There's only a week to go until Mother's Day here in the UK and I thinking about it this year is actually the first year that I've thought about the day in terms of me being the mother that the day is all about. I've always focussed on my mum (especialy since her birthday always falls within a week of Mother's Day too) and until now Little Miss C hasn't really be old enough to take in what it's all about. This year I know that they have been talking about what their mums do for them at nursery and also making gifts for us - she just couldn't contain her ... read more
Pretty fabric
For years I have wanted to have a go at making a patchwork quilt. I've stood in many a fabric shop swooning over all the pretty fabrics and I've also been stock-piling old clothing that I keep planning to turn into memory quilts. In my usual disorganised way though absolutely nothing has happened. Until now. I recently "met" Mum of One on a Facebook group and as soon as I read about her plan to make a cot-bed quilt and blog about the steps involved I just knew that I needed to take part. As per the instructions I ordered myself a couple of ... read more
Why Little Miss C wants to work for Bigjigs
If you've been reading this blog for a while you'll know that Little Miss C is a huge Bigjigs fan. This week it's all gone to a whole new level as she's developed an obsession with reading their trade catalogue and repeatedly telling me what she needs from it for her birthday. I'm a huge fan too. They're a great company, produce an amazing range of quality toys and also provide daily entertainment on twitter and Facebook for parents. When I saw that they're looking for Play Patrol Agents I just knew that it would be the right job for Little Miss C. Like Bigjigs ... read more
Ladybird Tuesday: ‘People At Work’ The Car Makers
Yes I have noticed it's Wednesday (and Wednesday evening at that!) but Tuesday this week vanished into a mix of trying to comfort a teething baby and preparing for Mr C's birthday. I had a Ladybird Tuesday post planned in my head though so I'm just pressing ahead a day late. This week I have another book from the People at Work series (series 606B) and as I found with the In a Hotel book - it seems to be full of things that today would be considered sexist! First published in 1968 The Car Makers describes the production of a car as it was then, from first designs to ... read more
When I Was a Lad… Megson
With all this cold weather we seem to spend quite a bit of time in the car these days going form one place to another and as Little Miss C can be quite fussy about what we listen to whilst in the car I'm always on the look out for music that we all appreciate. We've had a fair bit of success with a mix-CD of Mummy and Daddy's music, but I'm convinced that there must be good music out there, aimed at children but which doesn't make their parents want to drive into a brick wall when the CD comes round for the third time. Luckily for us Megson's When I Was A Lad - A ... read more
Monkey Nut – Simon Rickerty
Sending a book called Monkey Nut to a household where someone has a peanut allergy probably isn't the best way to get a good review of something, but then Simon and Schuster weren't to know that. Unfortunately though this book just didn't quite work for us, even putting all allergies to one side. In this book these two "thing" fight over a single monkey nut before an elephant comes along, breaks it in two, eats then nut and gives them half a shell each to play with. Now the first problem we had was the two "things", one red and one blue. I had absolutely no idea ... read more
Ladybird Tuesday: Beaky the Greedy Duck
A fiction choice for this week's Ladybird Tuesday. There are actually two Ladybird series which are devoted to animal stories, series 401 - which Little Miss C regularly enjoys quite a few books from - and series 497 which Beaky the Greedy Duck belongs to. The 497 books are all somewhat longer and written in a conventional prose style rather than the rhyming couplets that series 401 likes. As the title suggests this book is all about Beaky, a duck who happens to be rather greedy. It's a lovely little story, if a little long when LMC selects it as a bedtime book, and accompanied by ... read more
Bring on the bricks!
About three weeks ago we finally reached a stage in our parenting journey that I've been looking forward to for years - in fact since even before I became pregnant with Little Miss C. Yes we now have a child who likes Lego! I have such fond memories of my sister and I spending hours and hours building Lego towns on her bedroom floor. I can even remember the strange biscuit tin with St Paul's cathederal on that most of our Lego was kept in. For years I have been creating Amazon Lego wishlists and watching eBay auctions of sets which I had as a child. I've picked up any sets that ... read more
… and the little one said “roll over, roll over” …
That's what we're singing in the C household this week as Master C has learnt to roll over. The slight problem is that he's only properly mastered going from his back to his front and only managed to go the other way by accident rather than intentionally. He's rather proud of this new skill though and practices at every possible opportunity, but he isn't so keen about being on his front for any prolonged period. Hence, I need to keep rolling him back onto his back to keep him happy. It's all very cute to watch, but possibly not so cute when he decides to try it out in ... read more
Ladybird Tuesday: Stone Age Man in Britain
A little bit late with today's Ladybird Tuesday post - apologies! Today is my first book from Series 561, Adventures from History - Stone Age Man in Britain (first published in 1961). This whole series provides a fantastic background into British and world history with most of the books focusing on a famous person and their role in our history. Several kings are included along with the likes of Sir Walter Raleigh, Florence Nightingale and Captain Scott. Some of the others in the series look further afield - Julius Caesar and Roman Britain, and Cleopatra and Ancient Egypt. A recent ... read more