September 1, 2015 - Actually Mummy

Travel: Top 10 activities at Duinrell holiday park

May 11, 2021September 28, 2015

A lovely traditional carousel provides the centrepiece for the pancake house at Duinrell

Our summer holiday this year took us on a family week to Duinrell holiday park, in the Netherlands. We’ve done a lot of campsite holidays, and several with Canvas, but this was probably the most successful of all of them. And it wasn’t due to the weather! Duinrell is a bit different in that – once you’ve paid for your accommodation – you have a range of rather unusual on-site activities included in the price, including access to a full-scale theme park! We honestly could have spent the whole week on site. Here are our top 10 things to do …

Travel: What we loved about the Tikibad water park in Duinrell!

September 21, 2020September 25, 2015

The terrifying (and wedgie-giving) Pelican slide at the Tikibad in Duinrell Holiday Park is not to be missed!

Without a doubt, the main reason you will stay at Duinrell is the Tikibad. Aside from the fact that it is a genius addition to a park where the weather isn’t always of the beach variety, it is quite simply the most fun you will ever have in a soggy swimsuit. I’m not the biggest fan of water parks since passing the hedonistic age of 21, preferring to stay dry and warm, and to keep all my belongings where I can see them. But I was the first to beg for another day at the Tikibad, once I’d sampled the …

Travel: The day a seagull stole my lunch.

May 8, 2021September 23, 2015

Seagulls. What big fat bullies they are! I knew they were cheeky, having frequently been in a near-miss swoop confrontation; I even knew that they were clever enough to flock to tourist traps for easy pickings, having once lost a chip at the beach in St Ives. Put down your doughnut at Felixstowe beach and someone else is sure to help themselves. But hats off to the Dutch gulls – they have it all figured out. It was on a day trip to the beach, not far from Duinrell holiday park, in the Netherlands, that we first crossed paths with what can …

Diabetes: This is WAR

June 5, 2017September 16, 2015

This weekend we played a game of Bananagrams. One of those games that you either love or hate. My need for order and precision, my discomfort with change means it’s not my favourite. But it grows on you. Those who like to shake things up, change them for the sake of it, experiment, they love it. It makes GG happy. If she doesn’t like a word she’s used, she’ll change it. I wish everything was that simple. I left them to tidy up, and when I next looked, they hadn’t. They’d all wandered off, apart from her. She sat at …

Salted Caramel Ice Cream recipe with a Twist – or a Twix!

May 26, 2020September 14, 2015

Recipe: Salted Caramel ice-cream with Twix Mix is set to become a favourite

The Best Salted Caramel ice-cream recipe I’m trying to think of a good reason not to make salted caramel ice cream. But I just can’t come up with one. I mean, who doesn’t love that sea-salty tang, followed by the deep burned sweetness of caramel? Mixed with creamy custard and scooped into a cone, it’s doubly compelling, so I try no longer. When we were sent the Smart Scoop ice-cream maker from Sage, we had all sorts of ice-cream recipes in mind to try. There’s my favourite Rhubarb Crumble ice-cream, low-carb Death by Chocolate ice-cream, and our new …

School: The most stressful days of your life?

May 8, 2021September 11, 2015

Does your school look after your child's emotional wellbeing?

School stress image courtesy of Shutterstock. Does your school prioritise wellbeing and emotional health? On the school run I walk past two schools: the primary, where my children spend their days; and the local secondary school, which churns out hundreds of blazered adolescents attached to phones, bikes, and in some cases, to each other. Overall, these teenagers are pretty well-behaved; their headteacher often operates the pelican crossing, so they need be, at least until they’re over the road and round the corner. They will move aside for your buggy – if they see you. They will nod, and maybe even smile, if …

Travel: A Very Clever Beach Towel – Hammamas Towel Review

April 21, 2020September 7, 2015

Colourful but clever Hammamas towels are the solution to space-saving on your holiday packing

I’d never heard of a Hammam beach towel until Hammamas got in touch to ask me to review theirs. If you’re also in the dark, read on to find out the benefits of a cotton Hammam towel that’s lightweight and small enough to save luggage space, but absorbent enough to do the job! Ad: Hammamas gave us four of their adult-sized towels for this review. All opinion and images are our own. Why Hammam beach towels are perfect for a holiday Every now and then, when you’re reviewing products on a blog, you find one that you love so much, …

Family: Learning to use Heelys

March 15, 2016September 4, 2015

The Bug got a pair of Heelys from his Grandma for his eighth birthday. Cool gift. He’d watched his sister and her friends gliding round the park for a while – and anything she can do, he wants to do – so Heelys is what he asked for. His sister helped choose them, picking out the high-top style she secretly wants for herself. He unwrapped them, loved them, and all was good. Until I tried to help him learn to use them. Cue grumpy face, and swift return from the park with a rather strong smell of defeatism following on …