Monday 31 March 2014

Read With Me #13

Hello you lovely lot. Welcome to another Read With Me. Can I just say, I am loving the mixture of posts that have been linked up and thank you to those that continue to link up each week.

If you read my posts, you will know that my daughter's love reading just as much as I do.

My eldest daughter is currently reading all of the horrible history books, do you remember those?? I used to read them when I was at school many moons ago.

And last week my 6 year old daughter finally went up another level in her reading, this has meant her bringing home longer, more in depth books, something which I actually love.

It is nice, as she has been reading to me more and more and it is lovely to see her progressing and learning more words and what they actually mean. Her current favourites are the Dr Seuss series, I think she may just know them off by heart now!!!

Sweet Dreams Little One Review

Sweet Dreams Little One written by Massimo Gramellini was actually first published in Italian and later translated into fourteen languages. It has now sold over 1.2 million copies in Italy alone, it is now an international best seller.

sweet dreams little one massimo gramellini
The book follows the story of a little boy who at 9 years old loses his mother to what he thinks is cancer. We are given the chance to join this boy on his journey from a young child into adulthood and beyond.

Right at the beginning of the story we learn that there is more to the mothers death than the boy was lead to believe :

"After forty years, it's time someone told you the truth"

The news of his mother's death is broken to him by Baloo, the priest who runs the local cubs, this goes to show just how young this little boy is.

"You know your mummy is your guardian angel, don't you? For a long time she's wanted to fly up there so she can look after you better - and yesterday the Lord called her to join him.."

My heart broke for this young boy.

Saturday 29 March 2014

Project 365 Days 82 - 88

I'm pretty sure Spring was meant to have started by now, so why oh why is it still so cold. I hate to admit it but I've even had to have my heating on this week just to stay warm. However even though my hands hands have been freezing, I've still managed to hold up my phone and carry on with project 365.

You may notice a difference in the photos towards the end of the week because I took the plunge and switched from an iPhone to an android eeekk!!!

Day 82

Sunday we decided to plant the flowers the girls had been growing. We had to do this inbetween rain showers, now to wait and watch them continue to grow.



Day 83

Elise and Freya were making bracelets, Gracie managed to get olive fingers and Layla was eating a whole apple for the first time (normally she has it cut in slices).

Time to Plant Some Flowers

Last year we were lucky enough to join in with the Britmums #KidsGrowWild Challenge, the girls were sent a lovely gardening set and together using the seeds provided, we had to plant some flowers in the garden. Below is a picture of them from last weekend finally beginning to bloom :


This year we managed to join in with yet another challenge from Britmums and funnily enough we decided to grow some more flowers, the difference this time, was that we planted them in cups and let them grow indoors for a few weeks.

Friday 28 March 2014

Girls Really Are Amazing

Being a mum to four daughters, I know just how amazing girls can be. A few reasons why they are amazing :

* They always look after each other, it is nice to see them growing up not only as sisters but friends too.

* They have the ability to always put a smile on my face.

* They aren't afraid to be unique.

 Unfortunately though, there are a lot of young girls out there who don't know just how great they really are.

This week saw Girl Talk release their landmark 500th issue and with it they also launched their #GIRLSAREAMAZING campaign. I was asked, along with a few other bloggers if I would like to be involved with the campaign. I honestly felt honoured to be able to help promote such a great project, I for one think it is important that girls realise just how special and important they all are.

girl talk 500th issue

Thursday 27 March 2014

Sing Along To Disney's Frozen

If you haven't heard of Disney's Frozen yet then just where have you been?? This has become the favourite Disney film in the Hazelden household and the girls are extremely excited because on Monday Frozen will be available to buy on DVD and Blueray, I have to admit that even I'm looking forward to watching it again.

One of the things that is so loveable about the film is the amazingly catchy soundtrack. We have had the Frozen CD playing on repeat and the girls know a lot of the words off by heart now.

I'm sure you've seen plenty of the videos of parents and children singing along to all the now famous songs.

There is a great video on You Tube on Disney UK's official channel that has the words on the screen as the song plays allowing you to sing along with ease to the song 'Let It Go'.


I wasn't brave enough to get infront of the camera but my eldest daughter Elise loves to sing her heart out so gave it her best shot. gave it her best shot last night :



Will you be buying Disney's Frozen next week? What is your favourite song the film to sing along too?

xxxx


Turkey Mince Moussaka Recipe

Still on my quest to make healthier meals for me and the family, I am try to adapt recipes that I already love and give them that healthy twist. This week I really fancied moussaka but instead of using lamb mince, I decided to change it for turkey mince, less fatty and a better source of protein.

Ingredients

Base :

500g Turkey Mince
1 Tin of Chopped Tomatoes
2 Tbsp Tomato Puree
1 Large Red Onion
2 Large Aubergines

Sauce :

250g Greek Yoghurt
80g Grated Cheese
1 Egg
1 Heaped Tbsp Cornflour
Fry Light for Cooking

Wednesday 26 March 2014

Getting Comfortable in Converses

Before I had a kids, you know before I became known as mum, you would only ever see me in a pair of high heels. Even when my feet were really sore, I just couldn't bare to take them off, not only did they make me that bit taller, they seemed to give a certain amount of confidence. That all changed when I had kids, I some how didn't need the heels to give me confidence, the kids did that for me instead. The  platforms got switched for a comfortable pair of flats, normally my trusty pair of Converses. Running around after little ones 24/7 meant that comfort became key.

I was recently asked by the lovely people at cloggs.co.uk to review a pair of shoes from the great range that they stock. Cloggs have actually been trading online since 1998 and they aspire to be the number one online retailer of branded footwear. Selling over 100 different brands, they deliver all over the world!!

Can you guess what shoes I picked?

cloggs

Win a Good Night Anti-Snoring Ring

You may remember a couple of months ago I gave you lovely readers a chance to win a Good Night Anti-Snoring Ring.

Are you still being kept up at night by someone's pesky snoring? Are you yet to find a solution to your problem?

Well fear not because if you weren't lucky enough to win last time, you're in luck now, because I have another chance for you to win one.


To have a chance of winning a Good Night Anti-Snoring Ring, you just need to fill out the rafflecopter form below. The giveaway will close at 11.59pm on the 15th April 2014. Please make sure that you enter correctly as all entries and checked and verified.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Good luck everyone

xxxx

Win competitions at ThePrizeFinder.com

Tuesday 25 March 2014

Lets Create a Play Area

I said at the start of the year that after 8 years of living in the same house, it was more than time to start making our house more of home. I'm talking anything drastic as unfortunately we are renting so can't do an awful lot, but a few changes here and there are definitely needed. Last month Layla's room got a Minnie makeover, so this month I thought it was only fair that I did something for the other girls, well it includes Layla too. They tend to play up in their bedrooms but I like to see and hear what they are up to so I made the decision to create a little play area in the living room for them.

This is the area that I chose to redesign :


As you can see, it was empty, plain and boring. It now looks like this :

Monday 24 March 2014

Celebrating How to Catch a Star's 10th Anniversary

This month sees Oliver Jeffers' celebrating the 10th anniversary of his debut book, How to Catch a Star and to help celebrate, this lovely book is being re released in a special hard back gift addition.

how to catch a star 10th anniversary

This wonderful book has captured the imagination of children all around the world. 

'Once there was a boy and the boy loved the stars very much. Every night he watched the stars from his window and wished he had one of his very own...'

The special anniversary edition includes a beautifully worded letter from the author as well as previously unpublished pictures. 

I was lucky enough to be sent a copy for myself and my kids to enjoy.

Read With Me #12

Welcome to this weeks Read With Me. Thank you to all who linked up last week. I love finding out what you have all been reading whether it has been for yourself or for your children, there have been some great recommendations.

booky linky
This month seems to have been a slow month for reading for me.

So far I have only managed to read 7 books, this may sound a lot to some of you but I feel like I'm slacking. I just haven't managed to find the time or the peace and quiet to sit down and really enjoy books as much as I would like.

Do any of you find you go through spurts like this?

This week I'm changing Read With Me a little, instead of writing my review here, I have written my book review in a separate post as I felt this gave me more of chance to describe the story I was reading in more detail. You can find my post linked up already below.

Sunday 23 March 2014

Jim Crace's 'Harvest' Review

You must know by now from my #ReadWithMe weekly link, that I am somewhat of a book worm. So when I was kindly asked by Mumsnet to read and review Harvest written by Jim Grace, I was quick to accept the offer.

I was immediately intrigued just from reading the blurb :

As late Summer steals in and the final pearls of barley are gleaned, a village comes under threat. A trio of outsiders - two mean and a dangerously magnetic woman - arrives on the woodland borders triggering a series of events that will see Walter Thirsk's village unmade in just seven days : the harvest blackened by smoke and fear, cruel punishment meted out to the innocent, and allegations of witchcraft.

But something even darker is at the heart of Walter's story, and he will be the only man left to tell it…


Jim Crace Harvest

Silent Sunday


Saturday 22 March 2014

Only One of Me and Four of Them

I love getting my girls out in the fresh air and their favourite place to go is the park, doesn't matter what park but that is always their first response when asked what they want to do with the day. I admit to struggling sometimes though, with there being only one of them and four of me, I don't like the thought of not being able to see them all and the trouble with a lot of parks is that things are so spread out that I can't be everywhere all at the same time.

It is funny how time makes you forget things though. My mum happened to point out to me recently that there is a park near where she lives, I should know, I did live with her for quite a while ;)

This park has recently had a makeover with all new swings, slides etc so we decided to go round there with nannie last weekend.

It has now become my favourite park. Not too big, something for all the kids to do and most importantly it is a big open space surrounded by fences, I can see what all of the girls are doing from wherever I'm standing which left them free to go and play on whatever they wanted.

Project 365 Days 75 - 81

Anyone else wishing that Summer would hurry up and arrive? One minute it is sunny, the next windy and yesterday pouring hard rain. Luckily my trusty iPhone works come rain or shine so I still have a week of pictures to show you all.

Day 75

The sun was shining so what is most needed when the sun has got his hat on? That's right, lots of ice lollies, well except for Layla, she much preferred a yoghurt.


Day 76

Nothing to say, except selfie!!! :)

Friday 21 March 2014

The Girls Bring Spring to Life

One of my favourite linkys is Draw With Me over on This Mummy Loves. I love it because it is something that my girls can get involved with. The idea is that each month a new theme is set and your child has to draw something that relates to that theme. This month the theme is Spring, very appropriate.

Both Elise and Gracie decided to join in.

Elise (8) drew something which she titled Spring Song, the focus was on all the newly sprung flowers, she even included the orange one which is currently growing in our garden.

spring flowers

Little Late for World Book Day

Ok I know I'm late to the party, I do realise that World Book Day happened last week but for some reason my daughter's school decided to celebrate this week.

What I love is that they have dedicated a whole week to it, they've done something every day to celebrate books and just how important they are in our lives.

The children have had the opportunity to visit our local library and pick a book to borrow and take home, now this is something I do regularly with my children however some kids have never got the chance. I personally love the library, it means we can change what they are reading on a regular basis without it costing a penny!!!

Lots of activities have been arranged including making their own books, writing book reviews and creating their own bookmarks. Here's the bookmarks that Freya created with her own fair hands :

bookmarks

Thursday 20 March 2014

Peanut Butter Mug Cake

One of my guilty pleasures has to be the nutella mug cake, it is delicious and really satisfies that craving for cake that I seem to always have come the evening time. However it isn't exactly the healthiest thing to eat. I wanted to come up with something that would be just as tasty but wouldn't leave me feeling as guilty after consuming it. I came up with the peanut butter mug cake.

Ingredients

* 4 tbsp wholemeal self raising flour
* 4 tbsp caster sugar
* 3 tbsp cocoa powder
* 3 tbsp sunflower oil
* 3 tbsp semi skimmed milk
* 1 large egg
* 2 tbsp crunchy nut peanut butter

Wednesday 19 March 2014

Upbeat Review

I am always on the quest to lose weight and get fit. Over the past year or so I have come across various tips and theories to help me with changing my body for the better. One thing that has always remained true is that you need a healthy balanced diet with the right amount of vitamins, nutrients etc. Protein plays a huge part in helping build your muscles and is something that I try and consume plenty of, I top this up by having a protein shake after I exercise so when I was asked to review a new protein shake from Upbeat, I was keen to try it..

I was sent a lovely goodie pack along with some vouchers to go and purchase a few bottles of Upbeat, they couldn't send me the bottles themselves as these drinks need to stay chilled.


upbeat merchandise

Gluco Review

I think when you become a parent, even though you need a lot of energy to keep up with your kids, there seems to be a distinct lack of it, I always feel like I am running on empty somehow. I was recently sent a couple of products from Gluco to review. Gluco is a company that want to provide a natural, fast acting glucose that will provide your body with that much needed boost to keep on moving!!

Gluco

Gluco have a great range of tablets and a handy juice. The tabs are available in a variety of fruity flavours. I was asked to review a pack of their Gluctabs and one of their Glucojuices. I opted for the juicy raspeberry tabs and I was also sent the very berry juice.

Little Sweet Designs Review and Giveaway

I recently gave Layla's room a little makeover however I felt it was lacking something, I just wasn't sure what. Then I spotted Little Sweet Designs, this company offer some unique and modern wall art which first originated in Miami beach but they have since  expanded and their art is now created in their London based studio.

little sweet designs


I was lucky enough to be sent one of their prints to review, I liked that I didn't know which print I would be receiving. Their range has a mixture of both boys and girls prints, as well as some ones that I would consider more gender neutral. I couldn't have been more thrilled when I opened up the package.

Tuesday 18 March 2014

Making The Most of Breakfast

If you didn't know by now, breakfast is considered to be the most improtant meal of the day. The trouble is knowing just how to make the most out of breakfast. I recently teamed up with Nestle Cereals to find out just how good my choices at breakfast time were.

nestle cereals


Over the course of a week I filled in a daily diary describing just what my girls and I were eating for our breakfast. These diary entries were then looked at by nutritionist Juliette Kellow and I was advised to what I could do to change/improve just what we were digesting.

Monday 17 March 2014

Read With Me #11


mamamummymum read with me
Welcome to this weeks Read With Me, it was lovely to see so many of you linking up last week, gave me quite a few books to add to my "to read" list.

Although I read a couple of books this week, it is actually my eldest daughter Elise that is writing this weeks book review.

A couple of weeks ago Elise was lucky enough to be sent a copy of Janet C Smith's Krog The Frog Prince, to read and review, here are her thoughts :

krog the frog prince

Saturday 15 March 2014

Project 365 Days 68 - 74

I think the weather has been seriously confused this week, one minute it has been warm and sunny, the next cold and windy and then the fog arrives. Here's hoping the weekend is nice for all of us!!

Day 68

A poorly Layla had taken over our bed the night before, do you think she had enough room? We managed to make the most of a chilly day and take a stroll to the shops, of course Gracie being a daddy's girl had to be the one holding his hand!!



Day 69

I had to pick Freya up from school early as she felt poorly and poor baby Layla still wasn't right either. Meanwhile Gracie was basking in the sunshine and Elise was enjoying her Magic Belles delivery.

Friday 14 March 2014

A World Without the Internet?

I've been moaned at quite a few times by Daddy Hazelden for spending far too much time on the internet but after reading a post over on The Oliver's Madhouse about giving yourself a night off social media, I really got thinking about the amount of my daily life that is spent on not only social media, blogging etc but on just the internet itself. I honestly think I would struggle live in a world without the internet.

world wide web
My free moments consist of me writing blog posts and connecting with people via various social media sites. I am that bad that I have been caught tweeting and uploading pics onto instagram when I'm on "date night" with Daddy Hazelden.

I don't know if you noticed that Twitter went down for a few minutes the other night? Well I did and let me tell you it was like I had lost a limb, I didn't know what to do with myself for a moment, I wanted to update everyone with the fact that Twitter wasn't working!!

Thursday 13 March 2014

Special K Granola Review and Giveaway

You may have gathered from some of my previous posts that I am always on the quest to get fit and be healthier and one of the things to help with this a good balanced diet. One of the things I do believe to help is always having breakfast but it is nice to change what I eat every once in a while, so when I was asked if I would like to try and review the new granola from Special K, well I couldn't resist.

I was surprosed when the package arrived because not only did I receive a pack of each flavour, I also received a lovely reusable bag and a huge tea towel!!

special k granola

Wednesday 12 March 2014

Protect Your Skin With Sudocrem

I have always been a fan of the original Sudocrem, it has always worked wonders on my children's nappy rash. Last year I had the pleasure of reviewing Sudocrem's care and protect cream, a triple care ointment that guards against infection, conditions the skin and creates a protective barrier. However the Sudocrem range doesn't stop there, they also have a range of mousses and a skin care cream for adults too. I was sent a couple of samples from their range to try.

sudocrem skin care range

Aldi Mamia Nappies Review

As a mum to four children, I have used my fair share of nappies, a mixture of disposable and reusable. I tried using cloth nappies with Layla but unfortunately she has very sensitive skin and reacted to all washing powders that I tried, so we changed back to disposable. When I had my first two daughters I only used well known brand nappies such as huggies and pampers. I soon came to realise when I had my third daughter, that supermarket brands were just as good and cost a fraction of the price. Aldi recently sent me a pack of their Mamia nappies to try, having won multiple awards, I was expecting good things.

Aldi Mamia Nappies

I received a packet of size 4 Mamia nappies, this size typically suits babies with a weight range between 15-40lbs.

Parragon's Bonnie Marcus Collection Review

I am a huge fan of Parragon books, I have been lucky enough to review some of their range in the past. Recently Parragon teamed up with Bonnie Marcus, an award winning stationary designer, to create the Bonnie Marcus Collection. Bonnie's designs have filled the stationary world since 2002 and having a background in fashion, it is no surprise that her inspiration comes from the runway.  Her slogan is very fitting, "when fashion meets paper".

I was lucky enough to be sent a selection of books from the range to look at and try before they were even released.

Parragon Bonnie Marcus collection

Tuesday 11 March 2014

An Interview With Gracie, Age 4 Years Old

The lovely Kate at Family Fever came up with a fab idea for a post a few weeks back. The idea is that you get to interview your child and see what they really think of you as their mummy. Below is what my 4 year old Gracie thinks of me :

1. What is something Mummy always says to you?
Flush the toilet.

2. What makes Mummy happy?
Presents.

3. What makes Mummy sad?
When I'm gone.

Monday 10 March 2014

Read With me #10

Welcome to this weeks Read With Me. Ok where to start, well last week I recommended a set of books to you that I had read a while ago because the books I wanted to review, I hadn't quite finished yet, I know I'm normally so speedy. Well I'm pleased to say that I managed to finish them so I wanted to share my thoughts with you all.

read with me
I recently purchased a whole series of books as they were on offer and came highly recommended.

The Emi Lost and Found series consists of the following books :

Not Today, But Someday (prequel)

Lost and Found (book one)

Time Stands Still (book two)

Never Look Back (book three)

plus two bonus short stories.

Now I am glad that I have had the chance to read the series together as a whole, rather than reading them separately because I don't think I would have coped having to wait for each new book to be released. Not Today, But Someday was actually written after the first book had been released but I found it nice to be able to read them in order as the prequel really helped set up the main story and let you get to know more about the characters.

Saturday 8 March 2014

Project 365 Days 61 - 67

March has arrived and it bought some Spring sunshine with it too. Nice to see some flowers blooming and being able to step outdoors without getting rained on.

Day 61

The sun was shining so we took our first trip of the year up to Dover Castle.


Day 62

The girls were all congregated on the stairs for a secret meeting.

Friday 7 March 2014

Exploring Dover Castle

We are very lucky to have Dover Castle literally 5 minutes away from our home. We are also members of the English Heritage so after paying the initial membership, it means we can visit as many times as we like and it doesn't cost us a penny. It is one of those places that we just love exploring.

Exploring dover castle

Our go to place whenever we take a trip up there is to the Medieval tunnels, the girls love sitting on the cannons whilst Daddy Hazelden tries to scare them as we walk further into the dark.

Thursday 6 March 2014

Coconut and Marshmallow Muffin Recipe

I was lucky enough to receive a selection of goodies from Cake Angels on Monday. This included icing, sprinkles, candles and marshmallows.

cake angels baking range

 The question was just what was I going to bake? I had a look through my cupboard at the other ingredients that I had and I decided to make coconut and marshmallow muffins, adapting a recipe for muffins that I had made before.

Celebrating Twinkl's Birthday With a Giveaway

You may remember last year that I was lucky enough to review the platinum service provided by Twinkl, the website that provides printable resources for teachers, schools, nurseries and parents alike. This week Twinkl are celebrating their 4th birthday and to get into the party spirit, they wanted to provide everyone with some fantastic fun and games, free resources and of course some amazing giveaways.

Twinkl birthday

With over 114,000 resources on the site already and more being added all the time, you can see why Susie and Jonathon's creation receives millions of visitors every month.

Wednesday 5 March 2014

Get Ready For Springtime With Zoflora

We've made it to March already and it seems to have bought some sunshine with it, dare I say that Springtime seems to be upon us?? I was recently sent another great disinfectant from Zoflora to try out and the scent just happens to be Springtime, very fitting wouldn't you say.

Zoflora is a product that I really love and have recommended to people in the past, I actually reviewed their limited edition Twilight Garden scent last Summer.

I'm quite sure it is a household favourite for many families, can you believe it was created over 90 years ago and they still continue offer a range of wonderfully fragranced disinfectants!!!

The triple action formula of Zoflora kills up to 99.9% of bacterias and viruses and their Springtime is no exception, it may sound sad but I couldn't wait to get cleaning when it arrived.

Zoflora Springtime fragrance

Wilkinsons Food Processor Review

Recently I was asked to take part in a little campaign as part of the Making Money Go Further blog which is written by the experts at Debt Free Direct. The idea behind the campaign is finding out just how good supermarkets own brand electrical items are compared to those bigger brands out there, such as irons, food processors, hoovers, microwaves etc. Do we really need to spend that much money on our appliances or is this another place where we could be saving ourselves some much needed pennies?

Something that I have been in desperate need for for a while now is a new food processor, mine broke some time ago and I just haven't got around to replacing it. I was lucky enough to be sent a food processor from Wilkinson.

wilkinsons food processor

When it arrived I was slightly worried about how big it was going to be judging by the size of the box but I was pleasantly surprised when I opened up the package.

Tuesday 4 March 2014

Lets Talk About The Good, The Bad and The Ugly

I read an emotional post from a fellow blogger yesterday and it got me thinking (dangerous thing to do) that in general we seem to only talk about the good things that happen in our lives. Even in this day and age I'm finding that the sad times, the harder, grittier subjects tend to get glossed over, made to look better or just ignored completely. I include myself in this, as I've struggled to be honest with people about how I feel, nine times out of ten you will see me with a smile on my face regardless of the things I have dealt with on any given day or what thoughts are floating around in my head. I think it is high time that we were able to talk about the good, the bad and the ugly, I mean whats the worst that can happen?

I think one of my problems when it comes to talking is that I get embarrassed. I'm sure my friends and family really wouldn't bat an eye lid at half the things that I have to say and that they would just be happy to help. Infact I am one of these people that love to help, I'm great at giving the advice but not so good at taking it.

What's the saying, "it's good to talk".

Monday 3 March 2014

Read With Me #9

Wow that is 2 months of year already gone. Last month I managed to read 19 books but I think I also managed to lose quite a few hours sleep due to me getting so engrossed in the stories I was reading. For this weeks read with me, I had in mind the set of books that I wanted to review, however, shock horror, I didn't actually finish them, so that review will have to wait.

read with me
So instead, I have decided to recommend a set of books to you that I have read and re read time and time again.

I love the Shopaholic series written by Sophie Kinsella. You need to read all of the books in order :

* Confessions Of a Shopaholic

* Shopaholic Takes Manhatten

* Shopaholic Ties the Knot

* Shopaholic and Sister

* Shopaholic and Baby

* Mini Shopaholic

The books tell the story of Becky Bloomwood, a twenty five year old girl who dreams of a lavish lifestyle that she just can't afford. Each book follows Becky through a different stage of her life, we see her fall in love, get married, have children but you also see all of her quirkiness and hilarious goings on too.

Saturday 1 March 2014

Project 365 Days 54 - 60

With half term over it was back to school and play school with the girls. The weather has been a very mixed bag this week but despite it not wanting to make up its mind, we've managed to get some pictures both indoors and outside!!

Day 54

Just what Sundays are for, lounging around in pyjamas.


Day 55

Off out for a walk with nannie, lunch was promised at the end of this journey!!