Family choice

My family has started playing a game we like to call Ideas In The Pot. This involves everyone writing down - or drawing - suggestions for fun things to do. We use our colourful felt-tip pens, and sometimes put the list into an actual pot to help us reach a finite amount of options. As we've played this game a few times now, we have a shorter version whereby we simply take turns to tell each other our ideas and just act out throwing them into an imaginary pot. Whichever way we play it, it's proving to be an inclusive and democratic way of planning family time. Be it for an ordinary Saturday or a special holiday - it ensures everyone's choices are taken into consideration.

We played this game just before going on holiday to Wales last week. Here are some of the fun ideas that went in the pot:

Go rock-pooling

Find a secret garden

Have a BBQ on the beach

Make pancakes

Visit a lighthouse

Cross a stream by stepping stones

Try body-boarding

Watch A Room With A View

Go on a cliff walk

Eat chocolate chip Weetabix Minis (chocolate breakfasts are a treat we reserve for holidays)

Go sand-sledging

Explore a ruined castle

Watch Star Wars (Episode IV - A New Hope, obviously)

We all chose ideas with prior knowledge of the location - this being our fourth family holiday in the same place - and I'm pleased to say we got to do most of them.

Of course we found plenty of other fun things to do along the way - some of which will doubtless be chosen for the pot deliberately in the future.

Make a new best friend

Meet some horses

Make potions on the beach

Have a Cowboy Dinner - bangers, beans 'n' bread - as the sun goes down

Paint pebbles on the beach

Listen to lots of Billie Holiday

Make a sand and lolly-stick toy car tunnel

Make a perfect Gin & Tonic

Watch a cricket match in the evening sun

Follow a walk using an OS map

Watch Julie and Julia

Pose Action Man climbing up a stone wall rock-face

So here's to Ideas In The Pot - and holidays of course; I'm already looking forward to our next one.

Now he is Six

Preparations for our son's sixth birthday party began in earnest two days ago, but planning began way back in January with Buddy's Big Idea.

We had a meeting where we put all his party ideas down on paper. We were so impressed by his vision and enthusiasm that we decided to say yes to as many of his suggestions as we could - especially those which might be realised with little or no expenditure.

And so a couple of days ago we decorated our home with colourful paper, cheap sheeting fabric and whatever else we could find around the house to create a world for the guests at...

Buddy's Birthday Explorer Party.

The living room became the jungle with a cave under the table, and in this cave was a sleeping bear and a treasure box with lights (a very important detail, it had to have lights).

The hall was transformed into the savannah, the master bedroom a lions' den and the children's room became a mountain peak. Buddy and Daisy made the signs, including one for the loo.

When everyone arrived for the party (10 children in all) they each received a map and we began exploring.

First we followed a spider's web from the jungle up to the lions' den. Here we found a parcel which we had to pass around and unwrap layer by layer to get the next clue and to recover the lost jewels (actually marbles).

Our next clue led us to the mountain peak where each explorer had to hide one of the jewels in a vehicle they created from Lego. This kept them all busy and calm for at least twenty minutes.

The next clue set them off on safari; pictures of wild animals had been sticky-tacked all over the walls of the house. Nearly all the animals were found and collected - eventually.

Next we were back in the jungle with some loud music. Stickers were given out for explorers who gave us their best dance moves and for those who could keep as still as a statue when the music stopped. This wild game got us really close to the cave and to the treasure.

Then the birthday boy and Arnie (who had collected the most stickers) were chosen to go into the cave and turn on those lights...

Shhh...

Don't wake the bear

Yes, there's a treasure box in there!

Much scrabbling and screaming later the treasure box was brought out of the cave and dramatically opened. Finally everyone got some well deserved loot; toy snakes and tiaras, puzzles and sweets came tumbling out of the box and disappeared in a flash.

Then our very hungry explorers had lunch; bush tucker sandwiches, crocodiles - cucumber, bamboo - celery sticks, snakes - carrot curls, stick insects - Twiglets, grubs - mini bread-sticks, quick-sand - houmous, tropical fruit - pineapple, coconut and melon, beautiful butterflies - cupcakes, and a giant caterpillar - Buddy's birthday cake (thank you, Sainsbury's).

A game of sleeping lions and more wild dancing signalled the end of the party. Everyone left with with animal stickers, more Twiglets, a pouch of marbles and of course, a slice of caterpillar cake.

Phew.

We are really exhausted of course, but think our efforts to give Buddy a great party have been absolutely worth it. He has a post-party glow about him today and I love that he keeps telling everyone,

'Do you know? I'm now officially Six.'

That sounds like one satisfied customer to me.