Hesfes braindump.

I don’t like sleeping in a tent on a hill. I don’t like sleeping in a tent that leaks (not that it leaked into the sleeping part, but stepping out into a puddle is a bit depressing).

I like being in a field with families where children are part of the family, rather than something to be entertained in a children’s club while the adults do adult things. I like camping – I like having to be outside, it’s far too easy to forget to go outside from a house. I love being with friends, drinking wine, swapping children (only temporarily, although I was so tempted to kidnap one of them if I could have fitted her in the car 😉 ) I surprised myself by enjoying it just as much, though in a different way, when most of my friends decamped, leaving my tent in almost solitary splendour (should have got a pic of that, shouldn’t I). Does make life easier to have more ppl to chase Small though 😉 Big thanks to Paul and Fay for taking both my kids off to wander while I put a tent down (and for the loan of a hot water bottle for Big), and more thanks to Janet for stopping in the rain to help!

I really enjoyed helping a bloke put up his home made geodesic dome tent next to us, and having Big and E come back from the fairground, recognise it as a dome and stop to talk to him. It got even better when I finally recognised him as the guy who carved Big’s stone initial necklace last year, and got him to do one for Small this year. Might have to save up for something a little more substantial at some point 😉

I object to disorganised events, on both the part of the campsite and the event organiser. “Hesfes time” is a cop out when you’ve hiked to a beach with a number of small children, it’s freezing cold, and the activity you are there for is over an hour and a half late starting.

I like Big having the chance to try things that wouldn’t have occurred to me – she really enjoyed copper beating (although boy was my head ringing!) and rag weaving, and she finally got to see a blacksmith, although she was somewhat disappointed that he didn’t shoe any horses there and then. I don’t like her not having the chance to try something she wanted to, that was listed as taking place over four days because they ran out of the stuff after two. Not that they hadn’t brought all that much stuff, apparently they went through 150 kilos of chalk. Can’t help feeling that possibly ppl were not thinking of others there.

I really, strenuously, dislike having someone be grateful when I hand them their equipment back – would you believe that ppl were taking hammers???! I am intrigued as to what the Hesfes fees are spent on, as apparently the ppl doing workshops are not paid for their materials. And we know it isn’t spent on the toilets :-/ I would rather that there were some kind of voucher system rather than a scrum with those willing to push and shove getting there first, or would that be too non alternative? It was my fault that Big didn’t get to do the chalk work, as every time we went past it was packed, and I kept saying that we would go later, then there wasn’t a later. And I really, really hate disappointing my children. 🙁

Would I go again? Yes. Although I kind of wish I had a caravan or maybe just a portaloo – perhaps I’ll invest in a toilet tent for next year. And I’m having waterproof trousers – equipped the kids this year, and not myself, *big* mistake! I think in another year Big will be able to go to workshops without my direct supervision throughout (and we’ll make sure we get the walkie talkies working!) which will mean I won’t need as much help with Small who just doesn’t want to stand still while anyone else is doing anything. He doesn’t get a lot out of the festival bit yet, although he really liked the carousel swings and the playground. Boy, did he like the carousel. Wonder if I could fit a set in the back garden?