Miscellaneous

Stitched up by a Mermaid Letter! Wot So Funee?

Ha! Something tells me GG has sussed the provenance of the mermaid letter that arrives with decreasing frequency at our house. At last! I can stop adding that to my to do list! And what’s more, she’s totally stitched herself up for several months to come. You see, we found this on the mat, on the Bug’s birthday: So wrapped up is she in the illusion, she’s given herself extra work too: *Sniggers*  Now, if you have your own post to link this week, grab the badge code from the sidebar, and click the link below to enter your post …

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Telling Tales

Are your children fond of telling tales to get themselves out of trouble? Do you love it, or does it wind you up? I myself am perfect, and never do anything wrong in my opinion, but if your children are forever telling tales, I have some really good news for you today. What is Telling Tales? We’re working with M&S uniform today to bring you the outrageous excuses children come up with for getting their clothes dirty. All day long on Twitter, you can tweet their excuses using the #TellingTales tag. Why would you do this? Well, apart from the …

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Tips for dealing with mean girls

Are you a bully? Some types of bullying are less obvious than others

  My darling girl, the time has come for me to tell you about girls. Girls are complicated creatures – I know you’ve got that nailed, you are complicated yourself! Girls can be wonderful, loyal, warm, supportive, nurturing, caring, and funny. They can share everything with you and make you feel like the best person in the world. But they can bring you down with a word – no, a look – and they can destroy your confidence. If you let them. Mean girls: they can be total bitches. I want you to be better than that. You are already better than …

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Give Me 5 Minutes, I’ll Give You The Truth About Book Editors

Hi all, Bug here. I don’t often write on the blog; I don’t often write at all – it’s not my favourite think. So when my first book came home in my folder of accomplishments from my year 1 work, Mummy was surprised to find my first book in there, complete with front cover and jacket blurb. I’ll admit it’s an epic achievement. I pulled out all the stops, avoided sticks for an age (!), and applied myself to my writing. Mummy was so impressed she published it. She edited it first – she so missed her rightful career, that one! Click …

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5 things you never knew you could do in London for kids

We live close to London, so we’re lucky to have it on our doorstep whenever we’re stuck for something to do. From lunches in Chinatown, to cycling practice in Regent’s park, via an hour (or several) in Hamley’s. Our children are so lucky to have this city available to explore. And yet more often than not we go to the usual places, the obvious sites, missing the many hidden jewels that London for kids has to offer. So this holiday we decided to explore some of the secrets of London for kids. London for kids: Stratford This week we visited The …

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Warning: These 5 Mistakes Will Destroy Your Boys Birthday Parties

Yesterday was the Bug’s 6th birthday party. It’s tough having a birthday in the middle of the summer holidays, and there is always someone who can’t make it to the party, so we try really hard to make sure my brother has a good time. Last year we made some mistakes, so this year we opted for something entirely different. He enjoyed both parties, but the adults needed wine with their curly ham sandwiches on both occasions. So with the benefit of hindsight, here are the 5 mistakes we think you should avoid: Do’s and don’ts for boys birthday parties …

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Inventions by children: Wot so Funee?

School’s out, and so is all my schoolwork. Out of the classroom, and into my schoolbag, to be dumped unceremoniously on the hall floor, where it will stay for the next six weeks. If I have my way, which I never do, obviously! *Huffs.* So Mummy rummaged through all my stuff, and emerged clutching this: I call it the Water Extreme 200017. So called because parts of the world are extremely short on water, and I’m pretty sure that at least 200,017 people are affected. So I have invented this for them. As you can see, it collects rainwater, filters it clean, …

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Do I need glasses Mummy?

Glasses are so cool, don’t you think? My friend has been wearing a pair at school for a couple of years now, and I’ve been coveting them. I’ve been begging Mummy to take me for an eye test, but she hasn’t obliged. Until recently. What is it about your siblings that makes them more convincing than you, I wonder? I’ve been trying on glasses in Claire’s Accessories for months now, without a whisper of an appointment at the opticians, but the minute my brother says his eyes go blurry when he reads, we’re off to Specsavers! Mummy is also as …

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Passing notes: Wot so Funee?

Apparently I talk a lot. That’s what loquacious means, you know, so for those who want to complain about the chatter, I’d just like to point out that using words like that on MY blog is kind of self-perptuating. Duh! 🙄 Perhaps Mummy, you should have chosen a different strap-line; maybe something along the lines of “The Diary of an Introspective Schoolgirl.” That might possibly have governed the outcome of my developing personality. Or maybe not… Anyway, I do sometimes get it in the neck for wittering on. Apparently I’m not allowing my brother to get a word in. Allegedly …

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Letting go: good clean fun with Persil’s small and mighty kids campaign

This post is sponsored by Persil. It is our summary of a fabulous week outdoors in the sunshine 🙂 Cognitive Behavioural Therapy is the best thing in the world. Strange statement, I know, for a post about good dirty clean fun outdoors, but bear with me. 15 years ago my regular night-time pattern was to sleep until 2am, wake for 4 hours, then drift off to sleep around 6, ready for the alarm at 7. Every single night. For more than 10 years. I was a wreck. I survived on coffee, and moaned about everything. CBT changed all that, and …

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Teen Beach Movie

We’ve listened to the soundtrack, and it’s kind of catchy, in a weird sixties/Doris Day kicks ass way, but without knowing the context, it’s hard to figure out why. So Friday evening saw us, popcorn in bowl, huddled on the sofa, glued to the Disney channel, for the premiere of Teen Beach Movie. Instantly I was hooked. Sweet girl, blonde boy, doomed romance as the long summer draws to an end; it’s a winner in any young girl’s book. What is Teen Beach Movie all about? Kind of surfer chick meets HSM Cliff Richard style, the movie sees McKenzie and …

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Family friendly restaurants: why kids are getting a raw deal

I am a girl who likes her food. My restaurant travels are well-documented on this blog, and I have often turned restaurant critic in an endeavour to give praise and recognition where it’s due. So I’m aghast today at news that most food outlets – yes, including the so-called “family friendly restaurants” – are falling drastically short of providing healthy and interesting children’s meals. So I’m asking for your help. Family friendly restaurants are giving kids a raw deal Out to Lunch is a review of children’s food offers across restaurants from high-street chains to celebrity dining venues. Undertaken by kids …

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Wot so Funee? is on a blog-hop!

To those members of the #funee crew who have loyally embarrassed their children shared the amusing moments of the parenting journey with me over the months: Thank You, and you’ll be wanting to click here. To anyone just rocking up for the first time wondering “What on earth????” click here for an explanation! The lovely Monika, from Mum on the Brink, has kindly offered to host Wot so Funee? this week, which is very exciting, because she’s fairly new to the #funee game. This week she is solo parenting, and has promised me a post about fish fingers. Be gentle …

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A BIG night in with Lucky Voice online karaoke (review)

Did you read that? What it says on the box? Oh, yes! Mummy is never going to get access to her laptop ever again!  Because this karaoke party kit arrived last week from Lucky Voice, and now I’ve got the hang of it, I’m planning to exercise my vocal chords every opportunity I get. Lucky Voice have a chain of upmarket Karaoke bars across the country, but this is the first time they have ventured into our homes online. My Mum is rubbish with technology, so she had a bit of a faff trying to set the party kit up, …

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Winners and Losers of BritMums Live blog conference 2013

I posted this on Facebook this morning: Turns out everyone knew how I felt. There are so many things I want to write about BritMums Live that I just couldn’t begin to know how to get them out of my head and onto the keyboard. Where to start? Other bloggers claimed the same; the weekend blog conference had left them exhilarated, inspired, but overwhelmed. But I cannot write my normal musings until I package my thoughts on this huge event into neat boxes, labelled and filed in the labyrinth of my brain, where I can find them easily when I …

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Can you really go to a music festival with kids?

I am told that my Dad was once quite cool. I am led to believe that he introduced Mummy to indie music. Prior to their meeting she was all a bit Take That and Celine Dion (I know!!) but he soon sorted her out with a trip to the V Festival in Leeds. There they had an enormous row about a baked potato, and she fell in love with Gene and the Supernaturals. Daddy, on the other hand, was a huge fan of Dodgy (which I presume is where he gets his fashion sense from), and was fond of something …

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Observational drawing: Wot so Funee?

Is it just me who finds this funny? I’ve been away to BritMums Live this weekend, and when I came home with the irascible Mammasaurus, who was staying the night at ours, this “observational drawing” was awaiting me, courtesy of my daughter. Normally I would find it nothing short of charming, an example of the work she is currently immersed in at school. But it appears to be a blogging congratulations 😕 I am further confused by the fact that I am only the second named recipient of this award, Annie herself looking like the more important winner. I think …

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Our dream holiday in Orlando: what makes a good theme park?

Yesterday I recounted our excitement at travelling to Orlando. We were off on the trip of a lifetime, and despite a few hiccups we made it! So, 11 theme parks later, I’m back to tell you what I’ve learned on my epic rollercoaster tour. What makes a good theme park? a. You have to get the queue experience right This (ficticious) Jabba’s Palace attraction has the queue system completely wrong. First, it opens well after the park opening time, so immediately falling short of customer expectations. You will find this at Sea World: we turned up early to beat the queues, only …

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Our dream holiday in Orlando: we’re off on an epic trip!

A while back we showed you this video reveal of the plan for our dream holiday in Orlando. Bearing in mind that by the day of our trip we clearly knew we were off to Florida’s Disney World resort, so we considered Daddy’s attempt to wind us up nothing short of brutal: We quickly put him straight and dragged him away from the Easyjet desks: Panic over, we set about getting excited. Here are some basic tips on how to make the most of a long plane journey with kids: Arrive at the airport super-early. Yes early! The grown-ups will …

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Athlete’s Foot: Wot so Funee?

Image credit  Very short, but very snort-worthy this week. A quick story about athlete’s foot, from a friend of mine. Finishing off her bath-time routine, E notices the tin of athlete’s foot spray perched on the corner of the bath: E “Oh, by the way Mum, that stuff doesn’t work.” Mum: “What do you mean?” E: *shrugs* “Just that it doesn’t work, I sprayed some on my feet and it made no difference.” Mum: “What? Why did you spray it on your feet?” E: *huffs* “Well, obviously, I wanted to run faster. Like I said, it doesn’t work…” Wot? Wot so Funee? …

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