Badminton Horse trials with Joules

8 May

Written By Bunty

I think because the boys are so into everything and have this insatiable energy to ‘be doing’ something purposeful almost every waking hour, the idea of new adventures is never far from my mind.

On Friday we were invited to come along to the Badminton Horse Trials with Joules and as soon as I read up on the event I knew it was going to be a hit with my boys. Joules very kindly offered to put us up in a hotel for the night and so we had the oppertunity to have an extra day exploring the beautiful city of Bath on Saturday. (More on that in a post coming soon!)

We prepped the boys for our trip and all the exciting things we would be doing over the two days and so when Friday morning rolled around, (very early morning) we piled into the car at 5am to begin our trip down to Badminton.

I had done a bit of research into the horse trials on the internet but my 'googling' did not prepare me for the magnanimity of the event when we arrived. It had such a cool, festival-like vibe and we were instantly drawn into the spectacle of impressive horses, the dressage displays, the shopping, fairground rides and pop- up eateries...everywhere!

After six hours in the car, the boys were ready to explore and we did just that! We spent a good couple of hours mooching about, looking at the varied stalls and stands, 'testing' the handmade fudge and going on ride after ride!

Next, it was time for our shared picnic hosted by our friends at Joules. For some reason, I imagined a couple of picnic rugs spread out with a few plates of sandwiches to share. (I should know by now Joules don't do anything by halves!) Ourselves and some seriously talented fellow bloggers met up for a walk closer to Badminton house where Joules set up the most beautiful spread. Inside a white picket fence (which housed their caravan decorated in the iconic Joules print) there were picnic benches, rugs and quite the feast laid on!

We ate and mingled and the boys happily played for a couple of hours while Eddy and I chatted away to lots of lovely people. It was actually such a cool experience getting to meet some of the wonderful bloggers that I've been following for ages! Being able to chat with them and really connect on the common ground we share in blogging about our little families was such a highlight for me!

Our trip to Badminton really was such a great family day out and I would go again in a heartbeat! There was just so much to see and I came away knowing for sure that we didn't come close to covering all the ground. But it's always good to leave a place longing to come back, right?

It was especially wonderful to meet these gorgeous ladies: Emily (Blog me beautiful) Lauren, (Hunters & Heels), Caro (The Twinkle Diaries) and Lucy (Capture by Lucy) who have all been hugely inspiring in my blogging journey! (Do follow the links over to their stunning blogs, you'll love them!)

After quite the adventure, we headed back to our beautiful hotel, grabbed some dinner and cosied up with the boys for a quiet night in.

A peaceful, perfect end to the most gorgeous day!

Photos!