Making Moving Home A Little Less Stressful

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Are you about to move house? Are you preparing to uproot your entire life and move across a street, town, city or maybe the country to make a new home elsewhere? When you've got a family take care of at the same time though, its a lot harder to do than some people realise, but it doesn't have to be an impossible feat.

Living DNA

Gifted

Family history and your ancestry can open up a door to the past that you didn't know existed. 

Tracking your ancestry through resources like birth, marriages and death records though can be costly and time consuming. You can sometimes only get so far and if you have a common surname there can be some stumbling blocks too! An alternative to the official records is an obituary search, which can often give you more information than just knowing when your ancestor died. For instance, you can find out how they lived, loved, and how they were remembered too. 

This is where DNA testing can help. A simple swab can give you a deep insight into your family tree. Living DNA goes deeper than any other company I've ever come across and can breakdown ancestry to 80 worldwide regions including 21 within the UK. 

Summer Spotters

Here in the UK we have had a super hot summer but the nights will soon start to draw in and the weather will cool. Before the fun in the sun is all over though here's a little activity for the kids, Summer Spotters!

This is an ideal activity if you're going on a long journey or just want something that is free to do! 

So, can you spot the 10 signs of summer?

1. Clear skies and sunshine!

The UK summer isn't all clouds and rain, can you spot a clear sky and sunshine?

Keeping The Cost Of The Family Holiday As Low As Possible

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Summer vacations and holidays with the family are not cheap, are they? 

It's not just the cost of the vacation to think about, but also the spending money for when you are there, the holiday clothes and accessories, as well as the toiletries you'll need.

South Lakes Safari Zoo

Based in Cumbria, South Lakes Safari Zoo offers an experience different to many other zoos! Walk around many areas of the zoo and the animals will walk alongside you! Without fences!!

When we planned our visit to the zoo I wasn't really sure how I'd feel with the animals walking around, especially some of the larger birds and kangaroos, but our 4 year old was really excited about our latest adventure so I just had to be brave! 

Lemon Curd Cupcakes

My husband is a huge fan of lemon cake. Unfortunately though, due to a strange allergy I have, lemon cake is something we rarely have in the house.

Back in May when I attended BlogOn, a bloggers conference, we were gifted a pouch of the Cake Angels lemon icing and when I got home my husband's eyes lit up! He's waited a while but I've finally got round to making some lemon cake!

You'll see from the recipe that there's no lemon zest or juice and that's so I can avoid handling it. I went with lemon curd as an alternative and easy option for lemon flavouring. 

These are the results and according to my husband they are the best cakes I've made! EVER!!! I will admit I had some help from our 4 year old though!

Cost-effective Alternatives To Wood Flooring

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For many people the height of interior design comes with the elegance of wood flooring. Whether you prefer a contemporary style or a more traditional decor for your home, wooden wooden floors can make all the difference.

There's no denying though that buying wood flooring can be very expensive!

3 School Prep Activities

It's already August and the new school year is just around the corner! For many of us it will be the first ever year of education for our children as they head into Reception class.

My last post about getting ready for Reception, Preparing Your Child For School, was quite popular so I thought I'd do another! 

These activities are aimed at helping your little one be ready and maybe a little more confident for starting school.

1. Writing and recognising their name

As I mentioned in my last post, teachers, teaching assistants and nursery staff have all told me that it's ideal if a child can write and pick out their name. That way they can name their work, sign themselves in on a registration board and pick out their school jumper from a pile.

Mud & Bloom

Gifted

With forest schools and mud kitchens, outdoor play is becoming more and more popular. Getting outside in the fresh air can help you get active and encourage creativity in your little ones. 

What if though you struggle with activity ideas? Maybe your outdoor play activities only go as far as mud pies and jumping in puddles in the winter and sandpits and paddling pools in the summer! 

This is where Mud and Bloom can help. 

Sizergh Castle

Nestled in the Lake District, Sizergh Castle is a stunning medieval home and estate maintained by the National Trust. With the Strickland family still resident the property offers a mix of modern and old.

Picking The Perfect Rug

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There's lots of finishing touches when decorating a room that can really complete it. Pictures, photographs, candles, cushions and rugs can all help set the scene for a warm and welcoming home. 

Picking a couple of cushions and framing a few photos is easily done and doesn't involve a huge amount of money but picking something like a rug takes much more consideration.

Rose Gold Letters

After the results of JJ's Marvel letter I've been really tempted to try a more grown up version and with the bedroom makeover on the horizon (yes, its actually happening!) now seems a good time!

As always I'm sharing this with you so you can try it for yourself! These are so easy you will definitely want to!