Swearing in School

So I'm not a fan of swearing, admittedly there have been drunken nights where I've sworn a lot, but I find myself very much hating it in my more mature years.

I once had a conversation about why the C word (the one that rhymes with BLUNT) has just become this big issue and listened to a colleagues opinion that, at the end of the day it is just a word! The only reason it offends so many is because so many people have given it the power to offend them. Now for me this word has awful memories of watching violent abusive arguments between my Mum and her husband and so it will never enter my brain without bringing negative and possibly fearful emotions with it, and so I can understand I am in fact giving that word power to affect me and so it does.

Asking on my Facebook page about swearing habits and feelings about swearing, brought out many opinions and I may well be more touchy about swearing than I should be, but yesterday I was witness to several mothers in a crowded area using many many profanities, in earshot of lots of children and adults. I try hard not to judge as I'm sure we all do, but I will be honest I'm sure we all pass judgement on those around us based on the things we hear and see. And so yesterday I found myself judging harshly the parent who audibly and loudly exclaimed 'F**k this I'm not standing around here, I don't have the F-ing time or patience' which gained raucous laughter from the 4 or 5 other mums who had been swearing along in a previous conversation.

Now no one was hurt, the world didn't end but I found myself really offended, and I wasn't alone, but I cant explain why it bothered me so much, my children were not with me but I felt it was very disrespectful. My Nana spent her adult life working in a not exactly genteel public house and so heard the foulest of language, it never shocked her and never made her outwardly judge anyone, but it also never made her swear! Had she still been alive and been standing with me yesterday I would have been upset at her being faced with that language but she probably wouldn't have been. Am I being too touchy should I not let it bother me or is it simply the context and location of the conversation.  If I'm standing in my child's school listening to loud conversations peppered with profanity, about hating being there is it the subject matter or the language that bothered me?

Do you swear, how would you feel if your children did? Am I being a snob to expect folk not to swear around their own and other peoples children in a place of education? What do you think ?

Stigu Planner 2016

We were sent a lovely Stigu Planner to review and have now been using it for around 6 weeks, so I feel we really have gotten to grips with how it works for us. You can watch our review here ...

We loved, the quality, the illustrations and I look forward to reading all the snipets of adice to help feel more rested, balanced and energised.

This would make a lovely gift and has tonnes of room for even the busiest of families.


You can find out more about Stigu on their website or follow them on twitter or facebook and you can  buy the planner from amazon with lots of special offers too!

Do you use a planner? How do you find it?



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Mammy's On The Telly

So you may have read my post about being kind, and more importantly not listening to your inner bully. Well this week I did something so far beyond my comfort zone Im actually quite stunned that I survived!

Its really not that dramatic, but I should set the scene for you. I have stage fright, I suffer quite badly, when I was chosen to be Mary in year 6 everyone was so happy for me but I honestly couldn't make myself act, I forgot most of my words stared blankly into the audience and almost cried with fear. When I was 13 I was chosen to be on a game show called Knock Knock, all was going well until they said 'Camera's Rolling' and I felt it happen, the fear crept up my body making me stare blankly at the presenter and even though I knew the answers I couldn't make my fingers move to press the button. Surprisingly I took drama at GCSE and then went on to work in theatre for over a decade but I have never ever set foot on stage again. 

So when I decided I was going to seize all the opportunities I was offered this year, I didn't dream that the first to come knocking on my door would be the invitation to be a guest on Made in Tyne and Wear's Press Pit current affairs show.

I was asked to chose some news stories and we would chat with the panel about them. I was so scared when I was driving to the filming, and I'll be honest I wanted to cancel but I knew that would cause problems for the production company so I swallowed my fear and went through with it. 

The show can be seen in four parts on catch up....

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

It was actually not as bad as I expected, I could list you at least 10 things I should have done differently or that I hated about watching it back. BUT I'm not repeating my inner bully because she is a grumpy cow and I'm endeavouring to ignore her, so as cringe worthy as it is for me, I'm sharing my 5 (well 45) minutes of fame. I'm hoping as I have been invited back that means they didn't think I was a blundering buffoon !

You can find out more about the programmes on Made in Tyne and Wear on their website

Half Term in Tyne and Wear

Whoop Whoop , it's officially half term HOORAH. If (like me) you have not yet planned anything DO NOT PANIC! I'm here, we can do this, here are our top picks for the week.....

South Tyneside 

Sports Activities (prices Vary )
The Council are running a great sports programme this February for prices and more details click here. Kids just need suitable clothin a packed lunch and enthusiasm.


A Day In Shields (free excluding food and shopping)
South Tyneside has an amazing range of activities on offer and places to visit. You can spend the day wandering along the beautiful coast of South Shields, stopping to rock pool at Camel island or behind Trow Rocks then head through one of the beautiful Marine Parks to play in the park or wonder at the landscapes. 

Then wander down Ocean Road for some world famous fish and chips before heading into town to pick up a bargain or browse the market.

The Rabbits Tail at The Customs House (£7.50)

From the team that brought you the SELL OUT shows, Santa's Naughty Elf,  and Wendy the Witch, comes The Rabbits Tail

Peter Plank tries really hard to get his work done but everything seems to go wrong. When he discovers Mr Rabbit has a magic tail he thinks he has the perfect plan to make him the hero of the village - the only problem is the evil Goblin King has kidnapped Mr Rabbit. Can Peter save the day, stop the Goblin King in his tracks and make all his dreams come true?

Spineless at South Shields Museum (free but donations welcome)

Alongside the great permanent exhibitions at the museum, I'm very excited that South Shields museum is currently hosting Spineless, you can read about our preview of the exhibition launch here. Its a great addition to a lovely museum and well worth the visit

Newcastle

Life Science Centre February Half Term 2016 (normal admission pricing applies)

We always enjoy a trip to Life and the kids loved seeing all the Robots at the new exhibition During half term from 13-21 February, Life will be celebrating everything sci-fi with some special guests across the week featuring Jedi, rebel soldiers, robotics experts and everyone’s favourite bad guys the Daleks!

• Saturday 13 & Sunday 14 February:  Meet Rebel Legion, renowned Star Wars costume specialists.
• Monday 15 February: Meet the Experts from York Robotics Lab who’ll be bringing humanoid robots as well as their swarm bots (we’ve heard of swarming bees but swarming robots……)
• Tuesday 16 February: Think Physics: Robot orchestra drop in activity
• Wednesday 17 & Thursday 18 February: From the team that brings you Robo Challenge, enter the Robo Arena
• Thursday 18 & Friday 19 February: Northern Charity Daleks: let the invasion commence!

Robot will be at Life from 23 January – 17 April 2016. Access to the Robot exhibition is included in the admission price to Life. Please see life.org.uk for more details.

And dont forget you still have time to skate .....

Polar Explorer At The Great North Museum (Free, Donations Welcome)

Discover what life is like in the coldest places on Earth in the new Polar Explorers exhibition for families with younger children. The resilient ways of life of people and wildlife living in polar extremes will be explored in this immersive exhibition, inspiring young minds through sensory and accessible stimulation. There are also lots of themed talks and activities planned during half term, details here 

Circus Skills Discovery Museum (free, suggested donation £3)

18/2/16 30 minute sessions running between 11 and 3
If you fancy yourself as the next circus act performing in the Big Top, then take part in one of our fun, interactive sessions for those aged five and upwards.

The circus skills you'll try have the forces at their core (balance, speed, push and pull), making this a fun session to learn and develop creativity. 

Intu Eldon Square Free Kung Fu Panda Activities (FREE)

To celebrate the cinema release of Kung Fu Panda 3, intu Eldon Square is joining forces with DreamWorks to treat young shoppers to three days of free, panda-themed craft activities this February half term. 

From 11am till 4pm, from Tuesday 16 - Thursday 18 February, the Kung Fu Panda craft station (outside Debenhams) will give little cubs the chance to immerse themselves in all things Kung Fu Panda related, including character face painting and glitter tattoos.

Children will be invited to design unique Kung Fu headbands, create Chinese lanterns and fans, as well as customising their very own panda and dragon masks. In addition, every family visiting the craft station will be invited to enter a free lucky draw to win cinema tickets to see Kung Fu Panda 3 when it opens in March. Once the kids are fully kitted out, families can pick up a free activity pack and work together to complete the Kung Fu Panda trail set throughout the shopping centre.

Sign up to the Kids' Club and  make sure you're the first to know about upcoming events and activities at intu Eldon Square.

Sunderland

Sunderland Museum and Winter Gardens

Alomg side all the usual exhibits of Sunderland history local art and culture,  you can take part in Dino Creations on 19/02/16 and build your own T-rex. Dont forget to follow the dino trail to get your sticker too.

North East Puddle Jumping Championships at Washington Wetland Centre

Normal Entry Charges Apply plus Small charges for craft 

13-21/2/16

No matter what your age or puddle-jumping ability, everyone is welcome. See who can produce the biggest and best splash in special competition puddles, with efforts being judged on:

• The enthusiasm of the jumper
• The creativity of the jump
• The height of the splash

Win daily prizes and take part in the craft activities in the discovery centre.

Time: registration for puddle jumping daily from 2pm (with competition commencing immediately afterwards and the winner announced at the end); crafts daily from 1 to 3.30pm.

A New look Blog

I've had such a busy day and I'm currently pulling together lots of information about great tgings to do in half term but I got distracted redesigning my blog, We discovered this picture which is missing one of the children (poor third child)  but perfectly depicts happy times for us, it will need replacing with a new one which we plan to get on our upcoming holiday if I can make the all stand still for one minute! But I decided there was no better time to make my blog look sunny and bright. So this is my new header 

You'll notice we have shortened our name to match our web adress more, Adventures of a Monkeyfooted Mummy is still very much the concept of the blog but I feel most people refer to us as Monkeyfeet or in some cases even  Mrs Monkeyfeet (which admittedly I love) and so a shorter snappier title has been born!

And we've opted for sunshine colours for the background t remind us of fun sunny holidays, our very favourite times. 

What do you think, be honest I'm open to any and all comments...

10 Signs That You Are Living With a Threenager

Today I have a guest post from the very lovely Chantelle, Mum to FOUR girls who writes at Mama Mummy Mum.

 

 

 

Today she describes what its like living with a THREENAGER! I swear if your kids are over four you'll be nodding along....

 

By definition a threenager is a child whohas reached the grand old age of three yet proceeds to act and sound like ateenager. There was me thinking the terrible twos were bad and really I thoughtI had a few years before I had to endure the perils that come with a teenager.Just incase you weren't sure yourself, here a 10 sure fire signs that you areindeed living with a threenager….

1. Your first sign, the back chat,the attitude, oh it's like hearing my former teenage self some days, the wordno gets said to me far to often these days!

 

2. Theword why becomes the main part of their vocabulary, trying to refrain fromreplying with the sentence "just because" is a real struggle attimes.

 

3. Tables are quickly turned when you want to talk tothem, the only answers you'll get are "I don't know" or "I can'tremember".

 

4. However in public they seem to have no filter,"mummy why is that man fat", "you have a really big spot on yourface", all the niceties come out then.

 

5. Stubbornness, I mean independence issuddenly a must, they can do it all for themselves, until they can't that is.For example putting their shoes (on the wrong feet) and then suddenly they areall but begging you to do it for them.

 

6. Leading to the fact that you now need anextra few hours in the day because getting out of the door takes twice the timeit used to.

 

7. Naps are a thing of the past and ofcourse they then get mad because they really do need a nap, why won't they justgo to sleep?? But when you want them to do something suddenly they become tired, convenient!

 

8. Thesmallest of things become the biggest of dramas (maybe because they need anap!), it could be as simple as you look at them "funny" and all hellbreaks loose, be prepared for those tantrums. Have you noticed threenagers tendto be rather moody!?

 

9. Mealtimes become a battle, foods that they used to love are no longer consideredacceptable and then there's the time it takes them to eat and don't even thinkabout giving them different cups orcutlery…

 

10. Gone are the pushchairs, of coursethreenagers want to walk everywhere until the "I'm tired" excusecomes out and they really need to be carried but they're not as small as theyonce were and carrying them becomes difficult shall we say.

 

So now you've gone through points 1 to10, the only question to ask is are you living with a threenager?

You can follow Chantelle on Facebook and Twitter

 

 

Posted with Blogsy by The Monkeyfooted Mummy

Geronimo Festival 2016

I'm so excited I can hardly  contain myself, this year will see us head to our first ever festival, and there could be not better festival to choose as our first than Geronimo festival, and we are official Geronimo Bloggers! So keep your eyes on our facebook page for all the latest news and offers

Geronimo, the largest children’s festival in the North West has announced its most exciting line-up to date, with headliner CBeebies Superstar Justin Fletcher!

Following a fantastic response to the inaugural festival in 2015, Geronimo is returning to Tatton Park from May 29^th to 30^th 2016, plus new venue, Harewood House, from May 1^st to 2^nd 2016.

The biggest star on British children’s TV will be performing for one day only at each festival on Sunday 29^th May at Tatton Park and 1^st May at Harewood House. 

The programme, includes:

·        The return of Mr Bloom to the Geronostage Zone!  Geronimites can ‘pop along’ and say ‘Ello!’ with Mr Bloom, where there’ll be a bundle of veggie stories, gardening games, and catchy nursery songs for toddlers and parents alike. 

·        Our favourite explorer, Andy Day will be performing his Dino Rap show filled with tales of his adventures to far away lands as well.

·        Alex Winters from CBeebies will be hosting the main stage each day, along with daily meet and greets.

·        Join Cook and Line from Swashbuckle in a rip-roaring pirate adventure! Full of fun songs and silly slapstick comedy, this energetic and interactive performance will be loved by children of all ages. 

·        The Adrenaline Zone will challenge even the bravest adventurers with tree climbing, den making and a thrilling zip line that will reach speeds of up to 60KPH!

·        New for 2016 is the Arena Zone, an extravaganza of live displays featuring motorbike display teams, sheepdog shows with a difference (we haven’t got any sheep so we had to use geese instead!) and owls in the falconry show – on horseback (what else would you expect at Geronimo?).

·        The Library Zone - Join some dance classes to learn Bollywood or Zumba moves or enjoy a gigantic drumming session – beware, it’s going to be noisy! For fans of Frozen, there will be a Frozen singalong and the talented Mr Yipadees show will be bringing instruments to life.

·        Catch award winning theatre productions in The Theatre Zone, with Pocket Story Theatre - winner of the primary times children’s choice awards at the Edinburgh Fringe. Fabularium is the most eccentric of travelling shows and Les Enfants Terrible present the Imaginary Menagerie--- travel with Dr Longitude as he regales you with his strange stories and takes about his travels.

·        Test your own performance skills with the Circus Zone. This zone also includes a full circus show and Circus fudge will also be performing his show from Glastonbury festival – don’t miss it!

·      Enjoy a hands-on wildlife experience in The Pasture Zone where kids of all ages can climb aboard for a ride on one of the donkeys or Shetland ponies. Crocodile Joe will be hosting his amazing reptile show and new for this year, there will be the largest collection of giant Tortoises coming to Geronimo.

·      In the 3ft and Under Zone, little ones can join a fun class with Tumble Tots, take a ride on a balance bike or take a dance lesson with baby ballet. For the tiny tots, simply chill out in the baby yoga tent.

·    Fans of live music are in for a treat at the Bandstand Zone with popular acts on throughout the day.

·      Creative kids can join in the many craft workshops in the Funky Junk Zone.  From amazing woodwork workshops, hair braiding, face painting and fairy making workshops, to stone carving and totem pole making, there is something for everyone to get stuck in to.

·        Fun-filled Fairground Zone - With an old fashioned Helter Skelter, traditional carousel and steam powered swing chairs for kids and grown ups who are still kids at heart! Dont forget to pop over to Geronimo's pages and say hi ... 

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Free Flowers and A Prize Draw This Valentines At Intu Eldon Square

 

 

So you apply to be on a national television dating show, and you are accepted, but then you are STOOD UP, what do you do? Cry into your coffee, curse off love forever. Heck No you woman up like a Geordie! Which is exactly what Georgia Graham has done 

 

Georgia Graham, from Wallsend, applied to appear on Channel 4’s First Dates programme after failing miserably to find a suitable boyfriend and being single for five years. Georgia’s joy at being chosen for the show soon turned to sorrow when her scheduled date for the night didn’t turn up.

 

Lesser mortals may have crumbled with embarrassment, but this feisty 25 year-old laughed about the situation and hoped for better luck next time, saying:

 

“It’s true to say that I haven’t had the best of luck with men in the past few years, and that may be because I am quite choosy; my ideal man would be a cross between Johnny Depp and Zac Efron! Right now it’s back to the drawing board and fingers crossed for good luck in the love department on Valentine’s Day!”

Georgia took to the malls of intu Eldon Square in the heart of Newcastle to spread a little Valentine’s happiness by encouraging shoppers to take part in some fun Valentine’s activities online, including testing out a ‘Love Calculator’ and a ‘Men v Women Personality Quiz’.

 

Georgia was also distributing stunning orange roses, ahead of a free rose giveaway on Friday 12^th & Saturday 13^th February from intu Eldon Square’s customer service desks.

 

Every shopper who downloads the new intu app (available on Android and Apple devices) will be eligible to collect a free orange rose on Friday 12^th & Saturday 13th and entered into a lucky draw to win a £100 intu gift card. Download the app from the App Store, Google Play or visit intu.co.uk/app.

 

In addition, shoppers can win a fabulous Valentine’s Prize Bundle, including gorgeous goodies from Body Shop, Lush, Neal’s Yard, Paperchase, Tiger, Thorntons, Whittard and Xtras. To enter go towww.intu.co.uk/eldonsquare/competitions.

 

Denise Tweedy, intu Eldon Square’s Assistant Marketing Manager, said:

 

“Romance is certainly in the air in intu Eldon Square on the run up to Valentine’s Day, and who better to sprinkle the seeds of optimism and happiness than the ever hopeful Georgia? Our shoppers certainly embraced the fun and laughter Georgia brought to the city centre, and were keen to download the new intu app that shows maps, directions, store details and the very latest discounts for our shops and restaurants – handy advice with Valentine’s Day looming! It’s time to smell the roses!”

Are You Kind?

Now I know you have all clicked thorough probably a little curious as to why I asked that? Am I about to start showing off my kind deeds to you all? Or perhaps you are feeling a little indignant that I should even ask! Well let me explain what I really want to know is,

Are you kind to yourself?

Today I was invited by the lovely We Are Sparkle, to attend a Business Confidence talk by Sharon MacArthur from Red Handbag . The talk was great and Sharon brought up some brilliant points about not trying to be like everyone else and appreciating your uniqueness, having the confidence to say no, building a team (or a tribe I like to think of it as) being brave and not worrying about the things you can't control.

 

All very sensible and valid points but half way through after the question 'when did yo last say well done to yourself?' I felt the familiar bubble of tears!!

OH MY GOD I'M GOING TO CRY! In a room full of strangers, for no tangible reason and with no explanation I could feel it coming! Luckily the Sparkle Lasses had provided chocolate so I ate my tears away with a mini fudge and carried on. But it took me by surprise and it didnt go away! It's made me realise that for a little while I've been feeling a bit disconnected and discombobulated! I should set the scene for you....

I used to be a really confident proffessional, running shows and looking after a whole Theatre on my todd with no issues. I could talk through evacuation procedures with the firefighters, heck Im even a trained door supervisor. But returning from my first maternity leave left a gap in my confidence and I guess that has just grown, so as I gave up my career and became a stay at home mum I guess my confidence just dwindled. This in itself is a huge mental adjustment. But I didnt realise quite how much until Wednesday when I realised that mentally I had made about 10 excuses not to attend the event. I knew I would be late (the logistical nightmare of school runs etc) and I would have to walk into a room full of strangers BUT I made myself go and everyone was lovely and kind and intereting and INTERESTED

I have though, spend all day in a tizzy, I think of myself as a really positive person and I talk of silver linings a lot but proffessionally Im so busy concentrating on what I haven't done that Im missing what I have acheived and its starting to spill into my personal life. Today made me realise a lot of unkind things that Im doing to myself and Im going to bare my soul and tell you about them

Emotional Eating - I admit it Im an emotional eater and my weight gain over Christmas has triggered a vicious circle of comfort eating and disliking myself even more, so comfort eating even more. But loading my body with sugar salt and rubbish really has an effect on my mood and health.

Being Hard on Myslef -this list is endless, I havent ironed in weeks, I havent sorted the loft, the house is untidy the fidge needs a clean.... I shant go further I know you know the drill.

Self Sacrifice - OK its not as dramatic as it sounds Im not offering myself to some volcano to save an island! But I havent gone for a haircut, night out, half an hour of peace even, for a long time. I don't make any time for myself and even my planned peaceful bath's never last more than 10 minutes. Today Sharon asked if you could have 30 mintes just for you what would you do and honestly Id like to sit still and quiet and listen to my thoughts!

Listening to My Inner Bully - You know the one Im talking about, your inner voice the one who tells you that you look awful in that photo, the house is shameful, you missed your target or didnt complete the list. We are so hard on ourselves and you know what if someone actually spoke like that to our children/bestie/family we would be the first to leap in and defend them. So why oh why do we (I mean why dont I!) shut that inner voice up with a, yeah it may be a rubbish photo but look at the fun we are having, or yep the house is a mess but see how happy my kids are? They dont care....

Now I'll be honest with you, I normally end these types of posts with an uplifting plan filled paragraph of how things will get better, but Im afaid not today. I can say all of these things that Ive realised today but Ive not yet got a plan, Ive just got a tear streaked face and the knowledge that something has to change this mummy does not want her kids growing up thinking it normal to treat yourself this unkindly

 

Logistically I can't find the childcare, or finance to attend a course to get me back on track, so this is down to me, and I won't lie, building my own confidence and self esteem feels daunting but I'm sure it's do-able.

 

I will end however asking you when the last time was that you told yourself well done? Can't remember? Well listen here, well done for today, well done for being the best you could be for getting through the day and being the brilliant person you are.

 

 

 

 

 

Posted with Blogsy by The Monkeyfooted Mummy

Seven Easy Ideas To Make family Kitchen Work

If you follow my Facebook page, you will know that housekeeping is big on my moan list ' I just cant keep everything tidy' is rgularly muttered, uttered and sometimes shouted! But my kitchen whilst small is the one area I NEED everything to work smoothly, my kitchen is small but light airy and has a good feel to it. Thing is, real family kitchens are more about people than stuff. So you don’t need major building work or a huge space to create one, just a bit of imagination, some perseverance and a little patience. .

1.    Get everyone interested in what’s cooking

Every family kitchen revolves around sharing food, so take that back to its most basic level and get younger kids involved in doing simple prep like washing lettuce, chopping carrots or learning to set the table. Older children are up for making easy dishes and much keener to sit down at meal times if praise is on the table. And teens find it a lot more difficult to sulk over an hour’s phone-separation if they’re on board to find an interesting recipe, source ingredients and take part ownership of family dinner.

2.    Go open-plan if you can

The dream family kitchen would be big enough to fit in some comfy, lounge-around space. But if that’s not an option – like our kitchen – what about flowing your living room and kitchen together? It doesn’t need to be permanent. Internal bi-fold doors let you have big, open-plan space for family time and personal space when you want. They’re also great for family get-togethers and parties. And, let’s be honest, who doesn’t dream of having the perfect ‘extended family kitchen’ where everyone comes together to celebrate?

3.    Make wall space matter

Think about putting up a large noticeboard in the kitchen and giving everyone some personal space to show off, express themselves or just get organised. A magnetic board with plenty of room lets younger kids hang drawings, older children can put up timetables or party invitations and the whole family knows who’s doing what and when. It’s a simple focal point in a family kitchen that really works. And giving someone the responsibility for making sure everything’s kept up to date makes it fun.

4.    Put everything on the table

Every family kitchen needs a place to gather with  enough room for everyone at once. An extending, traditional kitchen table is great if you’ve got the space. Alternatively we have a breakfast bar which can work just as well to let you keep an eye on homework and a cookie cutting five year old while you’re prepping dinner. Make good use of chopping blocks to keep messy little ones away from  older kid’s maths’ problems and art projects.

5.    Introduce some flexible thinking

In a recent interview, Maya Rudolph admitted to having a TV in her kitchen tuned to Turner Classic Movies in the hope ‘some Cary-style cool’ rubs off on her four young kids. You might not have those aspirations, but TV isn’t necessarily a bad thing if it makes the kitchen more loved and used. And it doesn’t need to be on all the time and definitely not during mealtimes. If you feel really strongly about the kitchen being a media-free zone, compromise with music. Older kids and teens will be happy to make up playlists and it’s a chance to find out who’s listening to what – you could even pick up a bit of parental cool in the process.

6.    Grow your own space

If your kitchen opens out on to the garden like ours think about maximising potential there. External glazed bi-fold doors create light and space instantly, give your kids more freedom and make an outdoor room for family meals or barbecues that’s part of the family kitchen, but independent too. Plus, if you’re keen to get your children really interested in food, planting some container gardens for herbs and veggies will get them really hands on

7.    Start as early as possible

The best family kitchens evolve and it’s never too early to make yours part of everyday life. Have a kitchen play area for babies and toddlers and they’ll develop a healthy attitude towards cooking and eating naturally. Use the room for creative fun and it will have good associations. Read stories and have quiet time in the kitchen and it’s somewhere your children will always feel comfortable and happy. We have activity boxes which can easily be brought in, with moon dough, or colouring in etc

And don’t forget the whole point is to make a ‘family’ kitchen, so ask the family for their suggestions too. You might start off with ‘snack drawers’ and tea time text breaks. Just be patient, the compromise is probably an ‘approved’ snack shelf and regular movie night.

***Collaborative Post