We have just returned from our summer holidays in Portugal.

With Benjamin now in school having to travel during the school holidays was a first for us. Portugal is somewhere we have been to a couple of times before, so we knew that it was ideal destination for families with short flight times, easy driving, good weather, large sandy beaches and great fresh food.

To save on the cost of travelling in peak summer months I can really recommend planning your trip independently. We booked cheap flights several months in advance, found a small villa for private rent on the internet and arranged our hire car through a local Portuguese firm.

It was so lovely to spend 10 days all together. We enjoyed simple things such as eating breakfast outside (so much easier to clear up Molly’s food debris!) playing in and around the pool and escaping from the heat to catch up with ‘team GB’ in the Olympics on TV.

We met up with friends on a couple of days and enjoyed BBQ’s and drinks and a trip to a large water park. Ben’s swimming really improved and even Molly showed that she was happy to be in the water and even to go down the small slides!

The most fun Benjamin and Molly had was going down onto the beach, after dinner, when the crowds and the heat had gone. They loved paddling in the sea and building sandcastles and of course Ben had plenty of space to practise his Power Ranger moves and perform cartwheels to his heart’s content. For Molly the sand provided soft landing on which to refine her walking technique!

I have to say not one of us was keen to come home – I think we’ll book at least 14 days away next summer!

Ben and the Simpsons at a Sand sculpture exhibition 

Fun by the pool

Ben on the Kamikaze slide

Ben and Josh contemplating a slide

Molly lunching in the shade

Last week I handed over the childcare reigns to my sister Rachel so I thought I’d let her fill you in on what happened. Here goes…

“In an ideal world extended families would live closer together, always on hand to help out with daily life, in particular, caring for the children.  We only live an hour away from my sister but I can rarely help out at a moment’s notice. So when six weeks of the school holidays began I was only too happy to offer my services.  I’ve always worked in childcare and now that I am a ‘stay at home mum’ it seemed the ideal opportunity to help my sister.  Taking care of other people’s children is not new to me, but the added pressure of knowing how parents feel about their children was something I thankfully knew nothing about in the past.  My first priority was to ensure that I handed my nephew back in one piece without visiting Accident and Emergency!

After a very wet day in Regent’s Park at the Innocent Fete it was time to prise Ben away from his parents.  He of course recovered quickly from their parting, the pain was far worse for Mum and Dad.

Every household has different rules.  Our rule is that nobody gets up before 7am, something I have managed to instil in my son Harry, but not something that often happens in my sister’s household.  As Ben had to share Harry’s room this was especially important, so armed with his very own clock Ben tottered off to bed with instructions as to what 7 o’clock looks like.  This may seem rather harsh but if you knew my husband you would understand!  Besides I believe that you should never assume that children are incapable of doing something. Sure enough Ben never climbed out of bed before 7am all week.

With the morning routine settled we began our week of fun. I had a number of outings planned as well as factoring in quality time with Ben.  We bought a joke book, which provided us with endless fun, especially teaching Ben the timing of telling a joke.  We enjoyed a morning at the local swimming pool complete with wave machine and slides.  We took the train to London and a bus to Kensington Palace Gardens where we enjoyed the Princess Diana Park.  Ben really enjoyed climbing the rigging on the giant pirate ship to the lookout post.  We ate pizza and ice cream, baked cakes, read books and played Top Trumps until Thursday when we decamped to Grannie’s house.  Here we had lots more space and a big garden to play in.  A sword was constructed from wood with the help of Grannie’s tools and on our last day we braved the cold weather and the rain to go to Godstone Farm.  Ben had a special treat on Friday evening when he stayed up late watching the highlights of the Olympic Opening Ceremony as we ate our dinner.

On Saturday lunchtime Mum, Dad, Molly and Chester the cat arrived to a very excited Ben.  As he leapt around the furniture telling his parents about his action packed week – and narrowly missing the corner of the table – I breathed a sigh of relief that I had returned him in one piece!

On Sunday morning he woke his parents before 7am!!!!

All was quiet in our household on Monday morning and Harry missed his cousin’s smiling face peering in his cot.  The school holidays will be upon us before we know it and I have a feeling that my nephew will be back again.”

 Here are some fun links to show what we got up to:

 Diana Gardens

 http://www.royalparks.org.uk/parks/kensington_gardens/diana_playground.cfm

Godstone Farm

 http://www.godstonefarm.co.uk

Innocent Fete

 http://www.innocentvillagefete.com

  The pirate ship at the Diana gardens

  With cousin Harry

Ben and Harry on a swing 

Baking a chocolate cake 

Last Saturday we had tickets to ‘Taste’ - a food festival in Regents Park. I’ve been to the event through work before and thought it would make a good day out for the kids and the in laws (we do like our food and drink in this family!).

Benjamin thought the whole day was a great adventure, particularly the train and tube journey. He is now old enough for his own train ticket, so could operate the ticket exits himself. In his mind he thought he was Harry Potter trying to find platform 9 and ¾!

Once at the festival we were soon sampling foods – everything from pan-fried salmon and scallops, to pork and mash and award-winning chocolates. Molly enjoyed the day out; happy to crawl around when given the opportunity, be carried by Grandad or to fall asleep in her push chair when the excitement got too much!

At the end of the day we enjoyed a leisurely walk back to the train station through Regents Park in the sunshine. Benjamin loved climbing the trees and watching the herons on the river. It was a lovely way to spend a summer’s day all together.

Everyone enjoying the festival

Molly on the move

Molly and Grandad

Ben and Dad running off lunch

Ben up a tree

Strolling through the park

We had a great week away playing in the snow! This year Ben went to the French ski school every morning and by the end of the week he was using button lifts and coming down blue runs at speed – I am a nervous skier so I picked up the rear every time! We were so proud of him as he has grown up so much in confidence this year. Every afternoon he could not wait to show us what ‘tricks’ he had learnt!

Hubby and I went our separate ways every morning to our lessons – hubby snowboards and I ski. Molly stayed with Aunty Rachel and Cousin Harry and we all met up at lunch to refuel!

The afternoons were spent on the trampoline, swimming, sledging, or chilling out at the apartment with a DVD. My sister’s hospitality was like staying in a 5 star catered chalet! Homemade brownies and Lemon tart were among the week’s treats.

It was lovely to spend time all together. My sisters and I have no cousins, so this is a lovely experience for our children. Cousin Harry is used to having visitors to stay but to find one his own age, plus a lively five-year-old was a little different for him. He was even moved out of his bedroom to make room for us! But he took it all in his stride! He is very chilled out – like his Dad – even when overly vocal Molly kept taking his toys him! They ate together, played together, went in the double buggy and bathed together.

Harry was a delight. Every day while we ate lunch he would sleep in his buggy no matter where we were! Molly on the other hand – possibly due to the lack of pushchair motion, the noise or a change in temperature – never slept at this time. She was happy to be at the table with us munching on a chip and ‘smiling’ at all the young boarders!

Now we’re back home and the ski wear is packed up in the loft – until next year?!

Molly in her winter hat –smiling for all  

Ben all set for ski school

Cousin Harry

Harry and Molly chilling out together

All of us ready for the off!

When Harry Met Molly

Ben skiing

We have just returned from our long awaited week away, visiting my sister and her family in the French Ski resort of Tignes.
My first nephew, Harry, was born two months after Molly and just two months later they left the UK to live in France, so we were all really keen to see them, and of course get a bit of skiing and snowboarding in as well!
More on our holiday later, but first getting there…
So much planning has to go into travelling with children! Long gone are the days of last minute deals! And packing for a ski holiday is not easy at the best of times because so many clothes are needed!

This is my brief guide to travelling by air!

1. Book as far in advance as possible – you will certainly saves money on fares
2. Timing at the airport is everything! I guess this depends on what type of person you are, but I find if you arrive too early you just have more time to fill! Most airlines allow families to board the plane first which relieves some of the stress.
3. Take a lightweight pushchair with you – this is much easier to fold down before getting on the plane.
4. Pack your own refreshments for eating at the airport or on the plane. This saves money, and from experience very few airlines provide food that suits a young child’s palate.
5. Ben (aged 4) loves his own carry-on bag with toys, pens and paper to keep him occupied on the flight.
6. Always have spare clothes to hand for young children. Molly was very sick on our flight to France. Luckily there were empty seats on the plane so we could be moved! Shame I did not take some spare clothes for myself – I was holding her at the time of her sickness!
7. Remember airlines have rules about what liquids can be taken on board the plane. Baby milk is allowed but I had to taste it in front of security staff. Encouraging babies to drink on takeoff may help their ears to ‘pop’.
8. If you are planning a journey think about the length of the flight. Three to four hours would be my maximum for travelling with children… any trips to Disney Florida will have to wait!

Read my next entry on our ski experience and when Harry Met Molly!

The kids and Dad on the plane

A very well behaved Benjamin

Benjamin gets creative on the plane