Not really a very happy holiday. First thing that went wrong was that eldest grandson phoned a Premier Inn to book a night for them but gave the wrong date and they weren't booked in after all, so DIL had to lose her deposit for the first night and then pay for the 2nd night. Not a good start.
Then she managed to get lost and needed to check the satnav so pulled in at an entrance to try to figure out how to work it. A police car pulled in behind her to tell her she couldn't park in an entrance and she tried to open the window to explain, but she couldn't find the button to open the window, so she opened the door. What she didn't know was that today is the first day of the new Highway Code and it is now illegal to open the door with the arm nearest the door, but to use the one far from the door (it forces the driver to look behind in case someone is coming behind, too close). The police officer then decided to check over the car, fresh out of the showroom, taking about an hour to do it, even though he knew she was trying to make it to a ferry, and he found a fault. The windscreen washer was blocked with dust or something and wasn't working very well. She hadn't tried it because the windscreen was being washed by the rain. She wasn't given an on the spot fine, but she now has some points on her license!
Apart from any other consideration, in the current climate of mistrust of the police, a single male officer shouldn't be approaching a female driver in a lonely spot. Even if that woman is accompanied by a child. She didn't take his name and number, which she should have done to make a complaint. But she was nervous of aggravating him and just accepted what he said.
Strictly, she was in the wrong and ignorance is no excuse under the law but is that overly officious or not?
She should, by now, be in the ferry car park at Uig - has about £5 left in her purse and nothing left in her bank account until pay day - she spent everything on new clothes for Em and the extra night in a hotel. I guess they'll have a packet of biscuits for lunch rather than a ferry meal.
So, not the happiest of holidays.