Schools Out for Summer

Today marked the start of the summer break for me and I won't need to be back in school until August 23rd (GCSE results day). My children broke up on Thursday and are off until September the 5th. It seems an awfully long time to fill with a limited budget...

They kicked off their break with a trip with granny to Bassenthwaite where they watched the ospreys and even saw one catch a fish. I hope I can go there with them soon. That was followed by taking granny to an adventure trail which looked pretty scary from the photos with a zip wire and all sorts of obstacles.

I kicked off my break with a night out in Kendal with some friends, first a drink at Burgundy's then a gig at Bootleggers. The band Munkizunkl just happens to have to of my friends husbands in it! They performed plenty of classic rock tracks and the crowd were really getting in the mood on the dance floor. Wish I'd had the stamina to stay for the second half!

Today was spent doing some big chores before the school holidays properly start. My mum defrosted my freezer (a very over due event) and I know now what I have got in. Looks like I don't need to buy any protein or veggies for a week or so any way. We also cleared a lot of stuff from the kitchen and it seems quite a bit bigger!

We then intended on going swimming but somehow none of us picked up the swimming bag so when we got to the leisure centre we had no way to swim :-( Instead we had a quick trip to the DIY store to get some bits and got rid of the recycling! Not exactly a fun trip for the children..

When we got back my daughter got on with painting the bird feeder (and a few unintended items) a nice bright red:

 

My son requested the paddling pool as a small way of getting over the swimming pool incident. So I despidered it, cleaned the air intakes so I could blow it up and he could have some water fun:

not really the same as the proper pool!

The children then joined in with several other children in the street to play on bikes and have adventurous games together. Our cul de sac really comes alive on nice summer days and it feels safe to leave them all playing together.

Meanwhile I cracked on with getting more stuff into the new shed and sorting out the garden. Its amazing how much is vanishing into the shed but it needs some hanging hooks and shelving to make the most of the space. Before putting the loppers away I had a go at chopping back some of the saplings and extra branches on the trees down my path. I had to stop when the green bin started overflowing:

So a very satisfying start to the holidays. Let's hope the weather stays dry so we can carry on making the most of it and being outside.

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