With a three night girls relaxing holiday to Marrakech, in amongst the site seeing there was plenty of opportunity for soaking up a book or two whilst we soaked up the rays. Two weeks later and a five night surprise birthday trip to Palma with Stuart (no kids – dreamy!), gave me even more time to fall back in love with reading…and that’s just what I did. Remember when breaks away were just reasons to have a shag fest? No thanks, I’m good with my book. LOLS. A mixture of cultural, thriller/crime, auto biographies and rom-com has been nourished and each gave me just what I needed, literary, at t ..read more

My 40th birthday celebrations had everything from nights in, nights out, boozy brunches, surprise holidays and a three night trip to one of my favourite countries – Morocco! We visited Marrakech in May 2021 as a family where we stayed at the Rui Tikida Palmerie. I had a great time, the kids not so much and I always said I’d love to go back again for a short weekend amongst the hustle and bustle, without the kids, if I ever got the chance. Fast forward two years, turning a new decade and two gal pals who were up for experiencing some July Middle East sunshine, and here we were. We flew from Lon ..read more

We headed to Noahs Ark Zoo Farm one Sunday towards the end of the summer holidays. I say summer lightly as it’s been anything but summer here in the UK and this particular Sunday was absolutely no exception. It was pretty miserable for 90% of our day! I found Noahs Ark after googling ‘Brilliant zoos in the UK’. Even though he’s mostly glued to JStu or Carter Sharer on YouTube, Arlo is still very much Dr Doolittle and loves the zoo. Having done Marwell and ZSL a fair few times, we wanted a new place to adventure. Noahs Ark Zoo Farm is based in Clevedon, near Bristol and is set on 110 acres of l ..read more

As the dark, cold, winter nights draw in then there’s nothing better than coming home to your dinner bubbling away filling the house with culinary goodness. Enter the slow cooker! I LOVE my slow cooker, when else can you prepare dinner in the morning (by prepare, I mean chop everything up and chuck it all in a pot!) and come in to find your dinner ready to serve, with minimal washing up? I thought I’d share some of my favourite one pot, slow cooker recipes! Diet Coke Chicken [or gammon] You will need: Lean chicken breasts/skinless thighs or a gammon joint. Can of diet coke Onion and garlic Pa ..read more

Nestled amongst the bustling streets of Fuengirola is the breathtaking Bioparc. You’d probably walk past if you weren’t looking out for it – but wow, from concrete pavements to jungle in a matter of seconds. The 25m baobab tree is the centrepiece at Bioparc – and is one of the largest artificial trees in the world. It really sets the tone of the design and feel of the rest of the parc. Bioparc Fuengirola is open from 10am – 11pm. Top tip: take a photo of any of the posters dotted around the Costa Del Sol; by showing this, adults get entry for $17 (instead of $23) and children over three years ..read more

In February 2023 we enjoyed an amazing eight night stay at Rixos The Palm Dubai – everything was exceptional about it, but I felt like the food element was a real cut above. And I generally squirm at having to eat ‘holiday food’. This time however, you couldn’t stop me going back for more and I thought the restaurants deserved a post of their own, so here goes… La Turca The resort’s main restaurant at the centre of the hotel is La Turca. A signature buffet concept serving International cuisine and Turkish treats – so tuck in and enjoy kebabs, mezzes, and grill. My favourite options were the c ..read more

What can I say about our stay at Rixos The Palm in Dubai? Wow. Exceptional. Amazing. Saving to go back again. Genuinely the best place we have ever stayed and one of the best holidays we’ve ever had…and I never even wanted to go to Dubai! From arrival to departure and absolutely everything in between there isn’t one thing I can fault; I described the service to friends as totally natural, not forced or stuffy, but 7* amazing. We checked in to the hotel before our room was ready, due to our fight time, but our cases were taken to the spa area so we could locate our swimming stuff and enjoy time ..read more

Much of the work we do in our garden is aesthetic. Ignoring things usually just results in our garden looking messy, but has no further negative consequences. However, there are some garden issues that shouldn’t be ignored as they can cause all kinds of potential harm to you and your property if not sorted out. Below are 5 examples of garden problems you shouldn’t ignore.  Flimsy fencing If fencing is leaning or sagging, it could be a sign that it’s about to give way. A windy day may be all it takes to cause your fencing to collapse. In many areas, a lack of fencing can be a privacy and ..read more

To wave goodbye to a dreary 2022 and welcome in a brighter 2023, we headed to Center Parcs Elveden Forest for a three night break with friends. None of us had been to this particular Center Parcs before so it felt like a bit more of an exciting adventure and was a little further afield than we’d travelled to one before. Our Center Parcs lodge We stayed in a new style Woodland four bed lodge in the ‘Maple’ area, which we felt was a good location and was just a 5-10 minute walk to the main plaza where the swimming, shops and restaurants were all situated. Our lodge was pleasant and cleaned to C ..read more

Loving care and attention should be the number one aim when changing up your home. How do you work – do you prefer regular tweaks or waiting a few years before spending the money? I’m the impatient type! With that in mind, let’s look at these suggestions for making changes to the house this year that will give it a fresh lease on life. Renew Any Old Carpets  Carpets are quite long-lasting if you purchase them correctly, but they do wear out over time. That’s why new carpets are among the first things to be installed in a renovated room. The room will look and feel brand new once you repla ..read more