Five Things To Do With Your Family in April

EVENTS SPRING INTO ACTION

Immerse yourself in nature (and catch the start of the big bird migration) at an RSPB reserve – the society is celebrating a Big Wild Easter, including wild challenges, pond-dipping, spring trails and dinosaur egg-stravaganzas. Or join lovely Bing and Flop to become a Nature Explorer at WWT sites.

It’s the most egg-citing time of the year for chocolate fans! Try blossom festivals, spring trails, and, of course, egg hunts at a National Trust property. Find fun near you here. Or step into spring at an English Heritage site; head to a Lego brick build, or join an Easter Adventure Quest. You might not find a grail but - shhh - there’s chocolate!

If you’re in Wales, you’ll find high rope fun, egg hunts and a Roman Boot Camp at museums including St Fagans, the National Museum, and the National Waterfront Museum.

The trails at RHS Wisley, Hyde, Harlow Carr, Rosemoor and Bridgewater wind around giant painted eggs with chocolate treats from NOMO, while in Scotland, there are easter eggs to be found at 22 venues across the country, from Brodie Castle in the Highlands to Greenbank Garden in Glasgow.

Edinburgh Science festival on 30th March; enjoy two weeks of boffin-pleasing fun. Head to the National Museum of Scotland for Growing Home; an interactive journey that explores how natural materials are the future of building, fashion and daily living; see a huge structure grown from wool and mycellium! There are tons more innovative workshops, talks, trails and installations taking place across the city; find the full programme here.

Party like it’s 1191! Arundel Castle is going 12th century over the Easter Weekend. Imagine King Richard the Lionheart gathering his Barons to prepare for the Third Crusade. The Earl of Arundel is testing his men in combat and archery to prepare for the journey.. Set within a large tented encampment on the lower lawns of the castle, the three-day event will have demonstrations of combat, archery and falconry, musicians, archery, and a craft tent. Ticketed.

Now Play This, the celebration of experimental game design (ticketed), returns to Somerset House this week as part of the city-wide London Games Festival. Now in its tenth year, this edition’s theme is lis Liminal: Playing Between Worlds. Encouraging self-reflection, the interactive festival explores the transitory, borderless spaces between artist’s imaginations and audiences’ inner worlds; discover games created by Black and Asian designers in Trafalgar Square on 13th April, and explore installations, activities and workshops.

Trafalgar Square is alive this month! See the monumental, 100-strong Passion of Jesus play on Good Friday, complete with centurions, crowds and crucifixes. On Saturday 6th April, the Square will be home to a party marking Vaisakhi, celebrating Sikh and Punjabi traditions including turban tying workshops, free snacks and Indian tea and family friendly activities. Come Saturday 20th April, it’s time for Eid. Mark the end of Ramadan with music, food and bustling community stalls. And on Sunday 21st, have a jolly time at the St George’s day celebrations, alongside pearly kings and queens, market stalls, street entertainers, and even a dragon or two!

Elsewhere in London, head to Kew to celebrate the arrival of the blossom with Sounds Of Blossom; where live gentle music welcomes the spring. If younger members of the family aren’t so keen on soothing classical sounds, there’s a chance to meet Bluey and friends!

Saturday April 20th is Record Store Day, a great chance for kids across the country to enjoy live performances, DJ sets and fun in a friendly and laid-back environment. Find an event near you here.

Running across the world from April 26th, the City Nature Challenge is an international race to discover and record as much wildlife as possible – a wild mini safari across your neighbourhood. Founded in the USA, the event is global, with events and bioblitzes in major cities in the UK – find your nearest participating city here. Take part in organised hunts, or download an app to join in independently. There’s a multi-aged education toolkit, here.

EVENT WOOLLY JUMPERS

The sun is on our shoulders, days are stretching out, frogs have spawned, daffodils popped, and lambs are on their way! Many farms, both rural and urban, are starting to hold their annual lambing days; a chance for children to meet, feed and cuddle these little balls of fluff. This weekend, head to London’s Forty Hall to greet newly born sheep. Many other farms, particularly community farms creak open their gates during March and April for everyone to meet the new arrivals. Find our favourites here, head to a City Farm in London, or find a community run place nearer you here or here. If you can’t get to a farm, why not catch up with the tiny fluffs of wool coming into the world via St Fagans Museum of History in Wales’ infamous Lambcam (warning: may cause massed AWWWWWWS) or make your own flock from cotton wool?

DO GROW AND GIVE

April is Plant and Share Month. Food For Life’s Get Togethers is calling on the nation to get growing and sharing their produce with their communities. Why not try growing some delicious food from scratch? Plant your seeds, help them grow, and share the seedlings, and be part of a movement that already has 58 thousand participants! Be inspired, download a toolkit, and join free online training here.

CELEBRATE AND DO BECAUSE THE SEAWEED

April 14th is Laverbread Day! A celebration of the Welsh seaweed delicacy! Free, fresh food and the seaside are two of our favourite things, so combining them is about as good as it gets. If you’re in Wales, join the real-life party in Angle. Expect cooking demonstrations, a photography competition and lots of stories about the history of the dish.

If you can’t make the party, take advantage of the spring weather to leap around some rocks near you and forage for the vitamin-packed seaweed. Find laverbread recipes here.

Or try hunting for other useful seaweeds. Find out more here and our recipes for seaweed and citrus cordial and seaweed and chocolate cookies here, or find a guide and great suggestions for recipes here and more starter recipes here (how gorgeous does that Cannelloni bean salad with marinated alaria look?) Plan your foraging using the tide-tables here.

However, you don’t have to eat your finds. There are so many beautiful types of seaweed, from delicate red blooms to thick brown ribbons. In Victorian times, it was fashionable to collect them. You might like to make a mobile, or why not try pressing your favourites? There’s a guide here and we love this dinky art book made from a seashell. Alternatively, why not try making a whistle out of bladder wrack (you KNOW you want to try that!)?

If you have dry hands, try popping the bubbles of the bladderwrack and rubbing the oil on your hands – it’s a great natural moisturiser – try this recipe for Mermaid Lotion or make your own kelp oil!

EVENT SHAKE YOUR BOOTY
It’s the most wonderful time of the year: boot sales are starting to pitch up again across the UK! We love a good boot – they’re green, save you tons of money, and are a great way to spend a weekend morning together. Find one near you here. They’re also, of course, a great way to get rid of any junk and old kids gear and clothes. There are helpful guides to selling your bits and bobs here and here and an insightful and funny piece about the world of car booting here. If you’re looking specifically for baby equipment, the legendary NCT Nearly New Sales are musts for penny-watching parents – we have snagged some incredible bargains at them over the years! Find one near you here

WHAT WE’RE LISTENING TO THE MATERNAL JOURNAL PODCAST “Join us for a deep dive into m/otherhood, journaling, creativity and mental health hosted by Maternal Journal producer, artist, writer and midwife Laura Godfrey-Isaacs.

You’ll hear from ten exceptional writers who share insights about their parenting journeys and discuss how creativity can positively impact mental health and well-being. So, grab your headphones, settle in and join us to explore these inspiring stories together. ” Listen here

WHAT WE’RE EATING FETA, EGGS AND DANDELION GREENS Make Ilona Oppenheim’s tasty wild food dish to celebrate the blooming of spring. Dandelion greens are very nutritious: they are high in calcium, rich in iron and loaded with antioxidants. Find the recipes here