Took delivery of our new van just before xmas - it is a vast improvement on the IH630RL panel van conversion that we owned for about 4 or 5 months !!
After the usual very busy Xmas we escaped to Conkers campsite near Burton on Trent for a 3 day shake down trip. Weather was pretty good for the time of year and we managed to get a good walk in without getting wet or cold - not bad for late December. We also visited the National Memorial Arboretum. Lorraines father was involved with the NVA exhibition that is within the Arboetum so it was nice to visit and to see the rest of the memorial.
The van was great - nice and warm, the heating system really is very good, you can set it to come on just like your central heating at home including hot water. So the girl only has to worry about my coffee in the morning now LOL.
Lot of space to sit and eat, loads of storage space and the bathroom has plenty of space as well.
Opted for the 150 engine and the van is currently running at just under 25mpg which i am quite happy with - not bad for a new engine.
In January we headed east to Run Cottage which is just East of Ipswich with Dave and Lins and spent a week looking around the Suffolk coast, visiting Ipswich (on the train), Snape Maltings and Aldeburgh where we bought some fresh fish off the beach and had a lovely meal with them later.
February half term - Kate and James headed off to New York so we had Harry and Zoe for the week and decided to take them to Skegness for a couple of days. The truth is we were dying to try out our drop down bed and this was the perfect opportunity. The kids slept in the two single beds and we slept in the double drop down - it was surprisingly comfortable and easy to get in and out of.
Had a nice couple of days being sandblasted, visiting Skeggy and just enjoying the grandkids.
Just after Easter we took Kate, Harry and Zoe to Clumber Park for 3 nights. The kids are getting to be old hands at this vanning lark, Harry helps with the outside jobs and Zoe does the inside jobs. (Granny and Grandad can have a rest !!!).
We spent Wednesday visiting Sherwood Forest and walking to see the great oak - when you read the information you realise that it has nothing to do with Robin Hood but that hasn't stopped an entire industry sprouting up around the oak and Robin - its amazing that it is still standing even with all the support it has in place. Thursday saw us visiting Great Granny - my mother - in Goldthorpe took in a nice lunch and had a very nice visit - Barbara and Charlie came to visit. Back to Clumber and good walk near the river to earn some tea and cake before heading back to the van for the evening.
Headed back via Brownhills who we bought the van from for a little bit of warranty work - some decals were not as good as they should have been - all sorted.