• Book Advent books for an 8 year old
    Family Life - What I'm reading

    Book Advent books for an 8 year old

    December 27, 2019 - By 

    Last year my daughter ended up with her very own Book Advent (a different festive book to enjoy in the run up to Christmas). My son decided he wanted to read The Christmasaurus by Tom Fletcher so read the one book during December (this year he read The Creakers by Tom Fletcher and A Notchmas Carol). So my daughter got to enjoy the Book Advent all to herself, alongside the handmade Advent calendar I made her, and her chocolate one! I’ve always loved putting together a selection of festive books for kids, this year my daughter helped me! What is…

  • DIY Orla Kiely inspired wrapping paper
    Crafts for adults - upcycling

    DIY Orla Kiely inspired wrapping paper

    December 22, 2019 - By 

    My favourite Orla Kiely print is stem print. I recently bought myself a new stem print handbag for work, I just love it! The print is a classic and I wanted to use this print around the home, so tried my hand at cutting my own Orla Kiely inspired stamp. DIY Orla Kiely inspired stamp I already had a DIY stamp craft kit from Flying Tiger which contained the rubber sheet and carving tool. I photocopied a sheet of stem print paper which I then cut out to make my template. I placed this over the top of the stamp…

  • Aladdin at Harrow Arts Centre
    Family Life - Local Review - London

    Aladdin at Harrow Arts Centre, London

    December 20, 2019 - By 

    It’s just not Christmas without panto and this year we were delighted to be invited along to Harrow Arts Centre (HAC) in Harrow, London to watch Aladdin. Following the success of Immersion Theatre’s The Wizard of Oz (2017) and Beauty and the Beast (2018), Harrow Arts Centre are delighted to welcome Prime Pantomimes, a partnership between Immersion Theatre and Selladoor Worldwide to HAC this Christmas. Aladdin at Harrow Arts Centre, London Prime Pantomimes make bespoke, high-energy visual feasts packed with audience participation, call and response, music, and West End-standard performances to create unforgettable shared family experiences. With heaps of audience…

  • Christmas shopping with The 2019 Christmas Good Toy Guide
    competition - Family Life

    Christmas shopping with The 2019 Christmas Good Toy Guide

    November 27, 2019 - By 

    Disclosure – this is a collaborative post The Christmas countdown has really begun in our house. We are all ready for Advent which marks the start of the Christmas period for us. We all enjoy the festive period and I have to admit I’ve already put the Christmas bedding on our beds and baked my first batch of mince pies! It’s pretty natural that children have high expectations of the presents they are going to receive. My daughter is in Year 3 and wrote a letter to Father Christmas yesterday. I had to give her a stamped envelope as her…

  • 12 Handmade gift tags to make this Christmas
    Christmas - Crafts for adults

    12 Handmade gift tags to make this Christmas

    November 22, 2019 - By 

    I’ve been really fortunate to have a couple of days off from work this week. I’ve made the most of my free time and made a huge dent in my Christmas shopping and wrapping. I get really anxious about gift giving so I find starting early helps me. Don’t get me wrong, I still have lots to do, but I feel like I can relax a little and make a start on adding a handmade touch to my gift-giving. We love the handmade touch and I couldn’t resist searching Pinterest for handmade gift tags to make this Christmas. There are…

  • 24 Elf on the Shelf ideas for spreading Christmas cheer
    Christmas - Elf on the Shelf - Family Life - free printables

    {free printable} 24 Elf on the Shelf ideas for spreading Christmas cheer

    November 16, 2019 - By 

    I have another fun and FREE printable to share with you today. Over the last few years we’ve been visited by our very own Scout Elf on the 1st of December. Yes, the children love our Elf on the Shelf and we love having him visit in the run up to Christmas. Last year he was joined by an elf friend so now the children both have their own Elf, who keeps an eye on them and makes sure they behave themselves. We’ve always had lots of fun with our Elf on the Shelf. Yes, I may spend a lot…

  • Personalised wooden gifts to give this Christmas
    Family Life - Gift guide

    AD | Personalised wooden gifts to give this Christmas

    November 7, 2019 - By 

    AD | norma&dorothy gifted us these items for our Christmas gift guide It’s time to mention the C word. This year I started my Christmas shopping really early. Every year I get really stressed so started even earlier this year and have most of the presents and gifts hidden away. I’ve actually enjoyed shopping around, I think because I’ve taken my time and looked for gifts I think people will like. Every family has some family members who are difficult to buy for. This year I was introduced to norma&dorothy who sell beautiful personalised cards, stationary and gifts. They kindly let…

  • What books featured in our Book Advent in 2017
    Advent crafts - book review - Family Life

    What books featured in our Book Advent in 2017

    January 4, 2019 - By 

    I was in two minds about having a Book Advent last year. Although we had  books from the previous year I just didn’t have time to wrap them all individually. However my 7 year old wanted to know why our Christmas elves hadn’t brought the books when they arrived with the Advent calendars, so I quickly got them out so she could enjoy reading them. What is a Christmas Book Advent? The idea of a Christmas Book Advent is simple. Alongside your daily chocolate treat you can also consume something a little longer lasting – a book! We love reading and…

  • 17 new Elf on the Shelf antics from the gingerbread house blog
    Christmas - Elf on the Shelf - Family Life

    17 new Elf on the Shelf antics

    January 3, 2019 - By 

    Although I wasn’t entirely sure about bringing back our Book Advent (but I’m glad we did) I knew our two Christmas elves would be making an appearance on December 1st. We have two elves, one for each child, who bring the children’s Advent calendars and stay around to make sure they are having fun during December. This is a family Christmas tradition which we started a few years ago. In preparation for December 1st I found the Elf surveillance camera and sign, the two elves and started to plan some of the daily activities. Now I’m working it was essential…