Our first evening in Orlando

We stayed at the Ramada Gateway on West Irlo Bronson Highway. Although not the most expensive or the best that money could buy, TJ and myself loved every minute of being there.

Check in went smoothly and so did finding our corner room. Expecting the room to be smaller then a postage stamp like all the English hotels, we were shocked to find our room had 4 rooms. Bathroom, wash area, bedroom and a kitchen area which consisted of a mini fridge (with a freezer), coffee machine and storage along with a dining room table.

The room was awesome and soon after we found we'd opened the cases blew up the pool toys and went into the pool to relax for a short while. 

Before I realized it was almost 9.30pm and our first day in Orlando was almost over.

Quick stop at the local Dollar tree to get the basics ( plastic bowls, bottles of water, spoons and a carton of milk). Dollar tree is about a 8 minute drive away making it easy to get to and even better when Super Target and Publix is opposite and next door.

Publix next to buy some snacks for the parks and basic food to eat in the room - of course Chips Ahoy original and m&m's were on my must have list.

Back to the pool again to eat in the warm air and bed. 

Researching the best offers in Orlando Fl.

Only a few people know that I am planning my trip to Orlando in the near future. When I don't exactly know but with the rate of the pound to the dollar at the moment I am struggling with my budget.
I started this week by looking into companies that offer sign up sheets and discounts for eateries and shortlisted a few around the 192 area as this is where I'm intending on staying.  These are what I've come up with so far although if anyone else reading this blog can think of any more then please by all means let me know as I'm sure others would be interested. As a tip only sign up the week before you visit as the vouchers don't last more then two weeks.

Food

Blackangus.com - steak house

Ponderosaorlando.com - buffet steakhouse

Perkinsrestaurants.com - all day food and pie!

Restaurants.Ihop.com - pancakes and more.

Goldencorral.com - buffet

Cicis.com - buffet , Italian

Outback.com - seafood and steak house

Tgifridays.com - American style food

Locations.crackerbarrel.com - old country comfort food

Olivegarden.com - Italian

Flipperspizzeria.com - Pizza restaurant

fuddruckers.com - American style food

tonyromas.com/location/international-drive/ - ribs seafood steak

sweettomatoes.com -( im not entirely sure but have been told its nice food)

longhornsteakhouse.com/…/o…/orlando-international-drive/5502 - steakhouse

millersalehouse.com - American style food

brunos192.com - Italian

Shops

Walmart.com/store/5299/coupons - supermarket

mallatmillenia.com - millenia mall

Activities

Bonanzagolf.com - mini golf

Gatorland.com/public/specials-and-promotions/coupon/index.cfm  - gatorland $2.50 off admission 

wildfloridairboats.com/deals-for-humans/ - airboat rides discounts for all

Not forgetting Groupon Orlando which has some fantastic deals throughout the year.

If your visiting on hoiday ensure to sign up to for additional information on orlando area.

Ideas and guidance 

http://www.experiencekissimmee.com/

http://www.osc.org/

https://www.orlandoattractiontickets.co.uk/ 

Apps 

visitorlando.com

disney exprience 

Landry's

kids eat free

Seaworld 

kissimmee travel guide

There are probablly 100's more that I have not added so please feel free to share in the comments box.

when signing up instead of having the different marketing come through to your normal email account perhaps look into opening up another account just for your holiday?

Motissfont - national trust

Our trip this weekend took us an hour and a half to find. With the sat nav guiding us to the front door of Mottisfont.
Mottisfont is part of the National trust and can be found just outside Romsey in Hampshire.

The grounds are lovely with a secret garden hidden behind walls, a fast flowing river hidden far beyond the fields that belong to Mottisfont.
The breathtaking scenery as far as the eye can see is beautiful.

Bearing in mind that Saturday had been non stop rain all day and night, we still decided to venture to the grounds.

When walking in the grounds the first thing we saw was a young boy around the age of 12 covered head to toe in mud. He said he'd slipped over playing tag with his friends in one of the play area's.

Taking the dogs along the path next to the stream we came across a wooden play area that was surrounded by mud. This had to of been where the young boy had fallen. The trail was arranged in a circular pattern with various obstacles to scale and balance along, which would've been great fun for TJ if it hadn't of been so wet and slippery. Within five minutes he'd had enough of doing the splits on numerous obstacles.

The next stop was where the river splits and causes an over flow point. Now this area is fantastic for the kids. There's an area that feeds of so the kids can pump the water into a trough with different levels. Each level has a barrier which can be raised to allow water to pass through.

The river falls across a smooth stone based area in which if anyone is feeling brave can walk across before it approaches the small waterfall area.

Continuing around the grounds there is an old fishing Hut which has been perfectly preserved with decorations for the keenest of fishermen/women. The stables which is also where the bathrooms are located and a restaurant. Although the price are a little expensive it's no different to any other national trust site.

The main house has 3 different levels which can be accessed via different areas. Ground floor can be accessed through the side of the building. Around the at the maids entrance towards the back you can find a small door which leads upstairs to the first floor.
Ive not visited the second floor but have been told it is trickier to find as you need to ask a staff member to visit it because of the very small staircase. Here you can find an alligator in the bath tub. (A former member of the household once kept one in the tub, and so the tradition is kept going with this stuffed reptile).

Nothe Fort Weymouth

Entrance to Nothe Fort 

Monday the 26th of August was a busy day but for some reason this beautifully restored Fort was not busy. The heat outside was hot and sticky and yet walking around this place it seemed like a cool summers day.

When you enter the Fort it doesn't look like much but a large tunnel and lots of rooms leading off the central area.

View from the top of the Fort 

We first started looking around the top floor of the Victorian built labyrinth. With three floors and fantastic views of the surrounding coastal area we were stunned at the sights that could be seen from the viewing deck room.    

 

Each of the displays on every floor had numbers to help find where you are on the map. This came in handy when we reached the basement floor. In the basement there was a dark corridor where it's said to have a lot of paranormal activity the main one being an eerie whistler that can heard around the Fort.  

Each floor has various room with descriptions of what the rooms roll was back in each of the wars.

Feeling very lucky whilst looking around we stumbled across a room that had man made matchstick  aircraft carriers and planes. Each of the models were hand painted down to the smallest detail

Matchstick airplanes

Matchstick aircraft carriers 

One Day Holiday Challenge

Over the Summer holiday I was set the challenge by a Ocean Finance to stick to a strict budget of £100 for a day out or days out. This was named the 'One Day Holiday.' The reason the challenge has been set is to help show that its not needed to spend a fortune to have a great day out.

With the money I originally intended to go to Bristol International Balloon Fiesta. I filled my car up with fuel, brought snacks and hit the road. By the time we got to the balloon fiesta the hot air balloons had already taken off and landed so that scuffled our plans for the day.

The view from the road.

After taking a few moments and a google search for what points of interests were nearby we ended up heading to Bristol Zoo.

Bristol Zoo

Once at Bristol Zoo it felt like we were the only people there. We weren't, but it was very quiet till about lunchtime and then the crowds were flocking in. 

TJ and I started looking at the lion area, to begin with we didn't see the lions until we got to the second half of the enclosure. Once at the glass the lion was at the front of the enclosure observing all the people passing by and watching them closely.

So close to this one amazing animal.

 The next animal we went through the enclosure and looked at the flamingo's. 

Tj commented on the color of their wings and body as they were such a brilliant pink.

On to the Gorilla enclosure. Again it was amazing to be so close to these beautiful and powerful primates. When we arrived at the enclosure they had just been let back into the house for their breakfast. It was amazing to see the 32st Silverback Gorilla picking at bugs and what looked like large nuts off of the floor.

The Gorilla house has recently had £1 million over haul and the fantastic 180 degree views.

The penguin enclosure was beautiful, its been a long time since I've been up close to one but this little one definitely stole the thunder from all the rest. I named him Dudley although that's not his official zoo name. 

He was such a lovely character and even poked his beak through the cage allowing me to stroke his head and bill. I don't recommend doing this to anyone as they can have a nasty nip.

The above animals were just a select few in the zoo. Every enclosure was well kept and well looked after. 

The shots below are a select few of some animals within the zoo that I found interesting and one which I've not seen before.

This seal was yelling and posed for a photo!

A very rare TJ turtle 

Another rare human Joey

First time camping since I was 16...

Over the last few months I've been thinking of going camping with TJ and I finally bit the bullet. 

I looked at a few different campsites but ended up choosing one that wasn't to far from home in case our first camping trip went wrong.

I booked via the official camping and caravaning site which was easier then I thought.

http://www.campingandcaravanningclub.co.uk/campsites/uk/wiltshire/salisbury/salisbury?utm_source=google&utm_medium=organic&utm_content=Salisbury&utm_campaign=google_places

When I packed the car I just put in the basics of everything in the car.

• Blow up mattress
• Blanket
• 2 x sleeping bags 
• Small gas bottles 
• Cooker
• Small amount of food
• Electric cool box ( plugs in to car lighter)
• Spare change of clothes 
• Torches 
• Deck of cards 
• Tent 

The tent erected.

Once we arrived at the campsite the tent was erected in our pitch which was a lot bigger then I thought it would be. 

With the car parked next to the tent, we went for a walk down a path that took us to Salisbury town. The path ran past a housing estate and near a field where there's a river running around the edges and a play area in which the smaller kids were playing in. 

The walk took a total of 25 minutes and was along flat terrain and paths so it made quite a nice little stroll.

The shops near the play area were Morrisons, sports direct, Smyths toy store and a few other shops. After buying some bread rolls we headed back to the river where children were swimming and playing, so I let TJ paddle in the river to cool down for a few minutes before scooting his way back up to the campsite.

When we arrived back at the campsite there was 3 x color coordinated VW campers. 

Seeing the different tents and camper vans was amazing. and the mini community that is built once you pitch your tent.

There was two different bathroom blocks with one having washing facilities. These blocks were immaculate and with an entry code which was easy to remember to be used after 5pm it helped keep the campers happy. 

There was 4 shower cubicles, 6 toilet cubicles. and 6 sinks in one shower block. 

When we started cooking on the BBQ we were asked to use a few bricks underneath to stop the grass from being burnt which I could understand why as the grass was kept very nice.

The only downside about this campsite was the noise after the sun went down although the other neighbors didn't seem to mind to much. 

When the sun came up we were up and ready packing the tent and heading out before 8am. 

Acropats bath times made fun again..

I recently received these foams shapes and set to having a bath shortly after opening my parcel.

The set comes with 16 acropats in 4 different colors red, green, blue and yellow. 

Each acropat can be linked together to make different shapes.

 The little men can be built on land or water building blocks, cars and even a space ship. Let your imagination run wild when you build with them.

These special little foam figures float on the water and measure 70mm x 14mm x 84mm each.

We've built walls that float, aiming towers in the water and taken a small ball to aim in the middle (a point a goal 2 if it goes straight in).

These versatile little figures have been out in the garden, in the paddling pool, the bath and dry land.

Easy to clean and quick drying.

 A must have to entertain children and adults alike the imagination building bricks for land and water.

Acropats bath times made fun again..

I recently received these foams shapes and set to having a bath shortly after opening my parcel.

The set comes with 16 acropats in 4 different colors red, green, blue and yellow. 

Each acropat can be linked together to make different shapes.

 The little men can be built on land or water building blocks, cars and even a space ship. Let your imagination run wild when you build with them.

These special little foam figures float on the water and measure 70mm x 14mm x 84mm each.

We've built walls that float, aiming towers in the water and taken a small ball to aim in the middle (a point a goal 2 if it goes straight in).

These versatile little figures have been out in the garden, in the paddling pool, the bath and dry land.

Easy to clean and quick drying.

 A must have to entertain children and adults alike the imagination building bricks for land and water.

The play area in the garden..

Cutting the grass in my house is always left to me and lately it seems to be the only place I can get peace and quiet.

The Grass grows very quickly in my garden which it seems like we've been putting miracle grow on as yesterdays length was ridiculous and up to my knees in two weeks.

Once the grass was cut and tidied up the next task was to move TJ's play equipment so it could hidden by this amazing camouflage net.

TJ requested for the slide to be facing the fort, instead we had to face it in the opposite direction towards the back fence.

We then attached the rope with steps to the middle of the climbing frame so TJ could climb up and down the middle as well as swing around the inside of the frame.

From the side of the climbing frame TJ can climb on to the front deck of the fort without touching the floor. 

The next step in preparing his area in the garden is to add a basket ball post and a few paving slabs possibly 3x3 and a fence to keep the dogs out of his area.
As this happens I will post up and review but as I've been such a busy bee lately I'm sure it will be step by step.

I guess I'm the person that loves to take pictures of nature in the family....Why not?!

I love taking photos when I'm on a dog walk and I guess now that its spring weather I'm loving the plants more.

The plants in the pictures below are ones I've taken either in my back garden or along the woodland walk with my galaxy s7 which in my opinion takes fantastic pictures. 

Bumble Bees at work my little visitor

Whilst at work I had myself a little visitor or should I say two!

These little fellows were helping me weigh up some seed. It was so nice seeing these majestic creatures flying around me and then landing on my seed.

I believe this species is Psithyrus Vestalis otherwise known as the Cuckoo bumblebee.

I had this little guy land on the sleeve of my jumper where he must have sat relaxing for almost an hour where he landed.

I read somewhere that these little fella's can be quite a nasty little thing to other bee species and will work their magic at wiping out other queen bees.

There are only 6 cuckoo bumblebee species in the UK. The 2 main features that these bees have that set them apart from other bumblebees include: Back legs that are covered in hair, with no pollen baskets – you will never see a cuckoo bumblebee with pollen lumps on its legs. The wings that appear dusky or dark.

New dog identification tag ♡♡

My labrador has been needing a new id tag for months so I finally took the step and looked on ebay.
I finally came across one that matched her new collar perfectly.  

The price was a bargain too at £3.49 including postage and engraving on both sides of the tag. 

When you pay for the item you choose what you'd like printed it - remembering the more you have printed on it the smaller the writing.

Myself I choose to have four lines printed. Her name, two telephone numbers and scan me as by law all dogs have to be microchipped now. 

I ordered it from eBay and it arrived back in two days.  

Honestly I couldn't be happier with my choice of product. It's strong, durable, and exactly as it's described in the seller's page.

I've added the link below so you can look at the designs yourself as the seller has lots. 

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/280647028309?_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649&var=580026965310&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT

My picture doesn't do it justice but as it has personal information it had to be a little out of focus ... sorry !

Very few words needed today!

When looking around my scrapbooking desk, I found this :

Viva las vegas!

After a long and very stressful 2 weeks I'm finally off to Las Vegas.
The trip to the airport and check in went really quickly as for the plane journey 10 hours without much leg room (and I'm short) and the middle seat of three.
Have to hand it to virgin staff they were lovely throughout the flight. Very friendly, helpful and up for a quick talk whenever they could.
The inflight programmes were very good and it just so happened the book I've been reading the last few months was one of the inflight movies. So of course I finished my book off and watched the movie. Every second of the movie had me enthralled. And I fell in love again with the main rodeo rider. The movie by the way was "the last ride".
The flight continued and I watched "Spy" which while I found Jason Statham to be hilarious the rest of the movie wasn't that good.
On the descent to Las Vegas airport the sights of the Grand Canyon were fenominal and I could see it out of both windows. The views definitely made up for the boredom on the flight.

Thorpe park

Out of all the theme parks and places I've visited over the last few months, I have to admit that thorpe park has by far been the best.

From the rides to the (although rather quiet) atmosphere from other visitors. Our day was perfect, we got to the park when it opened and managed to get on several bigger roller coasters without any queue's.

That was until there was a power cut although I'm glad I was waiting in the queue for a ride. I'm glad I was not on it.

Colossus has got to be one of the most mind boggling rides with all the corkscrews near the end making the day and ride one of my favourite roller coasters.

I won't give to much away but yes definitely worth the money and yes I will be going back to thorpe park unlike Chessington, fun was had by all the family!

Lush, the confession!

Omg I'm in love with Lush's product called 'FUN' .

It comes in various colors and scents Orange, Blue, Pink, Green, Yellow and I recently found out they do a Gold bar.

The product has a 4 in 1 usage. It can be used as play dough, shampoo, bubbles and a soap. 

I have found the Pink smells of vanilla with a slight scent of caramel.

• Yellow smells like play dough.
• Blue smells of lavender.
• Green smells of lemon and lime.
• Orange smells well of oranges.

Tj's favourite is the Green each bath time he covers himself in Green 'fun' from head to toe and acts like an alien.

Myself I prefer the Yellow 'fun' before my bath I break a small bit off and make a small ball and place triangles around so it looks like the sun. before crumbling it up under the tap to give myself lots of bubbles.

Using the product to wash with leaves skin feeling soft and smelling fresh.

I have yet to wash my hair with it as my hair tends to not like anything except Aussie shampoos and conditioners. Tj on the other hand has had his washed and it leaves his hair all fluffy and smelling again fantastic,

I give this product 4 out of 5 a product that I will keep on buying for a long time from now.