Hen Wlad Fy Nhadau...

I'm not Welsh, nor is my father, but it was to the "Land of my Fathers" that we headed to continue the (not really) summer holiday. Wales, land of song, castles and the red dragon. It's national emblem is the leek and its language unintelligible to the uninitiated. Mountains, valleys and beaches - summer holidays from Birmingham as a young boy I remember with fondness.

We were headed to Borth y Gest, a tiny little picturesque village near Porthmadog in North Wales, to stay in our friend Tom's parents cottage. I had been before and knew what a gorgeous cottage it was, fabulously located right on the bay, with lovely little coves and beaches nearby, plus small hills and woodland walks from the door. Perfect for a supreme being who is as eager as ever to learn all there is to know about the world, only now wants to do it all within 10 seconds and in Welsh. An ever-changing world of adventure - perfect to keep Emily amused.

Emily was up early so we watched the sun come up from the bedroom window

We had plans to go on the steam train, visit the rabbit farm, the castles and other nearby sites. But with the weather set for glorious sun all week we quickly settled into a routine of sandcastle building and shell collecting on the beach, learning about nature and bramble eating in the woods, eating ice cream and having adventures everyday. In fact we never really left Borth y Gest, except to go shopping in Porthmadog, and one very exciting day trip to Tanya's Aunt and Uncle who live a semi self-sufficient lifestyle in a wonderful self-built house in Anglessey (Emily made big friends with their goose).

 My two lovely ladies indulging in ice cream

Daddy was in his element, reliving his childhood and truly appreciating what a master sandcastle builder he really is. On the other hand Emily wasn't so convinced, as another "Daddys castle - uh oh" rang out across the beach at the same time as she laid ruin to another masterpiece. She was however more patient with filling up the moat. Although admittedly this normally involved me running frantically back and forth to the sea with a substandard bucket full of water, whilst a supreme being looked on crying "Daddy, more water". No matter though, it was safe to say Emily LOVED the beach.

 "Daddy, more water"

 Architectural brilliance, seconds before "Daddy's castle - uh oh!"

 Beach beauties on a beauty of a beach

Still running on the beach at 5pm

So if we weren't on the beach we were in the woods learning all about nature. We learnt all about oak trees, from their leaves to their acorns to their deep roots. We learnt that brambles scratch but blackberries taste really good. We learnt that nettles sting and holly is spikey. And Daddy learnt that trying to change a supreme being's nappy in the woods is no mean feat. We wandered for hours in the woods, a very happy Emily smiling and chatting away with her new found woodland knowledge.

So between the woods and the beach, regular ice cream and blackberries, a trip to Anglessey to meet a goose and some quality renditions of "Row, Row Boat" it was a sterling success. Thanks to Jim and Mary for letting us stay in the lovely Dolphin Cottage!!

 Foraging in the woods, face covered in blackberries

Dolphin cottage - our home for the week

Amma and Dad...

As part of our (not really) Summer holiday, we planned to spend some time with my Mum and Dad prior to a week in Wales. It was Emily’s first time staying at Grandma and Grandad’s house, and we weren’t too sure how she would get on, but she took to my childhood home like she had also grown up there, and was right at home within minutes.

Riding on "Beep Beep", Daddy's childhood push along

Grandma and Grandad it seems have particularly hard names to say, so one of the first things the supreme being did was re-christen them to Amma and Dad. Much simpler all round, although a little confusing on the paternal side.

Emily just loves a garden to run around in, so with the sun smiling not much could go wrong. We met old friends Kev and Jill on their narrowboat, took a trip to see the farm animals at Umberslade Farm, went bramble picking at the Lickey Hills, met big cousin Ruth, as well listening to Daddy witter on about his childhood memories around Birmingham. We even got Amma and Dad doing races in the garden – not bad for 2 young at heart folk in their 80’s. A really big thanks to both of them for giving us a really special time in Brum.

 Quality Dad-Daughter time in the garden

 Enjoying narrowboat life

 Dream come true...a real life rabbit :-)

 I can't believe they got me brushing up leaves!

 Watching Bambi with Amma

A walk in the park with Amma and Dad

Food and more food…

Keeping a supreme being energised is no easy feat. They need an incredible amount of nutrition, despite being still pretty tiny. Emily is no exception and can put away a fair bit of scran when on top of her eating game.

 

Caught in a filthy chocolate act

On an average day her daily Hobbit-like diet consists of:

First breakfast: 3 Weetabix
Second breakfast: A third of Daddy’s breakfast of muesli/fruit & fibre plus anything else she can get her hands on
Mid-morning snack: A whole nectarine plus some toast
Lunch: Two slices eggy bread
Mid-afternoon snack: An ice cream plus few handfuls of grapes
Dinner: Adult salmon portion (plus some of Mummy and Daddy’s), potatoes and any greens that end up in her mouth by accident. Followed by upto 4 yoghurts for pudding

The joy of ice cream

Now the more observant amongst you might notice two things. Firstly, the calorific content of the above is not far off what an average adult consumes. It’s incredible, God knows where she puts it all but put it away she does. Secondly, it is a trifle carbohydrate based. Vitamins are not high on our daughters agenda. Indeed most things green are routinely ejected from the plate, so a cunning use of the blender to infuse vitamins into various dishes is required. She also doesn’t drink milk since Mummy put her boobs into retirement, so the yoghurts seem to give her the calcium she needs. 

Still, we shouldn’t complain. She is wonderfully happy, particularly when fully fed. And all that food gives her the energy she needs to run round all day and enjoy life to the full. Now if only we could keep up, then all would be fine…

High as a kite and purple coloured, post bramble picking/eating

 

Face painting with evening yoghurt no.2