Swallows and Amazons

Today my friends and I headed out into the New Forest with the children. Three girls, three boys and three mums.

Isabella was first to get stuck in.....stuck in the mud! She managed to get herself absolutely covered in thick mud. Luckily we could wash her off in the stream and she spent the rest of the day running around in her knickers.

However, my friends daughter stole the show with her tree climbing skills. Here she is, completely doing the whole swallows and amazons thing posing in the tree. Not long after she had a fall after swinging on a branch - thankfully her mum was to the rescue with a cold compress (cool pack from the coolbox), wrapped in a tea towel (we all bring a tea towel to picnics right?) and after lots of tlc she was running around again in no time.

All six children enjoyed paddling in the stream, spotting tiny fish (and trying to catch them in the fishing nets - unsuccessfully), and generally having a good time.

It would have been a perfect zero cost day, but we did decide to stop off at the pub for ice-cream and a drink on our way home, but it was totally worth it to allow the kids to play on the extensive climbing frame and slide feature in the beer garden.

Great day with friends.