Finding a buggy to suit your lifestyle

Whether you are a first-time mum or it's your second or third child one of your biggest purchases will be a buggy or pushchair. As we are a very busy and active family I found in the early months I combined babywearing for shorter days out with my colourful and stylish Cosatto pram for longer days spent in the city. I still do a lot of babywearing now although he is a very solid child and when we are travelling a small and stylish buggy is essential, especially when navigating airport terminals or walking long distances while exploring new places. It of course is extremely handy to have at home too as we are consciously trying to use the car less and walking more places and with a buggy board on the back that means I can transport both my sons with ease (and no whining about how long it's taking to walk). The thing about strollers it is all comes down to personal requirements and what works for you, there's an excellent article to baby gear with some great advice and ......

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Why Mauritius is on our Wish List

There are some places in the world that when you say their name just feel right, places that capture that sense of tranquility, exploration, relaxing and in short paradise on earth and  Mauritius is certainly on of those. It sits firmly on our list of places we want to visit before the kids get too big as there are so many fantastic things to do on this Island nation more than 1000 miles off the southeast coast of Africa. Mauritius has always been a very popular destination with not only the British but also South Africans as  it's fairly easy to get to without having to fly to Europe first for connections and I remember hearing tales of white beaches and palm trees from friends who had visited the island when they were young. So what makes Mauritius different to other island destinations? Well for one it's a very diverse multicultural, multilingual nation which is highly ranked for it's democracy and economic freedom making is a safe and culturally......

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Slow evenings at Penarth Pier

The one thing I love about summer's is warm evenings which at times in the UK seems few and far between but when they do come we take them, we don't worry so much about the kids routine and instead head outside and enjoy the moment. When we had a mini heat wave last week that is exactly what we did, I bundled the kids into the car and picked up John from worked and headed to Penarth Pier for a cheeky chips and ice-cream on the pier. There was a lot going especially with the RNLI sea rescue doing training in the bay with a huge Helicopter hoisting people up from the water and all the lifeboats out and about. There was also lots paddle boarders, jet ski's and people whizzing by in speedboats waterskiing as the water was so calm and perfection conditions for water sports, which provided perfect entertainment for the kids. My eldest is also fascinated with the tidal cycles, when we arrived the tide was in but by the time we had left it was going out again, re......

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Go bold by updating your home with Aluminium

Wait did I just say Aluminium? It's probably a material you have not considered using before but bear with me while I explain why you should consider this bold, stylish and durable metal if you are looking to update your doors and windows this year. So why Aluminium and why now? Well unless you have been living under a rock you will know 2016 is all about the copper and metal interior trend and aluminium certainly has it's place in this current trend. With Aluminium being a combination of being light, flexible and very strong, it truly is the perfect material to use for things like aluminium window and sliding doors with the extra bonus of being an environmentally and recyclable resource. We have PVC french doors in our home and even though we have not been living in this house very long they have required some maintenance, which of course costs money so we have certainly learnt with this type of thing it's far better to install quality frames such as the......

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10 Home Improvements you can do yourself

I love this well curated interior space, minimal clutter (image via cotswold ) When you're working on a budget and want to brighten up your home, hiring an expert may not always be the best option. Indeed, there are plenty of great improvements that you can make to your home without the need for any expert at all. Here are just 10 of them.  1. Re-arrange Yes, improving your home really could involve something as simple as re-arranging your furniture. Try freeing up more space by experimenting with the placement of different pieces. You should take care to open up as much space in the centre of a room as possible to avoid you or guests tripping. 2. Mirrors As simple as they seem, mirrors are a great way to improve the interior of your home, because they give the illusion of more space. They're also great at reflecting light to help illuminate your home. 3. Photographs Make your home unique to you. Photos of friends and family aren't just for frames on w......

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In our reading nook - Teletubbies

 My 17month old absolutely loves books, in fact he keeps going into his brothers room each morning and taking his. We have a few baby books but nothing has kept his attention as much as the new colourful Teletubbies ones, they simply fascinate him. I have to admit I have a real soft spot for the Teletubbies as it was one of the overseas shows that was available to watch in South Africa. I was already quite old by the time it hit the screens but even so I would on occasion watch it because having British shows in South Africa was a novelty and they are so unique it still managed to capture my imagination with my favourite always beings Po - I even got the Po soft toy when we came to visit family in the UK. We do limit screen time in our household but welcome gentle and education shows and with years of research being put behind the show to make sure it focuses on nurturing love, respect and humour as well as being engaging but not over stimulating and is a show we a......

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Why Amsterdam is the Perfect Family destination

Around this time last year we were coming back from a week long trip to Amsterdam, we had spent a few days in London before taking the train down to the coast and the overnight ferry to the Hoek of Holland, then a high speed train into the city as part of the Rail sail ticket Stena Lines offers. That trip was not our first family break to the Dutch Capital, in fact the year before we flew from our local airport with KLM , a very quick and easy trip from Cardiff, in fact KLM flies from most UK airports making Holland a very accessible destination. For some people Amsterdam may not be their first choice when thinking of a family friendly European destination but it truly is a wonderful city that you will fall in love with as soon as you arrive. The locals are very friendly and welcoming of families and there is a fantastic array of things to see and do. If you are only going to be in the city for up to 72hrs I would recommend getting the iAmsterdam Card which inclu......

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Frugi Organic Bedding - Review

We love to support ethical and organic brands and products and are trying to bring more of that into our lives and home so when Frugi , a well known children's brand we love got in touch and asked us to try out their new organic bedding for kids we jumped at the chance. The main thing I wanted to test was comfortability because if the kids are not comfortable they are not going to sleep and as any parent will know a good night sleep is essential for your sanity.  Occasionally I do find organic products to be a little itchy or not as soft but this is not the case with these beautifully made duvet and pillow set and both the kids love the colourful designs which add a real sense of fun to their bedrooms. We picked the campervan and the fish design which are both unisex. They both have a printed design on one side and stars on the other and just like their kids clothing you can't fault the quality, the cotton is thick but breathable and even though perhaps in r......

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Exploring somewhere new - Insole Court, Cardiff

We have driven past many times but have never gone down the long drive that leads you to this once iconic Manor house just a short walk from Llandaff in Cardiff that is Insole Court. The house itself is not open and is being restored by the National Lottery but what is open is the beautiful grounds and walled gardens that belong to this stunning period property.  We really didn't know what to expect the first time we walked down though the gates but it was like stepping into the secret garden with tumbling ivy covered walls, fountains, an array of wild flowers and a little stream running through with plenty of space for picnics in total peace and quiet. A real haven within the city centre.  To my understanding the main building once sympathetically renovated as it's a listed property will house a variety of different things including a community space and cafe and I cannot wait to see what is install for this fantastic place. It's a shame in one wa......

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Redesigning our Living room starting with the Sofa

As some of you may already know we bought our current property as a bit of a project that needed some work done, before intending to sell, hopefully later this year. We have slowly been working through each room getting ready to put it on the market. Things have gone much slower than expected, mainly because having two small kids at home is not overly conducive for renovations. The picture above is our partially finished living room space, at this point, we had taken away the badly built-in shelves and terrible wooden surrounds and replaced them with more useful storage but otherwise, we have pretty much been making do as the living room didn't have too many issues to start with but now we are ready to get the paint out and get what we need to be done to finish this room. Firstly we will be painting the walls white instead of this slight off white shade, we are going to paint all the skirting boards, fix the fireplace surround, box in wires properly, get a carpenter in to bui......

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Getting Organised and Life Planner Giveaway

I normally blog every day but lately I have felt somewhat disorganised and short of time. I know a large part of this is due to having a very active 16month old baby who has been teething a lot lately paired up with the fact the last time he slept through the night was when he was 4 months old (and that only lasted for two weeks). Being somewhat sleep deprived has also meant that I don't always think as clearly as normal so making notes when inspiration or ideas come to me is really important as I usually forget them 5 minutes later, the only problem is I then have a pile of random pieces of paper dotted around the house which usually get accidentally thrown out - something had to change! I know besides more sleep that the key to less stress is being more organised and that is where my new Life Planner from Unique Planners comes in. I am allocating at least 10 mins a day to jot down my to do list for each day, any contacts I want to keep as well as making notes of ev......

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BritMums Live - The Lowdown

Most UK parent bloggers will have heard of the annual gathering of like minded social media loving ladies (and don't forget the men) that descend on the stylish Brewery in hip Islington for was is known as Britmums Live or BML16. This was my third time attending this conference and each has been different from the last, perhaps because also what I hope to get out of a conference like this changes. The first time I attended I wanted to go to as many talks and seminars as possible, the second year I wanted to connect with brands as well as other bloggers plus drop into more select and niche talks that interested me such as how to publish an ebook. This year was more about socialising, networking and catching up with some of my blogging friends I have known for years (but only get to see once or twice a year) as well as being inspired by the ever changing social networking scene, individual bloggers stories and new trends happening in the blogging world right now.  ......

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