Master C is so difficult to wake up in a morning these days. Seeing as he shares a room with his sister at my place the pair of them have got into a bit of a bad habit of staying up far too late (especially for a school night) talking and playing in their room. I had been hoping that after this long the novelty of sharing a room would have worn off, but it seems I was wrong. On a weekend it's fine because I can let the pair of them have a bit of a lie in, but on school mornings I need to get them both up so they can be ready and leave on time. Usually Little Miss C just takes a bit of ... read more
Romeo Explores The City – Alain Greé
Hot on the heels (excuse the pun!) of Romeo's Big Book of Clever Ideas is a second title from Button Books featuring this lovable hound. Romeo Explores The City is targeted at a slightly younger audience (roughly 1 - 3 years old) and is a beautiful series of questions to ask children about what they may see in a city, before they turn the page to explore further. With questions like "where do we go when we want to travel by plane?" or "where do we go when we want to buy toys or clothes" it really gets children thinking and talking to the grown up reading the book. A lovely sharing ... read more
Romeo’s Big Book of Clever Ideas – Alain Greé
Master C is a logical thinker. With him the "why?" stage never quite ended, as he just kept asking why questions, but as his understanding of right world around him developed it just meant that the questions developed too. Now that he's five the questions keep coming thick and fast, but they are now punctuated by him thinking in incredibly detail about things and they are often very, very specific questions. There's absolutely no doubt that it's a wonderful skill for him to have, but as a parent at times it can be so incredibly frustrating when all you want to do is get out of the house on ... read more
The Stitching, Sewing and Hobbycrafts Show – NEC, Birmingham
With everything that's gone on over the last few months there are a few things in live that have had to slip. One of those has been the time I've had to spend crafting. In many ways crafting (along with running) is my therapy. It keeps my head in the right place when the rest of life is manic and it's certainly been manic of late. Over the years I have written many times on this blog about losing, and then re-finding, my crafting mojo, but this time it's different. I've wanted to craft. Desperately so at times. But there just aren't enough hours in the day and the kids, keeping a roof over our ... read more
Fighting the Common Plights of Old Age
Old age is something that only certain people are fortunate to reach and attain, there are no two ways about it. But, even though it is a privilege to be able to reach old age, there are still some common plights that come with it. But, if you're going to live comfortably in your twilight years, then you're going to have to do all you can to fight these plights. Or, if you want an elderly relative of yours to live comfortably in these years of rest, then you should help them fight these plights too. For advice on what should be done, make sure to read on. Image source Fighting bad eye ... read more
Paddington Pop-Up London
There's really not long to go now until Paddington 2 opens in cinemas here in the UK and I'm thrilled that other people can finally see the film as I absolutely loved it. I've already written all about what I thought of it, but there's another special part of the story to tell you about - Paddington Pop-Up London. Just as soon as you've seen Paddington 2 you'll understand why Paddington Pop-Up London is such a key part of the film. I don't want to give away any major spoilers, but the Pop-Up is basically the reason Paddington ends up going to prison. It's a beautiful book that shows off ... read more
Great British Sewing Bee Sewing Studio
Since moving house my sewing machine hasn't been out anywhere near enough. I have so many projects that I keep meaning to complete, but as usual there just aren't enough hours in the day. Or enough space on the singe table that we have in our living room. I know that it's only a matter of time though, and then I'll finally be able to crack own with some of the things I want to make. There must be patterns that I bought over a year ago that I haven't even made a start on yet. And the less said about the cot bed quilt that I started a lifetime ago the better. When Little Miss C first came ... read more
Taking to the rails with London Midland
I make no secret of the fact that I love train travel. The opportunity to sit and daydream whilst looking out of the windows, combined with the motion of the train is something I've always loved. I've not had the opportunity to do a long train journey for quite a while (although the other half and I are plotting how we can use our Two Together Railcard to enable a cheap weekend somewhere along the Great Western route at some point) and still talk fondly of the mammoth trip I once had to do for work up to Edinburgh and Glasgow by train so when the opportunity came for a bit of solo train travel ... read more
Feeding a thousand with Wok For 1000 #WokFor1000
What do you get if you assemble over a 150 budding chefs in London's Borough Market, get top chef and School of Wok founder Jeremy Pang in charge and give all of them the motivation to feed a thousand of London's food insecure? The answer is an incredible Wok For 1000 event that saw friendships made, Asian cookery skills developed, a huge amount of food prepared, and about 1400 people fed. I was incredibly proud to be part of yesterday's Wok For 1000 event as it was an amazing opportunity to understand what is already being done to help so many people that are short of food, and what more ... read more
How To Save Money With The London Explorer Pass
London can be an amazing city to visit. It will give you some unique experiences you won't have on any other trip. It is one of the best places in the world for art, culture, and history, and also for nightlife, attractions, shopping, and general fun. However, London can also be very expensive. Whether you are visiting from another part of the UK or from abroad, the cost of going out in London can be high, and even for people who live in London, visiting the biggest attractions can seem extremely expensive. Luckily, there are packages designed to make a day out or a weekend in London as ... read more