Category: Views & Ramblings

1. Where to go this Easter?

   Posted on 11:15am Tuesday 15th Apr 2014

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   It seems like everyone we know is going away for Easter, whether they are jetting off for sunner climates (although the weather here is gorgeous at the moment), or going on a road trip for the Easter weekend (*shudders* at the thought of motorway traffic) and it has got me thinking.

   

   We ALWAYS go away at Easter with the girls godparents but this year we haven't planned anything. Life (and saving for a wedding) has kind of stopped the frivolous spending but that little travelling bug is niggling at me and I *may* have been looking at a cheeky little city break for us.

   Easter isn't all about fluffy chicks and chocolate eggs and whilst many people may choose to wait until Halloween to be spooked and chilled to the bone; others will prefer to get their fill of all things bloodcurdling and gruesome sooner. For those of us who love a little gore and tales of horrible histories, York would be a perfect destination for a city break. Its rich history provides plenty of stories that don’t have happy endings, and the city has used its chequered past to its advantage, providing plenty of ghoulish attractions and sights for visitors to enjoy whilst staying in the city.

   There are lots of places to stay but for us, grabbing a great deal at a local Travelodge, gives us the chance to enjoy more of what York has to offer you. From ghost walks and dungeons to historic sites in which you can almost sense the ectoplasm, it looks like we could be in for a frightening treat.

   York Dungeon

   It may be an incredibly popular attraction, largely because it’s part of the Merlin Group (alongside Alton Towers and the like), but York Dungeon is still definitely worth a visit. While weekend visits may mean battling with the masses to see the various attractions within its walls, kids of all ages (and grownups too) will love the level of macabre and gore that it offers, while also helping you to delve deeper into the history of York, no matter how grizzly it is.

   
   

   York Castle Museum

   Now I have confessed before that I love a good castle and with plenty of bloodcurdling exhibitions that may appeal to my more grizzly nature, the York Castle museum looks like it should be on our to do list. Apparently we should make sure that we give ourselves enough time to explore Kirkgate, a recreated Victorian Street in the heart of the museum, and stop by the jail area for a look at what medieval criminals would have had to have put up with.

   Barley Hall

   This medieval house was only discovered during the 1980s and has been renovated to reflect how it would have been back in the 15^th century. Character actors add to the experience, while visitors can immerse themselves in the history by stepping back in time themselves. It looks like the little ones will love it too because of the Horrible Histories exhibition, meaning it’s a great way to keep them occupied and enthralled during your visit to the city.

   Micklegate Bar Museum

   This looks fabulous and as there’s also a dressing up area, complete with helmets, cloaks and armour – it is ideal perfect for keeping the little ones entertained while also providing some great photo opportunities. (which is great for me as I am never far from a snapshot!)

   I am told that we should also stop by Dick Turpin’s grave if we are going to York. The infamous highwayman is buried in St. George’s Churchyard after being executed in the 18^th century, while the birthplace of Guy Fawkes, famous for the Gunpowder Plot, is also in York. For the other half, there’s a pub – The Guy Fawkes Inn – standing on the site, which is perfect for a quick bevvie mid-sightseeing!

   I never chose history as one of my options, which always puzzles me as I love finding and exploring historical buildings, which means that with York's rich history, it may just be the perfect break for me!

   Do you have any suggestions where else we could go this Easter to inspire my love of castles and history?

    

2. Blog Your Heart Out

   Posted on 7:29pm Thursday 10th Apr 2014

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   When the fabulous Sonya who blogs at The Ramblings of a Former Rock n Roll Mum tagged me to answer 5 questions about blogging, it made me think back to when I started blogging, which was for a whole different reason to why I blog now. So here are my answers to the questions ......

   Who or what encouraged you to start blogging?

   It was actually an SEO guru who told me that I should start blogging. It was when we first started the Lilypad boutique and he said that I needed to blog to get regular content on the Lilypad for the purposes of our friends at Google. But it reignited a love of writing that had long been forgotten. I remember writing books in junior school, convinced I would be a writer when I was older. I wrote pages and pages of letters to pen friends over the years but then somehow life got in the way and I stopped writing. The Lilypad blog got me writing again.

   How did you choose what to blog about?

   Initially it was all about the right keywords for the blog but these days it is all about my girls, from my pregnancy, birth, through to their daily antics. Unfortunately the right keywords and SEO kind of went out of the window and I now find myself rambling frequently about baby swimming or shoes, rather than "handmade baby gifts".

   What is something most people don't know about you?

   I am actually really shy. I know when I am strutting around in my sky high heels, I might look confident but I make myself be brave. Almost on a daily basis. Oh and I am sooooo funny (when I have had the opportunity to think about the punchline and deliver it 10 minutes after the moment has passed).

   What three words describe your style?

   Sleek, classic, stylish ..... oh you mean my blogging style?

   Rambling, honest, frugal.

   What do you love to do when you are not blogging?

   Its a well known (and blogged) fact that I like love to shop. Not just for me, for the girls, for my man, for my friends, the house. It doesn't actually matter what it is, big, small, cheap, expensive .... I think I am addicted to the thrill of shopping. More importantly though, I am addicted to the thrill of laughter, we have some amazing friends and I love spending time with them, as a family, so laughing and creating memories is what I love to do most when I am not blogging! (passes sick bucket).

   

   That is all the questions answered, so now it is my turn to nominate more bloggers to answer the same, so I tag:

   Mummy Alarm

   Seasider In The City

   Fives A Fellowship

   Trouble Doubled

    

   Image courtesy of Stuart Miles / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

3. A child's room is so much more than a place to sleep

   Posted on 9:51pm Wednesday 9th Apr 2014

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   I love to sleep. As a mum to two girls, I never seem to get enough sleep, I never want to get out of my bed in the morning from the room that is my haven but a child’s room is so much more than a place to sleep. Far more than for most grown-ups, it’s a place they spend a lot of their waking hours, telling stories, creating adventures, building dens and having fun.

   So what do you do when you decide it needs redecorting? You have to think about the times they’re going to play, read, draw and colour in there and as they get older, it’s bound to be where they’ll do a lot of their homework too. (I am clearly living in hope that the challenge of physically getting them to do their homework is not too much of a mission)

   The secret interior designer (or just the sleepy mum) that is trapped inside me thinks that the key piece of furniture in a child’s bedroom is the bed, and that’s the best place to start when you’re planning out how to furnish and decorate your child’s room. Children’s beds today come in a massive range of styles and sizes and the one you’ll choose will depend on the size of the room and how old your child is. Great companies like GLTC have a fabulous range of children's beds and mattresses from GLTC and this is a good first stop resource for families like us. 

   I love the idea of a cabin bed, as it can be a great space-saver choice and the underneath can either be used as a desk, or as storage space for clothes. Some cabin beds have tent style play areas below them too, although I am not sure there would be much sleeping going on with my daughters in this kind of bed. 

   Children’s bedroom furniture can be expensive, so it may be worth considering choosing a timeless classic style for the furniture, and then giving the room a fresh look with new accessories every couple of years – when your child’s tastes change. It’s far easier and more economical to change curtains, bed linen and rugs than replacing all the furniture with a new set. It might not be the most exciting but I have always gone for neutral colours like cream or white and accessorised around them.

   

   Space and storage is always an issue for parents, for us, the litte one needs lots of floor space to play, and we have storage chests for her toys, whereas the older one prefer less floor space (to hopefully create less clutter) and has a wall unit with all her essentials in.

   i made the mistake of letting the eldest daughter choose her bedroom colour and she went for "sexy pink" (I kid you not) so guiding them towards a theme will help to give their bedroom a coordinated look and it could be inspired by any of their interests. There are some perennially popular themes, such as pirates, fairies or woodland creatures for younger kids, and bright, bold colours for older children. It really depends what your kids like – and what you like too, of course. Don’t feel that you have to achieve a new-look room all in one go – in fact, in a way, it’s nice for them to build on their room’s theme by asking for accessories for Christmas or birthday presents.

   So their bedroom maybe a design project for me but for the girls, it is so much more than that, it is a place that memories are created, tears will be shed, laughter will seep through the walls and friends will be made and lost. I always want everything to be perfect for them and you just live in hope that they’ll love the fact that it’s been done especially for them, and maybe they’ll keep it tidy as a way of saying thank you!

   Oh, well, we can all have dreams can't we?! 

    

4. Little Fun Fest - Fantastic fun for little funsters

   Posted on 9:03pm Sunday 6th Apr 2014

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   We have lots of adventures on the Lilypad and today our adventures took us to the Red House Barn and the Little Fun Fest.

   

   It was our first ever festival (yes mine included) and I totally embraced the whole thing by ensuring we ALL had wellies. The weather forecast wasn't brilliant but a few rain showers weren't going to dampen our spirits and once as we saw the Big Red Top as we came closer to Red House Barn, we couldn't contain the girls excitement. They grabbed their wellington boots and off they went through the mud.

    

   With varying ages, there is usually a debate over what activites we were going to do and amazingly the girls were generally happy to take turns in choosing an activity, with the little one only getting a bit upset over there being water on the bouncy castle. It was a little "bounce, splash" .... which added to the fun in the end!

   The venue wasn't huge, which was perfect for us (and the little legs) as we could happily choose activities from either side and get there quickly. There was an amazing array of things to do and see from Baby Ballet, Dr Ranj's travelling surgery, Mr Yipadee to cBeebies very own Alex Winters, without all the extra's like the fair ground rides, stalls and play area. Mr Yipadee was a particular favourite, with the little one getting right in front of the stage and dancing and singing along. 

   We had to take cover from the rain showers but the craft corner came to the rescue .....

   

   And don't forget the parachute .....

   

   As soon as the rain stopped, we were outside again and this time learning circus tricks from tight rope walking to stilts!

   

   Little Fun Fest is all about providing top class family fun! It is marketed as the under 10′s first family festival and I was worried that it maybe a little too young for the "almost" 9 year old but she loved it and wants to come back next year already!

   

   We didn't get a chance to meet and greet the stars of Little Fun Fest as the little one was beyond exhausted from all the excitement and she was asleep within 2 minutes of us leaving the car park but it wasn't about the characters for us, as it was just a fabulous event although we were able to watch the princesses from Frozen sing "Let it Go" before we left .....

    

   The girls just didn't want to "let it go" and want to come back again tomorrow!!

    

   We received a family pass for our entrance to Little Fun Fest but all opinions and adventures are our own.