Staycation, staycation, staycation (Part 1)...

Just like everyone, holidays have been off the agenda in recent months. And as May/June and early July are the highlight of the annual weather calendar in Scotland, it’s been all about staycation, staycation, staycation.

No long weekends in the van, no trips to festies, no visits to see friends and family. But still we’ve made the best of things and the sunshine has really helped our activities. We’ve taken to walking the paths round and about – many new and untested by us until now. We’ve been enjoying Scotland's finest whether foraging for wild foods or watching nature as its grown through Spring into Summer. We’ve learned to travel in style…Niomi racing ahead on her bike, Mummy and Emily – on foot and scooter accordingly – deeply engrossed in Harry Potter chat, and Daddy – well he just potters along on his tod admiring the view.

Destinations have been woodland adventures, ruined castles, wee lochans and long distance paths. And when our allotted outdoor time expired then there’s been plenty of fun in the garden – we’ve had plenty of play with water (fun if you have a wetsuit), fed our resident robins from the hand, watched the newly hatched blue tits learn to fly, tasted the first bounty from the veggie beds and admired the flowers as they start to emerge all over. Books have also had a theme...Emily's devoured book after book - either reading herself or having all the Harry Potter series and the Hobbit read to her, whilst Niomi has started to recognise letters and is now reading her first words - more than ready for school in August.

And we've done our best to replace the gaping campervan void in our lives...I was given a campervan lego set for Father's Day (it'll be finished by Christmas), Emily's made her own campervan...and we've also treated DDU to a new tattoo.

All in all it’s become The Good Life all round, and we've enjoyed our our new found staycations. Now roll on Part 2 as we start to venture further than 5 miles...

 Woodland Explorers I

 Woodland Explorers II

 Woodland Explorers III

 Harry Potter chat and Niomi in the distance

 Scooter Girl

We've tramped most of the feet of the Campsies

 The baby blue tits first day out the nest - born and bred in the garden

The best fed robin in town

The illustrated Hobbit

 3 girls at the 3 wells

 Delighted to be out again

Kissed by the sun 

 River play

 Do I laugh or cry? It's epic

Videoclip: Emily's campervan

DDU's new tattoo says it all