Our latest gathering, for our annual Christmas get-together, was at Audley's Wood Hotel in Basingstoke, a venue full of character. Some families had travelled down on the Friday afternoon/evening and gathered in the cosy lounge for a drink before heading off to get their beauty sleep and make sure they had enough energy for the morrow.
On Saturday we had a marquee all to ourselves, for families to meet, chat and share experiences; consult professionals if they wished; have a bit of fun on a Wii or on the tombola, raffle or other games; watch those participating in the RTS Has Talent show, and of course eat their tasty buffet lunch and evening meal. Oh, and I nearly forgot to mention the most important bit - the visit from Santa and his elf ! They brought presents for all the boys and girls and let them have their photos taken with them. But it was the disco after dinner that was a personal highlight: we have some fantastic young people who are RTS siblings, and they made the dancing go with a swing, leading on the Macarena and other old favourites till late.
Sunday saw everyone head off home after a good breakfast and lots of hugs with their goodbyes. And so it was all over till the spring when there would be another chance to do it all again ( but minus Santa of course).
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