Packing for a holiday is supposed to be fun, but I dropped a clanger this time. We were going to Butlins in Bognor over the Easter break and we’d decided to have 2 days in the Cotswolds beforehand, so I had two bags to pack for me and the children. One to take to the Cotswolds, and one to take to Butlins. Hubby was working so it was just me and the kids, and I thought I was pretty organised.
I remembered all the swimming stuff, I packed the kids DS consoles for the journey, I had enough clothes for each of us, but when we got to Butlins, it seems I’d not packed my 9 year old daughter’s knickers! After consoling her (because it really is the end of the world to have no knickers when you are nine!) I promised to buy her some more pants on the resort, but for now she’d have to ‘go commando!’
On our first day, we wanted to go to the beach, so I put her in a swimsuit and dress – she didn’t need knickers for the beach! So she was happy enough, she put on her dress and her favourite fake fur coat and we headed out to meet Grandma & Grandad at the beach.
My mum and I got a blanket out so we could watch the kids running around, and I was telling the story of how I’d forgotten to pack knickers. Just then, my daughter appeared on the blanket looking so cute in her fluffy fake fur coat, and my mum just said “All fur coat and no knickers!” We fell about laughing but my daughter wasn’t impressed. It was just so appropriate, one of those funny moments that I know I will remember and laugh about forever, but I’m not sure my daughter will want to share the joke!
Apart from ‘knicker-gate’, we all had a fabulous time away. I recorded a video which starts in the restaurant one morning when we had a ‘Character breakfast’ with Billy Bear and Bonnie, and ends in our room where the kids want to show you round. You will see my eldest in said fake fur coat on the video. She ended up wearing her swimwear all week as we couldn’t get hold of knickers, but when we got home we discovered that I hadn’t forgotten the knickers after all- I’d just packed them in the Cotswolds bag! Doh!
I have to say that you can see how nice the Butlins resort is from my video, but what it can’t show you is what effect the week away had on all of us. Before the holiday we were so ready for a getaway- work, school and the daily juggle build up and you get to a stage where you need a rest, so this little anecdote describes brilliantly how we unwound on our break.
Upon arriving at the Ocean Hotel at Bognor, we checked in then took the lift to our rooms. The lifts are ‘disco lifts’. It’s a nice touch, a bit different, but what they are is lifts with blue lighting and popular disco music belting out as you ride. On our way to the rooms after several hours travelling in the car, we were all ready to dump the bags and eat, and my mum said crankilly
“Oh, why is there music in the lifts? We never get any peace. It would be nice to just have it quiet for a bl***y change!”
Four days later on our way downstairs in the lift to dinner, she was doing the ‘YMCA’ and singing along with the lift!
Disclosure: Thank you Butlins for our 4 night stay at the Bognor resort. I am a Butlins Mum Ambassador for 2011-2012 so I got to stay free of charge. All opinions in this post are not affected by the fact that we got a free holiday- knickergate really did happen as well as ‘Grandma’ doing the YMCA!
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[...] …PS: If you want a laugh about something I forgot to pack last time I was at Butlins, read my post from last year “All Fur Coat & No Knickers!” [...]