Onwards to TF19! A look back at the summer

On arrival, the Pegasus Grande Palermo was quickly set up and the girls were soon riding around on their bikes enjoying the warm, fresh air. As the evening drew close, the girls enjoyed playing with the other children, whilst we took the opportunity to catch up with friends old and new.

After an unexpected lie in, we woke up to the sound of rain on the caravan roof, the perfect start to TF 2019! Weather aside, it was lovely to see the pitches filling up as everyone began to arrive. On day one we spent much of our time in the caravan, in part, this was due to the weather but also it was great to spend some quality time together, after having been out and about over the past few days.

After a roast chicken dinner, cooked in the caravan, Mr Morley joined the other TF19 organisers along with Simon Howard from Bailey of Bristol to meet and greet the fellow caravanners who had come to take part in TF19. After an evening of pleasantries, sharing a drink with some old and new friends we drifted off to bed for a relatively early night.

Not believing our luck, Andy and I were privy to another lie in, is it the fresh air, or the exceptionally comfortable bunks in the Pegasus Grande? Either way, Andy and I were two happy, well-rested parents.

At 11 o’clock, we realised we needed cakes for afternoon tea however, by the time we had got the smallest of the Morley’s in the car, driven to the supermarket, decided what we were going to make, we realised we were fast running out of time. Consequently, we decided to cheat and buy some Mary Berry cakes instead. Of course, we put them on plates and covered them in foil to make them look decidedly more authentic! I’m not sure how convincing our plan deception turned out.

During afternoon tea, would be vloggers and caravan enthusiasts (new and old) were invited to ask for tips and advice, relating to both caravanning and vlogging. At this point, the children were enticed into making paracord bracelets and partaking in a martial arts class with Trevor (a TF19 newbie). Our little ladies of course, were not content with making one piece of jewellery and instead came away with a bracelet and an anklet each.

As the cook off approached, there were whisperings amongst the camp. The main question on everyone’s lips was… will Andy be attempting chicken on the Cadac AGAIN?! Before this question could be answered, the mini caravanners got to don their little white aprons (some of the not so mini caravanners also donned the same little white aprons!) and try their hand at making delicious, tantalising pizzas.

Pizzas made, it was time for the adults cook off and that all-important question was soon to be answered… was it chicken? Yes, this year’s entry from Andy was Tequila Lime Chicken with a mango salsa. Argh!! Would he supersede his former reputation and pull it out the bag? Awarded 4^th place he was a happy man and the rest of the family could breathe a sigh of relief!

The sun shined brightly, on our last full day in camp. Even so, Andy was wearing more clothes than he had been for the TF19 cook off! After a day of enjoying the sunshine, everyone gathered together for the TF19 raffle to be drawn. Prizes distributed; everyone was keen to find out how much money we had collectively raised for Macmillan Cancer Support.

Thank you to everyone that attended TF19 and to those who supported the event by contributing prizes for the raffle, we raised a massive £3100. To end the evening, we got into teams to show off our general knowledge at the pub quiz. I soon found myself as team captain, a team that were clearly doomed from the start! And that is how we finished TF19, the packup is now a well-drilled exercise and our journey back to the midlands was pleasingly uneventful. The Caravan now unpacked and waiting for our next adventure.