A COUNTRY SIDE VISIT

We all know that visting family takes the edge off of parenting..but add that calming and most importantly clean, out of London breeze, into the mix and you are set. My dad lives in the cutest little country side Oast House conversion nestled amongst farm houses, fields, ponds and sheep. His partner, Leo’s ‘Oma’, makes amazing home cooked meals that warm up the entire house with that homely smell most of us remember from childhood family dinners. There is something incredibly comforting about sitting next to a crackling fire, drinking a cup of tea while your toddler cackles with laughter at his grandads voices while reading ‘Peppa and the big train’ (not the book I would have chosen as his ‘go to’ but at least it isn’t his “Good morning engines” sound book..)

I have loved taking Leo down for a visit since he was a newborn but the older he gets the more fun it is. He loves a train ride exclaiming “time to go to grandads on a big BIG blue train!!” while we are getting ready to head out the door (always an hour later than we had planned…sorry Grandad and Oma.) Once we are on our way Leo spends the 45 minute train ride pointing out the non existant cows, sheep, chickens and horsies. Informing me that the train needs to stop to pick up “more little boys”  generally while a primly dressed business woman comes aboard.

We spend our time in the country side going for misty walks amongst the beautiful rumbling hills that can only be ruined by Leo slipping in a car sized puddle, something he does not enjoy. He is after all my son and we share the same distaste for uncomfortable mess. A little is OK, water is fine, sand is tolerated as long as it is easy enough to shake out of shoes but mud...mud is just too much for us. We love paying the chickens a visit out side of granddads house. Leo’s favourite one is Dave, who never fails to wake us up at the crack of dawn to remind us to make the most of being out of the hustle and bustle of London.

One of the things I enjoy most about being down in the country side, besides spending time with Leo’s Oma and Granddad, is that it is slower paced. It is quiet, people are friendly, they actually smile and say hello even though we are strangers to each other. Unlike home, where I often find myself trying to lug Leo, his massive pram and all of stuff in it up the tube stairs while people bash into me as if I am part of the worryingly stained wall I'm being forced to brush up against. It is so refreshing to take a break from the city and be around all of those things that remind you to live in the moment. To slow down, put your phone and your computer away and enjoy the simple joys of life.