New Duplo Valley now open at Legoland Windsor

I am in my kids good books at the moment, I think I must have at least another couple of days of good behaviour that I can get out of them as a thank you for the superb day they had at Legoland Windsor yesterday. We were lucky enough to go along to the press opening of the new Duplo Valley Splash and Play land and boy did we have an amazing day.

We have been to Legoland before and I wrote a comprehensive review from our trip last October but I can honestly say this was our best trip ever this time.There is so much to do and see at Legoland nowadays that you cannot get it all done in a day and this is not a bad thing. This time we went on new rides that we had never been on before, my personal favourite was Atlantis and I did not expect that at all. I'm never too impressed with aquariums and seeing the fish and sharks but the view from the submarines is stunning and the water so clear that you can capture some really excellent photos, but anyway Atlantis was last years big ride and this visit we were there for the Duplo Valley Splash and Play area.

It was quite funny really as I told my 9 year old son JJ why we were going to Legoland and I asked where his swim shorts were. 'Nah Mum, I won't be going on it, Duplo is for babies' is what he told me the night before we set off. Luckily I knew better and packed them anyway. Take a look at these pictures of Drench Towers and see what you think -

and here is JJ telling you what he thinks (sorry he is a bit quiet in comparison to the fun happening in the background!) -


Apparently after playing on it for a good hour, it is not for babies any more  it is for big kids like him!  But let me assure you it is for all kids - old and young! Parents can join their children (as long as they are in swimwear) and as long as the little ones are 0.9m or over they can use the smaller slides. But fear not if your little ones are smaller still they can use the Splash Safari area which is a  perfect haven of larger than life Duplo animals and water squirting fun.

We loved this area and think it will be a massive hit. I saw there was a good size adult seating area at the top of Drench Towers and it looked like there would be a refreshments outlet there in the summer. My one tip to Legoland would be to label the toilets better as people were confused as to which were changing rooms and which toilets and I think to be honest there needs to be more of them. I did see there was a big buggy park area, which was good. I imagine this area will become heaving in the summer with people wanting to cool down in the water.

Fairy Tale Brook Ride
We all enjoyed a nice serene boat ride on the new Fairy Tale Brook and I can honestly say some of the Lego creations on there are breathtaking, Miss E had with her my old camera and this was such a joy to her to capture all the Lego characters and animals across the park.

Brickville Play Area
As the splash area has been built, the old Duplo park has gone and a new Brickville play area has come in its place.  It is superb, my little girls are nearly 6 and still loved it but JJ at age 9 really was too old now. The area is full of spongy AstroTurf which miss E thought was beautiful. We first visited this area about 10.30am and it was as quiet as can be and a real delight and by 3pm it was super busy. Luckily my kids are older and I'm able to let them out of my sight, this might have been harder if I had younger kids. There is only one entrance into the park which I like though.

What you have seen here is just a glimpse of what is in the Duplo Valley area, there is also the new Raft River Racers ride which we did not get to try out, the Duplo Valley Airport which all my kids loved, Duplo train which the girls liked to be able to ride alone and the Duplo puppet theatre which was a perfect end to our super busy day.

Take a look at my full Legoland review for more information about the park as a whole and the Legoland Windsor website too. You can follow Legoland Windsor on Twitter or Facebook to stay up to date as well.

I asked the family what their best part of the day was and here is a montage of the best bits for them -

Visiting Legoland Windsor

If you want to take a trip to Legoland either book online more than 7 days in advance to secure the best prices from Legoland or look out for a deal. Personally we always visit having exchanged our Tesco vouchers into deals but if you google something like 'Legoland Windsor deal' you get a wealth of offers that you can investigate.

Disclosure: Thank you to the press office at Legoland Windsor for our fabulous day out, including entrance, VIP bands, Lego loot and goodie bag. I am very happy to provide my honest opinion of the new Duplo Valley area and I can confirm that I have not been instructed what to write.

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Tell Carex how you use your hands to win a £500 Red Letter Days voucher

This year Carex are celebrating their 20th Birthday and that's a big milestone so it deserves a celebration.

Not one to skimp, Carex have decided to celebrate in style and have launched the Live Life Hands On Awards, which will offer the chance for 20 lucky winners to get their hands on £500 worth of Red Letter Days Vouchers and a year supply of Carex hand wash. Do you know that you can use Red Letter Days vouchers for all sorts of wonderful things including a romantic short break, pamper days, adventure pursuits and so much more? £500 buys a lot of fun!

As soon as I found out I could win a romantic weekend I was in. To enter all you have to do is let Carex know how you use your hands in a day, how are they involved in making memories? I like this competition as it really is open to all - you can write a short diary, submit pictures, film a short clip or just use the online submission form and literally write a couple of sentences. The 20 best entries will be judged by an independent observer.

So a day in the life of my hands, what do they get up to?

Sadly, I don't think my hands are probably as interesting as many peoples. Take a gardener for example, just think of all the wonderful things their hands get involved with or a midwife or an artist.

Here are the kind of things you would find my hands doing on an average day -

Busy blogging and writing

Or at work in my job as a trainer, my beloved clicker is always in my hand!

What can you find me doing at home? - cleaning of course

or doing my Mummy bit and looking after the family

But I expect you can do better than me, what do your hands get up to?

Why don't you get creative now and enter this superb competition, there has to be 20 winners, why shouldn't one of them be you?

The competition closes at 11.59pm on 10th June 2013 and you can read the full terms and conditions on the Carex site.

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Should I be concerned for the future?

I hate the thought of labeling one of my children as naughty or challenging but the truth is that one of them is just so much more spirited than the other two. I have to say I like feisty and I always prayed prior to having my children that I would not get boring and submissive children.  Of course now I'm regretting that, as an obedient child would be much easier, not half as much fun but definitely easier.

Don't get me wrong we are now past the stage where every day is an issue, in fact we can go weeks without her getting in trouble but she does just look for the ways to be minxy! Touching the things she should not touch, going against what you say, telling fibs, making up stories and dreaming of being so much older than she is. When will I let her have high heels, when can she get the bus into town with her friends? Have I mentioned she is not yet 6 years old.

If God was not on my side, I'd seriousness be worrying for the future. Take today for example - in the car on the way to pick Daddy up from the station she asked me what it means to be grounded. We talked about it and I ended by saying 'but you hopefully won't get grounded, as your behaviour will be good'. 'Oh OK Mummy' she says 'but I can't wait to be old enough for detention. Do you know what detention is Mummy?' 'Yes babe I know about detention you don't want that though, it is just for kids who are naughty at school'. 'No Mum, it is really fun, me and my friends are going to all go together and we can whisper and stuff'.

Oh dear, where do you go from that?

Phasing out the American pre-teen TV series I think!

Oh how I love this little madam, just look at her. My precious poppet.

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Reasons to be Cheerful is the best linky ever - fact!

That is quite a big claim - isn't it? But this isn't about me and how great I am, this is about YOU and how fabulous you are.

Two and a half years ago I created a linky, one that I knew I needed. It was to help me focus on what is great in life and to remind me to stop and be thankful for all the blessings God bestows on me.  Not content with doing this alone, I invited you all to join me and over the last 124 weeks so many of you have done that and that in itself makes me really grateful.

Reasons to be Cheerful is not one of the BIG linkys, I can't boast of ever having 150 or even 80 people linked up in one week.  If you join in, it won't give you 100's of page views or masses of comments. This linky was never meant to be one that people joined in with to boast their stats and get an easy win.  Oh no, this linky is not what I would call a 'blogging linky'.  #R2BC is about self-awareness and about you as a person, our blog is just the way we are expressing ourselves.

I suppose I ought to substantiate why I feel #R2BC is the best linky ever -

+   I know that one woman used it as a way to stay focused on the future and the positive in life when her husband was made redundant and had no job for quite some time

+   There's another lady who has continued to cite her reasons to be cheerful even when grieving from the loss of her father

+   Then there is the super strong lady who joined us when she was going through two (yes two) different types of cancer

+   Not forgetting the woman who has always had a downer on life, she recently emailed to tell me that #R2BC had changed her outlook on life and she now sees hope in each day

+   Just on this weeks post someone told me that #R2BC was a comfort blanket to them and they could come back to it when they needed it

I could go on, there are plenty more stories and so many people who keep coming back and joining in and that is why I'm so pleased to be here when they need my little linky.  At times I have wondered why I do this linky, it is a big comment to keep something going for such a long time but like with everything God has a plan and a reason and this week I really see it.

Not only has Reasons to be Cheerful helped me to see the good (or God) in things but it has helped so many of you too.....

Thanks for joining in.  Sorry if I sound a bit soppy, I am genuinely wiping a tear away as I type this. Thank to every one of you who has ever joined in with #R2BC, long may it continue.

Love this community!  Mich x

Image Credit

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Starting every day well - #R2BC, week 20 year 3

Welcome to this weeks edition of Reasons to be Cheerful

This weeks I am sharing a life lesson that I have learnt and then forgot and have to re-learn again.  Over and over I go through this, all part of my journey of faith. It annoys me that I forget things and can't seem to retain everything I need but thankfully I have a loving God who likes the fact I try and blesses me anyway.

I find that when I make time to pray first thing in the morning, everything else is kept in perspective and tends to fall in place during the day. This lesson makes all the difference to my attitude and helps me feel more grateful and cheerful.

Have you ever read this?

I got up early one morning, 

And rushed right into the day; 

I had so much to accomplish, 

I didn’t have time to pray. 

Troubles just tumbled about me, 

And heavier came each task. 

"Why doesn’t God help me?" I wondered. 

He answered, "You didn’t ask." 

I tried to come into God’s presence; 

I used all my keys at the lock. 

God gently and lovingly chided,

"Why, child, you didn’t knock." 

I wanted to see joy and beauty, 

But the day toiled on gray and bleak. 

I wondered why God didn’t show me. 

He said, "You didn’t seek." 

I woke up early this morning, 

And paused before entering the day. 

I had so much to accomplish 

That I had to take time to pray.

Source unknown

I love that, it makes so much sense to me.  Like much of life we rush about and expect to accomplish everything when actually sometimes we just need to stop doing and start being!

Who will write for BritMums for June and July?
Congratulations to Mama Syder, you were the lucky blogger chosen to write the Positively Inspirational round-up for BritMums for June and July.  I know you will do an excellent job as your whole attitude to life just seems so balanced and positive.  Thanks to all those who expressed an interest.

Blogger of the Week

This weeks featured #R2BC blogger is Becky from Lakes Single Mum. Becky was one of the first bloggers I met online and at the time she was going through some tough stuff. It has been wonderful to watch her move up north and then see her grow in confidence and happiness as she has established herself in a beautiful part of the country with her lovely kids. I looked back at past #R2BC linkies and discovered Becky first joined up in January 2011!  She is one of our founder members.

Come and join in.....
Why don't you join up with Reasons to be Cheerful this week? It is such a fabulous opportunity to stop and reflect on your life and to see the good in it. Have a read about what I believe and why #R2BC started, it has literally changed my life to have this weekly focus on what is good (or God) in life.  How easy is it to allow things to become doom and gloom?.

So if you want to join in, go for it.  We are a no rules kind of linky - you link up what you fancy (well as long as it is not just a blatant advert), a recipe, the simple things in life, photos, a story - whatever! Add in the blog hop code so people can travel around and then visit others and share the comment love.  But if you are not sure how to add in code or anything else, don't worry - just go for it and leave a link to your post in the comments and I'll link you up.

Have a great week, Mich x

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