Brilliant birthday parties at the Barn!

The Play Barn in Settle may have celebrated its own first birthday just last year but it's been the venue for countless fantastic birthday parties over that time. We have been to a few of them and towards the end of last year we hosted one of our own there! We thought we'd give you the full spec on what to expect and how much we enjoyed it.

 
There's something fantastic about the combination of candles, cake and kids which fills little ones with bucket loads of excitement but which can leave the organisers feeling a little bit overwhelmed. We found the people at the Play Barn (as always) to be relaxed, capable, efficient and professional. From the very start when we booked to the last minute they were there to take the strain out of the day - we had no stress, no organising and no cleaning up! There were about 30 little ones under 4 and it's safe to say there were plenty of giggles and LOTS of fun.
 

It's no surprise that their party slots are filling up quickly because at £7.50 per child, the Play Barn party package is fantastic value. The price includes entry to the Play Barn (a great way for kids to burn off some of that excitement and enough space for them to see their friends and play, but room to properly run about), Play Barn party invitations, two hours use of the 'party tent' which can be decked out according to a host of themes (they'll try to fit in with what ever you want but favourites are Hello Kitty, Princesses/Cinderella, Pirates, Jungle, Cars (Disney), Moshi Monsters and Thomas the Tank Engine - or a combination!), a fantastic party buffet of sandwiches, carrot sticks, crisps, sausage rolls, mini sausages, cherry toms, biscuits, ice cream and unlimited blackcurrant or orange cordial.
 
Our little guests all had a fab time and were made to feel very special. They really enjoyed the freedom of exploring the Play Barn and playing with friends and then sitting down in the party tent to the spread which went down a treat. The lovely staff all ensured things flowed well and were on hand to help - they seemed to be expert at manoeuvring while carrying a cake with lit candles! To top it all off when the party comes to an end, the birthday guest recieves a balloon and each guest is given a fantastic party bag - all included in the price. Our grown-up friends all enjoyed it, the little ones and their friends certainly enjoyed it and we all left smiling. In the words of one little guest over heard in the car park, 'that was the best party I've been to.' We cant give a more glowing report than that! 


Word is definitely getting out about the brilliant, great value Play Barn party venue where the weather can't spoil a thing...they recommend booking in advance to make sure you don't miss out. And so do we. 

There are optional extras you can add to your package such as a hot buffet (extra £2 per child), helium balloons (£1.50 per child) and a cake decorating session (extra £1 per child.) For more information please visit the Play Barn website

The Mart Theatre panto spectacular that's set to fill us all with festive cheer! (oh yes it will...)

December is almost upon us and we are full of festive cheer after a little robin told us that The Mart Theatre is treating Skipton's Young Carers Group to a trip to this year's panto spectacular Peter Pan
 
We didn't think we could love the vibrant Mart Theatre, based at Skipton's auction mart, any more than we do already but the news they're generously putting BIG smiles on  the little faces of children who care for family members in very challenging circumstances, is the icing on the Christmas cake.
 
We'll be blogging about Skipton Young Carers soon to give you more information about their amazing work but we can't wait any longer to share the low down on the fantastic Peter Pan panto! The same company that produced last year's amazing show to rave reviews from MooBaaKids (and further afield!) is back with a bang!
 
You'll no doubt all know that the swashbuckling adventure of  Peter Pan is about a mischievous boy, who never grows up. He and his Fairy Tinkerbell, visit an Edwardian London house and meet the children of Mr and Mrs Darling – Wendy, John and Michael. The story continues as they follow Peter to the Lost Boys hideout on the small island of Neverland meeting Mermaids, Indians, a Crocodile and Pirates…oh and a rather nasty Captain Hook who despises Peter Pan and by hook or by crook wants to rid the world of his arch enemy. It's traditonal panto fare with vivid characters, slapstick fun and adventure with bags of audience participation. Prepare to forget you've grown up yourself and laugh along with your kids!

Directed by George Critchley with a full professional cast supported by The Zoe Taylor Dance Academy (Blackburn), this looks set to be another colourful riot to get the whole family in the mood for Christmas. It looks like word has spread about the top quality of the productions on at the mart as some of the performances are already close to sell out. We cannot support the Mart Theatre enough or on past performance recommend the panto enough! We've bought our tickets and tucked them away safely...we suggest you get yours sooner rather than later and look forward to the adventure!

Tickets only £8 adults, £6 children and £24 family (4 tickets)

Show times:

Thursday 20th December at 7.30pm

Friday 21st December at 7.30pm

Saturday 22nd December at 2.30pm and 7.30pm

Sunday 23rd December at 1.30pm and 4.30pm

For more information please click HERE

Christmas at Kilnsey Park brings reindeer to the dales!

There's an absolute cracker of a festive family weekend planned on 8 and 9 December as Kilnsey Park launch their first Christmas under the Crag celebration. We are very excited!

A great day out at the best of times (we love the Kilnsey trail and are always partial to the food from the farm shop) this special weekend promises to be a real highlight of all the local Christmas events, with real life reindeers Comet and Blitzen joining in the fun.

Saturday (8 Dec) sees the beautiful setting host the Winter Real Ale Festival and live music, 6pm till late. Kilnsey Park is set to sway to the live sounds of blues prodigy Bluesbeaten Redshaw, who played Glastonbury and Montreux Jazz festivals aged just 19. There will be hot food cooked on the fire and the entire park will be illuminated.  It's absolutely free but donations are welcomed to the Yorkshire Air Ambulance.

It sounds like the perfect evening to us and is topped only by what's in store the next day! Sunday (9 Dec) looks like an incredible way to spend a day in the dales with the little ones. We cannot imagine their excitement on hearing that Father Christmas will be in attendance with two real life beautiful reindeer!

Alongside this there will be a special illuminated Christmas Trail with Santa's Grotto, hot food cooked on the fire, Christmas craft workshops, 'make your own snowman' and pony rides (for an extra £2.50). There will be festive food in the (child/baby-friendly) café, mince pies and mulled wine, carols from local schoolchildren, plus stocking and hamper fillers galore available from the Estate’s well-stocked Farm and Gift Shop. All this and a fantastic Christmas market in a marquee. 

Entrance to the Park, Estate Shop and Cafe will be free. Tickets for the special Christmas Trail experience - including the illuminated walk, meeting the reindeers and a visit to Father Christmas including special present - are: Children (under 14) £5, Adults £4 and Family £15. Opening hours are 10am-8pm and there's no need to book just turn up ready to have fun!

We think this sounds like the hot ticket this year and we cannot wait to enjoy Kilnsey Park's first Christmas celebration. With the line-up they've planned, we're already hoping it won't be the last! See you there...

 For more information please visit www.kilnseypark.co.uk

Yorkshire Dales Ice Cream Parlour scoops MooBaaStar for super cool birthday parties!

This year we have celebrated quite a few birthday parties at the Yorkshire Dales Ice Cream Parlour in Halton East, (including hosting one of our own) and each one has been fantastic! 

For £10 per child you get exclusive use of the party room for 1.5 hours, a very good quality party tea (choice of sandwiches or hotdogs...we LOVED the hotdogs, think 'proper' sausages not those bright orange cylinders masquerading as food that kids are sometimes fobbed off with at venues) plus crisps, crudités, soft drinks and finished off with what else, but the all important ice cream! Kids go up to the indoor ice cream van in the party room and choose two (big!) scoops of ice cream and loading up with sprinkles and sauces. (It's worth adding that they're happy to cater for special dietary needs such as lollies and sorbet instead of ice cream if dairy intolerant)
 
There's a sound system in the room (which is just off the walk way towards the fabulous retro diner, so kids can see what's going on outside in the play area with the added bonus of being just close enough to the loos!) with music provided or if your little one has specific tastes, you can bring your own! The space is big enough to do party games if you like and there's certainly enough room to pass a parcel, pin a tail on a donkey or have a bit of a dance! The maximum is ideally 20 kids but they can accommodate more if you give a call to talk through what you want to do in advance.
 
We found the staff all really helpful and friendly when making arrangements and they were really good with the children. They provide printable invitations in advace and can provide balloons on the day or you can bring your own. The space can be decorated with your own decorations or banners if you want to as long as they don't damage the walls. You can also bring your own party bags, so your imagination's the limit when it comes to what each little reveller takes home. Apart from memories of a top day out in the Yorkshire countryside! It sounds cheesy but it's true; we're big fans of the Yorkshire Dales Ice Cream parlour (and our kids quite like it too!) It's clean, modern, with a really quirky style and a fantastic outdoor adventure playground that's innovative and unique to the area. 
 
We can't say enough, that the food and facilities here are really great for kids, second to none. Oh, and for the mummies and daddies, you can bring your own cake to serve them as well as setting up a tab for adults drinks...watching the kids have fun can be thirsty work!
 
And if you're not considering it because your child has a winter birthday, they promise us that with the new indoor play facilities parties can continue through the winter months! The whole new undercover play area features four new wooden play structures - a fire truck, a school bus, digger and truck plus new ride-on trikes for the little ones! For the bigger thrill-seeking kids there's a massive straw adventure with rope swings, slides, tunnels, climbing and rope ladders. Sounds fab to us!
 
To book your party (min £50 deposit) or to find out check out their website www.yorkshiredalesicecream.co.uk or call them on 01756 710685.

Countdown to the Strid Woods Spooktacular!

If you go down to Strid Woods to play, you’re sure of a spooky surprise! It’s ghoulish witches, grisly spells and hidden pumpkins all the way for the Bolton Abbey Halloween Pumpkin Trail 

We love everything about Bolton Abbey – it’s an amazing gem on our doorsteps and we make use of our season tickets whenever we can - the changing seasons and packed schedule of fantastic activities mean that no two visits are ever the same and the Pumpkin Trail looks set to be a real highlight.

From 27 October – 4 November, the Pumpkin Trail (which is pram-friendly) set up in the woods will enchant little ones and get them in the mood for Halloween. As you wander through Strid Wood, there’ll be hidden pumpkins to search for as well as low-flying witches to dodge! All the while, you’ll be looking out for clues to unravel a grisly spell. Our little ones loved this last year so we can’t wait to do it again!

Alongside the Halloween event, Bolton Abbey offers the whole family the chance to explore the ruins of the priory as well as riverside, woodland and moorland paths (there are more than 80 miles of footpaths, many of which are pushchair friendly). And if you need to refuel afterwards, we think the newly-refurbished Cavendish Pavilion is great for kids! The fab menu includes children’s lunchboxes and they are happy to provide smaller kids’ portions on request. There are baby-changing facilities, high-chairs, a pushchair-friendly entrance and layout as well as stuff to do to keep toddlers amused until the food arrives.
 

The Cavendish Pavilion is also set to host fun-filled Halloween children's parties during the October half term (29 Oct - 2 Nov) with The Wonderful Witch of Wharfedale - an afternoon of games, music, activities and story telling. Tasty tucker for all the little imps includes Bat Sandwiches and Creepy Cupcakes, Spooky Spider Pizzas and Dead Man’s Fingers, Ghoulish Goulash and Devil’s Couldron and much more – all freshly prepared to satisfy witch’s helpers and grizzly grown-ups!

Normal admission to the estate applies (it’s £6 per car and the estate opens at 9am every day) and the Pumpkin Trail is free. It's £4.95 per child for the Halloween Parties. Simply collect a trail sheet at the Sandholme Kiosk, Cavendish Shop or Dusty Bluebells on arrival. 

For more information about the Pumpkin trail and everything Bolton Abbey has to offer, visit their website at www.boltonabbey.com 

We had a (glitter) ball at this year’s Magic Loungeabout!

We make no apology for taking a week or two to report back from the Magic Loungeabout. Our heads have only just stopped spinning from the disco master class that was the legendary CHIC and Nile Rogers.

With the spectacular Broughton Hall lit up to stunning effect (think silhouettes in the windows of people getting ready for a night out in 1712, to a huge glitter ball revolving on the building), Nile Rogers and CHIC came out, aaaaah freaked out and stole the show.

Headliners CHIC, alongside Inner City and the fantastic Charlatans contributed to a brilliant line-up at the north’s best boutique festival billed as ‘a refined unwind.’ As well as the headliners, there were star performances from up and coming acts and a dance tent with none other than Dave Beer – Basics legend.

We never thought we’d hear ourselves say this but it wasn’t just about the music and the dancing. Not now we’ve little ones in tow! A wise parent once advised that you can’t enjoy yourself unless your kids are happily occupied and luckily for us there was plenty to keep them entertained the whole weekend.

There were all the old favourites such as face painting, story telling and tons of arty stuff (loving the sock puppets!), but on top of that there was water zorbing, robotic dancing, DJing classes, illustration and writing workshops, as well as a whole host of fairies, trolls and funny folks. There were interactive children’s entertainers, magicians and magical performances (we loved Dangerous Dave’s madcap puppet show) as well as films and cartoons and even morning yoga and tai chi.

There was a fantastic array of things on offer to keep them occupied but – perhaps predictably – our little ones were most enthralled by the bubbles from the bubble guns that every child seemed to be happily toting, as well as the amazing homemade ice cream. With candy floss and fairy wings galore, it really was a magical weekend.

They had literally thought of everything this year to make The Magic Loungeabout the best and most family-friendly festival in the land (kids under 12 go free with paying adults, but they must have a ticket to enter). There were kids’ loos, a breast feeding and baby care tent, an essentials hut selling (as the name implies, all the essentials!) everything you might need including nappies, wipes, sun cream, ear defenders. This year too there was also a kids’ registration scheme and provision for lost children.

Early evening, there were bedtime stories with marshmallow toasting and a family fire show. With a lovely campfire and special Angel hot chocolates with lashings of cream. We loved listening to the lullabies before bed – who’d have thought it but alongside CHIC’s amazing performance, a simple rendition – one girl, her beautiful voice and a keyboard – of twinkle twinkle little star were the highlights for us!

Our little ones had a ball (between us, aged from almost two, to almost four, with a two and a half year old in the middle) and frankly so did we. A great big glitter ball of fun. We cannot wait till next year! x

Note – Super early bird tickets are available for next year http://magicloungeabout.ticketline.co.uk/

Baking that goes down a treat!

*We will be running a competition for TWO lucky winners to be treated to a box of SIX divine cupcakes each courtesy of Treats! The details will be posted on our Facebook wall shortly!* 

Scrummy cupcakes by Treats

At MooBaaKids there’s nothing we like more than genuine recommendations from local people. And they have been coming in thick and fast for Skipton-based baking business ‘Treats’ So, with MooBaa’s first birthday putting us in the mood for cake (aren’t we always?!) we decided to find out what all the fuss was about. 


It turns out that Treats is very appropriately named. With an ethos to bring back tasty traditional baking that not only looks good but tastes delicious at affordable prices, it’s a treat indeed. Baker Amanda Stodart-Hall explained: “My main aim for Treats is to make cakes, cupcakes and tray bakes – and birthday cakes too – that taste as good as they look. I use quality ingredients and always, always use local free-range eggs. “I want my customers to enjoy the types of cakes that I am happy to feed to my own two children, friends and relatives. I am trying to bring back good, honest, fresh baking created with care but without additives and preservatives.” 

Mmmmm... delicious!

Treats has been running since April 2012 and has rapidly built up a regular and growing customer base. Amanda added: “I take orders at any time from my customers who order anything from half a dozen beautifully decorated cupcakes to five large Victoria sponge cakes filled with raspberry jam, buttercream and topped with strawberries. I cater for small family orders, local businesses, parties or just for anyone wanting a ‘treat’. I also currently run a stall at various galas, carnivals and fun days.” 

Yet more delicious cupcakes.....

And if you’re wanting to give the kids a treat, Amanda said that ‘cupcakes and party bags’ will be coming soon – an individually boxed cupcake and carefully planned party bag to take home from children’s parties. *Giddy* is an understatement! 


All of Amanda’s delicious baking – cakes, cupcakes and tray bakes – is available to order through the facebook page www.facebook.com/treatsofskipton or by contacting Amanda Stodart-Hall on 07545922591. 


Like the facebook page, and share it with friends and family to be kept up to date with new products and special offers. You’ll be pleased you did! X




Treats: Supplying fresh made to order traditional Cakes, Cupcakes, Tarts, Traybakes, Scones and Loafs. Available for businesses, families, parties or just for a little treat. Contact Amanda on 07545 922591 or via facebook. If possible min of 1 week required for ordering.

MooBaaKids is one today!

Happy Birthday to... us!

What started out as a little idea last year has grown beyond our wildest expectations. We (there’s the two of us here at MBK HQ) set out to run a not for profit website aiming to keep families with kids aged 0-5 in the loop about what’s on in Skipton, and we’ve ended up a year down the line part of a whole MooBaa community that has developed beyond our direct involvement and which it’s a HUGE pleasure to be part of.

We’ve stayed true to what we set out to do. We still run as not for profit, ploughing any sponsored ad money we have taken back into posters to advertise the site and are proud to play a part in supporting local business in Skipton - encouraging people to make the most of what we’ve got on our doorsteps.

It’s been a busy year for us in lots of ways. We set out on maternity leave with three children between us. A fourth has since arrived and one half of MBK is now back at work. Add to that a house move and you’ll appreciate that at times it’s been tough going trying to keep on top of events, refreshing the blog and responding to all the lovely emails we get as quickly as we’d like to!

But we can’t wait to go forward into our second year, making progress on what we’ve done so far. Since we launched in July last year there have been on average about 3,000 hits per month to the site and its blog, with 4,044 unique visitors. Our facebook page has also taken off, with approximately 650 unique users viewing the wall PER WEEK! and a growing community of almost 450 ‘likers’ of the page.

There are so many people we have to thank but at the risk of sounding like we’ve won an oscar and boring you with reams of names, we’ll try to keep it simple … we’ve had so many amazing prizes for competitions and worked with some brilliant companies and local organisations but we simply have to single out the brilliant people at Bababing who had complete faith in our idea right from the acorn stage. They have given us such wonderful things for prizes that we’re going full circle and have some more BabaBing! giveaways to come this week. Their creative and practical designs are sold across the country and they’re based just down the road in Keighley. If you haven’t already then please check out their website.

Our brilliant poster! Designed by Laura Steele

MooBaa has changed a lot in its first year from its first steps as a black and white web page…we love how its grown and in particular how it looks. This is entirely down to the creativity and skill of Skipton-based graphic designer Laura Steele (laurasteeledesigns@gmail.com). She listened to what we wanted and interpreted it with flare. We love her work. So, if you need anything designing we’d recommend her time and again!

We also want to sincerely thank each and every person who’s emailed with tips, comments or facebooked about events – without this sharing of knowledge the site just wouldn’t work so we thank you for your time and for making sure MooBaaKids is chock full of the sort of really important stuff people want to know about.

There isn’t much more to say apart from happy birthday(!), and we hope that if you have time as a little gift to us you might take a minute to think whether any of your friends or family who don’t already, might like to hear about us and pass on the site details (www.moobaakids.co.uk) and the facebook page. The more the merrier into our second year!

Kate and Angela
x

A gingerbread man for a special man…happy fathers’ day!

This year we’ve glittered, glued, splashed, painted and sprinkled our way happily through Friday mornings at the Messy Play and Baking sessions at Wharfedale Babies.

The sessions are always different but always, always fun! Our little one (aged two and a half but young babies up and children up to the age of 3 all enjoy it!) has had a brilliant time doing everything from mixing bowls of custard to messing about in shaving foam and mashed potato as well as throwing paint bombs at a huge canvas outside and all sorts in between. But the highlight for us has always been the sessions decorating freshly-baked buns and biscuits…

Messy Play Sand Pit

The nursery has an excellent cook in the delightful form of Janet whose kitchen is within the nursery room itself (though safely separate) so that the children can see her preparing their delicious nutritionally balanced food…the tempting wafts of the baking straight from the oven is reason enough alone to come along to the Messy Play sessions! She is very much involved with the children, explaining what she’s cooking for them and always there with a smile when they go over to wash their hands at the little sinks near the kitchen.

So legendary have her biscuits and buns become among the parents at the stay and play sessions that we asked her to share one of her recipes with MooBaaKids in time for baking up a Father’s Day gift. So for the main man in your little ones’ lives read on for Janet’s Gingerbread Recipe…perfect for gingerbread men, stars, hearts…what ever shapes you’ve got!

Janet’s Gingerbread Men – perfect for father’s day! (makes 10-16)

300g self raising flour
Pinch of salt
3 teaspoons of ground ginger
100g caster sugar
50g margarine
3 tablespoons golden syrup
4 tablespoons milkTo decorate: icing, cherries, currants, sprinkles, smarties…there’s no limit!

Method:
Oven – 160 degrees c
Grease 2 baking trays
Place flour, salt and ginger in a bowl
Warm the magarine until melted with the sugar and syrup. Add to the dry ingredients, add milk and mix well.
Leave to cool for 10 mins.

Then for the fun part with your little helpers…roll out and cut into shapes, the thicker they roll the softer the biscuits will be in the middle.
Cook for 10-15 minutes or until brown.
Cool on a wire tray and decorate with icing, sprinkles! 

Wharfedale Messy Play

The nursery is also having an *OPEN DAY* this Saturday between 10am and 4pm and all are welcome to come along, see the facilities and have a chat with the staff. If you can’t make that then each week the messy play sessions run from 9.30am- 11am at the nursery in the gorgeous setting of Barden, just over the road from Barden Tower. The children are encouraged to get involved with the activities but are welcome to explore their surroundings as well, playing with the various nursery toys and facilities. The cost of £2.50 includes a fresh fruit snack and drink and a welcome tea or coffee for the grown ups. After the messy play, there’s also usually a bit of time for the children to play outside with their friends and listen out for bird calls in the wood…or feed the friendly ducks who often pop over for some bread. It’s a great way to come and hear more about the Montessori methods or just to meet new friends in a warm stimulating environment for your little one. For more information either visit the website or call Emma on 01756 720 333.

For more ideas on what to get up to on Fathers’ Day visit the MooBaaKids events page for ideas.

Enjoy! x

Loverly jubilee…crowns at the ready - Skipton gets ready to celebrate!

As bunting springs up across the town and the finishing touches are put to parties, jubilee fever is in full flow. It’s not an exhaustive list but we’ve got a run down of just a few of the things lined up over the bank holiday weekend to keep your little prince and princesses entertained…


It wouldn’t be any kind of jubilee without a street party and alongside the village dos planned in the area, there’ll be a fabulous celebration planned on Skipton High Street. From 10am till 10pm there’ll be live entertainment and family fun. If you’re looking for something to bake with the kids to take along to your nearest celebration then we love these Queen of Hearts tarts.

Queen of Hearts Tarts!

If you want to get out in the fresh air and celebrate then the jubilee treasure hunt at Bolton Abbey looks like a right royal treat. You’re invited to test your knowledge of British kings and queens as you take a walk in the beautiful Bolton Abbey countryside, looking for the queen’s missing crowns. Park at Bolton Abbey Village Car Park to follow the clues which begin as soon as you leave the car!

There’s also the Uptown Skipton Jubilee Treasure Hunt on June 2nd and 3rd. Find the hidden royals in 30 shops and businesses. There’s a treat for everyone who completes, plus a prize for the first correct entry pulled from the hat. You can pick up an entry form at any of the shops at High Corn Mill on Chapel Hill between 9am and 4pm.

Malham Safari

For more outdoor fun you could try the Malham Safari – this year with a jubilee theme. From 10am each day there will be crowns to look for around the village as well as the ‘safari train’ and royal barge ‘Gloriana’. They’ve got morris dancing, coconut shy, stream dipping, an archery and rifle range planned too as well as duck races every day!

Skipton Castle, with its royalist past, will be hosting a recreation of a medieval campsite in its grounds from 2nd to 4th June. The garrison will demonstrate their arms and armour as they bring the castle to life! 10am - 6pm (Sunday 12 noon - 6pm) The standard entrance fee applies with no extra charge.

Settle Play Barn is holding a teddy bears picnic on Sunday 3rd June 2-4pm with lots of fun for everyone! And if you fancy a break from queens and crowns, take a trip out with the king of the tracks – Thomas the tank engine himself at the Bolton Abbey Steam Railway (2-5th June) or learn all about tractors at a special event at Thornton Hall Country Park 34rd-4th June.

Enjoy!

SELFA celebrates years of fantastic work!

When I was a little girl, there was nothing I liked more than baking with my granny; she was a great cook and taught me to make many of the treats I like to bake with my own children.

I remember on one occasion we were going to bake scones (my Granny was born in Belfast 1913, and she never used to bother much with weighing and measuring ingredients), she made a hole in the middle of the flour and told me to put in ‘just enough buttermilk to fill the hole’. So I poured…. and poured…. and poured some more – as most 6 year-olds would! When she saw what I’d done, she didn’t get cross. She just thought for a moment and said “oh well, we’ll just have to make pancakes instead”

I suppose that’s the attitude we like to think we have at SELFA. We have been established for 5 years now, and during that time we’ve had many occasions when we’ve had to deal with situations we weren’t expecting and work out a solution on the spot!

SELFA is a children’s charity based at Christ Church School, (opposite Tesco in Skipton). We work with schools and professionals working with families to provide out-of-school and holiday activities across the area, with a particular focus on services for vulnerable, disadvantaged and disabled children.

I was initially employed as the Extended Schools Co-ordinator for Skipton, but when the Local Authority made the decision that funding for all the posts across the county would end in March 2011, we decided to go it alone!

Suddenly I had a ‘scones to pancakes’ moment, but 2 years on and SELFA is still here; and going from strength to strength!

What we deliver today is very different from what we did two years ago, never mind 5 years ago, but we have stuck firm to our principles and always keep the children we support and their families at the centre of everything we do.

We run a popular holiday club for 4-11 year olds. Any child can attend, from any school in the area and we offer flexible sessions from 8am until 6pm for parents who need childcare while they are at work or just a short break for both parents and children. There is a cost for holiday club and bursaries are available for families who need it.

Karen is our lively and enthusiastic Play Leader, she works for SELFA all year round and runs the holiday club, she has lots of great ideas and she has a team of Play Workers who provide a high level of care whilst ensuring everyone has fun! My own daughter goes to holiday club and she loves it, that’s the best endorsement that I could give the club.

The other main area of our work is providing free holiday workshops for children and young people. These always book up really quickly and are open to everyone, including children who are disabled. We usually run these activities on a Wednesday during school holidays; however we hope to expand this provision in the future as they always book up really quickly! Recently we have held Arts & Crafts workshops, Circus Skills, Dance & Drama and Samba & Percussion to name but a few.

Then there are the ‘Special Projects’ that we co-ordinate through SELFA, which tend to be one-off after-school or holiday projects. Over the last year this has included ‘Skipton: The Musical’ a joint project with Skipton Camerata for Year 6 children and we have plans for a film making workshop at Aireville over the summer holidays.

We also offer volunteering opportunities for ‘Skipton Holiday Helpers’ at our clubs and workshops and we are always keen to find out what parents want through feedback, and find how we can improve the service we provide to local children and their families.

Anyone who wants to contact us or find out more can do so by the links on our website: www.selfa.org.uk

By the way – the pancakes turned out just fine, they nearly always do!


Thanks to Emma Pears, Co-ordinator of local Children’s Charity; SELFA (Skipton Extended Learning For All) for writing this fantastic guest blog for MooBaaKids!

We LOVE Hesketh Farm Park!

Hesketh Lamb

As far as ringing endorsements go, we can’t chime loudly enough about Hesketh Farm Park, near Bolton Abbey. Both halves of MooBaaKids and our families headed there on separate days out recently and agreed that it definitely warranted a bit of a tribute without further ado.

We’ve both been before with our kids and were literally counting down the days till this delightful farm re-opened for the season and could enchant (and wear out!) our enthusiastic little ones again. Every aspect of this picturesque hands-on day out has been really well thought through with something to captivate short attention spans at every turn and keep little visitors happily bouncing from one thing to the next.

The piglets

From doe-eyed calves to feed, to the hairy pigs who love a scratch with the brushes provided, Hesketh has it all! Our little girl was smitten with a Limousin calf called Lottie and fascinated by the tiny piglets. Alongside the calves and pigs, there are sheep with lambs and smaller animals to pet and feed.

Grooming the gorgeous Guineas!

The cheeping chicks had even the dads there cooing and the children couldn’t contain their delight at the guinea pigs to stroke and the bunnies to watch skitting about. The giant African tortoises Samson and Delilah were also a big hit and we were transfixed by them happily munching on a banana!

Samson or Delilah?

Once you leave the animals behind inside, there’s still indoor fun to come with slides, a straw bale maze, sand pit and toy tractors to ride. A welcome pit stop for the grown-ups too. We won’t lie – among our collective highlights of the day were the cappuccino, lemon cake, ginger biscuits and caramel short-bread!

Petting the chicks

We were both lucky with the weather on our visits so headed outside to see more of the animals – including chickens, goats, sheep – our daughter’s favourite was feeding carrots to the woolly donkeys who couldn’t wait to snaffle them up! She also loved the swings, slides and tyres in the play area.

Only minutes old!

Other highlights included seeing a newborn lamb stand up for the first time on wobbly legs, and the ride on the tractor/trailer with farmer Chris (it’’s an extra £1 per person in addition to the entrance fee but is well worth every penny in our toddlers’ opinions!) Our little one’s also loved the pedal tractors outside as well as looking for eggs in the hen houses.

Checking out the chickens

We hope we’ve described a bit of the magic for you – it really is a day of smiles and wonderment from start to finish. We can’t recommend it or the friendly helpful staff there highly enough. Whether it’s your first visit or a return trip, Hesketh is a friendly captivating whirl of farm family fun! x


For more information including opening times and admission prices visit www.heskethfarmpark.co.uk

Beat the blues, with local bluebells!

If there’s a more beautiful sight than a carpet of bluebells in the woods, then we can’t think of it at the moment! Spring is officially here, so to put the winter blues well and truly behind you, why not take the little ones for a stroll in a couple of weeks or so round the best local bluebell spots. There are loads to choose from (click here for a searchable database) but we’ve just picked a couple here to get you started…

We know we’re in danger of being Bolton Abbey bores, but we just LOVE the place and with a tearoom and gift shop called Dusty Bluebells, it’s no surprise that the woods on the estate are famed for their spectacular bluebell displays usually from late April (there were some already starting to come out when we went for the egg trail thanks to the early sunshine!) until late May. The woodlands are amazing at the best of times, but become really magical with all the bluebells and the colour-coded nature trails suit all ages and abilities – the green trail is great for prams and pushchairs and follows the west bank of the River Wharfe from the recently refurbished Cavendish Pavilion to the Strid.

For those not reliant on pushchairs, there’s a fab two and a half mile walk round Middleton Woods in Ilkley. Ideal for little legs or babies in carriers, the bluebells here are really spectacular too! The details in the Telegraph & Argus link above are great and it’s well worth a trip (with maybe a little treat at the family-friendly Betty’s afterwards?)

Before you set off, don’t forget to download the Woodland Trust’s Nature Detectives FREE activity sheets , crammed with tips on how to distinguish the native English bluebell (true blue!) from the Spanish invaders and other fun facts and activities.

Enjoy!
x

Happy Easter with love from MooBaaKids!

After Christmas and birthdays, Easter has to be the most egg-cellent (sorry, I just can’t help it!) time of the year for toddlers. There are so many egg-citing events on too this year, with an Easter Egg Trail at Bolton Abbey, more Easter Egg Trails plus crafty activities at Thorpe Perrow and East Riddlesden Hall and a full crafty Easter weekend at Harewood House. If your little ones are fans of little animals, you can feed the Easter lambs at Malham Tarn, visit the new lambs and other animals at Hesketh Farm Park or try out Thornton Hall Farm’s Great Easter Fun Day, which promises much fun by combining baby animals with family shows, circus workshops and a free Easter egg for every child. 

Sheep Egg featured on
familyfun.go.com

To continue the eggy animal theme at home you can get cracking (that’s the last one I promise) creating your own farmyard of eggy animals. I love these Sheep Egg, Egg Bunny, Pig Egg and Purple Cow Egg ideas.


If that seems too fiddly for tiny fingers, there’s always a good old spot of hard-boiled egg painting. You can even start off with coloured eggs by dying them first by adding food colouring to the boiling water. For smaller toddlers putting the eggs back in the box helps them to hold the eggs still to paint them, they will have just as much fun painting the box itself aswell!

Coloured Eggs
featured on familycircle.com

Once the paint has been well and truly dawbed on the eggs and has dried off, you can’t beat a traditional egg hunt. If you don’t have a garden the kids can still do their hunting, just in the house instead. Remember to place the eggs well within a small person’s eyeline – toddlers like to look at the floor when searching and so eggs perched even a tiny bit higher than their line of sight tend to remain unseen forever!


The beauty of toddlers means that you don’t need to buy a basket to collect the eggs; my little ones much prefer to use their doll’s prams and their mini plastic shopping trolley for the job. Once the eggs have all been collected, they can try running around with an egg and spoon as future practice for primary school egg and spoon races! Large plastic cooking spoons tend to work best for this job as there’s more room for the egg to roll around before it inevitably wobbles off.

Paper Plate Easter Hat
featured on alphamom.com

If you would prefer to have an egg hunt that is easy to re-use, (and that doesn’t go rotten!), why not use up some scrap paper to paint as many eggs as you need, and decorate them together with your toddler. You can then cut them out and stick them to card to make them sturdy (or laminate them if you want to use them outside too) and get hiding! They’ll fit easily into a large envelope for storage, ready for hiding around the house any time you want to get those little legs running around on a rainy day. If your toddler is young enough, they won’t notice you stealing the pictures back out of their basket and re-hiding them whilst they are still searching to make the game last longer!


If you don’t have any straw hats lying around your house, then making an Easter crown is a great quick and free (and unisex!) alternative to Easter bonnet decorating, with the added bonus of giving you the ability to make it the right size for your toddler’s little head. Cut a zig-zag that will make the top of the crown down one length of a sheet of card or paper, decorate one side of the card with your toddler, fit it to his or her head decorated side outwards and staple the ends together where appropriate (making sure to remove the crown from your little ones head before stapling of course!). Believe it or not, paper plates also make fantastic instant hats or crowns that you can fit to the smallest of heads; click here for some great inspirational ideas.

Handprint Sheep Card
featured on craftsbyamanda.com

Everyone loves a home-made card from a toddler, and Easter is a great opportunity to bring a smile to someone’s face with a card made with love. These egg-shaped cards are perfect for toddlers to decorate and even the youngest toddlers can make their mark with cards like these finger and footprint and handprint ideas.


Making Easter treats at home can be as easy as a chocolate cornflake (or shredded wheat for a more authentic look) cake ‘nest’ topped with mini eggs like these, or as intricate as these lovely sheep and bunny lollypops. If you would prefer to make healthy treat, these carrot patches look great fun.


Whatever you choose to do this Easter, I hope you have a fantastic time doing it!


Happy Easter! x