May

Darceys party today, a creepy crawlie do!

I was one of the older ones there but i'm cool with that, it was brilliant.

There were tarantula's, millipedes and snakes:

Auntie Trish hid in th kitchen during this:

Happy birthday Darcey, awesome party!

Another party? Yeah, great, why not??? It was for Eloise this time and it was a wobsticle party.  To add to the excitment there was a brand new wobsticle to enjoy.  We loved it.  Happy birthday Eloise!

7th May Sunday

Ned had one of his driving lessons today.  As is usual when he does this the weather was glorious.  So while we waited for his time slot we had a kickabout/football coaching session which went pretty well.

It was soon time for him to get behind the wheel:

He moved off very nicely and headed off out onto the road system around the showground and we lost track of him....until he came speeding past our viewing point, grinning out of the window at us, seemingly paying no attention to the road ahead, making all the other Mum's and Dad's laugh.  He assured us he had it covered.

We quickly made our way to Legoland to renew our Merlin passes for the year and managed to sneak in a good few rides before it closed:

We loved it, but I think we might be getting a bit big for it bow....much to Mum's disappointment as she loves it there!

25th April Tuesday

Back to school today after the Easter holidays, and in all honesty I was actually rather looking forward to it.

28th April Friday

Dad had got all exciteable about finally having a car with an aerial so he could buy an earial topper.  This one took a while to get here all the way from China (Via Ebay, £1 including postage)

It was certainly worth the wait though, how cool is this:

29th April Saturday

Not much today, a brief trip into town for a bit of clothes shopping and a trip to the Park at Northcroft, which was great fun as we hadnt been there in ages.

17th April Monday

So it was Easter Monday, a bank holiday!

Mum said she fancied going swimming in an outdoor pool, the weather wasn't particularly warm or anything so we had our work cut out to find a potential venue.

After a bit of Googling Dad found Hampton Open Air pool, open all year round with nicely. Heated water......sounded ideal.  Turned out to be brilliant too, proper big deep and warm outdoor pool that even allowed diving.  I made the most of that and really honed my splashless entry.

Once we had finished splashing about we headed to Bushey park, it was pretty busy but we found a sneaky parking space and went off for a walk...it wasn't long before we come across these proper cuties:

18th April Tuesday

Still schoolholidays......so a trip to the cinema with our awesome Aunties to see Boss Baby! 

19th April Wednesday

Another day with the Aunties, today it as a trip Milestones museum in Basingstoke.  We loved it there, and I think they did too. As if that wasn't enough we also went bowling at the very fancy Basingstoke bowling alley which is far nicer than the Thatcham one.

Thanks Aunties, great couple of days!

20th April Thursday

Todays entertainment while Mum and Dad were at work was holiday club at KD gymnastics. Hadn't done this one before but when I found out Lilly was going too I was quite keen.  We had a great time.

21st April Friday

I went to play with my friend Lilly in the afternoon, she's got loads of pets, so lucky! I dosed up on anti allergy tablets before I went and it worked a treat.

Auntie Trish, who I would have thought had already seen enough of us for the week very kindly came to babysit us so Mum and Dad could go out for a bit. We had a lovely night in of course.

22nd April Saturday

Although we had only just come back from Cornwall we were off down west again.

This time to Mum's work caravan in Exmouth.  We also took the poor old one legged wonder Andy along with us.  His leg is in plaster after he snapped his Achilles playing the rufty-tufty dangerous game of badminton! So he's on crutches and even borrowed......a mobility scooter!

We stopped off for lunch in Exmouth:

Before making our way to the caravan to see how it all was.....very nice as it goes.  Sea view, sunshine....yes thanks that'll do nicely.  We spent the late afternoon and evening mooching about to see what was what and taking turns on the mobility scooter.  It was sooooo much fun.

23rd April Sunday

One of the first things we noted while exploring the previous day was the beach hire place that rented out stand up paddle boards.  We fancied a go at that. So we got kitted up, got a brief lesson and got out in the sea.  Ned had his own and paddled pretty much straight out to sea while Dad and I decided we would share one.  This arrangement worked very well for me as I got up and paddled about but not so good for Dad who spent the best part of an hour, paddling around in waist deep water with an oar in his hand.  I did let him have a go at the end for 5 minutes or so but he wasn't as good as Ned and I were at it,  Sadly we didn't get any photos or video as the one time the Go Pro would have been brilliant to have, the battery was flat.

We went for a wander around Exmouth in the afternoon, Andy took his own own wheels:

Ned took his skateboard, which he tried to get a tow from Andy from with varying degrees of success.

We had a barbecue in the evening:

It was lovely to sit out on the balcony.

24th April Monday

Bank holiday again today, meaning we could stay for an extra day.

We went to the swimming pool for a good old splash about and then rinsed the last few minutes out of Andy's scooter:

We eventually headed home, stopping on the way for a cream tea.....it was a bit chilly outside, the weather had turned a bit!