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I love being outdoors with the children.

I love seeing them run through the woodlands and fields by where we live.

I love hearing them chasing squirrels and rabbits.

But .....

I don't love the rain.

On rainy days, I love nothing better than snuggling up on the sofa and watching a good movie or playing games .... inside! My eldest daughter is very much like me, however the little one has other ideas. She was so excited to see the rain today and couldn't wait to get her wellies on and get outside.

Then we had our own water works when she ran out of puddles to play in!!

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I have a lasting memory from my childhood, when the Simpsons was new on the televsion and Bart and Lisa kept chanting "can you take us to Mount Splashmore, can you take us to Mount Splashmore, can you take us to Mount Splashmore" to Homer until he eventually caved in and agreed to take them! Fast forward 20 years (or so) and whilst the Simpsons are as funny as ever, the character that rules in our house is Peppa Pig, so where do my girls want to go ......

Peppa Pig World

Now Peppa Pig appears to have become an icon to the toddlers of the world, coming out with jems such as:

Peppa: We're trying to run away from our shadows.

Suzy Sheep: You can't run away from your shadow. You need a scooter.

And this is without the pure genius that is Daddy Pig;

Daddy Pig: [when reading something he doesn't understand] Hmmm... It's no good. It's nonsense.

What isn't nonesense however is the girls desire to go to Paultons Park and experience Peppa Pig World for themselves, unfortunately for me it isn't a 5 minute drive away, so we would need to stay overnight. Thankfully after scouring the internet, there are some great deals to be had, the best one I found was at:

Holiday Inn Southampton

As a family of four, we always go in search of the best deal and this one includes:

• One day entry to Peppa Pig World in Paulton's Park
• Overnight Stay in one of their Family Rooms
• Award Winning English Breakfast

You can also upgrade this package to add some more extras like Peppa Pig bedding for the children, a hot chocolate before bedtime and a DVD player in your room.

The only problem now is when my girls start to chant "are we nearly there yet?"

This is a collaborative post with Peppa Pig World and Holiday Inn but the excited two year old is all our own!

There is no escaping our love of adventure and with the Man on the Pad being of Scottish descent, we are delighted to host this collaborative post on what is great to do with your children in Edinburgh.

Edinburgh is a beautiful and fascinating city full of history and mystery, but no matter where you go, if you travel with kids you need find a way to keep them entertained and interested the whole time. It's also important to decide where you're going to sleep and to book beforehand, because, believe us, not doing so will cause you a lot of unnecessary stress immediately on your arrival to the destination. There are many booking sites offering a wide range of accommodations in Edinburgh and all over the world. Venere.com is a good example if you’re planning to visit Scotland's capital with your family, because you can also see how kid-friendly the lodging is.

So, and now just read on to know the best things to do with your kids in Edinburgh.

The first place we are going to recommend dominates the skyline of the city and will surely intrigue your kids. The Castle of Edinburgh is majestic and worth the visit. Enter through its gate to visit the crown room where the Stone of Destiny is kept, discover the Prison of War to see how prisoners lived in the 18^th century or ask a guide to tell your kids about the history and stories of the castle. They will be awe-struck... and you will, too!

If, like ours, your kids love animals, you should pay a visit to the Edinburgh zoo where you can meet penguins, lions, leopards, koalas and colourful fishes, but also have the chance to see a couple of giant pandas, called Tian Tian and Yang Guang, the only two living in the UK. Otherwise you can go to the Botanical Garden and look for squirrels! You can buy sunflower seeds at the shop at the entrance of the park and actually be able to feed the squirrels from your hands.

Bring your kids to the Museum of Childhood and show them what it was like to be a child in different eras and what were the main hobbies and pastimes of their grandparents. The admission to the museum is free and you’ll get to visit 5 floors full of artifacts, dolls, teddy bears, pedal cars and stamps. No wonder you’ll feel like a kid again!

There’s so much to see in Edinburgh, but hey, don’t forget to eat! Bring your children to Zanzero, in Stockbridge, a restaurant that serve delicious food for the family and that allow children to cook and eat their own pizza for some extra fun or choose La Favourita, where a funny clown plays tricks and some magic every Sunday between 1 and 5 pm while you relax eating the dish of the day!

My youngest daughter LOVES Panda's so Edinburgh Zoo is definately on our "To Do" List and this is without the obligatory family visiting .... I suspect on our next visit to Scotland, it may need to be longer than a weekend trip!

Photo credit :Edinburgh, Scotland by Francisco Diez (CC BY 2.0)

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A few weeks ago I joined in with the Country Kids linky for the very first time but since then, I have realised how much we are outside and how I have so many opportunities to capture those moments. The glorious sunshine today was one of those moments.

Today we gazed through the farmers field and once again asked why the chickens had been put in the cage. Unfortunately Mr Fox has the answers to that one!

So we went in search of other adventures, like blowing fairies into the wind.

And then chasing them through the bluebells.

Do you remember chasing fairies as a child?

I am also linking up with Actually Mummy's Expressions Linky because I love the expression on my youngest daughters face in the second image.