by CoombeMill
13 May 2012 00:00
It's Sunday and we are still waiting, Sshhh....may be today?
by CoombeMill
12 May 2012 09:00
Who sabotaged the Tractor Feed Run?
This past week we have had quite a few regular guests with school age children. I know it isn't the school holidays but many have made the long weekend at the last minute or taken a few days off school to make it the week. Either way we had a lovely group of boys aged about 7 - 12 who had a ball with the freedom of the farm.
Too old for tractor Rides?
While Clio has been joining in and helping our out younger guests with feeding the animals, my triplet boys, Guy and Jed together with their older brother Theo have been thick as thieves with the other boys staying. They have formed a real boy gang taking great delight in not joining in on the feed run, but instead stalking and ambushing from a distance. With Tree climbing, hiding and plotting obstructions, they have been having a wild time, of cause under the assumption that we had no idea what they were up to. Ahem, boys, with that din, we could hear you coming a mile away!
We saw this one in the making whilst we were busy feeding the lambs and Dotty our pregnant pig, it seemed a shame to spoil their fun so all the parents and I played along with their game until the tractor was coming, then it really did have to be dismantled before an accident happened!
It is lovely to see the children, who might in another setting have found a farm a little to young for them , actually forgetting their grown up persona at home, leaving behind the trendy gear and gadgets and just being like kids of old and enjoying some good old country play.
Country Kids is for everyone
I love to see what others have been up to and to share outdoor play ideas, so please join in, grab the badge and link up your adventures anywhere from the garden to the beach.
by CoombeMill
6 May 2012 00:00
Sunday Cuteness at Coombe Mill..........Ssshh!
by CoombeMill
5 May 2012 09:00
Weather from the BBC
So it was officially the wettest April on record, I guess it was always going to be after the BBC announced their hose pipe bans! Please BBC, don't go forecasting of a BBQ summer next!
Rain, rain we don't care!
There is no keeping my 6 indoors whatever the weather is up to! In fact I think they possibly stayed out longer in the rain last weekend than usual! Whether it was a quick jump around in the garden or a trek down the banks of the river they really didn't mind that it was raining and cold. Clio in complete denial insisted on wearing her new birthday leggings and t shirt and going bare foot, seemingly unaware it was only six degrees outside!
Our Trampoline saves the day
I love these Pictures of Jed and Theo after a wet day with only indoor play at school. They couldn't even wait to change out of their school uniforms, instead dashing straight from the car to over the lane to our trampoline. There they let off steam for an hour while it poured down on them. They were having so much fun I just left them too it and resigned myself to another wash load that evening.
Lucky on the Farm
We are lucky to have the space and freedom here on the farm, but even if we didn't live here I think my children would still need to find a way to release some energy outdoors and I know many of you agree too as I have had some lovely links to the site in April through sun and rain. Thankfully the week here ended so much better than it started, we even cycled to and from school, a 5 mile round trip with some serious hills!
April's Winner for Country Kids
Once again choosing a favourite link up for the month for the lovely Coombe Mill kids sun Hat has left me agonising, some lovely outdoor learning ideas from Cerys , simple fun days out that really worked from PixiesPocket , Nicola and Emma B and Great coverage of the National Trust 50 things before your 12 from and but I have finally decided on this one from mumofthreeboys for their amazing trek up Snowdon as shared in this post http://mumofthreeboys.wordpress.com/2012/04/20/hiking-up-mount-snowdon-with-young-three-children/ . Angoe, Please DM or email me your details to send our sun hat out and coax out the sunshine for summer!
Joining In
Please stay with me supporting outdoor adventures for children into May, grab the badge and link up. Anything with kids outside is welcome, from fun in the garden to a family day out.
by CoombeMill
3 May 2012 08:17
Inspired by Trebah
When we took on Coombe Mill nearly 10 years ago, there was just the cottages and riverside lodges. Since Eden in 2004 we have been adding to Coombe Mill with Luxury Scandinavian lodges. Trebah was our first eco Scandinavian lodge designed for a family of 4. It has proved so popular with the energy efficient under floor heating, money saving solar panels providing hot water, ultra modern decor and vast play room that we have been inspired to repeat and enhance the design for Trevarno.
Building Trevarno
Work began back in November last year. By Christmas we had the shell assembled, and I was running away with ideas of renting by Easter! Thank goodness Farmer Nick held me back. Here we stand now just into May, and we are far from finished! Every time we build I forget just how long the process really is. There is so much insulation to make these properties so energy efficient, plumbing, electrics and endless little carpentry jobs drag the middle phase out so that I worry about completing before the first paid guests arrive.
Our Builders
We have used the same trusted builders since we began http://www.northcoastlogcabins.com/ Originally they built the Play barn, or Farmer Nick's original shed as it was back then! We were so impressed with a builder who delivered on time and to budget that Trevarno will now be our 6th lodge built by North Coast. They are a small moorland business from the neighbouring village of Blisland who are now expanding internationally.
Trevarno Our Journey in pictures
Trevarno Now
With the grass seeding and the lawn being well watered during April, from the Outside at least is looking ready to rent.
To come: delight or disaster?
Order lead times on kitchens, white goods and carpet fitting have all given us the usual stresses on top of running the rest of the business and keeping order in the family! With just 3 weeks till our first paid guests arrive I am worried I may be handing them a set of keys and a painting brush at the moment! Having tried 3 carpet fitters last week all of whom quoted 3 weeks before a fitting date could be met I was back to pulling out my best negotiation skills (being an ex Tesco buyer comes in handy on occasions like this) and now the lovely people at http://www.bodminflooring.com/ have agreed to fit by the end of this week. *Phew*. A similar narrow escape on the curtains came today when I suddenly realised we had forgotten the wardrobe curtain, poor Nick found himself back in the car again to the shops, never a short journey from here, to grab the very last set in the size we needed.
Sharing my biggest worry
We have bought a beautiful sofa set for Trevarno and gorgeous dining room table and chairs, all modern leather which I still swear were in matching cream. Now they are here and waiting in Nick's shed I can see the sofas are pale green and the chairs cream. I am going to need some imagination to pull these colours together without it looking like a candy shop of peppermint creams!
Inside Nick's dry store shed for storage
I know this will not be the last of the panics over the coming couple of weeks and I so look forward to sharing some finished, complete and hopefully tasteful photos before the first guests arrive!