Thetford Forest Camping Day 1

Last weekend we took the boys away for a long weekend break in Thetford Forest. We was joined by my Mum, Nicky, Paul, Zoe and Amy as we all travelled up for a weekend camping and to attend Auntie Jo's wedding. The boys have played in tents in the garden and have slept in a tent once during my 24hr Thunderun, however this was their first real camping experience. So after about an hour and a half driving with a car absolutely crammed with camping gear we arrived at Puddledock Farm camp site - smack bang in the middle of Thetford Forest.

The camp site was in a really beautiful part of Thetford surrounded by woodland and with a nice little pond on site.

Considering we are "camping rookies" I think we all did an outstanding job of pitching our tent. We were set-up in no time at all and then chilling in the fresh country air. Joshua and Brandon were having an absolute blast and getting involved and helping everyone as much as they could. They were so excited about the whole camping experience. Because of the environment and having other family members with the vicinity we gave the boys a bit more independence than they would normally have and they seemed to relish this experience. Although as a parent it was a little nerve racking when every now and then one of them would shoot off to the toilet without telling you! 

Who would have thought Tina would be chilling on a camping holiday? Will this be the first of many or the first and last for her?

Our tent all pitched up, a slight sag in the middle but not a bad first attempt.

When we arrived the camp site was only about a 1/10th full and so despite there being a "no ball games" rule, the boys had plenty of space to have a good kick around with their football. At this point it is worth mentioning just how good Amy is with Joshua and Brandon and is always up for a game of football, badminton, a walk in the woods or just simply messing around with the boys. She definitely made the weekend easier for me and Tina as she spent so much time entertaining and looking after the two boys.



What a great action shot of Brandon about to "tonk" a football.

Good foot position shown from Joshua with the toes/laces pointing down.

And another cracking kick by "Little B".

The camp site also had a simple kids play area for the children to amuse themselves in. Joshua was a bit of a daredevil on the climbing frame as he was climbing right to the top and then trying to traverse across the cargo net. He ended up hanging there stuck shouting for me to go and get him down. Brandon just loved the swings there despite them not being baby swings. This was the first time he has used a normal swing without the baby seat/bar and was holding on really well and going very high/fast.

We cooked our first camping dinner which was just a simple chicken korma with rice and naan bread. However this is where the bragging about the camping setup ends. Unfortunately I had not setup the folding table correctly by locking all the legs in place. So with all the cutlery, 4 drinks and 4 dinners placed on the table I noticed it was a bit wonky and then all of a sudden it collapses and 4 dinners end up on the floor! Fortunately we managed to salvage two of them so that the boys still had something to eat. I certainly won't make that mistake next time I set-up the table. After dinner we took a nice little stroll through the woods and around the camp site.

Joshua and his Nanny taking a walk through the woods.

Whilst in the woods we made up this simple log den. I say simple because later in the weekend we went to Bewilderwood and made the mother of all dens. That will feature on a later blog update.

Our practise den before the real deal at Bewilderwood.

What with the journey, setting up the pitch, football, park and woodland walks the boys were both shattered. So I gave them both a good clean up in the excellent shower block facilities and then about 2.5 hours later than their normal bedtime, it was off for some sleep. Both boys were out like a light and slept very well indeed on the inflatable camping beds.

Day 2 includes the update from Auntie Jo's wedding.