Holidays

Holidays, holidays, holidays…

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Friday 24 July 2026

In this sunniest of Summers, I am just back from a week on the Northumberland Coast with my girls! Holidays people – there’s really nothing like them…

I hail from a ‘holiday-ing family’! Throughout my childhood, every year we’d pack up the car and heads to our Welsh caravan for the entire Summer holiday. Six weeks of beautiful beaches, icy cold seas, steam trains, mountain climbs, fish and chips and hours of board games, laughter and family time. Kind of an ‘in a bubble’ experience, which had little to do with the life we led ‘back home’ but somehow made that life better and family bonds stronger.

And the same is true now that I’m a mum. Whether abroad or in the UK, our holidays have been great times and those shared experiences have made us a closer-knit unit. I don’t think the location actually matters, but spending time together does. It is a unique quality time, without the distractions of home and the sometimes stifling familiarity of the everyday. And I am not the only one who thinks so; here is the blurb you’ll find on most of the holiday sites!

According to an article published in TES by Elizabeth Buie, a staggering two thirds of conversations between parents and children revolve around their daily routine. A holiday away provides the perfect opportunity to break this conversation cycle and have more engaging exchanges with your children, plus gives you more time to get to know their individual personalities and notice how they’re growing, changing and developing as people.

Equally, I ponder, is it also a time in an adult relationship, those not eternally bonded by the unconditional love you feel for your kids, when you realise you are, or are not, on the same page. I recall a trip about 10 years ago to Rome with a guy I was seeing. As I explored the evocative forum, in my head imagining togas, great orators and the jaw dropping sophistication of that early culture, he had his eyes glued to a Google search for ‘Real Ale bars of Rome’. I’m not saying one is better than the other, and I’m sure many would opt for the beer, just that, as I found myself thinking

“I’d actually rather be here with my son or ex-hub; at least they’d have something interesting to say!’

… it was a sign that we were not as well suited as I’d previously thought.

So, back to those happy family trips and  I’ll finish tonight with a photographic trip down Memory Lane. So glad we took the time to holiday together in the past and let’s hope we will carry on doing so even though my kids are now all grown-up! Holidays are magical times, and you’re never too old for a bit of magic!

Where did that girl go…?

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Saturday 18 July 2026

Gosh it’s been busy and I have much to catch up on so let’s start with milestone birthdays … and coming face to face with your younger self!

Several University friends of mine are now hitting milestone birthdays and the Summer has been dotted with parties to mark the momentous occasions. It has been great; chances to meet up and catch-up, enjoy good food and drink … and even indulge in dancing!

Although we first met 30 years ago, I have been good pals with most for many years. We’ve holidayed together, toasted in New Years together and watched our children play together. So we are very much used to the older versions of each other. But when I am taken to see the photo gallery at tonight’s gathering, I realise that I have also become over-accustomed to the more-aged myself; the mum, the bill payer, the problem solver, the grafter.

One of the party rooms is full of lots of pics of us all from our teens and 20s. I am literally transfixed by my own photos. Yes younger! Yes thinner! But it is more than that…I actually don’t recognise myself.

Who is that girl? Where has she gone? …Is she ever coming back?

She looks happy, calm and at peace. She looks free! By contrast life has made me tough and resilient but also… often worried and sad. The walls of responsibility have closed around me and I know that this girl is never coming back.

For this night only, particularly as music from our college bar steals through the night air into the party gathering, I can close my eyes and picture myself stepping right back to this time. But it really hits me now that this is only a passing moment of nostalgia. My youth is gone. I hope I made the most of it and just in case I didn’t I resolve to make sure that I encourage my three offspring to relish these precious years, they are such a special time…

How long ago was Christmas?

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Saturday 22 January 2026

Is this really my first post of 2026?

It is true that January has been hectic but now that I have found a 10 minute space to get my thoughts together, lets take a breath and look back… at Christmas….

When I started blogging, I lived, as the only adult, in a home of three teenagers, occasional guinea pigs, goldfish and even a gecko. I was ‘Mum’… single-Mum… the provider of all festive cheer; Christmas decs, Christmas trees, Christmas food and … and the biggest challenge for any parental combination ….presents!

Oh my goodness, scrambling together the money for them from a stretched family budget, scouring the shops and internet sites to find them and then, in a chilled panic on Christmas Eve, when shops are now shut and all options are gone, wrapping and … counting them.

“Counting them?” I hear you cry.

Yes, you hear me correctly. I had three teens. If those three pillow-cases of gifts did not contain exactly the same number of parcels, filling the same volume of space and appearing to reflect the same monetary value… then you could cut the atmosphere with a knife. Ha ha ha … a lounge scene more akin to a tense gathering at the UN than wholesome John Lewis advert.

But that was then. Roll the clock forward six or seven years and things are a lot more relaxed. Two of my offspring are now earners and when I come down on Christmas morning, I find that my own pile of presents is a large as anyone else’s. And they are such lovely thoughtful gifts that I am quite overcome. And these are my three favourites: a new Kindle, because mine went on a trip to Kathmandu a year ago and did not return, a new washbag, because someone noticed that on a recent trip to Brussels I had my toiletries in a plastic bag and then… from my son a piece of music.

But not just any piece of music. No, this is the beautifully printed notes for Elevazione! And back in 2022, the first item on ‘My Bucket List’  was  this:

‘Learn to play the oboe part of Elevazione: Domenico Zipoli“

I have looked and looked for it but it is Smallboy who has, not only found the parts but has also gone one astonishing step further. My amazing boy has used the string accompaniment parts to arrange his own piano part. (The girls tell me later that this has taken him weeks to do!)

“So we can play the piece together Mum!”

It takes my breath away… I am lost for words.

And today, as 2026 is close to reaching its second month, I love that I have found time to look back and mark these precious moments in a blog post. Maybe all the Christmas-stress of the teen years and worrying about keeping everyone else happy was just paving the way for these calmer times … and the days when I would feel like the one appreciated and thought about? Or, maybe I just got lucky and was given three wonderful kids…

Christmas 2024

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Monday 30 December 2024

Sitting with a coffee and one, of many, left over mini-mince pies, it seems the perfect moment to look back at the festive break…

Once all my kids are safely home, despite load upon load of dirty washing and a speeding ticket, courtesy of the variable-speed-lottery of the M5, it ffeels as if Christmas has begun. It means help with the food shop, extra hands for decorations, time-honoured  cheesy festive films and a house full of laughter and companionship again.

And so to the ‘big day’ itself. Much is familiar: guests, food, crackers, games and fizz.

But there are a few new twists. The hot water packs in on Christmas Eve, so it is cold showers for the hard-core (and a bit of festive grime for the rest) throughout the social season.

Most significant of all, there is  an extra pair of hands in the kitchen… the ill-fated Smallboy. Buoyed by the success of some roast potatoes he’d served up for pals at Uni, he begged to join the Christmas cooking crew. But scarcely had we added his name to the spreadsheet … oh yes, you heard me right, I never do the Xmas dinner without microsoft excel … than calamity starts to dog his every culinary move. Half of our usual crispy spuds became an impromptu mash… and the first tray of turkey had to be hurriedly scooped from the floor, whilst we distracted guests with crackers and paper hats.

I also branch out with my desserts, introducing after -dinner-coffee with  a mini mince pie – Ta da!  In my head,  ‘ultra-chic’. In reality, it goes down about as well as last year’s ‘signature cocktails’ … not a single blinkin’ taker! And hence why, with January on the horizon, I am still munching my way through several boxes of the darned festive pastries!

With the cooking done and the board games exhausted we sink happily down to watch the ‘Gavin and Stacey Christmas Special‘ and my oh my it does no disappoint. I mean. if you were not misty eyed as Mick stands up at the wedding ceremony and up on your feet cheering as the entire cast race to Portsmouth,,, quite frankly, what is wrong with you?

And so the sun sets on another spell of festive cheer. Smith and Ness are married, me and my kids have been re-united. For now, at least, all is well with the world…

Birthday time in Edinburgh …

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Sunday 6 August 2023

I started my blog in 2019, with a ‘trio of teens, but I am now fast approaching the era of parenting only twenty-somethings, as this month sees Prom-dress daughter become our second vicenarian. As my middle child also lives (almost) permanently in the Scottish capital now, for birthday celebrations, the rest of us head north for a week …

Edinburgh, in August, is in full festival mode. It is hustle and bustle on every corner, with shows, markets, pop up bars and … people! And we have a great time.

One of our highlights is a fabulous Birthday meal at ‘Chez Jules’ in the New Town.

“Friends have told me it’s really good Mum” enthuses Prom dress daughter

“but … (and this bit makes this old quinquagenarian smile) ... you have to call up to get a table!”

Well, hold the front page, I have to actually speak to someone? I can’t just fire up my smart phone and press buttons to make a reservation? However did humankind cope, in the dark pre-iPhone age of the 20th Century?

Anyway, I manage the task of a phone call booking and it is a good job that I do, as at 7:30 prompt, when we descend the steps into the buzz of this popular French Bistro it is rammed. And it is easy to see why – fabulous food, plentiful red wine, brilliant atmosphere and friendly staff all combine to make an evening that is … magnifique!

On another day, we enjoy a first trip to Leith, by the sea. And (when we finally work out how to get out of the Ocean Terminal car park lift!) have a lovely time exploring the shops, cafes and harbour. Small boy wins our ‘Bargain Hunt’ £5 challenge with his (broken) silver cigarette lighter from the large Antiques Centre and we wait to see if it makes him a fortune!

And we round off our trip with the ‘Barbie’ movie, enjoying the film, with pink cocktails and snacks in the comfy armchairs an Everyman Cinema

It is a super fun-flick to finish our week away, with its light-hearted and humorous exploration of gender roles in society. My favourite character has to be ‘weird Barbie’, with her shorn hair and legs stuck permanently in the splits position. She instantly transports me back from the present, where my two sophisticated daughters sit with their Strawberry Daiquiris, to the time when, as under 10’s, they terrorised their own Barbies’, in particular those hairstyles with scissors and felt tip pens.

Gosh, much changes in a decade and, as we wave goodbye to our birthday girl and she moves from teens to twenties, I wonder what the next 10 years will bring…

Walk, eat, laugh… jigsaw!

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Monday 24 July 2023

After a very hectic few days, I finally make it to my friend’s idyllic holiday cottage to relax and wind down…

Hectic? Well yes, before I can even think about my own journey, this morning, at an unsociable 3:30 am to be exact, I deliver ex-hub and all three of our offspring to Manchester airport. The day before, was enlivened by the drama of train cancellations. Prom-dress daughter, en route from Edinburgh, booked tickets on three trains which were subsequently scrapped, before managing to leap onto an Intercity that got her as far as York. But that is not Manchester! And so, (whilst I had asked ex-hub to factor such train tribulations into his travel plans – but he didn’t,) I set out in the rain and gathering gloom of Sunday evening to complete 3 hour round trip to collect her. So you’ll understand that I am a little weary.

Still … breathe… I am now here. It is a beautiful spot and we have a wonderful week of pleasing ourselves and switching off from work, family and … everything.

I enjoy day after day of luxurious lie-ins. We walk for miles through the lush green countryside, blessed by forecast-defying, fine weather. It is stunning to look at and feels revitalising to be in.

We eat… really well and far too much. We drink a lot of wine. We do a spot of late night star gazing and we share a lot of laughter. I am even allowed to indulge my jigsaw obsession.

My friend finds this highly amusing but I hold firm. Alongside the benefits of fresh air, good food and plenty of humour, the humble jigsaw is a terrific way to de-stress. To quote ‘Gibson’s games’, on the many benefits of puzzling,

“Completing a jigsaw has a similar affect to meditation as it generates a sense of calmness and peace. Because our minds are focused, we find ourselves concentrating on the puzzle alone, which empties our brains of the stresses and anxieties we face every day“

And something tells me that inner strength and reserves of sleep will be needed as the week draws to a close and we pack our bags for home once more. I’m collecting ex-hub and our three children from Ringway around midnight on Saturday. Then on Sunday morning, I need to get Prom-dress daughter back to Edinburgh for an 11:30 am shift, so back to the reality of being a mum with a bang! Thank the Lord for at least one week’s break…

MOT for the mum (taxi) …

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Thursday 20 July 2023

Well pour me a large glass of wine and switch off the 6am alarm for the next month! I have, finally, finished work for the Summer. The only thing on the agenda for tomorrow is Windsor, the trusty Toyota’s, MOT…

My old car has definitely earned his stripes and a well deserved break from us all, if only for a few hours this Friday. He has covered a fair few miles recently.

He’s been up to Edinburgh and across to Middlesbrough, to collect and store student belongings, trundling hundreds of motorway miles with his spacious boot crammed to the rafters with clothes, kitchenware … and even a chest of drawers! He was the reliable roadster taking mum and I to a recent hospital visit on the other side of Manchester (She had offered to go alone by taxi but, by good fortune Windsor and I were also there because her previous solo visit, it transpired, had resulted in a minor meds mix-up. All now, thankfully, resolved) He’s gallivanted across the Northwest from Fleetwood to Eccles delivering me to rehearsals and concerts. And he’s been by my side for the daily work commute (a round trip of over 200 miles per week.)

So he needs this MOT and a bit of RnR, I think as I drop him off the next morning. Possibly a fair bit of work too, as the old boy now has over 120 000 mile on the clock, plus a few bashes and bruises after nearly a decade of my driving.

I meander home to pass a very pleasant and relaxing morning as well. With no vehicle, I am suddenly at no-one’s beck and call. Instead, I spend my time doing… pretty much what I had planned to do with my first day of holidays. It is marvellous. I am productive. I am creative. I complete yoga routine one. I am uninterrupted and stress free. I am also about to get a huge surprise. It’s the garage,

“Your car’s passed, so you can pick it up whenever you’re ready”

‘Passed?’ I repeat several times in hushed tones. But it is true; not even an advisory on the paperwork. I am so shocked that I post the news straight into the family WhatsApp …

Oh what a dismal, disastrous school-girl error!

Within seconds the screen lights up,

“Oh does that mean you can pick me up from work at 4?”

“Can you give us a lift to basketball at 8?”

“My train gets into Piccadilly at 7:33″

What have I done? A day of delicious self-indulgence shatters before my eyes. I collect my faithful old car and the pair of us stagger straight back into our usual, exhausting taxi-routine. By 9:30 pm, I am finally trying to de-frazzle on the sofa with a glass of whiskey.

There is however a dim light on the horizon. On Monday morning, I am, for some reason, rising at 4am to drive my trio and their dad to the airport for a flight to Berlin. A miserably early start for sure, but possibly one that means, maybe.. just maybe … I get a one peaceful week and a chance to put on the brakes and recharge my batteries this holiday…

Easter by the sea …

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Saturday 8 April 2023

Easter Saturday dawns and we hop into the car for our first family holiday since Gran Canaria in 2019. Llyn Peninsula here we come…

It may only be for a long weekend and it may be to a part of the world we are all very familiar with, as my family has had a caravan in this lovely corner of North Wales for close to 5 decades. Nonetheless, there is just no beating a family trip.

With my offspring now marching confidently into adulthood, this getaway is much about nostalgia and and the delight of rediscovering old routines. We breakfast, on the road, at our favourite faithful diner. Upon arrival we dig out the flipflops and sliders and head straight for the beach; beautiful Blackrock Sands and 2 miles of sandy coast.

The weather is glorious and there is much laughter and fun. Moreover, strolling along the beach and paddling in the sea with ice-creams feels a millions miles away from the urban sprawl of Greater Manchester we left only hours earlier.

We don’t escape the Mancunians entirely however as, to revive our legs after the walk, Small boy and I find ourselves watching a Manchester City (City, I know and to make matters worse they are spectacular) match at the rowdy caravan club with several bottles of much needed Peroni. Meanwhile, the girls have re-united with some old ‘caravan friends‘ and are catching up with drinks in a quieter part of the complex.

A trip to the fish and chip shop sorts out tea and after a little more beer and a hilarious rummage through the old caravan board games, it is time to turn in… and full of sea air and a little bit of alcohol we sleep like logs.

Next day, with our caravan friends we set out on a walk over the beach and across the hilltops to Porthmadog, the nearest town for lunch. It is a fabulously sunny day once more and the scenery is stunning. It is also quite a trek and legs are weary and faces wear the blush of exercise, as well as the first spring sun, as we toil back, feeling pretty proud of ourselves.

We round off our Easter weekender with a drive to Llandudno, which is actually a new destination for us all, before heading home on the M56 once more.

What a terrific few days away. I realise I’ve missed family holidays. There really is nothing quite like them for building bonds and memories. I’ll have to accept that, for my young adults, 3 days away with their mum is probably the limit now so …. here’s to the next mini-vacation…

Christmas Eve eve …

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23 December 2022

Amidst the pre-Christmas bustle, a few hours out in the tranqility of the nearby RHS gardens is a lovely change of pace…

This oasis of woodland, lakes and gardens is actually on my doorstep so, ‘how have I not been before?‘ Perhaps it is not only pre-Christmas weeks that get clogged up with busyness and stress?

Take this Autumn term for example; such a demanding one for me! High levels of absenteeism at work have resulted in everyone else’s workload becoming … quite frankly overwhelming. I have also had worries about my mum and, like everyone else, about spiralling bills and static wages. The only reason that none of it has kept me awake at night is, I reason,because I am permanently shattered and could fall asleep ‘on a dime.’

So few hours away from: gift wrap, shopping lists, decorations and tannoys blaring out ‘All I want for Christmas …’ for a peaceful stroll through the winter gardens is ideal. Our countryside and green places play a pivotal role in the preservation of our wildlife and ecosystem but there is also evidence that they also promote a sense of wellbeing for humans too. Plants have a long history of association with medicines and healing. Furthermore, in our modern world, we also increasingly acknowledge that gardens and green spaces are also associated with better social and mental health. To quote British physician Sir Muir Gray,

“…everyone needs a ‘Natural Health Service’ as well as a National Health Service.”

Well the visit certainly puts a smile on my face. Great company; easy chat and lots of laughter. Plus natural beauty and nature’s might and elegance to soothe the spirits and clear the troubled mind. I can also give a shout out for the scones in the cafe, which I polish off enthusiastically with my usual crazed- calorie trio of cream, jam…and butter! Revived and refreshed, I am ready again for last-minute gifts, the great Christmas Dinner spreadsheet and, yes, even Mariah…

All in all, I have had a lovely first week of holidays. Roll on yuletide festivities and week 2…

Erst…

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Saturday 17 December 2022

Erst it may well be a popular trendy restaurant in the Ancoats area of Manchester, but it is also the German word for ‘first’ and, on the first day of my Christmas holiday, it is a wonderful place to be taken for lunch. It’s also another beginning for me…I am out on a ‘first date’…eek!

So, to the restaurant!

The food is ‘small plates designed for sharing’ and it is delicious. Each individual dish is a treat but put them together and, oh my goodness, it is a taste sensation. We need a bit of help and the waitress is fantastic, advising of number of plates and recommending the ‘spectacular’ walnut flat bread, which is divine. To wash it all down, we choose a bottle of vin naturel and 1 o’ clock quickly becomes 2 o’clock and then 3. Fabulous company and fabulous ambience. The stresses and strains of a busy term and the worries of family life just melt away and I open the door to holiday, relaxation and the chance to have some fun.

Indeed; such as good time is had that we decide to move onto a bar …which gets a little messier with some very strong cocktails. ‘Galway girl‘, a potent mix of Limoncello and prosecco probably, is my downfall. But hey -ho… holidays are here! Even a hard working single parent is allowed to let her hair down every now and again?

I certainly come back to earth with a bump at the tram stop home where, with unbelievable timing, I run into Small Boy with not one, not two but about ten of his friends, all heading out for the night. He tells me later that I was unmistakably merry but seems to find it all quite funny.

Next morning, I find that in my cocktail-confused state, I have tapped in and out with so many different cards on the metro that my journey has proved quite a pricey one! I contact TfGM pleading ‘ an honest is utterly stupid mistake‘ and wait to see if they show mercy and refund some of my payments!

Even this aside, I certainly feel ready for the holidays with work most definitely off the agenda for a couple of weeks. As for my date; well it’s early days and I rarely share romantically on my blog … but could this be the ‘erst of many’?