Signs of Spring

Well, the mother-in-law has scuppered my plans for camping in half term week, so I've pledged to drag the kids round the countryside every weekend.

Yesterday we took in our first family walk. By this I mean we planned where we were going and we ALL walked. No buggy or child-carrier for Small. The map came out and a route was picked. Loki was encouraged to write a list of the wildlife he would like to see on his nature ramble. The list consisted of:

Horses - Smalls choice, she likes horses,

Red Kite - considering we live a stones throw from the Chilterns Red Kites hold little novelty factor these days and I was surprised to see them added to the list. They are more common than crows over our garden!,

Worms - Loki likes worms,

Chucks - I'm sure I'd said chickens, but it appears on the list as Chucks,


Not a particularly ambitious list (which didn't matter anyway as we left it at home). The walk wasn't terribly ambitous either - we weren't sure how well Small would do without her buggy for back up and I didn't fancy carrying her for miles. We took a circular route of about 3 miles taking in farm track, sheep fields (Dog loved that!) and footpaths round the edge of farmland. Small only needed to be carried for the last 1/4 mile or so, which I think was more to do with the terrain than tired legs. Maybe a slightly longer walk can be attempted next time!

Wildlife we did see included; Bluebells, Guinea Fowl (not really wild), a sparrowhawk and rabbits. There was probably more but a large dog and two children tend to make enough racket to scare off anything really interesting before we see it.

I'm now on a mission to find small some sensible walking shoes - her "princess shoes" really weren't suitable for the terrain. Does anybody know where I can get walking boots in a childs size 9?


The Ramblers have some tips on walking with children and there is also a link to a list of books of family walks; http://www.ramblers.org.uk/info/everyone/children/ .

(I suspect my son scares the sheep more than Dog.)

Staying Dry

As the weather warms up I start dreaming of the first camping trip of the year. As Small is still so small I like to be sure that spring is really here before we hit the canvas. I can put up with being cold, I can't put up with the moaning that comes from a cold child.

As bad as a cold child, of course, is a wet child. Whilst my kids are happy to get soaked running around in the rain they aren't happy to stay soaked, so unless we are on a campsite with a drying room we need head to toe waterproofing. Small looks cute in the yellow Rukka Raingear, as the pictures show, but the 7 year old (henceforth known as Loki after his spiritual ruler) looks a bit daft in waterproof dungarees. For him it's waterproof trousers and the worlds most hideous kagool.

Caught short on a camping trip in the Cairngorms we had to make a dash between the rainstorms to Avemore to find a waterproof that would fit him. He was too large for the all in one toddler waterproofs and too small for the waterproof jackets available, so it was a stuff mac in "medium". I'm not sure what size a "medium" child is but looking at this kagool I would estimate they are about 4' 2" and have a waist measurement of about 47". I suspect Loki will never grow in to this particular garment.

It's a little shamefull really - I run a children's outdoor clothing retailer and my son wears the most repulsive waterproofs ever produced. I've tried to tempt him into a better fitting and much more respectable blue anorak, but if you have boys you'll know that trying to get them not to wear something is a guarenteed way of making them want to wear it.

I wonder if reverse psychology will work......

We are still running our prize draw via Twitter. If you use Twitter follow us (@littlewideworld) and we will enter you into a prize drawer to win a child's Rukka Anorak. The first 100 followers will be entered into the draw - we're currently up to 53.

I am also collecting recommendations for family friendly campsites. I would like to add a directory page of family friendly sites to http://www.littlewideworld.co.uk/, so if there's a site you particularly like and think other families will enjoy please send details of the site - including the site name and location - and the reasons that you think it's a great family destination to us at campingkidz@littlewideworld.co.uk and we will add it to the directory.

My First Post

I promise not to use this blog just to plug the online shop, but will start with a little bit of plugging then it's over and done with.

http://www.littlewideworld.co.uk/ has some fantastic rain gear, perfect for the weather we've had this week.

We are currently running a prize draw to win a kids Rukka Anorak, as modelled by Small. To enter the draw all you need to do is follow us on Twitter (@littlewideworld) and you will be automatically entered into the draw. As soon as we hit 100 followers we will make the draw and inform the winner via Twitter.