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.

I am going to steal your idea. Some service stations are excellent!

DD felt tired yesterday (long hiking trip on Saturday) and I also felt like she could do with a break from parent-centred activities. So I took her to a trampoline centre, then she had an ice cream, played with her friends and we finished the day ordering pizza and watching Harry Potter. She proclaimed it the best day ever and we could all relax a bit.
Nothing wrong with just doing something that you know your kids will enjoy thoroughly and it's not educational/healthy/active or whatever other label you need to put on today's life to make it look like you're smart.

My three 12,9 and 6 love nothing more than going to the moforway services. They also love car washes. They also really like garden centre.

I never went on a plane until I was 22 but my grandparents used to take us to Gatwick airport for the evening whenever we stayed round. We had so much fun going on the monorail and looking round the Warner bros shop (showing my age) it was also the only time we ever got the treat of a McDonald's milkshake each.

When i was a kid way back in the 50's!! My Mum & Dad used to take us to a pub, we'd sit outside with a bottle of pepsi and a bag of crisps and watch the traffic!!! My dad could name all the makes of cars and sometimes there was a motobike and sidecar !!! Or we'd drive to a nearby airfield and watch the light aircraft take off...

We lived in the Caribbean but I came home with DS1 for the birth of his brother. Felt DS1 must be feeling left out after baby was born so asked him what he and I could do alone together as a special treat (in between feeds). The trip to and from the city upstairs on a double decker bus was the "best treat ever" and was spoken about for years. Must ask him if he still remembers it!

We live overseas and where we are there is minimal public transport so whenever we go back to U.K. we go on a day out by bus/train and DC are giddy with excitement by it!!! Their favorite day on our last visit was train to visit their great grandma and going up and down her stairs on her stairlift!

As a student (in the 90's) the local service station was the only place open for chips in the early hours when the nightclubs closed !!!
My DC think this is hilarious and mention it loudly every time we stop on a journey.

I took DS to Alton Towers in April. We stopped for breakfast on the way, just randomly spotted a restaurant/tea room on our route.

Had a really great cooked breakfast and now 2 months later he's hardly mentioned going on the rides but the breakfast has been repeatedly remembered!

He's 22

*01/07/2017 13:38 Caulkheadupnorf

Is there a play area there?*

Did you actually read the post?
Of course it does - that's the point of the post!
Go for it op.

Caulk'ed
One of the ferries has a soft play doesn't it? Is that your equivalent to the service station

Been there (or to one similar!) done that, and it was fine. Got a packet of straws as a "treat" also, it's great what is fantastic to a 4 yr old .

The boats on our local park's duck pond cost £2 each. They were the best treat ever. Anticipated for days etc. Often in the melt down, boyfriend-haggling, ski trip-iphone-designer-labelled teenage years I thought wistfully of those boats that made them so happy for so little.

A trip out to the, then new, motorway services was the thing to do in the early 60s.

I'd say go for it.

Years ago we took ours camping to a site less than 10 miles away then off to a treat visit to TRU. "This looks familiar" said child no.1 "Oh no, they all look the same"

We didn't let on for ages. It had everything home didn't have - a swimming pool. (It also provided snow too - we went at Easter)

We live in Gloucester too (hi to all my neighbours on here!!) and have taken our girls to the services play area and I know quite a few people who regularly go there for coffee or lunch!

My son used to love going to Ikea back in the day when the creche was just toys (ikea ones obviously) and a ball pond. Once every few weeks I'd collect him from nursery at lunchtime, head to Ikea for a cheap lunch then an afternoon's shopping for me and an afternoon play for him followed by a cheap icecream in the cafe. My friends all thought we were mad, but we enjoyed it. He's 18 now and won't join me there (or anywhere for that matter) for love nor money!

I love Tebay services! Also, if you come off the motorway and go to Orton, there is a chocolatiers there called Kennedy's. It is amazing! They do mail order too.

We used to love garden centres when we were little. There is one where I grew up which has Wendy houses, pets, fish etc. Good for an afternoon.

Oh Teebay's breakfasts are awesome.

One of the worst outings of my childhood was a trip to the Little Eater whereupon my father reused to buy any food, ice cream or drinks on account of the price.... just saying.

REFUSED. I am trying to say refused but the memory is too raw.