25 May 2008. Not exactly a memorable date, but that was when I first started blogging here at Being Mrs C. Amazing to think that it was five years ago. So much has happened in my life in that time, but the things that drove me to start blogging then still drive me to blog today. One of the things that I was particularly keen to capture with this blog was my efforts to spend more time crafting and also to try to rediscover some of the crafts and skills of my grandparents generation. The make do and mend culture of the war years is one that fascinates me and in these austere times I believe that ... read more
Thrifty Mrs C
Welcome to Thrifty Mrs C the home page for all things thrifty on Being Mrs C. This page is an index for all thrifty and money-saving posts on the blog and also provide links to all Thrifty Friday Fives posts. For me 2014 is going to be The Year of Thrift and you can see why that is the case here. All posts about how I get on will appear on here to keep track of how I'm getting on. Making Do - 5 January 2014 Thrifty Friday Fives In the Kitchen Laundry Toddler's Birthday Thrifty Guides Meal Planning Reviewing the household finances How to have a baby without it costing the ... read more
Using Time Out Effectively
How do the above help you use Time Out successfully with your children? Read on and I hope I'll explain. Firstly, let's start with what time out is and how to use it effectively in your family. Try to think of time out as a cooling off period rather than a punishment for your child. We all know just how frustrated it is possible to be at times and how, even as an adult, it can be difficult to calm down once we are all worked up. Now imagine being a child and being frustrated and possibly angry, but not understanding the feelings that we have. Their response may well be to scream, ... read more
Rusty needles
Not literally, but that's how my knitting needles feel right now. There's hardly been a chance to do any since Master C came along nearly 8 months ago. I've still been going along to my weekly knitting group, but more time has been spent bouncing the baby than actually knitting. The refreshments and company do make the whole trip very worthwhile though! I've been making a real effort these last few weeks to turn this around though and make some "me time" to actually do some of the crafts that I love. Unfortunately not all my efforts have been in the right direction ... read more
Review: ChillFactor Squeeze Cup Slushy Maker
For so many people of my age there were two camps when they were children - those that had a Mr Frosty and those who didn't. Sadly I was in the group that didn't and all these years later I still remember how jealous I felt of school friend Rebecca who did have one. I loved slushys then and I still do now. The thought of being able to make them at home still excites me and I was therefore really pleased to be asked to review the ChillFactor Squeeze Cup Slushy Maker. The beauty of the ChillFactor is that it doesn't take up all the space that a Mr Frosty did - the magic is all in the ... read more
Review: Miffy at School
Compared to many others we were actually quite late to the iPad owning party and it was only at Christmas that I was lucky enough to get my hands on a mini as a gift from Mr C. As a result I've always been rather keen to hang on to it myself rather than let Little Miss C loose on it. Until now. She's off to nursery school in September and when we went to look round they pointed out how they have both iPads and laptops for the children to use. We're also travelling abroad next month for a wedding and I'm pretty sure that an iPad will come in very handy for keeping a three ... read more
Review: Bigjigs Garden Tools
Within two hours of our first Bigjigs Play Patrol parcel arriving it started raining. Not much of a surprise with this year's weather, but seeing as they sent Little Miss C some garden tools to review it has made reviewing them properly a bit challenging! I need to start by saying a few words about the Play Patrol scheme though. Not only did Master C enjoy his first testing assignment, but Little Miss C was amazed about the idea of toys being sent to the house by the "train jigsaw people" as she likes to call Bigjigs. And very excited to have a new bag to take to nursery and a "jigsaw ... read more
Ladybird Tuesday: ‘How it works’ The Aeroplane
Another opportunity for me to indulge my inner geek on this week's Ladybird Tuesday with 'How it works' The Aeroplane. Another book from series 654 which promises to explain exactly how things work in a way simple enough for a child to understand, but without being at all patronising. All the basics of flight are covered, from how air pressure changes with altidude, lift and drag, airflow over wings, stability of the plane in flight and how it is controlled. How the plane takes off, reaches cruising altitude and then descends to land safely is all described in detail along with how ... read more
Review: Bigjigs Activity Centre
Today's visit from the delivery man brought the kids' first Bigjigs Play Patrol assignment and as the youngest Play Patrol Agent Master C is taking his testing duties very seriously. He was sent an Activity Centre to review and with an age range of 6 months to 2 years it was the perfect choice for him to cut his reviewing teeth on. Straight out of the box the activity center is lovely to look at. With the expected Bigjigs build quality it is all made of wood with the exception of the metal "wire" with wooden beads on it. There are five activities in total: wooden ducks to ... read more
Review: Ella’s Kitchen
It's hard to believe that it's over three months since I first wrote about weaning Master C. He's still a little boy who loves his food putting on weight exactly as he should be. Since the early days Master C seems to have shown a particular love for Ella's Kitchen pouches and even now his face lights up when he sees them come out of the cupboard. I was therefore really pleased when we were sent some of the savory ones to review. Whilst we started off with some of the first tastes pouches (apple, pear and banana on their own) he quickly moved on to their Stage 1 Baby Food range and he ... read more