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TT - S for all her vile behaviour has always been really good about taking herself off for a nap when tired. Never forget taking her on Scout Camp when she was about two and wondering where she'd gone about 4pm only to discover her tucked up in her sleeping bag for a nap!  She did it every day all week, just for 30 mins. She's quite sensible amongst the drama and hystrionics!

That's why we haven't been down to Vezere last couple of summers EF, thought of two days travelling in a car, although I think there is some kind of ferry that goes out of Newcastle?  We would love to go again though as we have a campsite we adore and have even considered hubby driving car down as far as Gatwick on his own or similar and kids and I flying down and meeting him there to continue rest of journey, cos lets be honest, we could probably hack it but two days in car with kids I think for all concerned!!

and yes, that sounds like hell!!! Our holiday travels always seemed an adventure - clearly days before H&S got on the ball ... load car up night before (laden roof rack), put seats down in dads shiny new ESTATE company car. Wake kids up at 2am and bundle them into car where they slept in sleeping bags stretched out in back - seatbelts???, wedged in by rest of kit ... wake kids up about 7am for breakfast in Happy Eater before heading off again and stopping at various beauty spots on way before eventually arriving in middle-of-nowhere cottage in Northumberland!! Sis and I loved it esp the sleeping bag bit.

Try Portsmouth to St Malo Caro. I think that can be overnight and is a lot closer to the dordogne than any other port. Might make the crossing a bit more expensive.

Reece used to do that too, well he still does. Takes himself off to bed when he has had enough. Lewis is amazing at fallng asleep where ever he is and you cannot get him to wakeup. I've seen me carry him in to the swimming pool from the car, lay him on a hard floor on a pile of jackets while older kids have done their coaching and then carry him back to the car and drive home without him waking! (And this was when he was 3). He will just fall asleep on the floor or wherever he is, under chairs at a school concert for example!

Been watching netball most of the day. Sophie was playing in the U13s tournament. It almost made me want to take up netball which I haven't attempted to play since school! Anyway they were runners up which was only decided on the last game as both teams had won all their games up to then.

Tomorrow I will try to phone and plea with Holmsley and see if they will let us stay (being a family of 8 so exceeding their 6 person rule!) But I have today booked 3 nights at Crystal Palace camp site before we head to the New Forest for a week. So would love to arrange a meet up Caro and anyone else in London! Sorry you will all be fed up hearing about our holiday plans!

Mine are pretty good at the 12 hour stretches we do up and down the UK now, although many of my friends express horror at the thought!

I have taken mine out of school for various family occasions. I've never lied about it though.  In England we were made to feel far worse about it than in Scotland. I'll never forget the boll*cking I got from the school secretary about taking J out of school for an extra day so we could look round schools up here ... she was really snooty about it all, like it was any of HER business!  Up here I've taken them from school a day early at end of summer term (but they just do games anyway), I've never done it in middle of term BUT we want to go skiing next year, not sure when yet but we don't get February half term (just a couple of inset days) so I can see we'll have to take a few days then. I do get why the schools come down so hard, but equally, while they are still that young and it's not interfering with school studies and exams ... well ...

Sounds like a plan Lotte - great to spend a few days near Crystal Palace too. My two are desperate for a trip or two into London, now old enough to appreciate it and esp after the olympics. They both want to go on the London Eye for starters.

Netball was my downfall at school. With absolutely no eye-ball coordination whatsoever and being the shortest in the class, I absolutely could not catch or throw and earned mass riddicule throughout my entire PE years. Funny really as we were practising throwing/catching the rugby ball in the garden other day, and with simple instruction from hubby on HOW you catch, job done, caught ball every time!