Lavania Oluban 
This secret beauty spot is on the very edge of Birmingham, I consider the canals at the Hopwood to be the border, I don’t know if that’s official or not but we always used to cross the canal and joke “now we’re in Brum, and now we aren’t” because when I was a kid it … Read more
Paultons Park is perhaps best known for being the home to the one and only Peppa pig world, however there is so much to explore, this family owned and family friendly theme park is one of the best in the U.K. and with so much to explore I wanted to share with you some of … Read more
I have been working with Zuru toys over on social media and they have sent us across some epic PR packages before we received the Zuru X shot delivery so we were expecting great things. First of all Arlo was delighted to receive the Bunch O Balloons box which was packed full to the brim … Read more
This week I had the opportunity to head out to Medicine in the Mailbox and I took along my mum so that we could be ladies who lunch, I have to say it’s been a while since I’ve been able to do this and so it was a real treat for both of us. We … Read more
This new chicken shop Jaqks is based in the awesome venue that is the Cube in Birmingham, and I have to say I was surprised to find out there was a chicken shop based in such a prestigious food venue, however having being given the opportunity to sample their wings I can see why they’re … Read more
Yakinori is a Midlands based Japanese restaurant with (at the time of writing) four branches now open across the region. We were kindly invited to try a meal for two at the Touchwood shopping centre branch in Solihull. I originally came across the Poknori bowls on Instagram and they caught my attention as I’ve been … Read more
Summer has finally graced us with its presence and so naturally to make the most of the glorious weather it’s time to take the indoors out, and that includes the dining table and chairs for glorious dining. Last week I hosted a ladies lunch with an array of barbecue foods including lamb skewers, corn on … Read more
Finally one of Arlo’s favourite places to visit in Birmingham has re-opened – Thinktank – home to Mini Brum, the science garden and so much more – and we were delighted to visit and explore this weekend. Navigating around the ever changing roadworks in the city centre was a nightmare but eventually we found the … Read more
We had a wonderful day out last week at Warwick Castle. The unpredictable weather we’ve been experiencing lately seemed to settle for one day and the sun shone down on us as we explored the castle grounds. I booked our tickets online in advance and the trail was included in the ticket price. If you … Read more
Embark on a Safari Adventure at West Midlands Safari Park West Midlands Safari Park, nestled in the heart of the British countryside, is not just a destination; it’s an immersive journey into the wonders of the wild. As you approach the park, anticipation builds for the four-mile self-drive safari, a thrilling odyssey through African and … Read more
We had a wonderful afternoon at Kingsbury Water Park, we opted to hire bicycles to make sure we could see as much of the space as possible – and with fifteen different lakes and 600 acres to explore we will most certainly be coming back again. Open from 1st April every day (subject to the … Read more
Like most three year olds Arlo is absolutely obsessed with bugs and so now that spring is blooming the garden is full of them and they are a great natural resource to explore. We have been moving around the pots and digging up the borders for the last few weeks and so have found quite … Read more
Bodenham has become another one of our most favourite outdoor places to explore, and is a hidden treasure of the Midlands. As you turn in to the main drive you’re greeted with a landscape of rolling hills and in spring time there’s plenty of lambs to see skipping in the fields. The visitor centre is … Read more
Spring has sprung and the days are now mild enough to enjoy a walk in the great outdoors. Cannock Chase Gruffalo Trail is one of our favourite places to visit for a wander and is great value – as all you really need to pay for is the car parking. We usually park up near … Read more
I couldn’t quite believe it when conducting research for this blog. Could it be true – were Noddy and rupert bear racist ? Writing this on the eve of World Book day, not just a chance for parents to play top trumps with costumes, but an opportunity to invoke a love of literature in our … Read more
I previously wrote about how I like to make the most out of a roast chicken by stretching out the leftovers to make additional meals and I had so many questions and requests to showcase what I would do with other meats. This week we had a Sunday roast with beef and so I had … Read more
I often use rice and chick peas for indoor play activities. They provide the sensory fun element of play but as dry ingredients the clean up process isn’t as daunting as it is with slime. Here is how to dye chick peas for messy play. You will need: My process for dying the peas is … Read more
This blog post contains sponsored links If you follow my social media channels you may have noticed that I have been slowly renovating the house from top to bottom. There’s something happening in every room and I constantly change my mind when it comes to colours and so there’s always something new going on. I’m … Read more
I have been filling the tuff tray with water every night in winter in the hope that it will freeze over, as I wanted to make a giant version of this Ice skating messy play tray. Today we managed to get a thick enough sheet of ice to play with. First things first we did … Read more
I decided to set up an arctic tuff tray outdoors to get a bit of fresh air – this one is not for the faint hearted! As the temperature has dropped so much I filled the tray with water late last night and i dropped in some snow flake decorations left over from Christmas, and … Read more