3 Great places to live in Riverside County in California

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Riverside County

Riverside County is one of the most populous counties in Southern California, USA. It’s one of the best places to stay where work and life is a great balance. There are so many attractions to see and experience in Riverside. You can visit museums, theme parks, and indulge in food. Riverside County is an ideal place to live for families looking for a place to settle in California. The local government is very active and provides lots of programs and services that ensure that residents are happy, safe and secure. Considering moving here? Take a look at these 3 great places to live in Riverside County.… Continue reading

Teen and Tween Skincare from Green People – Review and Giveaway

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Having a teen and tween I know how important it is for them to start looking after their skin from an early age. Katie was 11 in January, and for the past few months she has been getting outbreaks of tiny spots on her forehead. Now I am not going to lie, I was a little taken aback when I saw them. Of course I know that most children will suffer with spots, but it was more the realisation that my baby girl was growing up.

Green People skincare range

So when we received a lovely package from Green People, it came at the perfect time for us.… Continue reading

Our little trip to Northumberland

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Up until our little Northumberland trip we had only had 1 night away during the summer holidays, so our 3 day break to Slaley Hall was very much needed.  After our traditional stop at Tebay Services on the M6 (the BEST services as it’s like your favourite farm shop opening up on a motorway) we arrived at our 3 bedroom lodge.

3 Bedroom Lodge at Slaley Hall

I knew what to expect as we had stayed at Slaley Hall last year, but you still get the wow factor when you first enter. We have stayed in A LOT of lodges over the years, and Slaley wins hands down for the biggest lodge.… Continue reading

Little Loves – Summer Holidays, Back to School and 4 years of Blogging

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I have really missed writing up my Little Loves post over the summer, and I am glad the weekly link up is back after its summer break. I last wrote a Little Loves post back on the 27th July, a post that was filled with emotion as Katie had just finished primary school. Fast forward 6 and a bit weeks and she has just started high school, thankfully with a lot less emotion from me. So my Little Loves this week is a look back at our summer holidays.

The summer holidays

Read

My aim was to read 2 books during the summer holidays and I achieved this.… Continue reading

School Holiday Sleepover

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Last night I was looking at our ‘summer list of fun’ which has been pinned to the kitchen wall since the start of the summer. Many things have been ticked off such as cinema day, swimming day, and a day of shopping (yes you can tell I live with an 11 year old girl). But one thing that has remained unticked is ‘school holiday sleepover’.

School Holiday Sleepovers

And when you are 11, sleepovers are THE best thing ever. I remember having sleepovers when I was my daughters age, seeing who could stay awake the longest, and having that all important midnight feast. So I am kind of sad that for some reason the school holiday sleepover didn’t happen.… Continue reading

School Trip to Iceland

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About 6 months ago the teen arrived home from school clutching a letter which was promptly handed to me. Now this in itself is extraordinary as school letters often remain crumpled and unloved at the bottom of his school bag. And judging by the hopefulness spreading across his face, it was something he desperately wanted to do.

School Trip to Iceland

The letter was from the Geography department about an October trip to Iceland. A beautiful country where he would experience Plate Tectonics and Glaciation, all supporting his learning towards his GCSE Geography exam next year. And yes my husband and myself were very jealous of this amazing opportunity.… Continue reading

Dreaming of a bigger and lighter kitchen

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There is no mistaking that our kitchen is probably the darkest room in our house, and I often dream of a lighter and bigger space. But this would obviously mean moving house, a bigger mortgage, and no doubt a whole heap of stress. We have been in our home for nearly 17 years and have no plans to move, so what can we do to achieve a bigger and lighter kitchen.

Paint the units

I was seriously looking into this a few months ago. Whilst our kitchen is a decent quality, I am bored of the beech units and black granite work tops.… Continue reading

Pork Farms pop up party – Nominate your local hero

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Can you think of a local hero ? A person or group that have given up their time to make others smile, or made a difference to your home town.

Pork Farm Website

It could be the lady who works for a local charity, giving up her time to others who are less fortunate than her. Or how about the  scout leaders, who give their time and passion to bring fun and laughter to local children (my daughter being one of them, who benefits enormously from her weekly scout group and camps). Or a community group who has helped to transform an unused patch of land into a calm oasis for local people to enjoy.… Continue reading

Back to School with Smiggle – Review and Giveaway

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I can’t believe we have less than 3 weeks of the summer holidays to go, and of course my mind is full of various to do lists. Anybody else have the dreaded school shoe purchases still to make ? Thankfully Katie is one step ahead of me, and is organised as ever with her ‘back to school stationery box’. I kid you not, a box FULL of stationery for when she starts high school in September. And thanks to Smiggle, she now has a few more items to add to her box.

Smiggle Back to School Range

Katie loves the ‘adventures wallet’ and with it being so bright and colourful there is less chance of her losing it.… Continue reading

My A to Z of things to achieve – Update

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Back in January I wrote my A to Z of things to achieve in 2017. Seeing as though we are halfway through August, I thought it was time to update you on my progress.

Discover a new place to have afternoon tea – I am booked in for afternoon tea in September, so this will get ticked off next month.

Hire a beach hut – In June I got to spend the day in a beach hut in Lytham St Annes.

Beach hut at Lytham

Visit a new city – Bath was our ‘new city’ and what a wonderful 4 day break we had back in February.… Continue reading