• What I'm reading

    Colourful Fun Embroidery by Clare Albans

    I seem to have my reading mojo back in the last week or two. I set myself to read 35 books this year as part of a Goodreads reading challenge and so far I’ve read 9. I love to read a mixture of fiction and non-fiction and my latest read is Colourful Fun Embroidery: Featuring 24 modern projects to bring joy and happiness to your life! by Clare Alban. I love a sewing book and this was a fun read. Disclosure – thanks to NetGalley for the review copy. Colourful Fun Embroidery by Clare Alban Take time out to be…

  • Monday Happy List

    Monday Happy List: Life in Lockdown {Week 12}

    I love to start the week by writing the Monday Happy List. It’s a chance for me to sit down and reflect on the things that made me happy in the previous week, as well as to record some of our family adventures. It’s usually a post I love to write but obviously life has changed considerably for us and everyone else in the UK over the last few months. With lockdown easing in the UK our life hasn’t changed much at all. The weeks are looooong but we do manage to squeeze in a lot of living, even if it…

  • Father's Day - Gift guide

    2020 Father’s Day gift guide

    Disclosure: Some of the products featured (marked*) were sent for inclusion in this gift guide, however all opinions are my own. Despite losing my own father when I was young, I still enjoy celebrating Father’s Day with my family. The children love Father’s Day – let’s face it, they love any occasion which might end with cake! It’s been a while since I put together a gift guide but I thought you might be interested to see some of the gifts we will be giving this Father’s Day. Father’s Day gift guide Something to play (with the kids) We are…

  • Father's Day

    Father’s Day nuts and bolts sign

    You all know we craft a lot, but that’s multiplied since lockdown began here in the UK. I’m so thankful my children love to create and we spend most afternoons sitting around our dining room table crafting together. I’ve lost count of the number of little books my children have made for the different art classes they like to teach me. It’s fun and keeps them busy, and one day I hope they will remember this time as quality family time above all else. Over the last few weeks we’ve made a start on our Father’s Day crafting and I…

  • days out - Hertfordshire - Local Review

    A trip to the poppy fields near Welwyn, Hertfordshire

    Our council always plant wild flowers around where we live and this year they included some gorgeous colours of poppies. We keep meaning to stop so a can take a closer look. A few days ago a friend posted some beautiful photos of her boys visiting fields of poppies near London and we decided we should visit the poppy fields too. When are poppies in season in the UK? Poppies are annual plants with some seedlings germinating when soil is cultivated or disturbed. There can be rapid growth between April and June, and the first flowers usually appear in June.…

  • competition

    Win a copy of Peppa Loves Doctors and Nurses

    There are lots of lovely initiatives to help raise awareness and funds for the current situation. I knew my readers would love to hear all about the new release from Ladybird, who have just published a new Peppa Pig picture book to support a Covid-19 charity. Peppa Loves Doctors and Nurses Today Ladybird publishes a new Peppa Pig picture book – Peppa Loves Doctors and Nurses.  And what’s more, 10% of the RRP will go directly to support a Covid-19 charity doing incredible work in these tricky times.  The Covid-19 Urgent Appeal, run by NHS Charities Together, will benefit from…

  • Father's Day - Playmobil Playologist

    Playmobil Back to the Future DeLorean {review}

    At the start of lockdown in March we sat down as a family and made a list of the films we wanted to watch. It included old favourites and new releases we hadn’t got round to watching. We’ve always enjoyed watching films and with trips to the cinema out of the question, then a family film night can be just as fun. A few weeks ago we settled down to watch Back to the Future as chosen by my husband. The children loved it and watched the trailers for the other two films in the series too. We were really…

  • Crafts for teens - Crafts for tweens - Father's Day

    Father’s Day wood burning craft for tweens

    My children love to have something to look forward to. So do I! We have been planning Father’s Day for a few weeks now and are excited to share some of our new crafts with you. Have you ever tried pyrography before? You can use a wood burning tool to create great results and we used it to make something really fun for Father’s Day. Materials Needed: pyrography wood burning tool 3 wood circle cutouts 3 craft magnets Hot glue gun and glue sticks Father’s Day wood burning craft: Begin by setting up and turning on your wood burning tool. If…

  • Monday Happy List

    Monday Happy List: Life in Lockdown {Week 11}

    I love to start the week by writing the Monday Happy List. It’s a chance for me to sit down and reflect on the things that made me happy in the previous week, as well as to record some of our family adventures. It’s usually a post I love to write but obviously life has changed considerably for us and everyone else in the UK over the last few months. Life is strange at the moment for everyone but I still want to try and record some of our happier moments. Monday Happy List {Week 295} We are making a huge…