Last weekend was bank holiday weekend and we really did make the most of it! I also thought it would be a good time to tick something off our summer bucket list.
The weather was (mostly) glorious. We decided to go on a bus ride to castle park again, it's one of favourite places, especially on a bank holiday because there's usually lots of activities and different things to do. We went last bank holiday weekend, too. We were super excited to go back.
I popped into pound and first to buy some drinks and snacks and also some snacks for the squirrels. We arrived just before lunch and had a little walk around the park. We spotted some squirrels and fed those some nuts, the kids and I LOVED feeding the squirrels. They are unbelievably tame and enjoyed munching on the nuts (not salted!) we gave them.
They were climbing up our legs and sitting on our knee, so cute and so tame! Charlie was quite amazed by them. They are so adorable! Ellie was all "Why can't we take them home?!" Bless. I explained we can't take wild animals home - they are not pets, even if they are tame, lol.
After feeding the squirrels and having a litle walk around the top half of the park, we decided it was time for lunch. We all decided on fish and chips for lunch, such a lovely treat.
We found a quieter spot in a quieter park and sat and ate our lunch.
We fed the pigeons the left over ships and bread roll, which they enjoyed, haha. We made our way back to castle park after lunch for a play on the play park and to check out the summer fete/fair.
Charlie and Ellie had fun playing on the playground, Harry just wanted to sit and watch for now.
The kids loved playing on the huge climbing frame and slides! It is SO huge the play area in the castle park. So much to do! They had a good play on the park and then we made our way down to the fete.
There were bouncy castles, Go-Kart rides, cheerleaders and other dancers, a magician and tombola stalls etc. It was great fun! Charlie and Ellie both picked to go on the Go-Kart rides, Harry however wanted to have a go on the stalls... throw the ball in the bucket and what not. We also won a big red cherry scented ball on the raffle! Such fun.
We stopped for a little rest, a drink and a game of football before heading off home.
We stopped off for a little look at the fish pond, which we were walking past any way. We were all shattered when we got to the bus stop! It was a really wonderful day, we had all had great fun and the little's were exhausted by the time bed time rolled around, bless.
Sarah xXx
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The weather was (mostly) glorious. We decided to go on a bus ride to castle park again, it's one of favourite places, especially on a bank holiday because there's usually lots of activities and different things to do. We went last bank holiday weekend, too. We were super excited to go back.
I popped into pound and first to buy some drinks and snacks and also some snacks for the squirrels. We arrived just before lunch and had a little walk around the park. We spotted some squirrels and fed those some nuts, the kids and I LOVED feeding the squirrels. They are unbelievably tame and enjoyed munching on the nuts (not salted!) we gave them.
They were climbing up our legs and sitting on our knee, so cute and so tame! Charlie was quite amazed by them. They are so adorable! Ellie was all "Why can't we take them home?!" Bless. I explained we can't take wild animals home - they are not pets, even if they are tame, lol.
After feeding the squirrels and having a litle walk around the top half of the park, we decided it was time for lunch. We all decided on fish and chips for lunch, such a lovely treat.
We found a quieter spot in a quieter park and sat and ate our lunch.
We fed the pigeons the left over ships and bread roll, which they enjoyed, haha. We made our way back to castle park after lunch for a play on the play park and to check out the summer fete/fair.
Charlie and Ellie had fun playing on the playground, Harry just wanted to sit and watch for now.
The kids loved playing on the huge climbing frame and slides! It is SO huge the play area in the castle park. So much to do! They had a good play on the park and then we made our way down to the fete.
There were bouncy castles, Go-Kart rides, cheerleaders and other dancers, a magician and tombola stalls etc. It was great fun! Charlie and Ellie both picked to go on the Go-Kart rides, Harry however wanted to have a go on the stalls... throw the ball in the bucket and what not. We also won a big red cherry scented ball on the raffle! Such fun.
We stopped for a little rest, a drink and a game of football before heading off home.
We stopped off for a little look at the fish pond, which we were walking past any way. We were all shattered when we got to the bus stop! It was a really wonderful day, we had all had great fun and the little's were exhausted by the time bed time rolled around, bless.
Castle park is one of our absolute favourite places to go, there is so much to do. The play park is awesome, there's usually some kind of bouncy castles or inflatables, there's a pond, gardens and even a cafe! Not to mention the very old castle itself. We are so looking forward to going back again. Next time, we're going to take a lovely picnic with us, hehe.
Sarah xXx
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My Name Tags have very kindly offered one of my readers to win a set of my name tags, these can either be iron on labels or sticker labels. I recently reviewed the sticker name labels. Which can be stuck onto clothing, lunch boxes, books, DVDs, toys and even iPods etc. The stickers are also machine washable.
For your chance to win a set of labels, please enter using the rafflecopter widget below.
The giveaway is for UK residents aged 18+ ONLY.
There will be one winner and the giveaway ends 14th June at midnight.
Please read the T&Cs below the rafflecopter.
(I will be checking and verifying all entries)
a Rafflecopter giveaway
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I've still not got any internet but when I DO have the internet I will be forever grateful. Life without the internet is hard. It's strange how we come to rely on such things that never existed years and years ago! I'm scheduling this post while I have access to mobile internet. I'm thankful that blogger has a schedule blog post feature, haha.
Anyway, here are my reasons to be thankful this week.
1) I am thankful for the half term. So far we've had a lovely half term. We've been to castle park again and fed the squirrels some nuts. I could have seriously spent all day just feeling them, lol. Not even kidding when I say that, I loved them, as did the little's. There was a summer fete/fair thingy on in castle park, with Go Kart rides, bouncey castles, cheer leaders and other dancing. It was a fab day.
2) The weather has been lovely *knocks on wood* so far this week, always a blessing when the weather is nice. I love being able to hang my washing on the line, it smells so much fresher. It's the simple things in life that make me happy.
Even my cat has been enjoying the sunshine, bless.
3) The kids have been really well behaved. I think it helps that they can play outside safely. Riding up and down the path way on there scooters and what not! They've all made new friends and settled in really well to our new house and area. Ellie has a friend that lives a couple of doors down and they play together for hours with there scooters/bikes and dolls. :)
What areyour reasons to be happy and cheerful this week?
Sarah xXx
Anyway, here are my reasons to be thankful this week.
1) I am thankful for the half term. So far we've had a lovely half term. We've been to castle park again and fed the squirrels some nuts. I could have seriously spent all day just feeling them, lol. Not even kidding when I say that, I loved them, as did the little's. There was a summer fete/fair thingy on in castle park, with Go Kart rides, bouncey castles, cheer leaders and other dancing. It was a fab day.
A video posted by Sara ♡ (@sassyserz) on
2) The weather has been lovely *knocks on wood* so far this week, always a blessing when the weather is nice. I love being able to hang my washing on the line, it smells so much fresher. It's the simple things in life that make me happy.
Even my cat has been enjoying the sunshine, bless.
3) The kids have been really well behaved. I think it helps that they can play outside safely. Riding up and down the path way on there scooters and what not! They've all made new friends and settled in really well to our new house and area. Ellie has a friend that lives a couple of doors down and they play together for hours with there scooters/bikes and dolls. :)
What areyour reasons to be happy and cheerful this week?
Sarah xXx
"Thousands of years ago, a
cat purred, and humans listened. We were fascinated. Today, we're still
fascinated by the purr, but in many cases, we've let our feline
companions down. There are millions of homeless and hungry cats. These
are but a few of the stories of the lucky ones, rescued from bad
situations and given a place on easy street.
You'll be inspired, you'll be awed, and you'll say "awww" over stories about cats like these:
Ms. Sammy, the cat delivered to her "furever" home by the coroner.
Lima, the kitty with a horribly infected tail, but who never stopped purring in appreciation of her human's efforts to help her get well.
Hanuko, the rescue with two human mommies.
From tales of cats rescued from a warehouse, a barn, and even a coffee can, to heartwarming stories of feline determination and human compassion, every story in The Cat Rescue Diaries is evidence of what happens when good people seek out the purr and find their "purrfect" feline match."
Source
I recently read the cat rescue diaries on my kindle. I love reading animal tales, especially cats because, well, I am cat crazy! I can't even remember how long I've had this book on my kindle, I have just had zero time to read but once I started reading, I couldn't put it down, hehe.
I loved these short stories which were all true. Each story told the story of how people came about having there cats, rescuing them or cats adopting them. Needless to say, it really didn't take me very long to read this book. It's a truly lovely book, each story had a lovely ending!
What book(s) are you reading at the moment?
Sarah xXx
You'll be inspired, you'll be awed, and you'll say "awww" over stories about cats like these:
Ms. Sammy, the cat delivered to her "furever" home by the coroner.
Lima, the kitty with a horribly infected tail, but who never stopped purring in appreciation of her human's efforts to help her get well.
Hanuko, the rescue with two human mommies.
From tales of cats rescued from a warehouse, a barn, and even a coffee can, to heartwarming stories of feline determination and human compassion, every story in The Cat Rescue Diaries is evidence of what happens when good people seek out the purr and find their "purrfect" feline match."
Source
I recently read the cat rescue diaries on my kindle. I love reading animal tales, especially cats because, well, I am cat crazy! I can't even remember how long I've had this book on my kindle, I have just had zero time to read but once I started reading, I couldn't put it down, hehe.
I loved these short stories which were all true. Each story told the story of how people came about having there cats, rescuing them or cats adopting them. Needless to say, it really didn't take me very long to read this book. It's a truly lovely book, each story had a lovely ending!
What book(s) are you reading at the moment?
Sarah xXx
I was asked if we'd like to review some personalised, colourful name labels from www.mynametags.com/ for my children.
My name tags sell a variety of labels, in all different designs, it's easy to personalise your design with a cute background, icon and even change the font and font colour! The website is ever so easy to use and it's fast, too. I really enjoyed designing the labels with the children and it didn't take very long to design the labels.
Now, I personally think name labels are very important, especially for school uniform. My children are always loosing or forgetting there school jumpers or getting mixed up with blouses and shirts and even P.E kits. I couldn't wait to try these labels! My name tags use a special adhesive glue and high quality material to print the labels on making them very good quality. The labels stick onto the name tag or the washing tag inside the clothing, in this case, I stuck Ellie's onto her school cardigan label. There's no need to sew or iron them on, they really do just stick on like a sticker! They are also quite flexible, meaning they can stick around lunch boxes etc. I'd also like to add they are machine washable, which I really, really like because they don't need to keep being replaced.
Ellie said these are beautiful name labels, she especially loves the cupcake and purple writing, bless her.
- Please note, I have had to blur and blot out the surnames on the labels for obvious reasons.
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| Charlie loves his football design labels, hehe. |
I've stuck them in school jumpers, shoes, P.E kits, shirts, trousers etc. They are machine washable, they stay stuck on, even when they've been washed! They've been on the clothes three months now and they're still stuck on and brightly coloured. I even stick one on Ellie's lunch bag and I'm pleased to say, three months later - it's still stuck on and as bright as it was the day I put it on!
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| 3 months later! Still stuck to the cardigan & looks cute! |
My name tags can also be stuck onto iPods, books, DVDs, shoes and so much more!
Fifty six labels costs £11.95 and postage is £1. In my personal opinion, I think these are well worth the money! They last a long time, they don't need to replaced and they wash really well! The children also really love the design and how they look. There are SO many ways you can personalise these name tags. I would definitely recommend these labels!
You can also follow My Name Tags on Facebook.
I am also hosting a giveaway to win a set of My Name Tags. You can enter here.
Sarah xXx
I was sent a sample of this product for the purpose of this review. I was not paid for this post. All opinions are my own, honest, personal opinions.
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I still haven o internet connection, while I am making the most of the mobile internet I thought I would schedule this weeks meal plan post. Hopefully I'll be back to blogging properly very soon.
Monday - Sausage, mash and peas with gravy.
Tuesday - Chicken nuggets, fries and baked beans.
Wednesday - Spaghetti bolognase with garlic bread
Thursday - Chicken stew
Friday - Tuna and pasta with salad
Saturday - Chicken curry with rice and naan bread
Sunday - Sunday roast dinner.
What's on your meal plan this week?
Sarah xXx
Monday - Sausage, mash and peas with gravy.
Tuesday - Chicken nuggets, fries and baked beans.
Wednesday - Spaghetti bolognase with garlic bread
Thursday - Chicken stew
Friday - Tuna and pasta with salad
Saturday - Chicken curry with rice and naan bread
Sunday - Sunday roast dinner.
What's on your meal plan this week?
Sarah xXx
Here's our family summer bucket list!
1) Go to the beach
2) Take the kids to the cinema at least once.
3) Summer arts and crafts.
4) BBQ!
5) Picnic in the park
6) Go somewhere new.
7) Go crabbing.
8) Have a bug hunt
9) Lots of walks!
10) A walk in the rain
11) Go on a bus ride
12) Learn some new recipes
13) Go on adventures
14) Movie night.
15) Take lots of photos.
16) Go to a summer fete. - Done!
17) Feed the ducks.
What's on your summer bucket list? Let me know in the comments :)
Sarah xXx
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I still have no internet :( Hopefully I can stay connected on mobile internet for long enough to write this blog post! I am almost out of data I think. Hopefully I'll be properly back blogging again very soon.
We've lived here for just under two months now and we really, really love it. The kids have settled in really well and they're enjoying there new school.
We've been out a lot, almost daily even, exploring the area and me showing the kids around and where I use to play when I was a child.
The area we live in is so, so beautiful, we have a river with a sandy beach ten minutes walk away, a woodland only a few minutes walk away, lakes and play areas, parks etc all withing a few minutes walk away from our house.The kids have enjoyed exploring our new area, too.
We've been so feed the swans and ducks a few times along the river bank, we really love feeding them. Ellie is a bit scared of the swans though as they're almost as big as she is, bless. Charlie hinks they're magnificent creatures and I have to agree with him.
The river is so pretty, even when the tide is out!
We really like walking through the woodland area. There's also a big lake in the middle of the woods, we keep meaning to take some food for the ducks that swim on the pond, maybe we'll go and feed the ducks there in the half term.
Charlie spotted a rope swing in the woods, which I didn't take a photo of for some reason. I remember building a rope swing when I was kid, in those woods.
The other side of the woods, there's huge meadows! The kids love to roll down the hills. We're hoping for some nice weather next week so we can take a picnic a long with us.
While were out a couple of weeks ago, we came across this very beautiful lake! I can't believe this is literally five minutes walk away from our house! Our house backs out onto a lovely big field and then the other side of that field is this beautiful lake.
We can't wait to go out exploring during half term. Fingers crossed for some warm, sunny weather.
Sarah xXx
We've lived here for just under two months now and we really, really love it. The kids have settled in really well and they're enjoying there new school.
We've been out a lot, almost daily even, exploring the area and me showing the kids around and where I use to play when I was a child.
The area we live in is so, so beautiful, we have a river with a sandy beach ten minutes walk away, a woodland only a few minutes walk away, lakes and play areas, parks etc all withing a few minutes walk away from our house.The kids have enjoyed exploring our new area, too.
We've been so feed the swans and ducks a few times along the river bank, we really love feeding them. Ellie is a bit scared of the swans though as they're almost as big as she is, bless. Charlie hinks they're magnificent creatures and I have to agree with him.
The river is so pretty, even when the tide is out!
We really like walking through the woodland area. There's also a big lake in the middle of the woods, we keep meaning to take some food for the ducks that swim on the pond, maybe we'll go and feed the ducks there in the half term.
Charlie spotted a rope swing in the woods, which I didn't take a photo of for some reason. I remember building a rope swing when I was kid, in those woods.
The other side of the woods, there's huge meadows! The kids love to roll down the hills. We're hoping for some nice weather next week so we can take a picnic a long with us.
While were out a couple of weeks ago, we came across this very beautiful lake! I can't believe this is literally five minutes walk away from our house! Our house backs out onto a lovely big field and then the other side of that field is this beautiful lake.
We can't wait to go out exploring during half term. Fingers crossed for some warm, sunny weather.
Sarah xXx
This bank holiday weekend just gone, we decided to make the most of the weather while it's nice. The weather has been quite unpredictable lately, so we though we'd make the most of it!
We decided to take a bus trip to castle park. It's a huge park that has many fields, tree's and a huge play area for the kids. There were also a few bouncy castle's there, too! A few family members tagged a long which was lovely.
The boys of course enjoyed a good ol'e game of football and even Ellie joined in! They like nothing more than playing footy, they are football crazy, bless 'em. And Ellie having two big brothers, she's a huge football fan, too.
My brother took a long a picnic which we all enjoyed. It was very sweet of my brother and his girlfriend. We sat on the bench eating sandwiches and cakes followed by an ice cream (or in Charlie's case, an ice lolly). Just in time to cool them down from all the running around! We also got to feed the squirrels which are so very tame, one was even eating out of Charlie's hand. Ellie was all "Why can't we keep it as a pet.. It can even sleep in my room" Haha. I explained to her we can't keep squirrels as pets as they're wild animals, I think she finally understood lol.
The little's also played on the play area, Ellie enjoyed the sandy play area best, playing in the sand was great fun! Charlie of course preferred the climbing frame while Harry stayed on the field playing football and tag with my brother/Harry's uncle, which he thought was fab.
We finished our day by having a treat - Mcdonalds, which we don't do very often, the kids enjoyed it a lot, they even got a balloon each! On the bus journey home, we were all tired and found it hard to stay awake.
We had a wonderful day and can't wait to go again!
How did you spend your weekend?
If you would like to see more pics, please follow me on instagram.
Sarah xXx
The fifteenth fostering memoir by Cathy Glass.
Danny was petrified and clung to me in desperation as I carried him to my car. Trapped in his own dark world, he couldn't understand why his parents no longer loved or wanted him, and were sending him away.
While Danny’s parents have everything they could wish for in material terms, they are unable to care for their only child. This is where Cathy comes in. On a cold dark evening Danny finds a place in her home where he can be himself; away from his parents’ impatience and frustration. Often in his own little world, six-year-old Danny finds it difficult to communicate, finding solace in his best friend and confidant George – his rabbit.
Cathy quickly becomes aware of his obsessively meticulous behaviour in addition to his love of patterns, he sees them everywhere and creates them at any opportunity – in his play and also with his food. She realises that patience is the key to looking after Danny as well as her well-tried strategies for managing children’s behaviour.
With his father refusing to cooperate, it becomes increasingly likely that Danny will be living with Cathy permanently until she gets an opportunity to speak her piece.
source
I've read every single one of Cathy Glass books, I really like her books a lot. Some of her stories are really sad but they generally all have lovely endings. I admire Cathy, she is so inspirational and such a good foster carer, I wish there were more people like her in the world. The world could certainly do with more people like her indeed.
Anyway.
This book was a really good read, I read it within a few hours (I actually had time!) and I could not put it down! I suppose it took me a day or so to read on and off. Little Danny has learning problems and is suspected to be autistic. His parents put him into care voluntary because they couldn't cope. He ends up living with Cathy and her family for a while, who help him. I don't want to go into too much detail because I know a lot of my readers that are reading this, haven't yet read this book. This book has a lovely ending, the best ending in fact and I must admit I may have had a tear in my eye towards the end (a -what I call- good tear).
I give this book five stars and I can not wait for Cathy's next book!
Sarah xXx
