By Kate Hodges
26th January 2018
EVENT Going Cheep
This weekend’s RSPB’s Big Garden Birdwatch is a wonderful, inclusive way for even the smallest of children to connect with nature. It’s the world’s largest garden wildlife survey – half a million people spend an hour counting the winged creatures that come into their garden, balcony or park. In 2016 more than eight-and-a-half million birds were spotted, with the house sparrow being the most popular (we’ll bet that a fair few “eagles” and “albatrosses” were discounted). Download a pack and join in the fun.
RECIPE Sunshine In Your Kitchen
It’s a particularly grey, miserable January – we’ve got a house full of lurgy and everyone’s a bit grumpy. So this weekend, we’re determined to bring a little citrussy, warm sunshine to our kitchen by making marmalade – the very short Seville orange season is in full swing now. There’s a great basic recipe from Nigel Slater here (we love his idea of adding a few mint leaves), while this take adds in warming cinnamon, cardamom and vanilla, and there’s a fragrant, sophisticated version using clementines and bay here.
EVENT and DO Spinning Yarns
It’s National Storytelling Week – a time where the oral tradition is celebrated and the air is thick with wild tales and monsters conjured from the imagination. Join in the fun at an event near you – there’s a map of what’s happening here (scroll down!). We like the sound of the playful Everyone A Maker event in London and Hugh Lupton’s grown-up, dramatic retelling of the Beowulf legend in Wylam. Can’t make it along to an event? Read how Green Parent writer Amanda incorporates story telling into her family’s everyday life here.
EVENT Underground Art
Held in the thrillingly dark underground caverns beneath Waterloo, the Vault Festival is now London’s biggest arts festival, with hundreds of colourful, cutting-edge shows, events and performances for the whole family. Older children will love the immersive, dark take on Peter Pan, Neverland, One Duck Down is an eco-friendly show based on the true story of 7000 rubber ducks cast adrift and Me and My Bee is an insects-against-climate-change mini-epic comedy .
EVENT Morris Minors
The William Morris Gallery – former home of the great socialist designer in Walthamstow, London – is a lovely place for families. Set in Lloyd park - perfect for some running about, it hosts well-curated exhibitions, and has a very reasonable tea room. Their monthly, free Family Day is a wonderful time to visit; this Saturday, Significant Seams bring their love of sewing to the venue to celebrate May Morris’s talent for embroidery. More here.
