A big question for parents is what skills are needed for our children to grow up to be happy and productive adults? I’m sure we all have some idea, and happiness can be pretty subjective; some people can find happiness in something that others can’t. But there are lots of different conflicting pieces of information out there. Schools may teach one thing, whereas society may change other things. Plus, our children are all different, and a one-size-fits-all approach isn’t always the best thing to do either. However, there are some skills that all children do need to learn to some degree, in ... read more
Why indulging guilty pleasures is something we should all do
As a parent it is all too easy to put everyone else first and spend no time looking after ourselves. The analogy I was once given on a parenting course was to think of ourselves as a jug of water. You start the morning full to the brim, but as you go through the day you keep pouring out bits of water as you do things for other people. By part way through the day your jug is empty. There's just no more to give, yet children don't know that and they keep asking for more and more. By the end of the day you're completely exhausted and it's no surprise that once they're tucked up in bed asleep you ... read more
Sanitary Owl’s First Period Box from DAME
As women, do we talk enough to our men or daughters about periods? I'm not talking about trying to totally freak them out, but more about explaining the practicalities of them and what is available to use each month. I recently came across an interview with comedian Gary Meikle in which he talked about life as a single dad to his daughter. In it he mentioned how, when she started her periods, he realised that he knew nothing, and as a result he ended up asking the local shopkeeper for advice as to whether he should be buying tampons or towels for her. For girls, getting their period is an ... read more
Dealing With Daytime Wetting
Most parents are used to the occasional bedwetting experience. It’s a phase that most children go through at some point. However, daytime wetting can seem like more of a conundrum and often it proves an embarrassment to both child and parent. 1-in-4 children who experience bed-wetting also have trouble during the day, but what can we do to help them? Here, we’re going to look at the potential causes, what you can do about it, and how you can stop it from becoming too emotionally difficult for your child. Link Finding the source On plenty of occasions, daytime wetting is a very ... read more
Goodbye old car, hello new family bus!
Change, change, change. That's what life has been full of recently. At times it is utterly exhausting, but there's certainly no chance of me being bored in the near future and I'm one of those people who seems to thrive from being busy. One of the latest big changes has been saying goodbye to my trusty old set of wheels and buying a new (to us) car. It's not a step that I was expecting to take as I'd always assumed that my old Skoda estate would keep going forever. I'd had it since LMC was only about six months old and since then it had been on numerous trips around the country, carted a ... read more
The Stresses Of Being A Supermum
OK by supermum I don't mean that you wear a cape and fly around, although it can feel like that sometimes! I think a supermum is one that does her best to get as much on the never ending to do list done while looking after the little ones. It's not about perfection though, although it can still be pretty stressful. So, with that in mind here are some things that might relieve a little of the stress that many mums feel on a day to day basis. Picture source Keep your energy up When you have little ones to look after, everything can end up being focused on them, including the meals ... read more
Keeping the Children Entertained at a wedding
It can be worrying for many parents when their children are invited to a big and formal event. What to wear, will there be suitable food, will the children be bored? One way to ensure your children are kept entertained is via cheap, homemade games. Paddy Power, the master of online bingo sites have created a set of wedding bingo cards. Whether you are a bride or groom or a member of the wedding party or guest, if you have children these cards make a great game. Simply print them off an allow your children to play while the speeches take place or waiting for the cake to be cut. Of course, ... read more
My New Room – Lisa Stickley
I was rather excited to see a new book from Lisa Stickley arrive for us to review last week. We met Edith in her last book, Handstand, and she appears again in My New Room. Designer Lisa Stickley has a style that has already become instantly recognisable here and as soon as Little Miss C saw My New Room she went looking for our copy of Handstand to put with it on her bookcase. In My New Room, much as the title suggests, it is time for Edith to move into a new bedroom with a "Big Bed". It's a step that many children go through, and sometimes it can be a bit of a scary one, especially if the ... read more
School Reviewer: Empowering parents with knowledge
There's no denying it - St Albans is one of those places that people move to to have a family. It means that the local parents Facebook groups and online forums are absolutely full of questions about local schools. Things about how big the intake is, where the catchment area stretches to and where they can find the latest Ofsted report. Information about all these things is out there somewhere on the internet, but the relaunched School Reviewer website brings it all together beautifully. As a parent, your child's education is one of the most important things you can plan for and parents are ... read more
Lidl Back to School Range
I know term hasn't quite finished yet (that's coming soon enough!) but if you're a parent trying to be organised then thoughts are already turning to school uniform for when our little darlings go back in September. Master C will be starting school pre-school come September and so this will be the first year that I will have two children requiring school uniform and hence I'm really starting to see how the cost increases when you need to kit out more than one child. As a bargain lover I'm always on the look out for cheap ways to buy what I need and for a good few years now supermarkets have ... read more