First Family Holiday

We're all going on a summer holiday...

Originally published 5 June 2014

Well Mummy, Daddy and I did in early March when the weather was still nice and toasty. I'd never been away from home overnight before, so this would be the first family holiday for the Hartlands. Or Team Oliver as I like to think of it.

Mount Maunganui (a popular coastal town in the Bay of Plenty) was the destination, so after some packing we were ready to go. I noticed that Mummy & Daddy only had 1 bag each, yet I seemed to need 3 or 4. Must be because I'm the most important. The portacot was also packed; hmm, I wasn't so sure about that...

The apartment we stayed in was pretty nice; lots of space for me to roll from one side of the lounge to the other in, plus a little balcony area where we could sit outside and look at the sea. It's also where Mummy seemed to want to poison me with this horrible stuff one lunchtime (I'm not sure what it was actually called, so let's just call it Crap-in-a-Can).

As well as being my first holiday away from home, it was also notable for another couple of firsts for me. It was my first swim in the sea. Well, "swim" might be a slight exaggeration since the water only reached to about my ankles. Mummy never told me it was going to be that cold, so I politely refused to get in any further.

My first swim in a pool was a nicer experience though. Much warmer and I could splash around a bit, just like my baths at home.

Playing in the sand on Mt Maunganui beach was also fun; the sand was nice and warm, and I had fun trying to get particles of sand everywhere while Mummy tried to stop me. I always win these games though.

After 2 nights away it was time to head back home again. For my first family holiday I'd give it a 7/10. The sea is too cold, sand doesn't taste nice and that portacot isn't as comfy as my cot at home, but it was fun seeing somewhere new in the summer sunshine.