Aaron's Blog

Archive for the ‘Holiday’ Category

For the first week of the school holidays this year, we went up to Largs to stay in the house Kelly and myself stayed in 11 years ago with Kelly’s family.  Nan Nan and Pops went as well and Mike and Alex and Caleb also stayed but at different times. We had a nice week apart from the house was quite filthy when we arrived unfortunately, so we had to complain, and the weather wasn’t great. But it was a good break away from the norm.

Friday 28th July

I had a half day at work so Kelly and the boys picked me up at 12pm. We started our long journey up but we were only going as far as Stafford as we decided to break the journey in two to make it easier for the boys. The journey was still meant to take over 4 hours though but ended up taking nearly 8 as the traffic was ridiculous on the M5! We stopped in McDonalds at Cullompton on the way and had some nice food, but that was extremely busy as well. We eventually made it to the Travelodge at Stafford Services at about 19:45 and had to unpack our overnight bags in the pouring rain. All of the nice food in the services was gone as well, due to us arriving so late, so we didn’t really have anything nice to eat for tea and what Coby and Aaron had was mislabeled. They were meant to have had a cheese and ham baguette but it turned out to have mustard in as well, which was really spicy! Poor boys. We ended up just eating snacks for tea before settling down for the night. It was a bit of nightmare start to the holiday really!

Saturday 29th July

We couldn’t sleep too well so we were up nice and early to continue the journey. Nan Nan and Pops had left early in the morning and so had reached the services just before we were ready to set off, so they parked up for a break and the dogs had a bit of a runaround. We eventually left just before 9am and had a good clear bit of road for a while before we hit more traffic due to an accident.  So we had to sit through more of that for a long time before being able to continue. We stopped a couple more times for toilet breaks and dinner and eventually pulled up in front of the house in Largs at roughly 3pm. We then had to take all our baggage in to the house in the torrential rain only to find the house hadn’t really been cleaned at all, and was covered in dust and grime. At least we were glad to have got there as we had sat in the car for a very long time over the two parts of the journey. The boys did very well really and didn’t complain too much! We just had to keep giving them snacks and drinks and making sure they were watching something on the tablet! 😉

After we had unloaded, Kelly and Nan Nan went to Morrisons to stock up on some food for the week. We had already decided to have a takeaway that evening already. So, I went with Ben and Pops into Largs and parked up and Ben and I went to get an Indian whilst Pops went to get Fish and Chips. It took ages for the Indian to be cooked and once we got home found that it was horrible. What a shame! It was burning hot spice wise and my Rogan Josh looked the same as the Chicken Tikka Masala, which didn’t even look like a Chicken Tikka Masala.  So we wasted money on this and we didn’t really eat it! Oh well!

Later that evening, once the rain had stopped, we went for a quick walk down along the Firth of Clyde and into the town. We didn’t stay long as the rain started again, but we had a few goes in the arcade before walking back home again. 

We then found that underneath the beds were disgusting and looked like they hadn’t been cleaned for months, so Kelly and I ended up hoovering and cleaning ours and the boys bedrooms. Kelly then managed to speak to one of the owners of the house to complain and sent some photos as it really was disgusting.

Eventually, the boys went to bed and so did we. It had been a very interesting start to our holiday in Largs!

Sunday 30th July

I was awake very early on the Sunday so decided to go for a jog along the coastline. It was a lovely jog and I did a good 4 miles as well, in a good time! When I got back we had a cooked breakfast, even the boys! They had already had cereal as well! We then relaxed for a bit before walking down to the shops and along the coastline again. As we hadn’t had anything sweet, and were still full up from our cooked breakfast, we thought we would just have some ice creams, so we ended up in Nardini’s and had a Sundae each. It was very nice, although quite costly! We then wandered back to the house for the afternoon. 

During the early evening, we all decided to go for a walk down to the Pencil. We ended up driving down with Nan Nan and Pops and had a nice walk around there. We then walked back up towards the house whilst Kelly and Pops drove the cars around. It was a nice evening as the rain had finally stopped, so was a nice walk around.

Monday 31st July

We had to get up early on the Monday as we had booked a train trip into Glasgow City Centre at about 8:30am. We got there in plenty of time and got some good seats so we could look out of the window during the journey. It took just over an hour to arrive at Glasgow Central station which we found to be massive and in a very old style. It looked like something straight out of Harry Potter – it was really nice to look at. We nipped to the toilets and then walked outside to try and find the City Sightseeing bus stop, as we had also booked a days on and off trip on the sightseeing bus (as we had done in Cardiff last year and Bath the year before). We eventually found it and boarded and started our first tour around the city. Unfortunately, it started to rain during the journey, so we had to leave the open top seats on the top of the bus to some that were under cover. We continued the tour and got off again at St George’s Square, which happened to be stop number 1 on the tour. The sun had come out by now so it had turned really warm.  We had a good look around the Square before going into a conveniently located Wetherspoons for dinner.  The food was very nice so we were all fat and full when we left to go on the tour around the city again.  This time, we were able to stay on the open top section throughout as the sun was quite scorching and the full tour lasted nearly an hour and a half. It was so warm that Coby actually fell asleep and was cuddled up to Kelly for half of the tour. We got to see lots of the sights of Glasgow and were told lots of interesting facts and figures, so it was highly enjoyable.

We got off again back at stop number 1 and went for a walk around the shops and ended up in Hamleys in one of the shopping centres as the boys had some money to spend. We all bought something (apart from Mummy!) so we were happy. We then had a further walk around the place before deciding to catch the train home a little earlier than planned but it was still nearly 6pm and we were all tired out and our feet were hurting. We only just managed to get on to the train as a lot of workers were on it travelling home as well, but we again managed to get decent seats by a window.

Once we arrived back in Largs, the weather was still lovely, so we walked back along the coastline to the house and got some sandwiches for tea before relaxing for the rest of the evening. It had been a lovely day in Glasgow and all three of the boys loved having a ride on a train and on the bus!

Tuesday 1st August

We didn’t really have anything planned for the Tuesday as we didn’t know if we were going to be tired out still from all the walking in Glasgow, and the weather wasn’t meant to be very good.  So we didn’t really rush around when we got up but lazed around the house before deciding to go down the coast to Saltcoats to take the boys to the cinema to watch Despicable Me 3 and then into a soft play area in the same complex.  We took some sandwiches with us to eat on the way, although it was only about 30 mins to get there. We ended up parked up in the cinema and soft play complex’s car park, which was overlooking the sea and Saltcoats seafront. The wind was awful so we ate our quick lunch in the car before going into the cinema to get our tickets and some popcorn for the film. This was the first time that Coby had ever been to the cinema, so we weren’t sure if he would keep still and quiet throughout, but he did! He loved every minute of it and enjoyed the film loads!  It was Ben and Aaron’s second time at the cinema so we knew they would be OK. 😉 The film was great and really funny, so we all enjoyed it. Once it had finished, we went into the soft play area and the boys had a couple of hours running around in there, which they all enjoyed as well. Kelly and I had some time to sit down and relax!

By the time the 2 hours were up, it was time to drive back to the house as it was late afternoon, although we did take a slight detour further down the coast before turning around and driving back up to Largs. We had tea when we got back and then, as it was dry in the evening, we went for a walk into the shops and went in the arcade for a bit.

Wednesday 2nd August

We all got up a good time and made sandwiches to take with us as we decided to go to Loch Lommond for the day. We also had money off vouchers for the Sea Life Centre there, so we had that to visit as well. Nan Nan came with us to help show us the way to get there but we ended up getting there with no issues. The weather was dry in the morning, which was lucky, so we had a good walk around the visitor centre area and along part of the Loch.  We also had a quick look in the shops there, but they were very expensive! There was a nice big park there as well, so the boys went in there for a while before we went back to the car to eat our dinner.

Once all the food had been scoffed, we went into the Sea Life Centre, which was very busy. We weren’t expecting very much really, as the one in Newquay was pretty rubbish the last time we went, and you could view all the exhibits in less than an hour.  So we were pleasantly surprised to find that it was actually really good – especially the Otter section where you could see them under water! We had a good look through the centre and attended the Otter and Ray feed, which was good. The boys loved it in there and were very excited to see all the fish and the Seahorses.  We spent a good couple of hours there in the end, and also went to the top of the centre before we left, to a ‘look out’ area where you can view right down the Loch.  The boys also got a free badge each for completing a questionnaire as you went around the exhibits, so they were happy with those. 

We then went home and got stuck in the rush hour traffic in Greenock but also nipped into Tesco there to try and get some medicine for Kelly as she had a slight recurrence of her Tonsilitis that she had only just recovered from before we went to Scotland. We also ended up going along a different route as there was a road closed, so it took ages to get back to the house in the end! Mike had flown up as well during the day, so was there when we got home.  We had pizzas for tea but couldn’t go out for a walk afterwards as the weather was atrocious with heavy rain and wind. So we ended up staying in all evening and playing Uno.

Thursday 3rd August

Like Tuesday, we didn’t really have anything planned so we didn’t rush to do anything first thing in the morning.  We had a cooked breakfast and then decided, as the weather was actually sunny and hot, that we would take a trip on the ferry across to the Isle of Cumbrae. We didn’t get off the ferry this time but had a ride there and back.  It was the first time the boys had been on a ferry as well and they all enjoyed it.

When we were on dry land again, we had a look through the shops again and ended up at the arcade with Mike for a while.  The boys had gathered loads of tickets by now and were hoping to get more before we left on Saturday to get some good prizes!

After we had used up all our change for the day, we went back to the house and played football outside in the adjoining little field where there used to be a pony when we last stayed there.  Alex and Caleb had arrived by now as well, so they were settling in when we got back, so Caleb joined in with the football.

We had pasta for tea that night and then went for a walk down along the coastline and into the town again and ended up back at the arcade, before going home and the boys quickly managed to play in the park for 10 minutes before it got too dark and cold.

Friday 4th August

Mike and I got up early and went for a jog along the seafront, but my time wasn’t as good this time as we were chatting throughout! We did a good 4 miles though, so it wasn’t too bad.

Once washed and breakfast eaten, we went (with Mike) to Braehead shopping centre for a look around and where the boys spent some of their holiday money. We then went to see the adjoining entertainment complex as we wanted to show the boys the massive indoor ski slope.  They were very amazed by it and Coby wanted to have a go! 🙂 We then had a quick look around the rest of the building that housed numerous restaurants and arcades, an IMAX cinema, Ten Pin bowling, a climbing wall and a few other shops, before heading back to the car and back home.

When we got back, a lot of Kelly’s family had arrived to visit (we were a bit late getting back!). We quickly had some sandwiches for dinner whilst the family headed on down for a walk into the town, before following them. We caught up with them and Kelly’s Aunty Rosena bought the boys an ice cream each, which was very nice of her. Of course, none of Kelly’s family from Scotland that were there (apart from Kelly’s Gran) had met the boys before, so the boys had no idea who they were! Everyone had a nice time walking and chatting before going back to the house for a bit, to catch up further. They all left before tea time so we decided to go and have fish and chips and park up along the other side of Largs near the boating lake (which was empty unfortunately). We got the fish and chips from the place on the seafront next to Wetherspoons and it was very nice, although we did have to wait for a while for it to be cooked. Nan Nan, Pops, Mike, Alex and Caleb also came and parked up with us.

After we had finished eating, we split up and whilst we went for a drive along the cost back down to Saltcoats, the others went back to the house. We stopped off along the way next to the coast to take in the view and then stopped off in the cinema car park in Saltcoats to have a quick walk out towards the sea. It was lovely weather during the evening, if not slightly too windy! We then made our way back to Largs via Asda in Ardrossan and spent the rest of the evening packing our stuff up (or as much as we could!) before our journey home the next day.

Saturday 5th August

Well, it was our last morning in Scotland already.  The week had gone so fast! We wanted to try and make the most of the time left so we walked into the shops and had a proper look around this time. Previously, we had just scanned the shops and not really gone in for a proper look. We got some fudge and the boys spent a little bit of their money on souvenirs. On the way to the shops, the boys finally were able to spend a good amount of time playing in the park. Every other time that we walked past, it was either late or raining so the boys hadn’t really had a good opportunity to have a proper play there.  Once we had finished in the shops we went into the Paddle Steamer Wetherspoons pub for dinner. The pub was set out like a steamer boat and it was very nice. The food was good also so we were very happy with it. We then went into the arcade to spend our final bits of change and for the boys to get prizes for the nearly 1,500 tickets that they had amassed during the week! As there was so many tickets, they managed to get 3 prizes each, so they were all happy. We then stopped in the little Nardini’s ice cream shop and got our last ice cream of our holiday before strolling back to the house to finish packing the car. We were a little later leaving than we had planned as it was now past 2pm but we did stop in at the Pencil on the way to have one final walk along there. We managed to get about half way to the Pencil before it started to rain, typically, so we headed back to the car and started our journey back to the mid-way point hotel in Stafford that we were staying in that night.

We ended up going the wrong way to get back on the motorway (somehow!) so we had a bit of a scenic tour of the Scottish countryside before we did get back on the correct route! It did add a little extra time to the journey but we didn’t mind too much! We did good time down to the hotel in Stafford even with stopping a couple of times for a break and to have our sandwiches for tea, and we had a good trip back home on the Sunday morning.

All in all, we had had a great week in Largs, even if we did have issues with the cleanliness of the house! We had visited some great places and met up with the family as hoped.  There were still lots of places that we would have liked to go so, no doubt, we will go up to Scotland for a holiday again soon. The weather could have been a lot better and warmer, but it didn’t really matter too much.  The boys loved it there and were sad to go home but they had a good time in the soft play, the cinema, the park, the arcade, the Sea Life centre, etc and had plenty of ice cream!  As mentioned, we will definitely be going back again, but too a different house!

The weekend before last, we went camping at Monkey Tree which is at Goonhavern, just outside of Perranporth. We happened to choose the hottest weekend of the year as the temperature was around 30 degrees the entire time and our tent was not shaded at all, so we were in the sun continuously which was just way too hot.  Luckily, there was a swimming pool onsite that was included in our stay, so we lounged around in that 3 times over the weekend. Coby had been asking loads since we went Glamping to go camping again, as he just loves it! Ben and Aaron also love it as well so were very excited!

We went with Alex, Josh and Caleb again and also Nan Nan and Pops turned up in their caravan and Mike came as well and stayed on the Saturday night. It was Witney’s birthday on the Friday, so they all came over for a BBQ on the Saturday evening for tea. Ben, Aaron and Coby had a great time playing with their cousins on the scooters and playing hide and seek. We also went down to the onsite park and they all had fun on the swings, climbing frames and trampolines.

We couldn’t have asked for better weather, although it could have been a bit cooler, and Monkey Tree was a lovely place.  There was an arcade on site (although with mostly outdated and well used machines) which we all had a play in, crazy golf, a couple of restaurants and a shop. They also had evening entertainment on which was for all the family.  We couldn’t really fault it really, and the price was very very good as we got a deal on Groupon. The food that we had was very nice. We had a takeaway from the onsite chippy on the Friday night and the cod and chips that I had (and curry sauce!) was delicious. As mentioned, the weather was terrific and it actually stayed fairly light in the evenings until almost midnight! Then the stars came out and it finally cooled off a bit!

We all had a wonderful time over the weekend although it was very very hot trying to put the tent down on the Sunday afternoon. It was scorching!  Coby was also tired out by now and actually fell asleep in the car with the AC on! The boys all enjoyed the park and the swimming pool, where Coby was jumping in practically on his own. It happened that one of Aaron’s friends from school was also staying there that weekend, so Aaron was very pleased to be able to play with him in the pool.

We would definitely go back again and would recommend the place to anyone, especially if you can get the discount!

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The weekend after Kelly’s birthday, we all went Glamping in a Glampod on a nice camp site just outside of Ilfracombe. It was called Mill Park and it was a lovely place to stay. 

We managed to get the Glampod for a good price as it was a last minute decision so we went straight from work on the Friday, which was a really hot and sunny day. The trip was straight forward and not really busy at all, which we were relieved about as it was a Bank Holiday weekend, so we got there in very good time. We picked up our keys and drove through the site until we got to the ‘Pod and parked up in our space just outside of it and unpacked.

The Glampod was basically just a wooden hut with enough room for us all and a small corner shelf with decking outside and a gas BBQ provided. It overlooked a lovely big fishing lake and you also had a good view back over the campsite. Behind the Glampod was a nice big field which the boys loved as there were lots of rabbits and a fox moving around the outskirts in the early evenings. So they had great fun exploring! It was only a 2 minute walk down the road to get to the toilet and shower block as well, so we were ideally situated.

Once we had unpacked and setup our airbeds for the night, we made some food on the BBQ and enjoyed some nice burgers and snacks in the hot evening sun. It was getting on in the evening at this point but we decided we had enough time to nip down to the onsite bar and get a drink. The seating area outside of the bar also had a really nice play park for the boys to play in, so they had great fun playing there until it started to get dark. We then walked back to the Glampod and the boys changed and went to sleep. They actually went to sleep fairly quickly as well as they (Ben and Aaron) had been to school as well so were tired from that. Kelly and I then got washed and ended up sitting outside in the dark on the decking until well past 11pm. I was still out in my shorts and t-shirt at that time as it just wasn’t cold at all.  It was really lovely and very relaxing! Little were we to know what was in store that night!

After we had gone to sleep, I woke at about 1:30 and wandered down to the toilet block to go to the loo and when I was walking back (still in shorts and t-shirt as it was still that warm!) I noticed flashes of light in the distance that looked like a storm. It was very strange as it was clear skies above us, so I quickened back and got back into bed. As I was still awake after this for a while, I started to notice flashes outside, which I assumed were from people going to the toilets, but it turned out that there was a massive electrical storm going on! It wasn’t long before Kelly was awake as well and we started hearing rumbles of thunder but the lightning was just crazy as it was literally flashing constantly. We had never seen anything like this before. This went on for several hours and peaked at about 3:30am, I think, when the rumbling was louder (but not too loud which was strange) and the lightning was really bright and right over us. We ended up looking through the door windows and watching it for ages as it was an amazing sight  really. We even saw a little fox stalking around just outside!  We eventually managed to go back to sleep for a couple of hours but none of the boys even flinched! Amazing! 😉 It turned out that in Plymouth, it was the worst storm for years and was like a war zone in the skies all night and several buildings were hit by the lightning. Thank goodness it wasn’t like that in our little Glampod!

The following day was a mixed bag weather wise. We were originally going to spend the day at Watermouth Castle as Uncle Darren and Grandma were going to come as well, but they cancelled due to the storm, and as the weather turned very foggy and wet just after breakfast, we decided to postpone and go on the Sunday. So instead we went to Woolacombe and Ilfracombe and had a look around. We went in a few shops and arcades (which was fun!) and had a good walk around the places.  Woolacombe was nice and the main street in Ilfracombe was nice as well, but if you went through the main shopping street of Ilfracombe, it turned really quite rundown and dodgy. After this, we went back to the Glampod and relaxed as the weather had cleared up by now. We had a nice BBQ for tea again and I watched the FA Cup Final on my phone. The boys were having a great time just being able to play in the field and around the local area. We then went up to the bar again and had a drink whilst the boys played in the park. It turned really cold that evening so we were quite chilled sat down outside this time. We also had to sort out a lot of our stuff as we needed to be out of the Glampod by 10am in the morning, so we did that and put as much in the car as possible, before settling down for the night. Whilst we were up at the bar, we did ask if we were able to stay the Sunday night as well but, unfortunately, the Glampod had already been booked out. Shame!

The next morning, the weather was much better, so we were up early and had our breakfast BBQ and packed our stuff up and rammed it all into the car, and then drove to Watermouth Castle, which was only a few minutes down the road.  We parked up there and had a great day looking around the castle and other garden areas, and of course, going in the penny arcade and enjoying the many rides. We had a lovely lunch there as well (I had a massive burger that was delicious). The boys had a wonderful time on the rides and watching the water fountain show. The weather turned again mid afternoon and it started raining, so all we did was go on the water rides then, so we were damp anyway! The place was quite quiet by then so we had the pick of the rides and could stay on several times without having to get off. We eventually left right on closing time (6pm) after the boys spent some of their money in the gift shop. By this point, it was raining quite hard and everyone was quite tired out! Coby was asleep very quickly, followed by Aaron and even Ben nodded off! We got home late in the evening and unpacked and took the boys to bed.

We had had a brilliant weekend Glamping in the Glampod and the Mill Park Holiday Park where we stayed was excellent and we would very highly recommend it. It was very child friendly and extremely well laid out. We would definitely go again, and we will!

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During the 1st May bank holiday this year, we all went camping for the first time together and we went to Woodlands. Each year, families from Ben and Aaron’s year groups get together and go each year in a group to get a very good discount, and this year we were asked if we wanted to come along as well. So we said yes! 😉 The two nights of camping at Woodlands also included free entry into the theme park for both days, which was great! 

We were going to borrow Nan Nan and Pops’ tent but it turned out to be too small for us all, so we ended up having to buy a brand new one from Go Outdoors, which was recommended by Josh and Alex. It wasn’t cheap so we had to see it as an investment and so would make sure we would go camping as much as we could in the future!

So we went straight from work on the Friday and got there just after 5pm. Josh, Alex and Caleb came as well and Josh had taken the day off so he had swung by in the afternoon and picked up some of our stuff to take (we had a lot of stuff!) and Alex would drive there with Caleb after she finished work. So when we arrived, Josh had already put their tent up along with other families of Ben, Aaron and Coby’s friends that were going as well. In fact, it was all the boys best friends that went, so it was perfect for them! We got out tent up in a decent time (with the help of Josh and Alex!) and unloaded our gear into it and setup camp. We were on the end so next to us was a great big open space for all the children to play in, which they did, and they all loved it!

The weather on the Friday evening wasn’t too bad and once it had got dark, the stars were an amazing site! Before then, we had pizza for tea (from the onsite takeaway) and a few cheeky cans with Alex and Josh. Throughout the evening, the boys were out playing with their friends and having a great time. They were really in their element! We didn’t really sleep very well that night as it was our first ever night in a tent, although the boys had obviously worn themselves out with all the playing and the fact they had a very late night for them, so they slept fine! Kelly and I were awake most of the night and at dawn, the birds seemed to be singing very loudly! It was nice listening to them but it didn’t help us get any rest!

So we decided to get up pretty early and Kelly went for a very early wash in the shower block (I had had a shower the previous evening). The showers and toilets were nice and clean and in good condition although it was cold in there! It was a lovely morning, although a little cold, but we still sat out and had our breakfast. We then spent the day walking around Woodlands and got some food there for dinner from one of the cafes.  We found the park to be quite run down in places unfortunately, especially down the bottom end where the pixie houses were. The top end with the animals seemed to be the best looked after. We all had a fun day though, and the boys loved it. The best thing for all of us was the Toboggan Run where we all had several goes on it!  It was great fun, and Ben managed to get on it without an adult several times, which was handy for the rest of us as someone had to stay with the buggy! Towards closing time, we made our way back to our camp and got ready for tea. We had a nice BBQ with some of Aaron’s friends (as this weekend was part of his 6th birthday celebrations) and he had a birthday cake given to him with everyone singing, though he was very shy at this point! Unfortunately, the weather had now started to turn and it was freezing cold and windy. It certainly wasn’t the best weather for a BBQ but we made the most of it and all seemed to enjoy it.  We all went to bed tired out and slept a little better but still not great.

The next morning, we woke up to awful weather and we had to take out tent down in it! We got completely drenched doing this as the rain was torrential and I didn’t have a change of clothes either so had to stay in them all day until they dried out. Just as we had filled the car and were ready to drive out of the camping area to park in the main car park we found that the car battery had died. We had no idea how this happened as it had been find so Josh ended up having to drive it down the hill from camp (luckily we were at the top of the hill!) whilst we pushed it to get it going. Thankfully, the car started and Josh drove it back up to us. So we kept it running for a while after that whilst Kelly got dried and changed into her dry clothes and it was find thereafter.

So eventually, we went back into the park and went in the indoor play area for most of the day. The indoor soft play was suitable for adults, so we put our bags in a locker and all went in for a bit of fun! The rain did eventually stop so we did venture outside for a bit and went down for a few quick goes on the Toboggan Run, which was great fun again, before having to leave and drive home.

Generally, we had had a great weekend and the boys loved camping and going into Woodlands each day to play. It was a shame the weather was so bad on the Sunday though and the car battery went, but thankfully we got it working again. We will definitely be doing this again next year! 😉

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For my birthday this year, I decided to spend my money on taking us all to the Harry Potter Studio tour near Hemel Hempstead, as we all love Harry Potter! 😉

We traveled up on the Friday, straight from school, and stopped half way to have homemade pasties in the car. Whilst we all went to the toilet though, Coby decided to make a run for it so Kelly had to chase him all through the services and he nearly got out on to the main road. He was a very naughty boy for doing this and was properly told off! Anyway, we made it to our hotel in Hemel Hempstead in good time and sorted our stuff out. Kelly and the boys gave me my birthday cake there and I was surprised to see it was a Harry Potter themed cake that Kelly had made. It was great!

The next day, after not much sleep, we had our full buffet breakfast and made our way to the studios for the tour, which was only about 15 minutes away.  We found it easily enough, parked up and got our reserved tickets from the machines. We then had to go and join a massive queue, even though we had a time slot, but had a good look around the reception area where there was Harry Potter memorabilia hung up. We were all quite excited, and probably too excited, as the boys were being naughty at this point.  Once we made it through the queue, we started on the tour, which was brilliant. There was a short cinema where the actors described certain aspects of the tour and then the screen moved upwards to reveal the actual doors to the main hall at Hogwarts. We then had to go through them and thus entered Hogwarts’ main hall. It was great! We carried on through the tour and looked at various sets, such as the Gryffindor common room and bedrooms, other class rooms at Hogwarts, and lots of other exciting things to do with the movie. The Hogwarts Express train was amazing to see and we had some pictures taken of us sat in the set area where they filmed the actors sat inside the train. We also had some food in the cafe and Kelly and I had some Butterbeer, but the boys wouldn’t taste it!  Next was the outdoor lot where number 4 Privit Drive was, and the Knight Bus and the bridge set that leads to Hogwarts in the films. Moving into the other stage area, we saw lots of dummies and puppets for the various creatures in the films but the best was towards the end when we walked through Diagon Alley and then to the actual scale model of Hogwarts that was used in the film. These two areas were absolutely amazing and the castle was breathtaking. By this time, Coby was tired out and fell asleep on me, so I had to carry him around the final part of the tour and into the shop, where he finally woke a little (surprise that!). We had a good look around and bought some souvenirs which included Harry Potter’s wand for Ben, and a glow tip wand for Aaron (where the tip lights up when you move it like casting a spell for light) and a Hogwarts mug for Coby. Kelly and I also bought a few things.  We all had had a great time, apart from the fuss with the boys being naughty and not doing as they were told, and we would definitely go again, as it was a lot to take in in one go!

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