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For Tiny Londoners & Their Adults

Bablands is a resource for Londoners who find themselves with a small creature to dress up and entertain. Part-magazine, part-guide, Bablands follows the adventures of Babu and Roro as they seek out London’s coolest kids’ shops, best child-friendly hangouts and activities that won’t make mummy want to gauge her eyes out with a weaning spoon.

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Most Popular

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The best playgroup in the land, hands down. Messy play makes me feel a bit sad these days since it was something I took Babu to nearly every week when she was tiny, and now Roma’s messy-play days are numbered as she starts nursery in September (just mornings, but messy play is ALWAYS on in the morning). It’s the end of an era 😭 And no, we don’t want any more kids 🙃 @make_do_play doesn’t always involve painty messy play but it often does and there’s always loads of other stuff to get messy with if they’re so inclined.
Am I allowed to say I was horribly disappointed by the new Now Gallery exhibition? We went on opening day the other week and I was SO excited, but it left me feeling so cold I nearly didn’t post about it. I was fully expecting one of JeeYoung Lee’s immersive environments (Google image her - her work is mind-blowing). Instead, Maiden Voyage is an extremely delicate installation that hangs from the ceiling like a mobile. You’re not allowed to touch it (although at least they didn’t make us hold hands this time) and the only interactive aspect is a short origami task you can complete in the corner away from the installation (you’re invited to write down your first memory, fold the paper into a swan and then add it to a display). Somehow I’d imagined an origami world that you could inhabit and then add to, but it’s not really that at all. To be honest I don’t know how that would have worked in practice, but still. I just wanted to sit in a giant origami boat, god damnit.
PUGS 🐶 Last night @thehardlifeoflilyandviolet told me about a new pug cafe that had just opened in Haggerston and it sounded far too ridiculous not to visit immediately. @cuppapug is adorable and the couple who own it are the best - I mean there were SEVEN under-fives in there causing chaos and they were so lovely and chilled about everything. The five pugs at the cafe all belong to the owners, and you’re very welcome to bring your own dogs along to meet them - pug or not. It’s £10 per person for an hour at the cafe (under-5s go free) and you can buy coffee, cakes and pug-themed smoothies while you’re there.
20 AWESOME THINGS TO DO WITH LITTLE LONDONERS IN JULY IS LIVE. And it’s a good one (I think). Give the list a read via the link in my bio and also do me a favour and like and share this post if you find it useful 🙏 ❤️Thanks!
We’ve seen Sarah Lucas sandwiches in three different sites across London now but the joy of giant bread never gets old. This one’s currently sitting in the shadow of the Gherkin as part of @sculptureinthecity and it’s my favourite piece from this year’s trail (I loooove Sarah Lucas). I think we maybe saw half the works on the trail - some by accident as they’re all close together - but it’s not my favourite edition and some of the works are leftover from last year. All the details and a trail map can be found at sculptureinthecity.org.
Possibly the silliest place we’ve ever visited, Camden’s new Babylon Park amusement arcade makes no sense at all and has managed to devise a four-factor virtual currency so complicated you have literally zero idea how much real money you’ve spent (which is obviously the point). The whole system is deeply flawed and most of the staff seemed as confused as we were. In the soft play alone we were told adults weren’t allowed in at all, but that actually we could go in the little one if we took our shoes off, but we mustn’t under any circumstances go in the bigger one unless it was quiet, but we could look through the windows (which weren’t at eye level), but we had to tell the guy on the desk if the kids were moving between the soft plays, but Roma had to stay in the little bit and Babu in the big bit 🙃 The soft play was about £12 per child and while it’s nice it’s pretty small for that kind of money. The park also includes an indoor rollercoaster (about £8 each per adult and free for kids, although they tried to charge us for the kids at the start), arcade games, smaller fairground rides, etc. I mean it’s fun but wow. I don’t know what I expected in the tourist hellhole that is Camden Market, but it wasn’t £35 for a rollercoaster ride that I didn’t go on because it worked out too expensive and 30 minutes of soft play (you can stay in the soft play all day if you want but leaving Roma to roam free with no parental supervision felt a bit irresponsible). Would we come back? Not any time soon, partly because I found the system really irritating but mostly because it just annoys me that it’s so prohibitively expensive and SO many Camden families won’t be able to afford it - but I guess that’s not who it’s aimed at 🥴
I told you I had a drafts folder filled with fountains 🙃 This was where we went on tube strike day. Not our original plan as that required a tube, but this was heaven. Nobody there and warm enough that she could get soaked through and her dress still dried really quickly. I love @somersethouse so much and in the summer it’s like being in an Italian piazza in that courtyard 🌞
Summer Lights is back in Canary Wharf and it’s the best one yet (in my very humble opinion 🙃). Roma and I headed over yesterday to see some of the most exciting-looking installations (because trying to do the entire thing on my own with her in one day would be insanity), and we had the best time. Canary Wharf is always such an easy day out with young kids, especially since it’s now on the Elizabeth Line! This was Roma’s favourite piece, Expanded Landscapes by @rackowe , which can be found just off Harbord Square Gardens next to the little sandpit playground with the water pump - a massive bonus. We played a game here where the installation was our house and all the different sections were the rooms and I had to go to “my room” and pretend to sleep and then Roma would come in and wake me up - so basically just a normal night in our house 🥴 Other favourites of the new installations included Infinity and Beyond by Martin Richman and Emma Kate Matthews, and The Long and Winding Road by Ottotto - both in Harbour Quay Gardens next to the other little playground, and Gleamhhh by OGE Design Group in Cubitt Steps near the mini golf course. You can find the full list of works and a map at canarywharf.com.
At Coram’s Fields paddling pool last week. My drafts are just fountains and pools at the moment. My daft little Aquarius loves nothing better than splashing around in cold water, filling up my coffee cup and soaking her clothes (we ended up in fountains without a swimsuit the last couple of days because we happened upon them by accident and she refuses to go in with nothing on). This one doesn’t seem to be filled every day. Actually, in the six years we’ve been coming here I don’t think we’d ever seen it filled!
There’s a maze outside the @royalacademyarts and we’re into it. It’s called Wet Labyrinth (with Spontaneous Landscape) and it’s by @cristinaiglesiasestudio who also currently has a show on at @gagosian Davies Street. The maze is part of the RA Summer Exhibition, which opens tomorrow and which we’ll probably end up giving a miss this year since it always proves to be such a nightmare with my children, but I’m really glad we saw this. It’s almost definitely the most child-friendly thing in the exhibition and you don’t need to buy a ticket to see it because it’s in the courtyard outside. It’s just big enough that you can lose your kids for a few moments and it’s funny, but not so big that you lose them for more than a minute and start panicking, and there are mirrors for all those “imagine if there were six of them” lols. The walls trickle very gently with water too, which is lovely on a hot day.
Throwback to @splashparkbarking last summer, which is privately rather than council run, and relatively more expensive (than the usual freeness) as a result. On the plus side, it’s a good one 🙃 It was lovely and quiet when we visited, presumably the entry fee means you don’t get all the maintenance issues you get with other fountains (no idea if that theory stands up) and there are extras - though you have to pay extra for these. I paid £11 for Roma (£7) and me (£4), and it would have been £18 if we’d visited as a family of four. Sessions last 90 minutes and the park is open on weekends, school holidays and “any sunny days” between May and the end of August. Under-1s go free. By the way, I’m still updating the fountain list all the time so feel free to message me with any updates. The list can be found at the top of my Linktree (link in bio) 💦
New @erectarchitecture playground magic in @brentcrosstown (which is the new development on the other side of the A406 to the shopping centre). This place has everything: challenging towers and climbing walls, accessible sand and water play with pumps and dams, a standing seesaw, wobbly walkways, swings, bird houses, bug hotels… I’ve probably forgotten stuff because it’s massive and Roma spent almost the whole time filling a cup from a single pump so we didn’t explore much, but it’s brilliant. It’s even got accessible toilets with baby change AND a resident ice cream kiosk, and there’s a nice coffee shop at the entrance to the park, as well as a @happyfacepizza over the road. Claremont Park is right next door to the temporary (but still in situ) Exploratory Park, so you can make a day of it and do both.
New obsession: @paperstorieslondon collaging cafe in Gipsy Hill. This is a great place to bring (ideally slightly older) kids to do some crafting but it’s also just a really lovely cafe to enjoy as an adult, with great coffee served in the most amazing ceramics, dangerously delicious-looking cakes, vegan sausage rolls, good music and all the chilled vibes. Very rarely can I say I’m fully relaxed when out in public with Roma (she’s a lot, bless her), but this was absolutely one of those times. We both made a Father’s Day card using one of Paper Stories’ special kits (£5 each for a card with a basic dad face printed on it plus loads of pretty patterned paper to collage), which you can either do in the cafe or take home to make later. They have other kits you can buy, as well as a very cool selection of greetings cards and stationery. Riso printing and workshops (for both adults and kids) coming soon too!
When’s someone going to design a Serpentine pavilion that incorporates a Scandi-style soft play, hmm? Actually I like this one. It’s called Black Chapel and you can immediately tell why. I mean obviously it’s black, but the interior is such a lovely, calm, contemplative space - and yes, even when in possession of a Roma (although that probably had more to do with the ice cream they sell inside the pavilion than the building’s tranquillising effects). The pavilion will be in situ until the 16th of October and is free to visit with no booking required. The cafe kiosk serves hot and cold drinks including booze, plus sandwiches, salads, baked goods, ice cream and snacks.
Even if Roma really was sawing off Mum’s leg I’m fairly certain this would be her facial expression 😃 We had so much fun at the @oldoperatingtheatre yesterday - largely because the lovely guy on the right of this picture is doing such an incredible job as their guide. He said he had twin three-year-old grandsons that he looks after a lot and it really showed - he was so great with Roma and had her making her own pills and all sorts. The museum is best for older kids due to the subject matter, lack of interactivity and frankly ridiculous spiral staircase, so kudos to this man for managing to engage an unruly three year old who just wanted to go and splash in the play fountain (btw this was for a work project - I didn’t imagine for a second that my toddler might have fun here, but she did!). There are a couple of kids’ trails you can pick up at the beginning, but again they’re really aimed at bigger kids. As an aside, I don’t think I’ve ever posted anything that’s provoked such a strong collective reaction as the cervical dilator I put on my stories yesterday - and you can see that in the flesh here (sorry for saying flesh 😭).
Ridiculously militant photography police out in force at the Southbank Centre today. They seem to have employed a team of three guys in suits to go up to people and tell them not to take photos of their own children, which seems like a bit of a waste of money if you ask me but ok. Jeppe Hein’s Appearing Rooms will be in situ on the Riverside Terrace from 10am-9pm every day except Mondays until the 28th of August. We’re so glad it’s back 💦
You know us, always happy to travel for a new play cafe - especially if it has a really cool mural in the playroom. @oldbankcoffeebarnet is beautifully decorated and has great coffee - my two very selfish play cafe prerequisites. The cafe space is large and airy (I love old bank buildings) with high ceilings and comfortable seating. The coffee comes from the brilliant @climpsonandsons and there’s also a selection of cakes, sandwiches and snacks (though I wouldn’t have said no to more vegan options 🙃). The playroom is in the old vault and includes a play kitchen, Pikler triangle, soft blocks, fiddle boards, a mini library and a TV showing kids’ programmes, plus lots of small toys. There’s no entry fee or session times/booking for the playroom - just turn up! Thanks @barnetfamilyadventures for the heads up on this one.
Great new play fountains in Union Park, Wembley. Saw these on @thehardlifeoflilyandviolet and went straight down on the next vaguely sunny day we got. The fountains were on but the gates were locked because it was a match day so I lifted them both over. The best bit was that a lady walking past with her toddler asked if we’d like to come and try out the private paddling pool in her building right next door (um… yes?) and there was an amazing pirate ship playground right next to it! We were so lucky 😍

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