July is almost upon us. My birthday month. And to me July always means a long month of summer with lazy days in the sun and plenty of relaxing in the garden with good food, drinks and friends. It's also the time of year when I start to look at my home with different eyes. Start to look at the garden differently, and want to try to combine the two more to embrace summer properly in the home. A friend has recently renovated her house and when I went round for a nosey I completely fell in love with the Sanderson wallpaper that she has hung on her stairs. For me it totally captures the ... read more
My 42 days of summer – #sweeet link challenge
The summer holidays. It's a phrase that seems to divide parents. Some look forward to that extra time with their children. Others, like me, dread them somewhat. I mean, 42 days is an awfully long time to be with someone 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Until I was asked to write this post for BritMums I think I was in denial as to how long it really was - for the sake of my sanity! But, as I sit here now I'm at the dawn on day 27 (over the halfway point) and they're actually no where near as bad as I feared. So, what are my tips for a great summer holiday? Plan. But not too ... read more
Summer 2014: Day 2 – Old friends and new experiences
In the middle of the usual morning rush of trying to get up and through the shower before the kids awoke (which I failed at thanks to Little Miss C's 6.30am wake up!) I'm pretty sure I heard Chris Evans say something about thunderstorms and torrential rain in London today. There was other stuff going on so I asked Mr C. Nope, he had no recollection of hearing it, so I just kind of forgot about the weather forecast. Bit of a big mistake it seems when you're having a day out with the kids. An old university friend of mine is currently over from China with his wife and one year old son, so ... read more
Summer 2014: Day 1 – Crafts and contradictions
It's funny how just yesterday morning we were getting up to do yet another school run, yet this morning school runs almost felt like they were in another lifetime. Little Miss C has fully embraced the idea of getting up and not having to put her school uniform on and in that sod's law kind of way she bounced out of bed without any encouragement at 7.15am and by 7.30 was dressed and raring to go. School morning's normally take lots of me hurrying her along and yet the morning I don't need her to get up on time she does! Thursday is the girls day here as Master C goes off to nursery for ... read more
Making the most of the sunshine
If you're in the UK then it won't have escaped your notice that this summer has been WET - very wet. Wet enough that going out to splash in puddles has been a common activity with Little Miss C. Wet enough that when I told her I was taking her to the local Splash Park one day her first response was to go and get her wellies and rain coat and put them on! The outdoor toys that we bought her for her birthday have been used, but we've not had the long lazy days in the garden making the most of them in the way that I imagined. This last weekend though all that changed. The sun came out ... read more