BABY-FREE NIGHT AT THE PIGSTY AT PITT

BABY-FREE NIGHT AT THE PIGSTY AT PITT

We were invited to stay at the newly opened Pigsty. Views are all my own… But in summary, book it, tell your friends, then book it again! It was our first night away together without the baby so it had to meet a high standard and it absolutely did! Ten minutes from Winchester.…

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DORSET MINIBREAK

DORSET MINIBREAK

Had you asked 10 months ago if a minibreak with a baby could be relaxing I'd have laughed... Well, a Dorset staycation through a baby's eyes is magical, and relaxing!

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TRAVEL WITH A BABY – 65 TIPS

TRAVEL WITH A BABY – 65 TIPS

With research, learning and practice, stress-free travel with a baby is possible! I did a lot of research - friends, blogs, google and learning by doing. 65 handy tips for other new mums anxious about taking their first trip with baby.

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FAMILY HOLIDAY IN ABU DHABI AND 32 TRAVEL TIPS

FAMILY HOLIDAY IN ABU DHABI AND 32 TRAVEL TIPS

It’s daunting booking a long haul flight and family holiday with a six month old… More daunting, given our history, was booking it before he arrived, when he was still a dream. When we found out we were pregnant we had an amazing trip to Kerala planned and paid for… We backed out…

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SPARKS OF TRAVEL JOY

SPARKS OF TRAVEL JOY

There’s plenty of joy in life without travel, thankfully. But there’s something about travel, or an adventure, that really sparks joy in me. Travelling less now that we have a little one, I have pondered what sparks joy for me in a trip. Champagne, especially the first sip that says ‘we are on…

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A ROMANTIC FAMILY HOLIDAY VISION

A ROMANTIC FAMILY HOLIDAY VISION

‘Romantic’ in the Oxford Dictionary is ‘characterised by, or suggestion of, an idealised view of reality’…  This week we have a little trip to the sandy shores of Abu Dhabi… I have a romantic vision of our time off together: relaxing and fun, rather than just memorable! Baby won’t know where he is…

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A MARK IN THE SAND: HOTEL WISH LIST

A MARK IN THE SAND: HOTEL WISH LIST

A hotel or few as a mark in the sand. We might not go to any of these any time soon but it’s a set of pretty pictures and a wish list of sorts.

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HAVE BABY WILL TRAVEL: FLYING

HAVE BABY WILL TRAVEL: FLYING

To say I was nervous about our first attempt at flying as a threesome would be an understatement. A lot was riding on it. We love flying and travelling and we really want Baby P to love travel and adventure as well. Turns out he did like flying on his first attempt! Especially if…

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A NIGHT IN LONDON – WITH A BABY

A NIGHT IN LONDON – WITH A BABY

Roll the clock back six months and we’d stay in London every few weeks. A date night supper somewhere fancy and then we would use up a few accumulating hotel points for a free stay, to avoid our commute! Now however… A night in London is a holiday! Not necessarily relaxing. But a…

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TAKE AWAYS FROM TRAVEL

TAKE AWAYS FROM TRAVEL

When you suddenly don’t travel as much as you did, you realise what you love about it. That said, I’m happy with the reason why I can count on just two hands how many flights I have taken in the last 6 months and the fact that we can’t really book any more…

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THE BABYMOON – TRIED AND TESTED

THE BABYMOON – TRIED AND TESTED

The babymoon – it’s fair to say we took a few… Not just the “last jam before the pram” before the arrival, but at regular intervals through 9 months of growing the baby. Our choices were around Baby P and to be sure I got the relaxing and de-stressing breaks I needed to…

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A SLEEPY WEEK IN THE ALGARVE

A SLEEPY WEEK IN THE ALGARVE

Our week on the Algarve was just what a doctor would have ordered. Warmth and sunshine. 10 hours sleep a night, a few more hours dozing on loungers by the pool each day, plenty of fruit (especially oranges), veg and fish and some excellent pampering too. We also added in a teeny bit…

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Missing my wedding anniversary…

Missing my wedding anniversary…

Last year our wedding anniversary timed nicely with a Flashback Friday and so I shared happy wedding memories and wedding day yacht travel. This year – on our 6th anniversary – I got out of bed at 6am for a car service to Heathrow to spend 10 hours on a plane to Miami…

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February fun and frolics

February fun and frolics

February started well – after a dry January, the 1st of February was always going to have just a little sparkle to it – a quiet night in on my own with a glass of pink champagne, homemade lemon cheesecake (without cheese) and my new favourite Netflix box set – Suits!  Back to…

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Learning from travel: lessons in life

Learning from travel: lessons in life

Travel as a teacher?  When I was 20 I hadn’t been on a plane and last year I took near on 60 flights… Whilst I’m not as well-travelled as many, I’ve definitely been taught a few important things on my travels…. It isn’t necessary to go abroad to explore and relax – some…

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Truth in quotes & pictures – the sun

Truth in quotes & pictures – the sun

Do you spend any time on Instagram or Pinterest looking for inspiration? It is impossible to miss all of the quotes that are pinned and shared.  Some are pointless it has to be said, but there are plenty that get a nod, a wry smile, a like or a re-pin. I thought I…

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1 more step along the world I go

1 more step along the world I go

One more step along the world I go… It is incredible how much changes in a year, as we travel from the old things to the new…  The amount of things we do, the people we meet, the memories we make – 365 short days turn a year into something rather memorable! It…

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Wishing on a star – 2016 travel

Wishing on a star – 2016 travel

Limited hours of daylight and plenty of rain and cold.  Winter is definitely here, and here for a while yet! This is always the time of year when alongside enjoying the festivities it is a good time to start to think about where the year ahead may take us.  Top of this list is…

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Flashback Friday Travel 37 – Devon and Cornwall

Flashback Friday Travel 37 – Devon and Cornwall

Every May half term when I was at primary school we would go to Dartmouth for a week – we stayed just on the waterfront near to the cannon and chain ferry and the house had a lovely window seat that I used to sit at for hours watching the world and reading…

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Flashback Friday Travel 34 – Anglesey adventures

Flashback Friday Travel 34 – Anglesey adventures

Continuing through 2012 and we had many a trip to the stunning island of Anglesey – just about as far north west as you can get in Wales, attached to the mainland by 2 bridges.  We are lucky to have great friends that live there and so get to visit often (although work keeps…

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Quotes to inspire wider horizons

Quotes to inspire wider horizons

I am sat here, mid September, with no travel plans. None for work.  None for pleasure.  I need to set about addressing that urgently for a mini-sun break in November and more in the spring, but until I get around to that I am stuck pondering the benefits of travel.  I love seeing…

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Flashback Friday Travel 33 – Singapore

Flashback Friday Travel 33 – Singapore

2012 was one of those years – everything was amazing, everything seemed to be pretty darn perfect.  Not just the holidays – and there were a few – but the whole country was smiling – first for the Queen’s Jubilee and then for Olympics and Paralympics, and the sun shone too.  The UK was…

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Travel contrasts

Travel contrasts

Travel is full of contrasts. Life is full of contrasts.  Some are unconscious, based on other decisions taken but sometimes we go looking for contrast in our travels.  Just in the last month I have enjoyed a fortnight of 5* luxury in the US, then enjoyed equally 4 days away sailing with very few creature comforts. …

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June travels with Penelope and Parker

June travels with Penelope and Parker

June, since January, has been the month that we have been most anticipating.  We booked our big trip to America as a bit of retail therapy at new year (no advance planning, we just booked it to raise smiles) and have been looking forward to it ever since.  The start of the year was…

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My travel personality

My travel personality

Mr P would probably say my travel personality was of the control freak type (I call that organised), however alongside he acknowledges the awesome trips we’ve taken and that the planning helps us both relax very quickly!  We always notice how quickly our skin takes on the out-of-office relaxed glow about 2 days…

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