A letter on your last day of being one

Dear sweetie,

Tomorrow you’ll be turning two! Two whole years! It’s crazy. Hasn’t time flown. Time is a funny thing. In some ways your birth feels as if it were yesterday and in other ways it feels like many many years ago, almost like a dream. Sometimes it is still hard to believe that you are my son and that you’re nearly two! You do something new every single day and it still amazes me what a clever little cheeky monkey you are.

April Degustabox Review

This month I was sent a Degustabox box to review. Degustabox is monthly subscription service that sends out a selection of food and drink products. There are between 9-14 items in every box, many of which are completely new on the market. There is an element of surprise as you do not know what is inside the box until it arrives. Buying the items separately from the supermarket would cost a lot more so Degustabox is great value for money. Each box costs £12.99 including delivery.

Silent Sunday

Ten things I learnt from Workfest

Last week I went to the Workfest conference, an annual event organised by Mumsnet. I was thrilled to have won a free ticket (thanks Mumsnet!) so got up extra early on Saturday morning to attend the one-day event in London. I was really excited at the thought of spending the whole day listening to successful and inspiring people. I have been thinking about a return to part-time work and thought this day would give me a much needed insight into juggling a successful career with having children. I had been tweeting a few other attendees before the event and we all met up at the start which was really nice otherwise I wouldn’t have known anyone! Twitter always helps :)

Silent Sunday

Can you guess the location? :)

Kids Don’t Come with a Manual - Book Review & Giveaway

Recently I was asked to review Kids Don’t Come With a Manual: The Essential Guide to a Happy Family Life by Carole and Nadim Saad. I haven't actually read a parenting book since baby was six months. I read plenty of books in pregnancy and a couple after baby was born, one of which was particularly useful and answered all of my questions of those newborn days and beyond. Once I reached the six month mark I felt I no longer needed to read parenting books apart from the odd one connected to weaning or first aid. If I had a problem I tended to talk to friends or family instead. 

Now my little one is a toddler, and a very determined one at that, knowing what the ‘right’ thing to do is in certain situations can be confusing. Do I say ‘no’? Do I distract him every time he does something he shouldn’t be doing? Should I just let him do that thing because he’s too young to understand why he shouldn’t be doing it? Or should I insist he doesn’t do it? The introduction mentions the dilemma that many parents face today. "With so many contradictory beliefs clamouring for parent’s attention, it’s no wonder that we are left feeling even more confused (and sometimes even guilty) about the 'right’ way to parent."

Event month in Brighton

The month of May in Brighton is a busy one. Brighton Fringe is the biggest event with over 760 individual events spanning across the month. This includes 175 free events & over 3500 performances. Whether you are interested in music, theatre, live performances or children's activities there is something for everyone. As well as the Fringe there is also Brighton Festival, the Artists’ Open Houses and a whole range of unique events across the city. I thought I would list my highlights for this month. 

Artists’ Open Houses 

Weekends throughout May, 200 locations across Brighton and Hove. Free.

Verbena & banana leaves by Paula Fahy 

Throughout the month of May it is Brighton and Hove’s Artist Open Houses. There are over 1000 artists taking part and 200 open doors. This is a great opportunity to visit artists in their studios or homes and see a display of their work with the opportunity to buy original pieces from local artists. Art work ranges from paintings, prints, sculpture, photography, video, ceramics, glassware, textiles and jewellery. I haven’t been to any yet but there are some just around the corner and I will visit these at the weekend. That’s one of the great things about the open houses, you are sure to find some near you if you live in the Brighton & Hove area. For more information see the Artists' Open Houses website 

Silent Sunday

The General Election 2015: A day of hope!

The day is here, the UK general election of 2015! A day of hope, of expectations, of excitement, a vision of a better future and one in which our children will grow up in. A vote that can change so much!!! This year the election couldn’t be closer in terms of the outcome therefore it’s so important to go out and vote. 

In the last general election I followed the parties closely, watched the live debates, read several manifestos, stayed up past midnight and heard about the votes as soon as they came in. I was super duper on the ball. Now I have a little one, gone are those days of timeless hours spent on the election. To be honest, up until two days ago, I’d barely read a thing on any party or candidate. Then something struck and the excitement finally hit me, knowing that today people across the country are going out to vote for a fairer future. That feeling that your vote can make a huge difference! 

In the last few years, I’ve been disillusioned by the political parties. All of those expectations and hopes from the last election came to zilch. If you think your vote won’t make any difference or you think you have no interest in politics, as I once did, please think again. I’m passionate about politics because everything around us is connected. I dream that we have a supportive society, one where everyone is encouraged to reach their goals. I hope we have a country without discrimination, one full of equality, a country with free education, a greener environment, an efficient NHS which doesn’t have a mountain of bureaucracy, a society that encourages small businesses and one that awards not punishes those that work in the public sector, better childcare options, free nursery places for children of any age, longer maternity/paternity leave, my list goes on…

Of course that’s my dream and although we may be swayed by false promises and idealistic views let today be the day we dream big!

Happy voting :)

If you still don’t have any idea who to vote look at these quizzes to see which party matches your views more closely. You may be surprised! A short version http://www.whoshouldyouvotefor.com or a longer version https://uk.isidewith.com/political-quiz.

Silent Sunday