Hands Off!

See that glare large.

That's what Mr. Meerkat was saying to me. He had just spotted a delicious dead chick and was convinced I was about to steal it! So instead of rushing in to snaffle it up he paused to give me a piece of his mind...and one of his little mates rushed in to snaffle it up instead. Life's a b*tch sometimes :-)

So, as you can see, I took the boys the Hamerton this morning. It was like Glastonbury with livestock. There was mud EVERYWHERE. We go a lot so always take wellies and an all-in-one water/mud proof thing for Noah. I always feel a teensy bit sorry for those people who are on their first visit. They get out of their cars wearing canvas shoes, trainers or pretty little boots and light jackets. Some of the little girls wear pale tights and pretty dresses. You can see their look of apprehension as they glance across and notice us stalwarts with our wellies, several layers of clothing and a large picnic lunch in a rucksack.

We always see them half way round, caked to their knees, picking their way through the quagmire which begins as the path ends. We see them again as we tuck into our picnic lunch while they try to buy sandwiches at the hopelessly ill-equipped snack shack, and then again as they head off home looking as though they've been the star attractions in a mud-wrestling tournament.

Hamerton is a conservation centre, run mainly for the benefit of the wildlife. Sure they've made an effort with a nice, heavy duty wood and rope adventure playground and an under-cover eating area but it is not primarily a huge commercial, hot dog stand and ice cream parlour-infested establishment and has no intention of becoming one. It's small, quirky, and fascinating...and we love it. Even in the school holidays it's relatively quiet, and when the schools are back Noah and I often have the place to ourselves.