Great Escapes In The UK

Sometimes there is nothing more satisfying than a ‘staycation’. Your destination can be easier to reach then some far flung country, and considerably less expensive. Below I have listed some of my favourite areas in Britain. These places are family friendly and you will find loads to do with your entire group. And best of all, you can go any time of year!

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How you choose to stay is up to you. Whether it is a Bed and Breakfast in Cornwall, a tent in Wales or a caravan park in Scotland, the UK has options for all kinds of travellers. So let’s take a look at 3 awesome places you have to visit:

Loch Lomond

Winter is a particularly wonderful time in Loch Lomond. This is especially true when you see the white capped mountains shimmer in the late afternoon sunshine. Here you can enjoy brisk walks of a day and stargaze during the peaceful nights. You can enjoy trekking around the Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park and take in the astounding views. Witness the horizon of snow covered Ben Lomond and take a day trip to one of the Scottish castles. Within close range of major Scottish cities, there is more on offer than just countryside. When it comes to accommodation, it is very refreshing to stay outdoors.

St Ives Beach

St Ives 

This part of Cornwall has won lots of national awards such as best family holiday destination. it is held to be one of the most popular beach holidays in Europe. At times, St Ives feels like a subtropical paradise. One where the golden sands, lush vegetation and crystal waters evoke images on somewhere far from England. break It’s not surprising to know that the town has attracted artists for decades who flock to soak up the area’s incredible beauty. It began when J M W Turner and the noted artist Henry Moore came to St Ives during the mid nineteenth century. The town has since become a firm favourite among many artists and creatives from all over the world.

The Lake District

The Lake District (or Lakeland as it known in the area) is easily the UK's most treasured area for walking and hiking. There is a wealth of places to visit and you will not be surprised to learn that the area is steeped in history. Much like St Ives, this part of the country has long been the preserve of poets, painters and writers. Beatrix Potter lived here, in Troutbeck. She surely found inspiration for her characters among the wildlife scattered throughout the villages.

On the shores of Lake Windermere you will find the Lakes Aquarium. here you could while away the hours of a rainy day. Let your senses be wowed as you stare at the tropical fish and sea creatures that inhabit the centre. Who needs the Mediterranean!

These are just three of the UK’s most amazing destinations, as Britain is blessed to be home to so many contrasting areas. the main thing is to plan ahead, as you would not want to be forced inside for the length of your break. You will be in the gorgeous countryside, try to make the most of your surroundings. Enjoy your stay, and keep your fingers crossed for sunshine!

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Win Mum A Framed Print From The Comic Art Website Worth £70

When I was growing up, the Beano and Dandy comics were immensely popular.  We all knew that Gnasher was not an ideal pet and we had friends who behaved a lot like Dennis The Menace or Minnie The Minx.

Spinach was the super-food Popeye relied on and it presumably kept Olive Oyl skinny. They were fore-runners of the Mediterranean diet in the days when the height of gastronomic pleasure was a rum baba at the Wimpy and one of those strange bendy segmented sausages on a mixed grill the same size as your postcode district.

Today, these iconic characters live on and comic art is enormously popular.  I have recently discovered The Comic Art website which features the wonderful work of artist John Patrick Reynolds.

John Patrick Reynolds' cotton paper screen prints of classic British comics including The Beano, The Dandy and Victor have become collectors' items since their first appearance in the 1990s and received praise from the BBC, the Observer and the Daily Express, among others.

All the images started life in comics but can be appreciated in their own right, independently of the stories they were created for.

There are images from several categories of comic:

British classics from the UK’s top comic publisher DC Thomson, including such icons as Dennis the Menace, Desperate Dan, Minnie the Minx and the Bash St Kids from The Beano and The Dandy.

American stars Popeye and Olive Oyl

Scottish favourites Oor Wullie and The Broons, also from DC Thomson, but this time The Sunday Post

Boys’ own adventure heroes

French creations Asterix, Obelix and the hound Dogmatix.

The paper used is cotton, mould-made paper milled in Somerset and the prints come in three formats – from 19x26cms to 38x48cms and 56x76cms. Commissions are also available.

If, like me, your mum was a fan of characters such as Dennis, Minnie or Betty Boop not only would a print be a unique gift but it may also become a collectors' piece too.

I have a framed print of your choosing to the value of £70 to give away.  Entry is via the Rafflecopter and the giveaway ends at midnight on Tuesday 1st March 2016.  UK entrants only.  Terms and conditions are on my competitions page.

The winner must supply their details by Wednesday 2nd March if the print is to be given as a present on Mothers' Day.

Good luck!


a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Review: L'Oreal Paris Magic Retouch Instant Root Concealer Spray

I spend quite a bit each year on disguising my grey roots.  I always joke that I've no idea what my true hair colour is because nobody's seen it for years!

When I was young, it was the lovely reddy gold colour that Ieuan has now but I actually think my real colour now is a dark brown, almost black with the odd grey.

I recently had the chance to try L'Oreal Paris Magic Retouch Instant Root Concealer Spray and I chose the brown shade to test.

The product comes in a little spray can which promises enough contents for up to 30 applications. The product is also supposed to last until you wash it out.

The size of the can makes it ideal to slip into your make-up bag or handbag.

I got the Husband to apply the spray for me down my center parting (cue much shouting of "keep still") and it took two good blasts of the spray to cover the roots.

The greys are also a lot less visible with just those couple of sprays.

The only issue I have is that I chose the shade to match my roots but this does not blend in with my dyed hair.  I would have been better off selecting the dark blonde shade and plan to give this a try.

If the dark blonde shade gives as good a coverage as the brown one I tested then I think I could extend the time between salon colour appointments by a good couple of weeks.

At the moment, my salon offers a root touch up service where your roots can be dyed literally down your centre parting and you have the choice of either paying for a wash and blow dry or going home and washing it off yourself.

Currently the charge for this is around the £10-£15 mark (the wash & blow dry is extra of course) but you do have to find the time to get to the salon.  Not so easy with the kids in tow!

This does, of course hide all the roots and the greys.

The Magic Retouch spray, on the other hand, retails at £8.99 in Boots and comes in 5 shades - Light Blonde, Dark Blonde, Brown, Dark Brown and Black.

And, as you can see, it does a pretty respectable job with, if not total grey / root coverage, almost total.

If you want to eek out your salon colour and possibly save yourself some money into the bargain, I think this product is well worth a try.

I'd rate it as an 'emergency' product for those times when you want to look groomed and you just haven't got the time or cash to go to the salon.

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Review: L'Oreal Infallible 24H-Matte Foundation

Now I'm in my 50s I do find that finding the right foundation is more of a challenge than it used to be.  Despite the fact that my skin is drier, I still have a slightly oily center panel and enlarged pores on my nose.

My all time favourite foundation is Estee Lauder's Double Wear, although I have flirted briefly with MAC.  So when I was sent a L'Oreal Paris Infallible 24H-Matte foundation to try, I was curious to see how it would perform, especially since Double Wear is well over the £20 mark.

The shade I received was Shade 11 - Vanilla.

The product promises medium texture with high coverage. This was going to be an interesting challenge for a 50+ skin.

 I thought this was a good foundation. It gave great coverage, particularly over areas with enlarged pores. The colour suited my skin well and gave a slightly pinky overtone.

I did find that the product was quite heavy and caked slightly over drier areas which leads me to suggest that it is better suited to younger / oilier skins.

I suggest that you need to be generous with both moisturiser and primer if you have an older skin like mine.

I applied the product with my fingers and used a blending sponge over my nose so I may have had a different effect if I had used a foundation brush or used the blending sponge all over my face.

I also found that I was aware of the foundation on my skin so, although it is good for building up coverage, you do feel it on.

Since this foundation is a 24 hour foundation giving enhanced matte-ness, this only to be expected but I think that Infallible is better suited for special occasion wear - such as a wedding or party rather than an every day foundation.

I think L'Oreal's Infallible compares well to high coverage foundations with a much higher price point and since it does the job nicely, I can't see the point in spending any more.

L'Oreal Paris Infallible 24H-Matte foundation is available from Boots.com at £7.99 and comes in 6 shades.

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Should We Be Telling Our Sons To "Be A Man"?

It's very easy, isn't it, to fall into expecting your kids to conform to the traditional gender roles which were the accepted 'norm' back in our parents' and grandparents' day.

But when you stop and think about it, the polarisation of certain behaviours between male and female is no longer automatically acceptable.

6 year old Ieuan

When Ieuan has a strop about one of the many things that annoy a typical 6 year old, we have caught ourselves telling him to "man up".

Which got me thinking.

What exactly does "being a man" mean these days.

In the 1970's (when I was in my teens), the archetypal bloke was a mix of John Wayne, Clint Eastwood and Sylvester Stallone.  Real men did not cry, or dance (much) or eat quiche.

If they did exhibit any 'softer' behaviours, we said they were "in touch with their feminine side", a supposedly humorous allusion to the traditional 'girly' behavours, we women exhibited at certain times of the month or when the safety of a kitten was threatened.

The reverse side of the coin, of course, is that 'being a man' meant being handy with your fists. Fighting was a form of drink fuelled recreation which could garner secret admiration from other 'blokes' and the girls who fancied them.

"He knows how to handle himself".

"I wouldn't mess with him"

"He's a real 'man's man'".

Key skills in those days for a bloke were holding your drink, eating the hottest curry possible and driving like an idiot with the thumping backtrack of Meatloaf pounding your ears.

Real men chased the women too.

And it was automatically accepted that, if men earned more and got more breaks in their career, well, that's just the way it was.

So now, when we tell Ieuan to man up or to be a man about it (in jest I hasten to add), what exactly are we asking him to do?

Should we be defining our kids with gender stereotypes?  The answer must surely be no.

But should we deny them the pleasure of enjoying the perceived strengths and weaknesses which accompany each gender?

As a woman, I don't want to be able to build a dry stone wall or wrestle a sheep to the ground (when in Wales...) but that doesn't mean I want to be thought of as weak either.

What kind of men do we want our sons to be?

As a woman, it's a bit of a struggle to answer that without comparing today's men with those we grew up with and who are still part of our family today.

It's no longer a man's world and it's never been a woman's world.

So where do we go from here?

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Win A Cracking Easter Prize From HARIBO

We love Easter - and the kids particularly love the sweet treats left by the Easter Bunny but sometimes it makes a nice change to offer something other than chocolate.
 

HARIBO has cracked Easter with an ‘egg-citing’ mix of tasty treats especially for the occasion and they have kindly given me a selection of products from their Easter range to give away.

Whilst the themed bucket contains 32 mini bags to hide around the house or garden, plus some extra goodies including Easter hunting tips, clue cards and stickers, brand new Jelly Bunnies is ideal to share with family and friends.

Jelly Bunnies brings together jelly bunny shaped pieces with the popular texture found in Jelly Babies.

Chick ‘n’ Mix is new to HARIBO’s gifting range. A great alternative to chocolate eggs this Easter, it features a selection of tasty jelly, foam and marshmallow treats.

There’s also Fizzy Farm Animals that have been created using the popular Tangfastics original sour mix recipe.

Up for grabs is the Easter Hunt Bucket, Chick ‘n’ Mix, Jelly Bunnies and Fizzy Farm Animals. All this will come packaged in a wooden basket, which you will be able to use long after the treats have gone.

A Cracking Easter Prize From Haribo

Entry is via the Rafflecopter widget and the giveaway ends at 12 am on Saturday 19th March 2016. UK entrants only.  Terms and conditions are on my competitions page.  The winner must submit their details by 21st March in order to receive their prize in time for Easter.  Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Childcare Vouchers Can Help With Childcare Costs This Half Term

According the the annual Halifax Cost of Childcare research, the cost of raising your kids from birth to 11 has risen significantly in the last few years by 4% - to the sum of £87,000.

Childcare costs can form a significant part of your monthly outlay

It will be no great surprise to discover that childcare accounts for nearly half the monthly outlay for each child - around the sum of £320.

Childcare costs obviously vary according to the child's age and needs.  Some parents will not need childcare after their children start school, other than for school holidays.

For others, breakfast clubs and afterschool clubs become the norm, often supplemented with childminder fees to cope with pick ups and drop offs.

Add in the costs of  holiday clubs, play schemes, activity camps, babysitters and nannies, and the costs soon mount up.

But do you know about Childcare Vouchers?

These are a way to help parents save money on childcare costs through holiday periods such as half-term.

Childcare Vouchers are available through employers to pay for any registered childcare for children up to the age of 16, and can provide savings of up to £933 per year.

Simple to use, a chosen amount is deducted from your wages in return for the same amount of Childcare Vouchers before tax and National Insurance. They are then placed into an online account for parents to use to pay their childcare provider(s).

Vouchers can be deducted each month or as and when they are required. They can be saved up in the online account for when they are needed – perfect for those who only need them to pay for sporadic or school holiday childcare.

Both parents can join their employer's Childcare Voucher scheme, potentially doubling savings – making childcare more affordable.

The Government were planning to launch their new Tax-free Childcare scheme in autumn 2015, but this has now been delayed till 2017.

After school clubs also come at a cost

Currently, Childcare Vouchers are the only option for working parents who want to save on their childcare costs.

Furthermore, they will be many parents who will be better off continuing to use Childcare Vouchers as the savings they provide will be more than they would get through Tax-free Childcare.

Under the new scheme, many parents will be worse off, including middle-low earning parents, families with only one working parent, families using childcare for only a few days a week and those who have children in childcare over the age of 12.

Childcare Vouchers could therefore be the answer and it may well be worth speaking to your employer about Childcare Vouchers, especially since they will save money too.

Or, you could talk to an agency such as Busy Bees Benefits who can discuss the scheme with employers on your behalf.

Busy Bees Benefits' Childcare Voucher scheme helps working parents to save money on childcare and their employers can offer this valuable benefit at no cost to the organisation. Parents can also receive an additional discount if they use a Busy Bees Voucher at a Busy Bees Nursery - there are currently 230 in the UK.

It is certainly worth exploring your options when it comes to defraying your childcare costs and making sure you are getting what you are entitled to.

Further information at Busy Bee Benefits or you can call them on 0330 333 9100

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