Our field journal: Not back to school

We've been busy bees since the schools have gone back.

Meg and I did some printing, decorating our nature journals.

We set up the new season on the nature tray. Always my favourite.

Lyra (new name for Goldzilla) enjoyed some time in a Sylvanian Families house, and a Playmobil ambulance.

Swimming and diving lessons have restarted - just Meg for swimming, as we have another activity starting on Wednesday morning that we couldn't have got to otherwise. Fred and Betsy still do some swimming in their diving warm up.

We went to a NBTS picnic at Ashridge. We haven't been there for ages, and it was lovely to be back. Meg found a cool shield bug, and spent ages examining it in detail.

A chilled morning a home, followed by a new parkour group in Milton Keynes. They loved it. It's in a purpose built parkour gym, with lots of vertical elements as well as things to climb on the ground. I liked it too, as it's a 90 minute session close to a Costa coffee, a big Wilkos and a load of other shops. 90 minutes! Plenty of time for tea and knitting!

Then we had the most fantastic weekend away. A home ed group trip to PGL. It was non stop fun and action!

We stayed in the tent village (real beds, very comfy, but so cold at night).

We arrived in the afternoon, settled in, had dinner (the whole weekend was FULLY CATERED. No menu planning, shopping, cooking, washing up. A revelation), then had a campfire with songs and silliness. Our group leader was a lovely woman called Chelsea. The kids loved her immediately.

Saturday was go go go. Breakfast at 8.25, then straight into our first activity at 9am. it was raft building with Dave. We were paired with another family for all activities, and we all got on very well (thank goodness!).

Next was All Aboard, basically climbing up a mast-type structure. Betsy got up to the top, the only one of us who managed that. We had to belay for each other.

Lunch, then a low ropes course. This was fun, as we had to get around it holding balls, or carrying a cup of water. No photos of this, too busy doing it!

Then we did abseiling. We all loved this.

Meg was absolutely exhausted by this point - well, we all were - but after dinner she just wanted someone to read her Warrior Cats. So Rob and Meg did that, while Fred, Betsy and I did a 90 minute murder mystery game involving So Much Walking. I then inhaled a Galaxy and a cup of tea and went to bed!

Up and at it Sunday morning - Survivor skills, challenge obstacle course, archery, giant swing.

The giant swing was amazing and terrifying. Two people are harnessed in, and the rest pull the rope to make them go up. It goes so so so high! I had to close my eyes and cling on for dear life, unlike Meg who was waving her hands about! Rob hated it. I loved it (after the initial drop!).