WIBU to take DS on trip to motorway service station

[craftsy]

Having a very lazy day after a night of crap sleep with 4yo DS who was very unsettled with nightmares from 2-5am. I have a mound of housework and a bit of shopping to do but am quite tempted to just get in the car, drive 10-15 to services and let DS play in the small soft play area for a bit. And possibly have a junk food lunch.

DS is going a bit stir crazy but it's raining here, so going to a playground or the woods would be a washout. We could go to soft play but they would all be packed and a bit hellish. We'd have to stay for 90 minutes, DS would want me to play with him and I just don't have the energy for it. And the food is dire in all the soft play places I know of. In a service station, DS would play for a while, lunch would at least taste decent, it wouldn't be too noisy. We could leave after an hour and I could do my shopping on the way home and make us a healthy supper to compensate for the Burger King or Subway lunch.

Pros are that DS would actually probably love it and find it a very exciting adventure. While I think I would find it less tiring than soft-play. Cons are that as someone who only very recently has a driving licence, I know me of a year ago would think that going on a day out to a motorway service station is the most bonkers excuse of a trip ever. It's also possible that DS would prefer some other outing and I'm just a bit giddy with my new found power of transportation.

When I can't think of anything better to do I take DS to Knightsbridge to stare at the Maclaren showroom and spot the supercars being driven veeerrrry slowly but unbelievably loudly past Harrods and Harvey Nicks.

My PiL live 15 mins from Gloucester services and go there for coffee. My

Soft play is soft play. And we do what we have to to stay sane. Go.

Years ago at Fiumicino Airport in Rome the food was really good. It was a very basic canteen style set up. I'd avoid the meat and fish which always got dry unless you got to it just as it was cooked. But you could get anti pasti, pasta with different sauces, ravioli, cannelloni, fresh fruit, nice desserts, decent wine, good coffee. It was cooked very well and very cheap.

I used to look forward to lunch or teatime at the airport depending on what time we were leaving. It's not like that any more

In the school holidays my mum used to take me and my brother on a Red Rover day. (They were an all day bus pass in London) we had sandwiches and we use to get on and off buses all day - each in turn deciding when to get off and on. I loved it so much but weirdly I've never done it with my kids - I must before they are too old! I can't remember anywhere we went to or how far we got but it was very exciting being in control!

DH is a not so small boy and every Sunday lunchtime we'd sit at the window table in Racine opposite the Brompton Oratory and watch the same thing WinifredAtwellsOtherPiano. Summer and the Ramadan Rush is a very good time for people who admire supercars. Sadly Racine closed. It was a neighbourhood restaurant and Knightsbridge is no longer a neighbourhood

Ah Winifred, when we were growing up in London, we liked nothing better than going to buy a paper in the lobby of a "posh hotel". The Park Lane Hilton was a particular fave, as then we could take in the car showrooms as well and get a sundae from the Marble Arch Wimpy

You must reup. I remember Red Rpver passes. I always tell tourists they should take buses instead of tubes as much as possible and sit on the top deck at the front. You see so much and get your bearings effortlessly. I can tell sometimes that they think I'm a bit mad

The service station up north is Tebay, the original one. A favourite stop-off heading to Scotland. Views of mountains, a duck pond, stream running through building - lovely place and staffed with people with special needs.

We took toddler DS to a carwash for his birthday - he loved it! Other treats include a day spent following the bin trucks around our end of town.

I take my kids to the service station local to us here in the US when it's too hot or cold to play outside. It was $1200 for the annual membership for the indoor play area. The service station is free. I took my kids to Walmart this morning for cycle practice. It's a 24hr shop so I took them in early. No one said anything. DD is almost ready for taking the training wheels off.

Some of the best experiences for kids are free. I sometimes take my dc's to the local crossing block. Guard lets them change the signals and points (under supervision of course!) and run the track tokens down to the drivers. He also makes me a cuppa. Kids love the responsibility, guard loves the company and chat, I love tea....total win win imo!! #trainspottersinthemaking!

Brilliant idea! When we were kids, we would go and watch the planes whenever we could. Cheap day out (we cycled).

Well, every day is a school day on Mumsnet. I googled Tebay services and found out that they are not new at all, but were originally built in 1972 when the motorway was built. I have spent all my 50 plus years going to the Lake District but usually turn off coming north before the Tebay services so did not know they were not new when I happened to go further up the M6 a couple of years ago.

This is a great thread for people with young children. Like Sparkling, I am a little sad that mine are now too old to take anywhere. My personal equivalent outing when mine were little was to take them to local airfields to watch the small planes and helicopters landing and taking off. It's amazing what will entertain little children.

BTW, dh is worried that OP exceeded her 2 hour free parking time when she went to the services yesterday.

I used to take my tiny pre-walking baby son with his bright plastic baby walker to an indoor shopping precinct near us.
Lovely, smooth, gently-sloping walkways where he could race around for long distances. Used to turn a few heads

I think my kids would think that was a great day out! They also enjoy random bus rides and car washes.

God yes- show homes, DD loves an afternoon out poking around them.

Other free but fabulous things she's said she remembered:
-We live near a high school. Watching the Y11 assemble for their Prom and admiring all of their glamorous dresses and suits.
-Walking around local streets admiring neighbours' Christmas lights.
-Watching our local ParkRun and cheering folk on
-Coming to work with me one day in the holidays 'as a treat'

Ah- the best things in life truly are free

DS1 had the best ever day out at the same age. He went to see his disabled DGreat GM on the day the bin men came. And they let him PUSH THE BUTTON TO TAKE THE BIN UP. He still remembers it, and he's now 27yo.

My best was over two hours in CarpetRight, with happy 3yo fondling all the samples, jumping from one square to another, and pushing a trolley with a whole carpet roll very slowly (about an inch per shove) from one end of the store to the other and back, while the manager had no other customers and gave me tea and chat.

Many a day I made soft play into a whole day expedition, using at least three methods of transport each way on different routes (bus, train, tram) or just got train to Clapham Jn to watch trains. Climbing all the stairs and running round deserted balconies at the RFH was good too.

Yes, yes to taking them to garden centres! Ours had a huge display of wendy houses to explore, a pet shop, and an aquarium - we used to spend HOURS there. As well as watching building sites (we still call certain vehicles 'diggies' and 'cemmemmy mixes' because of DS). Trips on double decker buses, sitting at the front on the top deck - they liked the bus bit more than the day out, tbh... and you know there's no danger of them escaping.

Now they're older, (DS is 12, DD is 9), bit more effort required, but we go out to old churches quite a lot - free entry & I try to make sure there's something else going on - usually a flower festival or similar, where they might also be selling plants & donated cakes, so it's super cheap. If not, we get to have a nose at the stained glass, monuments, and graffiti, and they learn a bit too (I am honestly the least Christian and worthy type person going, but all three of us love history, and it's fun).

I also think going to the services was sodding inspired OP. Can imagine motorway services across the UK & Ireland being inundated with MNers now!

It was the Applegreens near Birdhill that we went to! :D That's why I was a bit embarrassed at the idea of it for an outing. It's just a food court with a play area. I told my mum today and she laughed saying it sounds like the type of thing a crappy divorced dad would do on his monthly access day. But DS thought it was great, and I got in a bit of motorway practice before I take on a longer motorway trip later in the summer.

Next stop Barack Obama Plaza!!!!

Sounds like great fun...alternatively do IKEA and get free coffee too.

Once I was having a lovely coffee on the terrace at a service station, and the sound of the cars rushing past almost sounded like waves of the sea. Paradise!

We go to our nearest services to eat sometimes when we can't agree on what to have.
Eldest DD chooses McDonalds, Very fussy youngest DD has Harry Ramsdens, DH chooses something from the noodle bar and I have a wrap from a salad bar place. It keeps everybody happy.

Myself hubby and teenager had a day out in Applegreens today

We took our DD on a "yacht" for her 2nd birthday: a water taxi from one side of our city's river to the opposite bank. She had such a good time that we really pushed the boat out (!) and did the return by "yacht" too. Adults were equivalent of one pound each. DD ride free She asks to do this every year but we've moved away now sadly.

I remember driving into town each Christmas to see the Christmas decorations on Regent Street and the Harrods shop windows. All-family outing, kids in Jammie's as we always went after dinner and fell asleep in the drive home. Happy days.