I don’t often have time away from the children. I don’t mean the days when they’re in school, but actually staying away for a couple of days. And when I do, I realise that I need it. Don’t get me wrong, I missed them. But a couple of days only thinking of myself made me feel so much better. BlogOn conference The BlogOn blogging conference takes place twice a year, in May and September. It’s a well organised, not-for-profit conference that gives bloggers and brands the chance to get together and chat. There are also numerous sessions for bloggers to…

This has been one of those weeks that has run away with me. For the past couple of weeks, Lia has only been going to school for half days. Yesterday was her first full day and Libby was off school because she had to have two teeth taken out at the dentist. Add to that a wonderful but full-on weekend adventure and it has been rather chaotic. The weekend A few weeks ago, I posted about a competition to win a Spirit Sleepover. At the time, I was wishing my two could enter because they love the Spirit Riding Free…

The past six weeks have flown by, as I knew they would. And in the blink of an eye, the summer holidays are over and I’ve already published my annual blog post about Christmas days out. Lia has had her first day of primary school, a much awaited day for the little girl who has been asking to go to school since her big sister started two years ago. Thankfully, it didn’t disappoint. The last hurrah The past couple of school Summer holidays finished in a whirlwind of sorting things out. We’d reach the end of term and immediately go…

Every school holiday, I put off the things that really need doing. Then in the last week, we run around like headless chickens trying to get it done. New shoes, labelling uniform, hair cuts… none of it makes for a fun week. So this year, I’ve tried to be a bit more organised. And remarkably, I think I like it! Last week of the holidays Like most children, my two go back to school next week. This is usually the point where we’d be entering panic mode. But instead, I booked a few days away. I’m not going to say…

There’s a constant dilemma in the school holidays. A tussle between giving them time to relax or packing in exciting experiences. We’ve been so busy for the past few weeks that this week was going to be all about relaxing. But the problem is, relaxing and being busy are somehow the same thing. What does relaxing mean anyway? For a short period of time, we’re all ok with watching television or reading. The children are happy to play at home, making up their own games on the trampoline or doing crafts. But soon enough, we’re all itching to get out…

This week’s Thursday photo post is brought to you from beautiful Northumberland. It’s the third time we’ve been to this area in the past couple of years and it’s an ideal place to be in August. So much quieter than the coastal resorts further south and close to some idyllic parts of Scotland. And yet, this time, we’ve realised that being here is a mistake. Yorkshire Having booked a few days in Northumberland, we decided to extend our holiday with a couple of nights in North Yorkshire on the way. We booked a quiet campsite near to some stunning cycling…