• Celebrating Elderflower season with Belvoir
    baking - days out - London

    Celebrating Elderflower season with Belvoir

    May 31, 2017 - By 

    I’m so excited for the start of June tomorrow. May has been a great month but I can’t wait for more sunshine – mainly so the kids can play out more! Did you know that the beginning of June also marks the traditional start of summer when the Elderflower bursts into flower in our English hedgerows? Baking Madeleine Hot Air Balloons with Lisa Faulkner Elderflower sums up Summer perfectly for me. We had an Elderflower tree in the garden of our old house and every year my husband promised to try making our own cordial. We never did get round to…

  • The Diary of a Wimpy Kid screening with Joules Clothing
    days out - film review - London - parenting

    The Diary of a Wimpy Kid screening with Joules Clothing

    May 30, 2017 - By 

    Today we were invited by Joules Clothing to attend a screening of the latest film, Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Long Haul, at 20th Century Fox. I’d heard of the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series of fiction books, written by the American author and cartoonist Jeff Kinney. All the main books are the journals of the main character, Greg Heffley. We haven’t read any of the books or watched the previous films but were excited to see the film based on the trailer, which we all thought was funny. We had a lovely afternoon in London before the…

  • A visit to Great Chalfield Manor and Gardens with kids
    days out - holidays - Local Review - Wiltshire

    A visit to Great Chalfield Manor and Gardens with kids

    May 24, 2017 - By 

    I can’t quite believe it’s half term next week. The last few weeks have flown by and I haven’t written half the posts I wanted to about our Easter holiday adventures! We’re off to Wiltshire for a few days over half term. On our last visit we were lucky to visit Great Chalfield Manor and Gardens, a charming 15th-century manor house with Arts and Crafts garden, near Bradford on Avon in Wiltshire. Entrance to the manor is by guided tour only. Unfortunately we were unable to get tickets for the house so had to be satisfied with the gardens. Fortunately they…

  • Smyths-Toy-Store-party-event-2017
    days out - Local Review - London

    Join the Smyths Toys Superstores party {May 27th}

    May 19, 2017 - By 

    If you’re looking for a fun event for the kids this half term then I have found the perfect event to kick start it. Smyths Toys Superstores are throwing a party and everyone is invited! All of their stores across the UK and NI will be hosting a party in-store that will be bigger and better than ever and it’s taking place on Saturday May 27th from 9am-2pm. Join in the fun in your local Smyths Toys Superstores and collect your FREE goodie bag* which will contain FREE giveaways from your favourites including Play-Doh, My Little Pony and LEGO! There…

  • Dog's Trust Harefield
    days out - Hillingdon - Local Review - London

    A visit to the Dog’s Trust Harefield {exploring the local area}

    May 13, 2017 - By 

    Living on the outskirts of London we’re lucky to have so much on our doorstep. A quick hop on the tube gets us into London, or we can take off in the car to the country. We’ve mused about having a dog for a few years now but it just doesn’t seem practical. So instead we visit the Dog’s Trust Harefield, which is only about 10 minutes away. The Dog’s Trust Harefield is an animal centre belonging to the Dog’s Trust, the UK’s largest dog welfare charity which aims to help abandoned dogs. Their Harefield Centre is one of 20 re-homing…

  • Top tips for saving money during the summer holidays
    days out - parenting

    Top tips for saving money during the summer holidays

    May 11, 2017 - By 

    As much as I am enjoying May my thoughts are beginning to turn to the summer holidays. With two children in school full-time our holidays are really precious. We don’t go on huge holidays, preferring to spend a few days with grandparents in different parts of the country, and plan lots of day trips too. The downside to those wonderful 6 weeks of holidays is the cost of it all. With only one of us, working money can be tight, so I’ve been looking for ways to save money for the summer holidays. Top tips for saving money during the summer…

  • wall of vintage signs at Buckinghamshire Railway Centre
    days out - homestyle - Monday Happy List - Star Wars crafts

    Monday happy things {Week 136}

    May 8, 2017 - By 

    Last week was good. I love a Bank Holiday Monday and we decided to visit Buckinghamshire Railway Centre and Waddesdon Manor.Buckinghamshire Railway Centre was huge and although the weather wasn’t great we all enjoyed riding on the trains. We had a lovely day out but it was pretty tiring. The highlight of our week was of course Star Wars Day! We started with a yummy Star Wars breakfast of green Yoda milk. It would have been blue Bantha milk but we didn’t have any blue food colouring. There were also Star Wars pancakes which were a fun way to start the…

  • A Fairy Trail in the Woods {Clanger Wood }
    days out - parenting

    A Fairy Trail in the Woods {Clanger Wood }

    May 5, 2017 - By 

    A few weeks ago we were staying at my mum’s in Wiltshire. We wanted to go and see some bluebells so headed to Clanger Woods. This is a lovely little area managed by the Woodland Trust. We parked up and spotted a poster which read ‘FAIRY TRAIL’. Now, my children love fairy play so I thought this would help keep them occupied as we walked through the woods. We looked a little closer and found another more detailed poster which read: Welcome to the Nature Detectives Fairy Trail – Blue and Belle are woodland fairies and they need your help!…

  • A visit to Bhaktivedanta Manor
    days out - Hertfordshire - Local Review - London - parenting

    A visit to Bhaktivedanta Manor {exploring the local area}

    April 29, 2017 - By 

    As a stay at home mum I have plenty of free time to help at my children’s school. This is something I love to do. Every week I listen to children read for a couple of hours and I’ve helped on a few school trips too. Last term I was lucky to visit Bhaktivedanta Manor with my son and his year group. Their topic was religion and we had previously visited the local Church of England Church. A visit to Bhaktivedanta Manor Bhaktivedanta Manor is a Gaudiya Vaishnava temple, just outside Watford. The Manor is owned and run by the International Society for…