Embrace A Holistic Approach To Fitness

Prioritise Mental Well-Being

Cultivate Nutritious Eating Habits

Address Skin Issues That Have Been Bothering You

Stay Hydrated

Foster Quality Sleep

Regular Health Screenings And Check-ups

Final Thoughts

Updating your children’s room on a budget

This month I'm sharing some posts from Maria Miguel at Better Help, where you can find a huge FREE resource library of advice for all kinds of mental health niggles and problems. Today, it's sleep. We raised 7 children, and even though I'm one of the softest parents you might find, I have always insisted on a regular bedtime routine. It's for my own sanity at least as much as theirs... 

 Should You Enforce a Sleep Schedule for Your Kids?

There are many reasons a parent may want to enforce a bedtime on their children; there are just as many reasons for families to do away with the practice. However, for certain age groups and households, a regular bedtime routine can benefit your children’s mental health, lifestyle developments, and sleep quality. Here are some benefits of creating a sleep schedule and tips to ensure it’s the right move for you and your family.

When I started this blog my children were young. Well, kind of. They were at least all children, and the little 2 weren't even at school yet. More than 8 years has passed, and my youngest is now 11 and starting high school in a few months. They all grew up. 

With 7 children in total, and 5 years of people to and fro at work, uni and college, we've had a lot of bedroom swaps over the years. Now that we only have the youngest two children at home full time we're a lot more settled, and really I want to create bedrooms for them that are relaxing and calm, but have plenty of their own more mature and still very unique personalities. 

As most of us can't afford a whole makeover and new furniture, here are some of my tips to help the bedroom grow up, without breaking the bank... 

The second week of May is Mental Health Awareness Week in the UK, and while I think we are all a lot more aware of how common mental health problems are, they're impossible to measure and rarely have a simple fix.

I'm working in a paid collaboration with Tempur, the people who make those incredibly comfortable squidgy mattresses, and they commissioned a Mental Health And Sleep Survey looking into the effect quality of sleep has on mental health and wellbeing. We all now know that our mental health is as important as our physical health and needs to be looked after, but how does sleep, and the quality or lack of it, affect us?


Physically, lack of good quality sleep gives us eye bags, it makes us crave carbohydrates and we store more fat. which can lead to weight gain. Among other things it affects growth hormones, testosterone and insulin levels, blood pressure and repair systems in the body. Not getting enough sleep can make you heavier and it can make you ill, and you'll stay ill for longer and find it harder to lose weight.

Mentally, lack of good quality sleep has a huge effect too. We know the obvious signs, we are tired, irritable and grumpy. Lack of sleep also makes it harder for us to learn and remember, it's responsible for lack of libido and motivation. We can feel hungry, clumsy and down, even depressed.

We've all been there, and those days that start like that never do seem to get any better...

At BlogOn Conference last month I picked up a Dream Tent to review for Re:Creation. They are a brand who specialise in some really affordable, quirky and interesting products, including Floof and LEGO Lights light up keychains, and the brilliant Magic Tracks which we reviewed a little while back.


The Dream Tent is exactly that - something every child dreams of having. A pop up canopy to go over the head end of your bed. It folds in the same way as other pop-up items such as beach tents, and arrives packaged inside a handy zip up storage bag.

The S+ from ResMed is the world's first non-contact sleep tracker. It studies you while you sleep, monitoring the air temperature, and ambient light and noise levels, as well as recording when you are in dream sleep, light sleep or deep sleep. It'll even soothe you to sleep with background white noise that attunes to your own breathing, and wake you up slowly (from light sleep when possible) if you set a smart alarm time window to get up.


My sleep has always been pretty bad, and even a 'good night's sleep' is often much shorter than average. Although I can survive on less sleep than most, I'd like to sleep more, and sleep better. The S+ can help, and after 8 weeks of use, I'm genuinely finding that I can make some simple small changes that really do improve the quality of my sleep - and I'm feeling better for it.

Lumie understand that we can't always just wake up instantly, they appreciate how hard it can be on our poor tired souls. Especially in winter, to have time to wake up slowly and naturally is often impossible. The Lumie Starter 30 Bodyclock wakes you by increasing the light gradually over 30 minutes. Recreating a natural dawn helps to keep your sleep cycle on track, boosting mood, energy and productivity levels all day.


At the other end of the day, your Lumie Bodyclock light also recreates dusk, to relax you and settle you for a better night's sleep...

Some jobs are just plain fun, and being asked by SleepyPeople if I could share my fort-building skills was definitely something that appealed on a rainy afternoon during Easter break - as my 6 and 7 year old boys ran past screeching at the fleeing cat.

I may not have the neatest or best fort-building skills, but after 22 years as a parent I'd hope I can put together something suitable, and SleepyPeople sent new pillows and duvets to work with. They proved an instant hit...

One of the biggest changes you face as a parent is the loss of sleep, and as a parent of children aged from 5 to 22 I've had a lot of broken nights, and I still can't claim to have ever found the secret of a great night's sleep.

Bed Guru are trying to find the best sleep tips for parents in their #Bedtimeguru campaign and have asked me to share my best tips. These are what worked for me...

I'm not a person who can leave a baby to cry, I'd rather cart them around with me and plot them on the floor or wherever nearby to whatever I'm attempting to do, with the end result that my children would sleep anywhere. This is a really handy thing.