It’s been an interesting time here lately, full of ups and downs – which makes talking about rollercoasters very apt in more ways than one. Diving straight in, sadly Hubs’ Grandpa passed away last week which is obviously very sad indeed and Hubs has been helping his parents navigate this difficult time. Add to that both hubs and I were pretty poorly last week and for some reason LM was waking up betweeen 4 and 5am every day leaving us exhausted and in bed not long after the kids.
We were a little better by Friday, still exhausted but my brothers and their lovely ladies came round for a takeaway and catch up. The kids loved seeing them as always and we had a really lovely fun evening too, just what we needed after a tricky week.
Then Saturday morning we woke up to discover my car had been broken into and the kids’ dvd players were stolen. Gutted, horrified, angry are a few words that spring to mind. The car hasn’t a mark on it so at first I wondered if a door maybe hadn’t shut properly and it hadn’t locked when I last used it… but then I remembered getting something from the car the previous afternoon and specifically locking it. So I have no idea how they got in or why they chose my car (has having the extension done made us a target??) espcially as we live in a really nice area. It doesn’t really matter though and what is done is done… It has made me so wary about what is left in the car now and making sure all our doors and windows are always shut and locked in case they decide to come back!
That day we were due to go to Thorpe Park with Hubs’s work friends and after the shock and anger from the theft had abated a bit we decided to still go… even though it was absolutely pouring with rain. The journey there was awful as it was so wet and miserable and I have to admit to wondering whether it was worth going at all. But thankfully when we arrived the weather dried up and we had a wonderful time.
Obviously going to a theme park with small children is a little different to going on your own. It was far more about the kids’ happiness than our own but they were seriously happy. Monkey was just about tall enough to go on a few rides and he had a whale of a time on his first ever rollercoaster! Although he shouted that he didn’t like it on the first loop, by the end he was loving it and he loved a wet ride too. I have to say though it is such a swizz that you are supposed to buy a full price ticket for anyone over a metre tall, but there are barely any rides that kids can go on unless they are 1.25m or 1.4m tall. There is about 4 maybe? Such a con to have to pay full price for a ticket for them! Thankfully hubs’ work paid for the tickets – though don’t even get me started on full price vs online tickets!!
Of the rides Monkey was allowed on, we did go on a couple he was less keen on, one that was in the darkness that was a bit scary for him, and the last one we went on was a spinning one that he hated. He screamed and cried throughout and I have to admit I felt really dizzy and sick when we got off!! Overall though he had a great day though and lots of fun with our friends’ kids. LM wasn’t big enough for any of the rides but she had a fab time too… mainly splashing in as many puddles as she could find, especially muddy ones! Her waterproof trousers are far too big for her but at least they kept her a little dry, I really need to find wellies in her size though as her shoes got soaked.
It was a lovely but really tiring day. Thankfully the journey home was much drier and easier and we made it home just in time to go to a fireworks party at a friend’s house. It was great fun and the first time Monkey had seen any fireworks. He loved the sparklers and enjoyed the firworks though he did find them a bit loud so we went inside to watch from the conservatory after a few minutes.
We had such a lovely time but the day was taking it toll on us and we headed home and the kids had a later than normal bedtime and we crashed straight after them, at about 8pm! Sunday thankfully was a much easier day because the hubs and I were still exhausted, and writing this on Monday, we still are. I think we need a good few more early nights to catch up on our rest and hopefully an easier week as that would be lovely…. though this morning my phone screen has died so I now have no phone while I can send it away to be repaired or replaced. The fun never stops does it??
oh no proper ups and downs. So sorry to hear about hubs Grandpa – never easy even if was a little expected. I saw you FB about the break in – made me so angry. People are vile sometimes. I’m glad you had some good times at Thorpe Park and for the fireworks and I hope this is the sleeping week!! xx #thtruthabout
so sorry you’ve had such a tough time of late, onwards and upwards!! #twinklytuesday
Rubbish about the car & phone and so sorry to hear about Hubs grandad but it looks like you did some really fun stuff at the weekend. How many puddles did LM sit in??? 🙂 You really must get her some wellies – I would have been freaked out about the shoes! Agree that the cost for a child somewhere like Thorpe Park is ridiculous. We haven’t bothered taking the kids there even though we drive right past it on the M3 when we go to my parents and always do a bit of rollercoaster spotting! Legoland definitely better at their age. Thanks for linking to #thetruthabout Xx
It does sound like a rollercoaster of a time. Sorry to hear about your loss.
It looks like you had a good time over the weekend, despite other problems. Those waterproof trousers are so cute on her! Love the puddle splashing!
Thanks for linking #LetKidsbeKids
It sounds like you have had a hell of a time of it. Sorry for your loss and having a car broken into is horrible too, especially for the kids. The puddle splashing looks fun! #LetKidsBeKids
What a full weekend! I know that I’m always jealous of my kiddos that they can bounce back from an action packed weekend way before I can…. maybe it’s because they get to go to bed early!
Marissa
#TwinklyTuesday
Sounds like a whirl wind of a week! Very sad about your husbands grandpa passing away. Sorry to hear/read that. Also the theft of your kids DVD players. How awful. I’m glad you was able to find some time to have some fun in amongst the chaos though.
#twinklytuesdays
So awful to have your car broken into, what a violation! At least they didn’t do any damage. Hope next week is a bit calmer for you!
#bestandworst
Look at your little one in those oversized waterproof pants – she’s adorable!
It’s so hard when you’re tired on top of everything else. But you just have to crack on when you have kids don’t you? Hang on in there and keep having fun times!
#whatevertheweather
Hope all is getting better hun and thanks for sharing with #bestandworst x
What a week of ups and downs. I’m sorry to hear about Hub’s Grandpa and the break in. I hope the weeks to come bring better times for you x #twinklytuesday
So many cool things going on! I love love love your daughter in her waterproofs- so cute! That is a total rip off. Stuff like that really gets me. As does being broken into. Very annoying. Sorry about your husbands Grandpa. Hope next week is more happy and less stressful x
#bestandworst
What a week! So sorry about Hubs granddad, your car and your phone. It does look like you had a good time at Thorpe Park, and the photos of LM playing the in the puddles are wonderful. Wellies definitely required 🙂 #thetruthabout
It sounds like you’ve all had a bit of a rough old time recently. Good on for you getting out the house and continuing with your planned trip, most people would have shut the door and stayed inside feeling worse than they already did. Sounds like you’ve made some great memories for your children. Chin up, things get better – life is a rollercoaster! #bestandworst
Oh no, I’m sorry for about your hubs grandpa and the break in too. So strange that there was no sign of how they got in. 🙁
Thorpe Park sounds fun, but not so great you have to pay full price tickets for not very many rides. O managed to go on one ride at a theme park on holiday last year, but not very keen on them. Hoping that smallest will enjoy it when he’s bigger, then he can come on with me! The fireworks are great, we loved seeing them too.
Thank you so much for linking up to #Whatevertheweather 🙂 x
So sorry about your downs Caroline… Losing family members is always so sad, no matter how long they lived… Death always feels so wrong 🙁 and such a nightmare with the car! I’m so sorry that you had such a horrible few days. Alton Towers sounds like fun, and Monkey looks like he had a whale of a time…nothing like children to cheer us up when we’re having a hard time. And those trousers! So cute LM! Thanks so much for linking up to #SavouringtheSeason … It’s good to be back!
Oh what a week. Definitely a rollercoaster. I’m sorry for your loss and the break in is awful. I don’t understand why people do that. I agree about the ticket price too, that’s really expensive if they can’t go on much still. I’m glad they had a nice time at the the theme park though and the firework night looks like so much fun. Those big waterproof trousers look so sweet. x
p.s. Thank you so much for linking to #whatevertheweather. x
Oh My what a rollercoaster of a week you have had. Hugs to Hubs, never an easy time, but a good family day out focusing on the youngest generation might just have been the best thing you could all have done, it sounds like a lovely day for the children despite the rain, though they must have been so tired with the bonfire party as well. I bet you all enjoyed a good night’s sleep at the end of it all! Thank you so much for sharing the whole day on Country Kids.
It’s one thing after another isn’t it? Sorry to hear about the break in — it’s such a horrible feeling. We literally got our car a month ago and whilst it hasn’t been broken into, some idiot driving a massive truck down out very narrow yesterday scratched it. Can’t believe it’s off to the garage next weekend when I’ve only just got the damn thing. At least he stopped though so I won’t be losing out. Otherwise it looked like you had a fab time at Thorpe Park and fireworks night. Kids always make things better don’t they? Thanks so much for linking up with #TwinklyTuesday
My condolences for your loss at this sad time.I hope the police catch whoever broke into your car, incidents like this make us feel so vulnerable.At least you had a good day with the kids and they enjoyed themselves, which counts for something.