London: Kew Gardens

We always find it difficult to decide what to do on the day we come back from a break away, especially when you have to drive back home. As a family enjoy National Trust places and there are quite a few on our journey back to the Midlands; however, on this occasion we decided to do something in London before leaving in the afternoon.  As we stayed in Chiswick we were not far from Kew Gardens and having heard so many good things about it we decided to give it ago.  

We brought our tickets the night before online as they were slightly cheaper, and doing my own research found that in the car park can get quite busy.  So we decided to head to Kew for 9.30 as it opened at 10.00am. 

Although we were there 30 minutes too early, we spent this time plane spotting as Kew is in the flight path for planes landing at Heathrow.  This kept Titch and the Husband good until the entrance opened.  As we had pre booked we just needed to scan our tickets from my phone and we were in.  

One thing we did not realise was how big Kew Botanical Gardens is.  There was so much to do that , even though we had been there for 5 hours, we could not fit everything in.  

If you are worried about what there is for kids, Kew is very kid friendly.  After a bit of a walk alongside the waterside path, we came cross 2 areas for kids. 

The first was a log climbing area. The husband and Titch couldn't resist this. Logs from trees and trucks of trees were laid out as an obstacle course that your could walking around - or run, jump and hop like Titch did.  

Next to this there was also a man made badger set, which we all decided to explore. Titch loved exploring the different tunnels and appearing in different places.  We could have definitely spent more time here than we did, but as we had never been before we wanted to explore.  

Along with the gardens outside there are also a few Temperate houses.  These were great to explore and we all loved looking at the different species of plants.  You can even walk up stairs to a veranda that covers the perimeter of the house so that you can view the plants from a different view. 

There is also a tropical house and although extremely humid inside is worth the visit. We loved exploring and examining the different patterns of the leaves in here and we even managed to spot on Iguana that was lay on a branch.  

Do you want to venture up 253 steps? Well we did.  We paid to climb the Great Pagoda to see the spectacular views across London - 18 miles I think.  As we queued up the member of staff advised us to climb to the top straight away and not to stop on any floor, instead to do them as we come back down.  Oh my... we climbed the 253 steps and we were shattered. It was hot and sticky but definitely worth it as it gave a 360 degree view of London around you. Titch was exceptionally happy that he could spot the London landmarks that he had visited or seen in previous days.  

Kew Gardens as so much to explore that we found it hard to decide what to visit.  We did though visit  The Hive - which Kew Gardens describe as ' a unique, multi-sensory experience designed to highlight the extraordinary life of bees.' We were all fascinated. The sounds that you hear inside are stimulated by actual bees in Kew.  
You will also find at Kew, a treetop walk, a play centre for children, Kew House, Cafes and food vans and they are currently building a children's sensory garden. There are plenty of places for a picnic too. 
We had such a wonderful day, and if we loved closer would definitely purchase the yearly pass to visit as we would never get bored.  

A rainy day - Lego Discovery Manchester

As I mentioned in my previous post, A rainy day- Sealife Manchester, we had heard some pretty bad reviews about the Manchester Lego Discovery Centre.  However, before going I had done my research into what to expect and, as Lego fans, we decided that no matter what we would probably have a great time.

The Lego Discovery Centre is just a few steps away from the Sea Life centre, so we decided to go straight away.  When we got there at around 1.30 pm there was no queue.

We scanned in and asked if we would like an activity pack costing £4. For this you got a Lego Lanyard, 2 pop badges and an activity book.  Titch was less interested in the book, which actually we thought was pretty good, and just wanted it for the lanyard and the pops.

As with the Sea life, at the start of the Lego tour, there is a photo opportunity. Once again we declined and the staff we extremely pleasant and we passed through.  Often people feel compelled to have their photo taken, but if you do not ant yours and you are not intending on buying them the best policy is to be polite and decline.
Once through we you then go onto a short 5 minute factory tour. One thing to remember here is that it is aimed at kids, so yes it is a bit cheesy, but the kids do a get a lego piece at the end.

Once your factory tour is over you are inside the main centre where you will find Miniland. Now although Miniland is not that big we were impressed by the sculptures that we had not seen before such as Blackpool Tower and, of course, for us thrill seekers a boring Oblivion.  Titch even did the voice over.

We then enter into the Lego centre were there was lots to do including, building with Lego, of course, a 4D cinema, stop motion movies, climbing wall, soft play, rides, a cafe and a workshop.

As we were aiming to leave around 4 pm to go and eat we decided not to do everything today.  Titch , and the Husband,  choose to make a movie, watch the 4D show, build with Lego and complete the climbing wall.

We all had 2 hours of fun, making models, testing our cars on the ramps, creating a space movie.
Titch even got to meet a character just before we left.
There was so much that we could have done that we could have stayed at least another 2 hours, but then again WE LOVE LEGO.


If you and your children love Lego as much a we do then it is definitely worth it, if your child is not particularly interested in making models then it probably is not the place for you.

We will definitely be going again on another rainy day - which I am sure we will get plenty of.

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A rainy day - Sea Life Centre Manchester

With the weather predictions of rain for most of the country today, we decided that we would get out our Merlin Passes and head for something indoors. We had already been to the Sealife Centre in Blackpool and really enjoyed it so we thought we would try the Sealife in Manchester, and because we all love Lego in our house we would partner it up with a visit to the Lego Discovery Centre next door.

Before going the Husband and I had read and heard some not great reviews about both places, but we are pretty open minded and normally end up liking places others don't so thought we may as well give them a try.  Maybe if we had to pay out right to go to them we would have been put off by these reviews and not gone.  However, we are glad that we did.

We arrived at the Sealife Centre around 12 pm and queued up in the queue for annual pass holders and pre booked tickets.  The queue was not too long and we were in about 5 minutes later.  A queue then formed for photographs that most Merlin attractions do at the beginning and during the tour.  As we did not want a photograph taken, we politely said no and the staff had no problems with this.
After a wait of around 4 minutes we were ushered into a room called Turtle Bay where there was a short talk on Sea turtles.

After the talk we then entered into the main viewing areas. The initial part was crowed and queues to look into tanks formed, but as we began to walk further around these queues dispersed, and, although it was quite busy, it did not feel overcrowded or cramped.
There was an array of tanks offering information on different  under water creatures, and at times there were dive stations where children could answer questions and collect stamps - which at the end would result in a prize of a pop badge.

After viewing some of the large tanks and spending a considerable amount of time watching the Stingrays, we came across a small lego area where you could make a model sea creature or , like we did, create a small tile to complete a mosaic that Sealife Manchester are currently making.  There re also some large lego pieces in different tanks as currently there is a competition to find them all and at the end you receive a Lego Minifigure Diver - the Husband was very keen to do this and claimed the Minifigure for himself.

Unlike Blackpool Sealife centre, Manchester also provide a small indoor play area.  Titch enjoyed a 10 minute play in here to burn of a bit of energy.
There were also interactive games showing the skeleton of different sea life creatures that we had not experienced before.



Titch also enjoyed touching a star fish and fire shrimps. However, he was disappointed that there was no pop badge for this like there was in Blackpool.

In total we spent around 1.5 hours inside the Sea life Centre. Because we are Merlin Pass holders I can not say whether I felt like it was value for money. However, what I would say is that it is worth booking in advance online and if you are also interested in going to Lego Discovery too then I would purchase the Combi ticket.

If you and your children enjoy looking at Sea life and spend time reading the information, talking to staff, taking part in the challenges and listening to the talks you could easily spent a couple of hours here, and it is definitely worth the visit.

Sudbury Hall and Museum of Childhood

Sudbury is the home to a historic country home and museum of childhood set in beautiful surroundings.  Sudbury was the first place that we visited a year ago when we first become members of the National Trust and being only 30 minutes away is an ideal location for a quick visit.  This time we were meeting friends there who also have two young children.

The car park to the grounds and hall is just across the road and it free to National Trust members.  When entering the grounds there is a small Chapel in front and then to the right you can see the House. Behind the house is the court yard where you will find the restaurant, shop, Childhood museum, reception (for booking the house tours) and the toilets.

Beyond that behind arched shrubs you will find the gardens and a small wooden park - this was where we headed first, and as per usual our child found a tree to climb.

The park is wooden and has climbing equipment, a trim trail,  rope swings, wooden houses and dens and a climbing frame.  The kids spent a good half an hour playing here before we all felt hungry and decided to have a picnic on the grounds just below the house.

After lunch we decided to take the children out of the sun and went to explore the childhood museum.  Inside they is plenty to see and do.  The children enjoyed playing with the old toys, looking at old dolls, and they even were able to climb through a replica chimney to show how small you had to be to do the job.

We then continued our tour around to the house where the children were given a hunt to complete. they were given a small booklet with photographs that they had to spot around the house. This is one of the many things that I love about the National Trust, there is always something on for the children to take part in.

The house inside was beautiful with ornate ceilings and furniture.  I wouldn't say it was the most exquisite house we have seen but it was beautiful in it's own right.

We all would recommend Sudbury if you are a National trust member with children as there is so much to do and see.

Tatton Park - NT

Living in the Midlands we are extremely lucky with our location as most attractions are not too far from us.  This is the same for National Trust places.  Using the app we often look for new places near to us, and about 50 minutes away is Tatton Park.  Tatton park is deer park just on the outskirts of Manchester.

The drive into Tatton park is just what we expect from a National Trust place, open fields, large lakes, garden buildings and deer.  Although Tatton Park is owned by the National Trust it is managed by Cheshire Council and , therefore, there are additional charges for National Trust members for the farm and for parking.

We chose Tatton Park as there are plenty of things to do onsite including the gardens, a maze, the mansion, a park, grounds to walk around and farm.

Firstly, we visited the gardens and the maze, spending around an hour. The gardens like most National Trusts are beautifully maintained.  There are secret gardens behind walls, lakes and ponds to walk around, a Japanese styled garden area and a maze to explore.  Although the weather was warm but cloudy, the gardens were not busy and they were extremely peaceful considering it was in the school holidays.


After a walk around the gardens we decided to head over to the cafe for some lunch. As it was a last minute plan we hadn't packed a picnic so for a change we were going to eat on site.  The cafe was busy but we did not have to queue for long.  It offered a selection of sandwiches and hot food including jacket potatoes.  Most sandwiches were around £4 and the hot meals around the £8 mark which we though was a bit steep, but having no choice we order a Jacket Potato and Tuna, two portions of chicken strips with chips and beans and 3 soft drinks = £29. As we normally take our own lunch we didn't realise that these place charge so much for food.  However, we did think that the jacket potato and tuna was reasonable at £5 seen as it was quite large.

After Lunch the mansion was open so we decided to have a wander through the house. As always the staff are informative and keen to tell you all about the different rooms and artefacts inside them.  The husband was impressed by the house as he thought that it felt homely and I have to agree.  The rooms felt lived in and not like they were for show.

After all the 'adult' stuff Titch was keen to play on the park so that was where we headed.  The park was large and although it was busy, Titch managed to get on all the equipment he wanted.

If you are looking for a day out for all the family I would definitely recommend Tatton Park, I would just take your own food rather than buying from the Cafe.


Information:

Address
Tatton Park, Knutsford, Cheshire, WA16 6QN

Prices for gardens and house:
National Trust Members:  Free
Non Members: http://www.tattonpark.org.uk/visit/attraction-and-park-entry-prices.aspx

Clip n' Climb

So the holidays are here and now we have the challenge of filling 6 weeks with of activities to keep Titch entertained.  One of the main things that we have to consider having a child with ADHD is giving him opportunity to get out all his energy.  We often go to parks or areas where he can run around.  Titch particularly enjoys physical activities and loves climbing, jumping, spinning and hanging upside down - like most kids.

Recently there has been an increase in our local area of play centres, climbing walls and trampolining parks, so we decided to take Titch and two of his friends to a local climbing centre called Clip n' Climb.

Cost: £12 each for 60 minute session and an extra £2.50 if you want to do the vertical slide.

You need to arrive 15 minutes before your visit and the children are given a safety talk before they then enter the climbing arena.  Parents are allowed to join their children in the arena as long as they also attend the safety talk.  If you do not wish to go into the arena there is a small cafe up stairs where you can watch the children climb.

On arrival we were impressed with the variety of walls that they had on offer, and some looked pretty challenging.  As Titch and his friends are older enough we did not go on the safety talk and inside watched from the viewing gallery.

For the whole 60 minutes the children are freely allowed to climb using the safety harnesses that they were shown to use. There were plenty of staff members around to help children who were struggling and support those who were less confident.  One of Titch's friends went a little too high for her liking and couldn't get down. One staff member climbed up to her and with some encouragement she came down safely.  This then encouraged her to try it again and this time she came down all on her own.

Although half way through the 60 minutes another group joined the arena, it did not feel full or over crowded,and the children only had short waits between climbs. Additional staff were also added to the arena at this point so that there was a good ratio of staff to children.

Clip 'n climb was definitely worth the money for the hour that they children spent there. They came out exhausted and ready for some lunch and couldn't stop talking about it all the way home.  Not only did it give them their daily exercise but it also helped develop their confidence.

A bit of fruit

As a child I always remember the days out with my parents in the summer, and I try to give my child the same opportunities that my parents gave to me.

Today we chose fruit picking.  It is something that I remember doing every year when I was little, whether this be at a fruit farm or in fields near to my grandparents house.

There are quite a few fruit farmers near to us but many have suffered this year due to the warm weather that we had been having.

Fruit picking is something that can be enjoyed by the whole family no matter the age.  Today we were after strawberries, Blackberries and raspberries as these are our favourite fruit.


The first farm that we went to didn't have any strawberries but we stayed anyway to pick the raspberries.  Titch loved this, trying to find the berries that weren't too ripe but also ensuring that they were ready to be picked.

After picking raspberries we decided to try a different farm as Titch was keen to pick strawberries.

Here they also had a Strawberry shortage ,but we were able to pick some.  I was definitely the strawberry picking champion though, filling my tub full of larger berries where as Titch found well titchy ones.

Whilst here we also picked blackberries and tayberries which we had never tried before.

Fresh fruit on a sunny day with some ice cream and meringue was well deserved after.  

Trip to London: Day Three Hampton Court Palce

Day Three: Our last day and the day we were to come home.  Being the 'travelling day' we decided on a quieter, less thrill seeker day and decided to visit Hampton Court Palace - a place that I have always wanted to visit.  The night before we looked on line to book tickets and purchased the years Palace pass for a family as it was only £40 more than a day pass, and we knew we would use the pass later in the year when we visit London in August.

We we arrive we collected our annual passes and then headed straight for the maze which Titch was desperate to do.

On the way to the maze you walk through the rose gardens and these are stunning. It did help that it was such a glorious day, but I could have spent ages walked around just taking pictures of the roses.

The maze was great fun, and we all enjoyed getting lost and then eventually succeeding in finding the centre. We then had to find our way out, to which Titch asked if we could use Sat Nav - not sure it would work!

We then headed inside to explore the Palace and the rooms. There was so much to see and do. Titch even got to turn the roast beef that was cooking on the open fire. The smell was amazing.  There were staff all around dressed up, in character, who you could talk to and ask questions.

The grounds at the back of the palace were amazing. We had brought ourselves a picnic and sat under the trees just admiring the view whilst we ate.

We only managed to spend around 3 hours here, but could have easily spend double that, so hopefully we will get to go again.

We have so many beautiful places in this country and luckily when the weather is good as it has been these places just come to life.  

Trip to London: Day Two Thorpe Park

Day Two and Thorpe Park were on the cards. This is the one that Titch and the Husband had been looking forward the most. As it was somewhere that we may not go to again this year we decide to treat ourselves to fastback passes as we knew that the queues had been long all week and wanted to make the most of the day that we had.

Thorpe Park and having the fast passes did not disappoint us at all. We loved it! The first thing that we noticed was that everything was so close together. this meant that the walk between rides did not take off riding time. Using the fast track passes we managed to complete most of the big rides (apart from the water ones and swarm) and a few smaller rides before Lunch.

Now we are all thrill ride lovers and this is definitely a thrill ride lovers dream.  Each ride was different and exhilarating in its own way.

The only ride that we were all disappointed in was Derren Brown's Ghost Train. We had read so many great things about it and the ride just did not live up to the hype. Luckily with the fast track we only waited 10 minutes but some people had been in the queue for over 1.5 hours.

For lunch we ate a Pasta, Pizza Buffet and found this reasonably priced. The food was warm and tasty and the restaurant was as clean as it could bee seen as the tables were all full.  For a theme park place to eat it was okay.

In the afternoon we spent the time re doing the rides we enjoyed the most (Nemesis Inferno for me) and riding the ones we hadn't done - leaving the water rides till last, and we are glad that we did. After being drenched on Tidal Wave, we then spent an hour on the beach whilst Titch played in the Water and on the slides.

We all loved Thorpe Park and would recommend it if you are a thrill seeker like us.

Trip to London: Day One Chessington

London... we love this place and have been so many times in the past few years. This time we planned to visit the theme parks for a short break away so decided to stay on the outskirts of London. We booked 3 nights in a Premier inn in Sudbury and it was perfect for the places that we wanted to visit.  

Day One: 

Chessington World of Adventure. We had heard that the parking could be a bit of a nightmare so we chose to book premium parking for £10 the night before. This meant that we were not too far from the entrance and were parked on tarmac rather than in a field.  We arrive a little too early at 9.00 but they opened the gates around 9.45 ready for the rides to open at 10.  

Never being Chessington before we were a little disorientated at first and found it difficult to find where we wanted to go to but we soon got to grips with the map and found our way to Vampire. the queue was a little longer that advertised but we expected a wait.  Vampire was a greta start to the day, a little rickety but overall a great ride.  

The boys then headed to the pirate ship.  And OMG I am so glad I did not go on it with them.  It was brutal. Even the Husband looked a bit green after. 

We then spent the rest of the morning on other rides such as the dogems,  Cobra ( which is now our favourite Chessington ride) before heading of to the Smoke House for lunch. This is when things went down bank. We order our food, which looked amazing, and was just about to pay when all the power went down.  It wasn't anyones fault and there was nothing they could do but the power was out in the whole park.  The staff were attentive and helpful bring out water to customers all over the park, but they could not give an estimated time when the rides would be up and running.  Instead of leaving like most customers we decided to stay on and visit the animals, including the sealife.  And by the time we had done this some rides were back up and running, and the park was empty. 

We love Chessington and hopefully will return again for another day trip out - it's just a bit too far in one day for the Husband to drive to, but I maybe able to convince him.  

A Blackpool Day trip

Blackpool, some people love it and some people hate it.  And I totally understand why. There are some run down parts which are not appealing to the eye and there is definitely a stigma attached too.  Despite this Blackpool is a traditional British Holiday resort and it is easy to see why so many of us flock here each year. Ice creams, Candy-floss, the beach, Fish and chips, arcades, rides, donkeys - what more could you ask for!

The husband and I hadn't been Blackpool since we were kids ,but thought that we would take full advantage of our Merlin Passes and head to Blackpool for the day.  And just like we use to do when we were kids, the first one to spot the Tower won. 

We arrived in Blackpool at around 9.50am and decided to park behind the Coral Island Amusements for the day costing us £12 for 12 hours which we though was reasonable seen as it was a pretty good location.  

With our Merlin passes it entitled us to free entry to the Dungeons, Blackpool Tower, Blackpool Circus, Jungle Jims, Blackpool Ballroom, Sealife Centre and Madame Tussauds.  Not wanting to cram too much into one day we decided to leave the dungeons, Jungle Jims and the Ballroom for another time.  

We had read online that it was essential to book the circus in the morning so we headed there straight away for opening at 10.00am. We booked our tickets for the 4.00pm show and upgraded to front row seats which included pop corn and a drink.  

We then decided to explore the other sites.  

Our first stop was Madame Tussauds and there were no queues on entry - even inside was pretty quite. We took our time explore the wax figures, reading about the different stars. Titch loved having his photograph taken with different Wax figures especially some of his favourite Marvel characters.  We had a drink in the Rovers half way around and then continued through to the end. I would say we spent about 1.5hours inside but could have spent longer in some parts. As it was pretty quite we managed to get photos with many different wax figures and take part in some of the interactive games. The only downside to Madame Tussauds is the photographs. Now whilst they maybe a great souvenir it can become expensive if you choose to buy them seen as we were stoped at least 5 times throughout the tour.  My advice would be that if you don't intend to buy them then be polite and say no thank you when they ask you to have them done. 

After visiting Madame Tussauds we moved next door to the Sea life centre, and I have to say that we were all really impressed by it. We spent just over an hour in here but missed some of the talks as it was lunch and we were all getting hungry.  the saline centre was spacious and had lots of interactive sections including Touching a Starfish.  Titch and his friend enjoyed stamping their books and receiving pop badges at the end.  The staff inside were friendly and informative and did not mind spending a few minute or so answering our questions.  This is definitely a place that we would revisit.  

For lunch we decided against taking a picnic and inside set our sights on chips from the promenade.

Lunch cost around £10 for 4 meals and 4 drinks - which we thought was reasonable considering we were on the fronts.

I had to order the chips in a bucket and this is how they came, in their own little bucket with a spade.

After lunch we still had some time to spare before the circus so we decided to go up Blackpool Tower, which made me slightly nervous.  Before you go up there is a 4d experience that we thoughts was great and then you are escorted to the lifts that take you up to the top.  These made me a little nervous but the view going up was spectacular.

At the top there is an inside viewing platform with a glass floor. Titch and the Husband were straight onto it; I, however was a little more scared and it took em awhile to step on- it was a long way down.

You then had the option to climb up more steps on the outside.  I did manage another two floors but did not go to the top.


Although a little scared at first, I really enjoyed the experience and would probably now do it again.

By the time that we had come down it was time to head to the circus. I was unsure what to expect so did not have any pre thoughts on how good it was going to be. But honestly it was Fab! We laughed and clapped along like we were kids again.  We were having such a good time that I even forget to take any photos - it only means we need to go again. The circus was a great way to end the day and our time in Blackpool.

Would we go again..? definitely! We all had such a good day and made lots of memories - including an incident with a Seagull stealing a donut out of Titch's friend's hand!

Warwick Castle - In the Summer

As mentioned previously in our first post about being Merlin pass holder we decided to head back to Warwick Castle in the Summer hopefully getting more opportunity to explore the grounds of the castle.  Each year, during the summer months, Warwick bring back their live show ' War of the Roses' and being Merlin pass holders we were luck to acquire tickets for the preview show.

So we headed off the Warwick castle.  Knowing that we would be spending most of the day there we left a little later than normal, so when we arrived we had to park on the over flow car park which is about 20 minutes walk from the Castle.

Warwick castle has lots to offer including The dungeons, The Princess Tower, The Castle itself,  A maze, Archery (payable), Knights school and then the Bird show, the Bowman and the trebuchet.  The shows are allocated times throughout the day with most having at least 2 slots.

This time we were keen to watch both Birds shows, as they use different birds, the War of the roses and the trebuchet - as we had not seen this last time.

We queued up for the War of the Roses show and shortly were escorted towards the Jousting Arena where we had to choose red or white ( York or Lancaster).

We chose to support the Red and took our places in the Arena. From the start through to the end it was amazing.  The performance was truly memorable. Titch didn't move or speak for the whole show which is an achievement and must have meant that he was enjoying it.  The actors tell the tale of the War of the Roses with gusto and the audience were encouraged to be involved - especially with the booing!

The show was full of action, heroes and villains and was a great way to learn a bit of history.

After a walk around the gardens taking a few snaps we sat on the grass in the sun and watched The Might Trebuchet.  A great way to end the day.

Once again this visit to Warwick castle did not disappoint us. And, although we have now been twice, we will definitely be going again.

An evening at the park

We often find it difficult to find something to do in the late afternoon once the Husband has finished work.  We love getting out and about and although we live near to the canal there are only so many times you can walk up and down it.

Parks are great places for kids and adults alike to blow off the cobwebs and get outdoors.  We often search for different parks to visit that offer us all a bit of something.  This time we decided to try Brampton park.  Titch had been many times before with his nan , but we had not taken him so it was a great opportunity for us all, including the dog, to get out before Tea time.

Brampton park is perfect for a Sunny evening.  You can walk around admiring the views, or climb a few trees.  Even the Husband got involved this time.

There is a sensory garden and an aviary to explore.  Brampton Park also has a Childhood Museum which is open in the day time, but has we went late afternoon it was closed.  

The park also has a small steam train. This is free to use, but donations are welcome.  

Titch and Dad loved it. 

The Brampton also has a small park, with sings, slides, climbing equipment and seesaws - of which nan couldn't resist joining in on.  There is also a small shop where you can buy drinks and ice-cream and on a wet day a small indoor play centre called Cheeky Monkeys.  

If you are looking for a safe family park I would definitely recommend here.