Diary Of A Modern Gran: Fossil Hunting
So it’s the third week of the summer holidays! What am I going to do with my grandchildren while my daughter and son-in-law are at work?
Fossil hunting of course!
I’ve been trying to book one of the fossil hunting trails on our part of the coast for ages. They’re so popular that tickets go like hot cakes but I finally managed to get a slot.
And now the day has arrived!
Rose, aged seven and George, five, didn’t sleep a wink the night before. “It was like Christmas Eve,” my son-in-law tells me when he drops them off. “They are so excited!”
Even better, my eldest son, who is nudging 40, is home for three weeks. So the four of us set off together. The guided trail starts at 9:30am because that’s when the tide is out. Meanwhile, the chatter from the back of the car becomes increasingly excited and louder!
George knows far more about fossils than the rest of us. “I’m going to find a brachiopod,” he declares.
“That’s wonderful,” I say, not wanting to show my ignorance.
When we arrive, the two men leading the walk – one of whom was on television last week! – gave us advice on what to look for. Apparently, the small rocks can hide the most exciting things, so we mustn’t let ourselves get dazzled by the huge boulders.
Although I’d bought a fossil hunting kit, we’re not allowed to use the hammer during the tour for insurance purposes. But we can take our finds to the leaders who will break it up for us. Alternatively, we might just find some fossils (or bits of fossils) loose on the beach amongst the stones.
Then we set off along the beach. “Keep your eyes peeled,” instructed one of our guides.
“Is this something?” asks George holding up what looks to me like a small stone which I wouldn’t look twice at.
“Well done! That’s part of an ammonite!”
George flushes with pleasure.
Meanwhile, my granddaughter’s nose is rather out of joint. “I want to find one too,” she says.
Feverishly she searches through the pebbles along with a rather large crowd of tourists, who are doing the same.
“Don’t worry,” I say. But inside, I can’t help feeling concerned for her. I can always buy her a fossil from one of the local shops but it won’t be the same.
Then, 20 minutes later, she picks up a rock that looks a bit like an open jaw with sparkly bits inside. So we hotfoot it to the guide for a second opinion.
He holds it up. “That,” he says slowly ,”is the most wonderful specimen of a quartz crystal that I have seen for a long time!”
Actually he goes into more detail, giving us a long name which I try to remember. (Where’s a pen when you want one?)
I make a mental note to try and get it checked out when we get back, but the most important thing is that Rose is thrilled.
Then George finds a fully formed ammonite. Now my eldest son and I are feeling rather left out as we haven’t found anything. Hang on. What’s this?
A fossilised piece of wood, believe it or not.
Well I never.
We come home with our spoils, flushed and excited, laying them out on the kitchen table. “Where are we going to keep them all?” asks Rose.
“I’ll find a treasure box,” I say. One of the local charity shops is bound to have something suitable. Then I remember something. I have my own little treasure box upstairs filled with bits and pieces that were important to me as a child. And I’m pretty sure I’ve got a fossil inside…
Yes. The memories are flooding back. My godmother had had a holiday cottage on the Isle of Wight where we used to go every summer. One year, she and I found a fossil on the beach. I hold it now in the palm of my hand.
“May we have it?” clamour my grandchildren.
“One day,” I say. Then I put it back in my box. The childish part of me wants to keep it for a little longer. It brings back memories of sunny days in Bonchurch and walks along the sand and back up through the landslip, with my godmother.
Hopefully, one day, my grandchildren’s children might marvel over Rose’s crystal and George’s ammonites.
“We found them when Gan Gan took us on a fossil hunting trip, they might say…”
Now all I have to do is find some more summer holiday activities which match up to this one! Any suggestions?
Please tell us if you are looking after your grandchildren during the summer holidays and what kind of activities you’re doing with them. You can email us at moderngran@dcthomson.co.uk.
Ask Agony Gran
“I recently had my five-year-old grandson over for a sleepover when his parents went away for the weekend. I noticed that he didn’t clean his teeth very thoroughly. I tried to help him, but he got upset and I didn’t like to make a fuss. Do you have any advice on how to encourage children to clean teeth and also how to do it?” Gwen, Dorset
Jane says:
What a good question. My grandchildren have those flashing toothbrushes with novelty heads. They rather like them. They also have special children’s toothpaste.
One evening by mistake, I gave them adult toothpaste by mistake which they declared was ‘disgusting’!
As for how to clean teeth properly, you’ve got me thinking. However, I found the following useful advice on the NHS website.
If you’ve got a question, do email us at moderngran@dcthomson.co.uk.
The Funny things They Say
“When I spoke to my grandchildren on FaceTime the other day, they were very excited.”
“We’re going on a holy day,” they told me.
“It turned out that they were going on holiday!”
Patricia, Suffolk
Please continue to send us your funnies, everyone! Email us at moderngran@dcthomson.co.uk.
Grandparent Tip
“I’m helping my six-year-old granddaughter to do her summer holiday homework. This involves improving her handwriting. She got upset when I kept correcting her. So I got her to put her hand over mine while I wrote down a word. Then I rubbed it out and encouraged her to write the same word. She could see the imprint on the page which helped. This then gave her the confidence to write it down again without a trace mark to follow. It’s really helped!” Angela, Wales
What a good idea, Angela! Confidence means so much, doesn’t it? Let’s hope you get a gold star when she goes back to school!
Feedback
Clearing Out A Parent’s House
“I was interested to read about your experience about clearing out your father’s house. I had to do the same for my mother’s recently. I decided to choose five special things for each grandchild for when they were older. Then I wrote a little note with it, describing why they were important to their great-grandmother. I hope that they will treasure them when they are older.” Margaret
Brilliant idea. We love it. Thank you.
Granny Day Out
“I loved hearing about your granny-away day! Once a year, I go on a walking trip with a friend of mine who is a grandad. Our friendship is purely platonic but we enjoy each other’s company.” Sally
Sounds perfect!
Where To Take The Grandchildren
With the school holidays in full flight, don’t miss our weekly suggestions on days out and activities for the grandchildren – and please send in your own suggestions.
Thanks to Dan from Gloucestershire for recommending Air Hop Bristol, Patchway Trading Estate, Unit 5 Britannia Rd, Patchway, Bristol BS34 5TA. Tel; 0330 223 3333. Have fun with wall-to-wall trampolines for children and adults, including an under-fives area. Also available for children’s parties.
Would you like to recommend a family day out? Please email us at moderngran@dcthomson.co.uk.
Children’s Book Of The Week
Great reading for little ones!
This week’s selection is Where Have You Been, Little Cat? by Richard Jones. Simon & Shuster, £7.99. For 2-5 years.
Ever wondered what your cat has been up to? Even if you don’t have one, this is a lovely story about cats, children and emotions.
Jane Corry is a journalist and author and also worked in a prison for three years as a writer in residence.
Her new Sunday Times best-seller COMING TO FIND YOU is about Elizabeth who was recruited into Churchill’s Secret Army during WW2 and Nancy, my modern-day heroine whose stepbrother is jailed for a family murder. But is Nancy totally innocent?
On sale in bookshops, supermarkets and online. Available in print, eBook and audio.
