Ben's Blog

On the 14th October, Ben had his first parents evening at Ivybridge CC.  Obviously, due to the covid-19 pandemic, things were a little different than normal, so they held a virtual parents evening instead.  We had to book a time via the school app for when we could meet his form tutor (Miss Shillabeer) online for a video call.  It worked well and she said that Ben is doing very well and is a nice, polite lad.  Typically, the same day, Ben got his first demerit as he forgot to take his lanyard with him.  She basically apologies for having to give him one as she could tell it upset him a bit but, unfortunately, it is school rules, so she had to do it.  Anyway, she was very pleased with Ben, which made us happy! Well done, Ben!!

We were intending to go camping for Ben’s 12th birthday weekend this year but the weather forecast wasn’t very good at all so we managed to change that until the May Bank Holiday weekend next year so instead we managed to book a last minute caravan at Devon Cliffs.  We had only been here a few weeks ago at the end of August but enjoyed it so much, we thought that we would book it again, but in a cheaper caravan this time.  As October is out of season, prices were cheaper anyway but we did manage to get a really nice caravan that was only a few minutes walk from the beach at a much lower cost.  So we were pleased with that!

We travelled up on the Friday after school and had a Burger King takeaway when we arrived as they onsite BK delivers onsite as well.  We managed to get there just in time as there was an accident on the road on the way so we were later than we hoped.  We did still manage a quick walk on the beach that evening as well, which was nice during dusk.

We spent the Saturday in the beach with the boys playing in the sea and went to the restaurant for tea.  Aaron ended up, somehow, leaving his tablet on the table so Kelly had to go back in and luckily it had been handed in!  Lucky Aaron!  We then went back to the caravan and played some card games until bedtime.

On the Sunday, we couldn’t sleep at all, so we ended up all getting up for a walk on the beach at 6am.  It was lovely and we were surprised with the number of people that were up and about at that time of day!  We had a nice long walk along the beach and then went back to the caravan and had a cooked breakfast.  We then had a walk around the complex and ended up in the arcade to use up the last of our pennies.  We were meant to get some sandwiches for lunch but we ended up going to the other restaurant and having a nice meal.  We then had to go back to the caravan and start packing our stuff up as we had to drive home that evening.  We had considered staying overnight and leaving really early the next morning but we decided against that.

Once again, we had had a really nice time at Devon Cliffs and it was a perfect weekend for Ben’s birthday.  It is such a lovely place to stay, what with the beach, arcade and other facilities onsite.  I don’t think this will be the last time that we will stay! 🙂

During the August Bank Holiday weekend, we booked to stay at a caravan at Devon Cliffs Haven in Exmouth.  We hadn’t been there before but we loved it there!

The holiday park was brilliant and had it’s own beach, restaurants, takeaways, arcade, swimming pool and other activities to do.  Because of Covid-19 though, restrictions were in place so we couldn’t enjoy the facilities as we would have had normally, i.e. the swimming pool wasn’t open and we had to wear a mask in any indoor areas (such as the arcade) and to get to our table in the restaurants.  Anyhow, it was still great and we really enjoyed ourselves.  We spent a couple of days on the beach as the weather was pretty good and went to both of the restaurants, which were also really nice.  In a way, having the restrictions made things better as the restaurants were nice and quiet and nicely spread out so we could relax more.  I think we spent most of our time in the arcade though and must have spent a bit of money in there!  It was great fun and the boys had won enough tickets at the end of the weekend to get some sweets each.

The caravan that we stayed in was nice as well, although we had to contact the owner as we found items from the previous occupants in there.  Obviously, the cleaners hadn’t done a very good job so the owner got them in again.  We wouldn’t have worried too much but with Covid-19, everything was meant to be thoroughly cleaned down between visitors.  Anyway, the owner was apologetic and we left the cleaners to it on the Saturday morning whilst we went to the beach.

The beach was nice and big as well although there were loads of wasps!!  The water was freezing but it was nice and calm each day, so it was nice and safe for the boys to play in with their bodyboards.  We had a couple of beach BBQs, which was nice, and generally had a nice time.

It was a lovely weekend at Devon Cliffs and we will definitely be going back again although we will probably try and get a caravan closer to the beach so we could just walk the distance next time.

For our main holiday this year, we went camping for a week (from a Monday to Friday) to Pitch Perfect which was near Longleat, as we were going to spend a couple of fun days there during our week.  

The campsite was really nice and our pitch was nice and big, in a corner of the camping field.  Due to Covid-19, the campsite wasn’t how it would normally have been as there was a limit on the number of people allowed in the toilet and shower block at the same time and there were also one way systems around reception.  Apart from that, it was mostly normal, which was nice!

As usual, the weather was wet when we turned up so had to set up our camp in the rain.  However, the rest of the week was fine and was very hot towards the end.  Taking everything down on the Friday morning was a nightmare as it was clear skies and really hot by 9am in the morning!  The good weather did mean that we were able to spend most of our time outside, which was obviously good for camping!  Most nights, we had a brilliant view of the stars and even the Milky Way as the campsite was a fair way away from any towns or villages so there was no light pollution.  On the final night there (the Thursday), we saw an amazing meteor shower.  All of the boys were up quite late and scanning the skies and we all saw loads of them.  It was great!

As mentioned, during two of the days, we went to Longleat for the very first time.  We had booked tickets a while ago as they had limited capacity due to Covid-19 but this actually made it better as there were obviously less people queuing for rides and to view the animals.  We visited Longleat on the Tuesday and the Wednesday and, luckily, the weather was dry although not particularly warm on occasions.  But we didn’t mind as it was quite nice to go around and not burn! 

On both of the days, we went through the drive through Safari first, which was absolutely brilliant! At the start of the Safari, there was a section that you could park up and get out to view some animals such as Zebra and Giraffe and to go in a shop, but we didn’t do this on the first day but did on the second.  Instead, we drove straight through to the animals and proceeded to drive through the Safari.  We all thoroughly enjoyed it but by the time we got to the monkey drive thru, we hadn’t decided whether to go through or not.  We had seen videos of people driving through there, as well as the issues they have shown on Animal Park, and the monkeys causing havoc and pulling parts of cars off! But we thought we would give it a go and hope that the monkeys wouldn’t destroy the car.  The boys loved it – they were wetting themselves all the way around the section!  The monkeys were all over the car and sat on our windscreen so we could see the monkey’s bum, which the boys found hilarious!  Luckily, nothing was pulled off of the car though a member of staff had to poke some monkeys with a stick to make sure they didn’t escape the enclosure as we exited it.  We carried on around but didn’t see Anne the Elephant until the second day but we had a great view of the Tiger cubs as we had stopped the car and they literally walked past the front of the car!  Amazing!  We also had great views of the Lions as two Lionesses ended up right next to the passenger door, drinking some water from a bowl.  It was a great Safari, on both days.  During the Lion enclosure on the second day, Coby decided that he needed a wee!  So in the end, he had to go in an empty drinks bottle as he couldn’t hang on and we were nowhere near the end!  Dear me!  Anyway, we would definitely recommend the Safari and we will definitely do it again.

On both days, after the Safari, we went around the rest of Longleat, which was fairly quiet as mentioned previously.  We had a great time walking around and looking at the animals and it was especially good to see the Koala bears, where there was a bit of a queue as only a few people were allowed in the building at a time, due to Covid-19.  We also went on the boat ride around the lake but did have to queue for an hour for that.  We just about saw the Hippos in the lake but I was a bit disappointed in it to be honest.  We also went on the train ride around the park, which was good fun.  The boys loved that as well!  We didn’t get chance to go into the maze, as you had a to book a time slot for that, and Longleat house was closed due to Covid-19, which was a shame, but we did have a good walk around the outside of it and took plenty of photos.  We had food on site both days, which was some of the nicest pizza that we had ever had!  Both days were great fun though and we will definitely come back again at some point soon!

On Thursday, we stayed at the campsite all day as the weather was glorious.  We played football, cards and a few other games and had a nice walk around the campsite.  Unfortunately, Aaron ended up getting ill due to the heat and sun, so he was sick in the afternoon and fell asleep with a cold flannel over his head!  After a snooze, he was fine again and made a miraculous recovery and scoffed his tea!  Strange!

On the Friday morning, we got up very early to pack everything up and had a proper breakfast bap from the breakfast van onsite.  It was a massive bap with everything in it and filled us up completely!  It was boiling already so we were roasting packing the reset of the tent up.

We had had a great week and would recommend the campsite for sure.  The owners were very welcoming and the site was nice and clean.  Longleat was great as well and we will be going back once Covid-19 has gone and the house is back open again!

Ben’s last year of term didn’t go as planned at all, what with the Covid lockdown closing schools from March until June. Luckily, Ben’s year was allowed to go back to school, mainly because it was a crucial time in their education what with going to secondary school in only a few months!  We did have to think about sending him back though as a lot of other parents continued to keep their children home, in case of catching Covid.  Ben was desperate to go back from June so we let him as it was only half a term anyway!

So, Ben really enjoyed going back to school for those few weeks and seeing his friends again.  They did do some work as they would normally have done, but not in the same way and probably not as much as they would normally have done.  For a lot of the days, the teachers tried to get them active by doing sport and PE a lot, as they were all stuck in for 3 months during lockdown.  Ben was happy with that though! 🙂

His last few weeks in primary school flew by in the end and before we knew it – he had left!!

All of the plans that the school and parents had to celebrate the year 6 children leaving had to be abandoned due to Covid regulations, which was a massive shame.  The school couldn’t put on their usual leaving party and the children couldn’t do their year 6 leaving assembly.  It was quite upsetting for us as we had heard lots about previous assemblies and how emotional everyone ended up being.  Such a shame.  Anyway, the parents of the children ended up coming up with new plans for them so Ben did have a bit of a send off in the end – thank goodness!!

It ended up that Ben and some of his friends would be dropped off at his friend Jake’s house and they would then be picked up by a limousine and taken for a ride into town and up the Hoe for some photographs before coming back and being dropped off at the Lopes Arms for a meal (all a surprise!).  As usual though, it didn’t turn out as planned as the traffic was so busy going into town that they didn’t make it to the Hoe and ended up at Central Park for photos.  Ben didn’t mind a bit and was having the time of his life in the limo!! Haha.  All the parents were at the Lopes waiting for them to arrive in the limo and they looked to have had good fun! We all then went in to sit at our socially distanced tables and had a nice meal.  For nearly everyone there (children and parents) it was the first time we had all been out for a meal since before lockdown, so it turned out to be a really nice evening for the parents as well!  Ben and his friends went off on their own to the local green to play football every now and again, as a lot of his friends weren’t going to Ivybridge so could possibly be the last time he would see them!!  Very sad really, but the evening was very good and Ben really enjoyed it!  As the weather was nice and hot, we all ended up sat outside on the tables, after we had finished our meals inside.  We walked home from the pub at about 10pm with the Greenslades after Coby and Aaron (and some of their friends who were there as well) had run out of steam from playing together in the beer garden.

We can’t believe that Ben has now finished his time at primary school at Bickleigh though – the time has absolutely flown by!  It seems like it was only a couple of years ago that he started out in foundation and he will now be moving on to secondary school.  It was a real shame that the school couldn’t do the usual leaving events and the initial plans for them to leave were scuppered by Covid but he had a real nice send off in the end.  🙂