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Maybe because my bad immune system meant I avoided the damp Hell of the swimming changing rooms, but I really enjoyed this trip to Center Parcs and feel sad it's over so soon. Occasionally badmington based tantrums aside, the kids are now old enough for more fun possibilities to open up. We still have to deal with sibling rivalries and frustrations, but the balance is shifting to a place where there's more fun than annoyance. 85% of the badmington match was really good fun, though the 15% was admittedly embarrassing.
I remember when I was a kid and my brother and sister and me were fighting on some holiday. We got out of the car in a car park and my frustrated mum shouted "Do you see any other families behaving like this?"
Even though I was probably about 8, I remember thinking that the other families must be the same, but I looked around and I couldn't see anyone else screaming and fighting and having tantrums.
And I didn't see any other kids tossing over heavy benches at Center Parcs or even misbehaving.
Maybe mum was right.
I think my kids are better than we were as kids, though they operate under a much less strict parenting style than I did.
Today we headed to Bath for a couple of days. We're staying at a very luxurious Air B n B near the centre, but I knew there would be no parking, so I booked some (I hoped) nearby on a parking app. It turns out the parking space is over a mile from the house (and there is a cheaper car park at the end of the road we're on), but it was quite a palaver getting into the property as it was very difficult to find a space to drop off the bags and I then had to return the car to the parking space and walk back.
We'd had to kill a couple of hours in the Botanical Gardens before our Air B n B was ready and had found a nice little cafe and a huge playground, which was better than anything in Center Parcs. If only we'd brought a tent and camped out here we could have saved ourselves thousands of pounds.
But maybe it's nicer to be in a nice townhouse in the centre of town with a hot tub! Somehow a potentially very stressful day was tantrum-free fun. I desperately hoped that I would see some other family in melt down so I could judge them, but it was still just us.
One of my favourite Book Clubs ever with the fantastic Turi King is now up. It's funny, informative and Turi kindly gives a lengthy account of her part in the discovery of the bones of Richard III (and how she even took some of the bones back to York).
Listen here.
Another guest for Edinburgh revealed in badger secret area and for paid subs on Substack.
