Tag: pre-schooler

Days Out

Peppa Pig World – with a toddler!

katchambers2 Comments

On our last day of our Butlins (Bognor Regis) holiday, we decided that we would stop off at Peppa Pig World for the day, on our way home.

This was our first trip to a proper theme park with our 2.5 year old toddler, so we were uncertain as to what to expect.

Firstly, Peppa Pig World is a clean and pretty little part of a larger theme park called Paultons Family Theme Park. There are only about 8/9 Peppa Pig themed rides, however, I feel that is sufficient for a day of activity. Unfortunately we did not get to try all of the rides, because either the queues were too long, or Nate decided he didn’t want to go on them.

Parking was easy enough, but it was quite a trek from parking to the entrance (where you pay), fairly long queue’s to get in and then you have to walk through the whole of Paultons Park to get to Peppa Pig World, so if you have a young child, you may want to take a buggy or baby carrier. There is ample space for pushchairs to be left at every ride, so I am glad we decided to take it in. Please note that there are not baby changing facilities in Peppa Pig World, but there is one outside to the left, and it was pretty good and spacious.

peppa pig land paultons park

I felt the price was too high if you only intend to go to the Peppa pig section of the park (like we did), I think they should have a separate and lower price for Peppa Pig users only (although I understand how they are very unlikely to do this, financially). I am glad that Nate was under 100cm (just) and therefore didn’t have to pay the £27 full price ticket that each of myself and my husband had to pay. They do sometimes have special offers and is worth checking the website before you go, it is also cheaper if you book online.

Being completely honest, I think Nate was too young to really enjoy the park, or perhaps it is just his personality, but the idea of queuing for a 2 year old, is just not something he can comprehend. I am sure if we went with friends and their kids, he would have been more entertained, but he really did not like queuing and was not shy about letting us know it – several tantrums ensued. What further irritated him was that he was not allowed to stay on the ride for more than one go (which is obvious to us adults, but try explaining that to a 2 year old).

He went on Grandpa Pigs train ride, Daddy Pigs car ride, Grandpa pigs boat trip (shortest queue) and George’s Rocket – indoor play zone (no queuing required). He enjoyed all of them, and really wanted to try the helicopter ride, but the queues for that were 35 minutes long all day and I knew he would not stand through that. There was also a peppa pig playground that he enjoyed and a muddy puddles wet play at the back of that, but he was too tired by that point to try it.

toddler driving car

All in all, we enjoyed our day and may try taking him back again next year when he is more queue-friendly.

 

Parenting

Toddler Splash! (Wolverton Swimming Pool)

katchambersLeave a comment

The last few times that we took Nate swimming, he had a bit of a meltdown and was very clingy, which is surprising because we did Waterbabies lessons with him, so anyway we thought we would try something else to help increase his confidence. We decided to the try our new local swimming pool at Wolverton, because they were running a “Toddler Splash” session, which sounded like fun.

Being a new pool the facilities were lovely, clean and modern. There were plenty of changing rooms, and even several giant family changing rooms with a baby change station. The lockers come in varying sizes including some as big as a wardrobe – no seriously! This is a nice step up from my other local pool (Middleton) where you can’t even fit your purse in their lockers.

The most impressive part of the facilities however is the baby pool. It is completely separate from the big pool, a few degrees warmer and has steps leading down, with rails to hold onto. There is a snake running along the side that sprays out water, some buckets and tumblers that intermittently spray or drop water. At one end of the pool, outside of the water are pirate themed games, all in all a lovely pool for little ones.

wolverton baby pool

The toddler splash session included the addition of inflatables, balls and floats – this is what won it over for Nate – he is ball mad (well what male isn’t!) So for the first time in a while he was actually smiling and laughing in the pool, and slowly edging his way down the steps. The distraction of the toys was a good one, so I can definitely recommend that if your child/pre-schooler/toddler is having confidence issues with swimming/water. I will be looking into the toddler swimming lessons in a few months and will report back on them.

In thinking about helping him I did some research and found the following that may be helpful. Toddler swimming tips:

  • Look for specific toddler and parent sessions at your local pool, as they are more likely to be fun sessions
  • At this age swimming is for fun and confidence building rather than learning
  • Singing songs and nursery rhymes can help, particularly ones that incorporate spinning or jumping
  • Water safety is important, one method you could teach: sit down, put your hands on the side, turn over and wiggle in, hold onto the side
  • Show him that it is fun and relaxing, children learn from modelling their parents, and if you feel relaxed they will pick up on that
  • Let your toddler lead the way, even if it means just following them around the sides of the pool
  • Laugh and smile at them every time they get their face wet as if it is the best thing in the world

If anyone lives in or near the Milton Keynes area, they run these toddler splash sessions on Saturday and Sunday afternoons, Saturday mornings, and two mornings in the week. As well as many other sessions, including fun swims for older children and swim classes. Current pricing is £3.60 per adult and under 4s are free.