Six floors of toys!! Emily and Hannah both loved it......Emily ran around loudly proclaiming 'Daddy, I want that.....Daddy, I want that'. Hannah was pretty laid back and was happy taking all the sights in.
There were rickshaws, or Pedicabs, outside the store. Sharon and Emily took one to Trafalgar Square. They both loved it, though Sharon was a little concerned about their safety in busy streets.
Hannah & I walked down to Trafalgar Square and met up with Sharon & Emily. The square was bustling with tourists and performers. I really love it there. It has a great atmosphere.
We walked down Whitehall to Horseguards, looked at the horses..err...guarding! Well, the soldier on the horse was guardng..but you know what I mean :-)We walked past MoD Main Building and then through Victoria Embankment Park. It's only a small park but great for finding a quiet place to sit and relax in the middle of London.
From there, we crossed over to the Thames river bus and took a round trip up to the O2 arena (Old Millenium Dome) and back to Embankment. Both Emily and Hannah loved it. You cn either sit inside or outside. To be honest the kids loved it outside more. The boat moves along at a fair speed and the wake off the back of the boat transfixed them.
The kids had a great time although it's not a cheap day out. Still days like this get their little inquiring minds racing.
(Sharon & Hannah on the Jubilee line tube)
Another walk was in a park that, for the life of us, we can't remember the name of. It was in the Derwent Vally. It had a beautiful and well tended paths and some beautiful scenery All that aside, Emily just wanted to play football....and Hannah, as usual, just loved taking in everything around her.
Another park we went to was Lyme Park just outside the Stockport area. Both Emily & Hannah loved it, despite the fact that it was absolutely freezing (again!!). A worrying trend for me is that Emily has found a natural love for football!! Sharon & I really don't like football, and I can see that I'll have to learn about that sport in the future to encourage her....sigh.....
There was a beautiful house in the grounds at Lyme Park. It was closed to the public until March, but you could walk around the outside of the buildings. Sharon decided that Emily should not be deprived of a quick look inside and lifted her up to have a glance inside the house. 'What can you see?' asked Sharon. Emily ducked down and giggled. The window she had been lifted up to just happened to be where a big conference was being held. As Emily had peered in, scores of conference goers saw her pretty little smiling face for a split second....hope they didn't think the place was haunted!!!
In Whaley Bridge, there was a beautiful canal with barges that both Emily & Hannah absolutely loved. And of course, where there's water, there's ducks......
Another park we went to introduced Emily to the 'real' sport of hillwalking and a spot of climbing.. :-)
Emily & Hannah both loved the cottage when we eventually got back from our walks......
The cottage was called Cloud Cottage. A beautiful, old house in Whaley Bridge with a really lovely owner called Linda. I'd seriously recommend using her cottage as it's in a great location and she's a really nice person.
.....& use dad & mum as the duty kid carrier!
In all honesty, Sharon & I enjoyed it as much as the kids.
It obviously tired them both out.....especially Hannah!!!