• Christmas

    7 things to include in a Christmas Eve crate

    December 20, 2016 - By 

    I started the tradition of a Christmas Eve crate a few years ago and I’m really glad I did. They don’t have to be expensive and for me, they mark the beginning of Christmas. The cards are sent, the presents are wrapped, the food is ready and there’s nothing I can do but put my feet up and let Christmas happen. This year we will be using the Christmas Eve crate I made but you don’t have to use anything. I thought it would be fun to write about the things I put into our Christmas Eve crate and share…

  • Christmas - parenting

    Stay strong this Christmas with Actimel #ad

    December 19, 2016 - By 

    As much as I love this time of year I can feel my stress levels rising. Both me and my husband have been battling our way through illness this week which has put a stop to my Christmas preparations. I like to be organised but try not to do anything until my daughter has celebrated her birthday at the end of November. This means that December is full of present buying, card writing, meal planning, Christmas concerts and trying to keep the children calm in the run up to the big day (no mean feat!). However, I am trying not…

  • A Portable North Pole video message from Santa
    Christmas

    A Portable North Pole video message from Santa

    December 17, 2016 - By 

    If you follow me on Instagram you’ll know that every evening I’ve been setting up our elf, Buddy, in different positions around the house. So far he’s fought a Stormtrooper, packed my son’s lunch in Christmas paper and even decorated our Christmas tree with loo paper! Today he brought the children a very special video message from Father Christmas via PNP. The most magical time of the year is here, and for many families worldwide, the Christmas holiday wouldn’t be complete without personalised video messages from Santa to the kids and kids-at-heart by Portable North Pole (PNP). The No 1…

  • Buckinghamshire - Christmas - days out - National Trust - parenting

    A fairytale Christmas at Hughenden Manor

    December 17, 2016 - By 

    I’ve mentioned Hughenden Manor a few times on my blog. It’s a local National Trust property and a great family day out. We’ve recently re-joined the National Trust as we realised how much we missed being members so I am looking forward to lots more great days out in 2017! We visited Hughenden in October to go pumpkin carving. You can read all about our Halloween experience here. As we were leaving one of the volunteers mentioned we should book early for Christmas and I did. I read a little more about it on their website and knew it sounded…

  • Christmas - Crafts for adults - Elf on the Shelf - sewing

    DIY one hour felt elf hat

    December 16, 2016 - By 

    There is so much going on at this time of year but when my 5 year old daughter turned to me and asked me to make her a elf hat I couldn’t resist. They are having a party at school on Tuesday and she really wanted a special hat to wear. How could I refuse? I whipped up an elf hat in an hour and I thought I would share it here in case it was helpful, I find you can never have enough festive dressing up gear at this time of year. Equipment needed to make a child’s elf…

  • Pastry squares with chestnut, turkey and kalettes
    Christmas - Cooking - eating

    Pastry squares with chestnut, turkey and kalettes

    December 16, 2016 - By 

    A big part of Christmas for me is the food. I spend weeks dreaming of our Christmas lunch and have a Pinterest board for all of my ideas. Oven Pride challenged me to think outside of the box and create a traditional Christmas dinner, but with a ‘seasonal’ twist. They wanted to hear about some funky Christmas flavours that would not usually be associated with your standard dinner. I’m a huge fan of ginger in any form. Not only is it packed full of magical properties but it adds great flavour to any dish. After a lot of thought I…

  • Christmas small world play
    Christmas - Friends of Sylvanian Families - playing - toy review

    Christmas small world play {Sylvanian Families Christmas Set}

    December 15, 2016 - By 

    My 5 year old loves small world play. She always has done and I love getting her toys to support this. She has a lot of Playmobil and Sylvanian Families toys, both of which are perfect for this. Small world play is really important as it encourages a wide range of skills, including language and literacy, understanding of the world and working together. It encourage children to use their imaginations, express thoughts and experiences into their play, whilst exploring the world in which they live. I’ve noticed that my daughter’s play has taken a decidedly festive turn recently. I often hear…

  • Easy Tunnocks Teacake Christmas puddings
    baking - Christmas - handmade

    Easy Tunnocks Teacake Christmas puddings

    December 14, 2016 - By 

    I’m on a bit of a roll at the moment. The other day I shared our Christmas Pudding Biscuits, today I am going to show you how I made Tunnocks’ Teacake Christmas puddings. I’m all for making things easy at this time of year. There is so much pressure for everything to be perfect but I’d rather cut some corners and and make more time to enjoy myself! My easy Tunnocks’ Teacake Christmas puddings have only 3 ingredients so are the easiest thing for whipping up as an after school treat or if you have some friends coming round after…

  • best Elf quote We elves try to stick to the four main food groups- candy, candy canes, candy corns and syrup.
    Christmas - film review - homestyle

    The perfect festive family night in {watching Elf!}

    December 13, 2016 - By 

    Post in collaboration with E.ON. We’ve had a busy few weeks but I’m pleased to say things are finally slowing down enough to let us enjoy the festive season. This is a magical time of year but it can be tricky to enjoy it when there is an endless round of Christmas parties, nativity plays and Santa’s Grottos’ to visit! Last weekend was the first weekend in a long time that we’ve been at home. Of course we had a few festive things planned but we were all really looking forward to a family film night. This time of year is…