A matter of choice

Regular readers of my blog know that we've been to many of the events at Cyherbia Botanical Park and Labyrinth and this weekend they held their 2nd Annual Fairy Folk Fest.

For the last few events we have been working there with our children's Photo Booth and although they were fun days, we didn't get to enjoy them with the boys so I was really looking forward to visiting as a guest - and walking round the maze and gardens for the first time in ages!


The event promised to be a day of adventure and enchantment and it didn't disappoint. Despite the fact that I have 2 boys who would usually think faeries are 'girlie' they loved the day - especially duelling with the knight and planting 'magic beans',well, fighting and digging in the dirt - what's not to love!



In the Herb Gardens our task was to spot all the faeries, and find out their names (they were named after the plant they were hiding by - a great way to get the kids to read the information boards…

I love this time of year in Cyprus!  Over the last month the tourist areas have become a hive of activity as restaurants, hotels and bars prepare to reopen after the winter.  Carnival, Green Monday and the bank holidays, Easter and the anticipation of the summer season just around the corner gives us a spring in our step and a sense of optimism.
It all begins with Tsiknopempti (which literally translates to 'Thursday of the smoke of grilled meat', due to the gorgeous aroma of meat being barbequed all over the island).   It's not widely celebrated by many expats here, I knew nothing about it until the boys started school but for me it now marks the start of the celebrations. 
Last year I joined Leo at school to watch the celebrations and enjoy the BBQ laid on the for the parents, staff and children.  This year Leo is in big school and once again I went in to join the fun. It was a little strange as I was (as always) the only English Mum there, but also seemed to be the only…

There are many things that I imagined I would do (or not do) when I had children and in most cases it turns out that I was completely wrong - providing fresh home cooked meals every day, no junk food, limited tv and technology time, educational arts and crafts etc but one thing I was right about was the fact I would read to my children and try and encourage a love of books in them.

As a child I absolutely loved visiting the local library, and spent many hours there choosing hundreds of books over the years. I remember the excitement of becoming old enough to get an adult card and suddenly being able to take out 9 books at a time.  I think they actually let me get one early as I used to go through the books so fast!
When Leo was just a couple of months old I took him to a Baby Bounce and Rhyme time at the library, and although he was way to young to appreciate it I know it is something I would have continued, and I'm sure we would have been regular borrowers of children's book…

Having been bitten by the geocaching bug we have been on several outings in the last month looking for them in the local area. The app that I use gives you a list of those local to you so it's an simple case of scrolling through until one takes your fancy.

I had my eye on one located at the beach by the Crystal Springs hotel in Pernera and thought it would be an ideal time to go searching for it while the hotel was still closed. 

As we got out of the car it started to rain slightly but I was on a mission so I decided we would carry on,  Louka was not impressed as instantly complained he was cold (despite the fact it wasn't). It didn't take long though to realised that my phone was playing up and I really had no idea where to start looking.  I was feeling a bit bad that we were out in the rain (with no waterproof clothes) so we jumped back in the car for a sandwich snack stop. 
The rain suddenly stopped as we drove away so I decided to head to the next on the list at the n…

My Mum recently sent me these photos as she realised that she was the same age in these photos that I am now, and coincidentally Leo is about the same age I was. 
They were taken in Son Bou, Minorca in 1984 on our family holiday. 
My earliest memory of going abroad is probably this holiday,or the one after it as we we went to the same place.  I can remember several things from them although I guess many of the memories are due to the photos I have seen so many times over the years.  
In the picture above I am holding a little toy monkey which was called Pepe for some reason. I don't remember how or where I got him but I know I carried him around the entire holiday. No idea what happened to him afterwards though as I don't remember having him at home. 

It was also the holiday of the 'Whisky Cake' a story which has become a long running joke over the years. Mum had ordered whisky cake in a restaurant after having it a few days previously elsewhere. The first time the wa…

Here's a little glimpse into what we've been up to in February inspired by the photos on my camera roll - aka how to be a lazy blogger!


It seems that we mainly went to the beach, although in reality I realise that I don't tend to take photos of us all vegged out in front of the tv so my folder of photos does not always reflect real life!  None the less, I have actually lost count of the number of times we went out, either for a little walk or to have a run about on the beach (the boys, not me obviously. I don't 'do' running!)



Most of the trips out included geocaching hunts, it gives us a location to head for and a 'reason' to go, although we went all that successful, especially on the first attempts.   We found quite a few over the month though and most importantly had loads of nice afternoons out in the process.


The boys are starting to get better at amusing themselves, making up games with stones, or bits of wood and random objects found on beaches.


…