This day I love.......

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Monday 23rd March, a new normal began. How long for? We simply don't know. The girls woke up early, earlier than they would have for school. Excited, happy smiling. Full of enthusiasm for the day ahead. Ready, washed and dressed for the day ahead earlier again than for school. No shouting this morning, no rushing to get out the door. Just a sense of calm as we all walked into our front room for our PE lesson.

Much like the rest of the nation we tuned in to watch Joe Wicks aka the body coach and his PE lesson. We were off to a good start, a healthy start if you will. Tired from PE but with the sun shining the kids took the dogs outside and spent half hour chasing them round the garden whilst I tidied up [sorry, recovered].

The girls kept running inside, is it time to come in yet? Is it time for home school? I was a little shocked by the enthusiasm but decided to go with it. Embrace the positivity. We did indeed with the girls working well and Little Man joining in. False sense of security I felt for the rest of the week.

In fact for the most part we have done OK, I think. It is hard sometimes not to compare to others on social media and when you see all the things people are doing you do feel a failure. It's not to say it has been easy, my youngest daughter has struggled in particular to find her routine. She is missing her friends and school, she misses her structure. My eldest who I thought would struggle the most as she loves routine, is actually thriving. She has made up her own timetable and we go through them each night as to what our plans are for the next day. She seems to be loving the structure.

Our mornings consist of PE, outdoor play then an hour of workbooks. We pick and choose topics sometimes doing a full hour of one and sometimes several within the hour. After this we have some creative time. Playing Lego, baking, drawing or painting. The girls each pick a topic they want to learn about then in the afternoon we find out about this. We've done codes, ice age, bubbles and worms. Straight after lunch we do a 30 minutes sign language course with Natasha Lamb, and then spend an hour on our topics. Our day finishes with looking at a word of the day and a story together. This has been our structure all week.

The dogs have seemed to love all the extra attention they are getting too. Although we haven't been out on a walk they still manage to be absolutely tired out by lunch time and spend most of the afternoon asleep.

I am very slowly finding a way to balance everything. Ensuring the children are happy but doing some learning, keeping the two dogs entertained, looking after the house and of course trying to find places that deliver essential items.

This week I found a milkman, which means we now have eggs and milk delivered. I have found a butcher that delivers so can now source meat regularly too. A local bakery delivers bread but it can be a little hit and miss as it is very popular, and we also have a local fruit and veg service but again they are so incredibly popular it can be hard to get through. We will manage though, there are alternatives out there that deliver there has to be.

What this past week has shown me is how lucky we are to live where we do, there are so many local shops who have all turned to help each other and the local community. I knew this before but now more so it shows how lucky we are. When this is over we shall continue with the milkman and continue to support our local businesses, we did before but more so now.

This day I love week 1

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This is a featured post

We are currently in an unknown territory, the coronavirus has taken hold of the world and changed the way in which we live. Travel has stopped and we have been requested to stay at home. The right choice, the right decision. I for one cannot wait for all this to be over. For normality to return again. It doesn’t stop us dreaming though, dreaming of far away places. Dreaming of making memories. Dreaming of travel. Our favourite holiday aboard is the Disney Cruise. We love them and even though we will need to renew our ESTA for next year or for the next time we travel, this hasn’t stopped us planning our next adventure.

A little about the ESTA

An ESTA is valid for travel to and from the USA. We last went on a Disney cruise in 2019 which means when we travel again after this virus has settled down it is likely to be 2021. Given an ESTA has a two year validity we are going to need to apply for our ESTA again. The good news is that once you have your ESTA approved you can travel as many times as you like within that two year period without having to apply each time for another ESTA.

Always check before you travel though that your ESTA is still in date. We have made the mistake of transit through America and not having a valid ESTA. Luckily we managed to fill the ESTA form in whilst waiting to check in and the approval was almost immediate. It was a rather lucky escape and stopped the meltdown of three children who wanted to go on holiday.

I have always done our ESTA application for the USA online. Make sure you have your passport to hand as you will need the information within it. The ESTA, once approved, will be valid for two years unless your passport expires in which case you will need to apply for another ESTA for your new passport.

Travel plans

I am currently watching the news and keeping my eye on the latest travel advice from the government. At the moment there seems to be no change and no end in sight. An unknown and unprecedented era has arrived. As soon as the ban is lifted I shall be booking our holiday.

We have been very fortunate to travel several times on board the Disney cruise line ships and were looking forward to sailing on their new ships once they arrive in the fleet. The destinations for these ships have not been released so it is an exciting wait to find out where they will be destined to travel to.

Our favourite destination so far has been Mexico. Maybe because we visited over Halloween and got to learn so much about the Mexican culture. Perhaps it was the variety of beaches and environment, whatever it was we absolutely loved visiting there. The majority of Disney cruises sail from America. I have seen one that sails to New York and round Canada. I would love for us to do this.

For now I guess it is all just a dream. I would love to be sat on the beaches in Disney Castaway Cay again. Watching the fish swim through the crystal blue ocean. Feeling the warm sun on my skin. Instead for the foreseeable future I shall be thankful that we have a garden to play in and whilst the weather is no where near comparable to that of the Caribbean it is at least decent enough for the kids to play outside. As soon as the travel ban is lifted and life can return to normal I shall be filling out the ESTA application ready to start our adventures again.

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All items mentioned in this post I have paid for myself. Sudocrem contacted me to put a post together and have been compensated to do so.

Upon collecting the girls from school on Friday I decided that this weekend would remain as normal as possible. Our normal routines. Apart from my lack of work in the studio, I think I have achieved it. We have done homework as we normally would, tidied our rooms and cleaned out our various animals. Now comes the difficult part, getting ready for school.

Normally on a Sunday afternoon we make sure that we have everything ready for the school week ahead and this Sunday I am trying to do the same. I have asked the girls what they want to learn about. Do they want to have a day per subject or mix and match our days ahead. We have cleared the dining room table and set it up ready for tomorrow. In fact I am rather excited by the 9am start with Joe Wicks and his P.E. lesson.

We have decided to make the most of this time together, bonus time if you will. First on our list is to learn a new skill and we have decided together that we will learn sign language. All of us. I have found the following on Facebook and so 1pm every weekday we will tune in and do this together.

As the weeks go on we shall learn other skills maybe first aid, maybe another language I haven't decided yet but I want to make the most of this time.

I am also very conscious that there is no set curriculum to follow and so I have absolutely no idea what my children should be learning at this time. Given this lack of pathway I have decided to read more, watch documentaries with the kids and just practice the games and apps that support Maths and English, rather than muddling through and stressing over set guidance when I cannot find any.

I wrote on Facebook a few weeks ago that we recently started using Gousto [I have paid for my own boxes and the link if you subscribe will credit my account with £15, however this is the same for any customer who refers a customer and nothing specific to me] to deliver 4 of our meals a week. I am glad we did this as it has meant I can at least guarantee for now that we have 4 meals a week. We have also sourced a local fruit and veg shop to deliver a box a week meaning we also should have fruit and veg available each week too. Other than basics like bread, milk and egg plus various household goods we should be ok without having to go out of the house.

My children's biggest concern is that the Easter bunny won't come if we are in lock down. I had a word with him though and seemingly he went out last week to make sure that he can deliver over Easter.

We have asked our friends to stay in touch and be penpals, meaning the kids then get to practise their writing skills and also have something to look forward to in the post [whilst we still have deliveries happening].

Let's not forget that in with all the above we are all singing various songs lasting for 20 seconds to wash our hands thoroughly. All this hand washing has caused mine and my children's hands to dry out so we have resorted to Sudocrem to help soothe them. It was my go to when the children were little and so I have resorted to it once again to help soothe our sore hands

Here's a little routine we follow at home from Sudocrem

1. Wash hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds, especially after you’ve been in a public

place or after blowing your nose, coughing or sneezing. If soap and water not readily available use a

hand sanitiser that contains at least 60% alcohol.

2. Dry hands - wet hands transfer more germs than dry hands so ensure you dry hands properly

preferably using a paper towel rather than a drier.

3. Carry a pot of My Little Sudocrem (22g) to soothe hands whilst on-the-go.

Today might be Mother's Day but I am spending it trying to get ready for the new normal. A new routine starting tomorrow. I am hoping it works as we have no idea how long it will be for.

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The book was gifted but no other financial compensation has been received.

When an email landed in my inbox in November about a book for 10+ with a strong female lead, I knew instantly it was a book I wanted my eldest daughter to read. Her favourite subject at school is Maths, she absolutely loves it and tries at all costs to avoid reading and instead do Maths. Whilst I don't want to force her to read I do want to encourage her, and I thought having a book sent to her would encourage this. I wasn't wrong.

My eldest daughter has been engrossed with the Undercover thief since the moment it arrived. A book just for her, I think it what sparked her interest but soon the story took over and she could not put it down.

Undercover thief follows the life of Pamela Torres. Pamela Torres is an exceptional and resilient character. At the age of nine her parents disappear and she has to be resourceful just to survive. At 14 her parents return and turn her world upside down. Her parents take her away from the loving family she is with, they just happen to be one of the most notorious bands of young thieves in the London Underground and enlist her in a Victorian institute. The institute is an American boarding school for spies. Her parents are government spies. Pam now has to keep her past a secret but how do you do that when your whole world is now full of spies!

The book is beautifully written and written in such a way that it inspired my otherwise shy reader to become more confident in her reading ability. It sparked an interest that when asked for homework to write a book review, or design a book cover she always chose to do this about Undercover thief. The one thing however that I loved the most, was that for world book day when she could choose absolutely any book she used her imagination and dressed up in what she thought the Undercover thief would wear.

Speaking as a mother that is all I need to know about what my daughter thought about the Undercover thief. To choose to dress up as the main character for World book day shows me that this book has been truly loved and well received by her.

Thank you for sending the book to her and giving her confidence in her reading ability.

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