Maid Millie wakes me up at the ungodly hour of 3.30am – the only sweetener being that she arrived with breakfast: iced chocolate milk and an exotic fruit salad. Today we are off to lovely Kleine Fabriek, the international children's fair

pack a flask of hot chocolate or seasonal pumpkin soup: both are warming, practical and delicious!Protect yourselfFor many parents the biggest source of worry on Guy Fawkes Night is fireworks and sparklers. We have all heard the horror stories of what

for longer than a weekend, take time to explore the winding streets of the Barri Gothic and El Born. They are full of little shops, artist’s studios and tapas bars. Discover Fargas, Barcelona’s most famous chocolate shop on a corner in the Barri Gothic

PraguePrague’s storybook scenes and chocolate-box architecture will delight all ages. Young children enjoy spotting the gargoyles and mythical beasts that have been liberally scattered beneath a skyline of turrets and spires, whilst older children

.old-dairy-farm-centre.co.uk- Amerton Farm Children will adore visiting the animals – deer, owls, chipmunks, foxes, hedgehogs, lambs, even ferrets – who are ‘in hospital’ here at the British Wildlife Rescue Centre. Stowe By Chartley, Stafford ST18 0LA. Tel: 01889 270294 or visit www

beyond that. 18Charlie And The Chocolate Factoryby Roald Dahl Puffin, £5.99 (first published 1964)The enduring appeal of Dahl lies not only in his expert storytelling, but in the gruesome, gory and silly nature of his books. What child hasn