The Arrival of the Grandparents and a(nother) Trip to Fountains Abbey

It's time for me to start sorting through photos from half-term break and our time with very special visitors.  It was such a gift to have KJ's parents' visit coincide with a week off of school!

Along with the arrival of our guests we had the arrival of lots of fun things from home:  toys (both new and old), clothes (both new and old), and food (all new).  The saddest part for me was coming down with the same viral tonsillitis James had, so I wasn't feeling 100%, but I tried to stay on top of the fever with ibuprofen.  We all had a Sunday afternoon rest followed by a walk.  The following Monday we met up with the de la Hoydes for the first of many outings.

Fountains Abbey is beautiful in any season.  On this visit the wildflowers were blooming in wild abundance, and it was so fun. I suppose the 900-year-old Abbey was pretty magnificent, too.

Wouldn't wedding pictures with that arch in the background be absolutely gorgeous?

The boys love climbing on the rocks, and getting inside the centuries old toilet is always a hit.

A field of buttercups seemed too good an opportunity to pass up for a photo-op, though it took a few tries to get the troops in order.  Speaking of buttercups, I have learned to recognize more flowers in the past 6 months than in the rest of my life put together.

I learned that instead of Queen Anne's Lace they have Cow Parsley.

I could spend the rest of this post writing about how beautiful the wildflowers were, but that might feel repetitive.

During school breaks there are usually lots of fun activities for kids, and on this day they went on a scavenger hunt for different kinds flowers/plants/herbs and learned about what each could be used for.  Looking for clues is a great way to keep the kids running all day long without complaining about walking.  I know Big Daddy and T were much impressed with the kids' newfound resilience.

A tree stump in the middle of a patch of wild garlic (yet another tidbit I've learned from the National Trust) seemed the perfect place for a picture, though it wasn't our best effort.  T and Big Daddy did better.

Bluebells and ivy-strewn rock walls, then hope to rest because my ibuprofen wore off hours ago, and I was feeling it by the end of the day.