Jeskyns Community Woodland, Cineworld and Whitstable Oyster Festival make up Our Kent Family's first week of summer

Stuck for summer suggestions?

Throughout the school break, Our Kent Family will be sharing some of their adventures, big and small. Here's what their first week held:

One week down, five to go.

Two children intact, some outings had and apart from a bloody nose incident and subsequent bruised face and black eye from a balance bike fall in a park, we've come out (relatively) unscathed.

Just a year ago I had both children home all the time and wouldn't have thought twice about amusing the pair of them day in, day out.

But 365 days later and after one week of having them both in the house I'm feeling the need to mentally high-five our first week - which is mixed with the usual tinge of 'mum-guilt' that I started Monday already on a mental countdown.

They are definitely, at five and three, both more demanding, more opinionated and more passionate (or argumentative?!) about what it is they would like to do and there have been times in the past seven days where I'd readily admit to giving the United Nations a run for its money with a lesson in diplomacy.

But all in all we've had a great first week, and here are some of the things the children have enjoyed for anyone on the lookout for fresh ideas:

One of our most favourite places in Kent for a walk and some fresh air, Jeskyns was taken on by the Forrestry Commission a number of years ago, transformed into a public open space and has been a major asset to north Kent's open spaces.

Gorgeous fields to walk, run and roam in, two adventure playgrounds including one with a sandpit, a cafe and plenty to explore including a field of cows in the centre!

We have taken part in Stick Man, Superworm and Gruffalo trails here during the last year and whenever I look at photographs of us with the wind in our hair (it can be quite blowy on higher ground!) I have to remind myself that we are just a stone's throw from the bustle of the A2 at Gravesend.

You need £1.50 in change for parking but admission is free (trails are an extra £1.50 if you wish to do them) and it's a fab place to let little legs run wild.

Cineworld, Rochester

A family trip to the cinema, as parents will know, is not always an economical outing, especially when you're also never sure whether the toddler in tow is even likely to sit still.

It consequently makes us big fans of kids clubs or children's screenings.

Ordinarily we use the Odeon near Dickens World in Medway, where prices usually start at £2.50 a ticket, but Cineworld in Rochester was showing Disney's Zootropolis this past week so we headed there with friends.

Tickets can be as reasonable as £1.80 with a Cineworld account, making it just £10.80 for two adults and four children. That's an utter steal, especially when you can book and choose your seats in advance.

And while the films are not current releases (all the children have still got their eyes on Finding Dory or The Secret Life of Pets) it's an absolute bargain for a chilled-out rainy morning.

Whitstable Sea Front and Tankerton Slopes

Give us a sunny day with little to do and you can probably find us throwing stones in the sea somewhere between Whitstable seafront and Tankerton Slopes.

It's definitely a so-called 'happy place' for us.

The Slopes usually allows for more straightforward (and free!) on-street parking not to mention space to scooter along the bottom, a nearby fish and chip shop, toilets and a cafe at the top for ice-cream.

We are also big fans of the play area within Whitstable Castle which is only a short walk away and includes slides, some water play, roundabouts and a giant wooden ship to climb through.

This weekend we also splashed out £4 on a crab net and bucket and after breakfast on the beach courtesy of the yacht club, we took to one of the slipway's in Whitstable.

And while Colin (chosen by Oscar) or Oceana (demanded by Liv) was our only crab catch, the children had brilliant fun for an hour and we're getting some (much-needed) practice in before a visit to Dorset later this month.

So we're out the starting blocks with a week full of smiles, sunshine and a good amount of outings.

Including a very grown-up one for me (and women everywhere!) to see the Queen's 90th birthday clothing exhibition Fashioning A Reign inside Buckingham Palace. More on that later. But for a humorous insight into Daddy Day Care, which swung into action with a trip to the Sealife Centre in Brighton (which definitely has more sea life than we were able to catch in Whitstable) click here.