After a little research, we found the perfect solution - "glamping". Feather Down is a network of farms with permanent tent cabins which they welcome families to stay in. The tent cabins come with beds and linen, a toilet, running cold water and a wood burning stove for heat and cooking. The basic comforts of home. We decided to give it a go so over the bank holiday weekend we stayed at Lipley Farm in Shropshire, about 3 hours northwest of London.
Lipley Farm is a working dairy farm but they also have sheep, chickens and pigs on the farm. On the first day the owner took us around for a tour and the kids got to milk one of the cows (not the old school way though).
After unpacking the car and saying 'hi' to some of the farm animals, we put the kids to work getting firewood.
Our tent, Guernsey, is one of five in the campground area.
Only candle, fire and flashhlight at night - very cozy:
In the center of the campground was a fire pit flanked by two big logs where everyone gathered at night to chat and toast marshmallows (when it wasn't raining). This was the highlight for the kids, particularly because they got to stay up very late. When it was raining, we just used our outdoor stove for toasting.
There was also a swingset and zip line that the kids loved playing on. All the tents were full of families so the kids had fun meeting and playing with the other children. Nice for the parents too since the kids could keep themselves entertained.
K brought his baseball set as well and hit more than a couple balls into the cow field
We rented two chickens to take care of over weekend. The kids named them Peanut (the plumper one) and Caramel. K was so excited when he opened the back lid and there was an egg waiting for us which we cooked the next morning. K really took to the chickens and loved picking them up and giving them wheelbarrow rides around the campground. He loved chasing them too but when they had enough they ducked under the tent cabin. And then at other times they decided to duck into the cabin.
For sleeping, J and I had a room to ourself with a double-bed while K slept in a bunkbed (he chose the top bunk) and C slept in the cupboard! She loved how cozy it was and read by her headlamp at night.
We played a lot of games of SORRY and one morning the kids did a little writing. C was keeping a journal over the summer for school so glamping provided the perfect entry.
My favorite memory is of our country walk to the nearby town of Cheswardine for Sunday lunch. We were lost practically before we began. We walked to the end of the driveway and didn't know where to go next. After wandering up and down the road for about 15 min. the owners drove by and pointed us in the right direction - over the fence and through the field of cows! We were dubious but set out. On the other side of the field we found the yellow arrow marking the path...which continued through a cornfield. And then through a field of hay bales. Followed by a field full of horses. It was at this point we completely lost our way and couldn't find the next marker. We walked up and down the field and were completely at a loss. However we knew we couldn't be too far from the town since we had already walked about 30 min and it was only supposed to take 45. J called the restaurant, said we would be late and then we just chose a direction we thought would work. We arrived at a barley field and decided to walk through the tractor wheel path to get us to a road. Finally at the road we found a sign for the town.
It was quite an adventure but we were happy we persevered. By this time we were all starving and we arrived at the pub only to find out we were too late and they had stopped serving food. J begged them for whatever they had leftover so we noshed on roasted potatoes and Yorkshire pudding. The beer tasted good though! The walk back was much quicker (and less stressful) as we found and stayed on the path from start to finish. And we beat the rain with only minutes to spare.
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