Mum In The Madhouse - Parenting without stabilisers

We were sent some Roast Beef Walkers Hoops and Crosses to review.  Along with a fab monkey, who Mini named Mack.

Hoops and crosses are a whole wheat based snack and they are a great way of getting more whole grain in to children and this is something that most children are lacking in.  So they seem a great ideas.  The neauticinal information is below:

• 56% whole­grain corn meal per bag.
• 85 calo­ries per bag.
• No artificial colours or preservatives
• They are baked
• Hoops and Crosses come in three flavours,  Roast Beef, Prawn Crack­ers and Salt and Vinegar

Sadly, the bag remained like below for the best part of a day

For alas neither of the boys were at all keen on them.   They really didn’t like the strong roast beef flavour and in the end MadDad ate them and informed me they were a lot like Monster Munch in texture.

I decided that I really liked the idea of Hoops and Crosses and picked up a six pack of salt and vinegar (£1.89 in asda or 3 packs for £4) and they went down much better.

When it comes to summer we don’t all want to rush to the beach for a lazy fortnight in the sun. Some of us prefer to explore the sights and sounds of new cities across the world. City breaks offer shopping, museums, arts and culture as well as fantastic new cuisine to discover. These days with budget airlines it’s often a good idea to pack as little as possible so that you can carry on your luggage. A few key pieces will see you through your break in style, whether you’re pounding the pavements exploring the sights or enjoying a night out in style.

Linen Blend Shorts

It’s good news for those of us who prefer not to reveal too much leg that this year, longer shorts are on trend. A great pair of shorts is your ideal partner for a summer city break. They’re comfortable and cool and look ideal paired with relaxed jersey T-shirts. Bonmarché’s Linen Blend Shorts are a longer length style available in a selection of colours. With a drawstring waist they’re comfortable as well as classic so a good choice for your flight too.

Monochrome Print Jersey Maxi Dress

Sometimes you want to feel feminine or just that little bit glamorous. The fabulous maxi dress is a real winner here. In relaxed jersey fabric they are easy to dress up or down for whatever your break brings. For daytime wear pair yours with a smart pair of plimsolls and a fine knit cardigan to keep out any sign of a chill. For evenings simply add a little touch of bling from your jewellery box and pretty sandals and you’re ready for a meal out in style. The Monochrome Print Jersey Maxi Dress by Bonmarché is a good choice and in neutral monochrome it’s easy to add a splash of colour in your accessories if you feel like it.

Stretch Cotton Capri Trousers

Cropped trousers are a key length for the season and they’re effortlessly chic too. To take you comfortably from day to night Bonmarché’s Stretch Cotton Capri Trousers are a great option. Capri’s can be paired with flats and a simple jersey T-shirt for a chic daytime look that is perfect for touring museums and art galleries. For evening just switch pumps for heels and a blouse and you have a new look in an instant.

Embroidered and Beaded Scoop Neck T-Shirt Jersey T-shirts are an all-time classic for any situation. They’re flattering on every figure, comfortable and, even better, easy to pack. If you like clothing with a little more detail then choose something with a pattern or embroidery such as a the Embroidered and Beaded Scoop Neck T-Shirt by Bonmarché. Take a selection along on your city break and you can’t go far wrong.

Sleeveless Frill Front Blouse

Most city breaks offer the chance of a night on the tiles or two whether it’s enjoying an opera or dining out at an elegant restaurant. A blouse is lightweight to pack but adds a touch of glamour in an instant. Choose something that flatters your figure to have you oozing with confidence. A blouse with a detail in the centre is a failsafe way to bring attention to the middle of your body and in so doing create the illusion of a slimmer you. Try the Sleeveless Frill Front Blouse by Bonmarché with its pretty ruffle front. It’s perfect to pair with a delicate knit cardigan or fitted jacket if the evenings are cooler. Try with the Capri Trousers for a practical yet chic look and for added glamour add a chunky bracelet.

“Only boring people get bored”

This was one of the quotes I grew up with and I hear myself saying to the boys, but in todays society I think that you need to teach your children how to not get board.  When I was young we did pretty much what we wanted within set boundaries and there was not a lot of pre planned activities in our day to day life.  However holidays were always different!

So I want to share my top tips with you for preventing your children getting bored on a family holiday.

1. Take half an hour when you first arrive at your holiday park to show the children around.  Get a map from reception (if they have one) or draw one yourself and highlight the key areas they are allowed to visit, such as the park and also give them clear boundaries.
2.  Let them explore whilst you unpack
3. Pack walkie talkies so you do not worry about them getting lost and you can call them back for dinner.  this gives them freedom, but also gives you peace of mind too.  I would not be without our walkie talkies and they have been one of our best purchases, both for at home and for on holiday.
4. Take an i’m Bored jar with you.
5. We also pack family board games, card and domino’s.  We try to limit screen time whilst we are on holiday and we love family games night.  The boys will write  league tables and keep a record of who wins what so that we can have a family winner at the end of the holiday.  We introduced the boys to Scrabble and Boggle whist we were on holiday.  It is so much fun to revisit games that you used to play as a child.
6. Provide your children with an adventure pack with binoculars, compass and handbooks so they can explore the area you are holidaying.
7. I also pack pencils and colouring pads for creative moments.
8. Let your child chose a number of new books before you go on holiday.  We have quiet time after dinner and reading is a great way to ensure that children do got get board.
9. Allow a day or so for decompression, especially if your childrens days are packed with activities at home.  Places such as  Richardson’s Holiday Parks have onsite entertainment.  Click here for more information.
10. Headphone are essential – my children never agree on music, so I make sure they take headphones with them so they can play their own music in the car.
11. See if you can take a pup tent, so they can have their own adventures.
12. Encourage them to make friends.  Take a ball and a kite.  Things like this usually attract all the children nearby and veola friends for the holiday.
13. Be unselfish with your time.  Children crave the company of their parents.  Holidays are the perfect time to give it to them freely.  Why not join in with them rolling down hills.  You might be surprised d at just how much fun it can me.

I would love to know how you react when you hear “I’m bored”!

Legal Expenses Insurance (LEI) can provide cover for legal costs if you have to go to court for a claim.  Generally, the most common scenarios involve what is known in legal parlance as pursuing a claim, which means trying to get compensation from a third party for causing loss or damage to you or your property.  In other circumstances you may be defending a claim – if for example you have crashed into another person’s car – and in fact many LEI policies are sold alongside or included in car and home insurance packages.

Home LEI policies, includes cover for things like personal injury and compensation claims, and consumer disputes over the buying and selling of goods and services.  Home Legal Expenses Insurance can also meet the cost of pursuing a claim against your employer for breach of contract, such as unfair dismissal, and can also provide funds to finance the mediation of disputes with your neighbours – this can be issues like access to your home, or the boundaries of your land, or complaints about noise.

So just how important is it to have Home Legal Expenses Insurance?  Like all insurance, a sensible way to look at the situation is to consider the alternative to taking out cover.  This could mean having to cover the cost of legal action on your own, if you end up in court for a claim that would have been covered by a Home LEI policy.

Perhaps a comparison could be useful here.  Home insurance is considered a necessity because of the massive cost of rebuilding your home, should a disaster such a house fire occur.  When you consider that the cost of legal action can run to tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands of pounds, Home LEI starts to look like an essential type of cover.

You may find that the basic LEI provided through your home insurance leaves you underinsured, and that you need additional cover.  However, it is also important not to over insure – most Home LEI policies cover the whole family, so unlike car insurance, two partners don’t usually need separate policies.

At Allianz Your Cover (www.yourcoverinsurance.co.uk) you can add Home Legal Expenses insurance to your current Allianz Your Cover home insurance policy at any time.

Your children are only going to be young once, so you should treat them to a magical holiday before they consider themselves too old for family breaks. Create memories to treasure for decades to come, and fill up at least some of the weeks when they are out of school and clamouring for activities to keep them occupied. From a trip to Lapland before Christmas to a Hawaiian paradise during the summer months, here are three destinations that are sure to give you some inspiration for 2013.

Hula Your Worries Away in Hawaii

For a completely different pace of life and beautiful scenery, check out Hawaii this summer. With pleasant tropical temperatures all year round, families can pack light and enjoy T-shirt and beach weather. There are plenty of family-oriented tour packages and resorts in Hawaii that have child-friendly activities. Make sure that you choose a resort that includes a bit of luxury and chill-out time for parents, as well as plenty of amusements for the kids. Camp Menehune at the Hilton Waikoloa Village includes fun activities such as exploring tide-pools and tropical gardens, water sports, interactive dolphin programmes and feeding local wildlife.

Go Totally Wild in Orlando Florida

Another option is the Animal Kingdom Lodge, a part of DisneyWorld in Florida. Little animal enthusiasts can experience the wilds of Africa, within the safe and comfortable environment of a Disney resort. The Animal Kingdom Lodge is a 33 acre property that offers views from all of the rooms onto the Serengeti style zoo outside. There are over 200 animals from 100 different species, such as antelopes and gazelles. Each room is tastefully decorated in African style décor and the resort’s restaurants, Jiko and Boma, cook African-style food in wood-burning ovens.

A Lapland Trip into the Arctic Wilderness

Later on in the year, Finnish Lapland is the traditional hangout of Santa, his wife, the elves, plus of course his reindeer. Make sure that you go there kitted out in thermals and ski gear. Bracing cold isn’t the right way to describe the place, below freezing is more appropriate.

As a wonderful consolation, there’s a flurry of Christmas activity in Lapland. Mulled wine and Finnish saunas are brilliant for the adults while husky-led forays into the icy wilderness keep the kids occupied. The occasional appearance of the hypnotic and truly remarkable Northern Lights is nature’s way of lighting up the sky. During the winter time the sun barely peaks over the horizon.

There are plenty of tour operators that offer families some face time with the jolly red man, comfortable digs and amazing food to stave off the Arctic cold. For the traditional Christmas memory that will go down in family history, a Lapland trip is the ultimate in Christmas merriment and magic.

A well-planned, fun and relaxing family holiday is very feasible when you know where to go! Find a good mix of kid-friendly activities, and the chance for parents to get some well-deserved R&R.

A child’s life is full of firsts. So why not make the most of each and every one of them? Make a seemingly mundane occasion slightly more ceremonial with some added excitement. Such an approach can often encourage a child to engage in a task or tackle a daunting chore a little more willingly.

Adopt this attitude when approaching such events as a visit to the dentist. Remove the dread of the dentist’s chair and encourage a healthy and eager attitude in your child towards their own dental care. From the formation of your child’s first tooth to an inaugural trip to the dentist, a regular teeth-cleaning routine will stand your offspring in good stead.

You can encourage your child to feel comfortable with a toothbrush from a very early age. Bath time provides the perfect opportunity for brushing your baby’s gums with a soft bristled brush. Allowing babies to gum the brush promotes active participation in the task and can offer some relief for teething tots. Gently care for new teeth and tender gums with an age appropriate baby brush.

Use fluoride toothpaste on your child’s first milk teeth. This type of paste helps to prevent and control tooth decay by targeting the build-up of plaque. Children under the age of two can use a smear of toddler friendly toothpaste whereas for older children encourage teeth-cleaning with a pea-sized amount of paste. Don’t allow your children to simply suck or swallow the paste off of the brush or out of the tube.

Many children will require help and supervision when they’re cleaning their teeth way beyond the toddler years. Encourage consistent and thorough cleaning by demonstrating the correct way to brush teeth for the appropriate length of time. Even when a child demonstrates teeth-cleaning competence, check up on their technique periodically to ensure consistency.

Make teeth-cleaning as fun as possible with toothbrushes that feature favourite colours or characters. Pick an Oral B electric toothbrush with a Power Ranger or Disney Princess to encourage enthusiasm and promote playfulness.

Demystify the dentist’s surgery by making your child feel comfortable visiting the clinic. Take your child with you to your own appointments to encourage familiarity and dispel any fear or anxiety. Register your child from an early age and carry-out consistent check-ups. Ensuring your child feels comfortable visiting the dentist and encouraging adherence to an oral hygiene routine will promote a healthy attitude to oral health care well into adulthood.

It would be nice to think that heat is going to be a problem in the UK this summer, but even if we don’t get a heat wave, there will be days when you want to stay cool. And if you’re heading off to much warmer climates for a spring break or a full-on summer holiday, it’s always a good idea to take a good quality long-sleeved oxford shirt provided by cotton traders to help protect your skin.

In many countries, the heat of the midday sun can be uncomfortable, and it’s certainly not good for your skin to be exposed to the sun in that way. If you’re heading out in hot weather, then it’s fine to wear a strappy top, or summer dress, but roll up a simple cotton shirt and cotton trader’s womens linen trousers in your bag so that when you need to, you can pull it out and give your skin some added protection. You’ll still need sunblock, as the sun’s rays will penetrate the cotton covering, but it does reduce the exposure and help you to stay a little cooler.

The other key time when a long-sleeved shirt comes in useful is as the evenings get chillier. In many holiday destinations, very warm days are followed by much colder nights and as the sun fades for the day, you may find that you need an extra layer just to keep the chill at bay. A long-sleeved cotton shirt is perfect for this, as you can layer it over whatever you’re wearing and either button it up or tie it at the front to keep stylish and comfortable at the same time.

This piece of clothing is a great holiday staple, and doesn’t have to be expensive in order to do the job. A pure white, 100% cotton shirt looks stylish at any time, and you can mix and match it with most of your wardrobe to great effect. Or, choose something more colourful or patterned, so that even when you’re covering up, you’re still wearing those key summer colours, bringing warmth and style to the room.

You could be preparing for a holiday or just planning ahead for the summer – now is a great time to buy a long-sleeved cotton shirt for this season. Retailers on the high street and online have a real variety of shirts in their spring/summer collections, so you should be able to find something that suits your style and your budget – helping you to stay cool in the hottest of climates.

Do you have someone in your life that has been with you through thick and thin?  Perhaps it is someone that you often do not release is at your side giving you support, but when you look back over the difficult periods you have come to realise what a support they have been and what a loyal and faithful friend they are.

For me this person is MadDad.  Now I know what you are saying, he is your husband, he is supposed to be by your side.  But first and foremost MadDad was, is and always will be my best friend.  He was the person I wanted to tell my good news to before anyone else, he was the shoulder I needed to cry on and he was the person I laughed the most with long before we were together as a couple.  As the years have gone on I have come to realise that more and more he is my “one”.  He is the person that I need beside me.  He has carried me through tough times and never left my side.  

Together we have experienced joy and despair.  We have had good days, great days and totally joyous days, but the one thing we both have in common is that sharing these times together has only made them stronger and more important to us both.

I am his loyal wife.  I trust him with my life and the life of my children and he trusts me too.  We work hard at making sure that we remain steadfast together and are not only husband and wife, but friends, companions and more.

So when I was asked to tell you about the fact that E.ON are giving you the chance to reward someone close to you, someone who has been with you through thick and thin, or who has just done something nice for you recently with a treat, I jumped at the chance.  E.ON are giving away 4 fabulous experience days for two plus 70 pairs of cinema tickets.  I know that MadDad and I would love a pair of cinema tickets at the moment as the last film we saw together was Star Trek and the new one is due out at any time.    So why not visit the E.ON Facebook Page before 28 April and let them know who you’d reward and why. You can also find the full terms and conditions of this competition on the E.ON Facebook page.

You see E.ON believes you should get something back for your loyalty and if you’ve been with them for a year or more, they’d like to say thank you.  So they are giving rewards to their customers.  You can either get money off your bills or Tesco Clubcard points – it’s up to you. All you need to do is change to one of E.ON’s tariffs with rewards.  

The Thrifty Mum in me would tell you to check out the Tesco Clubcard Points as you can exchange them for deals up to three pounds their value, which makes them a really good value.  I often use them to purchase Magazine subscriptions or to but restaurant vouchers for treats.

If you are anything like me this last week of spring like weather will have you packing away the winter wear and getting our the spring summer clothes.  Being the organised Mum and Thrifty Mum I am.  Each year I but the boys summer clothes in the previous years sales and have them all packed away for them to grow into.  However, I am also left with a pile of clothes that no longer fit them and also clothes that Me or MadDad no longer want.

According to Asos Marketplace (site survey, April 2012), their average female customer has nearly £1,000-worth of clothes sitting in their wardrobe that they haven’t worn in a year.

So what do you do with these old clothes.  Well you can give them away, pass them on to a charity shop or can get cash for clothes instead.

• You can sell your clothes via a car boot sale.  I find this is a simple and easy way to sell a lot of clothes.  I have a clothes rack in the garage that I transfer the small ones too and do a boot sale when I have a large number.  I make sure that they are all clean and I price them at around a pound an item.
• You can sell via ebay.  Cheshire Mum has a great guide to selling baby clothes on ebay.  However. with the increase in postage costs this is becoming more costly.
• You can Sell clothes via sites like Music Magpie or Preloved.
• You could  have a clothes swapping party with friends and neighbours.  Although you will not be making money, you will be saving money by exchanging clothes for new to you ones.
• You could sell them via your local NCT nearly new sale.
• There are also companies that will weight your clothes and give you a set amount per kilo.
• Alternately you could try upcycling your clothes into something that you can sell.  Perhaps you could turn them into pencil cases, bags, cushions or badges.

Two words guaranteed to send a flutter of fear through the heart of any 17 or 18-year-old contemplating their next life stage: “Personal” and “Statement.”

Utter the mere words and watch your children hug the wall in fright, retreat back towards darkened bedrooms or shove their hands in their pockets, shuffle a bit and mumble something only they can hear.

But let’s show some sympathy here. Come on. In front of them lies a confusing ocean of choice: what course to do; what city to live in; whether to go where their friends go; whether to follow in the footsteps of their elder siblings; whether to go it alone; whether to go at all.

It’s not an easy call to make at any time, not least at that hormonally volatile age. Remember? Tough, wasn’t it?

One way to help condense and focus those thoughts and cut through the all the cloudiness that the murk of all this choice throws up is to think it all through via the writing of the UCAS personal statement.

By thinking of the Personal Statement a good deal in advance, and how you might help your child to connect their extra-curricular interests, achievements and hobbies with their academic pathway of choice, you can steal a march on all of the rest of the university applicants.

Karen Martin, from the Admissions & Student Recruitment Department at the University of Dundee, explains: “Remember that your Personal Statement is the only piece of written work we will see when selecting the best applicants.”

Pretty crucial, then.

None of this is of course a direct substitute for quality academic performance but, done well and properly, the Personal Statement is often the deciding factor between so many applications of equal weight.

Outlined at the outset on the Personal Statement, there need to be cast-iron reasons for why your child has chosen that particular subject, that university and why exactly they want to go to continue in Higher Education in general. This is the Personal Statement bread and butter.

But, the essentials aside, what other ingredients can you think about in advance that could help boost your child’s application and save you all a whole world of heartache at a later, more stressful date?

Volunteering

Charity work, voluntary social contributions or a part played in a fundraising campaign can demonstrate a nice variety of skills and personal qualities.

The nature of the contribution may be organisational – like setting up a raffle competition to raise money for an African orphanage, it may be physical – like walking 47 miles in 24 hours to raise awareness of Cancer research, or it may be just taking part – as in something like Children in Need, for example.

Key thing is – and this is going to be a running theme here – make whatever the project is have a useful connection with the subject to be studied. For example, contributing to a wildlife conservation project on a Gap Year is going to help with biology, zoology or natural sciences, or organising an auction event for a charity of your choice is going to help with Management, PR or Communications courses.

Find the link and play it up.

Work Experience

Making a clear and relevant connection also applies to holiday jobs or part-time work.

It’s definitely a good thing to have some “real world” experience but make sure the link with the course is pointed out. As such, a newspaper round, though laudable (I know, I lugged luminous orange bags bigger than my bike around every evening for two years), is not that relevant to an undergrad course in pharmacology, but a part-time job in a chemists would be.

Music Learning

Most children at some stage will pick up a musical instrument, whether it be a ukulele or a violin or a tuba, and many will take music lessons (some enforced (!) and some not…).

Obviously music learning is of intrinsic importance of those going to study directly music-related courses but there is also a great cross-over with the patterns of learning associated with languages, the reasoning and practice behind science and maths, as well as the dedication and self-motivation which are crucial to studying things like management or business. The key here is to think laterally. Music learning is a real goldmine of different skills which can be applied to many courses.

Outdoor Pursuits and Sports

Another way to show useful skills and abilities is via sporting successes, passions or outdoor pursuits.

This is doubly interesting for Personal Statement readers when there is a genuine qualification like a Duke of Edinburgh award involved. Integral to activities like these involve teamwork, communication, organisation, resilience and adaptability.

Direct connections to subjects like Sport Science stand out, but they can also be relevant to Geography, Management, Human Resources and other areas of science or medicine – physiology for example.

So, sneak ahead of the chasing pack and give yourself some time to think about these little tips well in advance of the writing of the Personal Statement so that you can give it the turbo boost your child deserves.