AD | Christmas has arrived at @thelexiconbracknell AD | Christmas has arrived at @thelexiconbracknell and there’s so much to entertain the whole family whilst you do your Christmas shopping! 

Visit The Lexicon Glow Room for a magical light experience that will dazzle you with 20,000 LEDs. It feels like the room goes on forever! Then, take a dip in the Light Pool, a magical ball pool with golden balls to be found and prizes to be won!

If that wasn’t all, have a photo in the giant Christmas bauble ‘sparkling selfie station’ and follow the Twinkle Trail, spotting baubles in shop windows to collect the clues and enter to win fabulous prizes this Christmas. Plus, share your sparkling selfie station pictures, tagging #thelexiconbracknell or email them to marketing@thelexiconbracknell.com and you will automatically be entered in a competition for the chance to win a restaurant gift card too. 

There are also special performances from local choirs, bands and singers and even the chance to meet Bluey, Hey Duggee and Chase from Paw Patrol! You can be sure that a trip to The Lexicon will have something for everyone over the festive season this year. We loved our visit to The Lexicon last weekend and know we’ll be back again before Christmas!

Find out more on @thelexiconbracknell website.

#TheLexiconBracknell #Merry&Bright
AD - Press Trip | What a lovely evening that was! AD - Press Trip | What a lovely evening that was! We had our first Glow Marwell experience tonight - and we loved it. It may even be the best light trail we have been to.

We spent well over two hours at @marwellzoo, enjoying the light installations, indulging in the food stalls and cafe, toasting marshmallows and even meeting Father Christmas! 

Glow Marwell was such a nice way to kick off the festive season - and it’s on all the way through December! If you’re looking for a really nice festive activity the whole family can enjoy, this could definitely be it!
AD | Are you looking for gifts for the grandparent AD | Are you looking for gifts for the grandparents this year? @famileo_uk is a wonderful gift, giving the recipient a personalised gazette of family news regularly throughout the year - and it costs from just £5.99 a month. 

Multiple family members can use the same subscription, all posting messages to be added to one gazette - and sharing the cost of the subscription too! It’s great for parents, siblings and children to all share their news with grandparents each week, fortnight or month. 

We’ve been sending my dad Family gazettes for a while now and he absolutely loves them. It means we tell him all the little things that are happening and not just the big news you remember to mention in phone calls. The children get to upload their own messages to their grandad and it’s definitely made them feel closer, building a stronger relationship despite living far apart.

Find out more about Family over on the blog - link in bio - and buy a subscription for your nearest and dearest this Christmas. It’s a gift they will definitely love to receive.
Two weeks of Fred & George! I won’t be doing the Two weeks of Fred & George! I won’t be doing these updates every week but I like having somewhere to put all these photos!

They’re now three months old, super loving and happy, making biscuits and purring constantly.

They stay in ‘their’ room overnight but explore the house during the day, getting more confident as time passes. They even got to the point of relaxing on the sofa with us last night.

Fred & George are now very much part of our family and I can’t imagine them not being there now - even at 7am when they’re miaowing at the door for breakfast!
AD | Stuck for screen-free entertainment that your AD | Stuck for screen-free entertainment that your kids will love? Claim your FREE Banjo Robinson activity pack today!
 
Reading for pleasure is a key indicator of a child’s future success, but if your child doesn’t love to read, what can you do? We know it’s not always easy keeping kids entertained and away from screens, so we’ve partnered with the award-winning @banjorobinson to gift you a FREE activity pack, worth £9.99.

Here’s a little look at the Banjo Robinson subscription - Troy loves it! Travelling to world with Banjo is so much fun! You can read our full review over on the blog and claim your free activity pack too - link in profile.
A whole week of Fred & George. We weren’t meant A whole week of Fred & George.

We weren’t meant to get more cats just yet but sometimes the universe sends you things when you don’t expect them.

These little guys needed a home and a family to love them. And we had a home and a lot of love to give. We still miss Leia but this pair are definitely helping make me feel whole again.

They are both used to us now, and love us. They’re less nervous, give us cuddles and let us pick them up. They’re still living in our spare room but starting to explore the rest of the house under supervision. 

They play fight constant. Love toys, especially a crinkly feather thing on a string attached to a stick, and love being up high. They are an awesome pair and we are so glad to have them.

Thank you @millbrook_rspca @rspca_official for trusting us with ‘Lonestar and Starfish’. We could not love them more. 

#catsofinstagram #catstagram #catsofig #catsofinsta #catlovers #adoptdontshop #rspcarescuecat #kittensofinstagram #kittens_of_instagram
[AD - Press Trip] I’ve just finished writing abo [AD - Press Trip] I’ve just finished writing about our half term break at @pottersresort and it’s over on the blog if you want to go have a read.

I wanted to put some of my favourite photos on the grid too as the kids did so many fun activities - they had THE best time. 

Giant swing, segways, climbing, archery, laser clays… there was so much to do that we couldn’t fit it all in - we need another trip!
And there ends our October half term - well, apart And there ends our October half term - well, apart from Troy who has a bonus week off!

This half term has been pretty lovely. Troy had his school residential the first weekend and then we had a really lovely few days in Norfolk before heading home and picking up two new members of our family - Fred and George. 11 week old rescue kittens who have pretty much stolen our hearts.

It’s been so nice to have a chunk of quality time with this pair and now I’m looking forward to the Christmas holidays. These two are the best company and I really do live for the school holidays. 

How has your half term been?
[AD - Press Trip] We’ve loved spending half term [AD - Press Trip] We’ve loved spending half term at @pottersresort in Norfolk. With great food, an action packed schedule of entertainment and activities plus everything included in the price of your break - even drinks - it’s a fantastic way to holiday as a family, giving quality time together in the nicest of surroundings. 
I’ll write a full review soon but for now here’s a little Reel  of our trip.
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Days Out and Attractions/Events, Florida, Reviews · November 15, 2022

Our First Visit to Universal Studios Islands of Adventure Florida

When we went to Florida we visited the Universal Orlando Resort for the first time as, on our last visit, the children hadn’t been tall enough for most of the rides so we thought we’d save it for our next visit. We couldn’t wait to see what Universal was all about!

Our First Visit to Universal Studios Islands of Adventure Florida

Universal Orlando tickets

We bought our Universal Studios Florida tickets as a package through Orlando Attraction Tickets as part of their Black Friday sale, giving us 14 days access to all three Universal parks for a 14 day period. We could visit Universal Studios, Universal Islands of Adventure and the Typhoon Lagoon water park as many times as we liked over the 14 days – and park hop too.

The Universal Orlando Resort has a $27 a day parking charge and you then park in a big multi-storey can park. It’s really well laid out and just a short walk from the main security gates where you can then head into Universal’s City Walk of shops, restaurants and entertainment.

From there you keep walking to go to Islands of Adventure or turn off to go to Universal Studios. It’s lovely that everything is in the same complex and can be reached easily from the one central hub.

Our First Visit to Universal Studios Islands of Adventure Florida

Rides at Islands of Adventure

One of the first things we did at Universal Islands of Adventure was to head for the rides! The first one was the Jurassic World Veloci Coaster which was amazing but too much for Little Man and I! Dave and LP loved it but I decided to sit out a few of the bigger rollercoasters after that!

The Jurassic Park River Adventure is amazing. So much more immersive than a typical theme park boat ride – and the rides in Orlando are incredible compared to anything in the UK. A river ride through Jurassic Park with dinosaurs on the loose?! It was great!

Our First Visit to Universal Studios Islands of Adventure Florida

Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey had one of the biggest queues we waited in during our time in Florida but it was well worth the wait – and the queue was really immersive, walking around Hogwarts and seeing things come to life. It passed quicker then we’d expected it to and the ride was well worth the wait.

Our First Visit to Universal Studios Islands of Adventure Florida

Before we knew it we were flying through the air, coming face to face with so many Wizarding World creatures and screaming our heads off. It was fantastic! We didn’t make it on to Hagrid’s Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure but heard great things about it too.

Our First Visit to Universal Studios Islands of Adventure Florida

We didn’t take the Hogwarts Express from Islands of Adventure to Universal Studios but we did ride it in the other direction to spend an afternoon at Islands of Adventure and it was fantastic. Purely a mode of transport but one that has been done really well.

Our First Visit to Universal Studios Islands of Adventure Florida

We also went on Dudley Do-Right’s Ripsaw Falls which is hands down the wettest we have ever got on a water ride. In Florida they do things and they do them big. We were soaked but it was great fun. Such a simple ride but one we absolutely loved.

Popeye and Bluto’s Bilge-Rat Barges is another that absolutely soaked us. We were drenched and howling in laughter. It was such a shock to get so wet so early in the day but we dried off easily in the August sunshine.

Skull Island: Reign of Kong and the Amazing Adventures of Spiderman are fantastic movie based rides that blew us away. We were transported right into a movie that was playing out around us. With so much movement, they were completely immersive and fantastic experiences.

We didn’t go on some of the smaller rides as we weren’t interested in them and didn’t get to go on the Incredible Hulk Roller Coaster or Doctor Doom’s Fearfall because lightning closed the rides – but we’ll make sure to do them next time!

Our First Visit to Universal Studios Islands of Adventure Florida

Shows at Universal’s Islands of Adventure

There are just four shows at Islands of Adventure but I don’t think I’d really call them shows – not in the Disney sense anyway! Poseidon’s Fury is more of a ride or at least a walkthrough experience rather than a show – and it was incredible! Definitely make sure you experience it, you will be blown away.

Our First Visit to Universal Studios Islands of Adventure Florida

There’s also the Frog Choir to see, a Cat in the Hat performance and the Triwizard Spirit Rally although we waited for that one and it turned out to be just a photo opp, not a show at all.

Our First Visit to Universal Studios Islands of Adventure Florida

Food and drink at Universal’s Islands of Adventure

As with any theme park, there are countless food and drink options at Islands of Adventure for full sit down meals or just a drink or snack. We took snacks with us each day but also had dirty fries at Burger Digs and Cinnabon which is never a bad choice!

As you’d expect with any theme park, there are also plenty of shops to explore and even children’s play areas for the little ones. It’s a really lovely day out and we ended up spending a day and a half at Islands of Adventure without any fast passes and felt like we’d had enough time there. A day with fast passes could be plenty.

We really lovely the Universal Orlando Resort and felt like the rides overall were just such a step up from anything we had experienced before. They were fantastic and we can’t wait to go again in the future.

You can find out more about Islands of Adventure over on the Universal Orlando Resort website and for reference the address is: Universal Blvd, Orlando, FL 32819

Our First Visit to Universal Studios Islands of Adventure Florida

In: Days Out and Attractions/Events, Florida, Reviews

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Hi everyone! I'm Donna. Mummy. Blogger. Social Media Manager. Traveller. Lover of stars, rainbows and gin. Firm believer that tea and cake can fix most things.

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