Mummy & Moose
clapping, napping and yapping our way through the day

Win a Beanbag – Beanbag Bazaar

We were sent this beanbag for the purposes of this post

When we were asked to road test a beautiful faux fur beanbag from Beanbag Bazaar the idea was to pop it in Bess’ room. She is getting a much needed bedroom refresh. She is after all a teenager now and a teen needs a different space to that of a little girl. Anyway, to cut a long story short, Moose has (temporarily) nicked the bean bag. 

From the minute we got it out of the box Moose was in love. He is quite a tactile child. He responds well to soft fabrics and has lots of blankets and cushions that he loves to snuggle with. Moose saw the snow leopard fabric on the bean bag and his eyes lit up. 

The beanbag we chose is the ICON® Siberia Faux Fur Bean Bag in Snow Leopard print. This is an adult size bean bag measuring in at 85cm deep and 50cm high but Beanbag Bazaar have loads of shapes and sizes to choose from. I am fairly sure that this one will end up in Bess’ bedroom eventually but for now Moose wants to keep in the lounge. Its lovely and light so will be easy enough to move when we need to.

Moose adores how comfortable the thick faux fur is. He likes to snuggle on the beanbag while he reads a book or watches his cartoons. I love how the beanbag looks. Not only does it look great in our living room, it will look super stylish in a teen bedroom too

 

WIN

To win your very own Beanbag from Beanbag Bazaar simply follow the instructions below to enter our giveaway via Rafflecopter.
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Terms and Conditions
  • This giveaway is open to all UK residents only, and you must be over 18 years of age to enter.
  • ONE winner will be chosen via Rafflecopter.
  • The winner will be contacted by e-mail within 7 days of competition ends. If they do not respond within 28 days another winner may be chosen.
  • Your details will be passed to Beanbag Bazaar, but will not be passed onto any third parties by Mummy and Moose.
  • Any damage to the prize is not Mummy and Moose’s responsibility.
  • The company reserves the right to substitute the prize for one of a similar type/value if the prize above is not available.
  • Entries using any software or automated process to make bulk entries will be disqualified.

My Liverpool Wishlist

This is a collaborative post with Liverpool ONE

Every year I put a list together. Not so much resolutions but things I would like to do. Visiting certain places in the UK features heavily on my list and visiting Liverpool is definitely on the list for 2020. 

Liverpool is just under a 4 hour drive from where we live in Peterborough. It’s not what I would call near enough for a day out really but certainly a weekend away there would be more than doable! 

Liverpool ONE

If I had the chance to get away with my daughter, Bess, I know we would definitely make a beeline for Liverpool ONE. With over 170 shops, restaurants and bars to choose from I reckon Bess would be in her element here. I could imagine a morning spent shopping followed by a trip to the cinema in the evening. Or perhaps a bit of entertainment by the waterfront even. 

Liverpool ONE is centrally located so it’s easy to travel to and from here if you wanted to get to other parts of Liverpool.

Liverpool with kids in tow?

Sadly Moose, my 5 year old, is not a fan of shopping (yet) but Liverpool has plenty to offer little ones too. I love the look of Mattel Play! Based at the iconic Albert Dock, Mattel Play! features three fully themed interactive play zones where your child’s creativity brings the worlds of Thomas & Friends™, Fireman Sam™ and Bob the Builder™ to life. I would imagine that a family with young children could easily spend a day here. Check out this great blog post by Chilling With Lucas for tons of info.

For outdoor fun we would head to Chavasse Park for the Liverpool ONE nature trail. Moose loves nature trails! I think they are a great way to persuade little ones to explore.

There are so many museums in Liverpool. It apparently boasts the most museums in a city outside of London. I would love to spend an afternoon hopping between the museums and the many art galleries. After all, it was no mistake that Liverpool was Capital of Culture in 2008!

To help you plan your visit, Liverpool ONE has created this great map. You can have fun planning your time in Liverpool and getting the most out of your stay – and make sure you get the best pics. After all, it’s all about the ‘gram!

liverpool instagram

Meal Plan #96

After a nice and very chilled half term break we are thoroughly back into our school routine. Halloween was great fun. We did over an hour of trick or treating so my step count looks great this week! It does mean that we have a house full of sweets now which is a bit of an own goal. Everything in moderation though, eh?

One of the things I love most about Autumn is that the weather lends itself to the sorts of meals I enjoy cooking. I think that this week’s meals will reflect that.

Don’t get me wrong, I love a good salad (not that you can tell by looking at me) but is there anything better than arriving home after a soggy walk back from school or the shops and having a bowl of warming soup and crusty bread? I think not.

cream of tomato soup

This week in food

Friday: Spaghetti and Meatballs with half a ton of cheese on top. Probably.

Saturday: Chicken and ribs served with jacket potato and coleslaw

Sunday: Roast pork with mashed potato and roasted veg.

Monday: Chicken pasta bake. I will be going out so has to be something I can easily prepare earlier.

Tuesday: Sausage casserole and dumplings with broccoli

Wednesday: Going to have a cooked lunch so will be something simple like a wrap as I am off to London.

Thursday:  Chili Con Carne with rice and tortilla chips

I would love to hear what you and yours are tucking into this week. Please feel free to comment below and if you are a fellow blogger then link up on Katy’s meal planning linky. I love reading the posts as I am very nosey and frankly still struggle with what to feed my family even after 18 years as a Mum – seriously, if I don’t know what I want then how can I be expected to know what they want?!

 

Katykicker

Half term crafts for rainy days with Milly&Flynn

We were sent these products for the purpose of this post

I find October half term a bit of a challenge. The wedding season is over, so work is hardly flooding in, and, when you are self employed, no work = no money.

No money at half term is not so great when you have little ones to entertain and it’s tipping it down every day.

Luckily we were asked to have a go at some Milly & Flynn crafts – just in time for the school hols. We were sent a Panda 3D foam puzzle, a Lion 3D foam puzzle, a Puzzle & Grow build your own treehouse and garden set, and a ‘Cake in a Mug’ mug.

3D Foam Puzzle

As a parent who hates cleaning may I first of all extend my thanks to whoever designed these puzzles. Clean crafts that you can just let your child get on with without fear of them sharpie-ing your sofa are to be applauded.

Inside the box you will find

  • Foam puzzle pieces.
  • 1 x Double connector.
  • 2 x Single connector.
  • 2 x Pupil inserts.

The first job for Moose was to push out all of the foam shapes, which are pre cut and come on foam boards. There are a lot of pieces. The foam is pretty thick and sturdy though and he managed to press out every single piece all by himself. It took quite a while, which I feel is an excellent plus point as it allowed me to drink a cuppa in peace. A rare occurrence!

Moose didn’t get bored. 3D puzzle was just challenging enough. I think he liked being able to get on with it by himself. On the back of the box, you will find instructions. Milly & Flynn have printed them in picture form. An easy to follow step by step so great for non readers. It says on the box that 3D puzzles are suitable for 5+ and I think this is spot on.

I really liked that Moose was able to put the 3D puzzle together without help. As well as this though there is plenty of play value after the puzzle has been completed. Moose quite happily played for ages. If you every wondered who would win in a Lion Vs Panda battle, we have you covered..

Priced from £7.99, the 3D foam puzzle would make an excellent stocking filler or party gift for any boy or girl. We will definitely be buying a few this Christmas!

Our stay at the Peninsula Hotel Guernsey

We were gifted our accomodation for the weekend in exchange for our review. All opinions are honest and our own. 

After crossing the channel on the Condor Liberation we found our home for the weekend on the North side of Guernsey at the Peninsula Hotel.

The Peninsula Hotel

With Moose leading the way, room key in hand, we soon found our room. Our generous family room had plenty of space. As well as 2 single beds for the children, there was a comfy double bed for MrG and I. It didn’t take long for us to settle in.

The Peninsula Hotel has plenty of facilities. As well as a laundry service, there is a self serve laundry room – useful if your children are as grubby as mine. Outside is a mini golf course and there is the option to hire bicycles, a great way to explore the island.

We absolutely loved the Peninsula Hotels outdoor swimming pool.

Moose and Bess are both total water babies so they were overjoyed to have the opportunity to take a dip. The pool isn’t massive but there is a shallow children’s section which was great for Moose.

The area around the pool is decked out with some tables and chairs and plenty of sun loungers. There is also a changing area which was useful and we found to be very clean.

The Peninsula Hotel has plenty of parking but is also really accessible by bus from St Peter Port. Set within 5 acres of gardens, the Peninsula hotel overlooks Grand Havre Bay on the north-west coast of the island.  The bay is just a short stroll over the sandy dunes and is well worth a visit for rock pooling or sandcastle building fun.

As well as the bay, the Peninsula Hotel is also a short walk from Rousse Tower.  One of 15 loophole towers built on Guernsey in the 1700’s, Rousse Tower 11 makes for an interesting point of interest close to the Peninsula Hotel. Both Moose and Bess enjoyed looking at the tower and the cannons on display. It made for an interesting after dinner adventure!

rousse tower

Eating at The Peninsula Hotel

We thought that the dining and bar areas of the hotel were beautifully styled. They were really relaxed environments and although I was a bit anxious about whether it would be child friendly. I needn’t have worried. All of the staff were excellent -especially with the children.

I won’t list everything we consumed during our stay at the Peninsula Hotel, I think that with food a photo is worth a thousand words (and with the amount of pics I take of my meals, that’s a truckload of words)

We were very kindly treated to half board dining during our stay. It was great to see that families were well catered for here.

The breakfast was a buffet. As well as a lovely selection of cereals, fresh fruit and pastries, there was also a delicious range of hot food available. It’s rare that such a breakfast comes with great coffee but the coffee at the Peninsula is spot on!

As we were half board we had a restricted menu to choose from. I say restricted but we were very happy with what we had to choose from. As you can see, both adults and children’s menus were varied.

Here is a selection of the adults dishes we tucked into during our stay

The children’s meals were great portion sizes and even the fussy 4 yr old enjoyed them!

Would we come back?

I would definitely stay at the Peninsula Hotel again. With spacious rooms for families, a great location being practically on the beach and plenty to do it’s a great choice for those travelling with or without little ones.