As after school activities go, smoothie making has been a BIG hit with my boys. They get to make a smoothie and then they get to drink it! Actimel  family wellbeing sent us a smoothie maker, some fruit and a pack of the new mango and passion fruit Actimel so that we could try out some smoothies. To be honest the Actimel drinks taste really nice as they are, but if you like smoothie making, they are just the right size to put in with some chopped fruit to make a delicious smoothie.

If you follow me on twitter, you may have noticed that I was slightly obsessed with hunting for my car keys this weekend. They had been missing since Tuesday and I couldn't find them anywhere. I hate to say my husband is right, but he is. He tells me to hang them up, but when the kids are kicking off because they are hungry/tired/just want to wind me up, more often than not they get chucked on the sofa or stairs.

This is how desperate I was to find them:

1. I checked inside all of our Mr Potato heads to see if they were in there.
2. I checked in the freezer
3. I looked in the weebles tree house
4. I went through the sandpit seeing if pirate middle man had buried them as treasure.
5.I asked twitter where to look - no new ideas, but a lot of people seem to leave them in the door.
6. I asked baby man where they were. He smiled and bought these.


Then he bought me a packet of Quavers!?!
7. When I had retraced my steps for the 17th time, I finally found them in a box I had already looked in 5 times. But it was a big box and full of these!


Yep the kids had created their own lucky dip for me. Maybe now I have learnt my lesson.

MoneySupermarket are currently holding a blogger's challenge to come up with some money saving tips. As I like to save money where I can, I thought I would have a go and let you into my secrets.

1. If you are going for a day out, check the internet first to make sure there aren't any special offer coupons you can use.
2.Buy expensive items like kids coats in the sales for the next year.
3. Buy some generic children's birthday presents when they are in the sales and keep them in the cupboard until you need them.
4. The supermarkets often have free magazines that they give out. Have a read and cut out any money saving coupons you see.
5. Do your sums. Just because it is on a special offer at the supermarket, doesn't always mean it is the best offer. Sometimes the bigger packets of stuff are more expensive than 2 smaller packets.
6. Like your favourite venues on facebook and twitter as sometimes they put offers on these types of social media.
7. When cooking a meal, cook double and freeze a portion. It often saves money as well as time.
8. Lots of the supermarkets are doing price comparisons these days. If they give you a coupon as they were more expensive this time, don't forget to use it on your next shop.
9. If you are planning on purchasing something do a quick internet search to check where you can get it for the best price.
10. Consider buying annual passes for places you go a lot. They often have other perks associated with them too.
11. Use loyalty cards. It may take a while to earn points, but you can use them for treats.
12. Consider doing your grocery shopping online. Although there is a delivery charge, you don't have to drive there and you are less likely to impulse buy, as you would instore.
13. If you have nearly new items, try selling them at a carboot, ebay or facebook page.
14. Check these out for buying things too - you can get some great deals.
15. Take shopping bags with you when you go shopping. Some shops charge for carrier bags these days, so it will save money and be better for the environment.
16. Lots of cinemas do kids viewings at the weekend and in school holidays. They aren't the latest films, but they are a lot cheaper and still fun.
17. Lots of restaurants do discounts in the week or earlybird offers so check these out.
18. Consider buying in bulk. You can get some great bargains, if you have somewhere to store it.
19. If you are off for a day out, consider taking a picnic or some bottles of drink, as this can set you back as much as your entry.
20. Use price comparison sites when your car and home insurance is due, you could save a lot more than £1
21. Enter competitions. You have to be in it to win it!
22. Enjoy the free things in life. You don't have to spend a fortune to have a nice day out. A walk in the woods or local park will keep the kids and your wallet happy.
23. Don't buy loads of magazines, buy one and swop it with friends. Or even better, use the web for your celebrity gossip.
24. Kids grow fast - don't worry about using hand me downs. If your friends can kids of a similar age you could always swop clothes with them so that it looks like new clothes to your child.
25. If you have any savings, look at putting them into an ISA rather than sitting in your bank account.
26. Make sure you have a mobile phone contract that suits you. Check your current usage before you sign up to a contract.
27. Write a meal plan  - it should cut down on the amount you spend on your food bill and mean there is less waste.
28. Stock up on nappies and baby wipes when the supermarkets have their baby events.
29. Often companies send you surveys with offers if you complete them - Hollywood Bowl is particularly good for this, offering half price bowling.
30. Use the Vouchercloud app on your phone and check it when you are out - they have loads of great money off offers

What is your best money saving tip?

This is my entry into the Moneysupermarket 30 ways to save £1 competition the first 500 bloggers to enter will recieve £1 for each money saving tip (up to £30) and all enteries will be put into a prize draw to win £1000

When I received the Plum Store It Sandpit to review, I started to wonder if we would actually see any sun this year. Thankfully though the sun has


Initially I was surprised by how small the box was. I expected a wooden base, but it comes with a mat to use. Thinking about it, this makes sense, as water can easily drain through. I got everything out of the packet and was pleased that each piece had the product numbers on them so that they could be easily identified.


I put the stop clock on and an hour and five minutes later,I had completed  the sandpit. The instructions were OK and I only got confused a couple of times.


We went and got some sand. I couldn't believe it required 7-14 10 Kg bags of sand as I read on the internet. We bought 4. We should have got 7!

The hardest thing about erecting the sandpit was leveling the ground for it to sit on. Every time I thought I had done it, middle man sat on the storage part and the whole frame sprang up. I got there eventually and poured in the sand. The boys love it. Middle man likes sitting in it and burying his feet, as well as looking for buried treasure!


The sandpit isn't cheap, currently retailing for around £50, although Amazon are currently selling it cheaper. I like the fact that it is made of wood, but this means that it needs treating on a yearly basis to protect it from the elements. It comes with a green cover, but the only way we can get this to stay on without blowing away is by placing some bricks on it. I particularly like the store-it part as it doubles up as a seat.

Now we just need a bit more sand and a lot more sun so the boys can enjoy some sandcastle building and pirate adventures.


I was given the sandpit for the purpose of this review, but the opinions contained here are my own.

Please don't forget to vote for me on the Brilliance in Blogging awards, if you like my family reviews and find them helpful.

Reasons to be cheerful this week:

1. I am pleased to announce that after a month long trip, taking in the sights of Reading, Newark and an extended stay on the South Coast, my laptop has returned home safely. I was wondering if I would ever see it again. All is fine and hopefully it will have no need to visit more parts of the UK in the near future.


2.On Monday, I had even more reason to be cheerful. There I was being nosey and seeing who made it onto the short list for the Brilliance in Blogging awards, when there in black and white was my little blog listed under the family category. I know I had asked people to vote for me back in March, but there are a lot of good blogs out there, so was shocked to see the A Strong Coffee had made it through to the next stage. It suggested that blogging was a cheap form of therapy and I can safely say that blogging and chats with my hairdresser have saved me a fortune! Competition is tough, and to get through to the final 6 I need as many votes as I can get, so if you can spare a vote for me that would be wonderful! In the words of middle man "Thank you, thank you" to anyone that has taken the time to vote for me.



3. Baby man has been interacting more this week and can now join in singing Old MacDonalds farm (or chip shop) by singing "e -i -e-i-o". It is just as cute as middle man.

I thought long and hard about what egg recipe to enter into the Britmums #eggmainsinminutes linky challenge.

You may well be wondering why on earth I have only managed to come up with a scrambled egg recipe. To answer this, I need to start with some confessions.

I have used the microwave to make scrambled eggs. I have also used a saucepan on high heat with lots of milk. Both are methods used to make scrambled eggs. Both are edilbile. Just. Then a couple of years ago I learnt how to make the most gorgeous scrambled eggs. I feel it's my job to share it with you, and if just one person that reads this stops massacring their scrambled eggs like I did then I have done well.

I made this for my me and my husband and started by whisking 7 medium eggs. I then put a knob of butter in a frying pan on the lowest heat possible and added the egg. The key is to cook the egg slowly. It will only take about 10 minutess in total, which is a pretty fast meal. Whatever you do don't get impatient and whack the heat up. Keep stirring so the egg doesn't stick. Here is my pan after about 5 mins.


At around 8 minutes, pop half a bagel layered with slices of chorizo under the grill.


As you can see the egg looks runny but is totally cooked through. It tastes creamy, and if you haven't made it this way before give it a go. It is delicious and you will never use a microwave again!



When your egg is ready, dollop (it's a technical term) a large spoonful over your toasted bagel. Then tuck in and enjoy.



This is my entry to the Britmums #eggmainsinminutes linky sponsored by British Lions Eggs, you can visit the other enteries here and more great egg recipes at the main meals in minutes web page.

The sun has got his hat on hip hip hip horay! *sings excitedly*
At last we have had a day of sun and we were straight out into the garden. Big man has three main gardening projects on the go.


1. Operation Bumble Bee.

Last year we had some extremely confused bumble bees. So confused, they didn't use the bumble bee house we have in our garden, they built a nest in our roof. This is surprising as they usually build nests at ground level. We have therefore decided that in an effort to attract bees into this house we shall plant some "bee seeds." I don't think it will make a bee colony live there, especially as big man keeps putting snails in there, but it is a project none the less. At the very least we should have a couple of pots of pretty wild flowers in a few weeks time.



2. Operation Sunflower

This is a competition. And it's serious. We HAVE to beat Grandad! So far we have three small sunflowers. Middle man dropped his on the floor and had to start again so he is behind, but tomorrows task is to measure the shoots and find a very sunny spot in the garden to plant them. I am thinking that somewhere near operation bumble bee is going to work well.



3. Operation Courgette

Big man is a fussy eater. I am hoping that by growing his own veg, it may tempt him into trying new foods. We have planted beetroot, onions, carrots to name but a few. If I can get big man to have the smallest taste of a home grown courgette, then this operation will be classed as a sucess.



Being out in the garden growing plants with the boys has been lots of fun. The best part though?
Walking into the conservatory to find big and middle man reading Superworm to their very own one.



No worms were hurt in the writing of this post, just read to and placed back in the garden to continue doing amazing things.

My brother in law was in his late twenties when he was told that the classic childhood nursery rhyme "Where's the breakdown truck?" wasn't actually a classic. The fact that it was the same line repeated four times, followed by "Here it come's" repeated three times should have been a giveaway. It wasn't and he was shocked that my husband had composed this masterpiece.

It appears that middle man has inherited his Daddy's musical talents. Here is his latest take on the classic nursery rhyme Old MacDonald's Farm.



Gary Barlow, move aside. Middle man and his amazing song writing skills has arrived!

When Polarn O. Pyret contacted me asking me to review their clothing, I jumped at the chance. I had seen adverts for their clothes and loved the bright bold colours. Then the clothes came and I fell a little bit in love with them!

Looking at their website, they strive to design clothes for kids that are "comfortable clothes, designed for discoveries and made to last." With that in mind we set off for a walk in the woods with big man wearing his new baseball jacket. The jacket is lightweight, very soft, and even has a reflective strip on the back. It has been through the wash after he got it covered in mud, and looks like new again. Big man is a small 5 year old and this is age 6-7 and fits well.



Middle man was sent a red car t-shirt and pair of sweatshirt trousers. I was interested to test out the t shirt. one of my pet hates is buying t shirts with plastic pictures on the front and them cracking when you wash them or melting in the tumble dryer. This has been through the wash about 5 or 6 times and is perfect.



I wouldn't have purchased the sweatshirt trousers for middle man. The cut means that they are quite straight legged and possibly not the best style for my short chubby legged little man. He loves them though as they are comfortable. They have a drawstring - which would have been fab for my skinny big man. And once again are quality clothing.



I have left baby man until last, as it was his t shirt that I loved the most. Again I would not have bought this myself. Why? Because it is cream. My kids are messy and their beautiful light coloured tops get stained. This happened with this beautiful instrument t shirt. However, I soaked it in stain remover and once again it has washed well. Baby mans jeans are once again beautiful. The have waist adjustments and there is a stretchy quality to the denim.



So what are the downsides? Polarn O. Pyret, in my opinion, is a quality clothing brand. It therefore isn't the cheapest clothing brand. But it isn't the most expensive either. Having three boys, I can tell you, that if you buy a cheap pair of jeans for your child, they wont even get you through 2 children let alone 3. OK, I have 3 boys - I can hand clothes down - not everyone has the same sex. This is why there is a large range of unisex clothing.

They are beautiful clothes, which a lot of thought has gone into. I don't usually rave about products, but these really are special. I always think that it is easy for a reviewer to say that they like something, when they haven't actually bought it. I can pretty much guarentee that I will be purchasing clothes from here, so I think that speaks a thousand words.


I was sent these clothes for the purpose of this review but the opinions contained here are my own.

When we moved into our house 6 years ago, our bathroom needed replacing. To be honest, it needed replacing 6 years before that! It is a dated grey suite with cracked grey tiles, crying out for some TLC.
I long for a bathroom that I can go in to wind down and relax in, rather than getting wound up over all the things that need doing to it.

So what kind of bathroom does my family dream of?

Here is big man's description of his perfect bathroom:



Unusual, yes, but you could certainly class it as a dream bathroom! I am not sure how many yellow suites there are on the market at the moment, let alone any that are shapped like ships. I think he really wants a small splash pool zone in our 3x2m bathroom.

Middle man is not enjoying his baths as much as he used to. He is currently distressed by the thought of his beloved bath squirters (or "friends") being sucked down the plug hole. He screams and shouts at mere thought thats the water is going to be emptied. He immediately throws himself belly first over the plug hole and gathers his bath squiters together shouting "I'll save you guys!" He currently favours a shower, which doesn't seem to hold this fear. A shower over the bath would be his first choice in planning his perfect bathroom.

Baby man is easy to please. A big bath to put all his toys in and out of, again and again.

So that is all my little boys ideas, but how about my big one? My husband favours a bath with a big powerful shower, large heated towel rail and a clean and shiney tiled floor.

Me?

Well my requirements are simple. I want a white suite rather than the 20 year old grey one. I want a bath without gaffer tape holding it together. I want white tiles without cracks. A nice warm soak without any of my little men walking in for a chat or throwing bath toys at me. I would love to walk in there and feel like I am walking into a spa. Soft spotlights from the ceiling, candles, bubbles..... yes now I am dreaming.

Looking at the range from Bathshop321 this Galaxia Showerbath Suite would suit us all. There isn't a pirate ship in sight, but big man would be happy if we upgraded to a 6 jet whirpool system. It would certainly fulfil one of our dreams.

Decorating with three little men around is never easy.When I saw that Nature Paint were looking for people to review their paint, I thought it was a great way to make me do some decorating. Their paint is VOC free which means there aren't any nasty chemicals for you to breathe in. As I had decided that it was my bedroom that needed painting, and we don't have a spare room, this was a big plus. I ignored that fact that it was a mix your own paint and headed to the website to look at colours. We had already painted the end wall a duck egg blue a year or so ago, so I decided to go for a pale cream camellia.

When I told my friends about my plans, you could tell that they were thinking that I had gone slightly crazy by offering to mix my own paint. To be honest when it was sent through, I did doubt my own sanity. However, with my pampered chef batter bowl at the ready, I set to mixing my paint.



Although you could whisk it by hand, the electric mixer was definately worthwhile. After mixing, the paint needs to be left half an hour before painting. I found that it covered well and was just as easy to use as a tin of standard emulsion. There was no strong smell so sleeping in the room was not a problem.

Here you can see the colour card that I stuck onto the freshly painted wall. I think the sticker matches the paint really well. You can of course order tester packets to try if you aren't sure what it will look like.



The main downside of the paint is that it takes time to mix it, and as it contains no preservatives, it needs using within 3 days. You therefore want to know that you have the time to do it when you mix up the paint, and if it is a large room, then you have a lot of mixing to do. You also don't have a spare pot to reach for if you put up a shelf or curtain pole at a later date and need a little extra paint to touch up a spot.

Having said that I was pleasently surprised at how easy it was to mix the paint and really liked the fact that there was no smell. I would certainly consider using it for painting the boy's bedrooms. For more information on Nature Paints, you can view their range here.

I was given two packets of camellia paint powder for the purpose of this review but the opinions contained here are my own.

This week I have decided to link up to Jennie Edspire's Messy Play for Matilda Mae. I am not great with messy play because, well it's messy! The boys love it. The linky is in memory of Matilda Mae who recently died of cot death at the age of nine months. A reminder that life is fragile. I should forget about the mess and let my boys have fun and explore. My first messy play link up wasn't too messy. I will work up to more. It was with soap.

We started by squirting some crazy soap in a play table. The boys immediately likened it to snow.




Before I knew it the dinosaurs were diving in.



We then made a snowman using some Lush FUN . Big man helped it "snow" by clapping his hands.




As it was a reasonably nice day we went outside. Big man wanted to play with some ice too, so we got the ice cube tray out. We ran round in circles and it "snowed" some more. Middle man ran in circles shouting "Happy Snow Day!"


We then went inside to make some ice lollies. The only disappointment was that it takes time for them to freeze. Daddy hadn't a clue what middle man was saying to him when he came in that night. In all fairness, why would your 3 year old be wishing you a "Happy Snow Day" on the warmest day of the year so far? We demonstrated it to him by making it "snow" on his head.


We had lots of fun, so I need to put my thinking cap on to decide what messy play this week will hold. Do go and look at Jennie's blog - there are some amazing ideas.

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