New land with a plan!

Back in the winter we purchased and cleared a strip of land between our cottages and the river Camel. It has opened up the whole of the cottage lawn. In the process we found this lovely old stone wall. I blogged back in Novemeber http://www.coombemill.com/blog/post/2011/11/16/Bob-the-Builder-Can-We-Fix-It.aspx about the suspected world war  2 origins and said then that Farmer Nick had grand ambitions for the site.

Ship Ahoy

This has been quite a project, from clearing the land to building the ship. Originally bought on ebay for just short of £1000, Farmer Nick drove all the way to Birmingham to collect it. I did wonder if it was worth the effort, but he had a plan! If you have been watching facebook you will have seen the building process. It did come with instructions, but in true farmer style, when taking the equipment out of his shed to install the plans were missing! A real jigsaw it became with all the children and friends helping out on the build. Here are some of the highlights:

I have to confess the finished ship is really rather special and fits perfectly into our walled garden. Even the newly seeded grass is now beginning to take and all the children staying are really making the most of the area.

We moved the little tikes climbing frame across to another play area and a new trampoline has now accompanied the ship.

Anyone remember this surprise purchase? http://www.coombemill.com/blog/post/2011/11/15/Daddy-Bought-a-Cannon.aspx well it is now coming into its own out from the shed and next to the ship for some imaginative pirate play

Next to be converted is this little treasure: 

I can just see it with some camo paint and a ladder and platorm and some safely rail turrets around the top. It will make an awesome look out post for pirates! I love the view from the river looking back at the new land with the ship and the old bunker and can't wait to get it all complete. 

A beatiful view

And Next.....

As always we still have further ideas brewing for this side of the farm, so do keep following as hopefully some of them will come to fruition and I will be sure to update all on the blog!

Country Kids Christmas and New Year Special

I hope you will be able to join me and link up some of your festive outdoor moments with the kids this week. I am holding this linky open until Saturday 7th January so no excuse not to blow away the cobwebs over the break with some outdoor fun and be in with a chance of winning the Kids Coombe Mill Cap for January!

Kids Cap winner from December is Clare from @Emmys_mummy with http://www.emmysmummy.com/2011/11/country-kids-coombe-mill-collage.html Congratulations, Cap on its way in the post in the New Year!

Thank you for all the lovely link ups, here are some of my other favourites this month 

http://curtainsforthewindow.blogspot.com/2011/11/beach-girl.html

http://morethanamumblog.wordpress.com/2011/11/28/country-kids/

http://jellybeansmusic.wordpress.com/2011/11/30/two-sticks-two-blondes-1-friend-happy/

http://kidzoutdoors.com/blog/?p=670

Decorating our Garden Tree with a Cannon!

If you have been following this blog you will know that cannons are rather popular with Farmer Nick and the boys. http://www.coombemill.com/blog/post/2011/11/15/Daddy-Bought-a-Cannon.aspx When they all sat laughing at James May on TV firing Christmas decorations onto his tree from a DIY cannon they were inspired. Daddy was sent shopping for parts then it was down to the shed to convert the leaf blower into a tinsel firing cannon!      

Drain pipe sections and Leaf blower were assembled in the shed for a dummy run, the light was fading outside so the 'real' operation had to wait till the morning.

Testing Testing 1, 2, 3!

Day 2 and the children were all ready with tinsel and cannon from the shed. Playmates were enrolled to join in the challenge adding to the level of shouting, bossing, ordering and playing around but at the end of the morning they did manage to work together and blast tinsel into the tree. A triumphant gang, sadly no petrol left for leaf blowing!  

Tinsel Cannon in opperation

<a href="http://www.coombemill.com/blog/post/2011/12/24/country-kids-from-coobemill.aspx" target="_blank" title="Country Kids from Coombe Mill Farm Holidays Cornwall"><img src="http://www.coombemill.com/images//blog/country_Kids/thumbs/th_Country_Kids_badge_transparent.png" border="0" alt="Country Kids from Coombe Mill Family Farm Holidays Cornwall" title="Country Kids from Coombe Mill Family Farm Holidays Cornwall" /></a>

Please link up any snaps you have of your children playing outside over the Christmas and New Year break, whether with new toys, imaginative role play or just enjoying the frsh air, twit pic them or blog them and add to the linky below. 

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year from

Coombe Mill

Grocery Shopping for Farmer Nick

"Just off to get those few bits we need for dinner" was the last I heard. I should really have been a little suspicious when a quick trip to Asda took half the day with a friend in tow! To be fair he had been trying to convince me of the merits of a 4 wheel drive for towing heavy items up our hill for some time. Our little Ford focus does struggle with a trailer laden with Dotty our breading sow when she making her annual trip to visit her boyfriend. However cars are just not my thing so I really hadn't paid much attention and just assumed they were adding car (window) shopping to their trip.

Returning home Nick was met by the children outside who didn't need to be too observant to notice that far from a 4 wheel drive, or a car full of groceries, there was in fact an old cast iron war cannon precariously positioned in the boot of the old van.

"Daddy bought a Cannon!"

This was the cheerful scream from my children as they raced into the house to impart their news.

ME: "What do you mean, "Daddy bought a cannon?""

Kids: " It's awesome Mum come and see"

Me: "What a toy?"

Kids: "No a real war one. It belonged to Napoleon; it says so on the side" 

At this point I turn down the hob, step into my wellies and follow the kids who are running ahead of me to the Farm shed. Well they are quite right. Turns out he had bid for it at the auctions earlier in the week - whilst looking for a washing machine for our laundry room! 

Well doesn't every Farm need a Cannon?

Slowly the penny drops and I begin to catch up with his thinking. We have some really exciting ideas for a new kiddies play area next year and I now see that an old Cannon could work out perfectly. To give him credit, it is impressive and hopefully will be worth splashing out on when the children are dressing up and acting out their games in .............More on that next year! For now it will be staying in Nick's Shed.

And my washing machine?

Well they didn't have any last week, but there is another auction before Christmas. I wonder what that will hold!