The Ordinary Moment - Climbing Rocks

Ordinary has taken on a new meaning over the last few weeks, the days at the beach, the trips to the playground, the time with friends that were once ordinary have become something of the past and something to look forward to doing again sometime.  Our ordinary moments now are mostly in the house and garden and occasionally somewhere quiet outside and they are exclusively with just the people I always live with.  About once a week I take the four children out somewhere and we have tried to find new places to go that aren't as obvious as the beach and not as busy as the park near our house.  I had run past these beautiful rocks earlier in the week and admired the vibrant flowers and so when we got the point in the week where we needed a change of scene, we headed over to them.

I remember hanging out here as a teenager, walking down from my best friend's house just up the road, but it has been years since I have been back and it took all our usual hang outs shutting down for me to remember it.  The kids were excited to be out and somewhere different and they wanted to touch and look at every flower.  Despite me telling her more than a hundredd times not to, Cora still picked three flowers which she then carried around for the entire day and brought home with her.  We talked about how important it is to not pick flowers so that everyone else can enjoy them and it eventually went in!

It was one of those days that I am just so grateful to have.  I think it was a mix of the sunshine and exploring somewhere different but the children acted more like best friends than siblings, they walked and chatted together, they made their own games on the rocks, the bigger ones helping the smallest and then finding 'den' houses in the bushes.  I stood on the sidelines as they climbed and played without me, exploring their surroundings.  

Finn and Cora had been sent an outfit each from Little Green Radicals in the softest organic fairtrade cotton and they were perfect for the outing.  The bigger two weren't as interested in being photographed on the day so I just took pictures of the little two and I loved capturing this ordinary day out with my favourite four people.

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Spring is in the Air // Frugi

Advertorial/ Gifted Clothing

We got soaked by the rain today, totally out the blue but still I see the signs of Spring everywhere.  The sky is turning a brighter shade of blue on those days the clouds part to show it,  the daffodils are blooming in the park, standing bright and tall, letting us know the ground is about to bloom into colour and there have been the odd days over half term when we could play without a coat (still wrapped up in layers of course, just one less).

On one of those days I popped to the park with the little two dressed in some organic clothes that Frugi had sent us from the latest collection. Cora absolutely adores this cardigan and has shown it to everyone since it arrived and her dress is perfect for spinning in.  Finn loves all the rainbow bits and his trousers zip away to become shorts when it gets even warmer - brilliant multipurpose attire for a child who has to wear school uniform now so we need to make sure we get plenty of wear out of his home bits!

Of course Cora brought a baby with her (Azabelle) as well as her 'Mingo' bag, both of which were quickly discarded so she could run around with her brother.  They love the wildness of this nature garden, the long grass, the small pond and all the dog statues that are dotted around.  We caught snatches of afternoon sun which made everything brighter and we had a picnic of biscuits whilst we watched the birds flying over head.

I know how quickly the weather can still change in February.  Every year we seem to get these glimpses of warmer weather before it disappers as quickly as it came, but even if there is another cold spell, the promise of Spring is hanging in the air, and those Daffodils are planted solidly in the ground around us, not afraid of anything,

 Sizing - Cora is a petite 3 years 7 months and wearing 3-4, Finn is an average size and 5 next week wearing 5-6

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Freedom // Frugi

All clothing featured was gifted by Frugi

At the grand age of 32 I finally passed my driving test.  I started learning 15 years ago on my 17th birthday and after many, many lessons and several tests, I eventually gave up.  I had my last lesson a couple of weeks before Dylan was born and once he arrived the idea of leaving him to get back in the learner car wasn't appealing.  The years carried on and I had no desire to drive.  I didn't feel like I needed it in my life and we have a wonderful public transport system.

Finn was born in 2015 and he and I spent many weeks in hospital, with Ed bringing the bigger boys over on the bus each day to visit us.  This is what inspired him to finally learn and by the end of that summer he had a licence and we had a car.  He gave up working in an office to work from home and for the past few years there has been a car sat on the driveway, pretty much unused during the week.

For my 30th birthday he got me lessons but it took until February this year for me to decide it was something I actually wanted to do and to send off for a provisional licence.  I then had to retake my theory test and start at the beginning again with learning.  It was scary and I was petrified but I wanted to do it this time and I was determined to keep going.  I still wasn't expecting the examiner to turn to me with a smile though, and tell me I had finally, finally passed.  

I have been driving for a few weeks now and whilst I still feel nervous sometimes and a little hesitant, it is starting to feel more natural and I have been taking the children out on my own.  It has opened up the world a bit and I love the freedom we have to go to new places and leave whenever we want.

Frugi sent the children all some clothes that will be perfect for a Christmas or Boxing day outfit as well as some of their colourful wellies and we headed to a local-ish nature reserve that I have never been to before as it just isn't that easy without a car.  There were dinosaur trails to follow, fairy doors to find and plenty of sticks around that made amazing magic wands for budding witches and wizards.

We love Frugi for its colourful designs, soft organic cotton and how well things last and all three boys were amazed at how soft the cords were.  I like how Cora's dress matches Dylan's shirt and how easy everything is to pass down when they outgrow it.  All four are wearing their usual sizes here and most things fit well, although I would probably size up in the dress.  We will definitely bringing these outfits back out for Christmas! 

And when we were done, our wellies were covered in mud, fingers grubby and stomachs growling we could hop back in the car and drive straight home.  I took so many photos and I am awful at editing which ones stay . . . 

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