Monday
We were due to go to Colne Valley Railway but the children were adamant that they didn't want to go so instead of forcing them we decided to take a trip to Promenade Park in Maldon. They've made a lot of improvements since we last went 5 years ago. The park is by the river and is in a beautiful setting. We didn't walk as far as Hythe Quay but could see the Thames Sailing Barges. There are lots of activities for the children;

Large galleon with slides and climbing equipment
Splash park
Zip slide
Boating and crabbing lake
Sand pits
Petanque
Skateboard Park
BMX park
Fairground rides
Maze and more.

It was extremely busy when we got there and Nigel had to queue for a parking ticket for some time as there were only 2 machines and these were side by side. It seemed as though everyone had chosen Maldon!

The children headed straight for the galleon adventure play and spent a couple of hours on there while Nigel and I sat in the shade relaxing and watching the children. After that we bought lunch from one of the food huts on the park. Food wasn't expensive and it was lovely. We had a look around some more of the park and came across an area of bouncy castles. The children both wanted to go on but we said it was too expensive. You had to buy wristbands at £4 for under 3's and £6.50 for over 3. It would have been okay if they were going to spend all day on the bouncy area but we didn't want to stay in one spot. Instead, we let the children have a fairground ride. It was only a small merry go round and £1 each but it kept them happy!

We then walked further along the park to the boating/crabbing lake. We'd taken the stuff for crabbing and we had great fun catching 78 crabs (mostly tiny ones). It was the first time the children have ever been crabbing and they really liked it so we're going to go again. The lake there was only about 1m deep so I wasn't too concerned about the children being near water.

Molly kept asking to go on the splash park but there was a really long queue all day long. By the time we finished crabbing we had to leave as Nigel's parents were cooking a barbecue for us. It was a really lovely day at Maldon. Beautiful weather, picturesque, lots to see and do, inexpensive. It's just a shame it's not a little closer so that we could go more often.

Tuesday
A rare day at home today. Nigel went back to work and my mum came over to take the children out for a couple of hours so that I could have a break. Well, a break to get on with tidying and cleaning! After lunch Charlie had a nap so Molly and I made a start on her Summer Scrapbook. It wasn't until we started sorting out everything that we've collected that I realised just how busy we've been and how many great places we've been to over the last few weeks. Molly went to a friend's this afternoon so Charlie and I had some time together and we played with his trains.

Tomorrow is the last day before Molly goes back to school and I've promised to take them out. She has asked to go to an indoor play centre so we'll go to Play 2 Day in Martlesham or Snakes & Ladders, which seems to be the favourite choice.

I'm really sad that the holidays are over. It's been wonderful having Molly & Charlie at home every day and being able to take them out. It's not been as difficult as I thought it would be, despite having to get to everywhere by public transport, and the children have been a joy to have around (despite some bad behaviour on occasions). It's also been more of a holiday for me this year. I put the emphasis on having fun and keeping the children happy and have just ignored a lot of the housework. The house is a mess but we've enjoyed ourselves!

I'm also sad that our association with Heart is coming to an end. Being the Heart Family has been great and it was so lovely to meet Kelly (and the Heart Angels) and have her as part of our family for the summer. As nervous as we were about the filming and interviews it's become like second nature to us having the mic and camera around! The children haven't yet got to grips with not having to show off for Kelly after tomorrow as they've grown to love her and will miss her terribly.

Being a stay at home mum means that I'm at home a lot, particularly during the winter, so it's been good for me to get out of the house so often. It's also been great to have a focus with the Heart feature and blog. It's quite theraputic, regardless of how much I ramble on! I'm going to continue the blog so that I can put my thoughts down on paper, so to speak.