I love an Aldi bargain! I am utterly useless however at realising what is coming into store when though so often it's only when my sister gets in touch and tells me that I need to get there the next morning that I realise when certain lines are coming in. That's not the case with their Christmas range though. This is due in store tomorrow (Thursday 17 November) and I was delighted to be sent some samples from the range to try out at home. Now - the honest bit about being a blogger. I'm sat here today on what has to be the sunniest day of November so far in St Albans. Trying to test out ... read more
My The Works Crafty Christmas Wishlist
If you've been anywhere near a shop since Halloween you'll now that Christmas is now in full swing. It almost felt like a protest action when I came out of the supermarket yesterday with a packet of hot cross buns instead of a box of crackers and a Christmas pudding! I'm trying so hard this year to be organised for Christmas. I know that I say that every year, but I've been annoyed with myself these last few years for not actually managing it, so I'm determined that this year will be different. Especially as I'm hosting the family here this year. So, the first step of organisation has to ... read more
Kazoops! Just Imagine – Volume 1
Both Master C and Little Miss C have been huge fans of Kazoops since it appeared on CBeebies earlier this year. They love joining Monty and his pet pig Jimmy Jones on some epic imaginary adventures. I was thrilled therefore to hear that the music from the series was released on 28th October as an album called Just Imagine - Volume 1'. Featuring 20 songs from the first series of Kazoops it is available digitally and you can either download the whole album or just individual tracks from it. As soon as I started playing it on my laptop Master C started dancing around the living room and ... read more
Ladybird Tuesday: How to Make Presents
Oh dear - we've been AWOL again haven't we with Ladybird Tuesday. This new school routine has taken a bit of getting used to since September, but with half term now out of the way it's time to crack on until Christmas. And talking about Christmas - as my email inbox appears to be doing already this morning - it might be time to start thinking about presents. Ladybird have got this covered with their 1978 book handily titled How to make Presents. Now this title was part of series 633, but one of the additional titles that was brought out in the 1970s. The series was originally called ... read more
Kate & Mim-Mim: Kate in Oz
The kids are becoming rather too used to preview screenings of films and I'm pretty sure they think that all cinemas have face painters permanently in the lobby and goodie bags when you leave. I fear they may be disappointed next time we take them to our local cinema to see something. Last Saturday was a bit different though as rather than a film, this time we were the guests of Fremantle Media to see a preview of a special edition of Kate and Mim-Mim which is due to air on CBeebies on the 19th October. Kate in Oz sees Kate and Mim-Mim swapping Mimiloo for the land of Oz in this special ... read more
The Great British Bake Off Range at Debenhams #GBBO
Who doesn't love the Great British Bake Off? With the series 7 final tonight, it's fair to say that this year there's probably been more publicity than ever, especially about whether or not Channel 4 have been had by spending millions on a tent and Paul Hollywood. Whatever happens in future years the Bake Off (and Mary Berry in particular) will always be a British tradition as far as I am concerned. Although ironically WI meetings always seem to clash with when it is on live, I do make sure I see each week's show and make a real point of staying off social media until I get to catch up so I ... read more
Know Your Maternity Bras
It seems to be that there are a million and one things about pregnancy that no one tells you before you're actually pregnant. For me the subject of bras was one that I hadn't even considered needing to know about. A bra was a bra until you got to the breastfeeding stage - or so I thought. How wrong I was! When you're pregnant it seems like every part of your body changes in some way. Especially your boobs. Knowing which maternity bra is right from all the different ones available can be a bit overwhelming - especially when you're in full on "pregnancy brain" mode. Luckily those lovey people ... read more
My inspiring WI Summer
Yes, I know it's October. And mid-October at that, but I'm still catching up with the very, very long list of things that have been going on in my life that I want to capture here. In a way the summer seems like it was a life-time ago, but strangely it also feels like only a couple of days since it started. And boy did the summer start with a bit of a bang! I've blogged several times on here about the things that I've been getting up to at the lovely Herts Belles WI group that I joined here in St Albans a couple of years ago. Up until earlier this year though I only really went along to ... read more
Laser Hair Removal with HlA Studio
Laser Hair Removal is one of those treatments that I think a fair few people initially shy away from because they've heard stories, often secondhand, about how much it can hurt. I certainly know that for me it was the main reason I never really investigated it further as a hair removal option. As a busy, dark-haired, mum of two I decided to reconsider my options and set up an appointment for an initial consultation for laser hair removal with Piper at HlA Studio and I'm so pleased I did. The whole experience, and Piper herself, put me completely at ease and gave me full confidence in HlA ... read more
Review: Ravensburger Thomas Giant Floor Puzzle
Master C is absolutely train mad at the moment. One of his favourite things to do when out is pretend to be a train and make everyone with him be his "carriages" and run behind him from station to station. Every night I tuck him upon bed under his Thomas the Tank Engine duvet and most nights we're reading Thomas books as bedtime stories. It's therefore no surprise at all that he was delighted to sent this Thomas Giant Floor Puzzle to review by Ravensburger. With 24 pieces this puzzle is just about the right size of puzzle for Master C to tackle on his own now. He's had some jigsaws ... read more