Last year we went on our first ever family holiday to a hotel and it was amazing. Relaxing, spending time together, not having to do anything, be anywhere or keep to any deadlines. It helped to show us what elements would make up our ideal holiday.
Our perfect holiday would consist of the following, in no particular order;
Time together
Time apart
Good food
New experiences
Time together is wonderful in a relaxed setting. It's great to swim, play, explore and have fun together. We love adventures and are lucky enough to live in the Yorkshire Dales, the perfect place to get out and about and explore our surroundings.
Time apart is also lovely. Kids club is a wonderful thing. The children can run around, play and let off some steam, or even learn new skills. We can chill out and enjoy a book or a massage in the spa!
Good food goes without saying. It's nice to try new things and push boundaries with food. Last year my son wolfed calamari down almost every evening, which surprised us all!
New experiences which we can share together are priceless. Shared experiences are remembered differently by everyone involved and it's wonderful to relive those memories together. My absolute favourite experience I ever had on holiday was learning to do the flying trapeze. It was amazing and I wished I had been brave enough to do it earlier in the holiday, rather than a few days before we left!
You know what our ideal holiday consists of, so let me tell you a little more about us!
The boy
My son is just about to turn 7. He loves pushing himself with sport. He's generally found kicking a ball around in the garden. He is obsessed with any sport and loves to try new things. He recently saw a video of his friends skiing in Lapland and instantly said "I could do that"! I don't doubt that he could. His weekends are filled with playing rugby and football, he goes to sports clubs in the holidays and he has finally found a love of swimming.
The girl
My daughter is just about to turn 5. She has no fear. Absolutely none. Her attitude to everything is fantastic. You name it, she'll try it. In water she's like a fish, being able to swim well since she turned four. She's a speed demon. When we went to Alton Towers and she was 3, she shunned Cbeebies Land stating it was 'boring'. Instead she repeatedly rode the runaway mine train, screaming with glee, her arms in the air, with me clinging on to her for dear life! She's very creative and always sees junk as special treasure to create things out of. She also likes to get messy and enjoys playing with worms, woodlice, slugs and snails.
Me
I spend my days looking after other people. Cleaning, tidying, hosting. Managing a B&B is tough, but rewarding. It means we get to live in an amazing house, but also I spend my time running round after others. So for me my perfect holiday is one where I don't have to do anything for anyone else. That might sound selfish, but I do it every single day and I just want to relax. Don't get me wrong, I love trying new experiences and find I enjoy taking risks far more these days! As a child, I was the one who waited whilst everyone else went on rides, but since having children I am far more wiling to push myself to do experiences I wouldn't previously have.
My husband
Craves peace and quiet and rarely finds it. He works incredibly hard in his job and commutes long distances each week. It's tough that he doesn't get to see the children much during the week, but the weekends are spent together. He loves sport too, we all do. In fact, we met when he was a football journalist and I was a football analyst, so our love of sport is kind of what brought us together! He's often found playing the fool and making us laugh (I wonder where my daughter gets it from).
This is our family. It goes without saying that we would absolutely love to be ambassadors for Mark Warner. We love adventures together, having a laugh, being active and meeting new people. We don't take life too seriously, we love photography and also filming all our days out and family holidays. Good luck to everyone who applies.
This is my entry to the adventure junkie category to try to become a Mark Warner Ambassador in 2016.
