Our perfect holiday #MarkWarnerMum

I have always wanted to travel. I visited Thailand when I was 18 and loved it. During one amazing day snorkeling at An Thong National Marine Park, which is without a doubt one of, if not the most beautiful place on Earth, I decided I needed to see more of the World. It was one of the reasons I trained as a teacher after finishing my Psychology degree. The plan was to teach in different parts of the World and travel at the same time. I’m happiest in the sun, bare feet or flip flops and by the ocean, the sea breeze on my face. Northampton just wasn’t doing it for me. I started my teacher training and even booked a ticket to the teaching abroad show when life threw me a curve ball. One that I wouldn’t change for the world now, but one that never the less made me have to put my travelling plans on hold. 8 years later and I have another two of the little curve balls making my travelling plans seem like another lifetime. 

I still dream of travelling and introducing my children to different places, different cultures and different experiences. We have been as far as Europe with them unless you count a business trip I sneaked on to America, LA and Laguna with James when I was pregnant with Ava. I find it hard to plan for a holiday now with the varying ages of 8, 5 and 15 months. As those of you with children know, it’s not really a holiday unless the children are happy. So here are 5 things that would now make up my perfect holiday.

  1. Happy kids. As I said above happy kids mean happy parents which ultimately means a good holiday. Somewhere that has enough activities to keep the 5 and 8 year old happy. Then things we could do with the toddler or the toddler could do without us. It would have to be somewhere we were happy leaving her with well qualified staff. The ability to have a few hours off Mummy and Daddy duty would be amazing. Babysitters in the evening meaning we could go for a meal and not have to quietly shuffle around the hotel room would be an added bonus. Having child and toddler items provided for us and kid friendly accommodation is also pretty high up our list. 

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  1. Culture. Part of a holiday for me is going somewhere different. I like to be able to explore where I am, see new sights and experience new things. I also think it’s really important for children to experience these things too so they learn to be tolerant and enjoy differences.

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  1. Adventure. As much as I love relaxing (more on that in a minute) I also love being able to do things that I wouldn’t normally be able to do. I’ve recently decided to learn to Snowboard as James already does and its something I’ve always wanted to do. The boys love the snow and so does Ava. 
 

First time seeing snow! #snow #firstsnow #love #cute #366DaysofPositive #toddler #igtoddler #toddlerlife #mummyblogger #pbloggers

A video posted by MummyandMonkeys (@mummyandmonkeys) on

 

When we took the boys sledging they loved it!

I’ve been known to para-glide and I would love some more surfing lessons. The boys including James would enjoy any sporting activities that were on offer. James is a Pro Golfer so a golf course would be popular. For Ava watching her experience new things with her natural sense of adventure is a must. 

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Kyle hanging from a branch very high up after climbing to the top of the tree! #treeclimbing #nofear #bluestoneblogger #bluestonewales #bluestonebloggers A photo posted by MummyandMonkeys (@mummyandmonkeys) on

  1. Relaxation. An important part of a holiday for me is some time to recharge. To spend quality time together without the stresses of everyday life. Playing games, swimming together and having the time to just watch and be with your children. 

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  1. Food. When I’m on holiday I spend time every day thinking about and planning our evening meal. I like to be able to put on a nice outfit and sit somewhere nice, glass of wine in hand watching the sunset and enjoying food that I haven’t cooked. I also like to be able to try out new dishes and meals that I wouldn’t usually have at home. We don’t eat out that often so it’s a real treat for us all. Somewhere that can cater for Ava’s allergies without us having to worry would be amazing. 

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Mark Warner are looking for ambassador families to be part of #MarkWarnerMum and #MarkWarnerDad. Their amazing holiday resorts would definitely tick off all 5 things on my dream holiday list. I want travelling to become a bigger part of my life again. It would be a dream to do this with my children,  to be able to have new experiences and explore the World with them.

****This is my entry to become a #MarkWarnerMum for 2016. Wish us luck****

36 responses to “Our perfect holiday #MarkWarnerMum”

  1. These are really gorgeous photos Eilidh! Good luck lovely x

    • MummyandMonkeys says:

      Thank Sian 🙂 It would be amazing if we were x

  2. All these holiday posts are making me miss travelling too! The first time we took our daughter on a long-distance flight was when she was barely two months old. We flew back to the Philippines where I’m from to visit family. When she just turned 1, we did a road trip from Cornwall to Scotland. Did another one before she was of school age, this time it was France and Belgium. Hopefully, we’ll be able to do another road-trip soon. The plan is to visit family in the States and do a road-trip there. That is, if we’re able to save enough! 😉

    • MummyandMonkeys says:

      Wow the road trip America would be amazing. We drive down the old coast route from LA to Laguna when we were there. Planning a trip to possible New York with Ava which could be interesting. xx

  3. Laura says:

    I think you’ve hit on all the great points for a family holiday. Brilliant photos too! Good luck with your entry xx

  4. Such gorgeous pictures of special family memories. Good luck with the competition huni x

    • MummyandMonkeys says:

      Thank you, I had a hard job choosing my favourite photos x

  5. Leah Miller says:

    I love this post, and the stunning photos, it actually makes me want to go on holiday, which I haven’t done for 10 years! Wishing you lots of luck with the competition xxx

    • MummyandMonkeys says:

      Aww Leah, 10 years that is a long time. Thank you x

  6. Beautiful photos Eilidh, your perfect holiday sounds a lot like mine would! Unfortunately my husband has no interest in ever leaving the UK so I won’t be able to travel, would love to though! Good luck in your hopes of becoming a Mark Warner Mum!

    • MummyandMonkeys says:

      Oh no could you not persuade him? Thank you x

  7. Emma T says:

    I’m so jealous of everyone’s beautiful and interesting holidays. Good luck with your entry

    • MummyandMonkeys says:

      Thanks Emma, a few of those pics were from Devon, not exotic or anything just a nice family holiday x

  8. Kerry norris says:

    Good luck with the entry. That business trip sounded fab. Well done for sneaking on that lol. We love trying food in new places too x

    • MummyandMonkeys says:

      I know it was good haha! Wish I could sneak on more. x

  9. Gorgeous pictures. This is definitely my perfect holiday. Good luck x

    • MummyandMonkeys says:

      Thank you, it was hard to choose from all the holiday photos that I have. x

  10. Life Loving says:

    A family holiday is such a special time. Good luck!

    Sally @ Life Loving
    #PickNmix

  11. Emma says:

    Good luck with your entry. Fab photos too 🙂 #picknmix

  12. Tammymum says:

    They are some really love photos and I can so relate to so much of this post. Good luck with your entry! #PicknMix

  13. Kirsty says:

    Good luck entering! I just wrote a post about holidays and why I wont be going abroad with my 18 month old until he is older to understand, and when it becomes a little bit easier with him not being in the baby stage. I think it is so important to show them the world, and see new things though. #picknmix

  14. Good luck with your entry! Those photos are amazing! #Picknmix

  15. wendy says:

    You have made me really want to go on holiday now! I love all your stunning pictures and your perfect family holiday really does sound perfect. Good luck, fingers crossed for you xx #picknmix

  16. Best of luck! I think we could all do with a holiday! Travel has never really been part of our lives and now we have our little “curve ball” too I doubt that we will see much of the world for a few years. Like you though I would love to travel one day #PicknMix

  17. Good luck with your entry! I love that photo of Ava at the beach – the look of delight! x #picknmix

  18. Lovely post, making me long for sunny shores. I’ve entered too, although I expect my entry will present Mark Warner with a bit of a conundrum. Hoping it’s one they can solve!

  19. Good luck! I don’t know what their criteria are, but this looks like a fantastic entry to me. Great pics

  20. Best of luck to you! I hope you are accepted. What an amazing opportunity it would be to travel as a family & blog about it! Your photos are so stunning, I’m dying to go on holiday now!! Thanks so much for hosting pick n mix. xx

  21. Good luck with your entry. Our holiday wishlist would pretty much be identical. Especially the relaxation element at the moment!! Lovely collection of memories shared x

  22. Mum in Brum says:

    I definitely agree that happy kids make a happy holiday. We’ve been lucky to go abroad a couple of times since we had Taylor and the last time was a bit of a nightmare as she was such a grump! Great entry and fab photos – good luck! xx #picknmix

  23. What a perfect family to be ambassadors for Mark Warner! Good luck and i love the pictures too 🙂 #picknmix

  24. Good luck Eilidh, stunning photos and I hope you get accepted 🙂

    Stevie xx

  25. Rachel says:

    Good luck! Beautiful happy photos #picknmix xx

  26. Good luck with your entry. I agree, happy children, yummy food, definitely relaxation but some adventure and culture all make for a totally fabulous holiday #picknmix

  27. Maria says:

    Stunning photos! This post makes me want to book a holiday abroad right now! Thankfully we are off to Devon for a week over the Easter holidays so not too long to wait.

    Best of luck with the MW Ambassador I think I you’ve summer up what most of us would love when going on a family holiday! #PicknMix

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