Yorkshire Days Out With Kids: Part Two!

Continuing on from my last post, here are my next 5 places to visit with my little boy this Summer whilst his dad is on Operation in Cyprus. I'm so looking forward to seeing his little face as we visit these lovely places. If you're new to Yorkshire or have never been and fancy a visit, check out Welcome to Yorkshire, a website that lists events, places to visit, eat and sleep.

6. Whitby

I've been to Whitby many times. I've been to the beaches, the abbey, the museums, the cobbled Old Town streets and it's beautiful. But this time, I'll be seeing it through the eyes of my little boy who has never seen the sea, or sand. I can't wait to paddle with him on sunny days and play with a bucket and spade again before taking a ride on the Bark Endeavor replica ship around the bay!

Whiby images from yorkshire,co,uk

7. Sealife Sanctuary - Scarborough

An online ticket to this gem costs £9.50 but under 2's are free. This sealife sanctuary presents a range of fishy friends in different zones from the Great Barrier Reef to Penguin Island and Otter River. There are opportunities to touch some of the sealife and there are live feedings and talks on conservation and breeding for the older ones. But on a purely visual and sensory basis I think this would be a fantastic day out for the smallest of babyfolk and it's a great rainy day activity.


8. Stockeld Park, Wetherby

I have wanted to go here for the longest time. Each year they host a Winter Wonderland with ice skating and Nordic skiing along with and enchanted winter forest so I'm delighted that they have similar events during the Spring/Summer seasons. With  inflatable play, soft play, indoor and outdoor adventure zones, a spider's lair, enchanted forest, buccaneer boats, a maze, go Karts, scooters and plenty of picnic areas, I'd say this is well worth the £12.50 per adult online booking price which includes entry to everything apart from the boats and includes parking...and under 2's go free.

Image from Stockeld Park website

9. Monk Hill Farm - Thirsk

This is a really lovely farm for all the family. Sebastian recently looked the small petting farm we took him to so I'm looking forward to him being able to see a wider range of farm (and none farm) animals like rabbits, wallabies, peacocks and llamas. Whilst we're there I can take advantage of the lovely tea room  and we can sit in the sunshine and have a play on the playground! Adult tickets are £7.50 and under 2's are free.



10. Flamingo Land Theme Park and Zoo - Malton

Ok admittedly, this is a bit of a blow out day in terms of cost.The online price for a day ticket for an adult is £32 though under 3's are free and there are family ticket deals available. You can get 2 day passes so you could even make a weekend of it as a family mini break and the passes give you access to both the theme park and the zoo. I used to go there every year as a kid and I loved it - the zoo is brilliant and is a conservation centre so the animals aren't there to be entertainment. You can be a zookeeper for a day and learn about the animals or you can adopt an animal. It's a great learning experience and the rides are great fun for older kids. Malton is not too far away so you could always have a little drive out to explore the beautiful little town and if you're lucky, their monthly food festival will be on! 

Image from Flamingo land website

So these are my top summer 2017 bucket list picks!  Favourable mentions that you may want to check out are: The Forbidden Corner ,  York Chocolate Story , National Rail Museum  and  Mother Shipton's Cave.

Do you have any secret gems to share? 

J

Yorkshire Days Out With Kids: Part One

This post is inspired by Emma's Summer '17 Bucket List over at her blog which includes loads of fab ideas for days out in Yorkshire. If you're sprogless, definitely have a peek at her list!

My list is for those that have mini humans attached to them this summer (or if you're just a big kid at heart!).

Every Spring, I find myself making grandiose plans for the Summer. There was the Summer that Military Man and me were going to go on a Staycation, camping in a 2 man tent around England to see all the places we've never seen (Glastonbury I'm looking at you!) but being 7 months pregnant with a beagle puppy, it didn't really feel like the right time. Another Summer  we were going to do city breaks. A weekend in Vienna here, a jaunt in  Rome there...but life got in the way. Besides, city breaks are expensive!

So this year, facing the prospect of a long (hopefully warm!) season without Military Man who will be sunning himself whilst working in Cyprus for 2 months, I've decided to make some plans a little more realistic that will be enjoyable for me and keep baby Sebastian happy too!

1.  Eureka Children's Museum - Halifax

This place looks amazing! It caters for children from birth to 12 years old and encourages hands on interaction with the exhibits. With 9 different 'zones' to explore - including sensory areas and soft play, you really get a lot of bang for your buck. An adult pass is just short of £13, under 1's are free but once you've got a pass it's valid all year. This would be a rainy day out!

Image credit: Eureka.org.uk

2. Ponderosa - Batley

I love the idea of this place. It's a therapeutic centre which is suitable for children of all ages but is specifically catered towards children with disabilities. There's a small zoo with animals ranging from the Tropical Jungle of Brazil to the Sandy Plains of Australia and children can pet and feed some animals. There's a picnic area and a man made beach with a pirate ship to play in plus a zip wire area for older kids. An Indoor play area and an ice cream parlour makes this a really fun day out for a really reasonable price of £5.50 for a combined adult ticket.

3. Baby Rave by BoomChikkaBoom - Various places

I have to admit, I'm so excited for this one. A Baby Rave, for those not in the know, consists of messy play, light shows, bubbles, confetti and noise makers all with music and glo-sticks! Events are held regularly in Halifax, Leeds, Harrogate and York and are often themed and held at baby appropriate times. At £6 for an adult and 1 child, it's not going to break the bank either.

Image credit: BoomChikkaboom.com

4. The Rainbow Factory - Leeds

This is one for the kids who love storytime. The Rainbow Factory is a play centre that caters to children from birth to 10 years old with weekly drop in sessions ranging from Music Monkeys and Sensory Stories to themes events like Harry Potter Day and Enchanted Theatre performances. Event prices do vary and you have to book events ahead of time so keep checking the website.

5. Ilkley Lido - Ilkley

If we are lucky enough to get a day a beautifully hot and sunny day I am definitely taking a trip here. Located near Bradford, the Ilkley Lido is one of the few remaining operational Lido's in the UK. Inflatables are allowed and there's a paddling pool for little ones. A picnic area is available to save on costs but there's also a cafe. An adult pass is £4.50 and a junior is £2.35. Please note that this isn't a heated pool so be sure to put your little one in a full body wetsuit and take lots of towels for snuggles after splashtime!

Image credit: Ilkley Lido

I hope you've found some inspiration in my list so far. Tune in next time for Yorkshire Days Out With Kids: Part 2.

J

Cesarean Sections - Cutting Through The Crap

Pregnancy is a mother fucker. It really puts you through wringer mentally and physically. The nausea, the bulging boobs, the swelling tummy, the kicks (oh the kicks) in the ribs that legitimately give you the fear that your baby is going to puncture your lung. And then there's sleepless nights (practise, I was informed, for when the bundle of joy arrives! Ho ho ho), waddling like a drunk penguin and pain in all your joints that inspire new sympathy for the elderly.

But despite all this, you're excited! I couldn't wait to meet my little baby boy, my little Gizmo the womb gremlin. That excitement got me through the days when i felt like my belly entered the room 5 minutes before the rest of me. That same excitement also got me through The Fear.

The Fear was all consuming in those final weeks. This little wrigger, burrowing his way in to my bladder and ribcage simultaneously, was going to have to come out. 

I'd been repeatedly told that my little Gizmo was actually not so little and was measuring big. I measured at full term 40 weeks by the time i was 36 weeks pregnant. So it was natural for me to think that he'd be making an early appearance - he was cooked and ready - he'd definitely be popping his not so little head out my foof sooner rather than later. Right? 

Wrong. I got to 41 weeks and nothing was happening. No dilating. No effacing. No other puke inducing words that implied imminent vaginal birth. The Fear got worse. I'd be birthing a beast that would tear me open! He'd get stuck and he'd die! I'd bleed too much and die! (Most of The Fear scenarios ended up in someone dying in 1800's birth bloodbath style). But then   The Fear changed as i started to think that i might not be able to birth my son...that my most natural, instinctive reason for existence would be deprived from me...

I was born by cesarean section and I have nothing against them - they are amazing, lifesaving surgeries and i applaud the surgeons and patients alike. But elective cesareans were a different matter for me. I hadn't realised how much I had subconciously judged those who had them as being 'too posh to push' until I had to have one myself. 

At 41 weeks I had a stretch and sweep by a consultant. It was excruciating and i bled considerably and right away i was sent for a vaginal ultrasound. Afterwards, sitting in his office on a sanitary pad that resembled an adult nappy, he gave me and my husband 3 pieces of information.

1. My cervix was high, tight and closed. He'd torn through it anyway (hence pain that made me nearly throw up - really) but he doubted i would go in to labour naturally.

2. There was something behind my cervix that wasn't the baby. Something that felt like a lump.

3. The lump, likely to be a dermoid cyst (google it if you're brave), was attached to my ovary and was twisting it downwards. I would need surgery to remove the cyst and most probably my ovary.

Stunned, I stared at my husband. I vaguely heard the consultant explain that I could try for a natural birth but that it may damage my ovary, it may burst the cyst causing sepsis, it may end up in emergency c-section because my baby boy could get stuck. 

My visions of a waterbirth dissipated. The images of me crying and grunting as i partially fractured my husband's hand whilst our child was delivered by a brusque but lovely Yorkshire midwife disappeared.

There was just no...romance to an elective c-section. But it seemed we had no choice. We were booked for surgery 3 days later...the 25th October 2016. We went home with mixed feelings.

The next day i woke with a new found excitement. How lucky was I that I knew the exact date when my baby would arrive? We could plan for someone to look after Smeagol the beagle, inform family so they could book time off work and make arrangements to travel to visit.  To make it even more exciting, we did a C-section announcement as a fun way of telling friends and family without inviting pity or questions.

Our C-section announcement

Ironically,  at 3am on the morning of the 25th October, I began to get contractions. I lost my plug and the contractions started getting more frequent and painful. It's true what they say - they are about as unmistakable as having a red hot vice squeezing around your uterus. But i felt so grateful...i got to experience just a little bit of labour. We had the impassioned drive to the hospital with me huffing and puffing, repeatedly saying 'that was the worst one yet!'

Because I was in labour I was prepped for surgery immediately. It was a surprisingly casual affair. I laughed and joked with the nurses and the anaesthetists, my husband took selfies of himself in his blue scrubs, we had a lovely chat whilst the surgeon cut me open.

I wasn't numb exactly but i couldn't feel any pain at all. It was like someone was doing dishes in my tummy and there was a lot of tugging.

C-sections are busy. I had a screen covering me from under my bust (Sweeney Todd type splatters of blood are normal) and there were so many medical people around me. Hubby was right next to my head and my trusty anaesthetist was behind me, continually checking I was ok. My midwife was there, smiling, letting me know exactly what was happening.

And then i heard it. His cry. My baby boy's first long, powerful scream. And it was so full of life. Tears sprang forth so easily that I wondered if I had been crying the whole time. He was placed on my chest, a red, gunky, warm little thing, all tiny hands and feet and squashed face. It wasn't love at first sight - it was awe that this tiny little human had arrived. 

It didn't matter how he'd arrived. It didn't matter that i had to be sliced and diced to see him. I'd do anything in the world to see his face...his perfect little face.

Whilst me and my husband, the new mummy and daddy, did skin to skin and helped our little one to the breast, the surgeon continued to operate and removed the cyst. It was the same size as my son's head and accounted for a lot of the apparant 'large' size of my son. At 8lbs 14oz he was big...but not the minimum of 9lbs60z i'd been told to expect.

My ovary was saved, my chance of conceiving again completely unaffected and i was sewn up and whisked away to my warn with other new mummies. We were no different. We all had the same look of love, awe and terror. 

And i got my brusque but lovely Yorkshire midwife...