SOMERSAULT FESTIVAL - LOADS OF FAMILY FUN

24 Jul SOMERSAULT FESTIVAL – LOADS OF FAMILY FUN

Posted at 08:00h in hopefuladventures, somersault festival by xanthe 1 Comment

This weekend we packed up the car, left behind all the full cardboard boxes from our recent house move & all the busy-ness of late… Just to play, dance and sing in a field… just like I had wished for on my birthday list (#11)… it was super brilliant!

Somersault is a new festival, in the grounds of Castle Hill Estate in Devon… the site was beautiful & we were excited by the line up.

For three days we hung out as a family, lounged on the grass watching people and the various entertainment on offer, listening to music, taking part in activities, and laughing and singing our hearts out. It was the best!

My top ten memories of Somersault –

1 – Cosmo is a magician and musician. He’s a huge fan of Ben Howard, who was head lining and closing the main stage on Sunday. We got tipped off that Ben was staying alongside us in the Boutique camping field… We all hoped there would be a chance Cosmo could meet him.

On the last day, we were hanging outside our tent, when we saw Ben at the coffee truck. Cosmo sneaked back into the tent & prepared the card trick he was going to perform. And then with so much bravery, (I thought I was going to burst with pride) he walked alone to Ben Howard and said “Hey, do you want to see something cool?” And just like that, he baffled Ben with his trick, got his favourite card signed and was completely thrilled! Nice one Ben, for making our boys dream come true.

2 – The colours and the light… Flags and bunting a plenty, brilliant signage and vibrant colours everywhere. The sun was bright and beautiful. I was in heaven. (It did rain once, but soon passed, and it wouldn’t be a British festival without a little rain.)

3 – The Bearded Kitten team performed eccentric lawn games. They had us in stitches daily, with the best commentary/banter with the crowd, encouraging games of musical hay bales, three legged egg ‘n’ spoon races, to jelly wrestling and much more. We loved it.

4 – Boutique camping – the joy of the boutique field is marvellous! A tent is ready pitched for you, there are showers & toilets exclusive for the field. A charging tent and a coffee/tea van each morning was a lovely bonus, plus the guys & girls running the field were so adorable and certainly kept the festival vibe flowing with their sparkles and giggles. A HUGE thanks to Hearthworks for making it possible for us to stay there.

5 – The music… oh the music. One of the main reasons we chose this festival. Plenty of our favourites – Ben Howard, Fink, Half Moon Run, Annie Eve and a few new performers rocking their stuff on the Communion & Jack Wills New Music stage. Singing along with thousands of people is an incredible feeling!

6 – People watching is always fascinating. All dressed up and fully embracing the festival spirit, with feathered hats, covered in glitter, colourful wigs, bountiful sequins, top hats, animal tails, hot pants, tutus, face painting – the list goes on.

The mix of people was interesting too… from families with young children, I even saw a baby that could only have been days old, to groups of young men and women, to older folks in their camping chairs. The blend worked so well, as there was something for everyone…

The wonderful thing I noticed was the collective energy of togetherness. Everyone on a quest to have a good time, be present and connect with those they love and what they love doing. The bonus of no phone signal was no one was on their phones… it was really noticeable and rather fantastic!

7 – Activities… To be honest, we only took part in a tiny amount of what was on offer, we could’ve spent a week there! The boys loved the slack lining & surf board practice. We watched others on the trapeze swings & swimming in the river…

8 – The food & drink. Plenty of choice from pizzas, to Indian & gorgeous burgers, falafels, green juices and the best coffee martini, apparently. We missed out on the long table feasts, but I bet they were incredible. Maybe next time?

9 – Family togetherness. You see, a lot of the time we go away with other families… This is beneficial to us all, adults hang out while the children play. But it often means we don’t see our boys. This weekend we had quality time together, no distractions from life… We danced, laughed and chatted so much as we hung out together.

10 – My head dress… made by the lovely Ellie at Feathered Fantasy… her creations were everywhere at the festival. I added the piece to my hat and even though it’s not something I would wear often, I had such a lovely time wearing it embracing the festival experience.