Back from a lovely easter holiday in Sandyhills, Dumfries. Did lots of walking, first time since the kids arrived that we've managed to go a decent distance without having to pick at least one of them up and carry them. The five mile walk from Sandyhills to Rockcliffe along the coastal path was wonderful, we didn't bump into another person en route and the scenery was great. We only meant to walk along the beach but ended up going on a bit of a trek.

The kids are very keen on cycling so it looks like more two wheeled outings are in the offing. I'm not quite sure how I've managed to convince myself that a mountain bike is a better investment than getting the exhaust on my car fixed (which is what I really should have done today) maybe it is the urge to get out while the weather is nice. I spoke to a nice shop in Chingford...ebay again...and the new Dawes MTB will be with me by this afternoon (Tuesday). With any luck I've got the frame size right and either myself or Jason will be able to ride it once the saddle has been adjusted. My trusty Claude Butler tourer is still in the garage, needs a bit of dusting off but is stil functional for when the whole family need to get out there and pedal.

I never did get a response from the National Trust on my query about why kids can't ride bikes at Gibside. Still it looks like we'll be riding the real cycle routes from now on. I just hope George can work out getting on and off a bit better. At the moment he throws himself off the bike, and refuses to get on without a push-off. When he is on the bike he pedals like a maniac and zooms off into the distance, rather than turning round and coming back to find us he usually throws himself into the side of the path and waits until we all turn up.

As usual the animals are having a settling in period after a week at the kennels. Fudgee is breaking records for chewiness, tally so far - drill cable (not our drill! the next door neighbours), two seals from the new drainage pipe, one sheet of blue damp proof membrane, and a flexi lead. Quite impressive as we only got back on Friday. The house is littered with official doggy toys but why chew them when you can chew everything in sight.

I'm trying a new method of protecting the kitchen cupboards from late night/early morning chwing - cayenne pepper mixed into a paste with white vinegar. It seems to be doing the trick at the moment but has a bit of a nutty aroma. It does blend in with the wood colour of the kitchen cupboards and hides the existing chew marks quite well. It helps that I have an industrial sized tub of cayenne pepper that I got from Makro years ago, which funnily enough I have hardly touched.

Fudge has also managed to forget that the cage is for sleeping not peeing and has discovered how to pee like a grown up dog - three legs and no wobbling. I guess he has been observing the other dogs at the kennels and I'm now having to watch him as he tried to territory mark the cat litter tray on Saturday. I have offered to re-home him (just yesterday - and I was serious) but Jason seems to have become attached, even if he is a one dog trail of destruction.
He is fast asleep under my chair at the moment, all cute and cuddly.