Exploring Animals of the Ice Age at Howletts
The pros and cons of working from home
Working from home is becoming increasingly common. We live in an age of technology where it is easy to work wherever we are and stay in touch with our colleagues all around the world. I personally do a lot of working from home in my day job as a Software QA Specialist. Whilst working from home has many pros, there are some cons to it too.
Rochester Dickens Festival 2018
One of the reasons I love where I live is because I live on the doorstep of such a beautiful city, steeped in history. Rochester has major links to Charles Dickens, has a castle, an array of fantastic shops and is next to the River Medway. There are three major festivals during the year which I always enjoy, too. These are the Sweeps Festival, the Dickens Festival and the Dickensian Christmas Festival/Market. Last weekend was the Dickens Festival and we made sure we squeezed it into a super busy weekend.
A day at Drusillas Park children’s zoo with a toddler
We were recently invited to visit Drusillas Park on a press day to find out about all the fun they have to offer families who live in or are visiting the South East of England. Based near Alfriston, East Sussex, Drusillas Park is an 8.4 mile drive from Eastbourne. We were very excited to visit, as we’d heard great things but had never been before. Meanwhile, we thought Autumn would love it as she absolutely loves animals!
Toddler-wearing with the Pao Papoose baby carrier
I was quite late to the game when it came to baby wearing. This was partially due to a rough start for both Autumn and I. I wanted to baby wear, but simply didn’t feel up to it. When I finally did, I had a cheap stretchy wrap that I just couldn’t get the hang of. So, it was only when Autumn was about 10 months old that I went to a sling library and tried out a couple of slings. A structured style, similar to the Pao Papoose, really worked well for me. I also found that baby wearing is so practical too.
7 reasons to change your mind about artificial grass
I’ve recently been thinking about redesigning our back garden to make it more family friendly. It’s entirely patio and therefore is no good for playing with Autumn. I want to keep the patio at the top of the garden, but have the rest as lawn. Something we’ve been considering is having fake grass, rather than real. This is something I hadn’t even considered until recently, as I was of the opinion that real is best. However, I have changed my mind after doing some research into it!
My Sephora haul from New York City
Over Christmas and New Year, my sister-in-law went on holiday to New York. She asked us if there was anything we wanted. As a make up lover, my first thought was “OMG, SEPHORA!” and I transferred her some money. We used to have a Sephora at Bluewater in Kent, but that closed years ago. It was an amazing smelling shop with red carpets and I live in hope that one day Sephora will come back to the UK. In the meantime, the products my lovely sister-in-law picked me up will have to tide me over! To my amazement, she picked up everything I asked for (except for one thing that was out of stock) AND surprised me with another palette I’d wanted for my birthday! Anyway, that’s enough teasing. Let’s take a peek!
Molly Brown – children’s jewellery to be treasured
Autumn loves borrowing my husband‘s bracelet and trying it on. She absolutely delights in putting it on and looking at it. As such, when Molly Brown approached me to review a piece of their beautiful children’s jewellery, I knew a bracelet would be the perfect choice. Just from browsing through the website, you get a good feel of the quality that they deliver. There are gorgeous choices for everyday wear or special events such as christenings or holy communions. I opted for the Her Love Bangle, which allows for the middle three hearts to be personalised with the child’s initials and I couldn’t wait for it to arrive!
10 things people don’t tell you about pregnancy
When I found out I was pregnant with Autumn in early 2016, I was naturally a combination of excited and worried. After all, it is a life-changing event! It didn’t take me long to realise that there’s an awful lot that people don’t tell you about pregnancy. Don’t get me wrong, I didn’t expect to just sit around being waited on with a radiant glow. I knew that I’d have nausea and my body would grow bigger. Pregnancy is a wonderful and magical thing, but at the same time it can also be very tough!
Why rear-facing car seats are the way forward
When Autumn turned 15 months old in January, we knew it was time for her to move out of her first car seat as she had reached its limit. From research I’d done when I was pregnant, I knew that I wanted her to be rear-facing for as long as possible. UK regulations now state that you must have your child in a rear-facing car seat until they’re 15 months. However, whether they change to forward-facing or not after that is your decision. I personally decided I want to keep her rear-facing as long as possible as, after scouring the internet reading numerous blogs and articles, I feel it is safer.
