Helmsley Castle, Yorkshire

Posted by Caroline Elliott

One of the things I was really looking forward to on our little holiday to Yorkshire recently, was visiting some good castles. I love a good castle, the scale, the history, I just find them fascinating. Our base for the week was near Thirsk so we were not far away from the North York Moors. On the southern border of the moors is the small town of Helmsley, home to Helmsley Castle. I thought it looked like a good place to visit, especially as it was only around 20 mins from our holiday cottage.

What I hadn’t realised, from the little research I did, was quite how close to the town it was, with the ruin of one tower very much looming over the town – this tower was an addition, actually built solely to intimidate the residents of the town.

I have to admit we struggled a little to find the castle. Obviously we could see it as we drove into Helmsley but was very unclear how to actually get to it. Signs for parking in a couple of places but nothing that actually said parking for the castle, which would have been helpful! So if you go, look out for signs for “Long Stay” parking and that will take you to the right place.

On arrival there is a lovely model of how the castle used to look, and there are a couple of different routes you can take to enter the castle – with LM in the buggy we were advised to take the slightly longer, accessible route, which led us to the barbican where there are some very cool bronzed statues.

Monkey had a fab time running around, exploring and climbing on the castle walls.

There were places where hand-holding was a must, especially walking around the edge of the moat, and inside the fallen tower, to make sure he didn’t do himself a mischief. It was a grey morning when we arrived but the sun thankfully came out and after looking inside at some of the well preserved rooms we had a nice little picnic.

With the sun fully out and LM having a nap we then had a lot of fun spinning in the sunshine, chasing bubbles and generally just having a lovely time with Monkey.

We then wandered into Helmsley itself which is a gorgeous little market town with lots of lovely little shops and tea rooms where you could happily while away some time.

Visitor Information

Helmsley Castle is managed by English Heritage and you can find the opening times and prices here. At time of writing it was £6 per adult, £3.60 per child and under 5s go free (perfect for us). We thought this was an ok price was as we didn’t find there was enough there to stay the whole day.

There is a shop but no refreshments available so take a picnic, or you can easily walk into Helmsley itself where there are plenty of tea shops and cafes to choose from.

As mentioned above the parking signs are terrible and don’t mention the castle at all, but follow signs for “Long Stay” parking and you should find it!

Do you and your kids like exploring castle ruins?

Fountains Abbey & Studley Royal Water Gardens

Posted by Caroline Elliott

Regular readers will know that we were on our hols in Yorkshire a few weeks back. We stayed in a lovely barn conversion just outside Thirsk, which was the perfect base to explore lots of wonderful places.

First of all, we headed west to Fountains Abbey & Studley Royal Water Gardens near Ripon. We have some very good friends who live up in Newcastle and we had arranged to meet up with them while we were staying “up north” and Fountains Abbey seemed like the perfect place. It is a National Trust place which is perfect for us as we have membership and it is huge too which means lots to see and do to keep the kiddies entertained!

We started out at the West Gate which is nearest the Abbey itself. It is not the main entrance but friend is heavily pregnant so I wasn’t sure how far she would want to walk, as it was she was fine but it was still a good place to start.

The Abbey is incredible and ginormous! It is so sad to think that the abbeys are ruined by choice. After being basically bankrupted, monks were forced to leave the abbey, and then the monarchs ordered the roofs to be removed so that they could never return and the abbey fell into ruin.

It was a beautiful sunny day, though pretty freezing at the same time unfortunately. We all had a great time exploring the ruins, then when it was time to feed LM we got out the bubble wands and let the boys run around in the sunshine chasing the bubbles.

We then had a lovely wander, following the stream towards the Studley Royal Water Gardens which was created in the 1700s. They really are magnificent and beautiful and a lovely place to explore.

After a little picnic we carried on all the way to the lake at the opposite end, where we saw a Swan’s nest!

By this point we were all so cold and very happy to see a nice little tearoom where we could go to get warmed up. It was really lovely and I have to say they had the nicest baby change room I have ever been in. Even after a bit of cake both toddlers were getting a little tired by this point from all of the running around and exploring, so we started the long walk back towards the abbey and our cars.

We had a lovely lovely day exploring both the Abbey and the Water Gardens, but there still bits that we didn’t get to see so we will definitely return one day to see more. It was a great place to go and visit with so much to see, and the perfect spot for us to meet our friends.

Have you been?

Lotherton Hall, nr Leeds

Posted by Caroline Elliott

Last week we headed up the A1 towards Yorkshire for a lovely little family holiday. We wanted to head off first thing in the morning during LM’s first sleep but couldn’t get into the cottage until 3pm. We decided we would stop off along the way, but actually made really good time that morning and decided to carry on a bit further than the halfway point where we thought we would stop. The question was, where to stop?

SatNavs are great but I love a good map, and this is the perfect example of why. I got the map out and had a look for some landmarks and places where we could visit. I found Lotherton Hall, just off the A1 not far from Leeds and after a quick look online (thank goodness for mobile internet) decided it was the perfect place for a little visit!

Entry was £5 per adult, 2.50 for children but under 5s go free which was great for us and compared to a lot of places we have visited I didn’t think the price was bad at all! (There is membership available too if you are local and there seemed to be a lot of mums with kids there who go there regularly.

So what is there? Loads! It’s a lovely big house which you can go round, though we found plenty to keep us amused outside. There are manicured gardens where you can play games on the lawns, a rock garden to explore, a lovely woodland walk with some adventure play areas amongst the trees (more on that later) 2 big play areas, a cafe and outdoor seating area, plenty of picnics spots, and to top it off a big bird sanctuary in the centre of the grounds!

LM woke up when we arrived so we headed straight to the cafe for some refreshment. the cafe was lovely and not too expensive, with a lovely sunny seating area. I was also really impressed to see a section of the stables set aside for indoor picnics on days when the weather is less than warm. So many places don’t provide indoor eating areas unless you buy their food, so I thought this was a nice touch.

We then headed to the main playarea, which is huge! There is so much to do for all different abilities and Monkey had a fab time climbing, though Mummy did have to clamber up and help him on one of the difficult bits, after that we kept him on the younger side of the playarea hehe. He also got his first ride on the zipwire swing and he absolutely adored it! Trying to get him to hold tightly enough was a challenge though!

After a bit of a play we went for a wander and discovered the bird sanctuary! We had no idea it was there and it was massive with lots of lovely fascinating birds with many of them in really nice roomy enclosures. they even had a couple of condors and one of them was suitably impressing us by showing off his awesome wingspan.

Then it was picnic time and we headed to a big field, which is where we discovered another play area! Spread across the field was all manner of climbing frames, swings, monkey bars, spinny things, two more zipwire swings and all sorts – and there was a lot of children out there enjoying the sunshine and having a lovely play on all of the equipment.

After lunch we took a stroll to get LM to sleep and had a little look at the deer park, then wandered through the woods. Which is where we discovered lots of lovely wooden play equipment spread amongst the trees. Some of the wooden beams took hubs and I back to our childhood and we had a great time running across the spinning beam – miraculously I surprised us all and managed it on my first run across… but couldn’t do it at all when hubs tried to catch it on camera lol. Monkey thought it was great fun seeing Mummy and Daddy playing!

We headed back to the field after that and had a bit more of a play there before deciding to head on to our holiday cottage

We had a lovely time at Lotherton Hall, there is so much to see and do which to me makes the entry fee totally worthwhile. If we lived nearer I imagine we would go quite a lot as Monkey loved it too!

The Gadget Show Live with the OmniO Rider

Posted by Caroline Elliott

Last week I was contacted about a fantastic new product, the OmniO Rider. A lightweight stroller which can be folded up and worn as a backpack. Straight away it sounded like a great idea to me for any parent with a toddler who wants to walk, but then gets tired out for the journey home.

WP_20150410_10_07_00_Pro I am not the only person to think it is a fantastic idea and the OmniO Rider has just won the Gadget Show Live’s “British Invention of the Year Award!” The OmniO team invited us to go along to The Gadget Show Live and take a look for ourselves.

Continue reading →

Fun at the Farm & Playing Pooh Sticks

Posted by Caroline Elliott

Not to far from where we live is Sacrewell Farm. It is a great child friendly place to go and I have blogged out it before. It is lovely but the entry price is a little expensive for us to be able to visit too frequently. Last Saturday they had an open day which meant it was free entry for everyone so they could talk about what was happening over the year. Well we couldn’t resist so we wrapped up warm and headed over.

Of course being a free open day, it was packed! They have an amazing play barn and we had hoped to have a play but there was a queue to get in throughout the day and we decide not to bother. It was actually a lovely sunny day and we wanted to make the most of it by being outdoors even though it was freezing and very, very muddy!

Monkey loved seeing the animals (even a pretend one!)…

though we all got a fright when he went to say hello to a goat, and it rammed the fence trying to get at him! It shocked us all but thankfully Auntie Ericha saved the day by telling Monkey that the goat was just saying hello. It was a bit scary but we know what Monkey is like for getting scared and that fear hanging around for a long old time, so it helps to persuade him that it wasn’t that scary really!

There is a little stream running through the farm and who can resist a game of pooh sticks? We have tried to do it with Monkey before but he didn’t really get it at the time. This time however he loved it!

So much so that he didn’t want to stop in fact and just kept saying all day “I know, throw sticks in river!” over and again! We have created a monster!! 😉 I don’t mind though, I have such strong memories of looking for sticks to play pooh sticks with as a kid! Such great simple fun 🙂

Do your kids love pooh sticks?

The National Railway Museum in York

Posted by Caroline Elliott

Some really good friends of ours live in Newcastle, which is around a 4 hour journey from where we live. In order to see each other a bit more often we are trying to meet in the middle a bit more – making day trips with small children much more manageable. For our first such meet up, my friend suggested the National Railway Museum in York.

We considered going on the train but it was going to be about £100 without a seat for Monkey, plus the added stress of where to put LM and her buggy, so we wimped and out and went in the car. The train would have taken a little over an hour whereas it was nearer 2 hours in the car, but we were comfortable and LM slept both there and back which was brilliant!

The National Railway Museum

The National Railway Museum is the largest railway museum in the UK and home to over a million artefacts showing the history of railway. It is free to enter, though you can make a donation ot purchase a guide book if you wish. A must for any train lover and what little boy doesn’t like trains?

Well, ours, apparently! He had been really excited about going, then as soon as we arrived and walked into the museum.

“I don’t like trains” “I don’t like trains” repeated on loop at least 50 times on the way to the cafe where we headed to feed LM and meet our friends. Ever the contrary toddler eh?

In truth though I can understand why. The building itself is vast, and absolutely filled with trains, including the biggest trains I have ever seen! Hubs is 6’2″ and one of the first trains you can see when you arrive is a Chinese train where the wheels are as tall as hubs… and the whole thing about 3 times his height. Understandably daunting to a 2 year old I think bless him! So in saying “I don’t like trains” I think what he was actually saying was “Hey Mummy I am not sure about this, they are a bit scary! I thought trains were smaller than this!”

Possible the biggest train I have ever seen, difficult to tell scale as hubs is not that close but trust me, it is huge!

After having a snack and meeting our friends we hoped Monkey would feel more enthusastic about the trains and took him to have a look inside them. But no, he was having none if it, typical! This was just him you understand, my friend’s little boy was loving looking at all of the trains and there was lots of other children there enjoying themselves, There was however a model railway which he adored and didn’t want to leave!

One train we did get him interested in was, unsurprisingly, the post train! He seriously loves anything “post” related. We did also manage to persuade him that some of the big trains he saw were like “The Greendale Rocket” form Postman Pat so he did enjoy those a little more.

The post train

Both boys thoroughly enjoyed the great little outdoor playarea, even though it was bitterly cold and so windy that day!

Dining wise, there is a couple of cafes and restaurants to choose from and there is also a lot of benches and picnic tables available to use, both indoors and outdoors. We had a a morning cuppa, and an afternoon break at the cafes but took our own picnic for lunch and there was lots of families who had done the same. It is always nice that there is seating areas provided for this, and that we didn’t have to sit out in the cold to enjoy our picnic.

The museum has great access for pushchairs and wheelchairs and our boys adored running up and down the ramps – it really is the simple things that entertain children isn’t it? The museum is divided across the road and there is a concourse that runs underneath, with lifts at each end.

Our boys loved the sweet playarea, which of course, had lots of trains to play with and even Chuggington dressing up clothes! Though I believe they are renovating it soon which I am sure will only improve it.

There is a variety of exhibitions and so much to see and honestly we barely touched the surface and weren’t really able to take much of it in with small children to entertain. They do demonstrations of trains turning on turntables and we did go to see a show, which sounded great and very entertaining, although we realised it was little above our boys’ level when they started discussing Newton’s laws of motion! I am sure older children would have loved it though.

Waiting for the show, with our wriggly boys!

I think the highlight for our little Monkeys was standing out on the viewing platform watching the trains go in and out of York station. They loved waving at them all as they went by and the train drivers were great, waving back and tooting at them – they must see kids there so much but for them to respond to it is very kind and made their day!

We had a really lovely day out at the National Railway Museum and will defiitely go again when the kids are a little older too and can appreciate it a little more!

Monkey & Daddy go to the zoo

Posted by Caroline Elliott

Life in our house has been all change this last week with the arrival of our Little Miss, but we have also been trying to keep things fun for Monkey. We have kept his routine as much as possible. On Monday he went to rhyme time as usual with Nanny & Pops. On Tuesday he normally goes to Tumble Tots with Daddy but being half term this week it wasn’t on. We had a think about what they could do instead and decided Daddy and Monkey should go to the zoo! Continue reading →

Our day out at Sacrewell Farm, Peterborough

Posted by Caroline Elliott

Monkey has a thing about tractors at the moment. He loves playing with them, looking at them and talking about them. While reading one of his tractor books a few days ago he kept asking if he could ride on the tractors… which is slightly difficult when they are in a book! I started thinking about where we could go for tractor rides and thought about a great farm which is really close to where we live – Sacrewell Farm. Perfect!

Both hubs and I remember visiting Sacrewell Farm as kids but it has changed a lot over the years. We took Monkey last year but bless him he was terrified of the noisy sheep so we hadn’t been since. He is of course older now and with his new-found love of Tractors we decided it was worth a visit. Plus I knew they had completely renovated their indoor play barn since we last went so if the weather turned or he was still afraid of sheep, there was still lots to do. So after checking the weather forecast a few times we headed over there on Sunday, which was a glorious day and possibly the last one we will have for a while.
Continue reading →

National Trust Blickling Hall

Posted by Caroline Elliott

On the way to our little holiday in Norfolk last week we decided to take the opportunity to stop off at a fabulous National Trust property I have wanted to visit for a while, Blickling Hall.

The Blickling Estate is huge and has so much to do see and do, with a variety of walks and cycle rides you can do. They even have holiday cottages on the estate as there is so much you can do there, much more than you could do in a day!

Because we were just stopping off for a fairly short visit, and because even with my pelvis support I can’t walk as much as I normally would at the moment, we confined our visit to the lovely gardens and grounds surrounding the house. With one of the prime reasons for the stop off being so that Monkey could run around and burn off some energy, we decided not to go into the house.

When we arrived, a lovely lady asked whether Monkey would like to do a scavenger hunt in the gardens, and of course we jumped at the chance. So he was given a lovely little basket and a list of things to find – which included some different seeds, something fuzzy, something round, etc, etc. So we set off to stretch our legs from the car journey, and see what we could find.

The grounds and gardens are so beautiful and there is so many different paths and directions you can go. Daddy loved showing Monkey the different seeds, such as sweet chustnuts and acorns, and Monkey loved collecting things like sticks and stones and popping them in his basket.

While we hunted for acorns we found a lovely fluffy looking caterpillar on the floor which Monkey was fascinated by!

When it was time for lunch we took the basket back to one of the lovely volunteers and showed her what Monkey had collected, and Monkey got a sticker! We could have get all of our, er…. souvenirs but as we were going to the holiday home we decided to leave them behind 🙂

After a lovely lunch we had a a bit more of a run around and Monkey was very brave, walking the along a huge fallen tree!

WP_20140912_13_16_01_Pro

Soon enough it was time to continue our journey to the holiday cottage. As ever though we had a lovely time at the National Trust house and look forward to visitng Blickling Hall again at some point, hopefully with enough time to see inside the house and see more of the estate!

Family Fun at the Burghley Film Festival 2014

Posted by Caroline Elliott

Not too far away from us is the very grand Burghley House, a beautiful Elizabethan house in amazing grounds. Every year they hold an outdoor film festival and last year we went for the first time. During the day they show family films and then have an evening session with more adult films. After loving it last year we decided well in advance that we wanted to go again this year, and invited some of our family to come along too!

This year we went to see ‘Epic’ which is a film I hadn’t seen before, but in all honesty, with a toddler and other kiddies in the family we only really get to see snippets of the film, as the day is more about running around and having fun!
Continue reading →

Becoming a Stay at Home Mum

Can I really do this?

Days Out

Helmsley Castle, Yorkshire

Fountains Abbey & Studley Royal Water Gardens

Lotherton Hall, nr Leeds

The Gadget Show Live with the OmniO Rider

Fun at the Farm & Playing Pooh Sticks

The National Railway Museum in York

The National Railway Museum

Monkey & Daddy go to the zoo

Our day out at Sacrewell Farm, Peterborough

National Trust Blickling Hall

Family Fun at the Burghley Film Festival 2014