Half term has passed in a blink of an eye and tomorrow we are back to our routines of school run, work and housekeeping.
We’ve had a great week!
Driving home from our final adventure the word freedom kept coming back to me- It’s sort of ended up being the theme of the week.
Our half term didn’t quite work out as we originally planned: we were going to Switzerland skiing, but exchange rate hikes and being slow on planning meant this would’ve taken up a large chunk of annual holiday budget. The plan was scrapped.
Instead we could join my best friend and her family to celebrate the first birthday of her youngest. A wonderful family event to be part of.
We explored Oxford with friends and progressed in Friday Footprint Challenge by buying local at Oxford’s Covered Market.
Hugo could have a whole day of playing Skylanders. He was in heaven!
Then, when we got cabin fever and were finally ready to go away, I hooked up Campy, our little caravan, behind the car, loaded a few clothes and food, booked campsites and we were off.
We went back to Setthorns Campsite in the New Forest.
The kids loved it at Setthorns so much when we were last there in January that I felt it was an easy destination for me to take them as I was flying solo for this holiday, with Dadonthebrink having to work. We walked in the woods, went to the beach, met friends and the kids made new friends. It was a very chilled 2 and a half days!
If I had any doubts, then over these couple of days all were removed: my kids love the sea as much as I do! Despite the bitter cold, they wanted to go back again and again. They wanted to first play in the forest, but as soon as we got in the car, the first question was: “Are we going to the beach?”
Joanna, from The Boy and me blog sent me a great quote after I shared this observation.
And there is that word again… Freedom.
For the weekend, picking up Dadonthebrink en route, we ended up at the NEC in Birmingham at the Camping and Caravan Show. This turned out to be a great family event again this year.
The kids had a ball! There was face painting, explorer trails, they got to explore in tents, caravans and motorhomes and we heard some very inspiring talks.
There were a couple of areas that they particularly loved, the top one being the Freedom to Go exhibit. This area took you through the seasons and through the different camping experiences one could have- from pitching your tent at a festival, through going with your motorhome skiing to finding a lake-side lodge to relax at.
The more we talked about it with Dadonthebrink, the more we realised that since returning to camping and especially since having Campy we do feel we have more freedom. We can just pack the car, choose our tent or caravan and head out for longer and shorter adventures knowing it won’t cost too much to sleep away from home. We can go further and explore more!
We come back energised from our adventures.
At the moment, with the confines of work and school rooting us to down, camping and Campy, our little caravan means freedom.
What does freedom mean to you?
I’m passing the batton to Kara from ChelseaMamma and Liska from NewMumonline… Ladies, what makes you feel free in the confines of our structured lives?
If you enjoyed this post please do share on social media and do join in!
Lovely post – hope mine has done yours justice xx
Great post. We would love to own a campervan so we could take off at a moment’s notice. Looks like you had a fabulous time regardless. Looking forward to reading more of your adventures with Campy.
Ooh Tania, we’ve just discovered a motorhome that has 7 belted seats and 7 sleeping places from new. I know it is still too small for you guys, but it is reassuring that manufacturers are starting to consider larger families.