We were sent a copy of Eco-friendly Crafting with Kids by Kate Lilley, who writes the hugely popular Mini-eco blog. I’ve been a fan of her blog for years, using one of her shadow puppet templates to make a Halloween tshirt for the toddler back in 2011. The book is as lovely and colourful as her blog and includes 35 projects designed for preschoolers up to and including the age of 5. The projects are split into themes: homemade materials, music, nature, recycling bin, paper and card, sewing and threading, science and a bonus section of boredom busters at the…
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I don’t know about your children but my toddler doesn’t stop. From the moment he wakes up he’s talking, playing and jumping around non-stop until he falls into bed 12 hours later. I’m very thankful he goes to bed easily but I do have 12 hours to keep him entertained every day. We have a great stock of puzzles, books and toys but were recently sent a new toy which has clearly been designed just for him. Called the Magic Moves Wand, it is aimed at 3-7 year olds and has been designed to get children moving. It is really…
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It’s been a long time since I did anything with my socks, except wear them. The one and only time I’ve made a sock monkey was back in 2008 but they are still very much in vogue. Sock Puppet Madness Take Bawston the ornery cat puppet, for example. He’s a baseball fan with a questionable temper, so watch what you say to him. A more friendly guy is Sebastian Metaphor. He may seem aloof with his hipster appearance but behind those sleepy eyes lies a heart of gold. If you are a sophisticated sort why not have a crack at…
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Along with our handmade Valentine’s Day cards I thought it would be fun to make our own wrapping paper too. I love using brown paper as it is so easy to personalise with washi tape, stickers or paint. I saw packs of heart stickers in my local Tiger store, which is where I buy most of my craft supplies. I knew these would be perfect to make our own paper to wrap our Valentine’s Day gift. Handmade Valentine wrapping paper supplies: brown paper, red heart stickers Handmade Valentine wrapping paper The toddler adores stickers so enjoyed this little project. I…
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So far this year has been unusually busy. We’ve sold our house and bought a new one so fingers crossed everything will go smoothly and in a couple of months we’ll be happily installed in our new home. To celebrate finally having an offer accepted we decided to have a lovely family day today. The weather has been atrocious but we ventured out to do our weekly food shop at Tesco after treating the children to a couple of hours at our local soft play centre. At least when the weather is bad as it has been you don’t feel…
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I’ve recently been sent a product which I think is great and I’ve been given an opportunity to share it with you! The NUK Baby Bottle Cleanser has been specially developed to clean all of your baby’s bottles, teats and accessories. It is based on natural ingredients and contains specific enzymes which effectively remove milk protein, pulp and juice residues. Its mild formula makes it ‘baby safe’, for baby-soft cleaning. Simply add a measure of the NUK Baby Bottle Cleanser to a little warm water, and wash your baby’s bottles, teats and accessories gently but thoroughly. Then, simply rinse away!…
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Do you remember last year I told you about Good Natured who produce a range of pesticide residue-free brand of fruit and vegetables. I made a rather delicious Indian Shepherd’s Pie with their Splendid Spuds. Well they have recently launched their brand new winter range of Succulent Strawberries and we were sent some to try. Today has not been kind to us so this afternoon I created a perfectly healthy winter smoothie using Good Natured Succulent Strawberries and Good Natured Ban-tastic Bananas. The children love smoothies and I have to admit although this was the first time I’ve ever tried making…
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I’ve tried to make something a little different this week with Whitworths sugars – I’ve baked a heart inside a cupcake. I used a favourite recipe to make a chocolate cake batter which I cooked in a square tin. When it had baked and cooled I cut out small hearts using a cookie cutter. I then placed each heart in a cupcake case and added a generous dollop of vanilla cake mixture around each one. When they were baked and cooled I iced each one with yummy vanilla buttercream. A delicious surprise in each one and perfect for your Valentine!…
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I fell in love with our house the moment I walked through the door. A 3 bed full of period charm. It would ‘do’ for a couple of years. 6 years later we’re finally on the move. The 3 bed is now a 4 bed; the garden has grass and flowers rather than mud; we’ve discovered treasures galore buried at the bottom of the garden and under the stairs. This was the first house my name appeared on the paperwork. The house I got engaged in, left from to be married, conceived my babies and returned triumphant from the local…