James and the Birthday Balloon
Last week we received our very first book to review called ‘James and the Birthday Balloon’ as soon as we opened it both girls immediately asked me to read it to them so that is…
View PostLast week we received our very first book to review called ‘James and the Birthday Balloon’ as soon as we opened it both girls immediately asked me to read it to them so that is…
View PostHalfway to Drayton Manor I did think about whether or not we should play an April fools trick but I couldn’t bring myself to do that to them. The drive took us about an hour and a half to get there from Peterborough. None of us has been before except for David and he last visited over 20 years ago so he could barely remember anyway. Leo has good and bad days with his legs so we always take his wheelchair with us on long days out especially theme parks and attractions.
As we arrived at the park we followed the road around to a huge field that the stewards were directing the cars to park on and we were directed to the disabled parking which is situated literally outside the entrance and had plenty of disabled spaces. The car park is free for all guests visiting the park.
By the time we got ourselves sorted wrapped up warm and into the park it was 11 am. Frustratingly, Leo forgot his coat, even after being told 4 times before we left the house. Luckily, he had a hoody on with a scarf and gloves. It was COLD, but at least it wasn’t raining.
We went straight to Guest services (located in a building that looks like a lighthouse)and with Leo’s Dla letter they gave Leo a wristband along with a carers card that allows you to get on to a ride with a lot less queuing via the exit of the ride, which had 10 uses per party. The 2 excluded from the card was The Haunting and the Ice Age 4D movie. They can also measure your children’s height so you can plan your day better, and they also have maps for the park and cash machines. The maps do not have the ride heights on them, but the website has a handy link to look at all rides with height requirements within a single list.
Emily had been asking to go on the unicorn ride, by which she meant the carousel, so we headed there next. The queue wasn’t busy so we joined it normally. Leo has never really liked riding the horses on the carousels, so he just sits in the sleigh and after hours of Em going on about this ride she freaked out and wanted to get off. I managed to keep her on and she enjoyed it in the end.
By this point it was getting on for 11:45am, so we found ourselves a table and sat down to eat the awesome picnic I had packed. Then David took the picnic bag back to the car so we didn’t have to lug it around. Being a family of 5, buying food and drink from theme parks can get really pricey so we always pack a picnic and extra bottles of drink.
I thought the park was going to be absolutely massive but I was pleasantly surprised that it wasn’t, which made it very manageable for little legs. The park is split into three main areas; Thomas Land for little children, ideal for Emily and younger (but Lydia and Leo really enjoyed it too). Family Zone, which was perfect for slightly bigger children, Lydia and up (as on some rides Emily was too little) and Thrill Zone, aimed at children 1.2m and higher, with some of the more extreme rides being a minimum of 1.4m. We covered most of it and got on to most of the rides – at least those that the children wanted to get on. David and I took it in turns going on rides with Leo, so the other one can watch the girls. Lydia wanted to go on everything but couldn’t because of safety height restrictions, which is understandable (although she didn’t think so) and there was still plenty more for her to enjoy.
We went on :
The children really enjoyed all of the rides they went on and even Leo, bless him, who got dragged on to some of the smaller rides with Lydia, came off of them with a big smile on his face. Lydia loved every ride she went on, although she is particularly fond of rollercoasters. The older boys (which definitely includes David) really enjoyed the Shockwave, although some of Thrill rides were closed for maintenance, so they could not try them all. They even made sure there was enough time to go on it again before the end of the day. The Apocolypse was also a lot of fun, although David wouldn’t necessarily agree. Although, for a man who doesn’t like heights he went up the 54m, enjoyed the view before dropping like a brick while screaming like a girl (his words, not mine). I have to say though, the plummet is exhilarating and you cannot help but scream so he is let off… just.
There are games situated around the park where you can win GIANT plush goodies through various carnival style ball games. One such game had the plush figures from Monster Family, which my girls are obsessed with at the moment and as soon as they saw Emma Wishbone that was it, “Daddy, please win me an Emma Wishbone. PLEASE!!!” Which he did, not just once, but twice. They hadn’t put them down all day and have even gone bed with them. Games are charged at £3 for one go, or £5 for two.
Towards the end of the day, it was getting colder and the children started to struggle. Milly really wanted to go see the animals at the Zoo. YES, I did not know Drayton Manor had a Zoo. We went to see the reptiles first so that we could warm up and the kids loved seeing all the different types of snakes, frogs, turtles, iguanas and we even saw two crocodiles.
We also saw a tiger closer than I have ever seen one before, a lynx, lots of different monkeys, meerkats, reindeers, lemurs, parrots and then by this point we were so cold so we started to head back. We were gutted we didn’t get to see the rest of the animals but we needed to get in the warm. It gives us another reason to come back so we can finish looking at the zoo and when you visit, we recommend you plan in the visit to the zoo as it was quite large with a lot to see.
We had also promised the Knight Tribe doughnuts and David had promised Leo that they would go on Shockwave one last time. Quick stop to get doughnuts, and for David to act silly (again), then David went with Leo for the last ride and the girls and I headed to the arcade to hit up the 2p machines whilst we waited.
We are so glad we spent our Easter at Drayton Manor and we have had such a fantastic experience. There is so much to do there for everyone, be it animals, rides, games or arcades. There were also areas that were not open that when it is warmer we would love to try. The children had a fantastic time and have already requested that Drayton Manor is considered for another outing, something we will definitely do.
I have made a short video of my family enjoying Drayton Manor, I hope you like it 🙂
Botox in 3 areas ( Forehead, frown lines and crows feet), 1ml of Revolax lip filler.
The Doctor:
Dr Priyantha Liyanage
Qualified in 2003 as a medical doctor, Priyantha (Pri) has over 15 years of experience as a medical doctor and has worked in a variety of medical specialities. He has a special interest in aesthetic medicine and trained in aesthetics by leading aesthetic training institutions in the UK. He is fully registered with a licence to practice with the General Medical Council (GMC) who regulates all doctors in the UK. Together with his wide experience as a medical doctor, he is able to offer a variety of aesthetic services to a high standard and you can be assured you are in safe hands. He also currently works part-time for the Cambridgeshire Community Services NHS Trust.
I also logged on to the GMC website to check he was definitely on there, and he is.
33 Stanton Square
Hampton Hargate
Peterborough
PE7 8BB
(free easy parking available)
01733 590102
Monday-Saturday
9am-8pm ( By appointment only)
I had my consultation on the same day as my treatment. Dr Pri asked me what look I would like to achieve from lip fillers, subtle or fuller and what areas I wanted to have treated with Botox.
He handed me a medical/consent form to fill out to make sure there was no contraindication and then went over the form with me. He then explained to me the procedures and what outcome to expect. Regarding my botox, he advised me which areas he could improve and which areas he couldn’t, for example, the frontalis muscle that elevates the forehead and eyebrows; if you inject the frontalis muscle close to your eyes it can result in brow drop. Therefore, it is difficult to treat wrinkles just above the eyebrow in the forehead.
I was advised that the Botox would take up to 2 weeks to see full effects and then I would need an appointment 2 weeks later for a checkup and possible top up if needed.
Once I was happy with everything, I had some ‘before’ photos taken by Dr Pri’s wife Priya and then I laid back on the chair to get my forehead marked up ready for treatment.
By this time I was getting a little nervous as I had never had needles injected into my head before, but I can confirm that it didn’t hurt a single bit. I was so surprised and amazed at how painless it was. After every injection, Priya held ice on the injection sites to reduce bruising and swelling.
Next, it was lip filler time and this was what I was most excited about as the results from these are instant. The lip filler product used is called Revolax and I did do some research of my own on this brand before deciding to go ahead. Revolax product contains lidocaine, an anaesthetic that minimises pain during injection. However, even though I had the numbing cream on my lips prior, I did find it to sting a bit as the needle goes into your lip. Nothing that I couldn’t handle and to be honest I didn’t care as I wanted fuller lips so I was prepared for it.
When Dr Pri finished my treatment, he passed me the mirror to have a look and I could not believe that these were my lips. They looked plump and symmetrical and for the second time in my life (first time being after my Jaw was corrected) I looked at my face thinking YES this is how I am supposed to look.
I had minimal bruising and swelling on my lips and botoxed areas thanks to the lovely Priya. I was expecting to be walking around looking bruised with duck lips for a few days, but fortunately that was not the case, Phew.
I wasn’t too bothered about the Botox at this point in time as, like I said before, I wasn’t going to see instant results like I did with my lips. However, over the next week, my god did I see the results of my forehead changing before my very eyes. I’m on day 12 post Botox and I am so blooming happy with my face and how refreshed and youthful I look again.
After I had finished my procedures, I had my after photos taken and my aftercare explained to me as well as a copy given to me on each treatment to take home and I also booked in for my 2 week check up.
Now, I know many of you are thinking “You’re only 30 so why on earth would you get Botox?” Well, after having my upper jaw surgery last year, it has pushed my face up giving me more indented crows feet, frown lines and forehead lines, so when I smiled I felt even more self-conscious. It was all I could see when I looked into the mirror so I gave it a go and I don’t regret it at all.
I have had so many inbox messages and women coming up to me who know all about these non-surgical procedures I have had done, telling me how good and fresh-faced I look and asking where I went, as they really want it too. Women I thought never in a million years would they be interested in Botox and lip fillers. My advice is to TRY IT, even if it’s only the once and I am confident that you that you will LOVE IT and have no regrets.
I am so happy that my first experience of botox (and more to come) was with the Hampton Aesthetic Clinic. From start to finish they have their client’s best interests at heart and are very passionate in what they do. I have been and will continue to recommend these to anyone who has an interest in getting fillers and Botox. My experience was so pleasant and professional that I could not be happier with them and my results. I came away smiling and have not stopped smiling since.
Thank you so much Dr Pri and Priya
*** I received 1ml of lip fillers in return for an honest review, I paid for my Botox***
Is your child is going up to secondary school and you are on the lookout for a smartphone that won’t break the bank?
I can honestly recommend this phone, to see why please, read on.
The Handset doesn’t weigh much (156g to be precise) It is black on the front and the back is grey. You can take the battery out if you ever needed to replace it or if you just wanted a spare battery to keep fully charged as a backup. The battery has fast charge technology which allows the phone more power and thus charges batteries in devices faster than standard USB rates allow. I would say the battery is good considering what Leo uses it for the most, which is playing games.
It has 8GB of storage however you can add up to 32gb when using a micro SD card.
It also uses Android android os, v6.0 (marshmallow) as its operating system, which I have set up with my Gmail account so I can check his search history.
The phone also has a front and rear camera with LED flash for all those must-have selfies. The camera is good, not the best, but adequate for the price of the phone and for what Leo would use it for anyway and let’s face facts if he loses it, it isn’t going to break the bank to replace. You can also choose a face mask when you take a photo similar to snap chat however these are just fun face masks.
There is a theme centre app where you choose a wide range of free themes and wallpapers to change the appearance that comes already installed on the device as well as YouTube and Instagram, however, me and Leo have agreed his not allowed an account just yet for Instagram.
If you are looking for an affordable smartphone or if you are looking for a phone for your older child but don’t want to pay out of the nose for one, then I can highly recommend the Alcatel U5 4G mobile.
It has all the features you need and you can add more storage if you wanted to. It is a sim only phone so they could earn pocket money to top it up themselves. They can take lots of awesome selfies using the fun face masks, play games, watch Youtube, listen to music and browse the internet.
***I was sent this product in return for an honest review***
Today daddy decided he wanted to bake with Milly and I was craving chocolate so they made brownies using Dr Oetker products we were sent.
These turned out perfect and even though David made me wait until the next day to try it, It was worth the wait. Come and check out the other Baking recipes we have tried so far. Click here