Trains, Dreams and Sunny Days

Meant to get this written at the weekend but time got away from me. On Saturday the weather was horrid so we chose to visit the National Railway Museum in York since most of it is inside and of course, Toby loves trains. Beth isn't so bothered about trains but does love to climb on things. Unfortunately she soon got a little miffed as most of the trains are priceless pieces of history that the museum do not want jam-covered children clambering on.

We met gran and grandad there and spent a very enjoyable day running around, pointing and playing. As you can probably see from the pic, Toby is really thinking about walking (much to the discomfort of grandad's back!).

One day last week we were walking around the village and there was a big patch of daffodils. Beth said something about picking them to which I said that we couldn't. She corrected me and said that she didn't want to pick them there, she would pick them in bed. It took me a few moments and a bit of questioning to realise that she dreams of picking flowers, what a nice thought! Sunday was a gorgeous day, sun shining, warm and no clouds (almost California . . . ). We made the most of it and spent the day out in the garden, even having a bbq. Beth and Toby both love being outside and they played really nicely together (most of the time) on the trike, dump trucks and radio flyer.

They both were modeling new hats courtesy of the Next sale - 50p each, a right bargain! Don't think Toby actually realised he had a hat on but Beth was rather taken with her pick straw number.

Couldn't resist bunging these pics on the end of the blog. Two of Beth engaging in her favourite pastime - dressing up and one of Toby. Toby just cracks us up at the moment. His speech is getting much better and he seems to be picking up lots of new words every day. In this photo he is waving Beth's wand and saying abracadabra.

Happy First Birthday Toby

Toby has greatly enjoyed his birthday weekend so far. Steve took the day off work yesterday so we had a very relaxed morning opening presents and playing. There's a definite theme to his birthday - wheels! We bought him a car transporter complete with two cars, it was a great hit and I think Beth was rather taken with it too. We also got him some bells; they are lovely and not at all obnoxious.

We spent the afternoon at the playground and in the park watching someone kiteboarding and eating ice cream. I could quite get used to that, sorry for the lack of photos, I forgot the camera. After dinner Toby got a little cake that Beth had iced and decorated with a candle.

Today was his party day. Lots of the family came to celebrate and he got some fantastic presents. My favourites were the clothes but obviously they weren't of any interest to Toby. He was much more impressed by the dump truck from grandma and grandad and all the other vehicles and vehicle related books he received.

Cousin Adam came to celebrate and brought his bouncy castle. Toby absolutely loved it, especially whizzing down the slide at the front. The water table was out and Toby was mesmerised by it and ended up soaked through and very, very cold. He wasn't too bothered and probably would have played all afternoon - he does love his bath so I'm not surprised.

Before naptime came his big birthday cake. He was a little bemused by it and again had no clue what to do with the candle (given the chance I'm sure he'd have had a little nibble). Luckily Beth and Adam were on hand to show him how to blow out the candle. It was a great day, lots (and lots and lots) of food, all the family and non-stop playing. Now we have just under a month to prepare for the next big birthday . . .

Nostell Priory, Fun In The Playground And A Very Clever Boy

It was beautiful this morning so we whipped out our new National Trust cards and headed off to Nostell Priory - it's only 20 minutes from the house. We have been once but it was before we moved house, I think last September time.

When we arrived, only the parkland was open so we went for a wander and found some great felled trees to climb on. Beth was a little under the weather as she's recovering from slapped cheek syndrome which made her tired, achy and rather miserable. She did manage to have a good run round and could have played on the tree trunks all day.

Inside the formal gardens of the house, a playground has just opened. It was really nice and despite being aimed at older children rather than toddlers, Beth was able to negotiate all the bits. There was a birds nest swing (they seem to be appearing everywhere now) and a jumper thing. After seeing a little girl with her brother bouncing and swinging on it, Beth was determined to hold on to Toby. He absolutely loved it and Beth was fantastic at hanging on to him and being the perfect big sister. Oh, this isn't a great picture but I thought I'd bung it in to show I'm at these outings. :)

After lunch we had planned to go inside the house for a poke around. There is a huge dolls house in there and we are sure Beth would love it (well, at least until she realised she's not allowed to actually play with it). However, by that time both kids were past it and we thought it would be a bit unfair to subject other visitors to the sounds of two screeching children echoing off the walls so we came home.

Newly refreshed after a nap, Toby was adamant at dinner that he wanted to feed himself a yogurt. I was not enthralled by the thought – scraping food off the ceiling is not my idea of a fun Sunday evening. He was quite stubborn and wouldn’t take no for an answer so I closed my eyes and handed over the spoon. To our delight, he proceeded to eat the yogurt without making any mess and has probably lulled me into a false sense of security concerning his self-feeding abilities. I’m sure we’ll find out when we decide to give him a big bowl of spaghetti bolognaise. Beth was very supportive and presented him with a sticker while telling him “Well Done”.

Carl, Carl, Carl

Beth has a new best friend, you've guessed it, Carl. My day now has a soundtrack that goes something like this; "I want Carl, can Carl come over to play? Can Carl come to my house and eat Bob the Builder pasta? Can Carl come and watch Sleeping Beauty and drink warm milk with me?" This is pretty much on a loop and is driving me round the bend! I suppose I'll have to develop selective hearing and learn to nod in the correct places.

Yesterday we met up with Carl at Cusworth Hall for a play. It was a lovely day and we spent a good couple of hours charging around, Beth and Carl picking flowers, chasing ducks and scaring elderly couples and his mum and I attempting damage limitation!

As usual Toby was there but spent the majority of his time in the pushchair. Hopefully he'll be able to join in the fun soon as he's getting pretty good at cruising along the furniture. It's only a week till his birthday - I can't believe how fast the year has gone (despite some of the days being very, very long!). I think Beth may adopt his birthday and be in charge of opening presents, blowing out candles and eating cake, I suppose we could class it as practice for her birthday next month.

Fountains Abbey Again

Just a quick post as I'm tired but want to get these photos up. Today we went to Fountains Abbey for the first time in ages and met up with gran and granddad. The weather wasn't great but we took our raincoats and just decided to go for it.

When we first arrived (and again before we left) we spent quite a while in the playground. Toby is really not too happy to stay in the pushchair but the ground was just too wet to let him roam around. I kept telling him that if he would just walk, he could join in all the fun but it just didn't seem to motivate him. He still managed to have fun on the enormous swing and on the horse and cart.

In the few months since we were last there, Beth seems to have grown lots as she flew up the net - she could get up it last time but was a little unsteady, and quite happily climbed anything and everything in sight. After leaving the playground we headed down to the Abbey and the river. Although I never actually caught her in the act, I believe that a number of snowdrops were picked and suffered the fate of being crushed in her pocket. At least there were plenty around, she'll be most disappointed when they all disappear in a couple of weeks, at least there will be daffodils to replace them by then! It was a lovely relaxed day and in Beth's eyes could probably only be improved on if the ice cream stand had been open.

Couldn't resist including this last photo. It was taken out in the garden yesterday afternoon.

Hodsock Priory

We just wanted to get out of the house so we went exploring today. After a bit of humming and hahhing we headed for Mattersey Priory (on the suggestion of the GPS). Well, it wasn't quite what we were thinking of - 3/4 of a mile down a rather bumpy track and we arrived a pile of stones. So, we decided to backtrack and follow the signs to Hodsock Priory Snowdrops mainly because it sounded interesting and Beth loves snowdrops at the moment (mostly due to the snowdrop fairy in a book at grandma's house) and also because we didn't know the area well and figured it was there or back home. We followed a long line of cars all turning in to the priory and got parked, still not entirely sure of what we were going to.

It seems that following the crowds sometimes works as the priory was a beautiful building (it's a manor house and despite its name has never been a priory) with lovely gardens that the owners open to the public every spring to see the snowdrops and other flowers. We spent a really nice couple of hours exploring the gardens finding fairies, bonfires, snowdrops and other delights. Toby wasn't too bothered about the whole trip but sat quite contentedly anyway as we wandered round. They did have a tearoom but it was jam-packed with pensioners all having a nice Sunday morning out (I think we were just about the only ones there under 70!) so we headed home.

After lunch, Steve and Beth built a tower for Sleeping Beauty (the current favourite dvd) that Toby eventually pulled down on himself (causing cascades of tears). He didn't cry for too long as we ventured out into the garden and he got a good play on his tricycle - all very serious business. I also thought I'd include a pic of Beth with the flowers she planted while we were staying with grandma and grandpa last week.

Oh, one last thing, you may have noticed that electric pink shoes . . . We went shoe shopping yesterday, Toby got his first ever pair of shoes and Beth chose some herself - thanks gran for those, she hasn't taken them off since we left the shop!

Odds and Sods

Yesterday we went up to the Peak District for a wander. At first we headed for Surprise View near to Hathersage but realised it would be way too snowy still so we went over to Derwent Water instead. It was very beautiful but still pretty icy and to Beth's delight there was quite a lot of snow around. We stomped around for an hour or so then Toby decided it was time to head back to the warmth of the car.

Toby is getting fairly adventurous with his standing and his favourite pastime is pulling open the drawer in the kitchen and throwing the contents all about, sometimes having a chew before chucking whatever it is over his shoulder. Sometimes he'll topple over but it doesn't seem to bother him too much, you'll notice his bruises. Beth has been a little trying for the last few days/weeks and is driving us round the bend. Perhaps she's just getting into the terrible terrible twos and seeing what damage she can do before her birthday! She looks rather angelic in this picture - don't be fooled, she's just plotting her next move.

Here they both are in a very bubbly bath last night. Toby still loves his bath and would stay in until he turned in to a prune. Beth likes them as long as she doesn't have to wash her hair and as long as she gets to play with all the toys at all times. Anyway, this coming week is half term so we may well take trips to see the grandparents - I do like to share the wealth especially when it comes to delightful children. ;)