Bouncy fun at Gravity Trampoline Park, Xscape
As it’s the February half term and they had some Xscape gift vouchers as a Christmas present to spend, we thought we’d visit Gravity and burn off some pent up energy.
Situated at the back of the Xscape complex just off the M62 at Castleford, Gravity Trampoline Park is full of trampolines (kids and not so little kids – even adults!) can go on and have fun.
As you can see from the picture, it was fairly empty when we went as we thought it would be better to go early so we had more chance of getting it to ourselves.
Turned out to be a good plan, as when they came off after the hour was up, a lot of people all came on at once for the next session and it quickly filled up!
On arrival, you book yourself into the session, sign a waiver form that basically outlines the safety rules,and collect your socks.
Oh, and listen to the little safety video which lasts a couple of minutes that tells you how to jump safely.
‘Elf and Safety, you know it makes sense…..
(You need to wear a special pair of Gravity socks too in order to jump as they’re the “grippy” kind that has a grip tread on the bottom.) These just cost a couple of pounds extra.
You get to keep these. So if you go more than once, make sure you take your socks back so you don’t have to fork out for another pair!)
Once all that’s out of the way, the fun bit starts! There’s lots of trampolines to choose from, and if it’s quiet like it was when we went, you can basically jump anywhere.
There’s trampolines on the floor,and the walls are trampolines too so you can throw yourself off them (nutters.)
They also enjoyed the basketball hoops as you can bounce and play basketball too.
There’s music playing too to add to the atmosphere.
Me? Well, I’d love to say I’m energetic and had a go as well, but all I was fit for this morning was a sit down and some people watching.
Luckily, there’s a great cafe bar (with free wifi!) where you can sit and relax and watch your little darlings tire themselves out.
Depending on age of course – one good thing about them being 10 and 14 now means they can jump by themselves!
There’s a little under 5 section for really small toddler types who want to bounce too.
All in all, it’s a great way to let off steam, burn off energy and have fun!
I’m hoping they’ll sleep tonight anyway……
You can visit Gravity’s website to find out more here
Humble Pie and Mash, Whitby
When you’re visiting the seaside, the traditional food route is to opt for a good old tray of fish and chips.
Next time you’re in Whitby though, if you’re fancying something a little bit different for a change, you can’t go far wrong with a trip to the Humble Pie and Mash.
Situated across the main bridge in the town centre, Humble Pie and Mash is a trip back in time.
On stepping through the doors, you’re instantly transported to the 1940s and a war time era of cosy farmhouse style kitchens and Granny’s cooking.
When we visited, downstairs was full so we were shown upstairs to the upstairs seating area, which was tastefully decorated to the era.
Music was piped through and there was an old fashioned wireless in the corner.
If you have very small kids in pushchairs, it’s worth noting that the cafe itself is fairly small with not much room to manouvre so a fold down buggy type would be preferable to a great big pram.
When it comes to the food on the menu though, it doesn’t take much imagination to know what’s going to be on offer as the clue’s in the name.
Humble Pie and Mash has a lovely selection of pies with gravy, which all come with mash and peas – either garden or mushy depending on your preference.
I opted for the corned beef and onion pie which was absolutely mouthwatering.
There was lots of succulent meat in there and a generous helping of gravy over the dish too.
The children opted for the traditional mince and onion pies, Grandma had the chicken one, and vegetarian Dad had the hommity pie which comprised potato, garlic and cheese.
All scraped their plates clean, so they must have enjoyed every last scrap just like I did!
If your kids are a little bit smaller than mine or don’t have big appetites (the pie meals are adult sized ones) then there’s also a sausage and mash option on the menu which is more child friendly a portion.
After all that lovely pie, it’s a real shame we didn’t get to try any of the dessert menu (with proper war time grub such as jam roly poly, what else?!)
We were just too full. Oh well, any excuse to go back soon and sample them is fine by me!
If it’s proper stick to yer ribs comfort food you want, take a trip here.
Visit the website here to find out more about Humble Pie and Mash.
I have not been compensated for this blog post in any way, shape or form. All thoughts and opinions are entirely my own and just felt the need to share some bloody good food with everyone. 🙂
12 Days of Christmas Experience at Lotherton Hall, Yorkshire
“On the first day of Christmas, my true love gave to me…… a partridge in a pear tree.”
Everyone knows the traditional Christmas song of the 12 days of Christmas, right?
We all sing it and feel festive.
If you visit Lotherton Hall this Christmas, there’s an interactive 12 Days of Christmas Experience Walk.
The walk takes you around the grounds and gardens, and along it there’s an activity depicting each of the presents gifted in the classic song.
“On the second day of Christmas, my true love gave to me…..two turtle doves….
Pull on the ropes and make the turtle doves fly…..
“On the third day of Christmas, my true love gave to me…. three french hens….”
Make your way around the walk and see if you can find them all.
“Nine ladies dancing…..” (spin the ladies around to make them twirl and dance)
“Ten lords a’leaping”….
“Eleven pipers piping”….. (play the pipes to make Christmas music)
“twelve drummers drumming…… and a partridge in a pear tree!” 🙂 (stand behind and make the drummers drum via the strings)
When you’ve been through the walk (and hopefully spotted them all!), make sure you exit through the fairy village.
Tiptoe through gently, as you never know if the fairies are sleeping and you don’t want to scare them away!
down the steps, shhhhh and visit the fairies in their little homes…..
look, they even have an off licence and their own shops and houses….maybe you’ll see one emerging if you look hard enough?!
maybe they’re buying some wine to take and have a party when all the humans have gone home…
For your own festive treats, the courtyard near the main entrance has plenty of drinks and snacks so you can get yourself a mince pie.
All in all, a fantastic experience that kids (and adults!) will love.
The Christmas Experience is open until 23rd December.
Stepping back in time – a day at Beamish Museum
If you fancy a break from the strains of modern life, you can’t go wrong with a trip to Beamish Museum, County Durham.
We took a day trip and travelled by train to Durham Chester le Street, where you can get buses that take you straight to the gates of Beamish.
We’d never been before, but as we’d had lots of people telling us how great it was, we were keen to visit for ourselves.
One thing you notice upon entering Beamish is that it’s truly like stepping back in time.
The entire place is open air, and has real farms and houses that you can enter and look round.
The staff are all dressed for the time as well, to add an even more authentic feel.
Although everywhere is in easy walking distance (the longest distance between places you’d have to walk is approx. 15 minutes, the quickest around 5 minutes) the best way to get around is by tram.
The trams run frequently and between all the different sites.
Our favourites were:
1900’s Pit Village
This village is dedicated to the mining community of the 1900s, and shows you what life was life back then.
You can enter the houses where the miners would have lived, and have a look around.
Then take a stroll along to the mines where they would have worked and view the lift shaft where they would have descended.
My two loved the school, and seeing how the children of the early 1900s would have worked and played.
No interactive whiteboards or exercise books and biros back then – it was chalk boards and slates all the way!
Much fun was also had trying to master the playground game of the time – rolling iron hoops around the playground, which sounded easy but has a certain knack to it!
1900’s town
Then it was time to take the tram to town, where rows of shops were waiting to be explored.
After a picnic in the town park, we visited the old fashioned sweetshop which was just as fantastic for the grown ups as the children!
Nostalgia alert as I located and bought my childhood favourites, a bag of sherbet lemons.
We also bought cola cubes, apple cubes and fruit jellies.
This is unsurprisingly a very popular shop, so expect a little bit of a queue!
You can also stop for a drink in the Sun Inn, which is a lovely pub with a roaring fire that was very nice to sit in front of seeing as it was cold outside when we visited.
1940’s farm
The 1940s farm took you right back to the time of the 2nd World War upon entering, with some music playing on the wireless and all the décor of the era too.
The outdoor toilets were basically two wooden holes, and makes you thankful for the mod con lavatories we have nowadays!
We got to Beamish for opening time at 10am, and was there until it closed and had a lovely full day of visiting all the sites.
Definitely worth a visit for all ages, and great seeing how life and technology has advanced over the years.
We certainly want to visit again soon!
We were given a complimentary pass for this review. All words and opinions entirely my own.
Outdoor swimming at Ilkley Lido
When the sun’s shining, and you need a way to cool off, what better way is there than with a bit of swimming?!
Outdoor swimming, no less.
Situated just outside Ilkley, the lido has a beautiful scenery backdrop.
It was easy enough for us to find, and was pleasantly empty so we basically had the pool to ourselves.
The two children loved the fountain in the pool which made for great fun, and there was also a slide too.
The water isn’t heated though, so if you went on a less sunny day, you’d be shrieking from the cold and doing a comedy jump out of the pool! 🙂
Fortunately, there’s a heated indoor pool as well so if the weather’s bad you can head in there.
All that swimming worked up an appetite, and there’s a great café on site that sells hot food such as burgers and chips, cheesy chips (yum) and a selection of cold stuff too.
If you’re trying to save money though, or just fancy a picnic, there’s plenty of grassy areas to sit down at with a blanket, or at one of the picnic tables.
I couldn’t resist a burger and chips though.
We picked the perfect day for a spot of outdoor swimming, as the sun was blazing down.
Don’t forget the suncream as it’s easy to forget that it’s so hot when you’re in the cool water!
We’ll definitely be going back this summer.
More details about Ilkley Lido here
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Cabana Brasilian Barbecue, Leeds
Situated in the heart of Leeds city centre, vibrant Cabana proved a great antidote to the grey, dull rain filled skies outside when we visited.
A five minutes walk from Leeds train station and slap bang in the middle of the Trinity shopping complex, it’s very easy to get to which is good news for a non driver like myself.
On getting to the restaurant, we were shown to our seats where the children were supplied with crayons and activity sheets, which is always great with me as it keeps them amused whilst we wait for the food!
As we made ourselves comfy and ordered drinks, they were happily reading jokes and filling in wordsearches.
All the starters sounded delicious, but I eventually settled on the spicy ribs, which we all enjoyed trying! They were absolutely delicious, and came with a side portion of coleslaw. Make sure you have plenty of napkins though because if you’re anything like us, you’ll end up with half of it down your chin!
The children can order from their own special children’s menu, and there’s a great range of food to try from torrados to ribs for the more adventurous, to chicken breast or beefburgers for the more traditional palate.
My two plumped for the chicken breast burgers, which they thoroughly enjoyed and loved the novelty of the Brazilian flag waving proudly out of the top of the bun! Fries and the mini corn on the cob were well received and quickly disappeared too.
I also decided to have a burger, but in my case I went for the burger which had an added twist of beans and pulled pork as well as salad inside.
After we’d polished off our mains, the friendly waitress brought across the dessert menu. The children had a set meal where the price of the dessert is in with the meal.
(You get a soft drink, a main course and a dessert when you buy from the children’s menu.)
For £6.95, this is excellent value.
Froyo (frozen yoghurt) is what they had, and you pick your own toppings and sauce to decorate it and finish it off.
One had caramel sauce, the other had Smarties, which is just a couple of the many toppings which you could choose from.
I thoroughly enjoyed my ice cream and mango sorbet.
My one regret is that I didn’t have a cocktail from the gorgeous sounding cocktail range.
When I’m next in Leeds, I’m planning on rectifying this and having a nice, long cold one!
Definitely worth a visit for lunch when you’re out shopping.
If you’d like to visit the website, it’s here where you can see the menus (and cocktails!)
We were given complimentary meals in order to do this review. All opinions and words are strictly true and completely our own.
A day out at Game City, Nottingham
As a child of the 80s, many happy hours were spent playing computer games in the comfort of my bedroom.
At a time when computers were just coming out, it was great to play all these new games and beat your own personal score.
Games may have become more sophisticated now, but there’s still a thrill at playing all the old ones – nostalgia alert!
Which is why Game City in Nottingham is so brilliant.
Situated in the city centre of Nottingham, Game City has all the computer games of yesteryear, as well as more recent ones that children today will recognise and love.
Once inside the centre, you are given a wristband so that you can come and go from the game centre all day, enabling you to play all the games to your heart’s content.
That way you can come and go as you please and spend as much time as you like in there.
A whole day can easily be spent in there once you get playing the games!
I was jumping and down with glee when I saw that my favourite ever game when growing up was there. Space Invaders!
I used to love playing Space Invaders and blasting all the aliens. The original arcade game can be played, and it was great showing the 8 and 12 year old how to play via the old fashioned way with buttons.
There was also old favourites such as Pacman to play, and Ghostbusters.
Who ya gonna call?!
The two smalls were pleased to see their favourite character, Mario there and played Mario Kart on the Wii as there were computers from more recent times as well, so there’s something instantly recognisable for gamers of all ages.
Now THIS I remember from childhood Mario playing…. The Nintendo SNES!
If after a while you fancy a break from the screens, if you’re feeling brave enough there’s a Bucking Bronco that you can sit astride and try not to get thrown off.
I sat this one out, but the children loved it.
Hold on as long as you can and try not to get thrown off!
There’s also a great café on site to refresh yourselves after all that playing.
If you or your children (or both!) love playing computer games, you’ll absolutely love it at Game City as there’s just so many games to play and things to see.
Adults get the extra bonus of a trip down memory lane and a sense of nostalgia at the old games, and the younger children get to play all the games they know and love too whilst seeing Mum and Dad relive their youth and play computer games too!
A brilliant day out, and well worth visiting.
For more info, you can visit the website here
I received a pass in order to do this review, but all thoughts and opinions are strictly our own.
Springhead Park, Rothwell, Leeds
Sundays at home always ends up with the small people going stir crazy in this household, so this weekend we decided to go out and clear the internal cobwebs.
Never mind that it was blowing a gale, we just made sure we were well wrapped up and knew that we wanted somewhere with plenty of places for them to jump and climb about.
With this in mind, we decided to go to Springhead Park, Rothwell, on the outskirts of Leeds.
The Dad had seen it when driving past one day, so as it was somewhere none of us had ever been, we decided to give it a try.
If the kids are driving you bonkers by climbing about in the house and wrestling with each other (or is that just mine?! 🙂 ) it’s a great place to go to for them to run about and let off steam.
There’s a play ground, with separate play areas for small and bigger children so all ages have somewhere they can play safely.
smaller play area, with climbing frames and bigger children equipment in the background
If you fancy playing a few games of tennis, there’s a great tennis court as well.
The grounds are lovely for a walk round too, and we enjoyed going for a walk over a bridge that had this little stream running underneath.
peaceful stream watching
There’s also a great bird aviary which houses different species of birds, from cockatiels to the more exotic.
observing the birds
photos by @thuntag
There’s a board next to the aviary with pictures and descriptions of all the different species, so you can have a go at spotting the different types.
If after all this you fancy something to eat, there’s also a great little café too.
We’ll definitely be back when the weather’s warmer, as it’d be a fantastic place for a picnic.
If you’re on Facebook, you can also find Kids In Tow here for more days out ideas.
Things to do in Yorkshire this half term
They don’t seem to have been back at school for longer than five minutes, but the half term is already nearly upon us.
If you’re looking for family friendly things to do, here’s a few ideas to keep your small people occupied.
The children’s museum, Eureka! in Halifax are having an exciting week for children this half term with a Destination Space and Blast Off! experience to celebrate Britain’s first astronaut, Tim Peake’s mission into space.
Take part in inter-galactic activities, and learn about life in space.
York’s famous Viking Festival kicks off next week, with an invasion of Vikings in Coppergate, and a display of weaponry, traditional crafts and ship displays.
The Deep in Hull, home to all manner of sealife, will be investigating animals who use, create and play with bubbles this half term.
Take part in a bubble trail, and make bubble animals in the Craft Corner.
There’s plenty to do this half term at the National Railway Museum in York this half term as well.
Free entry.
Not only can you see all the different types of trains, there’ll be a Punch and Judy Show, a miniature railway ride and lots more.
Whatever you decide to do this half term, I hope it’s a fun filled one.
Got any plans for it? Let me know in the comments box below!
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Visiting the Donkey Sanctuary, Leeds
If you love donkeys, then you’ll definitely want to visit the Donkey Sanctuary in Leeds.
Nestled in the tranquil West Yorkshire countryside, the Donkey Sanctuary is a lovely haven for lots of donkeys and gives them a great quality of life whilst caring for them.
Each donkey has their own story to tell, and the staff are extremely friendly and willing to tell you their stories.
We met a donkey who had a lovely life, but his owner had become ill and frail and was unable to care for him properly anymore so he came to live at the sanctuary instead where she still comes to visit him.
Another donkey wasn’t so fortunate and had come to live at the centre due to being mistreated and abused.
The donkeys repay the love they get from the staff by being loving and caring themselves, and the centre does a lot of work with children with additional needs and disabilities, who come to the sanctuary to interact with the animals and benefit from their calming influence.
As well as an inside building for them, there’s also plenty of room outside for the donkeys to play and exercise.
My two children loved talking to the donkeys and stroking them.
There’s also an undercover outdoor seating area, for a spot of sitting outside when the weather’s nice.
There is a small cafe if you fancy a bite to eat, and a gift shop where you can buy merchandise such as pens, fridge magnets and lovely donkey related items.
The donkey sanctuary is free entry as it is a charity, but there is a box if you would like to make a donation towards helping the work they do.
If you would like to learn more about the centre, the website is here
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