Tag Archives: holiday

Greetings From Sunny Devon

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Today is the first morning here we haven’t put the heating on. It’s cold! But it’s okay.

We’ve done loads as ever, rushing around like mad and getting to loads of new places. We also seem to have eaten a vast quantity of chips.

One big progression, we decided not to take the flexibath (which still gets a lot of use at home despite H being so tall) and she’s started taking showers! This may have involved a Moshi Monsters tattoo bribe or two….

We also managed to completely miss the army firing range right next to the site! Which I find kind of funny, how can you miss something like that?! It’s like someone letting off fireworks.

It is lovely and quiet and we’re getting sleep which is what we all need.

I’m also happy I bought some internet as it works in our caravan which it didn’t last tme (though was free and unlimited) – good job as my Everything Everywhere (to be rechristened not very much in most places) reception is rubbish.

A Self-Enforced No-Internet Time

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Tomorrow we’re going on holiday. We actually don’t get there until Monday, and while that would sound (to anyone who didn’t know us) like we were going to Australia, we’re not.

We’re heading back to Devon Cliffs as we liked it so much last year – and although we went in mid-June last year the weather sounds quite similar – rainy! Although we did a day trip to Lyme Regis and Pecorama and got blazing hot sun at the latter, rain at the former.

The forecast is rain and cloud, but that’s okay. We have plenty to do, some of which will be the following :

Bristol – a walk around the woods near Ashton Court (if the weather is good)
Pizza at Beerd (recommendation from Rachel there)
Wookey Hole (I haven’t been since around 1983 or 84 so remember nothing and found Sonya’s review so I know it’ll be good for us all – and they take Love2Shop vouchers for your entry fee!)
A day in Torquay (I’ve never been, we want to go to Babbacombe Model Village as well as some other sights around there. I’m also liking the idea of the shopping centre they recommend with quirky shops in it)
Bicton Botanical Gardens (as they’re near Devon Cliffs and we didn’t go last year)
Castle Drogo (I’ve read an article or seen a tv programme about them upgrading the roof and missed out on it last year)
The Devon County Show (we’re meeting with Rachel and co)
EUROVISION! (non-negociable, fortunately we’re at Rachel’s house by then and she wants to as well)
Stonehenge (on the way home as it’s free if you’re National Trust members)
The Vyne near Basingstoke (if we’re not too late, as a last stop before the last bit of the journey home)

We’re also having one day to use the facilities at Devon Cliffs as we’ve not bothered in our last two Haven stays – so we’re going to swim, have a game of something, dine in their pub and bar areas, build sandcastles (if it isn’t raining although I’m willing even if it is) and go to a kids disco. H has a Moshi Monsters glittery t-shirt for the disco dancing which of course means she’ll be too shy and will cry because she didn’t do it once we get home, probably.

So the self-enforced no-internet time. I have a better phone and can pick up my gmail, but I purposely don’t check my Zen email on it. The Apple gadgets all do that so I figure I can get to places with free internet such as the pub and bar areas of the site. I get around 200 gmail emails a day. Gulp. This won’t be as strict as my 24 hours without as we’ll need internet for directions and opening hours information, but it’s going to be drastically reduced.

I actually can’t wait. No internet! No work emails! (although there’s nobody covering my work while I’m off but I’m not thinking about that right now) It’s going to be great. I can’t wait. I just wish we had better weather, though I’m hoping this will mean we get to do loads of stuff. Right now I’d better start packing… we’ve written a few lists and I’m purposely packing light this year. Only essentials – and waterproofs… anything else we can buy from the Spar on-site as it’s cheap. Sorted!

The Big CatchUp in brief form

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Okay, this has to be in brief as I don’t have the time to even upload the photos, but will do reviews of the good places one day :

Friday – Lyn and Melissa arrived from Gatwick in time to catch H at bathtime.

Saturday – we had our first 3rd birthday party of August at Sutton Arena, so headed there – it was a hot day too, and a fun party although H cried a couple of times. Got back and popped to the neighbours as they’re adopting a boy and girl and wanted a social with everyone which was nice.

Sunday – Kew Gardens, lots of walking and lovely weather too. It feels like a billion years ago.

Monday – Claremont Landscape Gardens for a picnic in the sun – again, feels like forever ago

Tuesday – The London Eye, a wander around South Bank and their huge rainbow sandpit (and lego world)

Wednesday – drove down to Lyndhurst in preparation for Thursday, wandered around and drove down to Milford on Sea and got the fear of the castle on the end of the sandbank like thing (this is my irrational fear of deep water)

Thursday – Peppa Pig World/Paulton’s Park It was excellent, H went on her first rollercoaster. I nearly cried. It was ace.

Friday – recovered, made some birthday cakes and prepared for the party trying to make playlists and party tunes for 3 year olds.

Saturday – We had to drive to Crawley to pick up a hire car for Monday, as Shaun realised most hire places close at midday and nobody had what we needed. Thank god Gatwick isn’t too far away… H’s friend C’s 3rd birthday party in their back garden. They hired a bouncy castle and gave us some baguettes that didn’t get used as we needed some the following day for…..

Sunday – H’s 3rd birthday party. Mum came down from York for the day on the train, my sister was already down as of the previous day, so H met both her nanna’s at the same time for the first time in her life. The party went well, only a few minor incidents and everyone seemed happy, so that makes me happy. We now have a gazillion ThankYou cards to write. I’m not entirely sure when they’ll be done.

Monday – drove to Pwllheli, North Wales. It’s very different – but then I was last at the holiday camp around 1980 so you’d hope it would be. I love North Wales. We stayed at the Haven Hafan Y Mor, and swapped accommodation after finding a dehumidifier in our lounge due to an earlier leak, and the noisy people upstairs. We got a lovely new caravan like the one we had at Devon Cliffs which was right next to the evening’s entertainment instead. They really could use some soundproofing there…

Tuesday – Shaun’s birthday – went to Conwy and Caernarvon castles, as well as Llanfairpwyllgwyngllgogerychwyryndrobwlllantysiliogogogoch (which I’ve spelt off the top of my head so I apologise if wrong) which is very touristy these days and not like it was in the late seventies (bought Shaun a mug, this is so far the sum total of my birthday presents for him and I am ASHAMED). We stopped for our evening meal in Beddgelert where I thought Gelert had a little cottage, but I’m actually getting it mixed up with The Ugly House in Betws-y-coed which we didn’t see.

Wednesday – Portmeirion. It felt more like it did in the seventies again – I spotted painted in windows and things which kept it mysterious. My chances of doing a ‘Dear Photograph’ gone as the half boat my sister is pictured in back then is long gone, thanks to probably rotting – plus I didn’t get a print of the photo anyway. H managed to get her head stuck in the railings of the stone boat.

Thursday – H’s birthday. My baby is 3. I woke up at 6.45am, a minute before she was born. Weird, that. We drove around Pwllheli with no direction to what we were doing until we gave up and went on the Blaenau Ffestiniog railway from Porthmadog, another childhood memory revisited. I got cross in Blaenau Ffestiniog and stormed off in a really silly way. Bought H a t-shirt of a Welsh cartoon character whose name sounds like Kew called Cyw who looks rather cute

Friday – came home. Took all day. Lost the will to live. Stopped in Powis Castle on the way home which was quite lovely.

Saturday – Shaun took back the car, I stopped everything and relaxed all day with H playing games and opening the rest of her presents.

Sunday – went to our local model railway run by enthusiasts, it was pretty ace.

Monday – Bank Holiday, we went to the Natural History Museum to see the dinosaurs, followed by the Diana Memorial Park which was rather fab too.

Tuesday – the in-laws left and I went back to work.

Wednesday – H’s haircut in Bigoodi in the morning, Dora Live in London in the afternoon. Food at Wagamama in the evening, and bed after midnight due to forgetting it was the Paralympics opening and I knew three people performing (and spotted none of them).

An Update

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We’re on holiday now, hence the complete silence – my only internet being free Wifi or what Haven offers (15 minutes a day) which isn’t as easy as you’d think.

Then again, I’m on holiday, this is family time and I should be enjoying it rather than being online, right?

It started well – the M25 was a mess which added at least an hour and a half onto our time – we eventually arrived at 6. We were given a chalet block of four bedrooms which had a leak the previous day, so we switched to a brand new caravan with less room but nicer smells.

We’re also right next to the entertainment complex so can identify most tunes by the bassline. Until midnight. Sigh…

But it’s okay – we’re sleeping and doing loads and having fun and getting most things done. The only ‘me’ time is the toilet where I’m typing this, and Twitter saved us when H was sick in the hirecar (which is ace, by the way) (the car, not the sick) and I’m re-stamping memories of the past (ELO when driving through late seventies Porthmadoc) with memories of today (Justin Fletcher – everything).

I can’t believe we’ve only two days left. Butlins in Pwllheli has properly died, replaced by Haven Hafan Y Mor. It’s good, though.

We Went on Holiday

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and now we’re back. We did a cheap break with The Sun (oh the shame) which meant I had to buy it several days in a row to get the tokens, and then found out on the last day we were there you can get deals that work out the same (I’ll save myself some pennies next year then) – as we had to fork out an extra £100 on top of the £40. I’m not complaining though – it was lovely, it was our first ever break away as a family and we were all sad (but tired) it ends today.

At some point I’ll write it up, I have no bad things to say, I don’t think? Everything was great, and stress-free.

Actually, one bad thing. Going on holiday with a dry cough and forgetting you even possess (or that it even exists) Covonia Tickly Cough Throat Spray until you’re coming home is a foolish move and means you wont get a lot of sleep. Next time I go away I’m making lists of important things like that.