SUMMER: Why you should go to Gloworm Festival with Interplay

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Family festivals are becoming more and more popular, as they pop up around the country offering families endless fun for a whole weekend. Many now offer camping too, so you really can make them into quite the adventure. Gloworm Festival is one that has been on our wish list since becoming parents, so we were beyond excited to be going this year as Interplay Ambassadors. If you're not familiar with Interplay then they have a number of very popular children's brands, including My Fairy Garden, FabLab, Fuzzikins, My Living World, My Mermaid Lagoon, CraftBox Charm Jewellery, Technokit and the revolutionary new Face Paintoos. At Gloworm Festival 2019 Interplay sponsored the Creative Play Zone, which was filled with FabLab Style Labs, Fuzzkins and Face Paintoos. An absolute must-visit for anyone at the festival, especially to help get into that festival vibe style!

SUMMER: Taking Family Photographs at Cotswold Lavender

Despite having been to the Cotswolds many times throughout my life I had never heard of Cotswold Lavender before. It was only after I mentioned to a friend at work that I was heading to The Real Flower Confetti Co. Flower Field that they suggested visiting there too. Located just two miles away from the very popular Cotswold village of Broadway, Cotswold Lavender is the home to beautiful rolling lavender fields filled with many different varieties on offer to see. Not only are the so calming to walk around, but they are a photographers dream. The neat rows on rows of bright purple lavender make for a stunning photograph location for families, couples and children.

SUMMER: The Real Flower Petal Confetti Co. Flower Field

Each year The Real Flower Petal Confetti Co. open their colourful flower field to visitors for a very limited number of days. This year their flower field is open between the 29th June and the 8th July 2018, so time is of the essence when it comes to planning a visit. If you're looking for delicate yet pretty real flower petal confetti for a wedding or event then The Real Flower Petal Confetti Co. is the website to visit. To create their beautiful confetti they grow fields of colourful flowers on their farm in Wick, Worcestershire, which is what they open up to the public for 10 days a year. Offering a unique opportunity to be surrounded from head to toe in flowers of varying colours; the photographers dream.

SUMMER: Strawberry Picking at Whetstone Pastures Farm in Leicestershire

When it comes to the summer months there are a few activities we always like to do as a family and strawberry picking is one of them. The summer sun, smell of fresh strawberries and, of course, being able to indulge in the fruits of your labour all make for a fun family summer activity. Most Pick Your Own (PYO) farms open their doors to strawberry pickers in the first week or so of June, though it is very weather dependent as to when the first crops are ready. After a quick check to see if the crops were ready, we headed off on our first strawberry picking trip of the year last Sunday. 

REVIEW: Diono Quantum Classic Pushchair - from baby to toddler mode in just four clicks

The world of pushchairs, travel systems and prams is a big one with so many different features and designs available. In February of this year Diono launched an exciting new pushchair, the Quantum Classic (£675), which has all the practical features you could ever imagine along with added luxurious touches. The exclusive tailoring to the air filled all-terrain wheels it is the pushchair designed for both city and country life. As someone who lives in the countryside, but often visits towns/cities for family days out, it has all the features possibly needed to make the ride as comfortable and smooth as possible.

FAMILY: Exploring Bourton-on-the-Water and Daylesford Farm in the Cotswolds

Following on from my previous post about Bibury, we then drove around 20-25 minutes to visit Bourton-on-the-Water. Another popular and highly recommended village to visit within the Cotswolds, due to its beautiful bridges, quaint tearooms and tranquil river running through the middle. As with a lot of these smaller Cotswolds villages (though Bourton-on-the-Water is a lot bigger than Bibury), the parking spaces can be few and far between. We ended up parking in the larger car park next to Birdland and the Dragonfly Maze, which also has public toilets. Another thing worth noting if you're heading to the Cotswolds is that almost all of the public toilets we came across you had to pay 20p to use, so make sure you have change with you.

FAMILY: Exploring Bibury in the Cotswolds

The Cotswolds is well-known for being such a beautiful part of the English countryside with it's quaint villages, cosy cottages and rolling hills. Despite growing up just down the road from the Cotswolds I don't remember visiting very often and if we did it was to Cotswolds Wildlife Park. So, last weekend we decided to have a road trip and spend the day exploring the Cotswolds. Prior to visiting I looked around at some of the most recommended places to visit because if you've only got a day there then no time can be wasted thinking about where to go.

WINTER DAY OUT: Truly Stunning Scenery at The Elan Valley in Wales

During our recent mini break in Wales (see where we stayed here) we visited The Elan Valley, which is simply a place of pure beauty. Spread across 72 square miles, there are dams, reservoirs and historic landscapes to explore. We parked at the Elan Valley Visitor Centre to start our day out, as it's where the café is located and the perfect place to get up close to one of the dams. The café is pretty basic, serving hot drinks, jacket potatoes, sandwiches, pasties, soup etc., but has prime location overlooking the dam. There is also a large seating area next to the river outside, which would be such a beautiful spot to have a bite to eat in the spring/summer. There is also a gift shop, large children's play area and toilets within the visitor centre area.