Wednesday 3 April 2013

On the Trail

The children had to wait until Easter Monday for their Easter egg hunt at home. Thankfully it was dry and we were able to hide a few eggs out in the back garden. I asked T if he wanted to take part this year. 'Ah yeah if it means chocolate at the end of it,'  was the answer but in reality S did most of the seeking out and when she found each hiding place T, who was following closely behind, just added his egg to his haul and then waited for the next find to be discovered. I suppose that's what happens when you get to 13.


On Tuesday I had to go into town as I wanted to buy some paint from Laura Ashley. I'm going to start decorating our bedroom soon and as they currently have 30% off their paint range it's too good an offer to miss.
Whilst in town S and I went to the art gallery as this is another venue on the Lego trail which we started on Friday in Winchester.
Before the construction of the Itchen Bridge crossing over to the centre of town from our side of the water would mean using the Floating Bridge, information here  if you want to learn more about this cable ferry. 
Hanging in the art gallery is a painting of the Floating Bridge by L S Lowry, which can be seen here and this has been used to create a table top sized Lego model.





And so to today. I didn't want to venture too far so we decided to visit one of the small green open spaces in the City, one we hadn't been to for a long while. It seems that a relatively new group have formed with the purpose of caring for the area and there have been a few changes since our last visit. The helicopter climbing frame has been painted and I was coaxed into climbing into it and no I won't be sharing the photos or the video T took of me trying to get out of it afterwards! There are two of these new noticeboards decorated with wood carvings.



But the most exciting addition by far was the discovery of a rope swing. My oh my they had so much fun with this. Huge smiles, big belly laughs and nearly uncontrollable giggling at one stage. Priceless.


Whilst the children were flinging themselves around I went round the corner and hid a few eggs (thanks Diane!) for them to find. You may be able to spot a blue egg hidden in this tree next to T. This was his last egg to find and he had walked past it countless times before he finally found it, the look on his face says it all!



My mum came along with us



and we reminisced about the times when we have been here in the past and T and S could fit in these baby seats on the swings and not just perch on top of them like they did today.


Another discovery was this huge burnt tree. It looked  (although you can't really tell from my rubbish photo) like some kind of multi legged spider and would make an excellent den.



We went in for a closer look and saw there are hundreds of burnt looking cones still attached to it



and the way the bark had come away from the branches here it immediately reminded me of the tiger bread you can buy from bakeries in most of the big supermarkets. Maybe a good spot for a picnic later in the year, perhaps the summer holidays when the sun may finally make an appearance for longer than a couple of hours.



11 comments:

  1. I know of someone else who would love that rope swing! Looks like T and S enjoyed finding and eating their eggs!
    FYI - my blog posts are not updating on anyone's reading list at the moment which is super frustrating!
    June

    ReplyDelete
  2. I am enjoying the lego trail!

    Those noticeboards are brilliant and I'm pleased to hear things are improving at the park thanks to the group of people. It was a nice idea to hide a few eggs while you were there! I'd have had fun on that rope swing too!

    I love that spider tree - definitely good for playing in. Though it doesn't look burnt to me, perhaps I can't see properly though, it's hard to tell from photos but it looks like it's just a fallen tree covered in a dark moss/lichen. I hope no one torched it anyway!

    ReplyDelete
  3. It sounds like you're having a busy Easter. I miss organising outings, Daniel and Eleanor aren't bothered about hanging out with Mum anymore. They'd still have a go on that rope swing though, lots of fun to be had on those. I love that notice board, it's lovely that a group are improving things at the park.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Funny to try to fit into the swings again - my two used to do that too !
    Amazing tree to explore

    ReplyDelete
  5. I love the lego model, and I love the Lowry painting too. Will you be posting the video of you on the climbing frame next time?!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Mine still cannot resist the pull of a rope swing! Loved the Lego - what a great idea. xxxx

    ReplyDelete
  7. Hello Lisa, haven't the kids grown! I've just seen a comment of yours from way back and thought I'd better check you out.

    That spot thing sounded very scary, good job something was done. It is just so easy to be fobbed off.

    Each photo I see of you, you get to look younger everytime... and different somehow.

    Have fun, sounds like you are; be happy and healthy.

    LLX

    ReplyDelete
  8. A great post Lisa. I like the wood carvings around the notice board and the 'tiger bread' tree!!! x

    ReplyDelete
  9. Looks like you've been having loads of fun over the holidays so far, Lisa. T is looking so grown up now - just like my William. They are no longer children, but not adults, either - a pivotal time in their lives, I guess. Gosh, childhood is so fleeting, isn't it? x

    ReplyDelete
  10. You Easter holidays look like so much fun. I love how even though your eldest is 13, he can still be tempted by chocolate to join in with the Easter activities...

    Gillian x

    ReplyDelete
  11. Looks like both children had a lot of fun!
    The wood carved noticeboards are beautiful, and there seems to be a lot of interesting things to discover in your town!
    Hope you enjoy the rest of the Easter holidays Lisa
    Gill xx

    ReplyDelete