We are a family of 4 who love to get out and about and explore. I’m Donk, mum and chief adventure planner. There is also ‘Addy/ Goon (he’s the facilitator in all this) and our two kids, 5 & 8 (the participants/ coercees). They can be tedious at times but generally get stuck in to whatever we do without too much complaint and on occasion have even been known to exceed expectations. We have all sorts of adventures, primarily in our amazing homeland, but also further afield, whenever we get the chance. From camping to luxury hotels and everything in between. We love time away in our tent but also enjoy glamping, bunk barns, YHAs, cottage stays, indulgent hotels and more unusual accommodation. As a family we love the outdoors, walking, history, wildlife and nature but also enjoy music, books and a bit of culture so city Breaks, festivals and visiting family attractions are also high on our list of fun things to do. We love to do the touristy stuff, but also to search out the hidden gems and follow the road less travelled.
We also like to eat. What’s more, I am of the firm belief that if you are going to do something then you may as well do it properly. So, to be more accurate, we like to eat “proper” food. I am an unequivocal enthusiast for British seasonal produce and cooking. I have a healthy appetite and, to facilitate this, an obsession for food and cooking.
Inevitably these two things frequently collide; camping trips, holidays and days out more often than not end up becoming food-based pilgrimages. My parenting ethos: stuff their eyes with wonder and their bellies with food. We are always hungry; hungry for adventure and for food. I am also sometimes hangry.
I want my kids to be interested in and excited by the world. You don’t need to travel far, there is plenty to wonder at on our own doorstep and we are lucky to live in such an amazing country. But there is more too – a whole wide world – and I want them to travel, see it, taste it and be inspired by it.
There seems to be a thing these days called “precious family time”. It is precious because we don’t get enough of it in our busy day to day lives, I guess. But I don’t use the term in a pretentious, smug, self satisfied everything is perfect kind of way because, for us at least, that isn’t realistic. I like to Keep it real. Often the #makingmemories part of a trip is that one of the kids puked in the car/ tent/ hotel, contracted a bad case of chicken pox three days before going camping, or tried to jujitsu punch a random child in the Tintagel exhibition, because she rudely told him to shut up. Or that the campsite actually flooded or it took 9 hours to get to Glastonbury because the M5 was closed. Travel with kids is not easy, it’s definitely not relaxing, and there are always incidents. It involves loads of meticulous planning and packing and that is before you even set off. If I am being honest, for me our trips do not even justify the term “holidays”, I do exactly the same thing I do every other day – just somewhere different and often a lot less convenient. However the reality of travelling with kids isn’t as bad as you might expect. Well actually sometimes it is… they whinge, argue and do continually ask “are we nearly there yet?”, they desperately need a poo the second you pass the slip road to the services. But kids are also inexhaustibly curious, full of wonder and very adaptable, so in a way make great travelling companions. Plus we can’t leave them home alone – just yet. And all too soon that’s going to be the reality. So until then I plan on making the most of our time together. So you are welcome to join us on our family adventures. Hopefully we can inspire you to get out there and stuff your eyes with wonder!
About Me
I am The Don-k.
I am a farmer’s daughter, born and brought up on a dairy farm near Clitheroe, in the Ribble Valley, north east Lancashire. I have since traversed the Pennines and now find myself living in enemy territory in West Yorkshire – Otley to be precise, a small market town just north of Leeds – with my partner and our two kids. In a previous incarnation I was an IT consultant for Carlsberg (amongst others), but gave up my salary to be stay at home mum.
I have coeliac disease – also referred to as my “made up illness” – so eat a Gluten Free diet (mainly!), but try not to let it define me or what we do.
I like goldfinches, real ale, proper cider, pork products, offal, slow food, friends, banter and laughing.
I dislike Christmas, whinging, Center Parcs, vanity, self importance, celebrity culture, the nanny state, supermarkets, fast food, hangovers and wet tents.