Jen Walshaw | Mum In The Madhouse

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Author name: Jen Walshaw

Mum-in-charge Jen Walshaw runs the UK’s top parenting blog Mum in the Madhouse, and she describes herself as a “fat, feisty and over 50” Northerner. Based in North Yorkshire, she’s mum to young adults and a big believer that family life is messy, creative and fun. In 2009 a double mastectomy gave her the nudge to start blogging; with two boys under three she needed an outlet and a digital scrapbook to capture their chaos.Jen’s posts are a mix of crafts, kid‑friendly recipes and honest parenting, peppered with northern humour. She’s happiest when up to her elbows in tea, fabric and pizza dough – sewing and making homemade gifts – before sneaking off to write about it. As a proud Northerner she warns PRs that a “quick pop down to London” isn’t quick at all. Her blog has earned her a stack of accolades, including the Cision #1 Mummy Blogger title in 2024  and consistently topping Vuelio and Tots100 parenting‑blog charts. Whether she’s advocating for diversity and body neutrality or sharing tales of parenting teens, Jen keeps things chatty, real and refreshingly down‑to‑earth.

Keeping Your Nursery Safe and Stylish | Tips for a Beautiful and Secure Space

In the midst of the “nesting” phase of pregnancy, most prospective mothers (and fathers, for that matter) are excitedly preparing a nursery for their imminent arrival. It’s certainly one of the most thrilling parts of the nine month period – but few would disagree that it’s also incredibly daunting. While we don’t want to put

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Santa Hat Christmas Cards | 5-Minute Kids Craft for the Holidays

We are all about the Christmas cards at the moment and today I want to share with you a really simple Santa Hat Christmas card that is perfect for toddlers and preschoolers to make.  It is also the perfect 5 minute craft that is going to be our family Christmas cards this year. Nothing says

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Our Experience on the Polar Express | Magical Train Ride Adventure

We are working with PayPal this Christmas on their Magical Christmas Moment #PayPalMoments campaign.  It is an ace competition where they are giving people the chance to win some great prizes (find out more on the PayPal Facebook Page). They challenged me to shop for Christmas using PayPal and then share with you our Magical Moments that

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After School Snack Ideas | Healthy and Delicious Options for Kids

My boys seem to have hollow legs they are always eating.  They both have school lunch and then we eat together as a family at six pm each evening during the week.  So I need to find them an after school snack that satisfies their hunger, but doesn’t overfill them. They also have Judo, cubs

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Easy Ribbon Christmas Cards for Kids to Make | Simple and Festive Craft

There is nothing nicer than receiving a homemade Christmas card and these easy ribbon Christmas cards are so easy for you to make with kids of all ages. You don’t need lots of different materials to make lots of different styles of DIY Christmas cards made with ribbons. I love that I have turned my kids

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Ways to Use Your Free Advent Acts of Kindness Printables | Spread Joy This Holiday Season

So you saw my recent post with the 50 advent acts of kindness with the two free printable sets designed by the lovely Purple Pumpkin blog. Well I wanted to share with you ways to display them or use them. We tried to make it easy for you all by offering them in two different

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