Why I'm Going To Stick To A Routine Whilst Homeschooling

The news is out and so is school!! From now until who knows when school is cancelled and with support from teachers and a host of online resources we will now be homeschooling for the foreseeable future. 

Lots of people have been sharing what their approach will be, with many saying they will hold off for a few weeks and think about school later. My approach will be a little different though. This was probably clear from the night that the announcement of the school closure came through. With others chatting online about it, I was already in Poundland buying more crayons, paper and workbooks, ready for the challenge. 

A few people have asked why I'm sticking to a routine whilst homeschooling and not taking a do maths in your PJs, try phonics if you can be bothered or wait a while approach, so I wanted to share why I'm going to stick to a routine whilst homeschooling. 

5 Tips To Ensure Your Family Stay Friends When Stuck Inside

So, if you're reading this you're possibly stuck inside with your family, or face being inside with them, for a long time. Be it a snowstorm, a virus or a hurricane, you're in your home for a long period with those you love the most, but will you like each other by the end of it??

Here's 5 tips to ensure your family stay friends when stuck inside!

8 Things To Do Before You Self Isolate

There's lots in the news about self isolation and for those that are older or vulnerable health wise to stay indoors. Many are making the decision to self isolate before the virus hits them or their loved ones.

As a family our son's school and my husband's workplace remains open but we are reducing our contact with the outside word and are asking older or vulnerable family members and friends to do the same. That's if they will listen!!

I've been having a bit of a think about if we do have to fully self isolate or go on a full lock down and what I could do to plan ahead. Obviously, if you're unwell already this won't apply. Anyway, I've made a list and thought I'd share it with you, but before I do I'd like to add something. This is advice from someone that likes to plan ahead, someone that also has elderly and vulnerable people to watch over and someone that copes by being organised and writing lists. This is not to encourage stockpiling and selfish behaviour.

How we deal with this situation happening around the world will me marked in history. Our children see us. They take it all in. Stay calm. Only take what you need. Help others if you can. Just like a few weeks ago, be kind.

Now, here's 8 things to do before you self isolate.

30 Crafts & Activities You Can Do If School Gets Cancelled

There's lots in the news right now about the possibility of schools closing for a few weeks, with recommendations that people stay home. For those with children this could cause a bit of a gasp!

Two weeks indoors with children can he hard. My son had chickenpox last year and we were stuck inside for weeks. It was hard keeping him entertained, not being bored or going stir crazy.

So, from experience and as a 'crafty mum' here's 30 craft and activities you can do if school gets cancelled.

5 Crafty Things You Can Do To Upcycle Or Recycle Glass Jars

As part of my Making A Sustainable Change posts, I recently wrote about glass jars and what you can do to help make a difference to the environment and how to correctly recycle them. Glass jars can easily be upcycled and reused, so as part of the last post I thought I'd give you a couple of ideas for if you want to join the upcycling and reusing club!

6 Lego Essentials For When Your Kids Love Lego

So, your kids love Lego! Great!! It's a toy that encourages creativity and imagination, plus if your kids can play independently you might find that they'll happily play with Lego for hours on end.

Our son became a fan of Lego during the Duplo and toddler days. He would build all manner of different things and when the time came for him to move onto to Lego, his creativity and imagination just grew and grew.

Now 5, he continues to be a huge fan of Lego. We've been incredible lucky to have been handed down a huge stack of Lego and we've bought a few extra sets along the way, mostly superhero themed!!

But, with so much in our house we've learnt there's a few items that are essential if you're kids love Lego!

Creative Projects You Can Do With Your Children

(Collaborative Post)

We all want to have fun with our children, but sometimes it can be hard to come up with new exciting ideas. There are plenty of activities that you can do with items that are lying around your house. They can even be educational and encourage creativity. Here are a few fun activities that you and your children can have fun doing together.

Celebrating World Book Day With Viking

(Gifted)

World Book Day is just around the corner and there’s plenty of ways to join in. Be it dressing up, having a reread of your favourite book or getting crafty or creative, there’s plenty to do!

With this in mind the team at Viking have kindly gifted me a selection of craft items to get creative this World Book Day! There’s a great selection, including card, ink, an always handy Sharpie, letter stamps, a frame and plenty of other bits.

They asked for me to get crafty and create something using my favourite book and the items they provided for World Book Day and that’s exactly what I did with my copy of Peter Pan and Wendy.

Making A Sustainable Change - Glass Jars

Last time with Making A Sustainable Change, I spoke about recycling and how getting to grips with it can make a big difference to the environment and is a great way to get started with making a sustainable change.

Now, I'm going to slim down parts of that and talk about individual items, how to recycle, upcycle or dispose of them in a way that's good for the environment and not too problematic for you.

This time we're looking at glass jars.

Top Tips For Perfect Family Road Trips

(Collaborative Post)

Are you planning a family road trip? If so, you are probably looking forward to getting away from it all and enjoying the open road stretching out ahead of you. There are so many exciting places to explore and travelling by road is a great way to head off on an adventure. A road trip offers the opportunity to enjoy some beautiful scenery that you may not always get to see.

Before heading off on your road trip, it is essential to make sure that you have everything you need. When taking a road trip with kids ensuring that you have all the essentials with you is even more critical so that everyone can have an enjoyable trip. 

Feeling The Love This Valentine's Day With Swizzels

(Gifted)

February is finally here (hooray!), and it's time to feel the love as Valentine's Day is just around the corner. There's so much on offer in the shops and online when it comes to Valentine's Day gifts, but it can all be a bit samey! 

The same flowers, toiletries and sexy undies, but if like me you've been married for a while and together since time began, you might find yourself rolling your eyes at all the soppy stuff!! That said us long serving married folk still want a treat! Especially if it's a sweet treat!

Well, Swizzels, can fulfill all your sweet treat dreams with their hampers and Love Heart range.

Steak Salad With Schwartz

(Sponsored Post)

Working from home I often find I have the same things for lunch over and over again. The same ham sandwich. The same cheese on toast. The same soup. I've actually had soup so often that I currently can't even look at it, but I do like a warm lunch, especially on winter days. 

Balancing the working from home life though, I don't want to spend ages cooking a hot lunch or tidying up after it! I'm all for something easy and quick but obviously tasty too. A lunch that can be quickly prepped, can be popped in the oven, cooked and come out perfect without being watched constantly. Minimal effort but great taste.

With this in mind I've come up with this easy to make steak salad. It's full of flavour and to be honest I could do with some leaves in my life!!