The Hobbis Family Summer Holiday Bucket List

Caitlin and Ieuan break up from school on Wednesday and, as usual, I have managed to leave it to the last minute to compile a list of things for us to do - not that there aren't oodles of ideas from my fellow bloggers to keep us busy all year long!

How hard can keeping them occupied be?

I asked Ieuan this morning what he fancied doing (Caitlin just wants to play with Shopkins) and he gave me his best 7 year old shrug and said something which sounded suspiciously like 'iPad'.

Anyway,  I have started the list with the proviso that, since the Husband and I have not become millionaires since last summer, the kids will actually have to use some brain power and do that radical 1970's thing of entertaining themselves from time to time.

This means they may even experience that character building thing called boredom but it didn't kill us, did it?And I still maintain that having to make your own fun is the best way to stimulate creativity in any age group.

Superheroes are now so last year

Practically speaking, no parent has the time, energy or money to take the kids out every single day so it's going to be a compromise between the odd day trip here and there, our week sojourn to Devon and passing the time at home without killing one another.

I love the summer holidays, don't you?!

Have kagool, will travel

Here's where I've got to so far on the list and if you can think of anything an eight and a seven year old might enjoy, please tell me in the comments below.

1. Biking around Cosmeston Nature Reserve and exploring the medieval village
2. Getting Caitlin to finally get the hang of her Heeleys
3. Picnic at National Trust Dyffryn Gardens
4. Go to the funfair at Barry Island (there's a ghost train!)
5. Put the paddling pool up (and kiss the lawn goodbye for yet another year!)
6. Eat ice creams on the pier at Penarth
7. Explore the beautiful Westonbirt Arboretum 
8. Go sand-dune surfing at Merthyr Mawr
9. Explore our local castles at Cardiff, Caerphilly and Raglan
10. Walk up The Garth (and then progress to Pen-y-Fan)
11. Hire tricycles and cycle along the Cardiff Bay Barrage
12. Search for sea glass at St. Mary's Well Bay, Lavernock
13. Sign up for our local library reading challenge (this was Ieuan's suggestion - amazing!)
14. Bake bread with Taid (my dad loves impromptu cookery sessions with the kids)
15. Visit our local museums at Cardiff and St. Fagins
16. Stick a two man tent up in the garden and have a camping dummy run
17. Go to Bath on the train and then take a boat trip on the river
18. Bake a cake (with me this time).  I'm OK with cakes...ish.
19. Visit Rest Bay at Porthcawl and the fair at Coney Beach
20. Play football on our local common
21. Go on an expedition to find Dinas Powys Castle.  (Yes we have one).
22. Go pond dipping at Porthkerry Park (supervised by the wardens of course)
23. Play crazy golf in Cardiff St. David's Centre
24. Pick our own strawberries at Hendrewennol Fruit Farm and the Maize Maze
25. Hold a movie night with popcorn and hotdogs
26. Host a sleepover (never done this before so will have to check my nerves will hold)
27. Explore Llandaff Cathedral and have tea and cake at the local teashop
28. Visit Bristol Zoo - the location for most of my school trips
29. Go bouncing at Go Air trampoline park
30. Get the kids rock climbing at Boulders Indoor Climbing Centre
31. Get the kids to earn some pocket money by setting up their own restaurant and charging the Husband and I to eat
32. Helping with the housework (nothing wrong with learning a few lifeskills)!
33. Washing the car
34. Making jewellery - I've promised Caitlin will get some jewellery making tools and restring some of my old necklaces
35. Watching Harry Potter, Lord of The Rings, The Hobbit and Star Wars.  Probably on repeat.
36. Have a games night - Junior Monopoly, Cluedo, all the old favourites
37. Ieuan wants his bedroom repainted so he can help his dad with that
38. Go skimming stones at The Knap Beach and have fish and chips on the way home
39. Practising our videoing skills by recording another gripping episode of Caitlin and Ieuan's "The Hulk & Puppy".  
40. Playing hide and seek.
41. Oh, alright, Pokemon Go IF THE DAMN THING LOADS!!!
42. Visiting their Aunty Judy's new kitten, Willow. 
43. Making home-made birthday cards with Nanny
44. Going to Clearwell Caves in the Forest of Dean
45. Taking a boat on the river at Symonds Yat
46. Reading some of the children's classics like Black Beauty and The Wind in the Willows
47. Making home-made ice lollies
48. Helping with the garden, collecting leaves and weeding
49. Vacuuming. (What do you mean it's not fun?)
50. Playing the piano with Taid - and me if I can remember how to sight read

So, there's quite a few things on my list already this year and I'm hoping we tick off quite a few of these.  I'll buy the kids a scrapbook each so that they can record their adventures and they can make a memory box to keep any special souveniers they collect along the way.

Do you know, I'm actually quite looking forward to it.

What's on your family summer holiday bucket list?