Garden statue (Project 365 - 273/365).

Online habits.

After recently reading an article regarding a survey charting the nation’s online habits I got thinking about my own online habits.  I must admit I do spend too much time online and often get sucked into the World Wide Web, loosing hours in its realm and dabbling with a variety of social network sites.

My love affair with the wonderful www started a number of years ago and during the dark days of my depression that kept me housebound it was a lifeline that not only allowed me to keep in touch with loved ones but also enabled me meet friendly and supportive people with virtual friendships developing into lifelong friendships.  It was in fact thanks to the internet (and a close friend) that I met the love of my life which led to my little family.

As Lee’s family lives over 200 miles away Facebook has become an essential lifeline to us as a family to allow us to keep in touch with his family and update them on Bug’s adventures and milestones, allowing us to share lots and lots of pictures of Bug with them.

RNLI (Project 365 - 272/365).

The RNLI and playtime on the beach.

On Sunday Bug and I popped to the beach for a relaxing stroll. 

Playing in the sand.

A dream reborn – TSB "Welcome back to local banking".

Over 200 years ago one gentleman, the Reverend Henry Duncan had a dream.  Reverend Henry Duncan’s dream was to help people struggling to overcome poverty.  In 1810 he took the ground-breaking step to create a bank to help hardworking local people, believing that by doing so he could help local people and the communities they lived in to thrive.

Reverend Henry Duncan’s dream became reality and with the people’s interest at the heart of his bank his ideals laid the groundwork for people to thrive and build communities together.  Over the years his dream flourished across Britain with branches of his bank supported communities as 19th century and 20th century industries emerged and then thrived around the branches of TSB banks.

Wednesday Words - Blessing.

* Apache blessing

Cleaning your washing machine.

I am a strong believer in looking after the things you have and regularly servicing appliances to help them last as long as possible.  One appliance in particular that I like to treat well with regular servicing and cleaning so that hopefully it will serve us well for many years is our washing machine. 

Even though washing machines are cleaning machines they still need to be looked after and regularly cleaned and serviced as dirty clothes, detergent, clothes fluff, grime, odours and in our case full loads of stinky cloth nappies will leave their mark, leaving the washing machine looking worse for wear and in need of some loving attention and a good old scrub.  Also as we often wash clothes at 40 degrees or less which is great for saving money on energy bills and being better for the environment compared to hot washes there is a downside as low temperatures will not rid the machine of mould and bacteria like a hot wash would so I make sure that I regularly clean our machine.

To kill germs and bacteria, get rid of mould, banish bad odours and prevent limescale build-up in your washing machine, turn off your machine and get cleaning with my tips for cleaning your washing machine and giving it a new lease of life.

*  Clean the exterior of the washing machine.

Help make your washing machine feel like new by cleaning the exterior with a damp cloth and vinegar (or all-purpose cleaner).  At the same time as cleaning the exterior of the washing machine give some attention to the door, inside and outside, to get rid of any detergent build-up, grime and mildew. 

Wednesday Words - Love.

Light shining through the grey sky (Project 365 - 261/365).

Pizza treat (Project 365 - 260).

Jo Pratt recipes for quick and tasty meals.

As a mum I always try to make sure that my family have fresh and healthy meals and that Bug gets his 5 a day, but juggling a busy life can sometimes make creating fresh, healthy and tasty family meals hard work. 

In an attempt to be a little more like a kitchen goddess for my family and create deliciously healthy family meals in spite of a busy life I am always keen to learn about quick and easy family recipes and kitchen gadgets to make life a little easier.

Realising that it can be hard work to create fresh, healthy and tasty family meals especially when juggling a busy life, Panasonic have produced new Premium Combi Ovens that help you save time cooking thanks to their ‘turbo cook’ feature, making it a lot easier to create fresh, healthy and tasty family meals quickly and easily.

To showcase how easy it is to create delicious meals using their Premium Combi Ovens and highlight the oven’s useful features, Panasonic have teamed up with TV chef Jo Pratt to share some quick and easy to make family recipes.  Using the new Panasonic combination microwave oven Jo Pratt created two tasty dishes completely from scratch.

Missing Mamgu.

Over 12 years ago on the 23rd January 2001 my Mamgu (gran) passed away after battling cancer for a few years.  I think about her every day and miss her dearly.  She had a beautiful soul and I always felt the love she had for her family as a big, loving snuggle.

I was very close to my Mamgu and she had a strong impact on me as I was growing up.  To me she was the heart of the family and when she left us she left a big gaping hole within the family.  Even though losing her was the worst experience of my life and something I struggled to deal with at the tender age of 15, it was a relief to see her suffering come to an end.

Getting the best value from your fridge freezer.

As money is tight for us I try my best to be frugal and cut costs where possible.  One way I try to be economical is by getting the best value from our fridge freezer.

Fridge freezers can be very heavy on energy consumption and as they are unavoidably always switched on they can cost a lot to run.  Thankfully there are several simple things that I do to get the best value from our fridge freezer, reduce the energy consumption of the fridge freezer and help save money.

Tips for getting the best from your fridge freezer.

*  Clean the fridge freezer’s coils.

Inevitably over time dust gathers on the coils underneath and at the back of the fridge freezer and when dust builds up on the coils the appliance does not run as well or as economical as it would if the coils were dust free, in fact a fridge freezer with coils thick with dust could reduce efficiency by up to 25%.  Dust covered coils make the fridge freezer work harder, making the condenser kick in more often which uses up more energy, costing more to run and wears out the condenser quicker which would be costly to fix or replace. 

To prevent the fridge freezer having to work harder, I make sure that I keep the coils dust free.  This simple little job of turning off the fridge freezer, pulling it out and dusting the coils and vacuuming excess dust means the condenser works more efficiently and economical.

Playing in puddles.

Both Bug and I love being outdoors.  Bug loves playing outside with his bikes, trikes, balls and slide.  He loves trips to the park and gets giddy with excitement when we go to woodlands, wildlife centres and nature reserves for walks.  He loves going for walks, running around like a little mad man, exploring and having lots of fun.  He also loves going to the beach, playing in the sand and splashing in the sea.

I like for Bug to enjoy the great outdoors in a variety of ways and in different weather conditions.  We have had lots of fun outdoors regardless of the weather.  We have enjoyed the beach countless times in the beautiful sunshine and we have enjoyed the beach in the pouring down rain.  We have had fun going for country walks in the rain as well as on sunny days.  We have made the most of puddles left by the rain for puddle jumping play and have had fun filled times making a muddy mess playing with mud and dirt.  We have also had wintery fun playing in the snow.

This week in between downpours of torrential rain Bug made the most of the big puddles left by the rain when we grabbed a chance of playing outside for a short while before the rain returned once again.

Bug zoomed around the farm tracks on his bike looking for puddles to race through.

I Can't Sing! The X Factor Musical.

X Factor is a bit like marmite, people either love it or hate it.  Lee definitely lands in the ‘love it’ group and loves watching X Factor.  As an X Factor fan he makes sure it is on record to watch when he gets home from work so that he does not miss a single moment of the X Factor action. 

I had never watched X Factor until a few years ago when Lee introduced me to the show after we started dating.  Whilst I am not a huge fan like Lee and would not be overly bothered if I missed a show I do enjoy watching it especially when I get a chance to watch it with Lee and snuggle up on the sofa together.

We love snuggling up on the sofa and having a good old giggle watching the people who come to audition for the show who genuinely can’t sing and then watching our favourite contestant’s progress through the show, hoping that they have the X Factor and win the show.

Now in its 10th series, the X Factor is being highlighted in brand new musical comedy stage show; The X Factor Musical…. I Can’t Sing!

Rain, rain go away…..come again another day.

For the last few days all we have had is rain, rain and lots more rain.  Even though I don’t hate the rain it is starting to annoy me and get in the way of fun adventures with Bug plus it makes drying clothes outside impossible.

At the beginning of the week we managed to get outside for a little bit in between showers of rain and Bug had lots of fun riding on his bike making use of the big puddles left by the rain to zoom through.  As Bug loves racing around outside on his bike on Tuesday when we got caught in a shower of rain he zoomed off refusing to go back inside, ending up like a drowned little rat.  

Thankfully though it was only a small shower so Bug could play outside for a little while longer but predictably the rain didn’t stay away for that long though and we have been chased back inside by torrential rain before Bug ended up being more of a drowned rat than he already was.

On Wednesday I saw hope of having a dry few days.  Making the most of the dry weather Bug and I managed a little play at the park in town before we went shopping.  But alas the dry weather did not last and within a few hours the rain was hammering down once more.

With all the rainy weather and cold days we have been having of late I think it is time I get Bug a new puddlesuit and some winter clothes so we can play outside whatever the weather.

Rain, rain, rain (Project 365 - 255/365).

Charles Fuge's Wonderful Wildlife 123 book review - Book Buddies club.

I love books and have been a bookworm since I was a child.  As I love books and reading I want to share my passion for the written word with Bug and I am overjoyed that he seems to love books just as much as I do.

Bug is a little bookworm.  He loves snuggling on the sofa and reading books together, stories in bed for bedtimes are a must too. 

As Bug is becoming a keen little bookworm when we were offered the chance to join the Parragon Book Buddies review club I jumped at the chance of signing Bug up to be part of Book Buddies.

For Bug’s first Book Buddies venture he was sent ‘Charles Fuge’s Wonderful Wildlife 123’ book.

Charles Fuge’s Wonderful Wildlife 123 book is a paperback picture book aimed at preschool aged little ones.

Avenue 32 dream wish list.

I love virtual window shopping….dreaming of all the lovely things I would buy if money was no objection.  I enjoy browsing magazines and online stores creating dream wish lists in my head of all the gorgeous clothes and beautiful accessories I admire and wish I could own.  One such website that I love perusing to indulge my love of creating dream wish lists of stunning clothes and accessories is Avenue 32.

Zoom! (Project 365 - 253/365).

Disney Infinity * star-studded digital parade *

I have had a lifelong love affair with Disney.  Since I was a child I have loved watching Disney films and have fond memories of watching them over the years.  I still love watching Disney films and now that I have Bug I have the best excuse to indulge my love of Disney and snuggle up on the sofa with Bug and watch Disney films.

Bug seems to be following his mummy’s footsteps and is a huge fan of Disney already.  He already has a few favourite Disney films that he adores watching again and again, he loves Cars, Monsters Inc. and Toy Story.

As Bug loves Disney he was very excited when he watched Disney’s video showing the World’s first digital Disney Parade as an all-star cast of much loved Disney characters ran amok across London, turning the capital into their personal playground. 

Bug was overjoyed watching the video especially when he caught sight of his favourite characters, Mike Wazowski and Sulley (Monsters Inc. and Monsters University) as they paraded across London. 

Joining Mike and Sulley, the star spangled parade also featured legendary Disney characters Buzz Lightyear and Jessie (Toy Story), Jack Sparrow and Davy Jones (Pirates of the Caribbean), Mr and Mrs Incredible (The Incredibles) and The Lone Ranger and Tonto (The Lone Ranger).

Time for a tuff spot tray?

I am a very creative and crafty person.  I love art and expressing myself creatively via a range of different mediums.  I think my passion for all things creative stem from my childhood.

I have fond memories of being creative with my mum and sister.  My mum enabled us to express ourselves creatively and simply have fun with art and crafts.

I love getting creative and crafty with Bug and hope that over the years we can make some fun memories together that he will look back on in years to come and reminisce about enjoyable times getting arty and crafty with his mummy.

Bug loves drawing, colouring, painting and using a variety of other arts and crafts.  I love to see him play and explore with different crafts mediums and I encourage him to simply have fun and enjoy.  I think taking part in messy creative play is a great way for little ones to learn, be creative and simply have lots of fun.

Up until now all of our creative messy play session has either been at the kitchen table or on the living room floor with a plastic, wipe-able craft sheet used as our arts and craft area to contain any mess.  During our last few messy art and craft sessions Bug and his creative juices has spilled out from our arts and craft area with his mess ending up everywhere! 

Driving through puddles (Project 365 - 252/365).

FIRE!!

I am glad to see the back of August.  After life going so well or at least steadily happy for us of late the personal issues and dramas that hit us in August took its toll on me and I felt like I was on an emotional rollercoaster.

One major drama that happened that shook me to the core happened on the 11th of August.  When I woke up that Sunday morning I was pleased to see the sun shining and hoped on having a day filled with sunshine so that when daddy went to work Bug and I could go on a lovely country walk.  I was also pleased at the chance of getting lots of clothes dried in the nice weather.

At about lunchtime after saying goodbye to daddy who sent off to work Bug helped me hang some more washing out to dry on the line before we headed inside to have some lunch.  After being indoors for about 20 minutes there was a bang on the door.  Curious to see who it could be on a Sunday afternoon especially seeing as I had not heard a car arrive on the farm opened the door to see who was on my doorstep.

Stood on my doorstep and looking very worried was my teenage next door neighbour who simply said “There’s a fire in the sheds……you need to get out now!”

Look mum I've got another homemade slush (Project 365 - 251/365).

Chill Factor Squeeze Cup Slushy Maker review.

At the beginning of the summer when I got asked if I would like to review a slushy maker I jumped at the chance thinking it would be very handy to have for summer especially if we were lucky to get a hot summer.  Unfortunately due to delivery problems and missing parcels we only received our review item at the beginning of the month…..just in time for the cold weather.  Even though it has gotten colder after weeks of waiting to test the slushy maker and reading lots of other reviews on other blogs I was excited about finally getting to try it out and attempt to make a slushy myself using the Chill Factor Squeeze Cup Slushy Maker.

“Chill Factor Squeeze Cup Slushy Maker is a unique slushy maker which allows you to make delicious slushies in seconds!  No ice, no blenders, no mess!  It’s so easy to use – all you have do is put in the freezer, wait to free then add your preferred chilled drink and squeeze!  Right before your eyes you will see slushy appear in seconds!”

Wild blackberries (Project 365 - 250/365).

Personalised Gifts to Make Christmas Dinner Easier.

Christmas dinner is always going to be a stressful experience for the ones hosting, cooking and making sure the grandparents don’t fall asleep too quickly, so the least you can do is to get the hosts a present that will make their day that little bit easier. Here are a selection of things, some more helpful than others, that can be found on www.gettingpersonal.co.uk/christmas-gifts.

Personalised Champagne.

Any attempt to reduce the budget of their Christmas day will be a welcomed thing, and one big expense is the drinks, specifically the bubbly. A personalised bottle of champagne will not only make everyone’s day a little less expensive but also show that you’ve tried to make it that little bit more special by adding your own touch.

Personalised bottles can either come with a custom message on the label or an excerpt from a newspaper from a significant date of your choice.

Asda Baby and Toddler Event August/September 2013.

Asda’s popular Baby Event is back, with fantastic discounts on a selection of baby products and treats.  The event offering amazing bargains on leading baby brands and exclusive new products has been running in-store and online since the 26th August and lasts until 15th September in-store and 16th September online.

Asda’s Baby and Toddler event offers parents and parent-to-be savings on a huge array of products including feeding, changing, sleeping, clothing, toys, travel, nursery and safety products.

Fireman Sam Jupiter Drive and Steer review.

Bug loves all things to do with firemen and fire engines.  He was overjoyed when he got to sit in a fire engine when on one of our trips to Folly Farm there happened to be a fire engine there for children to learn all about fires and the fire brigade.   Being a tad obsessed with all things fireman related he insisted on being bought a bright yellow fireman hat which he keeps in pride of place in his fire engine tent at home where he loves to sit inside and read books, draw and play with his Lego Duplo before tackling imaginary fires. 

When we recently had the drama of a large fire on the farm we live on, Bug who was unperturbed by the chaos all around him as the fire blazed mightily loved seeing all the firemen and the 4 fire engines come to his home.

As Bug loves all things fire engines when we were offered the opportunity to review a new toy from one of his favourite TV shows, Fireman Sam I jumped at the chance.

The Fireman Sam Jupiter Drive and Steer is a remote controlled fire engine.  The drive and steer Jupiter consists of the Jupiter fire engine and a remote control steering wheel.

Bouncy duck (Project 365 - 244/365).