A pocket of my life

Hello March, where did February go?  I feel like February an odd month, I always forget how short this month feels and its only 2-3 days shorter.  We started the month with Lils ending her girl guiding story, sadly her group closed and with her only have a few months till she would be to old for guides she decided not to move groups, this was an emotional night and Lils was sad that she didnt make it to gold during her time there.  The weather for most of February has been wet and miserable but me and Liam ended up building a shed in ankle deep mud which was tiring.  Valentines and half term came around, Liam treated me to a cute mug and teddy and we just enjoyed the evening. The beginning of half term we took a trip to the cinema and the park then I managed to badly sprain my toe and was pretty much off of it for a week.  We did actually end the month with to family trips out, the first was to Arlington raceway to watch banger racing, again the weat...

Wow! What a crazy full on month again and one that will stay with me forever. The month started off with our second house move of the year, it has been so stressful and crazy but we are in and the keys are handed back for the other house now so onwards and upwards.  Most of the month has been working, unpacking and Sorting and just being Mum but I have had a few days which have been incredible.  This month I got to attend an event and meet the wonderful Axel Scheffler, the illistrator of the Gruffalo, stickman and many more. He was lovely and we managed to get a book signed by him. I also got to meet Thomas Taylor, an author and illistrator who actually created the first cover for the Harry Potter books. It was such a lovely couple of hours and one I won't forget in a rush. The week just gone has been half term, it started off with a colleagues wedding, we attended the reception and had a boogie. 2 days later we make the big journey up to Lincoln to go and attend a...

 The summer holidays can be scary for some parents knowing that there budget doesn't stretch far, I try to keep to a strict budget so we don't go beyond our means, this means that some days are in with free activites and crafts. So here are some free/cheap ideas to keep you and the kids entertained over the holidays. Rock painting and hiding Lego building Pet pals workshop (Pets at home) Den making Baking ( Cookies , Cupcakes ) Cinema (kids club) National trust (vouchers are very useful) Beach/park  Summer reading challenge (local libraries) Scavenger hunt / nature hunt These are just a few things that we get up to in the summer holidays. I normally put these and more in an envelope and get the girls to pick something out when the day is slow or there bored. I really hope these help and would love to hear what you get up to as well. Victoria x

Where did May go? It has been and gone within a flash but we have managed to get so much done in just one month! May started off with the end of half term and May day, Hastings celebrates May day in a different way to many people with an event called Jack in the Green . This is a day that I really enjoy, the atmosphere and the mood is so positive and fresh and then you get the added bonus of the bike run too. Its one day that we try not to miss and Lils got to be in the parade too. We have spent lots of time enjoying the garden, cycling and getting out in the sunshine while it lasted. We have planted the sunflowers and started to grow some strawberries too. Still can't believe that we actually have a garden. The next half term was here in a flash, it started with mine and Liam's 17th anniversary, we enjoyed fish and chips on the beach with the girls and just had a really chill day. During the holidays we took a trip to the playpark with Grandad, granny and Lils cous...

April has been and gone in a flash, with birthdays, Easter, half term and illness thrown into the mix. We started off the month with the last week of term, a trip to a fort for me and an Easter bonnet parade to finish the term. Half term started off amazing, Lils learnt how to ride her bike in under 30 minutes and is now flying every time she rides. Olivia has also been having fun on her bike, flying along the path down the back of ours.  But I was struck with my second lot of tonsillitis and a chest infection to contend with. Luckily with antibiotics I was better in no time.  Next was Olivias 5th birthday! How is she 5? We had a lovely chilled day, she opened her presents and then we took her swimming, had family round and enjoyed lots of cake and treats.  Easter followed just after, this year was so nice as I was actually able to set up an outdoor egg hunt, the girls loved it and it really put a smile on my face. They had some many yummy treats to enjoy and ...

  Half way through half term already and we have been on some adventures, our latest was a trip to Sissinghurst castle in Cranbrook, Kent. This is a property owned and looked after by the National trust and is one a highly recommend visiting. This location is a little smaller than some but has some beautiful gardens to expolore, even during spring when they are only just waking, and some beautiful buildings to explore too. The gardens, though quiet this time of year showed some signs of waking up with snow drops and crocuses carpeting some of the flower beds. Some of the trees have been trained to link which I can imagine looks beauiful in full bloom. The orchard was closed at the moment as it looked like they have been tendning to it for the months ahead. One of my favourite parts was this sofa bench close to the houses, it made me smile and reminded me of a big family sofa.  There are many buildings to explore, including the tower, the Priest's house, the south cottage and t...

With half-term term officially starting next week I wanted to share a few ideas that don't break the bank. Trying to keep the kids occupied for a week can be tricky when they are out of routine but I am one of those Mums who loves these weeks, the time to have a slower week and make memories if possible.  1. Cinema: This may sound crazy but I have just got 3 tickets, 1 adult and 2 children for under £10 with ODEON Kids. Throw in a shop bag of popcorn or some of their favourite sweets then we have a morning planned.  2. Make a den: We love making dens in our house with mattresses on the floor with blanket and sheets for a roof. I try to make these as cosy as possible as sometimes they like to sleep in them too.  3. Baking: This is great in many ways, it's good bonding time, they are learning maths if you help them with weighing and you get a yummy treat at the end. We love baking from scratch with many  recipes  on my blog, but we also lov...

With half-term around the corner I wanted to share this simple recipe that is perfect to do with children and are only 4 ingredients too.  Ingredient's 3 Medium eggs Weight of eggs - Self raising Flour Weight of eggs - Marge Weight of eggs - Sugar Method 1. Preheat oven to 180/gas mark 5 2. Mix marge and sugar together until creamy 3. Add eggs 1 at a time, add a small amount of flour if mixture starts to curdle 4. Sieve flour and add to mixture 5. Place mixture into cupcake cases 6. Cook for 15-20 minutes until spongy to the touch It's honestly such a fall proof recipe and method that we can pretty much make these with our eyes shut. We like to decorate them after with some icing and sprinkles. Hope you enjoy this recipe. Victoria x

Wingham wildlife park, Kent's fastest growing zoo and one we will definitely be visiting again. We decided to take a day out for Olivia's birthday and had been recommended this park by a few people. The entry prices were very reasonable, it wasn't too far to drive and looked great so took our chances. For a family ticket it is £76 on gate or £72 if you book online, which is what we did as it made it easier and that little bit cheaper. We arrived at around 10.15am to a busy car park and was a little worried at how busy it would be but to our surprise it wasn't as crazy as we thought.  On entering the park you are greeted with the first of many animals to see, the arctic wolves, these were one that Lils was excited to see and they did not disappoint. Everywhere you turn there was animal enclosure with an array of animals, some of which me and Liam had never seen let alone the kids. The enclosure sizes were good and the land in and around the enclosure was well maintained ...

Well February went by in the blink of an eye. It started off great then went down hill pretty quickly but were are coming out the other side. We started off February with an inset day for lils so we took the opportunity to take the girls swimming, it was such a good morning. That afternoon I had my first dentist appointment in a couple of year which went OK and have since had treatment there too. We took adventures to the park for rollerblading and scattering and tried to spend some quality time. But as half term hit so did the illness, the first couple of days were OK, we managed pancake day and Valentines and I did manage to take the girls to see Bingo and Bluey but they night I felt awful, this then hit us all and the rest of the week we were all in bed with the worst cold. This then went on for me and Liam and we are only really getting better now, luckily the girls were better a lot sooner. On top of the cold ai ended up with an ear infection which has been awful and h...

If you want a lovely family afternoon out then I would highly recommend heading to Bodiam Castle in Sussex, we have been a few times now and its one that the kids love and during half term they have a fantastic event on with a magical prize to claim.  Bodiam castle is part of the National trust and is a beautiful castle surrounded by a moat full of fish, its one that I say really looks like a castle with towers on each corner. Sadly a lot of the castle is gone in the middle but you are still able to climb two of the towers to see the amazing views from the top, but beware, the stairs are steep. The girls took part in the spell quest on their journey around the castle and had to help save the castle from the Wicked Warlock, around the castle are different rooms to explore which have been decorated, some have spells to learn and others a potion to explore. They have some photo opportunities around the castle too to add to the memories. The event costs an extra £3 per child which incl...

Another month has flown by and this one has been a busy one full of fun and making memories, my health has been so much better again and lets hope it stays that way, I do not like being ill at all.  We started off this month with half term and what a crazy two weeks it was, we started it off with a trip to Hastings seafront for some fun in the sun, which has poked its head through a few times. The girls enjoyed some fun on the trampolines before enjoying some doughnuts. I had  my very first evening out without Liam or the kids since having them to go and see Blood Brothers Musical at our local theare, I absolutely love this show and it has revived my love for theatre so much.  We then entered the Easter weekend full of chocolate, games and a trip to  Brighton Sealife  as an early Birthday treat for Olivia. That's right, my baby girl turned 3, we had a lovely day celebrating her birthday on her actual birthday with a family BBQ over nanny's and was sp...

How are we at the end of February already? I feel like this year is flying by. I really enjoyed writing a little recap last month and this month has been a lot better. We started off with a little Mum and Lilly day, she had an inset day from school and I took the opportunity to spoil my girl. We started with a Mcdonalds breakfast and finished in the arcades at the 2p machines. Finally I am feeling better so I have taken the girls out more, on walks and to the park to make up for the past couple of months. The fresh air has done the world of good for my mental health and I feel the girls really appreciated the time too. We celebrated Valentines day with a few little gifts and Liam cooked me a love dinner, we had homemade burger and chips. During half term we visited  Scotney Castle  and hunted out some dinosaurs, we made cookies, visited family and went on a lovely walk to find some horses. The past week we have enjoyed some pancakes for pancake day, Olivia is not a fan of crep...

Yesterday we took a trip to Scotney Castle for a Halloween adventure we had a voucher for a family pass and thought that this was the perfect time to take the opportunity to have some family fun.  At Scotney castle they are running half term fun in the form of Scotney school of Sorcery, during your visit you will need to find words that are part of a spell and at the end if you need to use the spell and see its it's correct. This has a small charge of £3 for you spell sheet and a prize at the end of an insect gummy. The do encourage dress up too for this event. They have decorated the grounds, castle and house beautifully with pumpkins everywhere and the clues were very spooky and made the day extra fun. The grounds look beautiful right now with the autumn colours everywhere and leaves pathing the grass. The grounds are suitable for wheel and buggy but it does have so steep slopes. We headed down to the old caste first which is part ruin, part house which is surrounded ...

Yesterday we took our annual trip to Sharnfold farm for some Halloween fun and it did not dissapoint. This year we took part in the Halloween trail which gets better with every visit with more to see and more effort put in every year, the only downside this year was the PYO field was closed due to the weather. We arrived the the farm about 11.45 and went into collect our wrist bands, we had prebooked but the tickets cost £5.95 for children over 4 and £4.95 for adults. There is a prize at the end of the trail to collect from the main office.  On arrival we could see some Halloween decorations already which certainly gets the kids excited, you firstly enter a play park which seems to grow every years, there is a tractor for the children to climb over, a sandpit, some ride on toys, a traditional slide and swing and there is also a wild part with bits to learn about wild life and more.  Once you enter the main part you are greeted by your first animals, this year it was some adora...

Yesterday we took a trip to Rudyard Kipling's house in Burwash for a little adventure with the kids, Batemans is part of the national trust and is a beautiful place to visit. You are able to walk around the house and see the home that the Kipling family made there home, the gardens are this property are absolutely gorgeous even when its muddy and wet, and the added bonus is Park Mill which you are able to look around and learn about creating flour the old fashioned way.  There is a small tea room which sells cakes, drinks and small lunches which include soup, jacket potatoes and sandwiches. There is also a gift shop which includes sweet treats, nature toys and other beautiful items which help keep the house open for all to see. At the bottom of the gardens there was a little surprise in the form of an old mill, named Park Mill, this property is open to the public and includes the equipment that would have been the original in the mill, a small box of story telling toys ...