We do like to go out into nature from time to time, normally to local forests to look at mushrooms or make little camps. Wanting to do something a bit different, we decided to check out The Gruffalo Trail, which is a big walk in the forest that features statues from the book The Gruffalo. The Gruffalo Trail is apart of the Essex Wildlife Trust, so it is a well maintained area that has quite a bit to offer. It’s a free walk that even includes a little map, if you go into the gift shop/cafe to grab it – the only thing you need to pay for is parking.
This year we’ve been trying out a lot of different subscription boxes to keep the children entertained while our other options have been somewhat restricted by lockdown and Covid-19. We’ve done everything from nature boxes through to history-themed ones, but perhaps one of the most interesting offerings is the Letterbox Lab Explore Box, which we’ve been tinkering with over the last while.
Much like the Mysteries in Time box, the Letterbox Lab is sequential rather than based on the time of the year. So if you started a subscription today, you’d receive the first box, even if other people you know are much later in the sequence. There are twelve boxes in total as part of the Explore Box, with one delivered a month, and Letterbox Labs also do a much heftier Investigate Box if you have older children, or if you’re still interested in the magic of science once you’ve completed the Explore, 12-box run.
[Ad- gifted product] When it comes to picking out a really good gift for somebody, sometimes it’s really not that easy to find something that’s truly perfect – do you focus in on something they need, do you get something that’s in line with their hobbies, or do you get something that’s a simple treat. This is where selection boxes, and the sort, really come in handy. Jupiter got me, earlier on in the year, the Beer Hawk Selection Box, which is a really great gift for beer lovers, and is also a really nice introduction into the Beer Box idea. When we saw the Beer Hawk Festive Cheers Selection Box on Moonpig, we ordered one!
I’ve not used Beer Hawk before, but it’s a website which – alongside making gift packages – sells everything from beer glasses through to full kegs of beer. This gift box, with its festive design, was clearly designed as a quick Christmas treat, and alongside the five beers that it contained also included a beer glass and a set of chocolate tokens. While I’ll get to the beers in a moment, I wanted to take a quick moment to point out how well organised the whole thing was. Inside the Beer Hawk Festive Cheers Selection Box, there were marked partitions for each of the seven things included, with rigid walling to separate them. It’s clear that a lot of care has gone into the packaging design, which is nice to see when talking about a company who ships glass and bottles as well as cans and more.
This year, we wanted to make some of our own ornaments to go on the tree. After tackling some of the crafts from our Wild & Willow box, Jupiter had the idea to make some salt dough ornaments – and it turns out they are pretty simple and easy to make. The kids each made their own, using a bunch of different cookie cutters, and Jupiter made one of the classic handprint ornaments with Pancake’s hand! It came out pretty nicely.
Another month has come and gone, and we’ve done another Willow & Wild box! These boxes are so much fun to do. I wasn’t sure how they’d fare in the winter months, as many of them encourage going out and about to find items, but even in the wintertime they have come up with some great crafts and activities. This month, as you can imagine, many of the activities were themed around Christmas! We took our time going through our box and, once again, I’m here to talk about the highlights.
