Summer holidays bucket list

So, we're nearly at the end of the first week of the summer holidays. Our first summer holidays in fact, as last summer M was still at his childminder's and so he was cared for throughout July and August.

I am very conscious that these seven weeks are the last ones I will spend with M before he becomes enveloped in the next chapter of his life as a school boy.  And I want to make some memories while we get the chance.

There are lots of things I want to do this summer, both as a family, and also just with M.  Here's my summer holidays bucket list.

1. Go and visit some lavender fields.  I've always loved the sight and scent of lavender, and would love to see a real lavender farm, where you're surrounded by all the aromatic purpleness.  I'd love to get some lovely family photos of the four of us with the lavender as a backdrop. I think the nearest farm to us is Cotswold Lavender, but we need to be quick, as I think they'll be harvesting soon.

2. Visit Warwick Castle.  This is an amazing castle, and I'm hoping to visit again as a family this summer.  M is really into castles, and I think he'll love this one.  I'm going to see if we can use our Nectar points to pay for tickets.

3.  Spend a day in a beach hut. We are off to North Norfolk in early September, to have one last family adventure before school starts.  I'm hoping to hire a gorgeous little beach hut, something I've always wanted to do.  I have my eye on one in Wells-next-the-Sea

4. Visit Gulliver's Kingdom again. We had such a great time at Gulliver's Kingdom for M's birthday, that we bought return tickets at a discount, so we can go back again before the end of September.

5. Have a cinema date with M.  I think he wants to see the new Thomas the Tank Engine film.  He's gone off any films with a 'baddie' in them, so we have to be careful what we pick.

6. Go for a walk in Dovedale in the Peak District. This is such a beautiful part of the world, and I'd love to go back now that M is old enough to negotiate the stepping stones over the River Dove.

7. Have a picnic in the park.  There's nothing nicer than a picnic on a beautiful summer's day, is there?  Hopefully, the weather will pick up a bit to allow us to tick this one off!

8. Organise some playdates for M.  7 weeks is a long time to be without your friends, so I'd really like to organise for him to play with some of his pre-school friends and other little people we know.  I'm a bit nervous about more than one four year old racing round the house, though!

9. Enjoy some more family barbeques.  Our garden is a bit all over the place at the moment, as G is building a large climbing frame for the boys, but once that's done, it'd be lovely to have the family over for a barbeque.

10. Introduce M to gymnastics.  He's always practicing his yoga poses, and demanding that we watch him while he leaps all over the furniture, so the other evening, I took him to observe a gym class for little ones, to see if he thought he'd like to do it.  He was VERY keen, and I put his name on the waiting list.  In the meantime, I'm looking into some ad hoc classes that he can get involved in over the summer.

What's on your holidays bucket list this year?