Monthly Archives: July 2014

5 ways to teach kids to be smart with money 18

 in parenting  tagged finances / kids / money / money management / smarter / teaching by

According to a recent survey by Scottish Friendly UK disposable incomes on the rise, which can only be a good things after such a period of recession. (You can find Scottish Friendly on twitter) We were listening to the news on the radio whilst in the car at the weekend, when Mini asked “what is a recession?” This got me thinking that money really has a terminology and language of all it own and it is my responsibility as a parent to teach this to the boys and to make sure that they are money smart, but how do you do that?

Crafting Eco-friendly Pet Toys with Your Kids 19

 in Featured and Guest / Pets  tagged animals / crafts / dogs / kids crafts / pets by

It’s such a wonderful thing that more and more people are taking the time to craft eco-friendly pet toys with their kids. Considering the crazy costs involved with buying pet toys, people generally have no option other than to create their own eco-friendly pet toys. The prices of nearly everything have skyrocketed over the past few years and in all honesty, many great pet parents simply cannot afford to spend the same hundreds of dollars a year they have in the past. It makes sense for people to experiment with crafting eco-friendly pet toys with kids. Every parent wants to find new and innovative ways to spend quality time with their […]

How To Pack A Suitcase Perfectly And Efficiently

 in Featured and Guest  tagged packing / travel by

Suitcases are great investments, especially for those who travel a lot because they are durable and lighter compared to hard-sided luggage bags. Thanks to their flexibility, they also tend to hold more stuff than hard-sided bags. Packing a suitcase perfectly, however, is more art than science. Fortunately for you (and every traveller), this skill can be mastered quite easily! Pack for the Weather Packing the right outerwear for the weather is the number one way to save space. Study local climate patterns and go through weather forecasts thoroughly before you pack. Nights in deserts, for instance, tend to be quite cold. So if you’re heading out to Cairo to see the […]

Pinterestingly – Pins I’ve found interesting this week #4 – The start of the summer holidays 2

 in pinterest  tagged cookingh / crafts / kids / pinterestingly / pinterst / summer / writing by

Friday marked the last day of term for the minimas and I have been busy preparing for our summer.  We are pretty freerange over the summer and I am a big believer in not over scheduling the boys or myself. But I find that the cleaning definitely takes a back seat, so I have been looking for cleaning hacks that can make our lives easier and get the boys involved more.

Fab home made ice lollies and popsicles for kids – Kids in the Kitchen 23

 in kitchen  tagged cooking with kids / ice lollies / ice pops / kids in the kitchen / popsicals / receipe by

We have a rule in The Mad House, which is that we do not partake in the ice cream van, this means that I have a freezer drawer full of ice lollies and we love making homemade ice lollies or popsicles.  I never throw away nearly out of date juice or smoothies as they make fab lollies, Just like Kate at Crafts on Sea.

Win a Febreze #DriveHappy Road Trip Kit 152

 in competition by

According to a recent survey commissioned by Febreze, a bad smell tops Brits’ list of turn offs when getting into someone’s car. I know that I hate a smelly car, but with two boys and a dog it can be hard to make sure my car smells clean when there is football kit in the boots and a dog on the backseat! Febreze wants to make sure summer family road trips run as smoothly (and as freshly) as possible. To do this, Febreze has created a #drivehappy Kit.

How to make a Capri-sun pencil case 31

 in crafts  tagged caprisun pencil case / craft / make / pencil case / sewing / tutorial by

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. We are busy “dumping the junk” in The Mad House.  We have noticed that when the boys grab junk food that we suffer the consequences in their behaviour.  We needed to find a drink that I could freeze and pop in lunch boxes over the summer for football camp, so wanted to give Capri-sun a go.

Kids in the kitchen – Eating what you grow 21

 in cooking with children  tagged cooking / cooking with kids / kids in the kitchen / recipe / salad by

Ever since MadDad put raised beds in our garden after my Mastectomy six years ago we have always grown a small amount of vegetables, salads and fruits at home.   I know from experience that kids are more likely to try to eat things that they have grown and nurtured.  It worked for me in my Granddads allotment and for MadDad as a farmers son.