There are many reasons and beliefs as to why Friday 13th is seen as so unlucky. The most logical reasoning seem to root back to the fact that Friday was seen as the unlucky day of the week and the number 13 was also considered unlucky. Fear of the day is still just as prominent now; even those who will happily walk under ladders or put new shoes on a table even seem to believe that something bad will happen on Friday 13th.

Alton Towers have caused speculation on their Facebook and Twitter pages by posting announcements that their newest ride, TH13TEEN, will be closed this Friday. The Facebook post resulted in a massive 373 people leaving comments, trying to clear up whether or not it was true.

A lot of people are under the impression it’s just a clever bit of Facebook marketing to create a buzz around the ride and that it WILL be open on Friday. There are even those who actually want to ride TH13TEEN on the day of bad luck. We can’t wait to see what Alton actually decides.

But those of you with Paraskevidekatriaphobia (yes, there actually is a word for people with a phobia of Friday 13th), you may want to stick to the Tea Cup ride.

There are so many unmissable water rides, but don’t worry if you get soaked, it’ll take no time at all to dry off in this heat. Here’s a list of the UK’s very best water rides for you to enjoy this summer. See how wet are you likely to get with our very own SOAK-O-METER! Whether you want to get absolutely soaked or you want to try to stay mostly dry, there’s something everyone will enjoy.

Tidal Wave

1. Tidal Wave at THORPE PARK
The Tidal Wave flume at THORPE PARK is not for the faint hearted! Not only will you plummet at a massive 85ft, you will get VERY, VERY wet. If you really need cooling down, stand on the bridge by the ride and get soaked by the enormous wave without having to go on the ride. The thrill seekers among you will want to go on again and again. It’s the perfect ride on a very hot day.

SOAK-O-METER rating: 5/5 Absolutely soaked!

2. Rameses Revenge at Chessington World of Adventures
Prepare to get very wet on the Rameses Revenge at Chessington. You will be turned upside down and round and round, while being drenched by the giant water fountains that will be spraying into your screaming faces! Definitely one for the adults, you will love this iconic ride.

SOAK-O-METER rating: 4/5 Very wet!

3. Congo River Rapids, Alton Towers
Most of the theme parks have a rapid river. In this one the giant inflatable rings float around a giant river while you get sprayed with waterfalls, shoots and other surprising features. Staying completely dry is near enough impossible unless you protect yourself in a waterproof poncho. It may not be the most stylish accessory, but it’s a theme park necessity!

SOAK-O-METER rating: 3/5 Take your waterproof!

4. Depth Charge, THORPE PARK
Have a race with your mates on this giant water slide. Shoot down the slide on a yellow inflatable boat and see who gets to the bottom first. You don’t get THAT wet on here, it’s all about who reaches the bottom first! Don’t worry, this is nothing compared to the Tidal Wave.

SOAK-O-METER rating: 2/5 Just enough!

5. Monkey Swinger, Chessington World of Adventures
This is a great ride that the whole family can enjoy. The monkey swinger is basically a giant carousel with swings and water shoots that soak you as you go round and round. This is great fun on a summer’s day, and even the faint hearted among you will enjoy this gentle swing.

SOAK-O-METER rating: 1/5 A light spraying!

Even though I have taken the boy all over the country to all sorts of places Alton Towers was not really on my radar as I simply discounted it as not age appropriate. We came close to going when they opened the hotel, and waterpark, which runs term-time specials for toddlers and their carers, but never got around to actually arranging a visit.

Then over the summer, some of our friends, who have a daughter nine months younger than my son, told me about what a great time they had at Britain’s biggest theme park. The thought of taking Max quickly entered my head, that is, after I had stopped teasing my friend’s daughter about ‘Alton Flowers’. “It’s called Alton Towers, not Alton Flowers silly,” she would say. “Then why did you call it Alton Flowers?” Was my jovial (or should that be juvenile?) retort.

So when Play and Stay offered to send us, I was intrigued to find out how much fun the Alton Towers Resort could be for a near five-year-old and his dad.

On arrival we discovered it is still extremely well organised, and also still a decent walk from the car park, but there is the monorail which I suppose counts as your first ride of the day.

If you’re feeling extra flush you have the option to pay £15 for priority parking, which means you can park right outside the entrance to the park. But as I am tight, I opted for the normal parking which still costs £5, which I must admit to still being a little miffed by.

Once inside we headed down Towers Street, and turned right for Adventure Land, which seemed like a great place to start for us. It turned out I was right. After a quick toilet break we were straight into the Berry Bish Bash, which is a sort of soft play area combined with firing squidgy balls at each other. My son thought this was hilarious, especially as one of the biggest targets – and thus most popular – appeared to be his dad. We also went on Old MacDonald’s Tractors, which I thought a little tame, but my boy obviously enjoyed pretending to drive a tractor.

The Beastie was higher octane, and we both enjoyed being thrown around on that. A quick drink and climb on some playground equipment, and it was time for lunch.  The excellent map lays out the great food choices available, and I opted to bribe my son with a KFC, in exchange for him thinking about going on Enterprise, a ride I had identified as enjoyable for me, and that he passed the minimum height requirement for. Sadly, while he agreed to go and have a look, his hesitance – and the queue – put me off.

No matter, as there were plenty of other rides for us to enjoy. We had a good time on the Charlie and the Chocolate Factory ride, the Peugeot Driving School was an instant favourite for him, and there were more soft play adventures within Cloud Cuckoo Land.

Since being damaged by fire, the Skyride is still out of action, which is a mild irritation legs can get tired walking over the vast area the park occupies.

Alton Towers has an impressive Sea Life centre

The obligatory water ride came in the form of the Battle Galleons, a very funny concept that lets you fire water cannons at targets and other parkgoers as your boat travels around. Our cagoules instantly became an excellent idea. After this, we needed warming up and, after fumbling for the right change, used one of the giant dryers. It was also an apt time to go and have a look around Sharkbait Reef, a new attraction for 2009, completed in collaboration with Sea-Life.

This centre adds to those we have visited in Birmingham and on Anglesey, and had a number of different attractions we had not seen before, which was an added bonus.

At Alton Towers there were plenty of rides we did not get to go on, like the Runaway Mine Train and the Rapids, but I fully expect to go back at some point and give them a try then.

Read more about Single Parent Dad at http://singleparentdad.blogspot.com

First up is Sally Whittle, mummy blogger extraordinaire at Who’s The Mummy where she discusses life with four-year old daughter Flea.

Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below and if you want to join our select panel of bloggers then get in touch.

I have this theory about parenting. Faced with the awesome responsibility of not raising a serial killer, new parents latch on to anyone who can tell us the “right” stuff to do. That’s why we spend £5 a week on classes to help our children walk along a bench in a straight line, or to hit a tambourine.

But when you think about it, the things that are the most fun aren’t usually organised. They’re almost certainly not the sorts of things that are designed to boost your child’s development or give them a head start. Flea and I did the activity class thing, but it’s fair to say she’s not big on organised fun.

At swimming class, Flea didn’t want to take her float off – which is pretty smart when you think about it because she was 18 months old and couldn’t swim. It’s hard to fault that kind of logic, really.

At a musical group, she didn’t understand why we kept listening to nursery rhymes, and repeatedly asked, “When are we having some guitar music?” That’d be my fault for introducing her to The Smiths, then.

Perhaps our most traumatic experience was at a language skills class, when Flea made the grave error of talking when it was time for listening. The look the class leader fixed poor Flea with reduced her to tears.

These days we’re big believers in disorganised fun. We’ve created a special bag that lives in the car, and it’s called The Adventure Bag. Inside The Adventure Bag is everything we need to go off and have fun somewhere. There’s a picnic blanket, water bottle, spare set of clothes and our camera. There’s also a Spider-Man figure and three small dinosaurs. Because you should always have a dinosaur or two on your side when you’re having adventures.

Over breakfast, Flea and I think about what we’d like to do. While I’m drinking coffee, Flea likes nothing more than considering her options, and will eventually say, “Mummy, I’ve got a brilliant idea.” Our adventures this year have included visiting museums, exploring the Lake District, various zoos and safari parks, numerous beaches, one theme park and one day when the GPS broke down, the town of Harrogate (we were supposed to be in Ilkley, I’m still not completely sure what went wrong).

Wherever we go, we buy a small badge or pin, and stick it on The Adventure Bag. Over the years, I hope the bag will become covered in images that are a visual record of all the places we’ve been together. Already, the bag holds lots of lovely memories of the first place Flea went sailing, the day she discovered dinosaur bones, the long afternoon we spent having a barbecue on Brighton beach and the day we went to Chester Zoo and spent the entire day looking at different varieties of monkey.

I figure that when Flea is a teenager and would rather poke herself in the eye than be seen in public with her mother, I’ll have all those memories of our adventures, thanks to The Adventure Bag. And you know what? I bet those memories will be a lot better than anything involving church halls and a tambourine.

Now, if you ask me – and no, no one has – this piece of legislation is long, long-overdue. The Speedo look might just pass on the Continent, but in Blighty it’s a bit rich isn’t it? Plummeting temperatures, the threat of a downpour constantly hanging over us like a drizzly sword of Damocles? Give it a rest. Those alpha males who took to Alton Towers in little more than a pair of briefs no bigger than your average train ticket must surely have been northerners, because, as a rather delicate southerner, there is simply no way I’d brave the outside after a dip in the pool in anything less than a full-body wetsuit, a scarf and thick woolen mittens.

Anyway, that rather grisly episode is behind us all now: history has closed the page on that menacing chapter.

The only question that remains is: why stop there?

Below is a list of things I’d like to see banned from Alton Towers. Feel free to tack some on at the end. We’ll get a list together, then I’m writing to Mr Towers…

Everybody loves a good poncho

Right, first up, I’d ban the selling, acquisition and the donning thereof of ponchos. I’m not talking about genuine ponchos, you understand; I’m not having a dig at the Hispanic overcoat of choice. No, I’m talking about the sorry excuses for ponchos that get handed around every time it gets a little bit damp. They are, effectively, shopping bags with eye-holes cut in. There is simply no way that one could protect you from one of Mrs Tittlemouse’s delicate sneezes, let alone a gale force storm. It’s preposterous:

Dad: The heavens have opened, let’s take shelter!
Mum: Don’t worry dear, I’ve got three-and-a-half yards of cling film here.

No, no, no. They’re out: right out.

What else?

Photos. Yep, I’d ban photos. Why is it that the second you step off a ride someone wants to sell you a mug with a picture of you screaming on it? I can understand the appeal when it’s a ride like Rita, Queen of Speed, but when you’ve just hopped off the Squirrel Nutty Ride I think photographic evidence is bit over-the-top. No one’s putting that on their mantlepiece.

That brings me, rather neatly, to the Squirrel Nutty Ride itself, yes I’d ban that too. Yes, I know it’s a ride for little children. It lets them “travel in their very own acorn”, but I maintain that this wasn’t made clear to me at the time… the boys from the stag do still won’t talk to me.

You know, I’ve got quite a taste for all this banning lark, it turns out… I’d ban queues, I’d ban bum bags, I’d ban loud noises, I’d ban really scary rides, I’d ban the lot.

Sorry about that. I seemed to got a bit carried away there. Anyway, if you have any suggestions about what you’d like to see banned from Britain’s theme parks add it on here, I’m drafting the letter as we speak…

There are so many fantastic parks to chose from and a whole range of fun rides to try out. However, as we all know, kids can get easily excited and are often tempted to run off if they see things they like. But do not fear, with just a few small preparations you can enjoy a fun-filled day out, knowing you have taken measures to keep your kids as safe as possible.

Picture: 'J'@flickr

There are several things you can do to prepare for your day out before leaving the house.

Dress in bright clothing
On the morning of your theme park adventure, dress your children in bright colours and take note of what they are wearing. If they are young enough to let you dress them all exactly the same, without feeling less “hip” then go for it. You want them to stand out in a crowd so it is easy for you to see them at all times. I once took three boys to Gullivers Land in bright orange t-shirts and it really worked like a charm, even when one of them tried to hide behind a fence.

Wear identity bands
It is a wise idea to place a discreet identity band around your child’s wrist, including their name and your mobile phone number. That way if the first thing they do is run towards the most sparkly object they can see and get lost amid a crowd of people, they will hopefully be returned to you in no time.

Avoid named clothes and accessorise
Although an identity band is recommended it is not a good idea to dress your kids in attire which displays their name in an obvious way. For instance avoid those headbands which spell out names in glitter and personalised football strips. If a stranger approaches your child using his or her name, they might be more inclined to follow the person.

Use code words
Before you arrive at the theme park, agree on a code word that everyone must learn. Tell the children not to go off with anyone unless the person knows the code word. The chances that a stranger will guess the correct word are very low and the children will learn about stranger danger.

Here are some great tips to keep safe once at the theme park

Picture: audi_insperation@flickr

Agree on a meeting place
When you arrive at the theme park, decide on a meeting point to return to if you get lost. Use the tallest, brightest attraction in the park as your meeting point because this can be seen from long a distance.

Chose appropriate rides
Use common sense when you are at the park and only go on rides suitable for both you and your children, as you never want to leave children alone while you go on the attraction. Obey height and weight limits and always make sure your children have seen the ride before taking them on it. Having a child screaming all the way round is not ideal.

Use suncream, wear hats and refuel
Especially on hot, sunny days it is vital to use suncream, particularly on children as they burn very easily. You will be out in the sun a lot at a theme park so make sure you reapply the cream regularly. Hats will also shade faces and protect scalps. Even if the weather seems dull or windy be careful, because you may get wind burn or not realise how hot it is if there are clouds in the sky.

Drink plenty of water as dehydration is very dangerous. Youngsters will use a lot of energy when they are excited and need to keep hydrated and well fed so they don’t feel unwell.

If you forget to bring suncream or water, there should be cafes and gift shops spread around the theme park where you can purchase these items.

Stay safe this summer with a little forward planning and sensible thinking. Enjoy a fantastic day out at one of the many theme parks in the UK, without too much worry, thanks to these great safety tips.

By Flickr user Easternbot

At Play and Stay we have a great love of the magical world of Hogwarts and picnics.  It saddens us greatly, therefore, that Quidditch isn’t really a big sport at picnics. We realised of course that may be because a lot of Quidditch players haven’t got very nice picnic bags that they could carry their stuff in.

That’s why we are offering Quidditch players the chance to own their very own Play and Stay picnic bag (food not included) to bring the magic back to their picnics.

It’s simple, the best footage of you playing Quidditch or a quidditch-esque sport wins!

How to Enter:
1. Make a video of you playing Quidditch
2. Post your Quidditch video to YouTube.
3. Attach a link to your video using the comment box providing us with your name and email address.

Terms and Conditions
1.  Harry Potter cast members are not eligible.
2.  We will not accept footage from the Harry Potter movies- that’s cheating.
3.  Quidditch footage must last at least 30 seconds
4.  Muggle quidditch is 100% acceptable.
5.  All balls need not be in play during the video.
6.  You need not dress in robes during the video.
7.  Play and Stay reserves the right to use your name and footage in promotional materials.
8.  All entries must be received by 5pm on Friday 21 August 2009.
9.  Persons under the age of 18 must have parental consent to apply.
10. Play and Stay and its affiliates does not accept responsibility for any injuries sustained by competition entrants.

Prize winner will be announced on Friday 28 August 2009.

A little organisation goes a long way and as a result I’ve tapped out this helpful guide to make sure that your family trips are vastly improved this summer.

Clothing
Two things should be accounted for when packing clothing; the weather and emergencies.

As the weather is ever-changing in these days of global warming, my advice is to take an assortment of weather-protecting gear including: raincoats, jumpers, shorts etc.

With regards to handling emergencies extra underwear is the key. Pants, socks, tights… bring extra of everything. After all, you never know.

Essentials
It is more often than not the simplest yet most essential of possessions that are left at home, subsequently causing massive hassle. I’m arming you with an essentials check list to ensure that you don’t end up dragging yourself all around the world on a mad hunt for a toothbrush, which eventually ends up costing £300 and tasting mildly of badgers.

The List:
Tickets, discount vouchers, toothbrush, toothpaste, deodorant, toilet paper, medications, sun block, clothes, identification, entertainment box, snacks, bottled water.

Security
Packing for security is the same thing as packing for emergencies – ensure that everyone has their own little emergency pack that they carry with them at all times. A bumbag or backpack should do the trick nicely and should contain:
1) Communication device.  It doesn’t matter which, either a mobile phone or walkie talkie should do the trick nicely.
2) Emergency cash stash.
3) Identification – I’m not suggesting you hand your kid their passport and then allow them to roam free but I do recommend a youth ID card or simply a self-made photocard with information such as your name, their name, address etc just in case they should become separated from you.

I once read an amazing story where this lady lost her child at Disneyland, but was able to find him quickly because they had a system. He wore an id bracelet with his name on one side and her name and contact information on the other side and he was able to go to a store and have the shop assistant contact his mother promptly. Proof that these systems help and work.

Entertainment
I mentioned this in the essentials list simply because trips aren’t really interesting if you are not driving. Fact: There are only so many times “Are we there yet?” can be asked before your sanity reaches breaking point. And scenery doesn’t change often enough as a general rule to make trips more interesting.

That being said I suggest making up a portable entertainment centre complete with toys, games and books that are appropriate for car, train and plane journeys.

99.9% of the time “bling” looks ridiculous.

We’ve all seen the greasy youths hanging around shopping centres dripping in cubic zirconium. Their ghastly medallions sparkling like broken glass, not diamond, and their ears drooping from the weight of the glittery pebbles they’ve ill-advisedly attached.

These poor lost souls lurk in packs in dark corners, lording it over their urine-scented urban kingdoms. Their Lizzie Duke bling marking them out as overlords of  the doorway of the abandoned Woolies.

Somewhere, hidden from public view, a brave 0.1% are doing bling properly.  They are “blinging” the LEGO way.

There’s plenty of LEGO jewellery out there (just have a look on etsy.com) but LEGO bling, that’s a different matter. Full-on bling should have diamonds or gold or lashings of silver at the very least. Those materials are generally not included in your standard LEGO box so some clever folks have done some very outside the box thinking. BEHOLD!

1) The Golden Memory Stick of LEGO Goodness

Apparently when LEGO celebrated 50 years of interlocking plastic brick madness they released special gold coloured bricks. Creative folk leapt upon these shiny blocks and made all manner of wonderful LEGO creations, the best of these being the LEGO memory stick.

As a rule, you can NEVER have enough memory sticks. I have them littered all over my house, a few on my desk, one in the car and one in my man-bag, just in case. These days you never know when you’ll need to shift photos or music or work around the place to it pays to have lots of portable storage and if said storage can be made of golden LEGO then well, everybody wins.

Surprisingly for something so shiny, this LEGO techno-bling only costs around £19.

2) Jacqueline Sanchez’s Hinge Bracelet

Jacqueline Sanchez is BRILLIANT. She makes proper LEGO bling, she even adds the occasional diamond. The only downside is that her creations cost a fair amount, this particular bracelet (that I totally want, just so you know) costs $750.

There’s not much else I can say about this particular little gem, the price is something of a sticking point but I guess that class costs $750.

3) Mario LEGO Mega Bling

Mario is cool. LEGO is cool. Which means that when you combine the two you can be pretty sure that the result is going to be pretty sweet and lo, it is.

This stylin’ gentleman has taken the Flava Flav look and run with it. I have no idea if he made this beautiful creation or if he just bought it but either way, double thumbs up! Note the coordinated necklace, earring and sweater, now THAT’S attention to detail!

Last time we went to the park, Land of the Vikings had just opened and the place was packed. We queued for up to 45 minutes to get on some of the better rides.

Now, I’m not sure if it was because of the new area, Kingdom of the Pharaohs, or if Legoland just wasn’t as busy as before, but the queues were significantly smaller this time round. A quick look at the board on entry showed waiting times were reduced to 15 minutes on average. Was it because there were more rides to choose from?

Anyway, we took advantage of this and went on as many rides as we could while trying to sample the few we didn’t make it on last time around.

And we did it as well. This made me realise that Legoland Windsor is actually a great place to take the family for a short break as well as a day out destination. The only ride we didn’t get on was Jungle Coaster – at five years old, Stan was still slightly too small to go on it.

If there was one attraction that was the highlight of our day, it had to be the Bob the Builder show in 4D. It was only 15 minutes long, but the show was actually (as my boss would say) awesome. I won’t spoil it for you, but I will say this: the effects were spot on and there is a lovely little surprise at the end of the show.

We left the park at 7pm (the same time as every other Tom, Dick and Harry) and proceeded to sit in the car for another 30 minutes as we tried to get out. If you like traffic jams, you can stop reading now. But, if you want to escape the rush, hang back for a short while. Eat some food, wander round the shops for a bit, practice speaking foreign languages – whatever – the point is, leave later. You will escape the crowds and still get home at the same sort of time.

Legoland Windsor was nothing short of brilliant once again – I really can’t stress how great the place is, you just need to go there and see it for yourself. If you have small children and live the South, there is nowhere better to take them for a treat. I look forward to going back there next year when Stan will be old enough to ride the Jungle Coaster and checking out the new zone for 2010.