It's nearly a month now since I got a sneak preview of the new Nickelodeon Store in London's Leicester Square and I'm delighted to see that other people I know have now been along and are loving the place as much as Little Miss C and I did. You may also have seen me reveal what was in the goodie bag that I brought home from there too. And now I'm delighted to tell you that I have a goodie bag to give away to one lucky Being Mrs C reader. In addition to the goodies you can see pictured below there is also a £20 voucher to use in store. This competition is open to all readers ... read more
Home technology that can help save the planet
When I think about technology in the home I instantly think of the kitchen. The advances in technology in this most domestic of rooms have been revolutionary in so many ways. The recent BBC Two series Back in Time for Dinner gave a really good overview of these changes and what they have meant for family life as well as the food we eat. Starting after the war the kitchen has seen the introduction of refrigerators, freezers, electric ovens and microwaves, as well as all the labour saving devices that modern housewives and househusbands would struggle without. Washing machines, tumble driers, ... read more
Ladybird Tuesday: Jesus by the Sea of Galilee
At last week's WI meeting one of my friends came over as soon as I arrived and whispered this magic words: "I've found you come Ladybird books" and oh boy had she come up trumps! As well as the large history and nature series that Ladybird are quite famous for they also published a large number of religious titles (split over a couple of series) that are not so well known. I've picked up a couple of these over the years (St Paul being one such example) but there generally don't seem to be many of them about in charity shops. Imagine my delight therefore when this set that E had found ... read more
Several weeks in crafts
Where oh where have the last few weeks vanished to? And possibly more importantly, where oh where has the last My Week in Crafts post banished to??? Over the last month I have been crazily busy with work and a million and one other things. Little Miss C has had a birthday - and I've had to organise a party for 31 children, which was made somewhat harder when the soft play centre hat we had booked cancelled on us due to a flood! There seem to have been loads of school meetings of one sort or another, plus a school summer fair, which as tradition dictates took place in the rain. My mum has ... read more
The fanciest peg bag ever!
When I read about the Hillarys Craft Competition for 2015 I knew I wanted to enter, but the question as what to make? With 1m square of fabric from their new Roman Blinds and curtains collection there were so many possibilities. Instantly the Daisy Pistachio fabric jumped out at me as the one I wanted to work with - even if I had imagined the pattern to be smaller on it than it actually turned out to be - but I was completely undecided about which of my plans to follow. Then, there I was one day hanging the washing out when inspiration struck me. My trusty old Cath Kinston peg bag was ... read more
Property – your questions answered #MoneyHangout
I've said it before and I'll say it again - Legal and General's #MoneyHangouts are really teaching me quite a bit. I thought I was quite up to speed on all things property related after remortgaging last year, but actually sitting down and watching their latest hangout on Property has made me realise just how much more there is to know, and also how many problems there are with property in this country at the moment. There is a shortage of houses, especially for families, in certain parts of the country and this means that people are finding it harder and harder to find a home. Knowing how ... read more
10 Top Tips for Travelling with Children
It's time to dust off the passports here in the Carr household as very excitingly I managed to win some holiday vouchers at the start of the half term holiday - just hours in fact before we headed off on our first family holiday in ages! Having now tested the theory that we can get further than the local supermarket with two children and all their kit I'm determined that this is just the start of our family holiday adventures. But, as any parent knows travelling with children isn't always straightforward so here are my top ten tips for making it as stress-free as possible. 1. Plan, plan, ... read more
Ladybird Tuesday: A Ladybird Fifth Picture Book
The Ladybird books for pre-schoolers have to be some of my favourite ones - possibly because they remind me so much of the very early years of my childhood. A couple of years ago now I features the First Picture Book here on Ladybird Tuesday and since then I've been looking out for the rest of the series, but had little luck until last month. After months of fruitless looking my old regular charity shop source suddenly had a whole box full of Ladybird books for the ridiculous price of 3 for 99p. Amazingly four from the Picture Book series, series 704, were in there and in wonderful condition ... read more
Review: Lalaloopsy Tinies
Ever since Little Miss C first saw Lalaloopsy Tinies advertised on the television she has been pestering me to buy her some. She's just about to turn five and at that age where it seems girls want tiny little toys to play with and act out stories with. The other thing that really attracted her to these Tinies though was the fact that you can thread them all onto sing or elastic to make your own jewellery. According to her this is the most amazing thing ever! So, when an email arrived asking me if I would like to review a selection of Lalaloopsy Tinies I jumped at the chance. We were ... read more
Let’s go Shopping Peppa
Master C can be a bit funny when it comes to books. Certainly reading with him is so very different from what it was like with his sister at a similar age. He doesn't have quite the same concentration span and rather than want a huge range of books he often gets stuck in a rut of just wanting the same book over and over again (a bit dull when all it is is pictures of vehicles!) and then also sits and insists on turning the pages at speed meaning you're not really able to do much reading unless you've had opportunity to memorise the book first! All this seemed to change though when a review ... read more