Good morning all. Today I am featuring over at Mummy Constant's blog after her great guest post here at Two Cats, Youngling and Me. I hope you enjoy my ramblings, I will be back soon with some more.
Take care
Kate
xx
I only know one mother at Younglings pre-school. I have known her for a few years from when we met at a stay and play group then realised we lived around the corner from one another. When my friend came round earlier for a play date and lunch with her Youngling we got to talking about schools and the playground rules for the parents.
Neither one of us have been approached by another parent for a chat or to introduce their child who may be friends with ours. I have tried on numerous occasions to make friends with some of the parents but it feels like unless you know one another away from said setting you are unlikely to form a close friendship.
I don't think any offence is intended by anyone, in fact I think some parents find taking their growing baby to pre-school to be daunting and they may even be a tad shy.
I remember from an early age of say four or five tugging my mothers coat to drag her away from her conversation at the school gate. I remember thinking that the group of chattering women sounded like seagulls at low tide trying to talk above one another in order to be heard. When I take Youngling to school I cant help but feel like I am back at my school playgrounds longing to play with the popular kids but quietly enjoying the silent observations of life as they passed me by.
So is it a case of popularity in the playground even when it comes to the parents?
Having to choose Younglings next school I have thought long and hard about some of the children he mentions from school. Because of his speech impediment I can't really tell who he is talking about but when we are gathering his coat and bag in the school cloakroom I can see he has taken a shine to some of the children. I am so chuffed he has made friends. But with the closing date ever nearing I am not sure where to send him now for the best.
The school furthest away is a religious school and I would like him to have more of a religious influence at this age (like I did) then he can make his own views when hes older (again like I did). The nearest school would be sooo much easier - I mean lets face it I'm not the earliest of risers. I just don't know what to do. We could both do with the exercise of walking to the furthest school but think we'll freeze in the winter and I haven't heard of any other children from his pre-school applying there.
Eek.
What would you do? Any advice?
I came across a post called: The Truth About Playground Politics over on the BritMums website which was written by guest author Sarah Tucker publishing her latest book: The Playground Maffia (as pictured above). In her post Sarah discusses her observations of parental behaviours in the playground and the lengths some may go to to make sure their child stays a step ahead. I would highly recommend you swing by and read it for yourself. Some of the statements are shocking. I will definitely be looking out for the book.
Take Care
Kate
xx
Good morning all. It's that time again where I share some of my frugal tips and saving tricks with you all. Today is a little bit different as I would like to introduce you to another good friend of mine from: atwentysomethingmum Not only is Chloe a great friend to talk to on Twitter,she is an avid saver and frugal spender (like myself) so I hope you enjoy this little extract from her wisdom, don't be shy to leave a comment telling her so. Take care Kate xx PS; Make sure you swing by Chloe's blog and check out her fabulous designs too.
Bargain Hunting Buzz
I love bargains. I love bargain hunting. I'm not too proud to say it, and in fact I would shout it from the roof tops! Nothing gives me greater pleasure than finding something at a great price and I usually tell everyone about it! When I became a mummy after my maternity pay finished I went back to work part time but when we found out we had to relocate for my baby daddy's job that was the end of that. Since moving down here I haven't worked really. I did 6 weeks at Next over the Christmas and sale period, just a few hours a week more to get out of the house than anything! But due to the high cost of childcare when Christmas shopping hours subsided and my partner couldn't have my son my only option was to pay a childminder which ate up all of my wages. Hence no more Next.
So I've had to get my bargain hunting shoes on and these are my little secrets 1.) The Poundshop. I'm no snob, I will admit I shop in here and I am continuously amazed at the brands you can buy here. I get all of my cleaning products here and save loads on them. From dettol cleaning wipes to my Mr Muscle kitchen spray-they are all here and cheaper than the supermarkets. I can also fill our 'naughty' cupboard here for far less too! Cadbury Mini Rolls, Wotsits, cookies-the choice is amazing. Jams, spreads, fizzy drinks, toiletries,haircare etc it's all here. Johnson's baby wipes here too for £1 a pack whereas the supermarkets retail then at £2.44+! Johnsons make these packs with 6 wipes less to be able to sell them in Poundland but for 6 wipes less?! I'm still happy! So if there is one thing I would recommend it's getting down there, you can get EVERYTHING in there and when you're saving the sort of money I do just by going-it's worth putting any snobbery aside!
The second place I've found some great bits and pieces it TKMaxx. I never ever find anything for me in there but for my son it's great. (Although not long ago I got 3 OPI nail varnishes in ther for £10 which is cheaper than one bottle bought normally!). When baby All Saints wen't bust last year TKMaxx ended up selling the clothing which meant I managed to buy my son some designer t-shirts for less than £5 each! Better price than the highstreet! They also have a well stocked clearance area in the children and babies section and I've managed to pick up all sorts there-a baby blanket as a gift for a friend for £4 reduced from £14.99 and a box of designer 'Trumpette' socks for £6 (RRP. £20+). The children's books here are the best though. I manage to regularly get my son the nice board style books he loves for £2.99 a pop-FAR cheaper than the likes of Waterstones etc. So get down to your nearest store and if you have the time and can look you won't come out empty handed-I never do!
I've also taken the opportunity to have a MASSIVE clear out of all my sons old toys and clothes and the mountains of 'stuff' that we have but don't want or need anymore. So I sat and pondered about how I could turn my unwanted goods in to moolah. Obviously we have ebay, a great website for buying and selling old bits and pieces but I do find their sellers fee's extortionate which when you are selling a boys t-shirt for £2, paying almost half of that in fees doesn't really do much for my motivation of sitting there and putting it all on! So I've been looking for other alternatives recently. The first thing would be a carboot but it's still far too cold (I'm not THAT hardcore!) and so the other thing that's really going to work (I hope) is an NCT Nearly new sale. I hadn't heard of these until recently but basically you price up your old unwanted childrens and baby clothes and toys, take them along on sale day and the lovely volunteers will sell them for you! You get all but 30% of the total which NCT keep. To me NCT keeping a portion of the profit is more appealing than the ebay giants swallowing it up! Helping charity and earning money sounds best to me! So I think I will be partaking in my first Nearly New Sale soon! Visit the NCT website for more details on sales in your local area.
If you like shopping online then my best piece of advice is to check out 'Top Cash Back'. It's a website that literally gives you money! It's not a con, I can vouch for it as I've so far earnt over £100 in 4 months just through shopping online. The idea is that everytime you want to buy something you go to their website first. Say you want to buy something from Boots website. Go to 'Top Cash Back' and put 'Boots' in and go through to the website as directed. Complete you order and voila. You get cashback for buying! Most brands big and small are part of this and it's great-even ebay do it! Just from buying items I was going to buy anyway I've managed to earn £100 just for doing so-and they usually have voucher codes too for money off! So check that one out too! Visit the website HERE
So that's my love of bargain hunting explained, what about you? What do you do to help keep your purchases in line with your pocket?
If you like shopping online then my best piece of advice is to check out 'Top Cash Back'. It's a website that literally gives you money! It's not a con, I can vouch for it as I've so far earnt over £100 in 4 months just through shopping online. The idea is that everytime you want to buy something you go to their website first. Say you want to buy something from Boots website. Go to 'Top Cash Back' and put 'Boots' in and go through to the website as directed. Complete you order and voila. You get cashback for buying! Most brands big and small are part of this and it's great-even ebay do it! Just from buying items I was going to buy anyway I've managed to earn £100 just for doing so-and they usually have voucher codes too for money off! So check that one out too! Visit the website HERE
So that's my love of bargain hunting explained, what about you? What do you do to help keep your purchases in line with your pocket?
Love Chloe xx
Today I have featured as a profile of a Budgeting Mum over at Baby Budgeting Blog. I have spoken to Becky now and then on Twitter for quite some time now and always valued her opinion and advice. Not only does she write a fabulous blog brimming with reviews and give aways and tales of the motherhood, she has also written a book too. (You can view her book here).
So hop on over to Becky's site and check out my answers to her questions.
Make sure you come back though ;-)
Take care
Kate
xx
I would like to introduce you all to a very good friend of mine who has been very supportive and encouraging to me as of late. Not only is she a great twitter buddy, but she is also my techy guru. You can read more about Sonia on her blog: www.mummyconstant.com or drop her a tweet: @mummyconstant I hope you all enjoy Sonia's advice and don't be shy in saying so - that way we may be able to get her back again to give us some more ;-) Be sure to swing by Sonia's blog and let her know how you came across it. Take care and speak soon, Kate xx
Changing your avatar in Blogger (using your Google account)
My first guest post and I have been asked to write a step by step to change an avatar photo in Blogger, so that when you post comments on a Blogger blog it has a recent photo of your choice.
Firstly log on to Blogger, using your Google account and you will be taken to your Blogger dashboard:
You will notice there is a section under your name that says “View Profile”, “Edit Profile”, “Edit Photo” and “Edit Notifications”. To change your avatar on the Blogger account, click on the “Edit Photo”.
You will be taken to a section called “Profile Photo”:
If you click on “Remove image”, it hides the current image and it displays the options: Choose a file from your computer or from the web.
Choosing a file from your computer is pretty self explanatory, simply click “choose file” and locate to the folder and photo on your computer that you wish to use.
Choosing a file from the web, can be an image you have already uploaded to the internet somewhere, you can get the location of a file on the net by “right clicking” the photo/image and then choosing “Copy Image URL” (if using Chrome); “Copy Image Location” (if using Firefox) and “Properties and then copy the Address URL section” (if using Internet Explorer).
Once you have chosen your selected photo, scroll down the page and choose “Save Profile”.
You will then be told “Your settings have been saved” (View updated profile).
You can click on “View updated profile” or the “Blogger Dashboard” to either view your profile or to go to the Dashboard and you will see the thumbnail image of your new avatar.
Your new photo will show up as the avatar on blog comments now also… why not write a comment on this post to have a quick test! Sonia x
Well I haven't really got any new advice this week as I am awaiting some material from guest bloggers who will share some of their wisdom with you, dear readers, over the coming few weeks.
So I thought I would share a few recipes with you too. The good news is they are low budget, easy to make and doesn't take all the time in the world.
So here is the first one:-
Sweetcorn and Pepper Frittata
Serves 4
Prep: 10 mins
Cooking time: 10 mins
Ingredients
2 tbs Olive Oil
4 Spring Onion (thinly sliced)
200g 97oz) can of Sweetcorn (drained)
150g (5oz) Bottled Roasted Red Peppers in oil drained and cut in to strips
4 Eggs lightly beaten
125g (4oz) Strong Cheddar Cheese - grated
1 Small handful of chives - finely chopped
Salt and Pepper
HEAT the oil in a frying pan, add the spring onions, sweetcorn and red peppers and cook for 30 seconds.
ADD the eggs, Cheddar, chives and salt and pepper to taste and cook over a medium heat for 4-5 mins until the base is set. Remove from the hob, place under a preheated grill and cook for 3-4 mins or until golden and set. Cut into wedges and serve immediately with a green salad and crusty bread.
ALTERNATIVES are a courgette, pepper and Gruyere Frittata.
Hope you enjoy let me know how yours turns out.
Take care
Kate
xx
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