Friday 30 April 2021

RETRO TOYS THAT ALL KIDS LOVE! | STICKLE BRICKS & PLASTICINE REVIEW

 When it comes to old school retro toys from my childhood , stickle bricks and plasticine have got to be up there with the top 10 favourites.


Wednesday 28 April 2021

CARING FOR LOVED ONES IN THEIR OWN HOME | DOMICILIARY CARE


Being a carer has always been a passion of mine. If you have been a regular reader of mine then you will know I have worked in the care community for over 15 years .


Monday 26 April 2021

BOUNCING INTO SUMMER WITH MOON SHOES | REVIEW

A throw back from the past and SO much fun - moon shoes . If you grew up in the 90s then you would definitely remember, the toy that we all wanted!.


Saturday 24 April 2021

ENERGY SAVING TIPS YOU ALL NEED

 When it comes to saving money in the home then you know I am the first one there to shout about it .


We have been trying to save as much as we can since the beginning of last year and we now have enough savings for a well deserved family holiday. 

I think we could all do with a holiday after the year we have all had. It’s only taken us a year to save and I thought I would share some of our energy saving tips and ideas on how you can save money too.


TURN OFF THE LIGHTS

If you have children then you would be surprised on how many lights actually stay on throughout the day. Being consciously aware of it since trying to reduce  our energy bills, I was forever telling the girls to turn off the lights.

It did take them a while to remember the habit but after a few weeks it becomes second nature and you won’t have to keep nagging :) .


WASH ON A COLD TEMPERATURE 

I have always washed on a hot temperature as I thought that was the best setting to get stains and mucky hand prints out of  , but it actually doesn’t make a difference.

For the children’s stained clothes , like spaghetti bolognese from dinner on a school shirt , spray it with some vanish and leave it to soak for half an hour before you put it in the wash and it comes out perfect!.


CHECK YOUR BOILER

Is your boiler up to scratch and working the way it should be ?.We had trouble with our boiler and had to call someone out to check it . In the end we needed a boiler replacement.

 If you need your boiler looking at then Range heating provide a variety of central heating services from full installations, repairs , upgrades or even just a routine check over to see if everything’s working in top form.


SWITCH ENERGY SUPPLIERS

This one is where a lot of people go wrong and the hassle of switching puts them off . I actually had a look around last year for a better supplier, and I found one , lower cost and I  also got a £50 lush gift card as a new customers , and we all know how much I love Lush !.


UNPLUG DEVICES

Did you know that by not switching off your devices they are still costing you? , I didn’t have a clue , I thought I’f your phone wasn’t connected to the charger then it wasn’t being used but it definitely is , and by unplugging them devices and turning off them switches we are now saving a small fortune.

I hope these tips and tricks help you to Aldi’s ave for that family holiday this year :)





Thursday 22 April 2021

CLINICAL NEGLIGENCE | HAVE YOU BEEN AFFECTED?

When it comes to The National Health Service here in the UK , it does an amazing job and I really do salute the service we have and will be ever grateful for it, and I know a lot of others will be too.


Tuesday 20 April 2021

AD / BODY POSITIVITY | FEMME LUXE



The weather has been glorious over the past few weeks hasn’t it? , and the sun shining really does bring me so much happiness, give me all that vitamin D goodness  :)


Sunday 18 April 2021

EXPLORING GRATITUDE WITH YOUR CHILD

 Fostering gratitude in your child can help them develop a positive outlook on life and resilience in the fact of obstacles and challenges. It can also help your child feel more satisfied with what they do have rather than dwelling on what they don’t have and comparing themselves negatively to others. Read on for some tips from a private boys’ school in London on how you can explore gratitude with your child.


Friday 16 April 2021

HELPING YOUR CHILD DEVELOP FINE MOTOR SKILLS

 Mastering fine motor skills will help increase your child’s confidence and encourage them to be more independent. They’ll be able to explore the world more and express themselves in new ways, as well as being able to perform everyday tasks with ease. Read on for some advice from a prep school in London on how you can encourage your child’s development of fine motor skills. 

 


Wednesday 14 April 2021

AD / LIFE IN LOCKDOWN DURING COVID



It’s been a whole year now since the world went into absolute turmoil and we are finally coming out of it slowly but surely, and what a rollercoaster this year has been.

Monday 12 April 2021

AD / WHAT I WORE THIS WEEK #3 | FEMME LUXE


Another what I wore this week and the weather has definitely been hit and miss, we have had all sort this past week, it’s been madness for sure .


Saturday 10 April 2021

AD / THE ADVENTURES OF PADDINGTON MAGAZINE | REVIEW


 Paddington  bear has been a love in this house for many years . Kadiann use to love him when she was little and she will be 18 next month , I love how the children’s childhood favourites have been passed on down. 


Thursday 8 April 2021

AD / 5 SURPRISE FAIRY UNICORN MYSTERY CAPSULES | ARE YOU READY FOR NATIONAL UNICORN DAY?


 Unicorns are definitely a firm favourite in this house , I mean come on , we’re talking unicorns here! ,the best mythical creature going :) 
 

Tuesday 6 April 2021

EASTER WEEKEND


The half term definitely couldn’t of come quick enough, we’ve all been absolutely exhausted and ready for a break!. Getting back into the swing of things was definitely a challenge and we ended up with isolation, tonsillitis and a house full of cold.



Sunday 4 April 2021

HOW TO DAMP PROOF YOUR HOME | COLLABORATION

 If you have followed me for a while then you will know we have been on a massive journey in the last few houses we have lived in with damp.


We also vlogged some of our journey and I actually got really poorly because of it when being pregnant with Nila , and it was such a horrible experience.

Fast forward a few years later , and we are now in our forever home , damp free and it is definitely a breath of fresh air.

I wanted to share some tips with you on how to damp proof your home that we have tried and tested and have made such a difference .


First you need to figure out which type of damp you are working with , yes there is more than just one . 


RISING DAMP

 This is known for most of us and most will of had it at some point. Almost like it feels wet in the air , and you might notice the walls looking wet ,this is usually linked with drying clothes on the radiators.


WHAT WILL HELP

Getting a clothes horse to dry your clothes on rather than the actual radiator makes such a different , also opening the windows in the room you are drying your clothes in will massively help.


CONDENSATION 

Condensation is quite a common one and we’ve had it in most of our homes. Poor ventilation is normally the cause of this and we actually had no air vents in some of the rooms in our last home which made it even worse .

WHAT WILL HELP

Investing in a humidifier was an absolute god send for us . It collects all the moisture out of the air and you just empty it when it’s full. If you can’t afford one then leaving a window open a tiny bit does help along with leaving doors open rather than shutting them all ,let’s the air circulate through better.


These are just a few damp issues we have had and some of our solutions that helped us along the way to a damp free home .


DBI have recently wrote an article of the different types of damp in great detail , why they occurr and all the different solutions to fix them . 

If you’ve got any tips when it comes to damp proofing your home then do share .


Friday 2 April 2021

3 REASONS WHY YOU SHOULD LEARN THE PIANO | COLLABORATION


I have always loved singing and playing musical instruments from a young age , ever since music lessons in school, I definitely think I got the feel for music then ,and ever since it’s been a passion of mine.


A fun fact about me is I can actually play quite a few instruments- the drums , guitar and the piano.

I can remember always wanting to go round  a particular friends house after school as her mum had the most amazing piano in their dining room and she always let me practice on it .

Piano definitely took me to a calmer place when I was a teenager , the notes just fell off of your fingers and you really get drawn in. Piano is such a lovely thing to be able to play and Art of the Country have some great learning tips on their site to help beginners get started.

I’ve got 3 reasons why you should learn to play :)


STRESS RELIEVER 

playing the piano is an amazing stress reliever. Anxiety played a big part in my childhood and playing the piano really did release a lot of it and it forces you to focus on what you are playing rather than what is bothering you.


YOU CAN TRY BEFORE YOU BUY 

Pianos aren’t the cheapest of musical equipments so it’s lovely to see that this paints store is one of London’s oldest and well established piano stores are still offering long term loan services, which is amazing .

For people who aren’t quite ready to full commit to a big purchase or just haven’t got the money , loaning one is a fantastic idea.

They also have a piano advice section on their website, so if you had any questions or wanted to know something then definitely check it out as there is lots of information on there :)

GAIN SELF CONFIDENCE 

Self confidence in this day and age can be so fragile can’t it?. We often doubt ourselves all the time and feel like we’re not good enough.

Creating your own music and hearing it played aloud , especially in front of friends and family is so rewarding and a massive confidence booster.

Starting from scratch and coming up with a beautiful piece of music after putting so much effort in is so satisfying and really does make you so proud of yourself , it really does build up that self confidence and belief in yourself .

I’d love to know if you can play the piano or if you ever played one and if so what is your favourite piece to play? Mine is definitely Celine Dion , my heart will go on .