Isla's 2nd Birthday at the "Forest"

Before September ends (wake me up? lol) let me at least post an entry. So happy to see that I now have 15,000+ views and counting. Hurray!

This post has been long delayed as Isla had her birthday a few months back in July but I felt I need to share this because we really had a good time and we had a hard time moving on from the experience when it was over. We have been planning that for this year, we will spend Isla's birthday elsewhere as a family. We will not be throwing a party this time as it was a bit stressful planning it last year ("a bit" is an understatement really). I wanted to spend it at a theme park, as a suggestion from the inner child in me but hubby insisted that Isla may still not appreciate it at her age. When hubby suggested that we go to Center Parcs, I was a bit skeptical at first as I'm not really an outdoor kind of girl and I felt that I would not enjoy it that much. But when we saw from their website the different locations in the UK, they all looked very impressive so we decided to go there on the last minute (a bit pricey than the regular price). We wanted to go to a different forest but because it was very last minute, we cannot get the accommodation we would like for our small family therefore we ended up in Longleat Forest (which turned out to be not so bad afterall).

Overall it was a really nice place for a short break. We would have wanted to stay longer and we would probably return next time.  The place was so huge. We never had time to actually do all the activities and we spent most of our time swimming (well partly because I never went swimming for like a really long time). Almost every type of activity you can think of is available (sports, outdoor, spa, kid stuff, etc), if you think of a weekend break. The place can sort of survive on it's own (thinking of Walking Dead apocalypse type of scenarios) as it has it own stores, supermarket, cafes, restos and whathaves, you name it, they have it. It is definitely self-sustaining (like a small city or town) and it has it's own bus/service if you can't bike your way around or walking would be too much for you. To my surprise, I even found a mailbox and even tried sending a post card to my good friend (which she got eventually).

I made a chiffon cake with meringue frosting/Royal icing (for the first time as I would like to make this type of cake for a long time; typical birthday cake; I did not boil the icing by the way). 

Photo copyright from EP Creative Photography

Photo copyright from EP Creative Photography

We also chose a self-catering type of accommodation so I was able to cook on some nights and bring food with us. I also loved our unit, it has a modest-sized lounge, kitchen, dining area and bedroom as well as a small veranda with a view of the forest. I was also surprised that the toilet and bathroom area was large. It has a separate bath/shower and tub and also a his and hers section for the sinks on each side. For our package, there is a maid service available (equivalent of room service for the hotels I think). There is no need to bring any cooking utensils/equipment as it has everything. All you need to bring are the ingredients for your recipe. Like a hotel, there is tea, coffee, milk and sugar available. The same goes in the toilet and bath (including towels which come in handy for swimming).

This is not really a beach but a lake which is a bit man-made because they had to incorporate the sand. 

Photo copyright from EP Creative Photography

Photo copyright from EP Creative Photography

Photo copyright from EP Creative Photography

Photo copyright from EP Creative Photography

Photo copyright from EP Creative Photography

Photo copyright from EP Creative Photography

This place has definitely exceeded our expectations and the price was really worth it. Although some of the activities have to be paid for, you can bring along your bike (as you might need it as the place is big) and there are also available ones for rent. This is something that is totally not applicable to me as I don't know how to ride a bike (not the outdoor type, remember?). You can also swim all you want and they have different areas/levels of the pool from babies/toddlers to grown-ups who are up for an adventure on their water slide (like my hubby).

I have nothing but good things to say about Center Parcs, Hmmm...I've just realised that this post reminded me that I have never written about our latest travels for so long. It's not that we have not been going out (although its not as frequent as we used to and we don't travel that far anymore for obvious reasons), I was just not religiously posting our family travels as I've used to. We went to some places particularly last year when my in-laws were here. This also reminds me that I never actually wrote a post about Isla's first birthday. Another assignment for next time. Gotta get back to babysitting now. Ta-ta!