What to do this Easter holidays...

There are numerous activities and events to get involved with in and around Milton Keynes this Easter holidays. As the weather starts to brighten up and we can begin to venture outside, the numerous canal, wood and park walks are always something free and fun to do. For something a little more organised, we've collected a selection of events that are going on this Easter to give you a few ideas of what you could do and where...

Frosts Garden Centre, Woburn Sands

Saturday 28th March-Saturday 4th April, anytime from 10am-4pm: There will be a bunny hunt around the centre, as well as some Easter egg fun- children will be able to decorate their own chocolate Easter egg with some sweets, and will finish their activities with an activity sheet and a glass of squash. The activity lasts around 25 minutes and children must be accompanied by an adult. Tickets cost £5.99 per child.

The National Museum of Computing

Wednesday 1st- Sunday 12th April, from 12 noon-5pm: Digital fun and games for all the family, including: LEGO robots, mine craft, codeability- introducing youngsters to coding, FUZEliers to help control robots and many retro computer games.

Bletchley Park

Monday 30th March- Sunday 5th April and 7th-12th April from 9am-5pm: Fun activities over the Easter holidays for the whole family. See if you've got what it takes to be a Bletchley Park Codebreaker. Different activities each day, including craft and spy workshops, children's guided tours, trails, quizzes and more.

Intu Milton Keynes

Tuesday 31st March: For those of you with young children, you'll probably be well aware of the CBeebies' animated series 'Kate & Mim-Mim'. Mim-Mim will be paying children a visit this Easter at intu Milton Keynes. Children will have the chance to meet their favourite bunny, learn some bunny-hop movies and take part in some fun games, as well as getting a bunny hug with Mim-Mim himself. Mim-Mim will be making appearances at 11am, 12pm, 1pm, 2pm and 3pm, lasting for 30 minutes each time. Children can pick up their very own CBeebies activity booklet. Tickets for the meet and greet are  FREE and available by clicking here, additional tickets will be available on the day on a first come, first served basis.

Saturday 4th & Thursday 9th April : Have your face painted for free at intu Milton Keynes.

Tuesday 7th April: Come and have a go at some circus skills, and learn how to plate spin and juggle!

Friday 10th & Saturday 11th April: Pit stop challenge with Formula Fast Karting. Change the wheels in the fastest time to win a prize.

Newport Pagnell:

Good Friday, 3rd April: Come and join the Churches Together Newport Pagnell on a procession down the high street, with drama, music and readings. Meet outside the Parish Church and ending at Market Hill.

Gulliver's land 

Sunday 5th & Monday 6th April: This Easter there are two special days of Easter entertainment. Enjoy the Easter egg hunt, the big bunny bounce, meet the Easter bunny and see the Easter bunny parade- if you wear an Easter bonnet you'll get a £1 voucher to spend within the park.

MK Gallery

There will be a number of sessions throughout the Easter holidays, including 'start the art' sessions on Tuesdays from 11am-12noon, and Saturday mini makers sessions from 1-2pm and 2-3pm. These artist-led creative sessions are free, but places are limited and can be booked on the gallery website. 

Milton Keynes Council

Thursday 2nd April, 10.30am-12 noon and 2-3.30pm: Kids' recycling factory tour. A fun and free event where children aged between 7 and 14 can join the council's recycling team for a fun-filled morning at the factory to learn about recycling, tour the factory and make their own recycled item to take home. Children must be accompanied by an adult. Booking essential, click here to book a place. 

Woodland Activities for the kids this summer!

Milton Keynes Play Association are running 2 weeks of woodland adventure activities over the summer holidays. Kicking off this Monday (4th August) and finishing on the 15th, it's set to be great fun for children from 6 years and over. Located in the semi-ancient natural wood near Olney, Hollington Wood will be home to the activities for the kids.

Activities include scramble nets, rope bridges, woodland skills, nature play, swings, dens and of course, meeting the resident pigs! Children will have a great time learning new things about the woodland and having fun playing on the swings and nets. The sessions run from 8.45am to 5.30pm, and costs just £25 per child and includes a snack, children need to bring their own packed lunch.

For more information visit the website or email: pal@mkpa.co.uk

It's camping month!

June is technically the start of the summer, and so it's not quite so surprising that it's the official month of camping, whether or not the weather will agree with this is another matter! One of the joys of camping (oh there are many), are that once you've got the equipment, it's fairly easy to take off on a relatively last-minute trip. Weather aside, the benefits of camping are great (or even glamping if you're not a fan of sleeping on a camping mat, have a look at some of these pictures!) It gives you a chance to spend some time in the great outdoors, away from the stresses of work and away from technology and tv, and gets you spending time with your loved ones in, what is hopefully, a calm and chilled environment. If you've got kids, it's a great opportunity to teach them new things, like roasting marshmallows on a bonfire or how to put up a tent, and if you get some clear nights, it's the perfect place to stargaze and soak up the views you just don't get in a busy town or city. With the school holidays creeping closer, now's the time to book your camping trip (either to avid the kids or to get on holiday with yours!) Take a risk and hope for some nice weather, but know that you'll have a great time regardless of the weather, just don't forget your waterproofs! Happy camping!

Saint Patrick's day

So yesterday was Saint Patrick's day- did you celebrate it?! I always find it a bit bizarre how the day has become such a big thing in the UK, understandably it will be so for the Irish, as Saint Patrick's day is their cultural and religious holiday, but why do so many others seem to celebrate it? Do we really know what the day is about or just want an excuse to drink Guinness?! I'm not too sure but am leaning toward the latter so decided to refresh my memory on what it really is about...

The 17th March is the death date of the the most commonly recognised patron saint of Ireland; Saint Patrick. Back in the 17th century, Saint Patrick's day started as a Christian feast day, celebrating the introduction of Christianity to Ireland, as well as Irish culture and heritage in general. The tradition of drinking alcohol to celebrate began with lifting the lenten ban on alcohol for the day, and with Guinness being the Irish drink of choice it has become something of a tradition. Another tradition for the day is wearing shamrocks and green clothing/accessories.

What did you get up to yesterday? Are you nursing a sore head from consuming one too many drinks in celebrating the day? Did you attend one of the many Saint Patrick's day events or parades?- There were a few here around Milton Keynes, clearly you don't have to be Irish to enjoy the holiday! Whether you celebrated or not, we hope you had a good one!

Top City Breaks

We're on the approach to 'V-day' and whether you want to sweep a loved one off their feet this Valentines weekend, or just want to escape away with friends, we've come up with a selection of weekend city breaks that should do the job. You've just got enough time to get planning, but don't leave it too much longer!

National Escape Day

Today is (apparently) National Escape Day! What does this mean? Well you probably don't take that too literally and run out of your work office screaming: "Escape!escape!" but maybe take it on board as an idea for doing something fun...

You could escape from your normal routine by making a small change, escape from eating the same lunch and go and try something new, escape from your home town for the weekend and get away…you get my drift. I'm not too sure which of these concepts the idea of 'escape day' is meant to encompass, but there we go, take your pick and make it what you want, or just ignore it…both work!

Sarah