Our Experience of the Thames Water Smarter Homes Visit

The Thames Water Smarter Homes Visit Offer

I wasn’t looking forward to the Thames Water Smarter Homes Visit. When they called to offer us one I felt forced into accepting. I should point out that the caller was perfectly polite and friendly so the pressure was more how I felt, rather than due to his behaviour. He said we are using far more water than the average family of 4, but I pointed out that we were a family of 5 and he didn’t have the data for average use for larger households. I accepted the visit because they said part of what they would do is check for leaks and having been made to feel we were using a large amount of water I felt we should check if there was a problem.

Decorating for Easter: 5 fun, spring ideas

One of our favourite things about a change of season or a special celebration like Easter, Halloween or Christmas is decorating the house to match the occasion.

Decorating is a simple activity that the whole family can get involved in, can instantly refresh your home and get you in the mood for the festivities. We store all our seasonal decorations in plastic storage boxes in the garage, so each year it’s like finding little treasures that we can bring out again and again.

If you’re looking to get your home ready for Easter here are 5 simple but effective decorating ideas to inspire you:

Ideas for Easter themed decorations

Digital Decluttering Guide: How to Organise Your Family's Virtual Life

As a mum of three, I know first hand how quickly our digital lives can become just as messy as our physical spaces! From thousands of photos clogging up our phones to countless downloaded school letters and receipts, digital clutter is a real challenge for modern families. Today, I'm sharing my tried and tested tips for sorting out your virtual mess and creating systems that actually work.

How to Create a Calming Bedroom for Your Child: A Parent's Guide to Better Sleep

As parents we all know the struggle of bedtime battles and restless nights. Creating a peaceful bedroom environment isn't just about aesthetics, it's about setting your child up for sleep success. A well organised, calming bedroom can make all the difference between a night of tossing and turning and peaceful slumber.

Why a Calm Bedroom Leads to Better Sleep

Your child's bedroom environment directly impacts their sleep quality in surprising ways. A calm, clutter free space naturally helps lower anxiety levels before bedtime and reduces overstimulation, which is crucial for quality rest. When children have the ideal sleep environment, their bodies produce more melatonin, the sleep hormone that regulates their natural sleep cycles.

The benefits extend far beyond just bedtime. Children who sleep in calm environments typically fall asleep faster and stay asleep longer. This improved sleep quality leads to better performance at school and more stable emotional regulation throughout the day. The impact of a well designed sleep space truly cannot be understated.

The colour, materials and layout all impact how calming a bedroom is

Brilliant Car Organisation Hacks Every Family Needs

Is your family car starting to look like a mobile tip? Don't worry, you're not alone. As a mum of three, I know exactly how quickly our cars can transform from spotless to absolute chaos. Whether it's finding half eaten packets of crisps under seats or sitting on scattered Lego pieces (ouch!), keeping the family car tidy can feel like mission impossible.

But here's the brilliant news: I've cracked the code to car organisation and I'm sharing all my favourite tricks that have genuinely made a difference for our family. These aren't those Pinterest perfect solutions that last approximately two minutes, these are real, practical tips that work for real families.

These tips will make your car tidier and more organised

Countdown to Christmas: Make Your Own Advent Calendar Ideas

What started off as a simple way to countdown the days to Christmas, making chalk marks on doors in Germany, has turned into a tradition many people, young and old, now take part in in increasingly elaborate ways. You can get pretty much anything hidden behind the cardboard doors or drawers of an advent calendar now, from jewellery to high end cosmetics. The 2024 advent calendar line up even includes a 5ft Lindt offering, featuring 24 full size products for a mere £180 when it is reported the contents are worth closer to £90! One way to get exactly what the person would like without the huge mark-up is to make your own advent calendar.

Make Your Own Advent Calendar Ideas For Children And Adults

Making your own advent calendars makes them more special

Everything you need to know about Christmas boxes: Advent Boxes and Christmas Boxes

Christmas boxes are a fairly recent tradition, but they have quickly gained popularity over the last decade. What started out as more of a homemade thing has now turned into big business with more retailers bringing out new box designs every year and even pre-filled boxes available on Etsy. They can form a really special part of your Christmas tradition whether you give them at the beginning of December as an advent box or on Christmas Eve. If you are looking to introduce one to your family this guide will explain what they are and what to put in them. 

Quick Make Ahead Breakfast Ideas For Busy Family Mornings

One of my biggest hurdles getting the kids out to school in the mornings is getting them to eat something quick and filling to set them up for the day. School mornings are enough of a rush without preparing anything more exciting than a bowl of cereal that gets half eaten. So if your mornings are similar why not try these make ahead breakfasts for smoother sailing.

Making breakfast in advance makes mornings easier

How To Spend Less Money On Matching Family Christmas Pyjamas

It seems to happen earlier each year, the trick or treaters haven't even been around yet, but the matching family Christmas pyjamas are already selling out in the shops.  They make a fun Christmas tradition and super cute photographs, but the price can quickly add up. Love them or loathe them entirely, they seem to be here to stay so here are my top tips for cutting the cost.

When To Give Children Christmas Pyjamas

The thing about Christmas pyjamas is they tend to be, well Christmas themed. While my children will happily wear them in January through to Spring, the best time to wear them is in the run up to Christmas. It is popular to put them in Christmas Eve boxes, but for some families this means they will only get worn once, or just a few times at best. A more recent tradition is giving them to children at the beginning of December with advent calendars or maybe even the arrival of those cheeky elves. This way children can wear them throughout December. Just make sure you plan the washing so they are clean and ready to wear on Christmas Eve.

You can enjoy the matching Christmas Pyjama trend, but spend less

11 Surprising Uses Of Vinegar Around The Home

Vinegar is great for a salad dressing or sprinkling on your chips, but it can also be a really handy product to use around the house. This non-toxic and relatively eco friendly acid is a great option for cleaning a whole variety of items when used in the right way.

Did you know you can use vinegar to clean around the home?

What's the Safest Way to Clean Your Family's Paddling Pool?

When the temperatures soar, there’s nothing that little ones love more than splashing around in a great paddling pool (see some of our favourites here). But as much fun as this can be, many a parent will tell you that keeping a paddling pool clean is a tall order.

Paddling pools can, unfortunately, harbour harmful germs if not kept clean enough, so it’s important to know how to keep them at their best. Not to mention, a paddling pool just looks so much more inviting when it’s fresh and clean! 

Keep your paddling pool cleaner with these tips

Here are some tips for how to clean a paddling pool:

6 Cheap packed lunch ideas for kids

Coming up with interesting and nutritious packed lunch ideas for children’s packed lunches can be a challenge, especially when you are working on a budget. It’s difficult not to get stuck in a rut and children get bored of food items just as us adults do.

Alternative packed lunch ideas

Easy ways to create shopping lists for your family meals

Do you often find that you get to the supermarket to do the 'big shop' and find that you just can’t remember what you intended to buy or what you have at home? Or perhaps you do an online shop regularly, only to find that half of the items you needed you forgot to order? If this is the case, you need some ideas for shopping list planning and you have come to the right place!

Here are several different ways that you can plan your shopping so that you’ll have the right ingredients every time:

Use these tips to be more organised, save money and reduce waste

5 clever children’s book storage ideas

Fostering a love of reading in your children is a beautiful thing and as parents we want to encourage a love of books. But let’s face it, sometimes it can be difficult to store all of those beautiful and interesting books!

If this is you, then I’ve got some great ideas for storing your children’s reading collection in a way that works with your home and keeps your children’s interests and love of reading alive.

Books can double up as decoration in your home

How To Organise A Kids’ Craft Station

It’s wonderful to see our children being creative, but it can be overwhelming to see that creativity scattered all over your living room, dining room table or playroom…delete as applicable! So what should you do if you don’t want to stifle your child’s creativity, yet want to contain the mess that goes with it? Create and organise a craft station, of course!

Is your child a budding artist? Use these tips to keep their craft supplies in order

How To Declutter Your Wardrobe

Many of us are guilty of having wardrobes that are stuffed to the brim with clothes, many of which we hardly, or maybe never, wear. Yes, there are of course special occasion clothes which only come out every now and again, but if you have every day clothes in your wardrobe that you are no longer wearing, it may be time to declutter your clothing.

Apart from the benefits in terms of tidiness, it’s much less stressful to decide what you want to wear (not to mention easier to keep on top of the laundry!) when you have a streamlined wardrobe with everything organised neatly. However, decluttering your wardrobe can be a daunting task, and so, here are a few tips to help you along the way to wonderful wardrobe organisation.

With the changing seasons, now is the perfect time for a clothes clear out. Here's how to make it easy...

How to remove common stains from your family sofa

Family life can be messy, especially if there are young children or pets involved. You may feel like your days of having lovely things in your home are over, at least until the children are older, but this doesn’t always have to be the case. Several common stains can be removed from furniture with a few tips, tricks and home remedies. 

Rescue your stained furniture with these useful cleaning tips

Packing Tips For Family Holidays

Part of the excitement of going on holiday is the lead up to it, and all of the preparation that goes with it. There’s nothing quite like that build up to a holiday, but if you’ve got children, the build up can often be doubled, or even trebled! Preparing for a family holiday is a lot of work, but with these essential packing tips for family holidays, you’ll be able to pack pronto!

Be prepared for emergencies with these family packing trips

The Kit You Need To Have On Hand For Christmas and Birthdays

When you become a parent a little organisation goes a long way. Gone are the days where you can quickly pop out to the shops to get something and children aren't known for their patience. Picture the scene: it's your child's birthday and after ripping the paper off their presents they want to play with one of them now! First you have to get it out of the box which might require scissors or even a screwdriver and then you discover it needs batteries so you have to find those, and then you definitely will need a screwdriver to get those installed. It might just take a few minutes, but for an excited child on their birthday it can feel like hours. Whether it's Christmas Eve or the day before their birthday, make sure that once the last present is wrapped that you have everything to hand in one place to make present opening goes to plan. 

A little preparation helps Birthdays and Christmas go more smoothly

Age-appropriate tidying and cleaning tasks for under 10s

I am a big fan of teaching your children to help out with the housework from an early age. Teaching your children to clean from an early age has benefits for everyone in the household: from helping children to learn the value of work through to lightening the load of those that normally carry out the housework. But you may be wondering what exactly your children can help out with, and what household chores are age-appropriate for under 10s.

What age should you get your children involved in household chores