• The Gingerbread City 2023
    days out - Local Review - London

    The Gingerbread City 2023

    December 12, 2023 - By 

    Last weekend we visited The Gingerbread City 2023 at Westfield White City.  The Gingerbread City is an annual pop up exhibition where everything has been created from freshly baked gingerbread, with the odd biscuit and sweet thrown in. The exhibition has been called ‘STEM meets sweets’. The Gingerbread City 2023 The theme this year is Water in Cities and The Gingerbread City has been split into five distinct zones showcasing design ideas that respond to various water contexts: the Desert Landscape, Urban Floodplain, Canal City, Frozen Landscape, and Underwater and Floating City. It had been a while since I had…

  • Exploring Frameless London with kids
    City of Westminster - days out - Local Review - London

    Exploring Frameless London with kids

    December 8, 2023 - By 

    Over the weekend we were invited to Frameless London, this can be found on Oxford Street near Marble Arch in central London. Both my children love art so I knew they would enjoy seeing art in a different way from the usual museum and gallery experience. Exploring Frameless London with kids We arrived at Frameless and travelled down to the basement level. Frameless is spread over 4 multi-sensory galleries showcasing 90 minutes of hypnotic visuals set to a dazzling score. There is also a temporary gallery space, as well as a spacious cafe, bathrooms and gift shop. We easily spent…

  • Lowe's christmas penguin lights in London
    days out - Local Review - London

    The best places to see Christmas Lights in London

    November 29, 2023 - By 

    Disclosure – this is a sponsored post For the last few years we’ve spent a day in London looking at all the beautiful Christmas lights. We love a day in London, it can be an inexpensive day out, if you know where to look! We knew we wanted to visit the main streets of central London so planned our day out carefully, taking the Underground from where we live into Kings Cross and walking. We did try taking the bus a few times, we even saw a special Christmas Lights tour bus, but it was super busy, so we ended…

  • Exploring The Vyne with kids (and a dog)
    days out - Hampshire - National Trust

    Exploring The Vyne with kids (and a dog)

    November 18, 2023 - By 

    Over half term we visited The Vyne, which is a beautiful Grade 1 listed house in Hampshire. The house developed over time and sits in a beautiful landscaped garden. Exploring The Vyne with kids (and a dog) The kids had a two week half term, so we found that most Halloween activities were over by the time we went away. However when we arrived at The Vyne we found they were running two activities: a Witch’s Recipe Trail and an autumn leaves colour wheel. We picked up both from the ticket booth and set off to explore The Vyne. Unfortunately…

  • Exploring the Thames Barrier
    days out - Greenwich - Local Review - London

    Exploring the Thames Barrier with kids

    October 25, 2023 - By 

    As it’s half term I wanted to share a fun day out we had recently in London. We went right across London to see the Thames Barrier on one of its monthly testing days. Exploring the Thames Barrier The Thames Barrier has been on our London bucket list for years. Earlier this year we saw that it was going to be raised for annual testing, so decided to go along. We went on public transport, getting the tube to North Greenwich and then a bus to Woolwich, from where it was a short walk to the Thames. As we approached…

  • The Grim's Dyke Hotel afternoon tea
    days out - Harrow - Local Review - London

    The Grim’s Dyke Hotel afternoon tea

    October 21, 2023 - By 

    A few weeks ago we booked a table at The Grim’s Dyke Hotel for afternoon tea. We were celebrating our 15th wedding anniversary so wanted to do something special. We last visited The Grim’s Dyke Hotel on an Open House weekend when the house was open to the public. It’s a gorgeous Arts and Crafts house designed by R. Norman Shaw for Frederick Goodall, and later the home of W.S. Gilbert. The Grim’s Dyke Hotel afternoon tea The house is now a hotel with extensive grounds. On the day of our visit there was a wedding party enjoying drinks on…

  • Best pumpkin patch near London
    days out - Local Review - London

    Best pumpkin patch near London

    October 18, 2023 - By 

    A couple of weekends ago we made our annual trip to our local pumpkin patch at The Pop Up Farm. The name is funny because it’s not a pop up farm, the pumpkins are planted and grown at the farm! We love going every year and picking a wheel barrow full of pumpkin and squash to decorate our home. As you enter the farm you can collect a wheelbarrow and head out to the pumpkin patch. The pumpkin fields are quite big and we found it was worth walking to the further end to get the best pumpkins. When the…

  • Exploring Ally Pally and The Knitting & Stitching Show
    days out - London

    Exploring Ally Pally and The Knitting & Stitching Show

    October 7, 2023 - By 

    It’s been a few years since I’ve ventured to the Knitting & Stitching Show at Ally Pally. It’s a biannual show which also takes place at Harrogate. Exploring Ally Pally and The Knitting & Stitching Show The Knitting & Stitching Show is a great show for people who love craft. There are exhibitions, workshops, demonstrations and lots of shopping to be done. I didn’t manage to book myself on any workshops (they sell out quickly) so I just went to look round the exhibits and do some shopping. I made sure to visit first thing on Saturday morning as the…

  • Java Whiskers Cat Lounge Marylebone
    days out - Local Review - London

    Java Whiskers Cat Lounge Marylebone

    September 19, 2023 - By 

    My son loves cats so, for a summer holiday treat, I booked a visit to Java Whiskers Cat Lounge in London. Java Whiskers is a Cat Cafe in London’s Marylebone and is a fun place to stop off for an hour. We’ve been to a few Cat Cafes including London’s first cat cafe, Lady Dinah’s Cat Emporium, back in 2018. They are always fun to visit and we were excited to explore somewhere new, and meet lots of cats of course. Java Whiskers Cat Lounge Marylebone Java Whiskers Cat Lounge has two branches in London, the original one in Marylebone,…