The Glass of Wine, The Campfire and The Awfully Big Adventure

[notwavingjustironing]

We've all blethered on pleasantly on Seashells' lovely previous thread and, with the school holidays approaching, lots of us are about to start our summer adventures( not all of which are in tents....!) This thread is for us all to check back in and generally keep in touch. So we've packed up our Icey-Teks and our Tarps and our Death Socks, gently doused the burning embers of our planning campfire and rinsed out the wine glasses.

We're ready for our Awfully Big Adventure.

Come and talk about yours here (even if you're staying put!)

morning morning all

Bought a new fire/spew bucket yesterday. £1.50 and fits just like it was made for that little slightly raised bit between the passenger footwells. So that made me happy.

I love song of the paddle site too Sal. They love their tarps.

Notwaving have commenced weather vibe action. It's for a big area as I need calm mill pond conditions for the North Sea on Sunday night too.

bramble - please can you put my blue wheelie bin out when you get back. It was rejected with a rude yellow sticker last week as had a banana skin in it. Ta muchly will reimburse bin moving with personalised death suit cat walk +/- cake action.

oh

Dur

And

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY LOVECAT

Did you bet a big metal animal?

No, and I feel obscurely cheated....:o

Happy Anniversary lovecat - hope you got an 8ft chicken

I'll have a Will I put some bacon on? Ate chinese food for tea so could eat the wallpaper this morning.

Been browsing song of the paddle not seen it before.

Liking the obelink 189 euro pyramid tent. DP showed interest loves a bargain. There is a 55 euro canvas tarp on there as well.

Some Coleman stuff on Achicha this morning too.

Camping mid-October - would you? Alpkit have a bit of a festival family event thing on in Bakewell.

Morning. Spot of yoga to work out kinks and then a bit of a cliff walk before beach. That does not mean walking whilst singing bachelor boy, etc

Happy anniversary. We celebrated our 19th on the first. (beach cafe with killer wine list and amazing menu). Ds1 reminded me that you get fewer years for murder.

Yes to bin. Not impressed re yellow sticker. Tempted to sneak a stealth banana skin down in the realms of mine. Hope my livestock are behaving and not having too many arguments re nestbox space. At least one is broody and she is massive blue girl.

Dh is trying to get us on a day's open top bus tour, citing aching limbs from kayak oddessy. Wuss.

Morning all

Happy Anniversary Lovecat
Enjoy the bucket Slubber - thanks for the vibes - you must be v excited!!
Bus Top Tour Brambles? Really? Yesterday Kayaking, today - buses??
5ofus - it will be fine. Higher ratio of wine to food/sister
100% will the dogs be taking SIMs or Airbeds?
Camping, October, Bakewell,

Have a great day.

Oh tea, lovely

Happy anniversary Lovecat. And belated wishes to you too brambleschooks.

Anyway must get on. Have a great day all.

Happy anniversary LoveCat!

hi-di-hi campers. back from a week away with friends..... lovely eccleden farm near arundel - had a really nice week, very basic facilities and cheap as chips (£12 per night, 2 adults 3 kids - bargain!) - close to some lovely sights and beaches on south coast - and not busy. Def one to go to again.

Had wierd experience on first afternoon - arrived 2ish, pitched monster tent and started unpacking all the cooking paraphenalia as you do - just sat down for a 5 min break for a brew when a heavily pg woman walks over to our site and asks if her wee lass could play with our wee lass....no prob. But she sat there for the next two hours telling us her life story, all about how she has left her husband and he's a bastard and...... - most strange. WHile I understand she wanted company, she could see we hadnt even unpacked all our stuff (we started working around her) and she was just being obtrusive, making comments about which jobs the men/women were doing. She eventually left her 4 year old and stomped off to Make.Herself.A.CUp.Of.Tea. (said very loudly and multiple times). Clearly couldnt take a hint. Like, "well, we wont keep you we've lots to do..."

I dont mind mixing and chatting, but we hadnt even unpacked FFS!

The rest of the week was uneventful, lots of great walks and icecreams on the beach. Nice quiet site too, all still by 10:30pm, and no noise before 7:30.

Sounds like heaven Hatti! Apart from weird pg lady of course!

Well, I have got the site to pencil us in for 7 days from the 20th. My dad has decided he will be coming now too.

We are going to pick my ebay bargain up tomorrow. Would it be a good idea to pitch the tent up in the garden to get used to it?

We are off to beach comber in Northumberland!

Defo will organise a thread meet next year, I was thinking somewhere like Thistledown Farm (Stroud) for the late May bank Holiday or something would be easier for everyone to get to, or Oxford way as it's on the M40/A34.

Happy anniversary LoveCat-all those years together and you didn't get a Metal Chicken?! That champagne had better be good

Belated congrats Brambkechooks

I love holidaying vicariously through you all. My day a contact morning building up to my Return To Work ( :( ) and now being a slack mummy cuddling with dc on sofa as is blimming hot out there!

Seashells - when do you actually go back?

10 days time, it's flying by, and the weather is fabulous dd2 is near,y 10 months though, and we need the £ so off I go, hi ho hi ho hi ho

bramble your chooks sound fine. bok bok bok. I can hear them now.

SeaShells have you got plans for later this year? I forget who is going where. Is lost the only one still in forrin?

100% yy deffo home pitch first.

Blow them kisses from me, slubber.

Managed to avoid bus by citing the weather report. I have worked very hard today, doing some serious lounging on the beach with a cream tea and a book.

Btw slubs, there are two more rubbish collections before my return, but since I would love to do the death socks/cake combo I will brave the many weeks old rubbish and put it out for you.

No, just a local camp next week and bh if weather looks ok and work/visitors allow. We dis go to the nf earlier in the yet but that feels ages ago.

Happy anniversary Lovecat!

I know it's really really bad style (and I'll regret it tomorrow when the storms hit!), but my word, I could do with it being slightly cooler. Tube was hell and people smelly. I feel so sorry for anyone pregnant at the moment - can you imagine how that would feel and smell. Smell was my super skills when pregnant. Not as useful as you might think when you have to commute every day...

Trying to book a week or so away over Christmas as both my and dh's offices close for the week. It seems like it won't be though, as flights quoted were gazillions. That'll teach us for leaving it so late.

The pregnant lady at Hatti's camp sounds weird, and my number one reason for trying to hide away in the woods whenever camping possibility.

I'm considering getting a proper (well, in camping terms) camping shower. We have a solar one, but as the sun rarely shines where we pitch, I've never used it (cheapy). However, with MN bank holiday camp approaching, I'm starting to get a little concerned. Mind you, could always just have a wash in a flexible builder's tub thingy with shower at beach / local swimming pool etc. Can't imagine babywiping for 3 days, I'm starting to itch just by the sound of it. If weather like today, cold shower fine, but that's probably too much to wish for (ignore my first paragraph).

Sal I think the weather gods have just got mightily confused from your last post as to what you desire

Hahaha. I'm going to be punished with 72 hours of rain next time I camp, aren't I?!

You've done it now Sal.

notwaving, your crap weather in Wales when you go, it's Sal's fault

Nonono, really the conflicting request only applicable to Central London. Will submit revised specifications immediately.

Happy Anniversary lovecat, hope you are enjoying your champagne, has he surprised you with the big metal chicken yet?

The Somme is beautiful, sitting in the campsite pub area having just had moule frite and yet another carafe of Rose, bliss. Wierd site though, we are in the camping field which is really natural, trees and Dutch people in their DeWaard's everywhere, really quiet chilled feel but we came round the main building and there's about 100 chalets filled with proper Brits abroad. We're hopping back to the field soon!

Had a mad night last night, was very warm all evening and we woke up to a MASSIVE thunder storm at about 3am. Ds's 2 and 3 were petrified so I shoved them in the car Ds 1 followed quickly after and we huddled in there watching DH go for a stroll in the rain Meanwhile not one single Dutch tent seemed to notice. Following OYBBK's advice on another thread I kept everyone in the car until it had passed, DH thinks I am insane and overreacted, chances of us reaching 20th anniversary this morning seemed remote

Not waving, if it's vile weather next week you can come and have tea with us!

Happy anniversary lovecat. Blimey I've given up trying to keep up with the thread, it's moving too fast for me. Feel very admiring of all this continental camping. Our 4 days coming up is the longest we've done. Bought a collapsible colander at home bargains today as per aitch's recommendation and a small cheese grater for 99p. Have just arranged a weekend camp in mid sept with friends in Derbyshire. Hoping for an Indian summer!

Ta all for the anniversary wishes :)

Champagne was gorgeous (there have to be some advantages to DH working for a French firm) and it being midweek and too bloody hot to enjoy eating a big dinner, we went to the pictures and saw Harry Potter pt2. Great film til the end bit - none of them aged convincingly except Ginny Weasley, the cinema broke out in titters... I was very envious of a girl in front of us's 4 inch high platform pvc boots with dragon spikes sticking out all down the back of them. Sadly I am now 45 and lardy so I don't think they'd look quite the same on me...

And on the subject of lard, I'm now nibbling my lovely Eton Mess Chocolate bar (love Montezuma chocolate) while DH takes our babysitter home, then we're taking a cup of tea up to bed to watch some more of Glee series 2 that DH alo sgot me for a prezzie. Bliss :)

Lost, it, all sounds lovely, even the thunderstorm. DH would have had us all in the car sharpish, just so he could say 'Faraday cage'. He likes saying 'Faraday cage'.

Sal, I know exactly what you mean about the weather in central London. 2 blokes got on the train this morning and I could smell them as they advanced down the carriage... they then decided to straphang over me and I was nearly sick. I was v. tempted to whip out my mini deodorant spray and give them a spritz but lost my nerve.