My fitness mad family

Not really skiing - can you tell ? 

We're a fairly active lot in our family. Being outdoors is by far our favourite way to relax and we have lots of ways that we enjoy spending time. Personally I love to swim, ski and me and Hubbie used to play softball before we were parents. I've also taken up Clubbercise recently which is brilliant fun and  is helping my overall fitness too.

Hubbie cycling and Big Boy scootering to school 

At Christmas Hubbie told me he was going to start cycling to work and I had to suppress the giggles as I was so sure he wouldn't do it more than once. Well, he's proven me wrong and has cycled in torrential downpours and has even mastered the steep hills between our house and his office. Some mornings he and Big Boy head off together on their respective wheels.

My little skateboard champ

Big Boy loves all forms of wheeled transport and has been making the case for a skateboard for years now. We did take him to try out some lessons with his friends and he did really well actually. As the weather is improving we will probably do this again. I did promise him he could have a skateboard when he's older, but if he's into it and being safe it may be ok sooner.

Scooter boy 

As an active child Big Boy has been proficient on his microscooter since he was 3 years old. In good weather I take him to school on his scooter and if it's just me and him going anywhere I will take my scooter too. One of his school pals had a birthday party that we rode our scooters to. I remember one of the other mums asking who the trendy mum was and I was delighted to realise it was me she was talking about. That isn't something that's often said about me !

Daddy and Big Boy on the move 

Mummy scooting 

Baby Boy is always trying to run off with his brother's scooter so we decided to see if there was one that would suit him too. The lovely folks at Microscooter recommended their mini 2 go scooter which I have seen toddlers riding when we've been out in the park. It starts off with a seat and a storage box for important soft toys to ride along and then you can remove the seat to make a short handled scooter and eventually raise the handle height until it's pretty much a full size microscooter.

The only time Baby Boy has used his mini 2 go scooter

We took Baby Boy out on his scooter one evening when we were all taking a walk after dinner - I'd love to show you lots of photos of him enjoying riding his fab new scooter, but I'm afraid he's not really interested. Hopefully if we take the seat off he will give it another go as it will be more like his brother's. For now I just have to take photos of the forlorn looking scooter that I pulled along when we went for brunch on Sunday.

Well, we love you mini 2 go

Baby Boy does love his scuttlebug and calls it his 'bike.' The lovely mums at Big Boy's school got together and bought it for him as a welcome gift when he joined our family. He can pick up a head of speed on it and I do have a job keeping up with him.

Off he goes into the distance 

It is great when we go to the park and the boys chase each other round the track. Hopefully once they are both on scooters it's going to be more of an even race.

My boys - off on adventures 

Disclosure: We were sent a mini 2 go scooter by the lovely folks at Microscooters.

Skateboarding, sunshine and searching for dinosaurs...

I've mentioned before that big boy really wants a skateboard. Ever since he watched Firehouse Dog the first time and he saw Shane (Josh Hutcherson) riding on one he has asked if he can have one when he's older. When we were staying at Coombe Mill he saw skateboards belonging to the bigger children and desperately wanted to have a go on them. I've always said he has to be at least 8 before we'd consider it, but I may reconsider this previous decision. 

On Saturday there was a skate demo in a local park where children were invited to try out skateboarding and to have a go at doing some tricks. The idea was to introduce them safely to the skills, but also to show them how to use the facilities in the park including ramps and jumps. 

Scooterboy

As our boy is more used to his scooter he tried that first then had a tutorial on the much longed for skateboard. He did really well and continues to amaze me with how incredibly brave and daring he is, trying new things without fear. I think he really looks the part doesn't he ? 

My little skateboarder

What a professional !

Then on Monday I took both boys to Crystal Palace park to see the dinosaur trail. Big boy has been to the park before, but he hasn't seen the dinosaurs so he was quite surprised to see so many of them lurking around the park. Little boy was less impressed, but he still enjoyed being outdoors on a sunny day with his brother. 

Dinosaurs in the water 

Dinosaurs hiding amongst the trees

As you will know from previous outdoor kids posts big boy is really into climbing trees right now so he made an attempt to climb onto this one, but it was too high up for him to reach.  He still enjoyed trying and I suspect it won't be long before he is tall enough to reach. 

Big boy - bigger tree

It's not only the boys who have been enjoying the sunshine this week - Neo has also been making the most of the weather and taken to sunbathing on the front doorstep most of the day. Here is a rare image of him awake and communing with nature.

Nature cat

This post is being shared with the fab #countrykids linky hosted by the lovely Fiona of Coombe Mill