05/09/2026
πΎπΏ Rosie & Rafa Somerset Adventure πΏπΎ
After a very busy summer, we finally had a lovely little break away in the beautiful Somerset countryside, staying in a gorgeous stone cottage. π‘π³
We were so lucky with the weather, especially those first couple of days of glorious warm sunshine. βοΈ
We had the pleasure of lovey Willow and her family join us for one night. Willow joined Rosie and Rafa for a lovely walk around the sheep π and some crazy swimming pool fun, where she decided that everyone needed saving, whether we actually needed rescuing or not! π¦ππ€£
But Rosie had already managed to create our first Somerset adventure before we'd even properly unpacked the car! π¦π©
As we were unloading, Rosie found some particularly stinky fox poo and decided it would make the perfect perfume. π€’π€£ Needless to say, she needed an emergency shower almost immediately after arriving at the cottage!
A very promising start to the holiday! π
π« The cottage had two resident donkeys, Coco and Billy, who Rosie and Rafa got to meet. When Rafa first saw them, he wasn't quite sure what these enormous creatures were and gave them a good bark. Coco and Billy, however, were completely unimpressed and weren't bothered in the slightest! π
Rafa soon got used to them, just like Rosie had when she first met them. Before long, whenever we went to give Coco and Billy a carrot, Rosie and Rafa would wander over, say a very polite hello... and then completely ignore them. π«π₯πΆ
Quite a transformation from Rafa's initial βWHAT ON EARTH ARE THOSE?!β π€£
π΄ββ οΈ Rosie meets the pirates
We visited Wookey Hole, but unfortunately NO DOGS ALLOWED inside. πΆπ« Thankfully, we could still enjoy some of the surrounding outdoor attractions, including Pirate Island
Rosie spotted the pirates and decided they were obviously there to meet her. She jumped up onto a bench and sat next to one of them, waiting patiently for some attention. Sadly, the pirate completely ignored her. π€£
Not one to give up easily, Rosie moved on to the next pirate and tried speaking to him instead, especially as he looked rather like her bald dad! π But even he ignored her!
Rosie was clearly very disappointed with the pirates' customer service. π΄ββ οΈπ€£
π§ The cheese shop
Of course, you can't visit Cheddar Gorge without visiting the cheese shop! π§
Steve went inside to investigate the cheese situation while I stayed outside with Rosie and Rafa.
Rafa was not impressed at being left behind. He clearly believed that if there was cheese involved, he had every right to be part of the shopping experience! π
He stood patiently outside with me and Rosie, watching the door very carefully as if waiting for Steve to emerge with the biggest piece of cheese in Somerset.
To his credit, he was incredibly well behaved and didn't attempt a cheese shop raid. π€£
Although I'm fairly sure he thought Steve should have been bringing him out a sample as payment for his patience! π§πΆπ
π§ The Ebbor Gorge expedition
What was supposed to be a nice little one-hour circular walk to a lookout point over Ebbor Gorge turned into quite possibly the biggest adventure of the holiday! ππ€£
We set off intending to find the viewpoint, but somehow we just couldn't find it. Rather than admitting defeat, we ended up climbing down into the actual gorge... and suddenly our little walk became a proper expedition! π₯Ύπ³
Rosie and Rafa absolutely loved it. They scrambled over the rocky paths, explored everything and seemed to think this unexpected rocky climb was brilliant fun.
We, on the other hand, were beginning to question our life choices! π
Our planned one-hour circular walk somehow turned into a three-hour trek and rocky climb through the gorge. It was a fantastic adventure for all four of us, but by the time we finally got back, we were absolutely exhausted. π₯±π€£
Definitely not what we'd planned, but probably one of our favourite adventures of the holiday! β€οΈ
ποΈ We also had a couple of trips to the beach, where Rafa was very much in his element. Give that boy some sand and he'll happily roll around in it until he's covered from head to toe! π
Despite all the adventures, Rosie and Rafa were incredibly well behaved whenever we stopped at a pub or cafΓ©. Rosie was so relaxed at one pub that she eventually decided she'd earned herself a little nap and promptly fell asleep on her back! π΄π
Then came The Great Squirrel Incident. πΏοΈ
While Rosie and Rafa were supposedly enjoying some well-earned rest and relaxation at the cottage, a baby squirrel appeared at the patio door.
Their peaceful R&R came to an abrupt end as they both launched themselves towards it, resulting in two very enthusiastic dogs banging into the glass! π€£π€£
Thankfully, no dogs or squirrels were harmed in the incident... although I'm not sure the patio door appreciated the experience! π
And despite all the adventures, the lovely thing was watching Rosie and Rafa become such good friends during the holiday. They even decided that sharing our bed with us was perfectly acceptable. ποΈβ€οΈ
So really, this wasn't just a holiday of rest and relaxation...
It was R&R: Rosie & Rafa! πΎπ
And one of the best things was that, despite buying Rosie and Rafa their very own trackers before we went away, they weren't actually needed! ππ They stayed safely with us throughout the whole adventure.
Although, after the fox poo, squirrel, pirates, donkeys, cheese shop, unexpected three-hour gorge expedition and Rafa's hill-rolling antics, I'm rather glad we had them just in case! π€£
We had such a lovely few days filled with beautiful countryside, sunshine, beaches, walks, good food, new friends, unexpected adventures and plenty of laughs.
A proper Somerset adventure for Rosie and Rafa, with a little Willow thrown in for good measure. β€οΈπΎ
What a holiday! ππΏ