Holiday Plans for 2016

As the cold February winds blow over us showing no sign of Spring, I let my mind float away to warmer climates. It's not hard to in-vision myself on the sandy Greek shores of Chania, where the entire family will be jetting off to in just a few short months for a week of all inclusive indulgence, and more importantly...Sun!

I live for warmer days and to say that I am ready to leave the colder months far behind are the ultimate understatement. I have one very excited Four year old on my hands, and the usual excitement of jetting away for a week is only stronger because we are going on the biggest family holiday in the history of our family holiday's. The family today is full to bursting, and I don't say that lightly, being one of 4 children, 3 of whom are now grown up and have partners and families of their own... We have done a wonderful job of adding partners and children to the family over the years. The holiday will be Grandparents, Parents, Children, Grandchildren and of course the partners... In sum of around 10 plus people.

You might have read about us in The Guardian back in September... If you didn't...Get ready to meet my crazy family! This holiday is only possible though because of my Father, Leo's Grandad. Completely unexpectedly he has taken it upon himself to take the entire brood away. He has treated the family to a week that quite simply would never have been possible without his generosity, because this year it would have been a financial burden on me to afford a weeks holiday abroad without his help.

I am so looking forward to a week with my little man, we are going to squeeze so much into those 7 days, and most importantly we are going to get some much needed quality time. We are booked to go in the half term holiday, and with Leo at school now this was an essential influence over the dates we chose, because we all know how hard it is to get children out of school these days. Gone are the days that you can simply specify the dates that you want to book your child out of school, it was made perfectly clear before Leo even started at the school that any requested leave of absence would not be authorized, which of course meant that it would be a black mark against mine and Leo's names.

The week will be spent in and out of the pool, it will be spent on the beach, where we will dig holes and make sand castles while chasing the surf. It will be spent under the sun and laughing, there will be so many giggles, and those memories I make with that beautiful boy of mine will be treasured close to my heart, because he is only like this once. He is growing up, and life is changing all of the time. 

A week of no school runs, no commitments, no place to be. Just a week of silliness, my beautiful boy and a beautiful destination to be explored and enjoyed. 

It's just 7 days, and ultimately we have to return to the real world and everything that is associated with it, but for those 7 days we can completely switch off, and close the door on the rest of the world.

For those 7 days nothing else matters.