This day I love.......: gifted

I was provided with complimentary tickets to see the performance in exchange for a review.

Last weekend the girls and I headed over to Elsecar Heritage centre as we had been invited to watch a performance of Edgar- A Hidden Life. With the show most suitable to the over 10s Little Man had gone to play at his Grandma's house and so it was just me and my girls. We arrived in plenty of time so made the most of Elsecar park whilst we waited.

Edgar - A hidden Life is written by Daniel Foulds and is based on the true story of Edgar Bower. Edgars story is one of secrets and shame, poverty and prejudice but also highlights the power of love. Edgar spends more than half a century hidden away in silence until social worker Lily Fletcher sets about to unlock the secrets of his past.

The play is part of the Hidden history project which brings to life true stories of historical characters from Yorkshire. The performance is all outdoors and set in three heritage venues in Bradford, Elsecar and Halifax throughout July. As the event is outdoors it is important to dress for the weather and wear comfortable shoes as you do walk around as the story unfolds.

Edgar's story was quite complex and required a basic understanding of history. The girls didn't know what an asylum was for example or about the treatment of people with mental health problems in the past. Having a little bit of an understanding helped you to emphasize more with Edgar and gave the story a bit more context. I was certainly glad I had left Little Man at home because the girls at 9 and 10 struggled to understand at some points.

Personally I found the story very gripping, you wanted to know what would happen to Edgar. You also want to know if the story unfolding is what actually happened. Having the performance outdoors and within the grounds of the heritage centre added something special to the performance and made it seem and feel much more real.

There was absolutely no pressure to participate in the final part of the show, in fact my eldest daughter didn't want to and said no. My youngest however jumped at the chance to join in.

The girls enjoyed the show and it was great to do something a little different. Everything felt COVID safe as we were asked to wear masks and the whole performance was outside. I did have to explain some parts to the girls, as mentioned previously, but they said they enjoyed themselves. I thought it was a great performance and I immediately came home and googled Edgar Bower!

Thank you for inviting us!

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The items mentioned in this review have been provided in exchange for an honest review. There has been no financial incentive.

Shielding has ended and the world has begun to open up slowly, which means my son now no longer has to stay in and can venture back into the world again. I have been doing things very slowly with him but trying to explain calmly to a just turned 5 year old not to touch everything and keep his hands clean is very difficult.

I want him to not think that anything is different, I don't want him worrying about the outside world but at the same time I want to keep him as safe as I can. To be fair to him he is quite good with using hand gels but I do often get screams of it's too sticky!

Canal toys create some great activity toys, and so when they got in touch to ask if we wanted to try their Anti-bacterial slime I knew it would be something all three of my children would enjoy. All three of my children [ages 10, 8 and 5] love slime and are always asking for more.

My 8 year old decided to test out the slime initially before working out which pot she was going to share with her siblings and which she was keeping for herself. She settled for the red one. First test was a smell, she decided there was a little smell similar to had gel but nothing strong. She then got to playing, and was surprised it wasn't too sticky or slimy and that she could stretch and see through it.

In fact she was incredibly impressed at how super stretchy it is. She loved playing and stretching it and moving it across her hands. All the time she was playing the anti bacterial properties in the slime were helping to keep her hands clean. The slime is alcohol free and holds its anti bacterial properties for a month.

What I have noticed as we start to venture out more, is that the hand gel tends to be high up. This makes it suitable for adult use but less convenient for children, particularly my 5 year old. The anti bacterial slime comes in light weight, small pots which means it is super easy to put in your pocket or bag and carry with you. I can say with confidence that I can always get my 5 year old to play with slime but cannot always get him to use the hand gel.

The anti bacterial slime kills 99.9% of bacteria and is the first product of it's kind. Given how child friendly it is and convenient to carry I can see it accompanying us more as we start venturing out more.

Anti bacterial slime can be purchased from Smyths Toys and Amazon and is available in single pack RRP £2.99 or 4 pack RRP £9.99

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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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Disclaimer : I won the lodge holiday and was not asked to write or share any information regarding it. I chose to do so. The shoes from Hotter were sent for review but no other compensation has been received.

Last year I had to pleasure of running alongside Anna McNuff as she completed running across Britain barefoot. She is such a genuinely lovely person who was incredibly warm and welcoming to us joining her on her run. I has been following her progress across social media for some time so it was great to finally meet her.

Social media has a funny way of connecting people. Had I not have been following her I probably would not have seen the competition to win a stay at the Lodges at Artlegarth. I entered the competition not expecting to win anything and so was unbelievably surprised to find out I won! We booked the weekend of Little Man's birthday, which meant we would have a nice break away for his birthday.

The lodges are near to the Lake district. I was very excited as it meant we would be able to get out and explore and take some nice walks with the dogs and the kids. I was even more excited that I got to put my gifted shoes from Hotter shoes to the test.

Hotter shoes had kindly sent me their Mist shoe in blue river/Navy and our walking holiday was the perfect opportunity to try them out. First Mist shoes are enhanced with waterproof and breathable Gore-Tex® product technology, this was something I was particularly pleased about given how wet the weather had been recently. Having water resistant and comfortable shoes are a must for long walks for me. The rugged and durable sole meant I was even comfortable walking over the stone surfaces with the dogs.

The shoes follow a similar design style to that of a hiking shoe. The profile is incredibly similar. Front fastening laces are fully adjustable to give a secure fit.

I always go up one size in shoes which are for walking or running. My feet tend to get warm and if I stay with my usual size I end up with blisters. A whole weekend of walking and exploring the oudoors, in pretty much every kind of weather including snow and I did not experience any blisters, cuts or other such issues from uncomfortable shoes. In fact I was really surprised as it is rare that a pair of shoes fits so well and causes no issues directly out of the box.

Our weekend was simply beautiful. Lots of walking and exploring new places, had the weather been even better we would have been out even more. The dogs loved it and so did the kids. The girls have not stopped asking when they can go back again. I am just looking forward to the time when I can take the dogs and kids out again to spend the day exploring and walking. Thank you Hotter for sending the shoes and also thanks to the Lodges at Artlegarth for choosing us as your winners.

On a side note I have just seen Hotter shoes have an amazing offer on

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