Last weekend my little H was sick. All night on Friday night, which was awful for him and exhausting for me! Saturday was a write off, obviously, and Sunday we had no plans either. We don’t know if H had a tummy bug but it’s highly likely.

He was, however, feeling absolutely fine on Sunday and played in the garden for a while. When the kids are inside though, all they want to do is go on a ‘screen’ of some kind. TV, iPads, PlayStation etc. It annoys me. To be fair, I was busy catching up with a few things myself on the computer which wasn’t setting a great example. I decided we should get out of the house and all get some fresh air. I also wanted to take my lovely new camera out, so the nearby woods seemed like a good idea.

I have a brand new DSLR which I have no clue how to use fully yet, so these photo’s aren’t anything amazing and they haven’t been edited in any way. They are just me messing around, on auto mainly, taking photo’s of my beautiful youngest three children in a nice location on a Winter’s day!

Yes, we were back at Willows Farm this half term for some outdoor fun!

February Frolics at Willows is lambing season. All the lambs are being born and visitors can witness it happening (if they’re lucky) and watch them being bottle fed.

The lambing marquees were where all the action was taking place. Inside there were open areas for the lambs who were a couple of days old, and pens for birthing. It was fascinating.

It’s one of our favourite events at  Willows, and even though it was cold, the kids really don’t feel it when they’re having so much fun. As always, there was  plenty of outdoor fun to be had…

Of course there’s plenty of indoor fun to be had too. The play areas inside are rather extensive, with a huge soft play for kids of all ages but there’s also Toddler Town – a make believe ‘street’ full of play houses for the younger ones, which is amazing. We warmed up in here a number of times before heading out again!

No visit would be complete without visiting some of the other animals… holding the guinea pigs is a must for the children and there’s also other baby animals, not just lambs! Here is a four day old calf with his Mum!

We ventured out here late in the day when the barn wasn’t quite so busy. Most people had gone home which was great for us!

Another fab time was had at Willows! The February Frolics event is on until the end of the weekend but fun at Willows can be had at any time.

Chipperfield is a pretty village in Hertfordshire, not too far away from where I am, about 10-15 mins in the car, yet it seems a million miles away. I live in a leafy part of Hertfordshire myself but Chipperfield and the surrounding tiny villages seem like they’re out in the sticks! Country lanes take you there and I love driving along them, especially on a summers’ day!

We were visiting a friend of mine. She moved there over a year ago now and practically lives in her own little happy bubble, only venturing out of the village if she needs to!

I just had my twins with me as I’d dropped my daughter off at another friends’ house (the one with the pool) so we planned to take her little dog for a walk in the woods just across the village green, opposite my friends house.

The woods are lovely. Wide paths and lush trees. We stopped and played by this little pond where my twins threw sticks and pine cones into the water for the dog to fetch!

The pond was brimming with tadpoles….

After our walk we went for a spot of lunch in the cafe/pub on the village green. It was lovely…. my boys finished off with an ice cream before having a quick play in the little playground attached!

It was a lovely way to spend a few hours in the fresh air.

Yesterday after school we took a trip to the park! The weather was glorious and I wasn’t going to waste the opportunity.

It really did feel like the first day of Spring. There was a definite change in the temperature, a hint of warn air, instead of the freezing wind we’ve felt for months!

I love taking the kids out but hating the cold, I don’t do it as often as I should during the winter, but I do make up for it when the weather improves. Many Mums at our school hurry home to ‘get the dinner on’ or to be organised and keep to the routine, but not me, if the weather is nice, we’re going out! The house can wait! The kids aren’t young for ever and there’s nothing more beneficial than giving them some time to run around and stretch their legs after a long week at school!

Look… no coats, happily skipping along!

They climbed their favourite tree!

They had lots of fun in the playground!

We walked down to the river….

And threw stones in…..

We had a great time! I can’t tell you how good it felt to be outside and not be freezing. It WAS getting slightly chilly as we left, but the sun was still shining and the kids were happily exhausted when we got home 🙂