Although I want to love the 3-7pm slot after school, we often waste our time. The boys are usually tired and not up for doing much. However, with the nice weather we have been making more of our time recently and getting out and about more. On Friday afternoon we headed to Legoland Windsor to check out the castaway camp that has now opened. It is basically an adventure playground that is pirate themed with lots of ships wrecks and planks to walk.

The playground is aimed at 5-12 years, and it is fantastic for this age range. Filled with climbing nets, balance bars and small tunnels, big man was in his element. The ground is springy as it is covered in rubber shavings, some blue to look like the sea. 




The only problem is that there are a lot of younger children that also want to play on this fun equipment, but don't have the coordination to do so. I managed to coax my younger two to the smaller ship wrecks at the side whilst challenging big man to climb a massive web. He succeeded and luckily had no problems getting down again. It was a long way up!



The boys really loved the playground, I was happy enough with the old one (which I always called the rat trap as that is what it was called when I worked there as a teenager) but I guess it was pretty old and needed replacing. I would say that it is fine to go with a wide age range of children when it's quiet, but come the summer holidays I would say that you would need a confident climber aged 5+



It was a lovely afternoon and I am determined that we will have more after school outings over the next few weeks. How do you fill the after school slot? 

Last year I joined in with Claire's Get Good Summer and quite frankly was a bit of a failure. I still haven't read the book I was going to read and the only thing I did well at was making a Mojito. So this year, I will do better and I will choose 5 broad themes so I don't feel like a total failure.

1. First up I want to make our garden look better. Maybe do a couple of pots with pretty coloured flowers, maybe do something crafty. Anything I do will be a bonus as it is looking pretty unloved at the moment.

2. Make my own play dough and/or moonsand. Something I have been meaning to do but not got round to. With the summer coming up this will keep the boys entertained.

3. Cook more. I like cooking but don't do as much as I would like so that's why this is going on my list.

4. Do some crafting. I love all things crafty but yet again don't have much time to do it. I think I need to spend some time crafting and it will help with point 5.

5. Organise the house better. I just want a more ordered house. Therefore I need to organise it better. I need to go through the boys rooms and recycle old sticker books, make sure toys are in sets so that they can be played with. Not the most exciting of tasks but I think it will make me happier.

So you can check back and see how I do. Surely I can't be worse than last year?

Being a third child, little man is used to hand me downs. However, he has an exceptionally large head meaning that when it comes to learning to ride a bike he needs one of his own as his head is the same size as middle man. We were offered to purchase an item for review from Leisure Lakes Bikes so we decided on a Giro Rodeo Kids Helmet. You can find more of the helmets they stock here.

I must say that I had never heard of the company before but they are a family business with 8 shops around the UK. I found their site a little confusing at first as I was unsure if everyone can purchase a product that has VIP by it. Looking into it, you can but you can also pay to be a VIP member and that then gives you a discount of many items. Looking through the helmets quite a few were out of stock, but as I wasn't in a rush I ordered one anyway, knowing that it would be a few weeks wait. This is where I was really impressed with the customer service team. They e mailed me the day later to check that I knew that there was a wait and asking if I still wanted my order processed.

When the helmet arrived by Royal Mail I was really pleased. It is well made, has a curved fastener round the chin and can be easily adjusted to fit the child's head.

Here is a little video I made of the product and showing little man learning to use his balance bike.


If you watched the video you will see that little man was going so slowly that he probably doesn't even need a helmet. However, I believe that should start as you mean to go on and he will soon be whizzing around the place, and definately need it. For £19.99 with free postage, I think this is a good buy.





I was given the product for the purpose of the review but the opinions here are my own.

We are hurtling to the end of term at an alarming rate. Whilst I am sure this is something that makes every teacher happy, I feel a little more anxious. It means that yet another school year is over. My baby who has only just started school (in my mind) is going to be heading to Year 2. The last year of infants. My even bigger baby (middle man) will be starting in reception in September.

People keep asking me how I feel about middle man starting school. Generally I smile and say it's great. Only one child to look after now. It's good that he will be going off to school with his big brother. How do I actually feel? Well I am not really sure. I am pleased that he will be going off to school with his brother. Big man is so proud of his school and his enthusiasm of it shines through so that middle man is excited about going there too. One school drop off rather than two is good. I have loved seeing big man grow at school too. Learning to read and write and make his own friends. I am looking forward to seeing this with middle man too.

But I also feel a little sad. Little man is going to lose his partner in crime. He is going to be lost without his playmate. Ok they might fight with each other a lot, but they have really grown to love each other. I fear that little man is going to stand at the school gate on the first day demanding that he goes to school too. Middle man still seems so little. I am pretty sure that 5 full days at school is going to be a big shock to his system, resulting in tears and tantrums at home.

Having said all of this, there are still a few months left until he starts and he can grow up a lot in that time. I will make the most of having him at home and also ensure that this time round I buy the correct sized uniform!

Do you have mixed feelings about your child starting school?

Copyright protected by Digiprove © 2014 Victoria Welton

Before blogging I was a scientist. I still am but due to health and safety I don't have a supply of alkali metals at home to put into water when I am feeling bored. I do, however, still  love to watch big bangs (in a controlled environment) and was jumping at the chance to watch The Energy Show at The Science Museum at Easter. Luckily big man shares my love of all things scientific too and he has the added bonus of liking Star Wars. This may sound odd but one of the main characters in the show is a Star Wars fan so their are many jokes as well as an Ewok being fired into the audience. We loved it and you can read our full review here.

Can you believe that Peppa Pig is approaching her 10 year anniversary on Nick Jr? To celebrate they are giving fans the chance to join in the fun with Nick Jr. Peppa Pig's Oinkestra. fans are now able to upload videos of their own oinks online to join the Nick Jr. Peppa Pig's Oinkestra at Nickjr.co.uk or through the Nick Jr. UK Facebook page to recieve a Peppa Pig activity pack. Your own little oinkers may even see themselves on the channel, oinking along to the Peppa Pig theme tune.

My boys are big Peppa fans and were very excited to receive some Peppa goodies to join in with the celebrations. Mummy Pig was unsure why she didn't hide the recorder! Whilst middle man was at pre school, little man helped make pig snouts by painting an egg box. I think that you can see it was a serious business to him.



I cut them out added some darker crayon nostrils and added a pipe cleaner to each side to secure. Here are my three little pigs.


My three pigs then headed to the garden to oink and make music. (Or blow down a recorder a lot - I will let you decide by watching their video.)



The celebrations will culminate with an Oink-a-thon where fans can tune in to watch the Top 20 Peppa Pig episodes, as voted by fans, on the anniversary weekend of 5-6th July 10.30am-5pm.


The lovely people at Nick Jr have also given my readers the chance to win one of three Nick Jr goodie bags. Just complete the Rafflecopter below. Good Luck!






a Rafflecopter giveaway


We received some Nick Jr. Goodies for the purpose of this post.

Win competitions at ThePrizeFinder.com - See more at: http://www.theprizefinder.com/content/1-3-nick-jr-goodie-bags#sthash.JG9VQWl2.dpuf

At the moment every day seems like the longest day. We are well and truly stuck in the throws of the terrible twos. I know it's just a phase. I have a hazy memory about how awful the other two were. However, on a day to day basis I feel as if I'm stuck in a Groundhog Day filled with stomping and screaming. And that's just me! 

The reason we have so many tantrums at the moment is shown in this picture. Little man has a desire to run everywhere. Walking is clearly not as much fun. Most of the time this is fine. However, combine this with 3.15 school pick up, a need to cross roads and an absolute meltdown occurs. I am the meanest, most evil of Mummies, as I dare to insist that he must hold my hand to cross the road. The only good thing is that my day is longer than little man's and come 7 o'clock his day is over. Ready for an early wake up call and more tantrums tomorrow.

Last year I had the opportunity to meet Judy Murray. She was a pleasure to talk to and she laughed and joked about the competitiveness that both her and Andy posses. She also talked about some of the games she played with Andy and Jamie when they were young. As the Scottish weather is not always kind she reminisced about how they would construct their own net out of a piece of string in the hallway and then bat a balloon over it. All simple inexpensive games, that were fun but improved coordination. She believed that it was simple games like this that played a part in the boys doing so well on the tennis court.

This summer Judy has teamed up with Robinsons Squash and explains how you can get your children playing outside this summer. If you watch this short video below you will see her fun and inexpensive tips for getting the children playing outside this summer and maybe improving their tennis skills. You don't even need a racquet (maybe a box of biscuits.)


I think we often forget that simple tasks and games that we make up with children often make a big difference to their coordination and their confidence too. I know for one that big man will be happy to have a go at her ideas, especially constructing a score board. I do fear that his competitiveness may mean that big man will change the rules half way through so that the lowest score wins.

Have you got any good ideas for inexpensive fun outside with the children this summer?

Every now and then I have a bit of a blogging wobble. I question why I spend so much time blogging. So much time, but not enough. There is always so much I want to do with my blog and not enough time in the day to do it. I read as many blogs as I can, but again not as many or as often as I would like. Most of the people I see on a daily basis either don't know I blog or don't really understand why I do. This weekend however, I had 2 child free days up in London surrounded by people that get blogging. I went to BritMums Live 2014. That in itself was fantastic let alone the talks, and meeting up with the people I like to call my blogging friends. Friends who I have only ever met once or twice. But friends I interact with regularly on twitter, Facebook and their blogs.

There were lots of great talks but I had learnt from last year that you just can't do them all. I think my brain would explode. There was also the opportunity to meet brands. It was lovely to meet the guys at Butlin's and tell them how much we enjoyed our break as ambassadors this year.  I watched some cookery demonstrations from Morrisons and now have some fab summery desserts to make at out next BBQ.

It was Katy Hill who hit the nail on the head for me. As she accepted her award for Fresh Voice she talked about how taking a step back from her career was like losing a little bit of "me." That is how I feel. I thought that having left teaching 5 years ago it would get easier but it gets harder. I love my boys and wouldn't change things for the world, but being a stay at home Mum is not always easy. I have lost a little bit of me and that is why I blog. It is the little bit of me that I can still have and fit around the daily whirlwind of my family.

Saturday bought with it some great talks on video and you tube. I am now looking at producing more video content and already have loads of ideas from them. I have even upgraded ios 7. I had really been putting that off for a long time! You can subscribe to my You Tube channel here to see how I get on.



So it is now all over for another year. The biggest downside was not meeting more fantastic bloggers, there just isn't the time. See you next year BritMums Live.

I have actually started getting quite excited about recieving a Degustabox each month. My text message arrives, telling me that my box will be delivered tomorrow and I start wondering what treats it will include. The following day, I am texted with an 1hr time slot and as the courier is DPD I can even check online to see if they are running on time.

Here is what we thought about the products in May's box

Garofalo: Drum wheat pasta. Tasted good and I would consider buying if I was doing pasta for a dinner party.

Cawston Press, apple: Nice but not as good as the Rhubarb one that was in a previous box.

Taylors of Harrogate Blackcurrant and Elderflower: I am not really a fruit tea drinker but this did taste nice.

Raw Chewing Gum: Not my kind of thing at all. I made the mistake of having a piece after dinner and then couldn't sleep. Not for me or my family.

Ciro: When I received these I wondered if it is worth paying more for tomato puree? So I did a taste test alongside my usual supermarket brand. There is no comparison ciro wins hands down for flavour.

Hornsby's: I am not a cider drinker, but have to say the Strawberry and Lime cider was lovely and I would consider purchasing this again.

Kettle Sweet Potato crisps: nice.

Finn Crisp: You could definately taste the sour dough flavour. Nice for a change.

Elizabeth Straw flutes: Dark chocolate sticks that I will probably use for cake decorating.

Dr. Oetker: I have not had chance to use the cake release spray yet. I will update you when I do. If I can use my square baking tin without any sticking I will be happy.

If you would like to try a Degustabox for yourself they have provided my readers with a discount code: EFILF meaning you will be a £3 saving off of your first box. That means you will get a surprise box delivered for just £9.99


Ingredients:
A bottle of Hornsby's cider
A tube of Ciro tomato puree
Pork shoulder joint
2 cloves of garlic


Usually I made pulled pork using passata but I thought I would have a go at using the cider and it tasted pretty good. Best thing is that it is so easy.

Take a pork shoulder joint and trim off any fat.
Put in a slow cooker with a bottle of Hornsby's cider and a tube of ciro tomato puree.
Add 2 cloves of garlic finely chopped.



Heat on low for 6-8 hours. Take out of the slow cooker and shred. We had ours on a jacket potato.



We recieved the box for the purpose of this review but the opinions here are my own.

Well that is a good question! 24hrs before I leave and I don't really know. I made the mistake of asking my husband what he thought yesterday. I was asking his advice on which pair of jeans to wear and am now panicking that I am under dressed and need a jacket. If I didn't have 2 children at home today I would be hitting the shops in a desperate attempt to find something. As shopping tends to be a nightmare with one child, going with 2 would pretty much ensure that I lose one in a large rack of clothing or they surprise the shop with a flash of Mummy when she is getting changed.

To be honest after having to deal with a 20 minute tantrum yesterday about not being able to blow bubbles because we had to pick big man up from school, I am not that bothered about what I am wearing. More that I am out, on my own. This is my 2 days a year to be me. To have a cup of tea without interruption. To talk to like minded people without a child tugging me asking me when we can go. So with that, I will spend the rest of the day worrying about what to wear, but I will definitely be wearing a smile.



Hope to see you there!

This weekend I invited some friends over to watch the England match and enjoy the limited addition Carnivale range from Domino's Pizza. Then I realised that the game was at 11 o'clock. Time differences confuse me! So instead we watched Columbia V Greece. As the weather had turned slightly we had a quick game of table football rather than a kick around.



I love that take away pizzas are so easy when you have a party. I ordered everything in the morning and the delivery driver turned up on time with all our food ready to eat. So what is on the new menu?

There are two limited addition pizzas. First is the Fiesta which has chicken breast strips, red onions, red and green peppers, fajita spice and a Mojito dressing. Second is the Rio which has pulled Barbacoa Beef, chipotle sauce, red onions, green and red peppers. Ours also had the Mojito dressing which I don't think was meant to be on it but it was the first day of the new menu so maybe the guys had just got a bit over excited by this tangy lime mayonaisse. I was really excited by the Rio pizza on paper but when they came, the Fiesta had an extra kick to it and got my vote.



We were able to have a Footy Fan deal which included wedges, and we chose one normal (for the kids) and one Fajita wedges for the adults. Nachos completed the Carnivale menu. I was initially disappointed as these were burnt around the edges, but they still tasted good!



We had a great time and the pizza helped keep the smaller ones quiet so the football could be enjoyed. Even if your team don't win (or like me you arrange to see a totally different match) friends + Domino's Pizza = a winning combination.







We were given the pizzas for the purpose of this review but the opinions contained here are my own.

I have been meaning to write this post ever since Charlie from PODcast shared her stunning photo's of Victoria Peak, Hong Kong. My husband and I also went to Victoria Peak at the end of our Honeymoon. Let's just say the weather wasn't quite as kind. Here is the view we had at Victoria Peak.


We stayed in Hong Kong for 2 night and went through 4 umbellas! We weren't stopped by the weather though. We went out on a junk.


We took a trip on the Star Ferry. Apparently this is meant to be romantic. I wasn't convinced.


We also got to see a very large Buddha. The World's largest seated Buddha to be precise.


After visiting Singapore, Hong Kong was very different and not quite what I had expected, well except for the high rise buildings and traffic.