Suspension sinks on Sundays! C5 X7 that works hard + 206 GTi HDi (and 406 Coupe and 306 HDi). - MattBLancs

[CitroJim]

That trailer certainly earns its keep Matt!

[mickthemaverick]

Now we've seen the trailer when do we get the movie?

[CitroJim]

Now we've seen the trailer when do we get the movie?

[MattBLancs]

Now we've seen the trailer when do we get the movie?

When I've managed to secure the supporting cast, Mick!

A nice big tub of Ronseal Fence Life Plus in "Midnight Blue" seems remarkably elusive. Much to my surprise as bought some from Screwfix I'd guess 12 months ago. No longer stocked it seems.
B&Q has it but only 5 litre tubs (£18 each or 2 for £28 = 2.80/litre) - they also list but do not stock 12 litres for £16 (£1.30/L). Presumably a selling off price and, now cleared out, really should be purged from their website. Likewise out of stock of 9 L for £22 not a great price (£2.44/L) but miles better than the little 5 l at £28 "Special"

Online has 5L down to about £10, but really I'm after a nice big bucket of the stuff!

A wishy-washy Cornflower (which is odd as Cornflower blue isn't normally that held hearted!) is much more readily available.
Midnight must be out of fashion. Unlike bloody grey that seems to be freely available! Yuk

[MattBLancs]

An update after a good while.

Tub of Midnight Blue found at tiny independent DIY place again reasonable £12.

Fence painted and looking good.

Decided for first time since honeymoon that we'd have holiday in the conventional "go away and do something nice" definition (rather than the "longer period of DIY" definition that is default (enjoyable default all the same!))

So, we packed up the Grey 308 SW and from Friday to Monday we went:
Home - up M6 - stopped at Tebay Services (lovely independent services which shuns the standard services benchmark of borderline horrible and is a nice place to pause a trip) - then on further to Junction 43 and then across the country. Set off 8:30, Tebay mid morning, arrived and had lunch about 12:00. Traffic pretty good all the way up and the M6 gets more pleasant the further north you go, as usual.

On route we stopped for lunch then to nearby Woodhorn Museum. Interesting museum about the mining industry. Also a fun play park and some hands on stuff suiting a 3 and 6 year old.

After lunch and museum, a static caravan park up in Ashington, Northumberland was the destination.

Saturday we had a plan in the caravan park's own lay park (which was excellent other than making me wish I'd brought the oil can... Screeching swings a particular audio trial!
Then an Italian for lunch and a walk at Long Sands.

(Sunday etc to follow)

[MattBLancs]

Thought I'd a picture of the blue fence but seems not! Hope you can stand the anticipation of waiting till the morning light (though actually, the forecast isn't promising for outdoor photography tomorrow!)

Here's the clan heading down the stairs off on the holiday adventure:

High ho, high ho!

[MattBLancs]

Oh yes, I forgot, since last posting in this thread, have also built/assembled this:

Playhouse

Still to be painted

[CitroJim]

Loving the playhouse Matt

[bobins]

^^^^^^^^^

I'd see it more as a quiet workshop where you can pull up the drawbridge in preparation to repel all boarders

[MattBLancs]

^^^^^^^^^

I'd see it more as a quiet workshop where you can pull up the drawbridge in preparation to repel all boarders

I did modify (amongst other mods and improvements along the way!) how the ladder is fitted, so it can now swing up to vertical to a closed drawbridge position!

(Not yet alerted the boys to this capability as yet. James, age 3, is doing well at getting to grips with up the ladder. Down the ladder he's still taking lessons!)

[CitroJim]

James, age 3, is doing well at getting to grips with up the ladder. Down the ladder he's still taking lessons!

I'll send Autumn round to give him some training Matt The way that girl climbs I'm sure she'll be a mountaineer when she grows up

[MattBLancs]

Aforementioned "Sunday etc" as promised:

So, Sunday's destination was DiggerLand, Durham. An excellent day out though expensive. £81.85 for three of us (James free as just under a meter tall) no chance of fobbing off on the basis of height as literally every ride he and six year old William had their height confirmed by metal "go / no-go" gauges!) understandably the need for height is on the basis of ensuring they can safely "fit" in the seats / reach the controls etc.

Over the day variously William:
Drove a JCB (with the lady instructor operating the accelerator pedal!)
Drove a mini electric land rover with little James as co-pilot,
Drove a skid steer (joystick control)
Drove a little electric go-kart.

Both boys were the right size to drive a little electric "quad bike" though surprisingly (cough, given the entry fee!) these were pound operated devices so needed "feeding" at regular intervals.

We also rode around in little trailer err, buggies, (that on close inspection were actually water barrels!)

A few goes in various small excavators (hook a duck, knocking over skittles and some actual digging too)

On the way we stopped off the A1 for a quick gawp at a Gormley

[MattBLancs]

Spoiler: show

Angel

Angel

^^^
A1 sight seeing.

Water barrel trailer thing (towed by a dumper truck, obviously!)

[myglaren]

Rusty Roger is about three miles from me.
Only driven past it, never been up to it.

[MattBLancs]

Monday was trip home, so left the park about 8:30, headed roughly along the coast, and stopped in Scarborough.

There, we took a ride on a miniature railway (though the "steam engine" made very uncharacteristic "diesel engine idling" noises. Could not identify the engine from sound track. Definitely not an XUD and pretty sure not a HDi either. Well silenced, but definitely diesel.)

Nice lunch (chorizo, mozzarella and sun dried tomato panini + chips) then back on the road.

Next destination was York, specifically the Railway Museum. Traffic in city centre pretty awful as was the roadworks!