HESFES 2014

We were lucky enough to get a space at HEFES by staying in a friend's tent for 2 nights this year. The festival was sold out ages ago. I have heard very good things about it but never quite got around to booking and this year I am being very careful about what I spend money on until I know where we are financially. 

So this was the first thing we attended. We arrived late at night and went over to the talent show. This was a girl playing her guitar and singing a song she had written herself. It was very good, the crowd were all clapping along. You can see Miles on his chair with Megan, enjoying the show. 

Caden and me being silly. 

Miles with his sword. He was so happy to be with one of his bestest friends Megan. 

In our tent later on. I have dispensed with air beds after yet another one deflating on me last time I camped. I am now taking all our quilts and sleeping on them instead, with covers as it's so warm, sleeping bags when it's not. No more air beds. The boys loved sleeping in the same tent as their friends. They all had a bed time story together, we started chapter one of Harry Potter again. 

At the playground there with their friends. 

Our camp.  

The kids all bought/shared some giant injection needle water gun things. They were 'cleaning' my car, which is now so filthy from the water residue that it needs an actual wash. They had lots of fun though. It was so hot. 

The workshops there were excellent.  Cambridge University sent a team of students from their science faculty I guess, to run a series of workshops for the kids. There was tessalation, Caden is making the exact same patter of the yellow plates with his red plates. He managed it. Miles then had a really good old play about with them.

Caden examined a life sized model of a human skeleton. This is the leg and foot. All the while the students were talking with the kids about the bones and their names, what they did and how they connected and so on. 

Miles playing with the shapes. 

Caden is looking at his hand and making it sit in the palm of the skeleton hand, to imagine how his bones are sitting in his own hand. 

He looked at a human baby's skull too. We compared the adult and the baby skulls. 

Miles playing with more shapes. 

There was a huge tent with a massive indoor play area for the toddlers. The boys and their friends got a lot of mileage out of this room. 

We were lucky enough to get onto the beekeeping course. It was so brilliant. The boys initially said they were scared and refused to go in. Then I insisted we watch the other children do it. Once they saw it was impossible to be stung and was safe and interesting, they were up for it. 

This is Caden in his bee suit and a family in bee suits photo. 

The beekeeper showed us a live, working hive. He explained what all of the parts of the hive were for. What kinds of bees there are in a colony, the drones, workers, larvae and queen and we identified the queen bee laying eggs at the bottom of the hive. It was fascinating. All the kids really enjoyed it, the grown ups too. 

In the toddler tent later on a chap stood up and began doing some professional story telling. The kids had a great time listening to the stories. 

A Caden on stilts. 

Playing sword battles with friends. 

At the kids disco. There were so many bubbles. 

I think this was Oxford University but this Science Oxford chap was excellent. He made some gunpowder and cause explosive reactions with chemicals. He showed different powders burning different colours. It was pretty cool! 

The boys all attended a music session, they are all singing songs and shaking instruments here. 

I caught Caden with a tired expression here but this is a lego house he had been working on for some time. 

Miles and Arthur had also been making Lego creations together. 

This was a parachute and ball game we played. I have no photos but Caden, Miles and I played Duck, Duck, Goose with children and adults of all ages outside with a parachute. They loved being involved in the group games. 

Caden hiding under the parachute. 

We had to laugh at Miles and Arthur reading their books while Caden pulls them around all over the place. 

More playtime, Caden is having a ride while an older kid pulls him about. 

We played a game of making a cube out of these interlocking foam squares. They did pretty well, with a little help. Here are photos from that little session. 

Caden and Miles are locked inside this cube here. 

Bursting out. 

And friends joining in . 

Of course there was tree climbing, a camping trip isn't complete unless trees are climbed. 

There was a film tent and they were lucky enough to see The Gruffalo's Child and Arrietty (Studio Ghibli - beautiful Japanese Anime films). 

It was like a group kids cinema. They loved it. 

Caden learns how to use a space hopper. It was funny. 

Finally (though there were so many more things we did, this is all I captured) This is a pirate ship made from cardboard junk modelling. They are loading the cannons here and I think Caden has a harpoon. 

We will be making HESFES our major holiday of the year now. They get a lot of educational value and great times from attending things like this.