• book review - parenting

    Maternity Leavers by Soozi Baggs

    This weekend my son turns 7 which shocks me a little. It feels like he was just born yesterday. When I went on maternity leave 12 years ago I fully planned to go back to work. I didn’t love my job but it was interesting and paid well. After my son was born I applied to return to work part-time and I was offered a job share which I wasn’t comfortable with so I left. Instead I focussed on my new family and my daughter was born a little later. I threw myself into being a stay at home mum…

  • parenting - playing - toy review

    Tale as old as time {#BeautyAndTheBeast}

    On Friday the live action version of Beauty And The Beast will be released at the cinema. My daughter and I loved the live action version of Cinderella so we can’t wait to go and see this together, we’ve even re-watched the old animated version a few times! We’re pretty big fans of Disney films and I’ve always loved the story of Belle. She’s a great adventurer and a strong female character, although I also have a soft spot for Mrs Potts, Chip, Lumiere and Cogsworth. To get us in the mood for the release of Beauty and the Beast…

  • competition - parenting - toy review

    Win with the Global Science Challenge

    Today I wanted to share the Global Science Challenge competition with you. There are some amazing prizes, such as a trip to Orlando Florida! But first let me tell you about the Cake Soap Factory kit from Wild! Science. Cake Soap Factory The Cake Soap Factory is an educational and fun kit for children aged 8 and over. We love educational toys and this ticks all the boxes for a great STEAM experience (science, technology, engineering, art and maths). The soap in this kit can be melted and moulded to make almost any solid shape. Whipping the soap creates a stable foam…

  • parenting - Tech!

    Parenting and the Evolution of Learning

    My son turns 7 on Saturday which I’m sure you can imagine, he is very excited about. He’s a really easy-going boy and actually didn’t have any huge demands for his birthday. For the last few years he’s had an Amazon wish-list but it’s strangely empty at the moment. Don’t worry – he will have a huge pile of presents to open on Saturday. There are a few Star Wars Lego sets, some new STEAM sets as we all love educational toys and some emoji things too. I’m really hoping that he’s not on the cusp of not wanting toys…

  • crafts - Kids crafts - Spring - tutorial

    Painted Spring flower craft for kids

    I haven’t posted many of the crafts we have made lately but that doesn’t mean we haven’t been busy. After school is our special time to craft, and with the evenings noticeably longer, we have been painting Spring flowers. The children chose their favourite colours, I gathered some card and a variety of forks and we started our Spring flower craft. Have you ever tried painting with forks? It may sound a little crazy but the shape is perfect for making tulips! Painted Spring flower craft for kids You will need: green paint and a couple of different colours for…

  • crafts - Handmade gifts - sewing

    Fabric tissue holder tutorial {a Mother’s Day gift}

    With Mother’s Day coming up soon I thought I should make a head start on some handmade gifts to give the ladies in our family. A couple of weeks ago I visited the Spring Knitting & Knitting Show where I picked up some gorgeous pieces of Liberty Lawn fabric. At the time I didn’t have a project in mind but the fabrics were too good to stay hidden in my fabric cupboard. In fact they didn’t even get put away as I’ve already used them to make some sweet fabric tissue holders. To make your own you will need: Self…

  • homestyle - Lego - Monday Happy List - Orla Kiely - sewing

    Monday Happy List {Week 128}

    This week has been a bit hit and miss. I’ve been busy planning for my son’s birthday which is on Saturday. He’s turning 7 which is kinda shocking as I remember the day he was born as if it was yesterday. We’re having a low key day with some of his friends coming over, then taking him out for dinner. Currently there’s a huge pile of presents to be wrapped in the corner of my bedroom – I’m not quite sure how he hasn’t guessed what’s hiding under the Spiderman blanket! Every week I try and write a post about…

  • days out - Lego - Local Review - London - parenting

    The Art Of The Brick: DC Super Heroes in London

    My 5 year old absolutely adores Batman so for Christmas we gave her tickets to go and see The Art Of The Brick: DC Super Heroes, billed as the world’s largest collection of Super Heroes-inspired LEGO artwork! Created by legendary Lego artist Nathan Sawaya, this is the second large-scale exhibition of his that we’ve been to see. It’s actually been two years ago since  we saw the last one, blogged about here. This new The Art Of The Brick, sub-titled DC Super Heroes is a contemporary art exhibition using nearly 2,000,000 bricks to create large-scale sculptures of the most enduring…

  • crafts - Paper craft - Paper cut art - subscription box

    EmbellishBox for papercutters {February box}

    Last moth the February EmbellishBox for papercutters popped through my letterbox. I really like the box so took out a monthly subscription! Now I never have to worry about forgetting to order a box. The February box had a theme – Always Tea Time. Inside were 3 x tea-time templates and an Always Tea Time House to add to my growing collection. As well as the templates were some extra bits. I love the tea pot stand which I’m using as an over-sized coaster, some tea, badge and a special iced biscuit which my children took. The box included 3 x…