Dragon Boat Racing

The day was perfect for Dragonboat racing - very sunny, by the river at Oakley Court Windsor - the Giles Travel team looked up for the race.  No pressure Adam and Mummy but you had better work hard to win!!!

So off they set first race - i just managed to find the wine and started my own little race - how fast can i drink this bottle of Sauvignon!!Adam looked great as the team Drummer and everyone looked super in their Etihad sponsored team shirts!

Some of the races were very tight and Giles Travel won the first race with ease.........som eof the teams took it a little too seriously though and Giles Travel ended up 13th overall out of 21 teams!!! A great day in all - ended with a nice group dinner at Oakley Court with the kids.  Caroline and Mike joined us for the day and the dinner which was lovely!

Well Done Adam - good drumming - and well done Mum!!

Tipi Tent August 2009

Where else to spend Adams birthday than in a real Red Indian Tipi in Sussex. What a find this place is!! Beautiful scenery, so close to Camber Sands and Hastings and a real tipi tent with open fire/stove outside plus everything provided for you in the tent!!

Mike and i celebrated our new jobs with a pork pie and a bottle of champagne - very nice! We went to Hastings for our first outing which was such fun, after a stroll along the beach we headed for the bumber cars......We also went to a fantastic restaurant in Hastings that had a special treat for the kids - plastic knives and forks ahh bless.

The next day we hit Camber Sands where the kids went Dune Jumping and the adults sat and had tea by the sea - beautiful!

May 09 Half Term France Trip

After a very easy 600 mile journey which was 100% hassle free, where Adam read a complete Anthony Horowitz book, we arrived at Le Danks Pad in the stunning Messe area of France. What a great break - just what the doctor ordered after a very difficult week leading up to it. An absolutely stunning place that Le Danks Family should be very proud of. The kids made full use of the swimming pool and loved the space around them. Some stunning days out, with a FANTASTIC lunch at Auberge de l'Argentor in Nanteuil which in 80 degrees with a bottle of cool rose was stunning. Adam particularly enjoyed his seafood salad, afterwards we all had ice creams in deck chairs by a beautiful river it was an setting only dreams can be made of! Whilst we only had a week we made the most of it. 2 trips to La Rochelle, where mummy managed to blag a free crepe! We spent time at the beach and a fantastic trip to the Vallee de la Singes where Adam got attacked by a monkey who left a very large bruise on his leg!!

This was such a great break and the kids absolutely loved it. The nicest thing about the whole trip was the the Danks family joined us for our last night. We had a fab breakfast and made our way home.

Bournemouth 2009

Football tour number 5 now - it seems a long time ago that Adam was 5 running around Clacton. This was now 11-a-side against teams such as Coventry and AFC Wimbledon.

The weather was fantastic and this was our first time at Bournemouth which is the flagship destination on the R&T Tours circuit.

The accomodation was superb, warm, new and even had a balcony! The football was great too, with excellent facilities. Adams team won 1, drew 2 and lost 2 so not bad comparing it to previous years. Julie managed a drink too at the usual Family Kerr BBQ! Excellent. Harry Rednapp gave the trophies this year.

Easter 2009 Devon

A bit of traffic in Bristol but a good run down. It had been a while since we last went down to Devon but we made the most of the long weekend. It was a great choice of destination as half of the country was in sun and the other in rain - we got the sun (FOR ONCE). Gran had indulged in a bread making device which meant we ate more bread than a baker!

The weather was that good the kids even had the chance to body board again!!! Amber wasnt as brave because the sea was freeeeeeezing but Adam did a couple of 2 hour stints!!

We also managed to meet up with Caroline, Richard, Beth and Charlie and do an Easter exchange and a nice dune walk - as well as a short time on the beach.

The weekend finished off with a headland walk at Westward Ho! - Beautiful.

Julies 40th Birthday

The time had come - the time that Julie wanted for the day out but not for the age!! What a weekend - i had been saving for a while to make sure Julie had a day to remember. I think she got it. Our friends made it so memorable. Our first port of call was Gordon Ramsays Maze restaurant. I booked the Chefs Table as it was a special day and whilst it was pricey it was fantastic value. The Chefs Table is in the kitchen and it really is an eye opener into the world of the professional kitchen. John, Yvette, Mike and Caroline joined us.

The food was out of this world and was something you only have on extremely special occasions. The wine wasnt bad either - although it took 7 bottles to find out!

Halfway through the 10 courses Julie and guests had a tour of the kitchen which ended with Julie having to cook a scallop dish for all of us - very nice!

After lunch - we went to the Novotel Waterloo and checked in. John and Yvette tried to get a crafty snooze in but it didnt last long because we were off again! We managed to meet up with some more friends, Julie, Rob, Tom, Carol, Nick and Louise and we headed to Soho to go to Amuse Bouche a champagne bar on Poland Street. Fantastic - both value and quality! Only an hour and a half in here but nevertheless managed to get in quite a few bottles and some nibbles!

Once the champagne was gone we moved on to the funniest part of the evening. Lucky Voice private Karaoke Bar again in Poland Street. What a great place although first impressions i thought that i was walking into a brothel - not that i have done that before. Blacked out walls and doors - underground - very seedy. The rooms however were great - 12 of us in total all in a sound proof booth with as much Karaoke as we can handle. Nick certainly liked it and found it very difficult to part with the mic! Rob loved the bongos and Mike had a bruise the next day from banging too hard on the tambourine!!!

The funniest part was saved until the end where Julie, Louise and Carol decided to get changed into their Beyonce outfits and perform the Single Ladies dance - oh my word - what can i say. See the clip below to see what should have happened and then look at the pictures - beautiful!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XDTibf0qIzw

After such a great day and night it was back to the hotel for some serious sleep.

Happy Birthday Julie

Cousin Kerrs 100th Birthday Bash

100 years old. Tom you really dont look it! Oh i see that included Carol.......are you sure?

A trip to Lenzerheide was arranged kindly by the Kerrs to celebrate the event. A fantastic chalet the size of a small town was more than ample for the 28 of us!!! Yes 28 oh and coco! Bunk beds, industrial kitchens, showers, games rooms and SNOW!

The trip started 2 days prior to any snow activities with Tom taking his love bus filled with everything except the kitchen sink - as well as Nick, Rob and my goodself. A driving excursion which was made shorter by the hours of trivial pursuit played on the ipod! First stop Verdun in France which will always be famed for Snails revenge and Toms excellent French - my word that man is fluent!

The first opportunity for Tom to use his french was in a bar with the English name of Le Windsor - on arriving his first question to a very smart French barman was - and i quote "ooh ey le Indian Restaurant"....we knew that this trip could well be a long one, however, he redeemed himself by introducing us 3 to the barman (whilst pointing) as "un, deux, trois, je m'appelle Plonker". The barman had the last laugh when he put four beers on the table and said "un, deux, trois oh and (to Tom) here you are Mr Plonker!!" - priceless.

After a night of having 12 HOT GARLIC SNAILS thrown into my lap we proceeded the next day to Zurich, Tom was great he drove a considerable amount of time and when we arrived in Zurich we needed to find the Youth Hostel (contradiction if ever i heard one). I know - he said lets stop and ask - on stopping a fine young lady he said can you read this as i dont have my glasses! So how did we make Zurich?? Zurich was great and i can thoroughly recommend the youth hostel although dont share it with 2 snorers and a man who leaves his ipod continually on repeat playing the Nolans!!!!

IPOD MAN SNORER 1 SNORER 2

Eventuallty after a fantastic meal at Helens we moved on to Zurich Airport where the real fun began and hopefully we would get the girls and the kids from their stressful flight from Heathrow (which was drinking, beer, champagne and not a lot more). We arrived at Zurich airport and found the car park - have you ever tried to get a 2.2m people carrier with frozen (yes still frozen) curry in the top box under a 2m concrete car park entrance - trust me they dont go.....this resulted in a u turn and drive down the wrong way of a one way ramp with Keystone Kop proportions!

Once we collected the girls normality struck! We could focus on skiing well except for the host (Gout) and myself (Knee). The kids were geared up and ready for fun! Some went to ski school...
And some were already great skiiers!

And some could ski backwards down the mountain with their eyes shut!!!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gnhC3xS97wE

Rene and Helen were very kind in taking me the cripple for a walk which they advised me was an hour long and flat - well all i can say is that when i finished my walk i was wondering where i should stick the flag!!! Beautiful scenery and great company!!!

Yet again - a great trip was had by all - well done Family Kerr!