Today was a real pleasure as I got a chance to attend the second Mumsnet Blogfest. Last year was amazing, (was it really 12 months ago?) so I had high expectations for today. The day started off well with a lovely walk to the station. Before I knew it I had swapped my rural idyll for Kings Cross and couldn’t resist a quick look around the shops. First stop was Cath Kidston where I treated myself to a new cover for my iPad mini featuring her little birds print, a tin of Christmas mints and a roll of Happy Xmas!…
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I must admit to being a good way through my Christmas preparations already. I’ve bought many presents (and run out of places to hide them), planned the meals and am hoping to have lots of time to make our decorations and a couple of handmade presents. Over the next couple of weeks I’ll be sharing some pre-school friendly ideas for Christmas. As you know we are a book-loving family so today I have two lovely books to share, Dick Bruna’s Christmas and Bubble Time, a Tickety Toc storybook. Miffy’s creator, Dick Bruna published his ‘Christmas’ book in 1953 and it…
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Since its launch, Matchbox vehicles and playsets have inspired and helped create countless, thrilling adventures for boys and girls all over the world. From fire trucks to police cars in pursuit, Matchbox has provided kids with six-decades of imaginative play! To commemorate the brand’s 60 year anniversary, Matchbox has released a collectible die-cast line of 24 vehicles that harkens back to its roots. The assortment features some of the best-loved models, each of which comes with its own retro matchbox sized box which would make perfect Christmas gifts for any Matchbox fan or collector. Some of the quintessentially British assortment…
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There is lots to inspire us with our crafting lately. Everywhere we go we see poppies. Although the children are too young to understand the significance of Remembrance Sunday I don’t think they are too young to make their own contribution. Remembrance Day Poppy craft for children We thought we’d make our own poppies from paper plates. We painted them with red paint which my children loved. Little Sis loves to paint as much as her brother and makes *quite* a mess! We left them to dry overnight. The next day we cut out two circles from black paper and…
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A couple of weeks ago my children were sent a selection of sticker books which were so fun they haven’t stopped talking about them! Yes, Star Paws is back, and it’s better than ever! This brilliantly funny, silly and utterly addictive sticker book series is taking the world by storm! Perfect for all ages, all animal lovers, and anyone with a sense of humour! STAR PAWS is packed with over 250 stickers and more daft jokes than you can count, for dressing your animals up ready for fashion shows, medieval battles, festive fun or even a mission to the moon!…
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I love this time of year as there’s so much going on – Halloween, Bonfire Night, Remembrance Sunday and of course Christmas. We were out shopping yesterday and Toys R Us were playing Christmas music and John Lewis had their decorations up! I felt a little festive but it does seem to start earlier each year. Anyway, the children really enjoyed Halloween this year; they dressed up, insisted on our pumpkin being lit every evening for a week and especially loved seeing the local children knock on our door whilst they were out trick or treating. I’m not sure if…
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Today is Halloween and we’ll be celebrating by having a small party, with some ghostly treats. For one day only we’re calling ourselves the gingerdead house! We’ve had loads of fun making decorations so I thought I’d share some of them with you. We’ve been really busy over the last month and some of our favourites are: no carve pumpkins, pinecone spider, mummy candle, ghost ice cubes, Halloween sun catchers and toilet roll mummies. As well as crafting we’ve made some spooky snacks, from gingerdead men with black treacle to wriggly jelly worms. We’ve also tasted some yummy pickled onion…
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Are you prepared for any Trick or Treaters knocking on your door tomorrow? We have a huge selection of scary treats thanks to Swizzels Matlow, the king of the trick or treat season. They sent us a yummy collection of sweet treats to try and the good news is we have a selection to giveaway too! This year’s new ghoulish party delight is Trick or Sweet, which includes a choice of Double Lollies, New Refresher bars, Parma Violets, Love Hearts, Fruity Pops, Fizzers and Drumstick Lollies. Swizzels Matlow’s other frightening fancies include Trick or Treat Lolly Mix available at Morrisons…
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A new book recently landed on my doormat which combines my love of upcycling and home-making. Creating the Vintage Look by Ellie Laycock encourages you to discover how to make unusual and unique homeware through 35 gorgeous step-by-step projects. What I’m reading: Creating the Vintage Look Upcycling is about taking something old, vintage, treasured, or possibly even broken and giving it a new lease of life by trying it into something new. It’s a thrifty way of decorating and enhancing your home that avoids waste, but is also stylish, and Ellie Laycock shows you how you can make truly beautiful…
