Let’s face it, when your child reaches anywhere the near the teenage years the very last person they want to spend time with is you. Not only are you outrageously embarrassing (without actually doing very much at all) this coincides with them discovering the joys of social media so really, you’ve no chance.Teenage years can be tough,… Read More 10 ways to spend time with your teen
Happy Step Father’s Day today (yep it’s a thing I just made it up) to all the step dads doing a fine job of bringing up children and negotiated life in a blended family I met Stuart when Harry was five years old and it’s been a big old learning curve not least because five… Read More Happy Step-Dad’s Day
Having long had my own addiction to self-help books I couldn’t wait to get my hands on Marianne Power’s Help Me, which sounded like the self help book to end all self help books. Marketed as ‘one woman’s quest to find out if self-help really can change your life’ each chapter is a canter through famous… Read More Book Review: Help Me by Marianne Powers
AD The 1990s were a pretty special time for me, I left school, went to university and started my first ever job as a newspaper reporter. I have some really happy memories from the decade and look back fondly of school, leaving home and finding my independence. So I’ve put together five things that I loved most… Read More How great were the 1990s?
I feel like I really should like camping, I love the outdoors and being in the open countryside, but no; I definitely hate it. Unfortunately the boy and husband rather enjoy it but after one awful holiday in North Yorkshire I vowed never to go again.Queue glamping, this offers the joys of an outdoorsy holiday… Read More Glamping tips and top spots for luxury camping
‘Amazing things happen when you start your own love affair with happiness,’ says Jacqueline Pirtle in the opening line of 365 Days of Happiness. It’s a great concept and one explored in other ‘self help’ books I’ve read which encourage people to really focus and embrace happiness. Swiss-born Pirtle aka Freaky Healer is an energy… Read More Book Review: 365 Days of Happiness
Dorset is never a place I had thought of visiting. It’s a very long way from Yorkshire and I had never had a reason to go. Until now. With a tank-mad 13 year old it suddenly became the centre of the universe (it’s home to the only tank museum in the country) so after much… Read More Five things to do in Dorset
It is testament to how good The Tank Museum is that I’m actually writing this while in the cafe of the Museum on our second visit of the week. Now most people do not eat, drink and sleep tanks in the same way as my teenager. For him it has been an experience of religious… Read More A day out at The Tank Museum
If the kitchen is the heart of the home, your dining room table and chairs have got to be one of the most significant furniture purchases you make with in your house. One of the main things we were looking for when we bought our house two years ago was a really nice dining area.… Read More Heart of the home
Thirteen years ago a hefty bundle of joy landed on my lap and turned my world upside down. Bringing up Harry has been challenging at times but hugely rewarding. I don’t profess to have all the answers, but here are a few things I wish I had known as a new mum. The guiltDon’t… Read More Advice to a new Mum from an old-ish Mum
