soapdragon Posted May 31, 2018 Share Posted May 31, 2018 Please excuse me - I am about to whinge and offload onto my lovely (and, I am sure, very understanding), Omlet forum friends! We are currently on Gower in a self catering cottage for the half term week. This is our family holiday for the year apart from a few odd days away or out and we are, in the main, enjoying it. However, i am feeling somewhat underwhelmed; as I type the washing machine is chuntering away, the supper is marinating and I am having visions of a hotel with a spa and cocktailsl!!!!!! ES was cliff hopping at Bracelet Bay this afternoon and fell, gash to the hand. OH panic.......no, don't worry, I have a first aid kit in the beach bag. I do get so fed up with being asked all the time where this, that or the other is..........I get teased for a few weeks before we go as I am stressy about making sure everything we are likely to need is packed but, when the chips are down, if I havn't packed it, thought about it, organised it then I feel a failure if something has slipped my mind or I have left something off the Tesco order - thank goodness for them!!! Why do we women/mums put ourselves under this pressure? Or is it just me? I have a wonderful friend, a single parent, who has three children on the Autistic spectrum, and her take on the whole holiday thing is that it is 'just parenting in a different place'. Sorry, just off to open the wine! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grandmashazzie Posted June 1, 2018 Share Posted June 1, 2018 Parenting in a different place is a good description. We take lads on few touring caravan holidays each year, but for the mother it is cooking and cleaning in a confined space and paying a fortune to get a wash done. That is why I like to treat ourselves to an all inclusive somewhere hot in Feb for that half term. I just love turning up and eating breakfast,lunch and dinner that somebody else has made and someone else does the dishes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
soapdragon Posted June 1, 2018 Author Share Posted June 1, 2018 When we do occasionally go out to eat and I am asked what I'd like my response is 'if I havn't had to write it on a list, walk round the supermarket picking it up, unpack it from the car, take it home, unpack it, store it, cook it and clear it up then I really don't mind!!!' 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GrannyTrish Posted June 1, 2018 Share Posted June 1, 2018 Yes, self-catering is a busman's holiday for us women. Give me a hotel, spa and cocktails anyday! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mullethunter Posted June 1, 2018 Share Posted June 1, 2018 It’s not even just when you have children. OH and I go on a fishing holiday to a lovely little cottage in Ireland most years. After the third year I put my foot down and said I’m not going unless we eat out or take away at least 4 nights out of the 7. OH doesn’t like eating out, but also doesn’t like cooking every night! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alis girls Posted June 1, 2018 Share Posted June 1, 2018 Oh I feel your pain. Did self catering for years - now we do full or half board. We are all off to Spain - even ES who is 23 and paying for himself now hes got a job which pays big bucks. YS 17 is coming as wont leave him alone in house. Not sure what I would come back too. We used to take everything but the kitchen sink. Men are hopeless at finding stuff. Its obvious to me that pants and socks go in same drawer but I still get " muuuuuuuuuuuuuummmm have I got any pants" "no son you can go commando" ooh the sarcasm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
patsylabrador Posted June 1, 2018 Share Posted June 1, 2018 We did all that, camping and stuff when the kids were little. We had four kids in a four year period so they were all very close in age. This worked to our advantage on things like camping holidays because they all wanted to do the same thing. OH likes being in charge so I used to 'let' him organise all the stuff that needs organising which left me to do the very important 'playing with the kids' which as they were all book lovers generally involved lying on blankets in the sun with books. Now we are just two, we load up the camper van with loads of necessities and drive to the nicest hotel we can find! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
patsylabrador Posted June 2, 2018 Share Posted June 2, 2018 The thing I was going to say and got distracted is that your kids will have lovely, cosy memories. I think it's worth it long term even though it just feels like harder work than when you're just at home. Trudging across to campsite loos at 2am with sick kids didn't seem much fun at the time but of course they don't remember that and just have memories of the good stuff. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Patricia W Posted June 2, 2018 Share Posted June 2, 2018 (edited) It’s a busman’s holiday alright, but I wouldnt swap the freedom of self catering for hotels. Especially with children. In my job, I had my fill of hotels. The only good thing as far as I’m concerned is that 6 years after I retired, we’re still using the little bottles of shampoo etc I collected as we camp! We do go out to eat quite often now when we’re away, but as we have an 18 month old German Shepherd that’s quite an adventure! Unfortunately, we can’t train her to sit quietly under the table in restaurants when we’re at home as it’s not allowed in England, so we have to train her to be like the other continental dogs when we are here! So, we judge the success of the evening by how many sausages we get through, bribing her to be still! And yes, I still do the packing and apparently am the only one who knows where anything is! Edited June 2, 2018 by Patricia W Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lewis Posted June 2, 2018 Share Posted June 2, 2018 I won't join in with the man bashing but I agree with Patricia about dogs under tables. Over here dogs are allowed in most cafes and bars and they bring water bowls over for us, they settle quickly and people don't (always) come over to fuss and get them excited like they would at home as it's not a novelty. We sit out on the main street a lot and there are always dogs under tables - one thing I'll miss when I'm back home! Dad would often pick us up from school on a Friday and drive straight to Cornwall (a good 250 miles) for a weekend of camping/surfing. Mom stayed at home as she still refuses to sleep in a tent and was doing her Masters at the time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Patricia W Posted June 3, 2018 Share Posted June 3, 2018 Actually, we’ve got one restaurant in Abingdon which has just opened and DOES let dogs in. It’s Pablo’s Lounge. So, I’ll be taking her there when we get back. And there are a few dog friendly pubs. But it’s the exception not the rule. I’m with your Mum on the tent, Lewis. Especially in England. I only ever camp in a Camper or a Caravan! I camp in a tent for one night each way when we’re driving to and from Spain, but not if it’s less than 15 degrees and not in torrential rain. And we have a fan heater with us! Always. Needless to say, the children always had tents. They were and are, hardier than me. As for the man bashing, I have to say that my sons and son-in-law are very different to my husband. They are the main cooks and do at least their equal share of childcare. Must be the way I brought them up! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
soapdragon Posted June 3, 2018 Author Share Posted June 3, 2018 It's nurture, Patricia! I make a point of asking my boys to do things or to help me and then follow up with a little light nagging. They are just beginning to get the hang of it! However, OH wasn't brought up this way and I know there is no point in asking him to do/organise stuff as he'd just not have a clue; if he did the Tesco order we'd live on biscuits and Old Speckled Hen for the week. He went straight from living at home to living with me and never had to fend for himself and I think that's the key! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Dogmother Posted June 3, 2018 Share Posted June 3, 2018 I can see some points here, but not others: i am one of the world's organisers, so am always the one to make sure that we have everything. I play to others' strengths though, and give them jobs they can get stuck into. Having said that, I did used to get sick of always being the one to organise everything....... The one time that I left my ex to organise the accommodation on a rafting trip, we ended up sleeping in the flipping car! After a lifetime of holidays in self-catering as a single parent, I got a bit fed up of the drudge of still doing the chores, just in a different place. We had some good memories though We are lucky nowadays that my dad takes us away on a lovely all inclusive once a year 'so that we get a proper holiday', so I can't complain. ALTHOUGH! Madam is the most unorganised person around and inevitably will have forgotten most of her stuff, this usually includes underwear of the clean variety. She also doesn't see the need to take a medical kit away, yet is always the reason that we need one GIVE ME STRENGTH Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
