I'm pretty sure there must have been more BBQs in the UK in the last three weeks than there were in the whole of last "summer". The weather has been stunning and for once it was so nice to arrange a BBQ in advance without having to worry about the weather. When Money Supermarket launched the Charcoal Challenge and offered bloggers £50 to host a BBQ it seemed appropriate to invite another blogger to join us, so that's exactly what I did. Kirsty from Damson Lane lives just down the road from me and it was a delight to have her, her husband and son come to visit us. ... read more
Goodnight Little One – Margaret Wise Brown
We're very familiar in this C household with Margaret Wise Brown as Goodnight Moon was one of the first books that Little Miss C had read to her at bedtime, and right now it's in the pile of books that we read to Master C before he goes to bed. It was interesting therefore to see Goodnight Little One by her in the books that I was asked to review from Parragon Books when I met them at BritMums Live last month. Little donkey on the hill, Standing there so very still. Making faces at the skies, Little donkey close your eyes. In this book we go round various animals as it ... read more
Walking with my Fitbug
Now, normally when an email arrives offering me diet or exercise products I politely ignore them. It's not that I don't want to be fitter and lose some weight - I've had two kids, so of course I do - but I just really struggle to find the time in my day to fit in formal exercise. When the email came from Fitbug I initially wrote a similar response, but then something made me stop and re-read their original email and look into it a bit more. So why was Fitbug so different? Very simple, I saw the word "walk" in what they were saying. Now, whilst I hate running, I LOVE to ... read more
Ladybird Tuesday: The Story of Football
Sadly no royal books in my Ladybird collection so we going to have to do with a spot of football today instead. I've had an old tatty copy of The Story of Football in my Ladybird collection for a while, but last week it was joined by a new copy with was re-released in 2012. My original has the matt picture boards as a cover, but the newer re-issue actually goes back to the plain board cover and printed dust-wrapper instead. Inside - everything is identical. When first published in 1964 this book was very much written for boys who enjoyed football and wanted to know more about it. ... read more
Magpie Monday: Children’s book classics
It's ages since I've been able to have a proper mooch around a car boot sale, and with a three-year old in tow I still didn't get to do so this Sunday. But, at least I did get to go to one! It was the first time that I've been to the regular Sunday market at the Herts Showground since it was taken over by a new company. Like most car boots that I was familiar with it used to be held in the morning and getting there with small kids was pretty tough. Now though it's an afternoon sale making it much more likely that I can actually attend. Their own website keeps you on your ... read more
Introducing… lucypeachslice
I love finding local gems here in St Albans and lucypeachslice is most definitely a local gem. From the quirky name (after a guinea pig called Lucy who arrived in a carboard box that had once carried tins of peach slices!) to the unique funky clothes they sell, lucypeachslice is not your run-of-the-mill children's clothing range. Based here in St Albans, the company was founded earlier this year after their creator turned her attentions from making clothes for her own daughters and their friends, to designing and curating her first collection for little girls. All the fabrics are ... read more
Escaping to the beach
Amazingly the hot spell here in the UK seems to be continuing, and to be honest when the weather's as hot as it has been, sitting with a hot laptop on your knee isn't exactly fun. I'm sure I'm not the only blogger who has spending time away from their keyboard to make the most of the weather. Last Monday we decided that it was time to make a dash for the coast from our inland home in St Albans so we bundled the kids into the car and headed north to Hunstanton for the day. It's a 200 mile round trip and on the way there the traffic around Cambridge did make me wonder if it ... read more
Honk Honk! Baa Baa! & Time for Bed – Petr Horacek
It's nearly a couple of years now since I discovered Petr Horacek after happening across a copy of Silly Suzy Goose in a local charity shop. All three of us really enjoyed it and I've been keeping an eye out for more of his books ever since. I was delighted when we were sent a couple of new books in the Baby Walker series and I've been saving these to enjoy with Master C. It's really only been in the last couple of weeks that he's started to enjoy snuggling up together with a book and from what I can tell he's really enjoying it. After his bedtime milk he actively ... read more
Ladybird Tuesday: The Weather
This post on The Weather can now be found on Penny Reads, the new home for Ladybird Tuesday. It is located here. ... read more
Thrifty Friday Five – My go to thrifty books
Something a little bit different on today's Thrifty Friday Five. Instead of giving you five top tips I'm instead going to share with you the top five books on my bookcase that I go back to time and time again for thrifty tips. 1. Practical Self Sufficiency - Dick & James Strawbridge It was the Strawbridge's TV series It's not Easy Being Green that first started me off on my green journey several years ago - and that in turn was what lead to me starting this blog. When Dick & James' Practical Self Sufficiency came out in 2010 it became my bible for ... read more