England pt. 4 - the Cotswolds

Visiting the Cotswolds was an absolute dream, and the perfect destination for our family. The fawn-colored Cotswold stone buildings topped with slate roofs, low stone walls around rolling green sheep pastures, winding single-track roads, ancient churches and pubs, and lush greenery and roses and wildflowers combine to make this place the epitome of "charming." It had something for all of us, and we all truly loved it! 

Winchcombe, where our Airbnb was, couldn't have been cuter. The first thing we did (after gratefully throwing a very full load of laundry into our rental's washer) was explore  the tiny town on foot. 

Jumping for joy in front of our Airbnb!

One of my fav pics of the trip

Both waving and smiling!

Getting a croissant at a local bakery while Elise slept ☺️

The next morning we went to Sudley Castle. This was a big draw for us: expansive gardens where the kids could run and play, castle ruins to explore, and even a pheasantry. Matt and I were amazed that the castle had been standing for almost 1,000 years and that one of King Henry VIII's wives was buried there. The kids' favorite part was playing dress up in the gift shop. :) We made a point to find kid-friendly activities throughout the trip, and intentionally scheduled stops at playgrounds etc. between things that were geared more for adults. It really helped everyone have a good time and we ended up going places (like this castle) that we wouldn't have otherwise! 

Lyd made friends with a girl in the rental across from us. 
They had the cutest conversation through their windows. :) 

One of many, many fields - this was right across from our Airbnb. 

Cotswold Farm Park

We didn't know what we were getting into when we shrugged our shoulders and decided to take the kids to the park. The Cotswold Farm Park turned out to be so much fun, and had so much to do, that we stayed all afternoon and came back the next day!

The kids played in the massive playground, jumped on the trampoline bubble tarp, saw dozens of types of farm animals, bottle-fed the sheep and goats, petted and held baby animals, learned to milk a cow, explored a huge field of sunflowers, and Lydia even got to dress up and be in a show about rare breeds of English sheep. :) It turns out this farm is on a BBC show called "Countryfile" and the owner is a national celebrity. We bought his book and we're fans now. :)

Piglets

Watching Strawberry, the famous cow from the TV show, feed her babies

Lyd LOVED this and was begging to go 
back and milk the cow again 😂

Arlington Row in Bibury

We visited the iconic Arlington Row houses and went to a big park nearby. It was a perfect outing :)

Elise was a good sport through all the travel. 
We're all v grateful for stroller naps, cafes that let us fill her bottle with milk (usually for free!),
and lots of great playgrounds!

Moreton-in-Marsh, Burton-on-the-Water, Upper Slaughter and Lower Slaughter

On our last full day in England we visited some small towns around where we stayed. The pictures don't do them justice; they were wonderful and perfect for our family at this stage (places for the kids to play and things Matt and I wanted to do). We went to a farmer's market, a couple cute cafes, Lyd played in the River Windrush that goes through Burton-on-the-Water, shopped, ate more croissants and people watched.  

The trip home

The morning of our trip back home, we woke up in the Cotswolds and felt a little melancholy to be leaving. We drove through early morning mist hanging over sheep pastures as far as the eye could see, back to the airport. It was a long day but  smooth, until we got back to the car in DC. About 20 minutes into our 3-hour drive, all kinds of warning lights went off on the dash and the engine started making funny noises.

Long story short, the engine broke down and we had to be towed 2+ hours back to Midlothian (thank you AAA!!). Matt and the kids took an UberX from the random side-of-the-road spot where we broke down outside of Dulles, while I waited for the tow truck and the long ride to our mechanic's after-hours drop off. When I finally arrived at our house (via another Uber), in the middle of the night, 18 hours after waking up in England, the kids were asleep in their own beds and I was grateful to be home. 

Car trouble aside, our visit to England the best trip we've ever taken. And I don't know how we'll outdo it, so... best trip ever? 🇬🇧❤️