Welcome to my Lifestyle Parenting Blog, where I explore topics related to chronic illnesses such as ME/CFS, chronic pain, and fibromyalgia while embracing a passion for yoga, books, and blogging.
Stretch Armstrong Vac Man
We really enjoyed reviewing Stretch Armstrong, he's still going strong and Jacob has stretched him alot! So we were super excited to be sent Stretch Armstrong Vac Man to review.
Vac Man is back, with new stronger formula which is ideal for 21st-century fun, and he can be stretched to 4 times his original size. Vac Man is a 14″ fully stretchable and poseable Vac powered action figure. He's quite heavy and robust.
My Dad's Cancer Diagnoses
At the start of the year our-lives were thrown upside down. My Dad, my happy, healthy, big hearted, beautiful and much loved dad was diagnosed with stage 4 small bowel cancer. Months, not years, months.
Review: Insect Shield® Soft Walled Dog Bed
I was looking for a new dog bed when U.K pet-bed specialists Scruffs® www.petslovescruffs.com contacted me and offered to send Poppy and Kiwi the new Insect Shield Soft Walled Dog Bed.
The first thing I noticed was the bed is made with Insect Shield® technology to provide effective, invisible and odourless protection, against little beasties like, Mosquitoes, Fleas, Ticks and Flies. The technology is used by more than 50 brands worldwide across various industries. So this was a positive first impression, I want the best for my girls, and this bed helps in the battle to keep those nasty beasties away.
Reed Diffusers
As much as I love my candles, I'll only burn them when the kids are not home, which is not very often. This is why I love Reed Diffusers. They are not only effortless in their quest to spread a beautiful aroma, they are also are elegant, and they enhance the room. I have quite a few in my home.
Reed diffusers will give you a scent that’s longer-lasting than a candle and, with no flames to worry about, especially if you have children and pets in the home, they are more practical. They also look much better.
Despicable Me 3 Radio Control Inflatable Characters
We've been reviewing inflated minions - and it's as fun as it sounds.
Jacob and Summer love Minions, and we took Summer along for her first visit to a cinema to watch Despicable Me 3 last week, which she loved. So as you can imagine, they were super excited to be sent some fantastic Radio Control Inflatable Characters to review. Jacob received Tom the Minion, and Summer received Fluffy.
Get On With It - The Ronseal Challenge
The past 12-months we've had a lot of work done on the house; an extension, garage renovations and redecoration. Our garden unfortunately has been neglected, it's been and looked like a 'builders yard'. So the past couple of months we've slowly been tidying up the garden and putting some life back into it. That included painting the decking, doing a ton of skip runs, and much more. And, our fence was in desperate need of a refresh, so when Ronseal invited me to their Get On With It challenge, it was perfect timing.
Bugs in the Kitchen - Ravensburger
With all the technology my kids have, they still love playing board games. There is something charming about playing board games, a family pastime that brings friends and family together, for fun and laughter.
Bugs in the Kitchen by Ravensburger is a unique, fast paced, fun board game. Included in the box is 24 pegs, the game board, 4 bug traps, 24 kitchen utensils – knives, forks and spoons, 18 cockroach tokens, dice, 2 trap doors and a HEXBUG Nano bug.
Ring Video Doorbell
We've never had a doorbell before, never needed one, until now. We had an extension built on the back of our house, which is now our living room. And, as our living room was now moved further to the back of the house, we found we now needed a door bell as we now don't always hear when someone knocks on the door - yes, we do have 2 beagles, but sometimes (especially in the evening) they are simply too lazy to bark and alert us to the door. So we needed a doorbell. Which I was quite excited about and even more excited to be getting the Ring Video Doorbell.
BABY Born Interactive Bathtub
Summer is a very lucky girl. She received the BABY Born interactive Bathtub to review and she totally loves it. Summer loves playing with her dolls, her pram, her changing unit, and was super excited to receive the bathtub as part of her growing collection.
Dreamstar Bush Baby World
The kids love watching YouTube videos, especially webisodes that have catchy songs and cute animation. Golden Bear have recently launched an interactive series called Bush Baby World, which brings the Busy Baby toys to life. And it's as cute as it sounds.
8 Ways to totally Re-Invent your Bathroom
Whether it’s an issue with lighting, problems with the hot water, or a drippy tap driving everyone crazy, something always needs fixing in the bathroom. Sometimes, when it comes to decorating or transforming your home, the bathroom can often slip down to the bottom of the priority list, which is funny, because when it comes to home necessities, it is probably the one room that we all need the most (without going into too much detail). For a space that we spend a lot of time in, it can be a bit depressing if it’s dated, dull or shabby. There might even be some of you that have had a spur of motivation, begun a complete bathroom overhaul and then life got in the way. Your bathroom may now be half tiled, have bare floorboards and no storage and some of you might be all too familiar with a cold shower. If this is you, it is definitely time you did something about the situation.
Review: Stretch Armstrong Mini Stretch
Jacob loves his Stretch Armstrong, he takes it everywhere with him, even to school. Stretch Armstrong looks just like a wrestler, and Jacob is into wrestling at the moment. He has loads of super Stretchy fun.
The kids love seeing just how far they can stretch him, and they can stretch him pretty far! They tie him in knots and bend him in all sorts of positions. They have tons of fun and laughter trying to, I don't know what, but probably trying to see how far they can stretch him without breaking him - but he is pretty unbreakable! After all this crazy pulling about, Stretch Armstrong returns to his original shape - it's pretty good.
Noddy Toyland Detective Game App
Noddy Toyland Detective Game App is a game full of storytelling, fun games, and it also allows your child to be creative.
I love Noddy, I remember watching it 20 years ago with my little brother, and then my oldest son watched and loved it when he was little and now my two youngest enjoy watching it on Milkshake. I've got the Noddy tune in my head as I write this...
AniMalcolm
Bestseller author David Baddiel, has released his latest children's novel, AniMalcolm.
Another fantastically fun book to read with lots of laugh out moments. This light hearted humour story, delivers an imaginative adventure of Malcolm's self-discovery. - have you ever wondered what it might be like to be a bit of an animal?!
Malcolm doesn't like animals, but his family does. They love animals, so much so, their house is full of pets. And to Malcolms' frustration his house isn't full of stuff he likes, i.e. the laptop he wanted for his birthday.
Goth Girl and the Ghost of a Mouse
Goth Girl and the Ghost of a Mouse, by Chris Riddell.
Ada Goth is the only child of Lord Goth. She lives with her father, a famous poet, in the enormous Ghastly-Gorm Hall. She spends the majority of her time alone. Her father avoids her as she reminds him of his deceased wife and he believes children should be heard and not seen, thus, Ada has to wear big plodding boots around the house so that he can hear her approaching.
Schleich Miniature Shetland pony family
Summer loves collecting Schleich figurines - she has a few now and she was super excited to be sent the Schleich Miniature Shetland pony family set to review.
Summer has had hours of fun with the Schleich Miniature Shetland pony family set, there’s a newborn foal, along with a stallion and mare (mum and dad pony).
Snickers Protein Bars
When this particular email dropped into my inbox inviting me to try the new Protein Bars, I was both surprised and intrigued - Snickers being my favourite chocolate bar I was keen to give the new Snickers Protein Bar a try.
Our walk - Herringfleet
We've not been to Herringfleet in a few months - it's one of the kids favourite walks to go (because of all the tree swings in the wooded area). The main reason we've avoided it is, when we last visited in January the village owner put a note up warning they were placing cattle in the field. Which means we won't be able to allow our dogs to run free. And so we avoided it. Hubby drives past it everyday to go to work and he mentioned that the cattle were gone, and so, off we went. And, we had a great day!
Roblox Toys
Roblox was the game my now 17-year old played when he was a kid, on the Laptop - this was pre-tablets and gaming apps. Move forward a few years and now my youngest son plays it on his iPad via the Roblox app. It's great fun, you can create games and customize the characters, avatars, and so much more.