Things We Did on Holiday

Well.

The Reids have taken another unintentionally comic holiday.  We just make such POOR CHOICES.

This time, it was the Lake District for a week in Spring.  Otherwise known as the Time of Sideways Rain.  Also, Snow.  Literally.  Snow.  I mean, really.  It's April!

We froze our bits off.  Fun Daddy was very serene about it, as it gave him the opportunity to spend ludicrous amounts of money on outdoor kit.  We could have survived a blizzard, when really, it was just a bit wet and cold.

Trouble, who is remarkably cheerful under any circumstances, was happy to stomp around wherever we were - car museum, indoor play space, great grandma's house, etc.  It's all the same to him.

Lunatic Child started out the week extremely unimpressed with the choice of venue.  He complained vociferously about the smell of cow pats... 'They Stink!' and was anxious that there were no shops around.  'What do we do if we need milk?'  By the end of the week, however, he was in tears that we didn't live on a farm, due to his spiritual kinship with next-door's dog.  The dog just wanted to fetch the stick.  Lunatic Child was delighted to throw the stick.  It could have gone on for years.

There was also some major excitement to be had.  It's not all Grim Up North.  We saw Royalty in the form of Prince Charles!  There he was!  In the flesh!  The kids were wildly unimpressed, but I think Fun Daddy was secretly really excited.  As an American, I had to pretend that it was all beneath me...  But I confess that if it was Kate and Wills, however, I would have been freaking out.  On the inside.

We also saw History.  Really Old Stuff!  There was a day where there was at least 2 minutes of sunshine.  We went to a Roman Army Museum and walked along Hadrian's Wall.  It was just lovely.  The Lake District is amazingly beautiful.  We also went to an active dig where they're excavating an old Roman Fort.  Lunatic Child pretended to be an archaeologist all afternoon while we looked at a series of small walls.  We found out how the Romans made the cement that's kept Hadrian's Wall stuck together all this time.  A real archaeologist told us!  Possibly, Harried Mum was more excited about this than Lunatic Chid.

Trouble said the words 'sheep!' and 'cows!' approximately eleventy-million times.  He's finally starting to talk a lot more and likes to tell us off by wagging his finger at us.

We spent some time with Fun Daddy's family - the kids got to see their great-grandparents, and it's a privilege that they still have the opportunity to meet them.  We also had a really lovely time with great aunties and uncles and cousins.  Thanks so much guys!!

We made it there and back with no major traffic issues, everyone was hale and whole upon our return and one day the kids slept until 8:30am.  So, all in all, it was a relaxing and lovely holiday, and we fared rather better than the ski holiday, but Harried Mum still feels like she is owed a beach holiday with some mai tais and a pool.