Woken very early by Davies appearing beside the bed saying ‘Mummy, Tarly’s being naughty and doing something BAAAAD!’ He thought she was playing with make up – which would have been bad enough in itself, but no. She was scribbling all over the table with the indelible pen supplied by Jax to write on the wrist bands for wandering toddlers ? ? ? What made it worse was she so clearly knew she was doing something wrong as as soon as she saw Ady she said ‘sorry Daddy’ before he even opened his mouth (he got there first and it was quite funny that his version of telling her off was warning her how cross Mummy was going to be 😉 ). We’ve tried a variety of methods of removing the pen from the table and the only thing which has worked so far was nail varnish remover (see there are benefits to being a princess staying in a caravan with toiletries like nail varnish remover!). But it has sort of smudged ? Ady is going to work and calling in home on Monday so he will bring back some more hardcore cleaning products when he comes back…
Over to HESFES where I saw around drinking tea, Ady dashed around after Scarlett and Davies ran around with Ben and Lije seeming to alternate who was best friends with who as they went. Quite funny as Davies was in demand to run around shrieking about monsters with Ben (which seems to be his stock game with other small boys) or go in Lije’s van and play games which is a new one on him but seemed to have quite a strong pull. He did at one point appear without either of them and was quite put out that he was the odd one out so I shoved him back in the van again and told him not to come out unless he had at least one of them with him – seemed to work 😉
Today I feel like we have done HESFES without doing HESFES if that makes sense – without camping we are obviously removed from the whole experience and although Ady has taken Scarlett to a couple of the workshops I have not really mixed and mingled beyond the MP group I already know. We saw a couple of Activeo folk on the way in today and were invited to their tent for drinks and socialising. I think when Ady goes tomorrow I will make a real effort to do a bit more than sit around chatting to people I already know as although that is very comfortable and easy I will be doing it again in a months time at Kessingland and I would like to go away having felt I have partaken of the whole HESFES vibe, even if that then means I run away screaming never to return! Have tonight returned to the caravan with two filthy dirty, worn out happy children, who have been bathed and put to bed asleep on their feet while we sat down to roast beef ? I have heard several people say that this is what HESFES is all about – letting children have their childhood back in the same way that we remember being kids – and indeed it is, they are running wild and free with their friends, being tasked with looking after themselves, having their own cash to take to the shop, going to the playground and generally living by their own rules for the week. They are waved off in the morning and told to be back in time for tea and although mine are way too young to be off doing that yet – and I know that even when I *know* they are old enough it will be a massive struggle to let them I guess that is what I want to get out of HESFES in years to come. At the moment I am feeling that my initial thoughts that the children are still too young to really get much out of it and in worrying about them I will not get much out of it either is going to prove correct, but nothing I have seen has been a hideous shock and although I can feel the disproval radiating off the locals and even as far away as Bridport when they see my toddler with her pink and purple hair streaks I do think that it all goes with the territory and taking the rough with the smooth I could see this being an event on future calendars that we would not want to miss for it’s once a year, extreme HE in action taste of the alterative side of life ?
your last sentence – yep, that’s sort of how I feel about it, too.
Comment by Sarah — 20 May 2005 @ 5:43 pm