Pann Mill Open Day

Last September Lily, Ollie and I discovered the lovely Pann Mill in Wycombe. It's a real local treasure - we drive past it almost every time we go to town, it's situated at once of the entrances of the Rye and it is an ongoing restoration project which satisfies my interest in all things historic.

Today they held one of a series of open days. You can visit the working Mill for free, view the wheel and the operations inside, grinding flour (which you can then buy) and peruse a number of stalls they have available for raising money for the restoration project.

We headed down straight after church with our lunch shoved in a bag. I have a random little spot, a tree just outside of the Mill, that I like to sit under. I remember sitting there with Matt the day he first asked me out and since then have stopped for a fair few picnics there. It's a good spot where you can choose to sit in the sun or the shade and soak up the beauty of having such a wide open space in the middle of town.

Our picnic was simple. It's another tight month. So tight that I'm beginning to realise that unless I give up work, this will be the norm for some time. I'm focusing on having as much fun as a family without spending any extra cash from our budget. It's tricky, but not impossible - especially when there are activities like this on our doorstep and I can just raid the cupboard for sandwiches, crisps, fruit and some more of these raspberry buns.

For most of the year the Mill is a pretty secluded spot but today it came alive with bustling stalls and the rumbling of the wheel as it got to work on the flour. Lily was interested in it's workings and even ventured up to the loft to watch the mill stones grinding the wheat.

They also had some craft activities which were also free (although we could, and did make a contribution for craft supplies). Lily made a necklace from a wooden disc and then bought a tiny beaded bracelet for 5p. We'll ignore the fact that she broke it when she got home...

It was a fab way to spend an hour or so at lunch. After finishing up we headed to the play park for a bit and then came home, just in time for the children to refuse to nap. Oh joy.

The next Pann Mill open day is in July and I would highly recommend it. You can find out more on their website www.pannmill.org.uk