Every couple has their thing, that one thing that really defines them as a couple. For some it could be eating food together, for others it could be going to the cinema, but for Dan and I, it was always travel and a love of exploring the world. Our best times together were when we had our backpacks on, our passports in our pockets and an adventure before us. When the kids came along that took a major backseat. I wanted so badly to be like the mums you read about who use their maternity leave to travel the world but it just wasn’t our reality. When we would think about family holidays it became a flurry of questions and uncertainty. The types of trips we loved were the ones where we could just pack a bag, jump on a train or plane and go. But the holidays that were being advertised to us as ‘family friendly’ were all about the resorts and kids clubs and we just couldn’t get excited about it. That’s not to say we wouldn’t enjoy that type of holiday, but it was so far from what we knew that it was hard to know where to begin. (more…)

We all know that once you have children ‘the days are long and the years are short’ but since becoming a mum of two, I feel that time has sped up even more. After seeing everyone’s back-to-school posts this September, it has dawned on me that in two short years it will be my turn to send Darcie off to school. We are more than half way through this glorious period in our lives, when we aren’t governed by school regulations, uniforms, the confines of travelling within the holidays or scraping money together for school trips. And I’m worried, I’m worried that I’m not making the most of this time we have together. I’m afraid that I could be doing more, showing her more, enjoying it more. (more…)

It’s been nearly three years since Dan and I had a holiday, and those three years feel like a very long time. I grew up going away for at least one holiday every year, usually abroad, and since meeting Dan that hasn’t changed. We were the couple who loves to travel, to backpack, to explore. But when Darcie came along, that all changed, and going away on holiday became a distant dream, something that we weren’t sure we could justify the expense of anymore. Something that we weren’t even sure we would enjoy enough to be worth it. We were spontaneous backpackers, not child friendly resort, sit-by-the-pool people. We weren’t sure how to incorporate a child into a holiday we would actually enjoy. (more…)

As you will definitely have gathered by now, Dan and I are expecting our second child! As the countdown to the 24th June begins, I can’t help but sit back and dream about all of the babymoon destinations that I would love to visit. We had a babymoon when I was pregnant with Darcie but it seems so much harder to achieve when we now also have a toddler to consider! However, there are some absolutely beautiful destinations for a babymoon and I thought I would share them with you here.

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If you follow me on social media you will have seen many posts last week all about our trip to Shaftesbury to stay in one of the gorgeous yurts at Caalm Camp. Caalm Camp is essentially a glamping experience, but look a little further and you will find that there is a lot more to it than that. Caalm Camp is a family business nestled in the heart of the quiet Dorset countryside, with authenticity, calm and comfort at it’s centre. It’s clear how passionate the family are about their business and it was fascinating talking to them about the history of the yurts and how Caalm Camp came about. (more…)

After writing my Family Holidays Wishlist earlier on this week, it really got me thinking about just how much I would love to go on a family holiday this year. A week away somewhere with Darcie before baby number two arrives, to have some really lovely quality time together, sounds absolutely perfect to me right now. Then the mum side of my brain kicked in and started thinking about how the reality of travelling with a toddler could be. How will we keep her entertained on the journey? Would she be a nightmare on an aeroplane? How will she sleep? What about the weather, will it be too hot? Will she eat the food? I’m sure these are thoughts that most parents have had when preparing to travel with a child for the first time. So, I thought I would ask some of my favourite bloggers for their best tips and I’ve collected them all here for you to read too. (more…)