As I mentioned before, Kelvin’s school break allowed us time to see more of London and spend time together. If you read my article in PMN you’ll remember I mentioned I took Kelvin to see the dinos in the Natural History Museum. Those are subjects that my son never tires of. In fact, he has a plastic container of toy dino’s (definitely bigger that Harry’s bucket!).

Perhaps you’d like to see what Kelvin and his Kuya PJ saw and did? I used a slideshow & endeavoured to put meaningful tags on them. Here are some highlights anyway:

NHM has an Earth section where they feature the minerals, events etc having to do with our planet. What’s new was PINATUBO. It is part of their updated exhibit for the volcanic activities on Earth.

PJ, a normally quiet guy suddenly called out “Tita, Pilipinas o!” It was really an interesting exhibit. They showed news reel and videos of the eruption, the lava flow and the aftermath. They even created a diorama of the “ghost towns” complete with the ash fall.

NHM’s latest free attraction was the interactive learning centre. We almost missed it if not for Kelvin’s wandering feet. We went to the basement where people have the entire space to eat their packed food, and veering to the left which I remember as a mini-courtyard, turned out to be the best place in the Museum.

Kids & adults were allowed to get up close and personal with specimens. There were tools to measure them or perhaps look at them closely like magnifying glass & microscopes & even cameras that project to a screen! Then you can access a dB where you can learn more about what you’re looking at.

I was truly amazed that Kelvin seemed to know how to use everything! The guide (there are so many friendly staff that as soon as you enter, one of them will immediately approach you) told us once what we can do in the place & Kelvin nodded & headed to the rows of cabinets. He picked one with insects & proceeded to use the camera. He attempted to use the microscopes but the eyepieces were still too high. I tried to lift him, but that’s not going to last, my arms will break.

The place even have dried anaconda skin that we can roll & unroll. Kuya PJ & Kelvin tried on a shark jaw. They played with a stuffed sea turtle. We looked at ant colonies. And Kelvin saw his first human skeleton (plastic only) - and insisted it’s a dinosaur! Well who can blame him, all the bones he saw on the upper floor were dinosaurs’.

What really caught the two boys’ attention were the pools of water with living organisms in them. I think we stayed in that section for at least 15minutes, the two just huddled, head down, looking at these tiny creatures (there were cards on the side to tell you what they are).

The only downside of the trip was during lunchtime when Kelvin wanted to eat some crisps because Kuya PJ had one. The thing is he already has one, but he wanted PJ’s… ayayay. Kulang na lang magpakarga sa Kuya nya! I have a feeling he would trade me for his Kuya.

Anyway, after the Museum, I brought them to the Tower of London. We didn’t go in, it was already late & besides there was a fee ‘no! It was enough just to walk around the area, have the two run around (actually Kelvin did the running & shouting) while I sit in the shade with a cool breeze.

Before we dropped PJ home we stopped by McDonald’s. Everybody was happy and satisfied.

After visiting Anette & Josh, Kelvin’s remaining holiday was still packed with fun activities. I planned to really enjoy my two-week break with him to the max. One of our regular haunts in August was Kidspace in Romford. Together with his Pinoy friends, we spent days jumping, crawling, sweating and pigging out.

Kidspace is really perfect for kids with boundless energy. We celebrated Kelvin’s second birthday there & even the parents enjoyed themselves. There is a special section for babies. There is a football area, a mini-racing track, a wall climbing section, and a sky trail. During busy times, the place is just buzzing with energy, it’s hard not to get infected with the laughing and friendly shouting. The “Thunderball City” is the centre of activity where kids (and adults) can “hit” each other with soft balls. There is a huge cannon that blasts balls everywhere, there are “machine guns” from 3-levels where you can target people above & below. There is a timed-net that showers everyone with balls. The City is also connected to the entire place (huge), from top to bottom, via huge slides of different structures, and climbing frames.

If I were to spend every single day in that place I wouldn’t need to diet! Unfortunately, the place serves yummy food, too! During Kelvin’s 2nd birthday party we booked everyone for a “make your own pizza” theme party. It was really super. Then they provided the adults with finger foods which turned out to be organic breads and dips. It was truly unforgettable. I have to scour my files at home to search for some pictures & put them up here.

When Kelvin was younger he’d resist every attempt to leave the place. But in August because his ate and kuya’s were there, he’s happy to go anywhere. He was even happy to leave the play area & eat! Unbelievable.

It was unfortunate that Daddy had to work. He missed out on so many things (more posts to follow promise) during the school break. After a month, he’s still muttering about booking leaves next year. I felt bad for him but I felt too good to really care. I’m not callous, I just felt it was my chance to really bond & give my son the time of his life after being a half-half mum to him. You know working full-time even if I say we have quality time during weekends, it’s still guilt-inducing not to spend every minute of the day with my growing son.

I am also so happy and very fortunate that our new Filipino friends’ kids are very accommodating with my toddler. Hubby & I just love seeing him enjoy his time with the bigger kids. He feels part of a clique now. It’s a great bargaining chip, too. We can get Kelvin to do almost anything as long as we say we’re going to see his Kuya or Ate.

I forget the number of times I have read the importance of external support & influence on children as they grow. The dread I used to feel about moving away from most of our initial Filipino community has been replaced with relief & gratitude. If none of these guys move away, I’m confident that making Kelvin more aware of his Filipino roots will be easier. Plus, he and I got friends for life.

Needless to say though, we have started teasing Sherry that either Kelvin or PJ can court her daughter Rana. But Ate Nimfa insists that Kelvin is too young, so that leaves PJ room. Yes, it was my fault the teasing started but Ate Nimfa’s comeback sent all of us reeling.

I leave you with these pictures from our play time. Expect more posts about what Kelvin was up to during his 2-week school break!

If I am paid to post I’d be fired by now. Please bear with me as I try to catch up with the tags and the comments and my bloghops. I will be one month late in almost everything, so para kayong nagbabasa ng replays.

Anyhow, the first two weeks of August was Kelvin’s school holiday. I packed it with a number small activities to keep us occupied and to make the short break count. Unfortunately, Daddy had to work because after the 2-week break, Kelvin was due for his glue ear surgery (more on that later) and Daddy will take charge then.

My high school barkada, Anet, and Josh were kind enough to invite us over for a 2-day trip to Silverstone, the home of F1 racing circuit. Sayang tapos na ang qualifiers pero okay na din at least na-solo namin yung lugar. Josh managed to sweet talk some garage manager and they let us in the warehouse where they were preparing for the A1 racing. Anong A1? Malay ko din. I had to look it up. Apparently A1 represents nations not car-makers. Boring! Pero nun’ ka, hubby, Josh and Kelvin enjoyed the trip. They keep on touching and looking at engines/bodies/paints, etc etc. Para sila’ng nasa candy store. I could only gawk.

At first I thought the trip will bomb. First, because hubby missed the train. Unbelievable because we got on the train at the same time. But he has to have a paper to read, he got off and it took him 20 minutes to get one freaking tabloid, by which time we were already far away. Kelvin was shouting out the window “run dad run” as if he can even see hubby. When I said his dad was in trouble, he told me not to worry as the police will help his dad! Natawa na lang ako. Pasalamat talaga asawa ko, by the time Kelvin and I got off the destination my temper was gone.

It also threatened to rain. The sky was Britain-typical, i.e. dull and grey, up until 1pm. Thankfully the sun shone through by 2pm, just in time for our garden-park walks.

The highlight of our trip was the visit to Blenheim Palace, the birthplace of Sir Winston Churchill. Only when I visit places like these do I get hit by how “old” and properly recorded England’s history is. We paid for a tour and saw animatronics that explained how the Palace came to be. The puppets were okay and the tale was interesting enough. The first door they had us open though scared more than half the audience. We were expecting a light-hearted take but were greeted by an eerie room with ghost sounding moans! Kelvin was terrified, I thought we’d have to leave. Thankfully it was only for a minute then it became boring enough for Kelvin to ignore.

I’m not big on interior-tours so that part of the trip was jus okay. But the Palace grounds was something else. It boasts of several themed gardens. We went through a maze as well, which tired everyone we encountered. It’s not fun anymore if you have spent more than 30 minutes going around in circles in 30C heat! But Kelvin had the most fun in the Adventure Playground with wooden houses and climbing frames, not to mention the lifesize chess sets and the crazy golf. I liked the man-made waterfall and the rose garden. They also have a butterfly house where I saw one butterfly with tattered wings. There was a “lakeside walk” which we didn’t have the energy to visit. Actually, we didn’t visit two other gardens just because our feet were sore! We were all blatantly unfit, too. I’m sure we missed a lot more spectacular view of the 2100 acre grounds.

I’m really thankful with digital cameras. If I didn’t have one, I would have used up more than two rolls of 36-shot films just on trees alone. I was fretting on what pictures to upload for your viewing pleasures but perhaps in agitation I ended up with the following and taking my cue from Ana, here’s a slide for a neat presentation.

Thanks to Anet and Josh for a wonderful time and super-yummy food!

This post is sponsored

Summertime means holiday for most families & ours is no different. Well, except perhaps with budget considerations we’re “stuck” with European destinations. Yes, it’s not such a bad deal, aferall Europe is arguably the best destination one can hope for. But hubby’s heart is set on Florida or California. Unfortunately for him our purse strings will “only” allow Paris.

Oh come on! Quit complaining, right? That’s what I told him. Besides Kelvin is only 3 it’s unlikely he’ll enjoy a trip to THE Disneyland. As luck would have it, I saw on telly that Disney Euro is offering one-night free for children under-7! I haven’t checked the details yet but I’ve been given the green light by hubby to start snooping, err, researching.

As luck would have it, I chanced upon Cheap Hotels site that offers up to 70% off on reservations! It defaults to American dollar but the site has an internationalised option for major currencies like British Pound or EURO. It boosts my confidence level too, because it has a 0-800 number for non-US customer like myself & believe me this is one thing I always check. The last time I used a non-UK based booking site it was based in Singapore, it took me a month to get a refund from their mistake (they booked my family for two hotels on the same date in Barcelona and also charged us for both!).

Anyway, I checked an August booking for a Disneyland-Paris hotel and for added stinginess checked mid-week rate for 2 Adults + 1 child. The top 3 hotels on the list will charge us between 450-500 GBP for 3 nights. People, this is just the hotel! I was sorely disappointed that the current Disney Euro offer is not available on this booking site yet. Will it ever? Perhaps that’s one downside for looking on a non-European site. Perhaps it’s not as up-to-date as those based in the Continent.

I still tagged Hotel Reservations in my del.icio.us for future reference though. It might still come in handy when we can visit the Grand Canyon or the home of KingKong!