A town called Cheltenham...

Dear Cheltenham, thank you for an awesome summer, love from Honey xoxo

Honey wears... Hedgehog jumper by George @ Asda

And they all lived happily ever after...

HUGE congratulations to Honey's Uncle Rich and his new wife Gemma. Honey had a great time dancing the night away at The Pitville Pump Rooms and loved seeing so many of her Great Aunts, Uncles and a wide variety of cousins (once removed, twice removed, second cousins - who knows)! Honey's fabulous new Aunty (apologies to Uncle Rich if it was his idea) had thought of everything and gave Honey and the other mini guests an activity pack to play with at the table and their own special menu, complete with pink, popping candy ice cream!

Honey wears... Electric guitar bandana bib by Funky Giraffe

Girls and boys come out to play...

Broadway park has been recommended to us by lots of friends so we felt we ought to check it out. We parked in the village car park, a 5 minute walk away from the park and walked up the High Street (showing great self restraint and not even looking in any of the gorgeous shops)! What first struck me was the size of the park, for the size of the village, the space allocated to the park is amazing! I was also impressed with the range of play equipment available, once again we had a 1 year old and a 9 year old to keep happy and both had a whale of a time. We spent almost an hour there and would definitely have stayed a lot longer had it not been for the sudden torrential rain which left us freezing cold and looking like drowned rats!

Honey wears... Rain suit by Togz

The Really Wild Show...

Wow, what a great day! We must have walked for miles but it didn't feel like it as there were so many things to see and do along the way! We went to The Cotswold Wildlife Park with some friends who were visiting the area and we were all impressed. With a 1 year old and a 9 year old to occupy, things could have been tricky but in fact, the day flew by and everyone was kept thoroughly entertained. The range of animals is impressive, the play equipment has recently been revamped (with great success) and there are plenty of toilet and refreshment stops all the way round. The walkways are wide so buggies are no problem, although we chose to wear Honey so she'd have a better view of the animals and she also spent a lot of time waking, especially in the farm area where she was able to stroke some of the animals. All in all, i'd say that The Cotswold Wildlife Park is definitely worth the money and if you book online in advance, you pay last years prices and as we all know, every little helps!

Honey wears... Butterfly backpack with reins by Little Life

Robyn wears... Honey!

The BFG...

Honey found out what it feels like to be a giant today when we visited The Model Village in Bourton on the Water. We were in the area having lunch with some good friends and thought that the Model Village would be a fun and inexpensive way to spend an hour afterwards. There's a buggy park on the way in as the walkways are very narrow, then you come to the buildings which are well made and detailed. Our favourite game was searching for The Model Villlage in The Model Village in The Model Village! We can also give the beer garden next door a big thumbs up for it's lovely setting and fab playground!

Honey wears... Minnie Mouse set by Disney

Under the sea...

Calling all teacher friends, did you know that you can claim 2 free tickets to The Sealife Centre this summer? The only stipulations are that you work in a school no more than 2 hours away and that you book in advance online! We visited the Birmingham branch which was easy to find and had a range of parking options nearby. The NIA South car park is £6.80 for 8 hours (we made a day of it and visited the library, The Mailbox and The Bull Ring too) and they had coned off some parking spaces near the entrance especially for people with buggies. A quick note about buggies, if you can transport your baby by other means, it's worth doing inside the centre itself as the walkways are really narrow and easily clogged. Honey found the experience really exciting, repeatedly saying 'wow' and making lots of fish faces! We had a little passport to stamp on the way round (which Honey was given a gold medal for completing) and Honey also found a soft play area and met a Moshi Monster who have her a certificate 'for her excellent dancing' with him - so cute! 

Honey wears... Grey flower t-shirt by Next

Record Breakers...

At the age of 15 months (almost exactly to the day), I am very proud to say that Honey is a record breaker! This afternoon, Cheltenham set a Guinness World Record for the most people jiving simultaneously! The weather was atrocious, but that didn't stop over 1000 people packing on to The Prom to take part in the record attempt organised by Cheltenham Borough Council. We were number 95 and faced an agonising wait to see if the organisers could get enough people to join us but luckily the rain (and thunder) hadn't put everyone off and we all danced our way into the record books! Honey took it all in her stride and enjoyed wiggling, waving and clapping along as we danced, what a fun way to end a brilliant weekend!

Honey wears... Raincoat by Mothercare

Park life...

We did something else fun today which got a little bit lost amongst all the flash mob mania! Miniature Music has been holding a series of fundraising sessions in Montpellier Park over the summer holidays and we finally had a spare hour to go and join in! What I love about Miniature Music is that the children (and grown ups) get to sing, dance and use REAL instruments. Today, Honey played a djembe, an accordion, a ukulele, a kazoo and even a tiny harp (with some extra tuition from Zaphira's miniature assistant Arlen). If you have an hour to spare next Friday, go and join the fun! Entry is a suggested £1 per child donation which will help Miniature Music reach their £200 fundraising target for their chosen charity, Music Makers Gloucestershire.

Honey wears... Tutu dress by Next

While you were eating...

Sling Beat were asked to organise a flash mob to help GBSN celebrate World Breastfeeding week 2014. Further to their widely shared chalkboard sign photo, Brasserie Blanc were only too happy to host this latest surprise! 

Honey and I had a fantastic time rehearsing in the park then dancing amongst the diners, while Daddy proudly watched. I don't really need to write anything else, as the kind people at the Gloucestershire Echo and Families Online have done it for me, click the hyperlinks to find out more and look out for Honey at the bottom of the second one!

Honey wears... Pink dress by Next

Photos © Mouse About Town

Dinosaur...

Honey had a great time climbing a mountain with Baby Bumpkin today, she even brought Granny along on her adventure! After refuelling with a Whole Foods burrito (legendary), we headed to The Brewery to meet some dinosaurs. Although we were too late for the giant T-Rex, Honey got to stroke some smaller ones which she did with an amusing mix of terror and delight!

Honey wears... Polka dot top by Baby Gap

Let's do lunch...

Our half price play pass for Blue Skies was one of their birthday celebration offers and we've already had our money's worth! The pass (normal price is only £10 per month) allows you and your child to come and play as many times as you like, for as long as you like and there are even discounts for siblings. We have used the pass as an excellent excuse to make more lunch dates with friends and family, as well as sneaking in a Sling Beat business chat there too :-) Whether you're looking for a pit stop during a shopping trip in town or a place to go for lunch, you won't find a more welcoming, relaxed place to take your children in Cheltenham.

Honey wears... Tunic top by Mini Club @ Boots

Cha cha cha...

Our favourite dance class plus our favourite dance style equals our favourite way to spend an hour! Sling Beat has been trying something different this summer with workshops based around a variety of dance genres such as ballet, ballroom and Latin and Musical Theatre. Emily-Rose had worked really hard to choreograph easy to follow yet exciting ballroom and Latin inspired routines and all the Mums and babies had a blast despite the heat! Top tip from Sam Potter at Sling Solutions who wore her little boy on her back to help keep them both a bit cooler.

Honey wears... Nautical dress by Gwen Stefani for Harajuku Lovers @ Target