Tudor Tuesday

Having very successfully visited Kentwell on Sunday we decided that we really would like to take part, even if it was just for one day 🙂 Monday was accordingly spent finding costume and doing odds and ends, then on Tuesday we set off at stupid o’clock in order to arrive on the manor in time for breakfast. M wore J’s costume from last year, which was just about passable style-wise and fitted quite well, including the shoes (which were too late a style but nobody worried for just one day) while everybody else wore this year’s clothes. Since Bob wasn’t coming M was able to borrow his blade and accoutrements so that worked well too 🙂
Despite leaving later than planned and hitting surprisingly heavy traffic in places (mostly due to lorries determined to overtake at 3 miles and hour faster than what they were passing) we made it in time for the end of breakfast, which we ate in the courtyard and then fed the fish the leftovers. The cotte felt like home, although A and L in particular were sad not to see the girls they like so much 🙁 We found out that the schoolmaster was looking for new pupils, so I persuaded J that he should go along with M so that they could do something a bit different and we walked along to the house together, where Master Coneybear was willing to take them on (and happy to prattle to M in very fluent French – I mentioned that M should only speak English but it was no use – they were very happy together!) but K hid behind my skirts until we were safely out of the room 🙁 We stayed in the great hall to watch some dancing which all the remaining children loved – I think I need to look into how I can get L and K into the house next year; with only 3 children to make costume for it might be doable to make gentry…
Cotte life was pretty much as it always is, but with no school parties until about midday, since Mini Recs have a different route (better than the summer route imo) and we towards the end of it. There were several of us there and everything was well under control food-wise so lots of chance to chat and play. K and L played Alquerque with carrot slices and stones as counters (and M also proved to be a dab hand when he returned from the schoolroom) while A renewed her acquaintance with young Theo and begged bits of carrot and cabbage from the pottage chopping 🙂
The boys came back from the schoolroom in time for pottage, bearing booklets with an incredible amount of work to show for their 2 hours, and then spent the afternoon playing boardgames between themselves and with random school party children and lurking at the Butts in the hope of getting the chance to loose a few arrows – they did 😀
The day finished quite late and by the time we had cleaned and cleared it was time for tea and beginning to get dark. Tea was excellent as ever (glad K persuaded me to sign in for it!) but we then had to find all our bits and pieces in darkness (having just decided that we would like to do Michaelmas properly next time, I am now thinking we would need to invest in headtorches all round to supplement the lantern we already have) before setting off for home at what felt like an incredibly late hour, but was in fact only a little after 7. By the time we got home I was the only one still awake, even J having succumbed (very unusual) and Bob had lots of tired-child-ferrying to do. It was a lovely day though, and well worth the effort I think 🙂