Karen Hannah

When I was 15 and revising for my GCSE exams, I suddenly started waking up in the morning unable to control all of the movement in my arms. One minute I’d be fine, the next I would have involuntarily jabbed myself in the gums with my toothbrush, or spilt an entire cup of coffee down my freshly-dressed self. I had a ‘Saturday Job’ with one of the local market traders and we would go to a market in…

For the last two years I have put a box of goodies together for the boys to open on Christmas Eve. Inside, they usually get snacks for themselves and for their impending visitors, a blanket to snuggle up in, some Christmas activities and a book. Last year I put pyjamas in but this year they really don’t need any. It’s a lovely way to spend such an exciting evening and I have found that if they…

For the last two years I have put a box of goodies together for the boys to open on Christmas Eve. Inside, they usually get snacks for themselves and for their impending visitors, a blanket to snuggle up in, some Christmas activities and a book. Last year I put pyjamas in but this year they really don’t need any. It’s a lovely way to spend such an exciting evening and I have found that if they…

Twinkl around the world

I really wanted to do some activities with the boys that introduced them in a fun way to discover the countries of the world. They’re in different key stages at school so my approach needed to be suitable for them both. As usual, twinkl.co.uk was my first port of call. I wasn’t sure what I needed exactly, but there were lots of excellent ideas within the resources thrown up by the twinkl website…

Yellow Moon Christmas Craft

We are always pleased to receive a parcel full of craft supplies from Yellow Moon. This time, our mystery review box was filled with Christmas craft kits, so like any regular person would in the middle of November we had a Christmas craft afternoon and really got into the Christmas spirit.   We received: Penguin sewing decorations Christmas foam glasses Santa beard whistles Star glitter mosaic…

Christmas Gift Guide: for the grown ups

Last week I did my little guide to stocking fillers under £10 and today I bring you my top five picks for grown ups. some of these things are suitable for men and women but some are geared more towards one or the other. There are so many gift guides around at the moment so I’m keeping mine brief yet (hopefully) useful! Some of the things I love this year are: Echo Falls Tisane: No word of a lie,…

Writing to Father Christmas plus free Pip Ahoy! downloads!

It was the most important letter you wrote each year. You might have written several different version of it, all with similar content but perhaps with an extra item or two. I used to leaf through the Index (remember that?!) and Argos catalogues and list 30 or 40 things I needed in my life, then once I’d had a think about it I’d perhaps cross out the 13th Sindy doll on the list because 12 was…

Review & Competition: Pip Ahoy!

Ahoy there, Mateys! Pip is a a much loved little sea pup in our house. From Channel 5’s Milkshake!, Pip and his friend, a kitten named Alba, enjoy some wonderful adventures in their home town of Salty Cove in a beautifully animated show called Pip Ahoy!. Aimed at children aged 3-6, viewers follow Pip and his friends through the trials and tribulations of life, promoting kindness and friendship…

Review & Competition: Bratz #SelfieSnaps Doll

Bratz are back and they’re better than ever. They’re sassy and cool, they’re travelling the world and they’re instagramming it all. We received a Bratz #SelfieSnaps Jade doll and enlisted the help of our very own diva friend Ava for the purpose of this review. In addition to the actual figure, there are several accessories within the set. A few keys points are: Each doll comes with glasses and a…

Christmas Gift Guide: Stocking fillers for under £10

It’s just six weeks to Christmas 2015 and so it’s time for the Grumpyishmum gift guides! I’m easing you in gently with stocking fillers: everything within this post is under a tenner. After scouting around both online and off, these are my suggestions… Tea My husband is a bit of a tea fanatic. Earl Grey, Lady Grey, Chai, Lapsang Souchong… you name it he’s tried it. Teapigs spiced winter red tea…

I’ve written previously about our beautiful family dog, Betsy. We had Betsy come to live with us when she was just 10 weeks old and we celebrated her third birthday last month. She is as much a part of our family as one of the kids and she’s spoiled rotten. She has more haircuts and pedicures than I do and we plan each day around her. That’s just how a dog’s life should be. Life wasn’t always…

Top picks for Halloween board games

It’s Halloween night. It’s pouring down, one of the kids has a constantly snotty nose and quite frankly you just can’t face traipsing the streets with them for trick or treat this year. So you’ve sacked the idea of asking strangers for sweets and need an alternative way to mark the occasion. There are more board games than you might think with a link (no matter how tenuous) to spooks, ghouls,…

A Day at Manchester City

Today’s post was written by my mum! We were invited to go along to Manchester City’s Ethiad stadium for a tour and to learn more about them, but since we are devout ‘reds’ here it wasn’t for us. My mum, however, is a City fan through and through so it was a brilliant opportunity for her to take my nephew Kieran along. So I’ll hand you over to my dear mum who can tell you all about her day there……

Wagamama arrives at the Trafford Centre

The newest restaurant to open within the Trafford Centre’s The Orient is Japanese noodle expert Wagamama. Opening their doors to the public on Monday 12th October, Wagamama are excited about the launch of their biggest restaurant to date and I was fortunate enough to be invited to a special preview event. I’ve never been to Wagamama before (I know, shocking) and it was a taste sensation!…