Top Tips for Toddlers

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Top Tips for Royal related activities !

To celebrate the arrival of the new royal baby, Louis, and the impending royal wedding, here are some enjoyable, purse-friendly Royal Family related activities to try out:

• Changing of the Guard

Always a colourful display and it’s right here on our doorstep! The Changing of the Guard timings in May at Windsor Castle are available via the link below. Due to the upcoming Royal wedding, this event is likely to be popular, so you would be advised to arrive early.

https://changing-guard.com/dates-windsor-castle.html

• Windsor Great Park

Not only does this sprawling park offer beautiful walks, gardens, a play area and a pavilion for tea but it also organises a range of events throughout the year. Nature Tots is hosted by Berks Bucks and Oxon Wildlife Trust on 11th and 14th May.

https://www.windsorgreatpark.co.uk/en

• Boss Baby

On a rainy day, it’s nice to stay in, snuggle up and watch a good film. Boss Baby is U rated and is available to rent now – a fun watch for all the family, whatever the age!

• Garden Time

Finally, why not get out in the garden and plant a royal rose to commemorate the royal celebrations or anything else you wish to remember? It’s also the right time of year to start planting a vegetable patch or fruit bushes. There is a very good value local nursery in Burnham.

http://www.daviesbrothers.co.uk/

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Top Tips for attracting your children’s favourite creatures to the garden!

Springtime is usually a hive of animal activity in the garden. Here are some fun ideas to try with your little one to encourage birds and beasties into the garden.

Hedgehog Hides – Take a peek at the RSPB website (www.rspg.org.uk) who have a fabulous idea for a hedgehog café! This lovely project helps support the hungry hogs in your garden and is a lovely way to spend time outdoors with the children.

Bread Bird Feeders – With the weather still a touch chilly, you may need some indoor activities to keep the children busy. Transform stale slices of grainy bread into bird feeders that will keep cold-weather visitors happy outside your window. All you need is a shallow dish of birdseed and peanut butter.

  • Leave the bread out to dry completely, thread string, or a wire twist-tie, through the top of the bread slice (try to leave enough room at the top), then cover both sides with peanut butter. Sprinkle each side in birdseed and attach it to a sturdy branch in your back garden – bird breakfast is served!

DIY Bug Box – A bug box makes a lovely home for all sorts of different creepy crawlies and is interesting to observe throughout the seasons. Simply cut short lengths of hollow bamboo cane and tie them together securely in a bunch. Then leave it on the ground to attract wood lice and beetles or hang it from a tree to encourage flying insects, such as, bees and ladybirds.

 

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Top Tips – For Easter Fun!

Easter Family Fun!

This month we’ve come up with some suggestions from popular web sites to keep your little ones busy in preparation for Easter.

• Easter Treats – The Good Food web site has a host of scrumptious recipes to keep their creative juices flowing and satisfy those sweet teeth! We really loved the Hedgehog bread and Flowerpot chocolate chip muffins.

https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/howto/guide/fun-easter-projects-kids

• Get Crafty – Another fantastic site for simple crafting ideas is One Little Project. Get your craft box out (or use odd bits and bobs from the cupboard) to create magical Easter animals and decorations. Great for stimulating their imagination and keeping little fingers busy too!

http://onelittleproject.com/easter-crafts-for-kids/

• Easter Egg Hunting – Not that chocolate is at the forefront of our minds but here’s the definitive guide to the National Trust/Cadbury Easter egg hunt trail for 2018. Enjoy!

https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/features/join-the-cadbury-easter-egg-hunts

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Top Tips – Five fun family things to do near Windsor this month!

February Family Fun!

We’ve put together some family-orientated things to do in Windsor coming up – which might come in handy if you have older siblings to entertain as well over the February half-term!

1. Windsor Castle – every Saturday in February they are holding an art workshop and you can try on costumes and armour to really feel part of its history. Find out more here: https://www.royalcollection.org.uk/event/bring-on-the-battle-02-2018#/

2. Build a Bird Box – at Beale Park, Pangbourne as part of national nest box week. http://www.bealepark.org.uk/plan-your-visit/whats-on/

3. Norden Farm Centre for the Arts, Maidenhead – For a rainy day they’re showing ‘Ferdinand’ at their cinema. With storytelling from 12-17th February and a wonderful puppet show ‘Three Billy Goats Gruff and other furry tails’ suitable from 3 years+. All have an entrance price. See more here: https://norden.farm/whatson/2018-02-12

4. Cobbs Play Barn, Hungerford – Valentine’s Day play and bake session. https://www.cobbsplaybarn.co.uk/

5. Not forgetting Legoland! Which has a junior builder event and treasure hunt over the half-term break. https://www.legoland.co.uk/

We know how busy life can be, so we hope this helps you make the most of your family time!

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Top Tips – How to make Chocolate Easter Nests

Too cold for outdoor play? Why not stay at home and make these yummy chocolate Easter nests instead?

Here’s our favourite tried and tested (tasted!) recipe.

Ingredients:

200g milk chocolate, broken into small pieces
85g shredded wheat, crushed
2 x bags of mini chocolate eggs
You’ll also need 12 cupcake cases.

How to make:

Melt the chocolate in a bowl in a pan of slightly simmering hot water.

Pour the melted chocolate over the broken-up pieces of shredded wheat.

Spoon the chocolate wheat into the cupcake cases. Make a slight indent with a spoon to make a nest shape.

Place approx. three chocolate eggs in each chocolate nest.

Cool for an hour or so in the refrigerator.

Top Tip: Cornflakes work just as well as shredded wheat. You can also add a few tablespoons of golden syrup to the melted chocolate to make gooier.

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