Summer in Provence

Excuse me while I contradict myself and post some holiday photos and a review of our recent sojourn in Provence. I know my last post took a brutally honest look at family holidays, but like everything in life, with the rough comes the smooth, and with the passing of a few weeks any stressy moments you probably encountered during your fortnight in the sun are magically erased, leaving a trail of wonderful memories in their wake. How else would anyone get through the mundanity of everyday life, if we were unable to recall those sun-drenched - the weather is ALWAYS sunny in our memories - rather romanticised images from time to time?

With that in mind, I'm happy to forget the head injury and the train line that ran next to our campsite and just remember the good bits. Because there were lots of those...

Where we stayed

La Ciotat

While I can't recommend the Eurocamp site we stayed at this time around, I can recommend the area around La Ciotat, a bustling town located about an hour from Marseilles airport. Being based here ticked a lot of boxes - proximity to a great beach (Les Lecques at St Cyr-sur-Mer) and access to some beautiful countryside and towns. A short transfer time from the airport is always a bonus in my mind and starts holidays off on the right footing. It was also great to be able to travel from our home airport which runs the Marseilles route via EasyJet.

Les Leques Beach

The Beaches

The nearest beach, Les Lecques, is perfect for families. It's big, sandy and has plenty of facilities close to hand, including nice cafes and restaurants, toilets and beach shops. I enjoyed not having to fight for beach space for a change, and I liked the very French ambience of this resort. It's very much geared towards French families and feels authentic. The sea can get choppy in this part of France (due to the mistral winds which can whip up quite frequently) but on a calm day it's perfect for children, with its shallow and clear waters.

Another beach at St Cyr-sur-Mer

Several watersports companies offer boat, surf and kayak activities - we saw kids enjoying surf school but our two opted to take to the water on a kayak, a great way to pass a morning on the beach.

There are numerous other beaches in the region, which is blessed with some truly stunning, unspoilt coastline. A boat ride around the Calanques is a must do and gives you peek into the dramatic coves that characterise the area around Marseilles. Some of the Calanques are accessible on foot, but many are not; those that can be reached on land involve a pretty energetic hike to get there...not recommended with children in tow. There are two Calanques close to La Ciotat that can be easily reached by car - Figuerolles and Mugel - which, though beautiful can get busy. 

Calanque En Vau

We picked up a boat trip from Cassis which was a fun way to see the Calanques from the water. Due to the prevailing winds, the experience can be a choppy one and boats frequently get cancelled or postponed due to the weather. Our kids really enjoyed being tossed about on the open seas, though I found it a bit hairy at times...

Clear waters of the Calanques

Towns and Villages

This region is blessed with some lovely towns to explore, from the postcard-perfect Cassis to the bustling former capital of the region, Aix-en-Provence. If you like your towns to ooze that quintessential flavour of the Med, Cassis is a must-visit. Its pretty harbourside is lined with pastel-coloured buildings, while its compact beach is lapped by sparkling azure seas. It's bustling and charming, with lots of cafes and restaurants to sample, as well as a weekly market that provides the classic French shopping experience. 

Cassis Harbour

A little further afield lies Aix which totally charmed us with its strong French flavour, amazing market and quaint streets and squares. An affluent town, Aix has a buzzy atmosphere and interesting cafe culture - a little like Paris but on a smaller scale. It doesn't have any major sights as such, but it's a great place for a bit of unhurried mooching, market stall browsing and citron presse slurping. If you're into art you can visit the atelier of esteemed Provencal artist Paul Cezanne, just outside Aix.

Aix-en-Provence

Other pleasant towns in the area include Bandol and St Sanary-sur-Mer. We also loved Le Castellet, a pretty village perche overlooking the rolling vineyards of Bandol. 

Sanary-sur-Mer

Eating and Drinking

We were seriously impressed with Provencal cuisine, which leans towards seafood and fish. The Marseilles speciality of bouillabase is a menu standard, and you'll find delicious, fresh-from-the-boat fish everywhere you go in this region. Our local restaurant was amazing and we made a few return trips, not just for the food but for the blissful views across the sea, the perfect way to catch the full beauty of a Mediterranean sunset. 

Fresh sardines by the beach

For kids choices tend to be a bit standard - either chicken nuggets or steak hache - but Italian influenced food is also widely available. Good quality pizzas and ice cream are easy to find here, plus it goes without saying that you're never far away from an amazing boulangerie.

If you like wine you can sample the locally produced Bandol - there are numerous vineyards and wine cellars where you can give it a taste and then buy a bottle to take home. 

Bandol vineyards

Kid-friendly activities

In a word, Aqualand, a waterpark located in St Cyr-sur-Mer. It's not cheap and the extras soon stack up (lockers, sun-loungers, etc) but as a child-friendly alternative to the beach, this completely delivered. There's something for all ages, from toddler pools with age-appropriate slides to more white-knuckle experiences for older kids. We didn't really have to queue for anything and there was plenty to keep our boys occupied, from twisting tube slides to lazy rivers and rapid rafting-style rides. 

Be warned that a strict height policy is enforced - we saw a few melt-downs from kids just a few inches off the designated height requirements so you may want to check this out in advance to avoid similar scenarios.

Aqualand

More photos

Five Truths About Holidays

Quite a lot of my posts are dedicated to the subject of holidays. This is because I love going abroad. However - and it's a big however - there is one truth I frequently skim over in the reviews of our latest adventures. And that is that going away as a family does not - for all its loveliness - usually equate with the general understanding of what constitutes a holiday.

Of course, holidays with children involved are wonderful, memory-creating experiences for the most part, but few people will tell you that those sugar-coated pictures on Facebook belie the reality of family holidays. Just like those pesky holiday brochures, the pictures you see on social media only tell half truths - here are five realities I've learnt about family holidays over the years...

1. Accidents will happen on holiday

And they will usually be quite random. You'd never walk into a tree at home, would you, but holidays seem to up the chances of having an unusual mishap (as my husband found out when he walked into a low-hanging tree branch in France, resulting in 8 stitches and the unfortunate necessity of walking around with what looked like a sanitary towel stuck to his head for the duration of the holiday - not a good look in chic Cassis.) 

Be prepared for the usual cuts and grazes, as well as illness and do NOT under any circumstances scrimp on the Calpol. I spent one memorable afternoon on a past holiday scouring a tiny town for a pharmacy during the middle of the Italian siesta - a time when shops often shut until the evening - while my husband drove round the one way system, with both children in the back simultaneously vomiting and having diarrhoea. Not a great scenario at any time, but certainly one to be avoided when you're driving around in a hire car...

Then there was the time one of them got chicken pox. On bloody holiday - what are the chances! This was a particularly unwelcome development as on this occasion we'd splashed out on a HOTEL. We'd eschewed camping for 4-star luxury in Sardinia, only to find that all those lovely swimming pools and child-friendly facilities were out of bounds to a pox-ridden 4-year-old...

2. They really do lie in the brochures

No, really, they do. First rule of holiday booking is to absolutely scan the description, get yourself onto Google street view and double check things like distances from airports - there's nothing like turning up at your destination expecting a breezy 40 minute drive to your resort to be told by the hire car people that actually, due to the 'slow, winding roads' you'll be looking at a 2 and a half hour drive instead. Especially when it's gone midnight and you have two tired, fractious children in tow.

This year's brochure wording really excelled itself, though. In Eurocamp's words we were told that 'due to the location of the site, some road and rail noise may be heard'. So imagine our surprise when we turned up at said location to find it sandwiched between a busy dual carriageway and mainline railway. And when I say 'sandwiched' I mean there was a railway line overlooking the swimming pool...

While I'm not one for obsessively checking TripAdvisor - there will always be one moany person to plant a seed of doubt in your mind about anywhere and everywhere - I would advise checking Google street view so you can zoom in on that road that seems to run alongside the resort...it's amazing how inconsequential such features can look in the brochure pictures.

3. No photo you've seen captures the reality of a place

Unfortunately most places I've been to haven't quite tallied up with the picture I've created in my mind ahead of a trip. It's important to have realistic rather than romantic expectations of a place; that idyllic, tranquil Mediterranean beach you've been dreaming about will look quite different in the height of August, when the world and his wife descends on it. 

We went to a beautiful beach in Spain a couple of years ago, but its blissful environs were slightly marred by the fact that we were packed liked sardines on the sand. On coming back form a dip in the sea, another family had pretty much set up camp underneath our parasols...they don't show THAT on the postcards...

Cars are a pain, too. You see that adorable, quintessentially French boulangerie, complete with vintage signage and a retro bike propped up outside? Wouldn't it capture the essence of a French holiday...well, it would were it not for the fact an ugly white van's pulled up just inside your shot, ruining your perfect Instagram moment. The charm of beautiful places is often, in reality, tempered by the prosaic - ceaseless traffic, huge tour parties and tacky souvenir shops, for example.

It's important to remember that those effortless shots you see on Instagram or the authentic looking images that fill your Lonely Planet guide were probably taken at 5 in the morning when no one was around. Even the most beautiful cities are usually working places - Florence is a perfect example; you won't be magically transported to the 1400s just because you're in the birthplace of the Renaissance. 

And with children in tow it's even harder to immerse yourself in the authentic. While you might fancy mooching about about in a medieval village for the afternoon they just want to throw themselves down the waterslides at Aqualand. And sometimes you'll just have to go with that...

4. Camping is quite hard work

I do speak with some experience, though we only really do camping 'lite'. We've been all over Europe with companies such as Eurocamp and Canvas and I can honestly say what while it's a great way to economise (although the prices have risen quite a bit recently) it can be trying at times, simply because space and cooking facilities are limited. You just spend a lot of time stumbling over each other and struggling to make meals with the most rudimentary of tools. 

I think I was using a pair of (clean) underpants as an oven glove on one occasion when it transpired that Eurocamp do not include these in their mobile home inventory (I wasn't really up for parting with good money to buy an oven glove on holiday.) And I don't think I've ever used a sharp knife or an effective chopping board while holidaying in a mobile home.

Of course, this is also the beauty of the experience - going basic can be fun - but don't underestimate the lack of ease and convenience if you really do need a proper holiday. 

It's possibly easier staying in a tent or mobile home with younger children but with one child on the cusp of adolescence and another who, though tiny, has an amazing capacity to take up all the space in a room, this sort of accommodation can be a tad confining, particularly if the weather isn't on your side.

5. Do not bother compiling a 'holiday wardrobe'

This is perhaps only true for the kind of budget-friendly holidays I go on, perhaps not so relevant if you're staying in hotel or villa. Every year I get completely taken in by the idea of buying 'special' clothes to take on holiday. In my mind's eye, I'm holidaying in a chic Ibizan finca for a fortnight, not setting up home at a functional French campsite. So, I fill my case with floaty dresses and beautiful sandals, imagining evenings spent watching sunsets while I sip on an Aperol...

In reality, I end up wearing old denim shorts, scruffy t-shirts and a battered pair of flip flops for the duration. That bohemian kaftan dress feels a bit wrong at the campsite disco and given that a lot of time on site will be taken up walking back and forth with a washing up bowl, you probably didn't need to pack those very on-trend gladiator sandals - Birkenstocks will do and they're so easy to get on and off. 

Because you will totally have to take your shoes off every time you enter your mobile home - campsites kick up a lot of dust and pine needles that will somehow end up all over your floor, all the time, no matter how many times you sweep it.

Save yourself the hassle and excess baggage costs if you're camping - there will be more appropriate times to flash your fashionista credentials...

All this said, I would like to end this post on a positive note - family holidays, are of, course always lovely, no matter what happens. It might pour with rain for a week, your other half might walk into a tree and your kids will definitely drive you up the wall at some point, but I guarantee you won't ever regret a family holiday - just remember to take all those perfect holiday pics on Facebook with a big pinch of salt...(and don't forget to pack the Calpol.)

Food Life Hacks with First Utility

Going back to school is exhausting, right? Under one week in and all those leisurely summer mornings, idling over late breakfasts and not needing to be anywhere before 10 seem like a distant memory, while getting back into the rhythm of a new school term feels like an insurmountable challenge. 

Me in avatar form, holding aloft my latest culinary creation! (thanks to illustrator Genevieve Edwards)

So it was most appropriate that I was recently asked to suggest a 'life hack' by energy supplier First Utility as part of a new social media campaign to share the best tips for making everyday life a little more manageable. Who doesn't need the odd short-cut to make term-time life less stressful, particularly when it comes to putting food on the table for your family. We all want our kids to eat well, but when you throw in work, extra-curricular activities and other daily obligations, it can be all to easy to reach for the convenience foods. 

But recently I have hit on two real kitchen 'cheats', which are relatively healthy, add some variation to mealtimes and couldn't be easier to prepare. I can't take credit for the first two (you'll also find my very own kitchen stand-by at the bottom of the page) but I hope they help you out in the kitchen as you make the tricky transition from holiday time to real-life time...

Spaghetti with Marmite

As featured in Nigella Lawson's 'Kitchen' cookbook. It's an improbable combo, I know, but it really does work. Plus the recipe was conceived by legendary Italian cookery writer Anna Del Conte - if the Italians eat it, it must be good! You don't even have to really like Marmite. Bung some spaghetti in to cook then heat about 50g of butter in a pan. When it's nearly melted add in a teaspoon of Marmite, plus one tablespoon of the pasta cooking water till it all emulsifies and goes loose. Add the sauce to the drained spaghetti and mix well. Plate up and serve with plenty of Parmesan. I'm biased because I love Marmite but even if you're not so sure, give it a try just once...

Roasted Gnocchi

Although I sometimes make my own chips and even the oven variety aren't really that bad for them, I do sometimes feel a bit guilty about chips being the standard potato-based dish in our home. So, for something a bit different try roasted or fried gnoochi, another idea gleaned from Nigella. These babies take literally minutes to prepare - you simply throw them into a frying pan with some olive oil and gently fry on both sides for about four minutes. Alternatively bake them in a roasting pan with some oil for about twenty minutes. 

Spinach Pesto

I have been trying to find creative ways to get the green stuff into my kids' diets for years now. If this is a familiar scenario for you, here's something that works in our house: I add a good handful of fresh or frozen spinach to pasta and pesto, a really easy way to up the veg content of their supper. I wilt it down in a pan with a knob of butter, then whizz up in a hand-blender and mix in with the pesto. Simple, quick and super cheap.

Do you have a life hack you'd like to share? Add a comment below!

Thanks to the team at Positive for including me in this initiative, and thanks also to illustrator Genevieve Edwards for my lovely bespoke illustration!

A Ride on the Strawberry Line

If there was ever a name to conjure up images of gentle, bucolic loveliness, the 'Strawberry Line' is it. A beautiful stretch of tranquil cycling path, reaching from Yatton to Cheddar, this is a must-try if your family likes cycling but you're a bit over sharing space with the hordes that often clog up other popular routes near Bristol.

It's perfect for children. Not only is the route flat and off road in most places but it's usually pretty quiet - you won't meet too many other cycling pros or pedestrians, making it a much less stressful experience than, say, the Bristol to Bath towpath which can get pretty hairy at times if you're cycling with children. 

We've experienced impatience to the odd cross word from more serious cyclists who seem to view some routes as their sole preserve, but the Strawberry Line has (on the occasions we've ridden it) been much more accommodating of families pootling along at less than Tour de France-style speeds.

There's plenty of parking at Yatton Station, and you can also pick up refreshments at the small station cafe and use the loo. Just a short distance along the route you'll see signs on the right to a fishing lake and cafe. This is a lovely spot to enjoy a cuppa before you continue - it's really tranquil and enjoys nice views across the water.

Further along things get rather continental as you pass the Thatcher's Cider orchards - the path cuts a wide avenue through the apple trees, making you feel as if you've been deposited in a field in France. 

The next place to look out for is the old station at Sandford, a beautifully restored building, decorated with vintage railway posters and memorabilia. There's an old-fashioned train permanently stationed here, which will delight the younger cyclists in your family. 

The small shop sells refreshments if your little people are flagging. This makes a great end point if going any further might not be feasible, coming in at about an hour and a bit from Yatton (perhaps a bit longer with very young cyclists.)

Continuing on older kids will enjoy cycling through the eerie Shute Shelve Tunnel, a satisfyingly dark and dank stretch, bringing you out into the light to enjoy (after crossing the busy A38) amazing views across the Cheddar Valley. 

I love this cycle route - on a sunny day I can't think of a better way to get some gentle exercise and immerse yourself in the pretty Somerset countryside that lies right on Bristol's doorstep.

Visit the Strawberry Line website for more information, and read a helpful guide on The Guardian website also.

Things I Learnt About Primary School

Last day of term and there's a kid walking towards me, rucksack trailing papers and a years' worth of school books, knees peeping out from slightly too short shorts and wearing a polo shirt scrawled with multi-coloured signatures. There's still a hint of little boy in his gait as I look at him from a distance, but something's definitely changed; he looks a bit, well, big for his surroundings and a bit too knowing amid the younger children tumbling through the gates for the summer holidays. 

And that's because the kid now standing in front of me is my eldest son and he's just about to leave primary school for the last time.

The traditional leaver's hoody

If you have also stared with wonder at your child as they hover on the cusp of transition to big school, you'll know it's pretty difficult not to get just a tad melancholy about the situation. A LOT happens in the seven years they're at primary school and while your child will no doubt be pretty stoical about the whole moving on thing, it's a pretty hard parent who doesn't feel just the slightest clenching of the heart when they pick their child up on that very last day of term. You can't help but feel that the marching of time is perhaps just a bit too fast sometimes - how have they gone from being wide-eyed, occasionally teary and bemused 4-year-olds to independent, knowledgeable young people, complete with a sim card and better trainers than you? 

In the run-up to the end of term, I've done a bit of looking back over our first child's years at primary and - it has to be said - have felt a little twinge of regret at how I sometimes approached the school experience. If I knew then what I know now, I'd do some things a little differently; here are some of the things I've learnt over the past seven years...

1. Don't be reserved about making friends

The school playground was often a lonely place for me. As someone who doesn't make friends easily I found it difficult to integrate with the mums in our class, particularly as many of them were already established friends, having known each other since ante-natal group. I found this a little intimidating and rather than getting rebuffed, I was perhaps a little stand-offish myself. I realise now that I should have made more effort and struck up conversation more readily. In fact, I should have followed the advice we routinely give our children about making friends; how many times do we chide our kids for their shyness and reserve, only to be equally reluctant about approaching new people ourselves?

Having friends at school isn't essential but it sure as hell makes the experience more enjoyable. You may be connected to your child's classmates' parents for the whole of their school life, so make an effort. Go to class drinks, suggest a coffee after drop off...you may find you make a friend for life.

2. Don't sweat the small stuff

What a pickle we got into over the years about academic achievement. It started in Year 2 when our child was deemed to be behind in reading and was put on the 'Reading Recovery' programme. I was distraught that his reading needed to be 'recovered' and felt that this was a huge failure on my part.

Of course, with a bit of support and a bit of maturity - yes, of course we all know that children mature at different times (but how easy it is to forget this crucial point) - his reading was 'recovered' in no time and he has left school with the dubious honour of being above 'national average'.

It's worth bearing in mind that schools are often given additional money for schemes like reading recovery and that if these funds are not used, the money is withdrawn. So schools need to use up their entitlements - remember that if you find yourself in a similar situation it doesn't necessarily mean your child is in dire need of help; it may be that your child might simply need an extra push and the facility is in place to do just that.

3.  Don't sweat the big stuff, either.

I'm talking about SATs, National Averages...all that terminology that can make your head swim and have you wondering how on earth you'll ever get your child - particularly if they don't give a hoot about national averages - to shape up to government expectation by the end of their primary school years. But it simply isn't worth losing sleep over, I realise now. Today's primary education system seems to foster the idea that academic achievement in literacy and numeracy is all the matters and if you don't get those Level 5s in the year six SATs there's really no hope for you. No matter if you just don't really like maths but you love looking at maps, can recount an in-depth biography of Brunel and create the most beautiful watercolour pictures. 

Unfortunately there's a bit of a 'one size fits all' approach in today's education system which doesn't really pay much heed to individuality and different rates of maturity. Try and remember this if you're worried about your child's abilities and celebrate in their other talents. They'll certainly catch up in the end.

4. Don't compete with other parents

Such easy advice to give, so difficult to follow. There were many times when my perception was that everyone else had given birth to a child genius. What was I doing wrong? Should we be doing homework every single night? In Year 1??? But I thought 5-year-olds were meant to play and hang out at the swings after school, not knuckle down to an hour or two of phonics! My panic about keeping up led to many a stressful night trying to do extra work with my son - tasks he found utterly pointless and exhausting. It just made us both unhappy and was most likely counter-productive. 

I relaxed for a bit until I got wind of the fact that, as KS2 rolled in, lots of parents out there get tutors for their kids to give them an extra boost. I had thought tutoring was the preserve of secondary school, but alas it's an increasingly common occurrence at primary age. If everyone else was doing this, we should be too, right?

Well, yes, in our case we did get a tutor in the end, during years 5 and 6 when our son was really struggling with maths and his confidence had taken a nose-dive. I also found maths hard and spent years stumbling along, hating every moment of lessons and crying my way through my homework. It wasn't until my parents got me a tutor - a gentle, calm ex-headmistress - that numbers finally clicked for me. We found a similar tutor for our son - the polar opposite of the expensive, tutoring businesses that abound. Her calm, cat-filled house, free of annoying little brothers and noisy distractions, provided a much better environment than our chaotic home for him to get to grips with his numeracy, and he actually quite enjoyed his lessons with her. They were also vital in building up his dented confidence.

5. There's learning and there's learning

It's easy to think that 'learning' equates to a child hunched over a school book but learning takes many forms. I used to think that some type of 'formal' learning must take place each day, but that's simply exhausting. And quite boring. There are some perfectly useful ways to do learning that aren't strictly 'learning' - doing a crossword or sudoku puzzle, getting stuck into some computer coding or learning how to make a game, reading a newspaper, making a cake without supervision...all perhaps more useful exercises than getting in a tizzy over homework.

6. There's more to life than school sometimes

The 'system' can be draining. When you're busy at work or going through some personal stuff or health issues, keeping up with homework isn't always a priority. Teaching your child life skills - telling the time, counting money, tying their shoe-laces - as well as good manners and respect for others is just as, if not more, important in your role as a parent than getting them through their year 2 phonics test.

I'm not saying you should sit back and let the school do all the hard work, but it's important to enjoy these precious pre-teen years with your kids without being in a constant state of academic stress. Ditch the homework for the park on a sunny summer evening, take them out of school for a few days before the term ends if you all really need a holiday and you can't afford to travel at peak times...you won't look back and think "I really wish we'd had less fun and done more homework".

As a mum standing on the precipice, preparing for a much more structured and intense regimen of homework and exams - with a healthy dose of pre-teen hormones thrown in for good measure - I really urge you to enjoy a happy and stress free time at primary school...they're precious years that really do pass in the blink of an eye. 

A Sunny Day in Southerndown

Can you believe it's the school summer holidays? Again? Seems only a moment ago that I was enduring enjoying, I mean, last summer's six week break, but yes, it's here and so you'll perhaps be looking for things to do with your young 'uns. This holiday will be a funny one for me as it's the first one I've spent as a properly 'working' mum - with just a few days off aside from our family holiday in a few weeks, I won't actually be straying that far during the working week so our bigger trips will be reserved for the weekend. There will be some Sheep spotting, naturally (if you live in Bristol you'll know what I'm talking about) a Friday in London and - weather permitting - a weekend under canvas. But we kicked the holidays off at one of my favourite places - the idyllic Southerndown Beach in Wales.

I've mentioned Southerndown before on the blog (in my piece on other favourite beaches) but I thought I'd devote a whole post to its beauty for those of you looking for places to visit that aren't too far from Bristol. Southerndown is about one hour twenty minutes from Bristol, in the Vale of Glamorgan just beyond Brigend. We discovered it about four years ago when we visited on a school trip and I was seriously blown away by it. Virtually deserted in the week it can get busy on a sunny weekend in the summer, but with its expansive sands it never feels overcrowded. 

Located on the region's Heritage Coast, the beach is nestled amid high, striated cliffs which offer spectacular views across the water. A little hairy to walk across with kids, the coastal paths here would make for pretty exhilarating walks without them (just don't go to close to the edge!) 

The beach itself is glorious - a wide expanse of clean sand looking out towards clear seas - the water quality here is rated as excellent and it is patrolled by a life guard in the summer should you be tempted to don your wetsuit and take the plunge. 

Southerndown is a west facing beach that gets completely covered at high tide - do be sure to check tide times before you go. We arrived just after high tide and within around an hour there was enough sand to set up camp on.

Another great draw for kids are the many rock pools on the right hand side of the beach - we spent ages trawling the water for crabs, limpets and other signs of life. 

Be sure to bring a picnic with you as the beauty of this place is its lack of commercialisation - there are loos and a small shack selling beach necessities (ice creams, fishing nets, buckets and spades, and hot drinks) but that's it. There is a nice-looking pub on the way into Southerndown and we saw a sign for cream teas, but do come with a hamper if you don't want to tear yourself away from the beach.

Before you reach Sountherndown you can visit the Norman ruins of Ogmore Castle, set in a pretty spot surrounded by tranquil fields, and you can also go for a walk along the neighbouring Ogmore Beach, which leads to the castle along a pretty coastal pathway. 

Read more tips on Southerndown here. More photos here:

A Weekend in a Yurt

You know that thing where modern life gets you down and you just really need to check out for a few days? After a couple of worry-filled weeks, including several hospital visits, one MRI scan and a failed secondary school appeal it's fair to say I was more than ready to do just that and deposit myself in a field in the countryside, well away from the aforementioned troubles. And, conveniently, within just a few moments of scanning Airbnb - a site I'd never used before - I managed to not only find the sort of place that looked just right for requirements, but which was also free at short notice. This sort of thing never happens to me - I took it as a good omen...

A pretty perfect home for the weekend

Unlike me, you've probably used Airbnb before so I won't go into too much detail about how it all works but my main observation was that it's a revelation if you're not one for booking your weekends away a year in advance and like to be a little more spontaneous. Finding nice places to stay in the South West at short notice has always eluded me so being able to book somewhere with a two week lead time was a nice surprise. 

We chose a retro yurt in Dorset for our stay - you can check out all the details here. Our host, Bryony, was great and the setting of her yurt is just lovely. We arrived in a haze of late evening sun and found ourselves in a small, tranquil field that houses just two other properties - a charming gypsy caravan and a shepherd's hut. With these being just single or double occupancy, this is a patch that would never get too busy. That's one of the things we loved most about staying here - pretty much having the place all to ourselves. As city dwellers who sometimes get a little weary of the noise and bustle of the urban landscape, I would have happily paid more for the privilege of enjoying this luxurious sense of space and serenity.

Fires, flowers, sunsets

The yurt itself had everything I'd imagined a yurt should have - a cosy ambience, a wood burner, rugs on the floor and a general vintage-y vibe. It sleeps four (one double, two singles) and feels plenty spacious. Luckily the weather was on our side so we didn't spend much time inside, but I don't think you'd feel too cooped up if bad weather should strike. Toilets are of the compost variety and there's a hot - and surprisingly efficient - shower on site too.

Words of advice in the loo

Outside you have access to a fire pit and plenty of seating. We made some good family memories round that fire; so few campsites allow fires these days that we took full advantage of it, staying up till way past bedtime to toast marshmallows, drink wine and play charades. I found this an utterly idyllic experience and a real balm for the soul - watching the embers glow as your children skip about in the half light has greatly restorative powers for anxious minds. 

We took our camping stove along for the essential campers' fry up the next day - there's a farm shop just minutes from the site where you can pick up the necessary local bacon, sausages and eggs. You'll find all the crockery and cutlery you need provided in the yurt. 

Nice waking up to this

While I could happily have hung out yurt-side, eating marshmallows, drinking cups of tea and reading my book, the sea was calling so we headed out to one of the nearest beaches, Charmouth, via a stop at Bridport, a bustling, characterful town where you'll find quirky second-hand bookshops, bric-a-brac stalls and independent cafes. On Bryony's recommendation we headed to Soul Shine Cafe for brunch - unsurprisingly popular, it has a lovely courtyard where you can enjoy your wheatgrass smoothie and eggs Benedict under colourful Indian parasols. 

Soul Shine Cafe

The other big draw in this part of Dorset is, of course, Lyme Regis, but we're regulars to this resort, so we decided to head a little further afield on our second day to Chesil Beach, followed by a lunch date with one of the most stunning places in the region - Durdle Door. Unbelievably spectacular. 

Dorset's amazing beaches

I've loved Dorset since childhood but this visit made me fall in love with it just a little bit more. Perhaps the stars aligned on this trip (there were no cross moments, no whining from the kids, no bad traffic to contend with) and the yurt experience suits us. I have a strong feeling we won't wait long until we return...

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