Butlins will always have a very special place in my heart as the first holiday we took as a family.  For legal reasons we were unable to get passports for the children until the adoption was finalised 8 months after the children came to live with us,  so despite Mr S and I loving our sunny holidays abroad we went to Butlins for our first holiday. It really was special and since then we have  returned many times.  Butlins is one of my happy places, as soon as we arrive I feel relaxed, reassured and safe, everything is thought of and our time together is fun filled.  The children adore Butlins too and have been counting down the days until this break.  On our early visits, we stayed in the chalets but then discovered the hotels and have stayed there since. This year we moved from the Shoreline hotel to the Wave hotel, another sign we’re all growing up.  The hotel was superb, so many clever touches, the children loved the very well equipped games room with Wii u, Play stations, DS lite, computers etc.. The accommodation is spacious and with a fridge, kettle, iron and multi media set up it has all you need.  The children were very impressed by their room and individual televisions were well received, although they rarely watched them as we were so busy doing things.  There is an action packed timetable at Butlins and we enjoyed lots of swimming and slides (at least once a day) activities such as circus skills, a wide variety of shows, soft play, outdoor play, fairground rides, etc..  Whilst the Skyline pavilion can at times seem a little loud and bright there are plenty of quieter places you can go to, the hotel lounge area was lovely and the gardens looked great too, sadly it was a little too cold to sit outside in the evenings. We had the dining package and the food was excellent, with lots of fresh, healthy food on offer too.  Whilst Butlins is fantastic with all the activities and shows, it is the attention to detail which impresses me most, it is designed for families and everything has been thought of.  The staff are amazing and nothing seems too much trouble.  Butlins really is my very special place and I know that just the mention of the name will make me smile and remember happy, family times.

• These are all my personal opinions, we paid for this holiday and this is not a sponsored post.  I just like to celebrate Great British companies.