Paw Patrol Little Heroes Paw Awards 2019

Paw Patrol Awards are back for the second year running and I think it's a brilliant idea to run these awards yearly. If you know a little someone who deserves to be recognised and given a Paw Award, you can nominate them on the Paw Awards website. There are many different reasons you could nominate, whether they have helped someone, done a good deed or anything else that you feel needs to be recognised.

There are 8 awards categories and they are:
THE RUBBLE AWARD FOR STRENGTH
Whether physical or emotional, do you know a little one who has shown unusual strength? They may have been brave, tough or strong.  We’d love to know what they did and how proud you are of them!

THE SKYE AWARD FOR COURAGE
Has a little one you know shown outstanding courage?  Did they face their fears or help others through a courageous act? Please tell us what happened and why they deserve this award!

THE MARSHALL AWARD FOR LOYALTY 
Sometimes, loyalty is tested and it’s not easy to do the right thing by others! It might mean missing out yourself or upsetting another. But if you know a little one has shown remarkable loyalty or willingness, do let us know.

THE ROCKY AWARD FOR MAKING A DIFFERENCE  
Has a little one helped the community?  Have they taught you a thing or two about saving the planet or shown inspiration, or wisdom or come up with a brilliant idea? Tell us why your little patroller is a shining star!

THE CHASE AWARD FOR LEADERSHIP
Has your little one proven a responsible leader? Was there a time when they unexpectedly stepped up to the mark to lead, show confidence, maturity or set a great example? Whether at school or at home, we’d love to hear!

THE EVEREST AWARD FOR KINDNESS AND FRIENDSHIP
Has your little one helped or supported a friend or family member in need or just been incredibly kind to others? Tell us how they have been a great friend or about their generosity and kind heart.

THE ZUMA AWARD FOR BEING HELPFUL
Everyone needs a little help at times and sometimes often and kids are not always first to offer – but if you have a special little assistant in your life then please share what makes them your helpful hero!

THE RYDER AWARD FOR KINDNESS TO ANIMALS
Do you know a child who is a hero who shows kindness above and beyond to the animal kingdom? Tell us how this child is a friend to pets or animals whatever their shape, size or wherever they live!

The lucky 8 finalists will have the chance to have a VIP experience and spend the weekend in the UK's capital and attend their Awards ceremony. Also not forgetting the runners up, they will receive a great bundle of Paw Patrol Toys!

Also to celebrate the Paw Awards for the second year, we were sent a couple of their new toys. We were sent the PAW Patrol Ultimate Construction Rescue Truck and PAW Patrol Marshall's Ride 'N Rescue. They have both been well loved and very well played with by my little boy.

The Ultimate Construction Rescue Truck is pretty large but is packed with great features such as the free-swinging wrecking ball, a scoop and you're able to lift the dump bed. It's great for little one's imaginations and so is Marshall's Ride 'N Rescue too. It's a 2-in-1 playset and has great little features in side. Freddie loved the idea that you can play with it as a push along truck, then also open it up as a playset.

- We were kindly gifted these item in return for a post.

7 Ways To Improve Your Morning Routine

Image Credit

Getting up and out of bed in the morning can be one of the hardest parts of the day. Maybe you're not
a morning person, or it might be that your job your daily routine is a grind and sleeping in seems like a
much more appealing option. Often, when the morning looks drab and dull, we want to pull the covers
over our heads and hide from the world. Sometimes there is nothing wrong with doing just that, but
when we have commitments; sometimes we need to face the day and get on with things!

Having a positive morning routine can make getting out of bed seem more bearable, and maybe even
a worthwhile experience. How you feel when you rise in the morning affects the rest of your day; starting
in an upbeat way will go a long way to making sure that your mood is better throughout the rest of the
day.

Here are a few tips to help you start your day right:

Prepare

One of the best ways to make sure you have a good morning is to prepare for it. Picking out your clothes
the night before will save you valuable time and will reduce stress as you will have fewer decisions to
make. Look at the weather forecast to see what the next day looks like and dress accordingly. You'll
also be more inclined to pick an outfit that makes you feel good because making decisions when we're
not at our best first thing will often lead to us just throwing on the first thing we find. Dressing well is great
for our self-esteem and gives us positive feelings.

A Tasty Start Helps

Pick a breakfast that you know you will look forward to and enjoy. Make sure it is filling and healthy. Try
to make a meal that has a mixture of protein and carbohydrates to give you plenty of energy. Adding in
fruit will get you off to a great start. Porridge mixed with flaxseed, blueberries and bananas will keep you
full for longer, give you lots of energy while blueberries are excellent sources of antioxidants and flaxseeds
are rich in dietary fibre.

Coffee is the obvious choice for a great pick up, but why waste time on supermarket bought instants
when you can go to coffee beans UK for the best morning cup? Having a quality coffee is worth looking
forward to, give yourself the morning treat you deserve.

Don't Snooze The Alarm

Hitting snooze and going back to sleep is only likely to make you feel groggy and lethargic on a morning.
Instead, set your alarm tone to be your favourite uplifting song. Playing feel-good music that you enjoy
first thing will engage your brain early on. You'll be less inclined to press snooze. Singing along to a tune
that makes you happy can be a great release of those early morning tensions. 

Not hitting snooze several times will buy you extra time in the morning and allow you to be more productive,
and to take getting ready for the day in your stride. 

Get Your Blood Pumping

Ten minutes exercise in the morning will set you right off to a flying start. Pick an activity that you can commit
to every day and build that habit. If you have a treadmill or exercise bike, you can combine your morning
jog or cycle with catching up with the morning news.

If you would prefer something less intense, consider taking up yoga. 

Morning Meditation

Stresses and worries often come into play very early in our day. Even if anxiety does not play a big part
in your life, meditation can help focus your attention on the present. Using simple breathing techniques,
we can find a natural balance in ourselves and clear our minds ready, giving us a fresh outlook every day. 

Having A Schedule

Scheduling your time is important, especially when you live with others, and there is a clamour for the
bathroom. If you have a set routine in the morning with time frames for each aspect, then you will find
that you are naturally more productive and less likely to procrastinate or dawdle. 

Plan in some time for if things go wrong though, if breakfast gets overdone, or if someone else is in the
shower too long. Setbacks can be stressful without extra time to compensate for them, however, by being
stringent with your morning timetable you will always be ahead of schedule, this might be helpful if there
is a risk of delays on your way to where you need to be.

Make a List

Set your day out right by creating a list of everything that you need to achieve that day. Prioritize the
tasks that have to be completed by specific times and do them first. Always try to get the worst job out of
the way first. If there are phone calls, you are dreading making, put them at the top of the list. Be kind to
yourself, if you know you are likely to put something off, don't allow the anxiety around that task to build.
Nip it in the bud by doing that task at the earliest possible convenience. Next time you have to do the
same job, it might not be so bad as you will have avoided worry. 

There is nothing as satisfying as crossing off an item in your to-do list and having a plan for your day can
make an overwhelming pile of work seem much more manageable. 

Getting your perfect routine might take a bit of fine tuning to get right, you may need to change the order
that you do things to get them right for you. But, once you have it running like clockwork, then you will see
the benefits. You might find that there are still days when getting out of bed is the last thing that you want
to do, but more often than not, your morning routine will help keep you healthy, happy, motivated and raring
to go.


Collaborative post.

Adding Little Touches to our Home with Wayfair

We've been living in our current home for over 5 years now and still to this day we are wanting and needing to change so many things. But I must admit, compared to the first day we moved into today, so much has changed and I am so happy with all the added touches too. I personally think adding little personal touches to a house makes it feel more like home. Whether it's a duvet cover, house plants, photo frames or even a nice new sideboard. I always like to add my personality into each room.

Wayfair got in touch a few weeks ago asking if I'd like to review a few items from their website. I instantly said yes and I am overly pleased with every single item. I thought instead of going for one large item within the budget, I would go for a few little things that would go great around the house. I also chose things that have been on my 'to buy list' for a long time too. Here are a few home updates, along with the items I received from Wayfair:

B A T H R O O M
A couple of years ago our kitchen ceiling collapsed, which meant we had to re-do our bathroom as we discovered there was a lot of damp from the bath, which was one of the reasons our kitchen ceiling fell down. We decided to have a new bath fitted, re-tile and re-paint. We are yet to find the right sink and toilet to replace the ones we currently have, but for now, they will do.

Something that's lacked in the bathroom, is storage. We do have some storage cupboards but they are very awkward and I use them to keep our towels. The room lacked storage to keep cleaning products, toilet tissues and other little bits. This is where the Antenore Free Standing Bathroom Cabinet has come in handy. I have managed to store a lot of things in there such as some of my cleaning products, toilet tissue and much more. It's made the room feel brighter and slightly more modern too. I've always wanted a grey and white kind of theme for my bathroom and this cabinet mixes in perfectly with the 'theme'. Another plus side, the cabinet is not only great for storage but it's great quality and at a great price too.

K I D S  B E D R O O M
If you follow me on Instagram, you may know that I am in the middle of re-decorating the girls' bedroom. It's been put on hold now for a couple of months because life has been super busy these last few months. However, I'm not really going for a theme for their room. I am painting the room white, grey and a light pink but their little touches are going to be their personalities and things they like, such as these two single duvet covers they received from Wayfair.

If you're a long-time follower/reader of my blog you will know that Mia's favourite animals are horses. So I thought this Noveltext Horse Duvet would be perfect for her. There's a choice of a pink or white and I decided to go for the white background, which has different and bright colour horses on top.

For Elliw, I decided to go for this Zoomie Kids Coppola Duvet Cover which comes with a super cool Unicorn pillowcase. It's a double sided cover with one side being white with the words 'Believe in Miracles' at the bottom and the other side all pink with unicorns. It brings out brightness and colour to the room and most of all, both girls adore their new covers.

M Y  R O OM
My bedroom is the room that has taken the longest to sort out over the years. But we are slowly getting there. Our main wall used to have a black and gold tree wallpaper until we decided to cover up and paint it in Saphire Blue. I do think I'll be changing the colour again to something brighter but the room does feel pretty warm with this navy.

I decided to go for a new duvet cover and I chose the King Size Devonshire Percale Duvet Cover Set and from the second I saw it I fell in love with it. Again, like the other two duvet covers, this one is double sided with different pattern/print. I currently have the navy side up and it just brings some more warmth to the room and it feels cosy. Choosing a nice duvet definitely adds a fab touch to the room.

K I T C H E N
Our kitchen will probably be one of the last rooms to get re-done, but we have re-painted the cupboard doors and I am slowly adding a few personal touches. I've never known what kind of 'theme' I really wanted for the kitchen but I am slowly going towards the white and copper accessories because my kettle and toaster are white and copper, and I love them.

I chose this amazing Damascus 5 Piece Knife Block Set in white and copper and I've fallen in love with it. The holder is plastic but it's still good quality for the price. The set includes your usual 5 piece knife set such as your bread knife, utility knife and the rest. The handles have a good grip and I am very pleased with the set.

- Wayfair kindly gifted me the items mentioned above for this collaboration.

Fail-Safe Father’s Day Gifts with Boots

Father’s Day is just around the corner and it’s that time of year where we go and find the best gifts for the Dads and Grandfather’s in our life. It’s a day I especially love celebrating. If you know me personally, or if you’ve followed me for a while you may know that I was brought up by my Dad. There’s a long story behind it, but cutting it short, he took on single-parenting and took on both roles of parenting very unexpectedly and he’s done amazing.

I think Father’s Day is a day we should celebrate Dads and Grandfathers out there and thank them for everything that they have done. But also not forgetting the Step-Father’s out there too. My partner is a Step-Dad to my eldest, and has done for over 7 years now. He has been amazing with her since the first day he met her and I can’t thank him enough for bringing her up like his own.

Every year, my partner and I, with the kids, will always go for a Father’s Day walk. Whether it’s along the seaside, through a muddy field, a walk through a forest or just a sight-seeing walk, we just love going outdoors, having fun and making memories. It’s always nice to have a little tradition once a year. Although we go out for a walk often, we do try and make our walk on Father’s Day a little more exciting or different by taking a picnic with us, visiting somewhere totally different or even finding a new place to explore.

If you’re stuck on how to spend Father’s Day this year, here are a few ways you could celebrate:

Go out for a Father’s Day meal
Go for a long walk along the seaside
Have a Father’s Day BBQ in the back garden
Have a movie night at home with snacks
Host a little Father’s Day get-together
Go paintballing /bowling/fishing

Although there are many ways to celebrate the special day, the most difficult thing to sort is the gift. I personally find it easier to buy gifts for women than I do for men. But this year, Boots have a great collection of Fail-Safe Father’s Day Gifts that would be great gifts for your Dad, Grandfather or someone special this year:

Fragrances are a great gift for men for Father's Day. Boots have a large collection of great branded fragrances such as Gucci Guilty, Hugo Boss, Paco Rabanne 1 Million and my Dad's favourite fragrance, Jean Paul Gaultier. I am sure whether it's your Dad, your partner, your grandfather or whoever you are buying for this Father's Day, won't be dissapointed when they are gifted they're favourite fragrance, or even a new fragrance they've not had before.

Boots don't only sell fragrances, but they also have a great collection of other gifts for Father's Day such as a large range of L'Oreal Paris products that include; Face wash, face scrubs, Hydra Energy face masks to help moisture and hydrate your face and daily moisturiser. If you know someone who loves to look after their skin, the L'Oreal 'The Daily Expert' is a great gift set to give. It includes three products: eye roll-on, moisturiser and deodorant.

Talking about skin, if you know someone who shaves then they have a great gift set for men with short beards. From L'Oreal again, is the Barber Club Short Beard Kit which includes Beard Wash and Beards Moisturiser. For something a little more fancy, Harry's Shave Set is a great gift to give. It includes a shaver, extra blades and shave cream. The set also comes presented in a nice gifted box, which is always an added bonus. There are also other Harry's products available too such as Harry's Shave Gel which is a high-quality shaving gel enriched with a blend of aloe and cucumber. Harry's Shave Cream is 100ml bottle and is a cream that helps give you a smooth, close and comfortable shave. After a good shave Harry's Men's Post Shave Balm that will soothe your skin straight after shaving, reducing the redness and help you feel refreshed. Lastly, Harry's Mens Face Lotion helps hydrate your skin, and a bonus is that it's lightweight and non-greasy.

Do you find it hard to buy for your Dad on Father's Day? Well here's your chance to win something amazing for him. All you have to do is leave a comment below on what you like to do with your Dad on Father's Day, and what kind of gifts he usually appreciates.

Make sure you read the terms and conditions below before entering.

Terms and Conditions

1. Giveaway starts 11th of June 2019

2. Giveaway ends 17th of June 2019 at 11.59PM (UK)

3. UK entrants only

4. You MUST answer the question to be entered

5. Emails will not be shared

6. Winner will be contacted via email within 48 hours of giveaway end time

7. Winner will be given 14 whole working days to reply to the email, or another winner will be chosen.

Good luck everyone!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

This post is an advertised collaboration with Boots but all thoughts are my own.

Coral Island Blackpool

- AD - We were kindly invited to Coral Island to review and we were given some spending money for the machines, a VIP card that let us go on a couple of rides, as well as a free meal in Captain Jacks. Although this is an AD, all words, images and opinions are entirely my own.

CORAL ISLAND, BLACKPOOL

Blackpool is a town I have visited many many times when I was a child. It's known for its fish and chip shops, arcades, lights and rides. It was somewhere my Dad used to take my brother and me for days out during all seasons. My best times to visit was the winter for the lights and the summer because it was just so nice. Years later and Blackpool has changed massively. The seaside front has been updated and it does look 10x better than what it used too.

When I was asked if I'd like to give a review of Coral Island on the promenade of Blackpool, I instantly said yes. Main reason being, I've not taken my kids to Blackpool and it's a place I've been wanting to visit again for a very long time. I've also heard some great things about Coral Island and so I couldn't wait to see what it was all about.

ARRIVING

It was a May Bank Holiday weekend and the first weekend of the school holidays that we went, which honestly, wasn't the perfect time to go as it was overly busy. Coral Island was very easy to find and we parked in a multi-storey car park nearby, which was a 5-minute walk from the arcade centre. 

There are 7 entrance doors to enter Coral Island and it's definitely a place you will not miss, with its lights, music and arcade machines. It was much bigger than I thought and there is a lot more mix of arcade machines than I thought too. You will find the classic old' 2p machines that everybody loves, electronic bingo, rides and much more.

ARCADE GAMES, TICKETS AND RIDES

The arcade games prices ranged from 2p, 10, 30p, 50p and £1. There are a few 'Change' machines if you were wanting some loose change and there's also a fair range of free cash machines to get money out too. As for the arcade machines, there's a great range of different machines to play for all ages. 

Coral Island has a ticket system which means whichever machine you are on, you win some tickets. The higher your score, the more tickets you will receive. The girls especially loved this and in total, they got around 500 or so more tickets. Unfortunately, we weren't able to swap them in the Prize Counter because the queue was way too long and the wait would have been a long time. So we told the girls we would save them up until the next time we visit.

There are two rides; Pirate Flyer and The Ghost Train. We had one go on each ride, mainly because the girls didn't ask to go on them again and again, the queues were quite long when we were passing. The Pirate Flyer was the ride I went on with the kids. 4 people are allowed on one Pirate Flyer and the ride lets you have a flying view of the whole arcade - it was pretty cool!

The Ghost Train, on the other hand, I didn't go on it but my partner did. It's 2 people per cart and my eldest, who's 9, ended up crying all the way through. She was terrified, luckily her sister was sitting next to her and comforted her throughout the ride. My partner and my little boy, who's 2 years old were fine. So it all depends on the child if they can handle some slightly scary rides or not! 

My only problem, other than the queues for the rides, was I personally found the staff on the rides a bit off. When the kids and I went on the Pirate Flyer, Freddie decided to have a meltdown before getting on. The pirate came around the corner and gave the kids a chocolate coin each, which I thought was nice. But the lady that let us go on the ride, wasn't all that enthusiastic like I was expecting. We were also not told that the ride stops for a few minutes - which literally scared me as my worst fear is a ride stopping halfway through - but all was ok in the end, luckily. 

THE FOOD - CAPTAIN JACKS

There are a few food places to choose from, but we were gifted a family meal in Captain Jacks. The staff were so welcoming and I loved the whole 'Island Holiday/Pirate' kind of theme they had going. It wasn't a large place and it wasn't overly busy either. We were shown to our table and the kids were given their children's menu, as well as some crayons to draw - which is always a bonus.

Firstly, the kids eat free for every adult meal bought, which is a great bonus. The menu ranges from burgers, chicken and ribs. The menu for kids had a selection of chicken nuggets, sausages, macaroni and cheese and a couple more. As for prices, the adult menu started from £7.80 and in all honesty, the prices weren't too bad but I did find any add ons such as adding cheese to a burger etc, I found the extra price a little pricey. But it's not something that would stop me going back.

Something I have said since going to Captain Jacks was that the customer service was fantastic.

OVERALL

Coral Island is a very large place and I did feel I needed eyes on the back of my head to keep an eye on the kids, as it was super busy. I think I would have enjoyed it more if it wasn't so busy - it was quite difficult with the pram. But, saying that, the girls did enjoy themselves and I guess that's the main priority when you have a day out somewhere. The 2p machines took me back when I was a child, so I even had a go on them. 

There is a lot of things to do there from the rides, arcade machines and other machines such as air hockey, car racing and so on. So it's definitely a place you can spend a good few hours at. As there are many other attractions in Blackpool, I would definitely visit Blackpool again to visit Coral Island and their other attractions (see below). But I would make sure I visit on a day or weekend that isn't the school holidays or bank holiday as it was a little too overwhelming for me.

OTHER USEFUL INFORMATION

Coral Island is huge, check out their online map to help you get around.

It's free entry which is great if you want little breaks in between.

Make sure you keep the kids close by as it is a large area.

There are toilets in Coral Island.

Kids eat free, all day, every day (with a purchased adult meal)

BLACKPOOL ATTRACTIONS

Madame Tussauds

Pleasure Beach

Sea Life

Blackpool Tower

Blackpool Zoo

Tips that will Guide you through the House-Buying Process

A lot of people find it difficult to get on the property ladder, and this is completely understandable.

After all, you need a high deposit, low debt and a good credit history. As if that wasn’t enough, you

also need to pay the associated fees which can easily eat away at your budget. If you want some

tips that will guide you through the whole process, then you have most certainly come to the right

place.

Get your Finances In Order

The first thing that you need to do is get all of your finances in order. It is remarkable to see how

many people find their dream home, only to find out that they can’t afford it when the time comes

to get the mortgage. If you want to avoid this, find a lender who you can trust first. You then need

to establish pre-approval.  When you have done all of this, you can then work out how much of a

deposit you need. You never know, it might actually be less than you’d think! If you are a first-time

buyer, then you may even qualify for government support.

https://www.pexels.com/photo/white-and-brown-concrete-building-2287310/

Check out the Area

Another thing that you can do is work out which area you can afford to buy a property in. If you want

to help yourself here, then it is always a good idea for you to create a property jigsaw. Write down how

much you can afford, how far away you want to be from work and even where you’d like to live ideally.

This will help you to pinpoint a location that is perfect for you in every way. If you want to help yourself

even more then you need to try and drive around the area as well. This will alert you to things that you

might not have thought about before, and it will also give you the chance to get a feel for your potential

new neighbourhood.

Improvement

If possible, you should always look for properties that require some level of improvement. If you find a

property that is perfect, then you may find it hard to increase the value in the long-run. You might also

end up going into negative equity as well, and this can be disastrous for your finances. If you are

concerned about buying a property that is run-down then it may be worth going for an extended survey.

A lot of people ask themselves “do I need a homebuyer survey?” and although it isn’t necessary for you

to take out the most expensive one, sometimes it can really pay off. A good survey will alert you to issues

that you might not be aware of and it will also help you to negotiate the price accordingly.

https://www.pexels.com/photo/kitchen-island-2089698/

So, there are many things that you can do to try and guide yourself through the house-buying process,

and by following the above tips you can be sure to find the perfect house for the right price and in the

best area!

- collaborative post