The amazing adventures of me

Lavania carrying Arlo on her back in the midst of a wildflower field on a sunny day.

This is our family adventure blog – the journal of our life – which is a bit of everything really.

We’re a fun loving pair. I’m Lavania, a single mum and teacher. I have a whole host of hobbies and interests – right now it’s all about balancing the craziness of life with Arlo, who is a six year old little whirlwind. We are based in Birmingham (UK) .

We share guides to our adventures in Birmingham as well as arts and crafts projects which keep us busy at home.

You can also find lots of play ideas and toy reviews, family friendly recipes, our home renovation projects, holiday journals, and the occasional journal and opinion based post within our family blog .

We hope you enjoy reading all about our days out and find inspiraton to have a family adventure today.

Recent posts

An old rusted car sits on the side of the road.

Knowing Your Rights in the Event of a Car Accident

Navigating the aftermath of a car accident can be a difficult and overwhelming process. From dealing…

A family is hugging in front of a christmas tree.

8 Reasons to Write a Will For New Parents

You might believe that a will is only something you set up when you get old but that is not the case…

A man holding a child's hand.

How to Reduce Conflict and Establish Co-Parenting Rules During a Separation

Co-parenting rules can really help children during a divorce, so it pays to have the right setup to …

the_amazing_adventures_of_me

🎨 Creatively Parenting a little whirlwind
📍 #Birmingham Based #familyblog
🍴 we cook #food
🎲 We Play #toyreviews
🚗 We go places #daysoutwithkids

Five years Exactly five years ago I signed the c

Five years

Exactly five years ago I signed the contract for a house in this fabulous city I call home. My memories threw up a picture I took of Arlo when he took the keys and ran off at that exact moment with a cheeky face and a loud laugh which echoed through the empty house.

Shortly after this I packed up everything we owned in to a huge van I hired and then drove 200 miles up the motorway to start a new life with Arlo in the car seat beside me.

At the time I didn’t have a job and Arlo’s dad wasn’t sure if he wanted to move (even after suggesting the idea in the first place) so I unpacked everything on my own.

Ever since then, there has been a series of serendipitous events where things just fall in to place. I couldn’t have imagined back then that we would be where we are right now - and I have no idea what the next five years looks like either.

Sometimes it’s good not to have a plan, and the best bits involve finding your way to wherever it is you’re going.

That five years has gone in a blink and I can’t believe how grown up Arlo is all of a sudden.

Nachoooooos Quite a few people asked for my chill

Nachoooooos

Quite a few people asked for my chilli recipe as I shared my meal propping in my stories yesterday.

It’s a really simple and easy one.

I use a large pan and brown off onions and minced meat with a little oil, salt and pepper.

Once this is ready I add in a can of tomatoes, a can of mixed beans and then also use one of those @schwartz.uk sachets which has all the flavours you need - the secret ingredient on the packet is cocoa powder!!!

I usually add a little extra water as per the instructions and on this occasion I also added in some chopped mixed peppers and some cherry tomatoes as they were in the fridge.

That’s two extra portions of veg counting towards your five a day which also bulks out the mixture making it go further.

Then the key here is patience. You need to bring it to the boil and then turn it down low to let the liquid reduce down to give you a nice thick gloopy texture. This is a great slow cooker meal and you could also make a large batch in advance if you’re hosting a gathering during these colder months.

I made quite a large batch and have portions frozen now to bring out and serve with jacket potatoes or rice for meals in the week but last night we fancied nachos.

With melted cheese on our nachos, and the addition of sour cream and a sprinkle of chives this was a sharing dish which arlo and I enjoyed tucking in to after our busy day.

A right royal shindig! Today we took a little tr

A right royal shindig!

Today we took a little trip down to Belbroughton which is the home of the scarecrow festival! For one weekend the village hosts this wonderful autumnal event which has creativity at its heart.

All around the village families proudly display their straw makes based in the theme - this year it’s “kings and queens” and there were so many awesome scarecrows to spot. From the Queen of hearts to a king crab, British monarchs past and present, the tiger King (Joe exotic), the gypsy King (Tyson Fury), a dancing queen, King Kong, king cobra, several Disney princesses, The King of Rock and roll, Freddie Mercury and more.

As well as having plenty of scarecrows to find, the primary school hosts a family fun field which has a £10 all you can bounce arena full of inflatables and the playing fields have an abundance of craft stalls and some mini fair ground rides. Arlo spent his pocket money on sweets, fidget toys and slushies.

Our favourite spot was the car park of one of the village pubs which had street food and live music on all day.

We had a wonderful time and can’t wait to see if one of our favourite scarecrows gets crowned champion tomorrow…. If the sun continues to shine we will probably head back down.

If you’re local then get a bus or walk - if you need to drive then it’s £20 per car and you need to follow specific directions as all the roads leading in to the village are closed for the event.

Boo! 🎃 These little pumpkins are a dream to c

Boo! 🎃

These little pumpkins are a dream to customise. Yesterday I was in @hobbycrafthq all day long as a @cricut_uk ambassador.

I had lots of fun making all sorts of bits and bobs to showcase how versatile the machines are. With over thirty people coming in throughout the day to learn, ask questions and share hints and tips.

It’s the perfect time of year to learn to use different features with seasonal events bringing lots of inspiration. I left these little pumpkins behind for display but also purchased some of my own to add to my mantelpiece at home.

I used the #cricutjoy and smart iron on vinyl in black to make these faces (available on cricut access).

The easy press mini made application super easy and the finished effect on this velour/velvet pumpkin texture was lovely. This is the kind of project you could make with scraps/leftover iron on and is so simple it’s a really easy first project.

Next Friday I will be at the Stratford Upon Avon branch to continue the Hobbycraft tour - our team of ambassadors are covering over one hundred hobbycraft branches up and down the country so wether you’re an existing cricut fan, wondering what the fuss is about, or have a machine you haven’t taken out of the box - pop in and say hi!

Selfie mode activated I was trying to take a pic

Selfie mode activated

I was trying to take a pic of my autumn outfit using selfie mode and a ten second timer. Arlo decided to run in to the frame and tickle me…. Of course I got him back and this was the shot. Not what I planned but I just love this picture

Arlo’s choice Bolognaise with twisty pasta – I

Arlo’s choice

Bolognaise with twisty pasta - I always add in lots of veg to our sauce including celery, peppers, mushrooms and onions along with the meat. Then cook low and slow for the richest flavour and smoothest sauce. With garlic, lots of tomato and the very last of this years Basil we were done.

I did however see a recent video talking about how traditional Italian bolognaise is nothing like this dish we have grown to know and love - I will have to give it a go but this right here did the trick for us - we were using the last bits of garlic bread to mop up the sauce!

Meet Miss O! Wow I can’t believe I have been s

Meet Miss O!

Wow I can’t believe I have been so busy this week I haven’t posted on the grid….. so for those of you who missed me - this is where I have been!

In my classroom which is my happy space - but also a total black spot in terms of wifi and signal so I’ve been totally off grid.

The start of term is always a little bit chaotic, getting used to new routines, making new displays, changing batteries in all the scales, placing food orders, starting a new health and safety folder and organising my collection of food magazines.

We also had an open evening too!

On my way in to school every Monday I buy fresh flowers for my classroom, I’m also going to set up my hydroponic herb garden which was a success last year. I’ve stocked up my secret snack stash to keep my energy levels up and I’ve met all my classes who have labelled their folders and workbooks.

I love my classroom!

There will be lots of fabulous food pictures to share with you soon and of course Arlo and I don’t pause at the weekend - there’s lots of adventures coming up.

Bring it on!

Planning a fabulous week! Good morning beautiful

Planning a fabulous week!

Good morning beautiful people - a little candid snap by @doodles_by_donna_o to share with you this morning. On the very last day of my summer holidays we visited the autumn fair and @jayleycollection - I spent about an hour trying on practically everything.

It almost feels as though someone invaded my thoughts to design all of the clothes in this collection. There’s glitter, sequins, rainbows, leopard print and Unicorns featured in all manner of combinations, from coats to dresses, hats to handbags.

The kind of stuff which on paper would sound crazy, but in reality create show stopping, head turning statement pieces which are made for dopamine dressers and extroverts.

I’m currently craving the fantasy land jumper because wearing it makes you feel happy.

Everyone needs a little Jayley in their life!

🦄 ❤️ ☀️ 🌸

Which one of these awesome set ups is your fave?

Which one of these awesome set ups is your fave?

Vote with an emoji!
💍 the engagemnt party
🍴 the meal
👰‍♀️ the wedding
⭐️ the 50th birthday
🐄 the farmyard birthday
👶🏼 the baby shower
🍓 summer dining

All of these projects were made by an all star team of influencers in collaboration with the cricut creative team.

Using almost the entire catalogue of cricut materials, all the tools as well as the new venture and joy extra machines these inspiring makes were crafted in just one day!

I’ve never seen so much creative inspo in one place!

What are you going to make next?

#cricut #cricutuk #cricutambassador #cricutinfluencer

@hardcastletowers @eimearhutchinson @kate_rose_morgan Morgan @rosiehenshawhome
@thelittlepomegranate @macerlyofficial @roxetera
@roseellendix

Share the love 💕ad Today we visited @wolseley

Share the love 💕ad

Today we visited @wolseleybridgegc to meet a very special bear on a very special day. The Care Bears have been around for as long as I can remember and so any mention evokes nostalgic feel good emotions.

Today - September 9th is the Care Bears “share your care day” so we were invited along for some feel good fun and it just so happened to be the hottest day of the year so we strolled in with boxes of ice lollies for the team members who were working hard today to participate inn#shareyourcare - I think cheer bear certainly appreciated the treat as we got great big hugs!

Why not try and share the love today by doing a good turn 💕

Load More Follow on Instagram