5 useful things to take on holiday

Here's my top 5 unusual, but incredibly useful things to take on holiday this summer.  Packing your case?  Try adding these before you sit on it. (Oh, sorry... is that just me?)

A Pillow.  A travel one. Not just brilliant for snoozing on long car, train, bus or plane journeys, but also brilliant for lounging by the pool. Much more comfortable to rest your chin on whilst reading than a rolled up towel.

Hangers... Fold up travel ones. There is never enough in the hotel wardrobes.  This is a stress-reducing move for hotels with little storage.

Torch. For walking home along ill lit streets, or the beach. and very useful for children in the night to save blinding the whole family when your 6 year old needs the toilet. And of course for power cuts!

Day Two - Wet Bottoms: A review of Peppa Pig World, including hints and tips for a great day!

This is the second of a series of posts based on our crazily busy holiday down in Bournemouth and Slough.  Yes, you heard that correctly; Slough.  We've had an intense week of family days out; it's cost us far too much, but we've had an absolutely ball.  Sleep is high on the agenda this week.

I am publishing the posts that were drafted during the trip over the next few weeks between other yummy musings.  The first one: Sandy Balls is here.  Enjoy the series.  If you don't want to miss a thing you can subscribe by email over on the right hand panel, or follow on Facebook or Twitter.

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Day Two: Wet Bottoms - A review of Peppa Pig World at Paulton's Park

Our first full day on our summer holiday to Bournemouth, involved a trip to Paultons Park.  Not actually for Paulton's park; oh no; unless we return another day we'll never know what Paulton's Park was actually like.  We were going solely to visit a large corner of Paulton's Park that is now famously home to Peppa Pig.

Peppa Pig World was on the to-do list from the moment we saw the advert at the start of the Peppa Pig DVD.  It opened in April 2011.  I humbly suggest the owners of Paulton's Park have done pretty well out of it, but it is one of the best theme parks for value for money. For tips on how to get the best prices see tip numbers 7 and 8 below! 

Peppa Pig World is, I hasten to add, brilliant.  Every little detail is in theme, from the safety announcements that come over the tannoy spoken by the actual Peppa Pig narrator. (Or someone that does an incredibly good impression), to the trees, to the signs that use the correct 'Peppa' font and are puddle shaped (of course).

Peppa and George make regular appearances on the stage outside the toy shop (clever), which happens to also be next to Mr Potato-head's playground (double clever) so the children could play if you arrived at the stage area a little early.

Peppa, George, Suzy and other friends also regularly wander around the park, so keep your eyes peeled and your camera at the ready.

A few tips for a good day out:

Weather preparation: 

1. Take all-in-one water proofs for the children (and yourself!) if you have them, or raincoats/ponchos and a couple of plastic bags if you don't.  The bags are to sit on the seats of the rides if it's been raining and the seats are wet.  Wandering around with a wet bottom isn't that comfy, as I can now contest.

2. Take suncream and re-apply.  Whilst some of the queue areas are cleverly under shade, many aren't.  See number  1.  We got drenched waiting in line for Miss Rabbit's Helicopter Ride.  Luckily the girls had their waterproofs on.  I unfortunately didn't have a spare bag to sit on though. (see number 1)

3. Take a comb.  There are plenty of opportunities to buy photos, in fact you can buy a batch of photo vouchers, but the photos won't be great if the weather has provided you with traditional English downpours.  A quick comb of the hair works wonders!  

4.  Take swimsuits (cozzies) for the kids and a small towel to dry them off with.  If the weather is kind you can while away some time whilst they play in the Muddle Puddles splash park.  It's a lovely small area of fountains and squirters by Mr Potato-head's playground.  And if the weather is awful, that towel will still come in handy.

Queueing: 

5.  Take a few drinks in your bag ton keep hydrated whilst waiting in queues.  The queues were nothing like those that you'd find in places like Disneyland Paris, but can be half an hour, so drinks, and come to think of it, snacks, are welcome.  

Planning your day: 

6. Prepare yourself to need a whole day to comfortably do Peppa Pig World (ignoring the rest of Paulton's Park).  You can go on all the rides, get your picture taken superimposed with the characters jumping in muddy puddles and leave at 4pm, avoiding rush hour traffic and leaving time to get the worn out darlings in bed a little early (woo hoo!)  

Getting the best price / not spending a fortune once you're there: 

7.  The only way you can save ANY money of the price is to buy on-line, in advance, and save a little over 10%.  But you can ONLY do this if you have a printer as you need to print your ticket and have it with you to be scanned at the gate.  Digital versions of tickets are NOT accepted.  Fine, if you get organised in advance.  By that I mean at least a day before.

8.  It's also cheaper to buy family tickets that individual tickets.  Children are priced based on height.  If your child is under 1 metre they are free.  On entry they will have to walk under a bar that is precisely 1 metre high to prove this.

9.  Give your children forewarning with regard to the possibility, or not, of buying something from the shop.  We spent a LOT in the shop, mostly justified by buying a few bits for the Younger's forthcoming 4th birthday.  She is old enough to understand about 'picking' a present early and having it for her birthday.  You could easily Peppa-up your entire house.  Everything from duvet covers and lunchboxes, to hair brushes and jigsaws.  They even stock Mummy and Daddy size Mummy Pig and Daddy Pig T-Shirts.  I was soooo tempted!

 

All in all, despite the downpour we had whilst we were there, it was a great day out.

Have fun! Oink!

Advice for new mums: What do you really need to take out with you?

As a first time mum I prepared myself to take my baby out for her first walk.  It was May 2006 and summer had started early.  In fact it's the last summer I can remember when it was really, really hot for a prolonged period of time.

I had my travel system set up ready and I was packing a bag.

The intention was to walk around the block.  It would take me, in my post baby, suffering from piles (sorry), slightly sore state, probably about 20-30 minutes to take a slow stroll.  Without baby it would have been 10 minutes.

What did I think I was going to need!?  

The changing bag was pre-packed with 10 nappies, a full pack of wipes, at pack of 100 nappy bags, anti-bacterial hand gel, nappy rash cream, 2 spare baby sleep suits, rattles, a handful of bibs, two cartons of ready made milk, a sterilised bottle, scissors and a bottle of water for me.  Even in my post-baby state, surely I should of realised this was overkill for a short walk.

But what do you really need to pack in that baby bag?  What's essential, and what can you just leave at home?  If it's your first time, you just don't know, so you prepare for everything, terrified you'll need to one thing you forgot and somehow permanently damage your child as a result of your error.

In the first few weeks of a babies life their needs, though seemingly complex and frustrating difficult to decipher, are reasonably few and simple.  They need food and drink which comes handily in one package: milk.  They need winding, as they are rubbish at drinking that milk without sucking most of the air out of the atmosphere at the same time.  They need changing, for obviously reasons; and they need sleep.

Ideally they need all that whilst being comfortable, which means not too hot or too cold.

So; for the benefit of first time mums everywhere, here are the definitive lists for long or short walks whatever the season, along with back-up plans, should you need them and special notes on feeding on the go!

The basic list - the store cupboard of baby packing.

Whenever you leave the house with a small baby in tow you will need the following:

• Two nappies
• A pack of 30 baby wipes
• 5 nappy sacks (you might need them for more than just the nappies)
• 1 spare baby outfit appropriate to the weather (in case of nappy or milk explosions)
• Anti-bacterial hand gel for you
• A bottle of water for you
• If you are breastfeeding, then a couple of spare breast pads.
• An appropriate travel system (buggy, pram, sling, baby carrier)
• A single rattle/toy (optional for newborns)
• The baby

Packing for a short walk in the summer

In addition to the list above you'll need the following:

• Shade from the sun for your baby.  When I was growing up, and for my first child, this came in the form of a clip-on umbrella.  Highly annoying devices that older babies can grab, once they can sit up, and permanently move out of position.  Thankfully technology has caught up with this problem and the shade now more commonly comes in the form of a buggy custom made UVA cover, like this Phil & Ted UV Sunny Days Mesh Cover.   

• Or sunshades like this one. 

• Whilst you can pick these up for £12, maybe less on ebay, you may wish to save your pennies and use a cotton sheet draped over the pram or buggy top (not on their face, else they won't be able to breathe).  They can be clipped on with bulldog clips or pegs, or simply tie a knot in the corner of the sheet and use ribbon tied around the sheet next to the knot to secure to the buggy.

• Your own sunhat.  I'm assuming you are wearing suncream or are covered up.  Don't forget about your own welfare too!

•  There is really no need for bottles or feeding gear if you are taking your walk shortly after a feed has finished.  See 'feeding on the go' below if you really can't bare to go without something.  

A short walk in the winter

Add the following to the basic list:

• A spare blanket
• Warm sleep suit/snowsuit, gloves and hat for baby
• Warm enough clothes for you including gloves, hat and scarf.
• Rain cover for the travel system/buggy/pram.
• A mac for you.  Umbrellas for you are NO USE.  You will always need your two hands to steer the buggy.  Whilst one handed buggy pushing is possible for short periods, and more possible with one handled buggies than two handled ones, it's not sustainable - believe me!  So a rain mac it is.  With hood!

A long walk in the summer

You may need to incorporate a feed into a longer walk, which is fine as long as you plan for it.  Whether you are breastfeeding or bottle feeding this simply entails checking that there are appropriate stopping points on your planned route to stop if required; park benches, coffee shops etc.

Add the following to the basic list:

• 2 muslin squares (either for modesty whist breastfeeding, for clean up, or instead of bibs)
• An extra 2 breast pads if you are breastfeeding
• A sterilised bottle, either made up in advance or to make up on the go.  See notes below for options.
• Milk (ready made or powered)

 

 

 

A long walk in the winter

Everything from the basic list, plus the items on the short walk in the winter list, plus the items on the long walk in the summer list.  Basically everything apart from the sunshade and sunhats!

 

 

Notes on feeding on the go

 

Do you need feeding kit on a short walk?

Even if, in the worst case, baby decides they didn't have enough milk before you set off on your walk, or the walk gets rid of a last bit of wind resulting in them wanting more, you are still only minutes away from home.

If you are breastfeeding and you can't stand the 'feed me' cry, you may be able to walk along whilst feeding them in a sling, or even just in your arms.  You could stop at a convenient point.  But if there really isn't anywhere to feed your baby, then it's just a matter of damage control until you can get back home, and that probably means taking them out of the pram and distracting them whilst you walk, or, simply walking as fast as you can.

Your baby may be loud for a few short minutes, and you may find that difficult if you are a first time mum, but don't worry.  Waiting 10 minutes for some milk will not kill them.  In fact, sooner or later they will learn to wait for things for short periods, especially if they also have a demanding sibling!  They will learn to trust that the milk will be along shortly and will more happily wait for you, but in the meantime, try not to worry if they have to cry for a short time.  You can't always magic up a solution immediately!

 

Breastfeeding on the go

If you are breastfeeding you have 'logistically' an easier time of it, in that there isn't a long list of things to remember to take with you just to ensure your baby has food.  Of course you do, potentially have slightly different logistical problems.

1. You, of course, need to be wearing a good weaning bra.   Don't find yourself having to strip off, like I did, realising I was wearing a normal bra and couldn't actually access the all important part!
2. Invest in a couple of good weaning tops.  Wrap over, tie at the side, tops work well, as do buttoned shirts and blouses, as you can drape them over your other breast and your tummy for much needed modesty.  A muslin square can help with that too, though they do have a tendency to fall off your shoulder at inappropriate moments.
3. Unfortunately you may still find yourself subject to the glares from disapproving folk.  Please please ignore it.  There is absolutely nothing wrong with feeding your baby in public.  Be considerate to others by all means, by covering up where possible, but do not feel that you need to hide away.  In the UK any shop owner that asks a breastfeeding mum to leave tends to find themselves subject to a lot of negative press and a trip to court.  If you are in any way unsure you can find lists of breastfeeding friendly establishments on-line for your area.

You may find these posts on Maternity fashion useful: Making do and saving money and The Do's, Don'ts and where to find it.

Bottle feeding on the go

If you are bottle feeding and baby is happy with room temperature milk you could do one of the following:- 

1. If a feed is likely to be due within the next half hour, then pack a made up bottle of milk, powdered or otherwise.  Make it up before you set off and ensure that you will have used it before the hour is up. 
2. If you are uncertain when the feed may be due, the easiest plan is to pack a sterilised, but empty, bottle along with a small carton of ready made milk and a small pair of clean scissors to open the milk carton with.  No real need to warm these up when you need them, it's a matter of preference.  I simply opened the carton and poured it into the bottle.  

 If you have a baby that is used to warmed milk you have a few options.

1. When I had my first you could make up your milk bottles for the coming day and keep them in the fridge.  I'd then take a bottle out in a thermal bottle holder and also take out a small plastic bowl big enough to sit the bottle in, along with a small thermos of boiled water.  I'd then pour the hot water into the bowl and sit the bottle of milk in the hot water to warm it through.  Many cafes and coffee shops will provide hot water and a bowl, so if you know you are going somewhere that does - don't pack them.
2. These days I am led to understand they they don't encourage you to make them up in advance.  So if this is the case you could take your ready made up unopened carton along with the sterilised bottle and the hot Thermos. Milk into bottle, bottle into hot water, milk nice and warm.  
3. If you are using the powdered milk, then you'll take a small pot with the correct measure of powdered milk in it along with your empty bottle and your hot thermos.  Add the hot water to the bottle, add the powdered milk, lid on and shake well.  
4. Alternatively with powdered milk carry the hot water in the bottle already, keeping it warm in the thermal bottle holder, ready to add the powdered milk.  Though if you do this final version don't leave it very long before you use the water.  You need it really warm when you add the powdered milk.

The Hotel Condesa de la Bahia in Alcudia: A review

Back in June we discovered a gem of a hotel in Mayorca for our family holiday.  I drafted a review.  In fact I drafted a series of posts about the hotel, the resort and various towns on the island.  Why didn't I post them?  Because word has got out about this particular hotel and we were struggling to re-book for next year.  But now we have our reservations for next year confirmed and so I can happily get sharing with you, my loyal readers.  Keep the secret though, eh?

It's the first time ever; and I mean EVER; that we have even considered re-booking the same place for a holiday.  No matter how good it's been, we've always considered that there are just too many places to see too waste a holiday returning to one.

The Hotel Condesa de la Bahia in Alcudia, Mayorca, changed our mind.  It is a great hotel for families with young children like mine (Ages 6 and 3 respectively).

From the clean spacious accommodation, to the perfect splash pool and slides.  From all the food you could possibly want, with ice cream included, to a perfect location right on the gorgeous beach.  This is a resort that I highly recommend.

The Pool Area

The pool area was spacious, well designed and with plenty of sunbeds to accommodate guests. The management were running a new system whilst we were there.  Their staff were reviewing the use of the sunbeds through out the day.  If you were absent from your sun bed for more than 2 hours your towels were moved and kept for you to collect.  The system worked well, as there were many people that were previously doing the old "put the towels out at 7.30am and don't come back until 11am" trick.  It's a highly irritating trick for those of us down at the pool with excited children at 9am, looking around at towelled sunbeds and no folk insight.


There were enough sunbeds, as there was never a moment where you couldn't find one empty but for a towel, so the 2 hour rule worked really well.  Amusingly there were often uncollected towels left at 9pm.  We wonder whether those people even realised their towels had been moved!  I find the reservation of sunbeds highly irritating if it's for any longer than a short break for lunch, so I welcomed the new rule.  It worked really well for us.

And frankly; just look at that pool!  Do you see the palm trees behind the pool?  That's the beach that is.  The beach!  Right next to the pool.  It's actual sand (not shingle) and the water is only about 30 centimetres deep for a long way.  It means that the waves are small and perfect for little ones to jump about in.  It also means that the water doesn't come and in out much with the tide, so you can sit right on the very edge of the water and not need to keep moving your towel.  Perfect.

Accommodation

The rooms are perfectly adequate, clean and spacious.  We did have a problem when we booked, as the pictures on the Thomson website were misleading, and we initially thought we were getting a family room that had a separate lounge. It turns out that was a Suite.  But that really wasn't a problem as we were rarely in the room anyway!  Here are my pictures of the room we did have.

The sofa bed actually extends out and converts to a double bed at a consistent height, so the children slept on that, leaving a spare bed (on the right) for us to basically keep my clothes as the storage space isn't great.


I would suggest that you anticipate keeping many of your clothes inside their case, as there isn't enough wardrobe or storage space for a family of four's clothes.  I'd also say that, if the children were older, we would have started to struggle a little for space.  But; as it was, it was perfect for us.

The fridge was great to keep water bottles and snacks cool once you've retired to the room for the night.  You don't need much as you can basically eat and drink whatever you like all day on all inclusive. (see below) 

The bathroom is lovely to look at, but the glass sink wasn't very practical for those with a small family as it is just the right height for them to walk into.  Having said that, our girls managed to avoid an accident as we ensured to keep the door to the bathroom wide open so they weren't squeezing in.

The bath was amazing!  It had jets, and was really comfortable to lie back in, so I enjoyed a lovely spa bath one evening.  The children also loved it, as their bubble bath increased 10 fold!

We also had a balcony, but must admit to only using it to dry clothes.  We were going to sit out in the evening on it, but leaving the door open let the insects in at night (we are a bite-ridden family), so we kept it closed, stayed inside and enjoyed the air-conditioning; and as a result limited any bites to the minimum.  Had we had a sea view room we may have been more inclined to sit out.

All in all, the room was just right.

Land view from our balcony

The Food

Then we come to the food.  We went all inclusive and I wouldn't bother doing anything else.  This management team know what all-inclusive actually means.  Any time of day you can order any drinks or food that you could possible want.  There are official mealtimes for breakfast, lunch and dinner in the main restaurant, but in between those times you can eat in the smaller restaurant overlooking the beach, or if you just fancy a burger and chips (though how you'd need any more food I don't know) you can order at the new burger bar next to the splash pool.

All drinks are included (unless you want some very particular specific brand) and plenty of different fruit juices and slushies are available, as well as everything from wine, to sangria, to Sex on the beach cocktails.

I have more pictures of food than you can imagine, so here's just a little selection.  Fish, beef, chicken, pork, a different paella every day, rice dishes, vegetables and more salad that you can possibly imagine; and that's before I get started on desert.  Safe to say I put weight on!

To conclude....

I cannot recommend this resort enough.

The management team did a grand job coping with a short power cut during our stay.  The restaurant opened later than usual, about half an hour after the power was back up, but the food on offer was no less impressive.  There was a little less choice than usually, but huge trays of sandwiches then also appeared.

In the power cut the corridors were dark around certain corners between the back up lighting, and the staff immediately went through the hotel wedging open internal see through (glass/plastic?) doors with small shower gel bottles so that you didn't walk into them.  These doors were usually open anyway, so you wouldn't have known to look out for them.

They also went to great lengths to apologise for any delay.  As if it was their fault the power was out!

They certainly knew what customer service actually was.  To take the time to actually apologise.  It was the manager stood by the restaurant door apologising.  The manager.  I take my hat off to him.   



A fortnight all inclusive for a family of four at Condesa de la Bahia, booked with Thomson and flying out from East Midlands Airport in June 2013 would cost approx £3,500 (including Thomson's on line discount). Prices during school holidays rise to approx £5,000 in August.  That's if they have any rooms left.

Strawberry flavoured straws to make strawberry milk: Brilliant!

Packing for your holiday?

Wondering how to take a little piece of home with you to comfort the children? 

Our two girls have always loved milk. When you are breastfeeding it's easy enough to take your supply on holiday with you.  But when you are bottle feeding, or they've moved onto full fat cows milk, taking milk that they will drink on holiday makes for a heavy set of cases.

When the younger was 10 months old we took her and her older sister abroad for our summer holidays.  Because she was still drinking follow-on milk we took cartons of it with us along with bottles, sterilisers and bottle warmers. I survived with the smallest collection of clothes you've ever seen and actually had to wash underwear whilst on holiday.  I hate that.  The things you do when you have children!

And now; when the two girls are 6 and 3 years old respectively, I find myself packing strawberry flavoured straws, because recently they have moved onto milk with additional strawberry or vanilla flavouring added.  Just like you can add blackcurrent cordial to water, you can now add strawberry, vanilla or chocolate flavouring to milk. My girls love it.  At home it comes in bottles, just like cordial, so I didn't intend to take any with me.  But then, my husband discovered these straws.

He found them in Sainsburys.  They are plastic straws that have been pinched at each end; just enough to hold in small pink balls of flavouring; but not enough to stop the ability to suck milk through the straw.  So you simply take a straw out of the packet of five, pop it in your milk and drink through it.  The milk picks up the flavour as it passes through the straw.  I have no idea what ingredients are in them and I strongly suspect it's not the healthiest collection of ingredients ever.  But I'm under no illusions; these are a treat.

Very clever; and a lovely way to bring a little piece of home to our holiday breakfasts.  They don't take up much room in the case either! More room for maxi-dresses!


This is not a sponsored post.  It is purely me, sharing the products I love!  I have received no benefits or payment to recommend this product.

I NEED THE TOILET DADDY!

We are at the seaside and my hubby has taken the eldest out to swim in the sea. 

It's a lovely large sandy beach and the water is not particularly deep and it stays so for quite a while, providing a very large area for swimming and splashing and lounging about on lilos (if so inclined) quite safely.  

She, the 6 year old, is swimming with an inflatable ring around her waist for ease.  He's encouraging her to kick her legs and practice her swimming strokes as she's been taking lessons.
 
They've been in the sea a fair while, so it's not entirely unexpected when she says:
 
"I need the toilet, daddy"
 
Daddy does what, let's face it, most daddy's would do when faced with this question at nearly a hundred yards from the shore. He explains, in hushed tones, that it's really alright to go to the toilet out in the sea when you are that far out.  After all; it's all very natural and no-one will ever know.  And of course, it saves him rushing her in to the beach and up to the hotel.
 
A few minutes later she grins and says; "Done it!" and carries on swimming.  
 
Daddy is pleased with his parenting skill so far in, what could have been a taxing situation.
 
They swim some more.
 
And Daddy catches sight of a leaf in the sea.  
 
He thinks it's odd, being so far out, so he looks a little more closely.  
 
It's not a leaf.
 
Daddy wasn't entirely specific enough when he explained what was acceptable in the sea.  In fact he really ought to have explained what was and what wasn't.
 
He quickly moved away from the floating 'leaf' and said to her urgently.
 
"Did you just have a wee wee, dear?"
 
"No daddy" she says, sweet and innocent as pie. "I did a poo poo too" she adds proudly.
 
Parenting skills have taken a blow.  Daddy knows he needs a quick recovery.  Clean up will be required if he has any hope of keeping this minor error a secret. He whispers to her that actually it's not really good form to do 'those' in the sea, and he gets her to quickly whip off her swimsuit so that he can 'clean it out'.  
 
They are a long way out, and there's a lot of space around them, so hopefully no one will notice.
 
He cleans the swimsuit up, scrapping them out with his hands (euuuwww), and pops them back on her and looks around them to check if he's got away with it. 
 
A fellow is floating quite close to them now on a lilo, but other than that, there isn't anyone particularly close by.  

He thinks they've got away with it.
 
That is until he spies, out of the corner of his eyes, the man on the lilo suddenly flinch, and start back-peddling quickly in the opposite direction.
 
I guess the 'leaf' was heading his way......
 

I am lucky to have such an honest husband that, in the interests of providing bloggable material he felt he really couldn't keep this secret, well, a secret.

Topless water slides anyone?

The summer is supposedly upon us; it is June after all; and if you are packing your cases for your summer holidays you'll no doubt be packing a bikini, or a tankini, or a swimsuit (bather, cossie) in the hope that there will be good weather to be had.

Those of you who are going on holidays sans children may well be packing these items with only a view to whether you have this season's trend or not.  You may be considering how much, or how little, skin they cover depending on how comfortable you are with your body.
  
But, unless you are still in your twenties and going on an activity holiday with friends, the chances are you haven't packed your swimwear with consideration as to what type of water slide they may be subjected to.

If you do have children you may suddenly find yourself, 10 years after last plummeting down a ridiculously designed water slide into water that really needs a kettle or two of boiling water adding to it, sat at the top of one such slide in a swimsuit that you fear may not cut the mustard; so to speak.

You see, women's beach wear isn't designed for water slides.  More formal women's swimwear might be; the sort of all-in-one swimsuit that the Olympic competitors may wear.  That kind of swimsuit would withstand anything you throw at it.  But, do you really want to be sat, by the pool, in hotter climes, next to the skinniest, tanned, bikini clad 18 year old, with your all-in-one Adidas piece on?  I would humbly suggest not.

So what to do? 

Freya do a good line in tankinis that incorporate 'proper' bras in them (with adjustable fastenings and everything).  These supply good support when hurtling downhill at speed.  Similarly, Figleaves do structured, under wired, all in ones that are flattering and won't be mistaken for competition cast offs.  They also have 20% off at the moment.  Just enter TWENTY at the check out.

What you can't rely on are the usual basic bikinis that grace the pages of every fashion magazine every spring.

That is, unless you are deliberately expecting to arrive at the bottom of that chute with breasts on show for all to enjoy.  If that's the case, then fine, go buy in complete freedom.  If not, elastic, structure and under wiring are your best friends, allowing you to not be 'that' embarrassing mother!  Been there.  Done that. 

Can you avoid Visible Pantie Line this summer?

River Island Linen Trousers

There is currently an explosion of VPL.  That's Visible Pantie* Line. 

The explosion is a direct result of the kindling provided by white linen trousers.  White linen see-through trousers. 

If you own a pair of these apparent summer staples then I have a very important public service announcement for you: please be informed: they are ALL see through.  Don't be fooled.  They might look OK in the store, or even at home, but get outside in the bright sunshine and they disappear to nothing.

I don't understand why anyone buys these trousers.  Let me tell you what others are thinking when they see you wearing them. 

"Oh look.  White linen trousers.  I bet they are see through.  I'll take a look." Peers surreptitiously at the wearers bottom. "Ahh, I can't see any VPL.  They've avoided that faux pas.  Good for them.  But how?  Hmmm."  Stares some more.  "I can't see any tell tale signs of a tiny g-string at the base of the spine.  They must be going pantless.  Eeuuuuwww."  The wearer happens to turn around.  "Eeeekkkkk, quick keep your eyes up, up, do not, I repeat, do not look at her crotch."

The end results of this appraisal are all just as horrific as each other.  Let me explain

Either we've looked and established you are wearing pants and the VPL is visible to all and therefore I know what underwear you are wearing; or you are wearing pants that are tiny enough to avoid most VPL and therefore I know what underwear you are wearing; or you are not wearing pants and I know that you are not wearing pants and in some cases whether you prefer a Brazilian or not.  I repeat: Eeeeeuuuuuwwww.  In all cases I seriously do not want to know what underwear you are, or are not, wearing; and I certainly don't want to know your hair removal habits.

The current explosion needs to stop, and to stop soon, before I start going up to random white trouser wearers in the street and telling them how it is.  I don't want to turn into some crazy woman raving about underwear in the middle of Jubilee Weekend celebrations. 

So please, please, please stop wearing them. 

And please, you fashion designers you, STOP MAKING THEM!

 
* That's knickers, not trousers, just to be clear.

Keep everything safe on the beach, and still look stylish! Canvas Beach Bag

I rarely buy much at Boots other than the annual pot of Clarins moisturiser and top-up mascaras, I’ve mentioned before how much of a non-girly girl I really am, and of course it’s the only place I seem to be able to get hold of the photo albums I like, as I’m of the pre-photobook generation.  But recently I have made a great Boots purchase.  

I live in a pretty small town, and Boots was going to be one of only a handful of shops I was going to be able to buy some new swimwear for the summer, but of course I was making this shopping expedition in the first week of August.

With the benefit of hindsight I can see how those fashion savvy readers will be thinking ‘What the!’ since it transpires that August is actually the last time you can expect to buy swimwear in the shops. Apparently we are supposed to make these purchases three months in advance in March. Shops in August stock knitwear, wellington boots and other general autumn fair.  I understand that this would be fine for those equally blessed fashion followers who happen to have a static body shape. But I’m shopping for me, someone who has two infant children, and has varied success at actually getting any exercise.

My body size moves from a size 10 to a size 14 depending on what shop I’m in within the same day, further aggravated by the swinging body size resulting from events like Christmas and year-end accounts time (ask any accountants you know about that and watch them reach for the chocolate).

So the shopping trip was pretty unsuccessful when it came to buying any swimwear. I wanted a full swimsuit as well, not a bikini. Ha! Boots had roughly four different designs still in stock, all not to my taste and another couple of designs which I liked, but turned out to be maternity ones.

So I browsed the rest of their dwindling summer fair and spotted a lovely navy, white and red beach bag.


The design attracted me initially, but when I investigated further I discovered that it had a feature that I personally hadn’t seen before. The bag had an inner drawstring lining, meaning you could throw all sorts of stuff in it, pull the string, let the inner bag fall inside the outer bag, and have a beach bag that wasn’t going to spill all your suncream, sunglasses, kids swimming nappies, wipes, mobile etc all over the sand.

I’ve checked, but it doesn’t look like you can buy Boot’s summer stuff online (oddly), so you’ll just have to look out for similar designs like this one and be smug when you’re all ready for summer!

Tried and tested. I love it.  Photos finally added... If anyone knows where one can buy these on line this year please post the link in a comment.. Thanks!

Entertaining the children this summer

Head for the National Trust properties near you this summer for plenty of activities for the children.  Find an event near you, or simply take a picnic for a low budget day out across the UK.

Days Out for the Kids this Summer!

The summer holidays made easy!

Check out the National Trust website for their "60 Days of Summer" activity planner with loads of ideas for great days out.

Simply start at their home page where you'll find "Schools Out". There are links to various local planners too, for example their "Get Sussed for Summer" planner for the East Midlands. (simply type "Get Sussed for Summer" in their search engine and you're there.)

www.nationaltrust.org.uk

Have fun!

The Essential Day Trip Packing List for Mums!

So you're off on a day trip during these summer holidays. So what to pack?


For the children:

• A snack box (raisins, goodie bars, mini chocolate bars, bananas, at least 2 juice drinks per child)
• Sun hat
• Sun cream (ideally cream them before you go out, but take some spare just in case!)
• Rain coat, or if you can manage it a rain suit (they include legs, and this is England you know!)
• Wellies
• Nappies/wipes/nappy bags if applicable
• Change of clothes for each child (including underwear - in case they get drenched, muddy, sandy... etc)
• A mini high chair, or bumper cushion, for small children in case highchairs aren't available; OR,
• A picnic blanket (regardless of if you've taken a picnic - these are really useful)
• Tissues
• Antibacterial hand gel
• Mini first aid kit (single dose sachets of children's paracetamol and ibuprofen, plasters, antibacterial cream for cuts and scrapes)
• A mini colouring book and pencils for each child (just in case)
• A flask - a large one with a lid that converts to a cup (or two cups if you can manage it. Thermos, of course, do a good one) for that all important cuppa!
• Spare socks for all (for some reason they always need socks)
• A buggy - if only to carry that lot around in.

Having a picnic?

• A selection of sandwiches
• A selection of party food to your taste (scotch eggs, sausage rolls, mini sausages, cheesy dippers, couscous, pasta salad, cucumber sticks, grapes, etc etc)
• Plastic plates for all (makes it much easier to track whether they've all actually eaten anything!)
• More juice for all - ideally not requiring separate cups
• A selection of deserts to your taste (mini jelly pots and spoons, mousse pots, cupcakes/fairy cakes, etc )
• Milk for babies
• At least one bib
• Baby food, and spoons.

For yourself:

• Your wellies
• A change of socks
• Sunhat or baseball cap
• Your own suncream (don't forget those shoulders. See earlier post!)
• Raincoat
• Change of clothes - if only to keep in the car. I've had juice split all over me more than once, and those nappies aren't always foolproof; especially when they are sat on your knee!)
• Adult paracetamol and ibuprofen
• Money!
• Any relevant tickets, annual passes etc

And of course, the all important kitchen sink.
Let me know if I missed anything....

Great family days out at Wheelgate Adventure Park

We had an absolute ball yesterday!

I took the girls to Wheelgate Adventure Park (www.wheelgatepark.com). It was brilliant. My mate had suggested it for a day out with my two girls (4 and 1yrs) and her girl and boy (4 and 1yrs). I'd never been before, but I wish I had.

It's near Mansfield, in the East Midlands, and is perfect for little ones. They have all the traditional children's activities; a carousel, small airplane rides, a mini pirate ship, a 6 lane bumpy slide (with traditional sacks to slide down on!) and a playground area including 2 mini zip lines (that the older girls loved), slides, swings, special swings for babies, a fort, climbing frame, monkey bars etc. And that was before you got near the mini roller coaster, go-carts, pitch and putt, the toddler's play village and the larger Robin Hood fort area for older children, the bouncy castles (at least 4), the mini train and the Tropical House! And if it happened to rain, there was a huge indoor play centre, split into older and younger children's areas.

We never made it inside the indoor play area.

The girls loved it. Most of the rides have a minimum height restriction of 1 metre or 1 .1 metres. But you have to pay for all children bigger than 95cm, because they can go on some rides accompanied by an adult. The height restrictions do vary across the rides - so beware what promises you make!

So for a good day out, for only £9.45 each (I had to pay for myself and the elder. The younger got in free, so it cost us £18.90), it's definitely worth it. We took a picnic and plenty of juice and snacks, so didn't spend a penny other than the admission fee.

Word of warning for yummy mummy's everywhere though. I managed to get sun burnt and a mild case of sunstroke, even though we had our rain coats and wellies with us. Here in the Midlands we have been getting those warm, but overcast, days. It appears that, even through cloud, my fair skin can't cope! I hadn't put the girls in hats, and I'm normally paranoid about sunscreen and hats simply because of how easily I know I burn. So for me to get caught out is very rare! Luckily the girls were fine. Phew!

Beware of the sneaky sun this school holiday season. White lines across your shoulders is not a yummy mummy look!

Cambrils Park Holiday Review - Sunny Spain!

Just got back from two weeks in sunny Spain. This year we were struggling to find somewhere that could beat the brilliant family holiday we had last year in Menorca (Santa Tomas if you're interested). Last year's holiday involved a three bedroom apartment; so that Grandma and Grandad could come along; a brilliant splash pool of about 40cm deep with slides and squirters, and a 10 minute walk to the beach. OK make that 5 minutes!

How could we beat that?

My friend recommended Eurocamp. On the basis of our stay in Cambrils Park (between Cambrils and Salou on the Costa Dorada), she'll be promoted to best friend! It was brilliant. The site is immaculate. There are gardeners constantly watering the grass, trimming the hedges, planting, painting fences. General maintenance done with real pride. We wimped out and stayed in one of the Aloha bungalows rather than a tent! A 2 bedroom one for us. Another 2 bedroom one for the Grandparents, just opposite. Kitchen/Lounge area. Bathroom (with bath! And shower over). Microwave. Satellite TV (All in Spanish, but we could watch the World Cup on it!). Fridge/Freezer. An abundance of fresh towels and bedlinen seemingly every other day (though I think it's twice a week).

Then there's the pools. We basically ignored the main pool. Though it's more than sufficient, with a small baby pool just next to it, and a couple of slides into it. It's next to the main restaurants, where the entertainment takes place on a large decking area in the middle of the pool.

The pools we spent our time around were the batch of three pools down between the southerly reception and the main pool. Here you find a splash pool (0.4m) with 4 enormous elephants squirting water, a dragon slide, 3 other slides and other sprayers, all brilliantly sized for the elder who has recently turned 4. It even has a small roped off area where the younger could toddle about in the water up to her waist away from the slightly more boisterous little ones.

And that's just the start! Adjoining that pool is a 1m deep pool suitable for adult swimming or supervised children swimming with inflatables etc. across from this duo of delights was the new Pirate ship pool. A Lagoon style pool with sloped entrance, and 2 smaller slides for toddlers (depth about 0.6m at bottom of these slides), then up the deep end there was a water flume and a large wide slide coming off the pirate ship.

If that wasn't enough, there's a pool designed for adults (but still with shallow entrances) with jacuzzi style sections for relaxing if you get a minute!

Frankly, between the pool and the beach (about 10 minutes walk down the hill and over the railway line), I'm amazed we went anywhere else. But we did. The Roman capital of Spain, Tarragona, is lovely, and the girls loved the tourist choo-choo train, which took us round the main sites with an audio commentary if you want it. Another tourist train at Salou kept us and the girls happy, and huge markets at all the local towns were full of cheap, but decent quality shoes, clothes, handbags... basically a girls heaven.

And not wanting to quite move away from the subject.... the markets all had 'bra' stalls. Decent bra's for 2 euros. Once I'd worked out the translation of my size into European, and tried them on over my clothes, just like the locals, I bought 3! And considered seriously stocking up. If it wasn't for that pesky baggage allowance I would have!

So, if you're stuck for a holiday... get yourself down to Cambrils Park. We booked direct with Eurocamp (over the phone!) and booked a cot, highchair and potty (all free). Then we booked flights separately with RyanAir direct from Birmingham to Reus. In this case RyanAir was particularly brilliant because, although they tend to call Reus a "Barcelona" airport (even though it's 200km away) Reus is actually a lovely town about 15 minutes drive from Cambrils. So perfect!