Nexus 5 Two Column
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Despite the weather, we had a really great morning at a local car boot sale! It was just a small, simple one in the car park of our local community centre, but we bagged some great bargains, including this hat and coat for my little Angel: They're pure wool, absolutely gorgeous! And the best thing was that they were only 20p, for the set!...

A while back, a routine smear showed that I had abnormal cells: a pre-cancerous condition called dyskaryosis. I panicked at first, as I'm sure many women do when their smear results show abnormalities. After all, we don't often discuss our private female parts!I was more than relieved to learn that dyskaryosis is not cancer, merely a condition which could become cancerous if left untreated for a number of years. Ten to fifteen...

This video may give you an idea of the great floods we have been experiencing here in Sheffield. My family and I have all been very lucky: our homes and businesses have escaped most of the flood damage and danger. For those whose homes have been wrecked by the bursting rivers, and those families tragically devastated by death and injury, I offer my heartfelt prayers. Technorati Tags: sheffield | floods | flooding | yorkshire...

Continuing my Tasty Tuesdays series of quick, simple dishes, I'd like to present you with a really easy recipe my kids love to eat: Quick Kiddie Carbonara. Okay, so it isn't strictly carbonara since it doesn't involve making any tricky sauces, but it's fast, fun and good for them. So why not give it a try?Here's what you'll need to serve...

Here in Sheffield we've had the worst rainfall in many years. We've been issued severe flood warnings, rivers have burst their banks, traffic is at a standstill, and several people have been hospitalised due to the floods.But it's not all doom and gloom! Safe at home we've been devising a list of things to do on a rainy day, to help you...

I love blogging, and since I've been asked so many questions about the customisations I made to this blog, I decided to start another: Blogger Buster!My new blog is solely about blogging, featuring posts about customisations, domains, SEO, widgets and loads of other blogging inspired posts. I'm no expert at blogging, but I do like to help...

I'd almost finished decorating the bathroom. Three weeks, it has taken me to get most things done, since I only had an hour or two at a time, when Little Angel wasn't around to put hand prints all over my newly painted walls. All that was left was putting up the waterproof paper on the back wall.Then Hubby Dearest had a brainwave: "I think we should move the sink and the radiator around." Yes, it was a good idea: the sink was...

Over at Simple Living, Miranda, Sharon and other participants have set themselves a very honourable task: to cut their personal carbon emissions by 90% of that of the average American: the approximate amount people in the rich world need to reduce by in order to avoid the worst effects of global warming. Anyone can join in this task by linking to the Simple Living blog or commenting on their posts. Their blog features loads of...

Chili over at Don't Try This At Home, has passed out an invitation to all bloggers to write their own blogging story. And lately, blogging is something I love to talk about at every opportunity, so I just couldn't resist writing my own! The story is based on a series of questions about how you began blogging, your motivations and readership. Once you've read this, why not hop on over to read Chili's post and see what others have...

I have to ask this, as it's starting to become something of an issue in our house: does your home have a "living room" (a communal area complete with a scattering of toys and kiddie stuff) or a "lounge" (mum and dad only; kids are virtually banned; the room is tidy).We don't have much of a choice here at home as our house has only two bedrooms:...

I'm SO thrilled! My little Angel has used her potty for the first time this morning. And not just a pee-pee, but a poopy too!We've been trying for weeks to get her interested (and willing) to use the potty, and until today it just hasn't worked. She'd sit for ages on the potty while we read books, played games and such, yet as soon as she...

This is one of the easiest Tunisian dishes to make. At least, it is the way I make it; it's one of Hubby Dearest's favorite meals and since he's never complained, it must be good. Especially when you consider he was once head chef in a leading hotel...(Please note; there is no image of this dish yet as I haven't cooked this for a little while. I'll post an image as soon as I can get one!)Koucha is traditionally baby lamb slow...

To my Little Angel,This morning you were so excited: it's your first day of nursery school, and you just couldn't wait to go and play with the yellow teapot and paint Daddy a picture of a pussycat! Since we went for a brief visit last week, you haven't stopped talking about "nursery school" to anyone who would listen: even strangers we pass...

I found this gorgeous little widget at WidgetBox.com which I just had to share with you: The countdown on this one isn't for me, but shows the due date for my friend who's recently discovered she's expecting after a long period of infidelity. I just know she'll love it when she sees it!To get your own free baby countdown timer which is fully customisable, visit this link:http://www.widgetbox.com/widget/baby-tickerTechnorati...

Every so often, a subject arises which I simply must air my thoughts about. This may not be something you wish to hear about, and I do apologise for any upset I may cause. But I have to write this post because this evening I saw a news article on TV which upset me so deeply I fear I may have nightmares about it.The story was in fact good news: an international paedophile ring has been cracked: over 100 arrests have been made...

Netmums.co.uk is a parenting site I visit regularly as it is a truly wonderful resource for UK mums! As well as parenting tips, advice for children of all ages, recipes, information and more, there are local forums you can access for help, info and advice on issues in your area. Or simply just to chat and meet other mums!Why not pop on over...

Wishing a very happy Fathers Day to all great Dads around the world!Here's my Dad with little angel, taken about a year and a half ago (it's one of my favorite photos of him!). Love you Dad!And here's another of Hubby Dearest, sleeping off a hard day's work on our new patio...... with all our love, from me and all the kids!Technorati Tags:...

Before you get worried, I'm not suggesting that you hypnotise your little angels in order to teach them good behaviour! This is something I came across a few weeks ago, discovered that it seems to work, and thought I'd share with you other mums and dads who may be interested too.On Derren Brown's website, I came across a section about the...

As the old saying goes: "it's raining cats and dogs today!" Truly, I've never known weather like this! Here in Sheffield, we're usually protected from bad floods because our city is built on seven hills. Yet today, so very many roads are flooded, schools are closed and many many homes have been evacuated due to immense flooding. The photo...

Literally speaking, that is! Scientists have recently discovered that reading a racy novel can increase your metabolic rate and help you burn more calories:On average, we burn around one calorie per minute when sitting still, but reading encourages the production of adrenaline, causing BMR to rise to up to 1.75 calories per minute, say the...

This term will be the last my son spends at his current school. In just a few weeks he'll be eleven, and "big school" looms in the autumn term...Thankfully, he's quite excited about the experience. Unlike me, who is dreading the transition from "child" to "teenager", and all the extra responsibilities he'll have to deal with as a "young...

This is why i look forward to the school holidays Originally uploaded by AmandaFaz.The photo is of the road next to my son's school. As you can see, there are dozens of cars parked on the road. And this is actually 30 minutes before home time! Seriously, the traffic around here is awful. I'd love to be able to walk to school (as i'm sure...

Quite a while back, I posted about my love of designer cosmetics, and how i rarely say full price for them. Well here's proof: a free, gratis Chanel lipstick which landed in my mailbox this morning. It really is worth signing up to mailing lists for your favorite brands, which is how I managed to blag this lovely lippie. It certainly made...

Brik is certainly one of my favorite Tunisian snacks! They're made from spring roll pastry, filled and fried in oil. Unfortunately, not a very healthy snack, though I'm sure you'll agree they're delicious and certainly go down well with the kids! We usually eat these when breaking fast during Ramadan (okay, I admit I don't fast with Hubby...

After the recent TV advertisements about CO2 emissions, I decided to try and work out just how big our family's carbon footprint is. Despite the recent shock at the costs of our gas and electricity bills, I'm pleased to say that our family's footprint is slightly below the UK average: 7612kg per person, compared to the UK average of 10963kg. Hopefully our recent clampdown on the cost of bills will help to reduce this even more.I...

After a smear test recently, I discovered that I have severe dyskaryosis of trhe cervix. I have to admit that I cried when I first read the letter from the hospital. I'd expected my smear test results to come back all clear, believing I was too young to have cancer or anything like that. And being rather uneducated in the field of "women troubles", I feared the worst. Thankfully, my GP, the staff at the hospital, my father and...

Or so I like to believe! Phyllis Diller also said that "Cleaning your house while your kids are still growing is like shoveling the walk before it stops snowing." So very true!There are loads of great quotes about housework over at Quote Garden. I'm off to read some more to help me cheep up before I tackle the mess of my bathroom...Technorati...

Little Angel seems much better now after her visit to the doctor yesterday. It seems I was mistaken in thinking that she would blame me for her suffering. No, she blamed the doctor, and now appears to hate him with a vengeance! She didn't scream but watched intently (while I had to look away) sobbing "I no likey medsinn, no likey doctor!...

Uh-oh!Originally uploaded by AmandaFaz.In a few minutes i need to take my little angel to see the doctor for her (overdue) jabs. Really dreading this. I low exactly what she's going to do: scream and run! And then blame me. I wish i could make her understand....

Tunisian fricassee is a "fast-food" style snack that is often sold in the streets. It could be described as a fried sandwich (so unfortunately, these should really only be served as a special treat), but I almost died of culinary delight the first time I was given one! However, it isn't an easy dish to make, and does require some patience...

This morning, the BBC news brought an important issue to light: are we too protective of our children?When I was the same age as my son, I was allowed to roam freely, so long as I was back home to check in with Mum at the times she said. My friends and I used to make dens in the woods, walk to the next village to buy sweets from our favorite...

Over the weekend, I made use of some old muslin squares (previously used when burping little Angel!) by sewing together and filling with pot pourri. I then tied them with some pretty ribbon left over from Christmas wrapping. They cost me next to nothing to make; in fact I'm quite proud of my handiwork (especially as I sewed them by hand!)....

It had to be done...Originally uploaded by AmandaFaz.After all that indecision, i decided that I'd at least strip the bathroom walls. Much hard work and shredded fingers! Now the preparation has been done, the actual decoration shouldn't be too bad. But as you probably know already, wherever there are children around, even the simplest of...