Bringing up tiny explorers

I love that no matter what the weather, if there is a wood or field near by, my girls will want to be in them.
I love that Elle spun around in a circle yesterday, in a new wood and said "mama, it's like we are in another world!"
I love the way that on the way to school, we talk about pollination or how bees make honey or why animals hibernate.
I love the way that Mia makes friends with every squirrel she see's.
I love the way that when we step into a wood, it feels like it is just the three of us and that no one else exists.
I love the way that Elle picks flowers and leaves up and asks me to keep them safe so she can stick them. into her journal.
I love that i am bringing up two tiny explorers who i know will care about the world and the animals and i know that we will never stop having adventures together.

A little bit of spring

After school today, Elle and i picked some flowers in the woods. I am very excited for spring to finally arrive. I have been dreaming of going outside without coats and hats and being able to spend our days in the meadows and woods again. I love taping up the flowers the girls pick me around the house. Elle is forever picking flowers, so i get to change them often before then droop too much!

For the next 6 months or so, my blog might start to become full of blossom, bluebells, flowers and flower crowns but that is just how i want it. We are looking forward to playing amongst the blossom in the apple orchard and building teepees in the woods. We are such outdoor girls at heart and this cold weather has dampened our souls a little bit. My car is definitely going to get around a bit with all the exploring we have planned and i am excited to share all of these adventures with you all.

Lately

We have had a lovely week. Tuesday, i went a visited my sister (and shall be again today!). I love being able to drive to see her. We are best friends and it is great to get to spend the day with her and just chat nonsense and act silly all day. The boy and i also got to go out on a dinner date. We haven't been out, just the two of us, since June and it was very much needed. I drove us to Buddies and we stayed for hours just talking about our future plans and it reminded me of when we would stay awake all night in the first few months of our relationship, talking about our future and getting to know each other inside out! We are not going to leave it too long next time and hope to go out next month. I want to make sure we do something each month.

Yesterday, was my niece's 4th birthday. Elle went to the cinema with her cousin and then everyone came back here for a little while so Mia could join in the celebrations and then i am taking her over t to spend the day as she is too young to sit for a few hours in a cinema right now. Talking about birthdays, it is only three weeks until Mia's 3rd birthday!!! I am in disbelief and cannot believe she will be three!

The weather is slowly picking up. I have some photo shoots planned with the girls and i am excited for the apple trees in the orchard near us to bloom with blossom so we can visit for photos and to pick blossom to make crowns. We are very much ready for spring to hurry up!

Let's have an adventure link up IIII

On Sunday, i drove the longest i have driven over to my best friend, Hannah's house. Our lovely friend, Katie, came too and we headed out to the castle grounds near Hannah's house. It was very windy and then started to rain but an adventure is an adventure right? I think the hour drive over to Hannah's house counts as an adventure too as i was scared stiff the whole time!

I have started to spy blossom blooming and buds appearing on the tree's in the woods so we are very excited for spring to arrive as we have lots of adventures planned (where we don't have to bundle up in coats, hats, gloves, scarfs and extra socks and vests!!). 

"let's have an adventure" is a bi-monthly link up posted on the 13th and 26th of each month. You can share old or new adventure posts with us. We would love to have you join us and help us create this wonderful community of fellow adventurer's!!!!

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I would love to share with you our co-host for this month. The wonderful Charlotte from Winegums and Watermelons is sharing an adventure with us over on her blog too! You can visit her blog via her lovely badge.

An InLinkz Link-up

Rosemary Milner

I have recently discovered the wonderful world of Rosemary Milner. Rosemary is an English surface pattern designer and embroiderer. I am completely enchanted by her work. If you are a regular reader of my blog, you will know that i love woodland creatures and as soon as i saw Rosemary's work, i was just blown away. Rosemary creates wallpapers, fabrics, stationary and embroidery of hares, birds, foxes, deers and wild flowers. You can find all of her dreamy work on her website here.

DIY: Flower pressed ice bowl

We were recently sent a wonderful craft book called "The girls book of crafts and activities" from Presents for Men. I asked Elle if she would like to pick out a craft from the book to do. She looked through and picked out an ice bowl craft as she had just watched the winter episode of Brambly hedge where they have an ice ball.

We took out all of the girls pressed flowers from the flower press from last summer and set about setting up the bowls and water.

You will need:

Two different size plastic bowls
Flowers/fruit pieces/leaves
Tape
Water

1. Fill a bowl with about 2.5cm of water and put in the freezer. Once it is solid, put a smaller bowl on the top of the ice and tape in place.
2.Pour water into the gap between the two bowls. Add the decorations, using a fork to push them down into place.
3. Put the bowls into the freezer for up to 10 hours.
4. Remove the tape and allow the bowls to warm up slightly before sliding out your ready made ice bowl.

(Directions taken from the girls book of crafts and activities)

We have kept our bowl in the freezer for now until, as we didn't want it to melt. Elle goes to check on it every day to make sure it is still ok :)

The girls book of crafts and activities is a wonderful book for any child. It has over 100 things to make and that ranges from crafts to baking to gardening. It even had information on different herbs and spices, how to grow your own veg, to to upcycle furniture and how to trace your family tree. The girls have had a great time flicking through it and i have many crafts from there that i want to try.

We were sent this book for free for the purpose of this review. All opinions are my own.