Tuesday 26 August 2008

fun with friends

we spent the weekend visiting with friends , and had a really lovely time. They drove to meet us here at Belton House near Grantham, which would be perfect for a grand blog friend meet up. It's very grand, it has lovely gardens,



we could all rush around like busy bees meeting each other, and oohing and aaahing over the flowers,



we would of course have to be properly dressed for the occasion, for once we could wear outfits and say "does my bum look big enough in this".....



the children would have to dress up too of course, which might make going on the fantastic adventure playground a bit hard but I'm sure they'll manage.



back to reality, we got caught in a huge rainstorm whilst going round the gardens, everyone else ran for the cover of a huge tree, but E and I were going round the maze, which was about shoulder height, so they could all see us frantically running here and there trying to get out, all the while getting wetter and wetter.....

the next morning at our friends house near Cambridge the sun came back and we had breakfast in their garden, a treat I don't think we've managed all summer in Yorkshire.



and then we went to visit a place I imagine to be perfect for dottycookie and her lovely girls,



where we did pond dipping in the lakes and caught tiny fish and beetles,



no this photo isn't upside down, these are reflections



and then we found a play area where the grown ups all behaved responsibly at all times.......



In the afternoon we went to Wicken Fen, where I'd last been on my first year field trip as a college student, many many years ago....



we found beautiful flowers amongst the sedges



and it would be a perfect place for Tracy to visit, apparently there are 24 species of dragonfly to be found here throughout the year.



and peaking through the boardwalks we spotted the tiniest lizard - you know your children have been watching too many natural history programs (Lost Land of the Jaguar was the recent favourite)



when your 7 year old says "do you think it's a new species?"

12 comments:

  1. Milton Country Park is our favourite haunt every Friday evening at the moment! We have fish and chips and then go and play on the swings and graze blackberries from the hedgerows for pudding!

    Wicken Fen is about two miles from here! Isn't the wildlife wonderful? What a great lizard photo! I love the way he's peeping up between the boards. That dragonfly clearly has his best outfit on.

    Great costumes too.

    ReplyDelete
  2. love the lizard pic - very cute.
    lisa x

    ReplyDelete
  3. What fun, I really love the dressing up part, great photo's, thanks for sharing.

    ReplyDelete
  4. It looks like you've been having so much fun! You're packing lots into the Summer holidays.
    The bit about the new species made me smile - how sweet!

    ReplyDelete
  5. What fun - looks like you stepped out of a jane Austen novel!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Milton Country Park and Wicken Fen - fab places both!

    The country park has revcently been saved - it was threatened with closure which seems almost unbelievable when so many people love it. We used to go every week while my big girl was at Gymbobs in Milton. Lovely memories!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Thank you for taking us along on your outings--wonderful times! Those costumes are terrific--what fun! Happy Days ((HUGS))

    ReplyDelete
  8. National Trust has some fantastic properties - sounds like you had a great weekend. I'm enjoying reading about your travels and writing down the ideas of where I can take my family next time.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Oh for the the return of the bustle! It looks like you had such a lovely day spotting dragonflies and the cutest little lizard face!

    ReplyDelete
  10. I remember going to Wicken Fen on a field trip too...many moons ago...

    Love the cheeky little lizard! And of course, the dragonfly!

    ReplyDelete
  11. Why Ms T, you look fabulous if I may say so!
    Beautiful photos as always x

    ReplyDelete
  12. What a wonderfull time you all had, i love to visit places like that, Thankyou for a great blog,
    im making a note of those places,

    ReplyDelete

thanks for visiting, I love to read your comments, and I'll reply if I can see your email, or here in the comment box.