My top ten best lunch boxes

With the children back to school in September here in the UK, many parents will be shopping for school supplies so here are my top 10 of the best lunch boxes available from Amazon. 

Affiliate links are at the bottom of the page and cost you no extra, but help to keep my blog going. 

Christmas first aid kit.

Every year I make up a Christmas first aid kit which is basically a box containing everything I think that we will need in case of any minor illness or injury over the Christmas period so that I do not have to be running around to buy things should we fall unwell.

The contents of this box need to be tailored to your family, but to give you an idea I have listed the contents of our Christmas first aid kit below.

• Plasters, bandages and antiseptic wipes.
• General painkillers such as paracetamol and ibuprofen.
• Heartburn or indigestion medication.
• Period pain medication.
• Cold and flu medication.
• Children's cough medicine.
• Children's pain medication.

It is also important to check on any medication that you take regularly which you need a prescription to make sure that you will have enough to cover the festive season. If yours is going to run out, make sure you make an appointment to see your GP now so that you can tell your doctor and then they can make sure that you will have enough.

Once you have gathered all your supplies make sure that you put the kit somewhere safe that small children will not be able to get to and also somewhere that is easy for you to get to in case of a minor emergency.

Summer record sheets.

This is an idea I had when my older two girls were little and we have done it ever since and it's so simple to do!

Every summer holiday I get a sheet of plain A4 paper and write on the top 'Summer record sheet'. I then draw a line for them to write in the date and then I get them to write about their day, high lighting things that they have particularly enjoyed. I get them to draw at least one picture of something that they have enjoyed that day and they can also stick on things like cinema tickets or postcards from places we've been. I buy them a folder and then we put the sheets into the folder and at the end of the six weeks holidays, we have a lovely folder full of their thoughts, drawings and souvenirs to keep forever and look back on in years to come. LJ and CJ who are now 15 and 14 years old often look back through their old folders and reminisce on times gone by and it is so easy to do. If you have a printer you can just make one sheet and then print them off as you go so it's not very time consuming at all. Each night about 30 minutes before going up for baths and bed we sit down and fill them in and it's educational as well as it gets them practising their handwriting, spellings and reading.

So there you have it, a simple easy idea that can create memories that will last a lifetime!

Do you ever surprise your children?

Yesterday we surprised the children when they got home from school with a trip to the seaside. It was so lovely to see their faces when they realised that instead of our usual routine of homework and chores that we were instead going out for some family fun and the whole surprising the kids is something that I do like to do now and again.

                                             

I know that on the whole children need routine and structure and to be honest I also function much better that way as I am a list maker and a big planner, but I do think that it's nice to sometimes shake things up a bit and surprise the children and I wondered if other people do this or if you don't, maybe reading this may make you consider doing it. It doesn't have to cost a lot of money and in fact there are many things that you could do to surprise your children that doesn't cost a penny but for us we wanted to spend a little and treat them to a trip to the seaside as we haven't been out for a while (due to me being unwell) so when they came in from school they did their usual 'hi mum, can I have a snack?' and I told them yes but they needed to get changed first into something nice and they all stood there looking so confused and intrigued it was really funny. We then told them that we were going to the beach and they were all so excited (even the teenagers and for anyone with teens, you will know that excitement in them is quite an achievement!) and they all ran off to get ready.

We drove to the local supermarket and let them pick a few treats to make up a picnic with some drinks and then we headed off to the beach. We ate our picnic on the beach and then we had a paddle and the water was absolutely freezing but I didn't mind as we were having such a laugh together.

 Then we searched for shells and unusual stones and that always goes down well with my little one. We then gave each child £2 and we went into the arcades and let them have a little fun. Then we put FJ on some rides and then it was time to head home.

On the way home, both LJ and CJ thanked me for a lovely evening and FJ told me that I was 'her wonderful, beautiful, special, princess mummy' and that she loved me very much so I know that they all appreciated the treat and myself and hubby had a great time too so all in all, it was a successful surprise trip out.

Mummy in a Tutu

Bedtime antics!

How do you get your kids to go to bed at night is a question that I have often been asked over the years and the main answer to that question is consistency!! I know that you are probably thinking that you've heard that before, but I think that when you are experiencing problems getting your child to bed you can often feel overwhelmed and add that to tiredness and stress and it can often be hard to look at things in an honest and logical way.

When it comes to bedtimes you first need to decide on what time you would like your children to go to bed and you need to agree on this with your partner if you have one as everyone that is in charge of caring for your children need to be on the same page. Now, when it comes to choosing a time for your children to go to bed, much of that will depend on your own personal circumstances but as a guide the NHS choices website has a list of ages and how many hours the average child needs to sleep each night. http://www.nhs.uk/Livewell/Childrenssleep/Pages/Howmuchsleep.aspx You may decide to have a set bedtime every night or you could do what I do which is have a school night bedtime and a weekend/school holidays bedtime and for our family that has always worked well.

Once you have decided on an appropriate bedtime you then need to set up a bedtime routine that stays the same 99% of the time. The reason I say 99% is because in reality there will be times when the situation is out of your control and it is not possible to keep to it, but for the majority of the time you need to follow through with the bedtime routine from start to finish so that your child always knows what to expect each night. One important factor to consider is what your own mood is like at your child's bedtime as you need to be calm with your children if you want them to stay calm and settle down nicely.

Here is a list of some of the things that you could include in your child's bedtime routine depending on how old they are and what is suitable for you and your family.

• Bath or wash.
• A warm drink.
• A quiet activity such as a puzzle or colouring in.
• A bedtime story.
• Teeth.
• A quiet talk about the day's events.
• Cuddle time.
• A healthy snack.
• Listening to some calming music.

For FJ, my five-year-old, the bedtime routine starts at 6:30pm. First of all we do a quiet activity to help calm her down as she is a very active child. Then at 7pm, I take her upstairs and she has a wash, brushes her teeth and gets ready for bed. I then read her a story and then we have a cuddle and a quiet talk for about ten minutes. It is usually around 7:30 after all of this when I then leave the room and she is allowed to play with her toys or read to herself until 8pm. This then gives her the recommended sleep of 11 hours each night. On a weekend or school holiday I still do the same routine but an hour later as of course, she can sleep in for longer when there is no school. I only allow FJ to watch a DVD or play on her play station on a weekend or school holiday as well as I feel that doing such activities at bedtime can actually keep children awake rather than send them to sleep, so if she has school the next day it is important that she gets a good nights sleep. For my older two girls, it is recommended that they have 9 hours sleep, so they go to bed at 9pm on school nights and then it's light's out at 9:30pm and although I can't force them at their age to go straight to sleep I do have the same DVD and video game rules which helps them go to sleep a lot earlier then they would if I let them do what they like at bedtime.

Once you have everything sorted for the bedtime routine it's a good idea to write it down and stick it up somewhere so that everyone can see it and if you are doing this for the first time then it is probably a good idea to discuss your bedtime plans with your child but don't do it just before bed when they are tired as they will not be able to take on board what you are saying. The best time to discuss your plans with your child is at a time when they are fully awake and in a good mood.

The only other piece of advice that I can offer on this topic is to stay consistent! It may be hard as at first as your children will probably try and test the situation to see how far they can push the boundaries, but if you stay calm and consistent they will eventually learn that this is how things are going to be and they will be much more compliant. I do still on the odd occasion get resistance from FJ when it's bedtime, but I just stick to my guns and after a few days she goes back to accepting that it is bedtime and I never have a problem with my older two when it comes to bed and more often than not they actually just get up and say goodnight at 9pm without me having to say anything at all as they know the rules.