How do you have a more sustainable Christmas? Christmas is often a time when any ideas of being “eco friendly” are thrown out the window as we consume more and more. More food; more single-use items; more junk we don’t need or want. Each year after Christmas the bins are Read more…
Christmas can be a difficult time for those of us who have struggled with mental health issues. It’s a time when the things that usually help us to manage such as a regular routine and a healthy diet, can fall by the wayside. Added to this there is time spent Read more…
Christmas parties can be draining for introverts. At this time of year there is usually a lot going on. Work parties; family gatherings; get-togethers with friends, and let’s not even mention the added social engagements that come with having school-aged children! As an introvert, all that socialising can be draining Read more…
I love making homemade mincemeat, because it’s really easy to do – but everyone tends to be impressed when you make your own. I love making this with S because it’s so easy and she can do most of it herself with a little supervision. None of the measurements need Read more…
When I was little, ugly Christmas sweaters were something your gran gave you and your mum made you wear so as not to appear ungrateful! These days everyone has at least one ugly Christmas sweater and we all seem to enjoy wearing them. There’s even a special Christmas Jumper Day Read more…
Each Christmas of S’s life until now, shopping for her Christmas presents has mostly involved me trawling through websites, thinking, oh she’d love that and buying it for her. She had little input. Last Christmas the only thing she wanted was a wind-up mermaid for her bath. This year, she is Read more…
Now that it’s November, we can talk about Christmas, right? I love Christmas; I love decorating; I love wearing Christmas jumpers; I love covering every inch of the house in glitter. And I love giving presents. I love Christmas shopping… but what I love most about Christmas shopping is wandering about Read more…
When I first had S, I was determined not to do the whole Father Christmas/Santa is watching and he won’t bring any presents if you’re naughty charade. In fact, the more I thought about it, the more I felt I didn’t want to join in with the whole Father Christmas thing at Read more…
Since S was born, Elf on the Shelf has gone from a tiny thing hardly anyone had heard of, to a massive annual event where the elves are stacked up in front of most toy shop counters. Huffington Post now runs articles listing 20 things to do with your elf Read more…
I love to make personalised Christmas cards each year to send to our family and friends, so when Snapfish contacted me to tell me about their personalised Christmas card service, I was interested to see how they would compare to services I’ve used in previous years. Also as we’ve just Read more…
S and I have spent quite a lot of time at Salisbury Playhouse lately. She goes to her beloved drama club (Stage ’65) on a Saturday morning and loves it. I don’t mean that “yeah, she quite likes it” – I mean that she wakes up early on a Saturday Read more…
Around this time every year, lots of new workout dvds begin to come out. It seems we’re a predictable bunch, and we all begin to think about getting fit around Christmas. Lots of us will be asking for fitness equipment for Christmas, or making resolutions that 2017 will be the year Read more…
Ok, I apologise; I used the “C” word in October. But I’m a single parent, and I don’t have huge wads of cash to wave around just now – so my Christmas shopping began a while ago. I thought since I’m doing my best to save money where I can, Read more…
We love being Parragon Book Buddies; S loves to get a new book in the post each month… and this month was definitely no exception! We received a copy of The Night Before Chrismtas by Clement C Moore and Harriet Muncaster. Of course, everyone knows Moore’s classic poem; we’ve Read more…
S loves to do arts and crafts (especially if they involve glitter) so when Bedroom Storage Maker, maker of wardrobe storage solutions challenged us to make some Christmas decorations, we jumped at the chance. We started off with a simple kit for making Christmas angels. S enjoyed being able to stick Read more…
Some of the more eagle eyed among you may have noticed that S is a little obsessed with Minions. She has all sorts of Minions clothes and accessories. People keep asking me where she got them from, so I’ve decided to compile all of our Minions stuff into one big list Read more…