Friday, December 23, 2016

Twelve days of Christmas children's trail at Mottisfont



Where is the partridge??? Higher . . 

onward to the house, which was originally a priory.

No photo of the two turtle doves, but below are three French hens - you can tell that they are French because they are made from Le Monde, le Figaro and l'Équipe.
Where's the next one?

We could hear the beat of drums and had to investigate - at this point any idea of following the numbers was abandoned. Hazel was unimpressed and took me for a quiet walk among the fallen sycamore and oak leaves. The huge sycamore leaf I found was dismissed as "not as big as my oak leaf".  This legendary object seems to have been hidden and can only be seen by Hazel!

We followed the trail into the house . . .

A cake to conjure with? 
One of the costumes for "nine ladies dancing" - Carabosse, the wicked fairy from Sleeping Beauty.
Outside once more and we find a mosaic angel, designed by Maud Russell's lover, Boris Anrep.
Plenty of space to run around.
Ah, eight maids a milking . . 
and a real swan
but we need to find six geese a-laying. Luckily they lay bouncy rubber eggs that we can throw into their nest baskets . . .

and finally, we find the seven swans a-swimming.

A full afternoon, on a fine day, and not cold either.