The Big Idea

The inspiration came from a  BBC Article describing how families have been priced out of day trips and many people will be spending the summer "cooped up at home". Of course, things are becoming more and more difficult but why is poverty so often used as an excuse for doing nothing?
Then there's the ever popular (and infuriating mantra) "there's nothing for kids to do around here" - these poor children have no hope! This lack of imagination got me to thinking that there must be easily 100 places to go for free within an hour's drive of our home in Berkshire. This immediately became a challenge - I can't make a claim like that without backing it up! Within five minutes I had already thought of a bucketful: Uffington White Horse; Silchester Roman Walls and Amphitheatre; Reading museum(s); Windsor Great Park; Swinley Forest walking or mountain bikes; Caesar's Camp; play parks (too many to count); Runnymede; Box Hill; Frensham Great Pond. Some of these are even walkable from our home.
The challenge now is to write about a hundred days out to inspire those of us who know that life is what you make it. We are going to have such a great summer going to different places every day where we can enjoy ourselves without spending a penny!

Even if you don't live in the South East, I hope you can find inspiration from my blog and find some exciting days out in your own area.
I don't want to underplay the friendliest and cheapest place of all - home! There is absolutely no need to think of this as being "cooped up". If you are reading this then you no doubt have the internet - get googling - there's so much fun you and your kids could be having that doesn't involve TV or consoles! We have had a big re-think of the time spent relying on electronic entertainment in our house. We have restricted it to one hour in the evening during the week and two hours at weekend. The children don't even realise this was our plan, we have just made an effort to play games with them and take them out. This weekend I spent hours making a wooden train and constructing lego creatures with my youngest and I think we both benefitted hugely from it! And no Disney Channel!