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Online fitness for mums (from bump to way beyond)

January 14, 2016

UPDATE: unfortunately post party is no longer trading. That post baby slump is one I remember all to well. After a difficult birth, not only was I feeling low but my clothes didn’t fit, breastfeeding wasn’t going well and I felt isolated – to name just a few things. What you are led to believe (pre-baby) should be the happiest time of your life was anything but. Thankfully things have changed – there is a lot more open talk about what really happens after you give birth and how you may feel. Still not nearly enough but far more than there was even a short seven years ago when I gave birth. In the end it took me close to a year to start feeling ‘normal’ and two years to shed the baby weight. At the time I wondered what was wrong with me but now I know that this is perfectly normal.

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A beautiful Djeco craft kit for a rainy day

January 12, 2016

December is a month where we accumulate far too much. Anya has her birthday and then a couple of weeks later it’s Christmas. Apart from giving stuff to charity, I also don’t let Anya open all her presents at once. Do you do the same or am I the only mean mama? I seriously don’t think any kid can really appreciate 10-15 presents in one go or even 5. So she is allowed to open the wrapping but not the gift itself. I keep them away and come a rainy day in January/February when it’s too cold or wet, she always has something to do. Last week on one such day she opened this beautiful coloured sand Djeco craft kit and she was hooked for hours.

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A 7th birthday Bollywood party

January 11, 2016

Birthday’s are a big deal in our home. Everybody’s birthday is celebrated and marked in some way but especially Anya’s as for kids, there’s nothing more special. Anya’s birthday is in December and due to a major house move in December 2014, we weren’t able to have a proper party for Anya’s 6th birthday. So when she turned 7 last month, we wanted to celebrate properly.

Winter is always a trickier time for parties as having an outdoor party is out of the question. I didn’t want to hire a venue as it never feels personal enough so we decided on a small party of 10-12 kids at home. And then we thought about possible themes. We went through quite a few ideas but none felt inspired or exciting enough until I thought about a Bollywood party. Anya was so excited by this idea that I knew we had found our theme.

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Brighten up your kids room (with just a pot of paint)

January 7, 2016

If you’re a minimalist like me you’ll understand my love for all white walls peppered with black and white art. That’s the kind of look I’m planning for most of our home except Anya’s room. I don’t think any kid would chose a monochrome colour scheme for their room. When chatting to Anya about possible colours for her room, she came up with suggestions of an orange and yellow room! A bit too much for a minimalist like me but I started thinking about how we could use a splash of paint somewhere to add a bit of colour.

I went looking for some creative wall painting ideas and here are some really fun ways to add a splash of colour to a kids bedroom or even your own room. You can go big or small, dark or light but the best part is you can transform the room in a couple of hours with no more than a tin of paint and a brush:

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An intricate colouring book for any age

January 6, 2016

As you probably know, adult colouring books have become really popular in the last year or so. There have been many detailed and intricate colouring books popping up all over the place. The whole ‘adult colouring revolution’ has kind of passed me by as I never even considered trying it out. In December Anya was gifted Animal Kingdom – A Colouring Book Adventure for her birthday. I barely glanced at it until Anya asked me to colour with her. She often asks me to do this with her but up to now it’s been with her kiddy colouring books which I would colour in for about 5 minutes and lose interest.

Once I started colouring in this book, I couldn’t stop. I loved it! I think it re-awakened the inner child in me but yet it was so much more interesting to colour than a regular kids colouring book. And not only me but Anya is loving this book too. Even though these books are sold more as adult colouring books, I think they are for any age over around 5 years old. When I first saw it I thought the patterns may be a bit too intricate for Anya but I was wrong. In fact it’s the minute details that capture her attention and mine.

I think the best thing about the Animal Kingdom colouring book for me was that it was a shared activity that both Anya and I enjoyed doing together. No screens, no distractions, no thinking – just me and Anya colouring together and chatting a lot. We both switched off from the world around us and were immersed in colouring and talking about anything and everything. So much so that when it was time to go out for lunch, neither of us wanted to leave and we even started thinking up excuses to cancel our plans!

Have you got one of these books? If not, do you think you will give colouring a go in 2016?

Happy 2016!

December 24, 2015

I am so looking forward to the holidays and some down time with my family. Our plans are to take it easy, see lots of friends and family and cook and eat lots. Before I sign off I just wanted to wish you all a wonderful festive break filled with love and joy! Thank you for visiting the blog, for your comments, for your likes and for your support. My blog is my baby and your support means the world. Here’s looking at an even bigger and better 2016. I shall see you all back here in the new year (but there will be an ebabee shop update before then). Happy & merry everything! – nomita x

Free Christmas gift tags to print 2015

December 22, 2015

This year I have been super disorganised with my Christmas shopping – I’ve still got nearly all of it to do. Eek! Really panicking now. I’m guessing most of you are all done shopping and wrapping. But if there are any last minute types like me, while I can’t do your Christmas shopping for you, I have rounded up some of the best free Christmas gift tags to print. Some are cute and colourful – perfect for kids gifts while others are more minimal and stylish. There are lots to choose from so when you do wrap your gifts, you can finish them with one of these free gift tags.

1. These minimal gift tags with messages would look great on presents wrapped in kraft paper.

2. These colour in printable gift tags are such a great idea – print and let the kids colour them in.

3. These simple & stylish gift tags would look great on any colour gift wrap.

4. How cute are these colourful gift tags? Just adorable especially for a child’s gift.

5. These monochrome gift tags have handwritten messages on each. Pair with black wrap for a stunning looking gift.

6. These fun cowboy santa gift tags come with a colourful Texan twist!

7. These super sweet little animal gift tags are a cute addition to any gift.

These are my favourite free Christmas gift tags to print that I found this year. But if you want to check out some more, take a look at my previous years round-up as there are loads more there. Here’s where you’ll find my favourite free Christmas gift tags from 2014.

Party food: Chinese pork dumplings

December 21, 2015

For parties and gatherings at this time of year I love to serve mini morsels of my favourite foods. That way, in one meal I can serve (and eat) so many delicious foods. Besides, nearly all our parties these days involve kids so making bite-sized party food lets me serve a range of mini dishes that will work for adults as well as kids. The biggest thing I consider when making bite-sized food is how much of the work can be done ahead – I always choose recipes that require minimal last minute preparations but that are still big on taste.

One of my favourite bite sized party foods are these gorgeous flavorful Chinese pork dumplings. Little morsels of deliciousness that go down a treat with any age group. So when Furniture Village asked me to come up with a favourite party food recipe for festive guests, I knew I had to go for this one. I like think of them as the Asian version of sausage rolls that make a nice change when you’ve had one sausage roll to many! And besides, I love dumplings – who doesn’t? So much flavour in one little bite!

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Friday chat: New years resolutions for kids

December 18, 2015

Do you encourage your kids make new years resolutions? I’ve started making resolutions throughout the year whenever I feel I need to make a change but there is something special and a feeling of a fresh start that only a new year brings. I especially love making them at this time of year and have been thinking about encouraging Anya to do the same.

Last year we talked to her about making new years resolutions and while she liked the idea, she struggled to come up with what resolutions to make. I’ve since realised that she’s a bit too young to come up with resolutions herself so this year I’ve decided to give her some prompts which will help. I’ve come up with a list of 10 questions and prompts which I plan to give her and see what she comes up with. I thought I would share them here in case they inspire you to do the same with your kids. So here are my ideas for new years resolutions for kids:

What I especially like about resolutions is that it allows you to take a little time out and think about yourself – what you like about yourself and what you feel you can improve on. For me, resolutions aren’t just about changing the bad but also a lot about doing more of what you are good at or love. They’re about broadening your horizon’s and living a more fulfilled life. So are you going to be making resolutions? And will you encourage your kids to?

Snoopy and Charlie Brown – The peanuts movie

December 17, 2015

A couple of weeks ago we were invited to a private screening of Snoopy and Charlie Brown – the peanuts movie. Growing up I was never much in to cartoon characters but there were two exceptions – Miss Piggy and Snoopy. With snoopy & charlie brown I particularly remember reading the comic strips in the newspapers and really enjoying them. But as the years went on I forgot about Snoopy and Charlie Brown because you didn’t see much of them. That was until I received an invite to see the film and really wanted to go almost for old times sake.

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