Balancing Mum Life With Student Life: Tips To Make It Work

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Being both a parent and a student can take its toll on you, as both roles have their challenges and their
stresses. Parenting challenges include the need to keep your kids entertained and looked after properly,
while student challenges include those dreaded deadlines and dealing with huge workloads. If you are
currently managing both roles, or if you are thinking about becoming a student again (bet you never
thought you would after leaving school/university), we have some tips to help you make the balance work!

Find a course to fit around your schedule.
Find a way to study that accommodates your role as a parent. There may be daytime or night school classes
near you that are a possibility, provided you have people around to look after the kids. If that is difficult because
of your mum duties, then you may consider taking a course online. From GCSE's to professional courses, such
as this MBA engineering management degree, know that you don't always have to leave the house to study.
Whatever you choose, pick a course that will allow you time to study in the week AND still have time to spend
with your family.

Stick to a studying schedule.
You will have homework to do, essays to write, and exams to prepare for. You need to find the time to do all of this
somehow, so look at your day, and find those available windows of time that are open to you. It might be early in the
morning when the kids are in bed. It may be for those few hours when the kids are at school. Or it might be in the evening
when the children are asleep or busy elsewhere. Whenever it is, set yourself a studying routine, and do your best to
stick to the schedule.

Include your kids in your study time.
Older children and teenagers may appreciate your need to study, but younger children may crave more of your time.
If you do have to study when they're not otherwise engaged elsewhere, include them in your study time. They might
only cause constant interruption otherwise. While you're beavering away with study books or essay writing, set them up
with an activity of their own, whether that's colouring a picture or doing something that will complement their school work.
This might create a nice bonding time with your child, and you won't feel as if you have neglected them.

Find a support network.
You can't do this alone. At some point in the day/week, you are going to need people to help you. You need somebody
to watch the kids while you're working. You need somebody to offer you words of encouragement when you get stressed
with your workload. You need somebody to offer you a little light relief away from your busy schedule.
So speak to family, friends and neighbours. Ensure you have people around you for whatever need you have, and draw
on their support as much as possible.

Create 'me-time.'
You need time for yourself in the week. This will help you to recharge your batteries, giving you the strength to manage both
your children and your study schedule. So get those childminders in. Enlist your partner's help. And do something that helps
you to turn off your brain and relax, whether that's having a pampering session in the bath, or sitting down in front of the tv
for a few hours with your favourite movie.


It is possible to balance mum and student life, but you need to take those steps that will help you to manage. We hope our
advice was useful, but if you have any tips of your own, especially if you have experience of this mum-student juggling act,
then please let us know. Thanks for reading, and happy parenting/studying!

*Collaborative post

5 Parenting Challenges That You May Not Be Prepared For

Being a parent is the greatest job in the world. Fact. But that doesn’t mean that the journey is all plain sailing. There are a number of challenges along the way and, while you will have prepared for some, others may take you by surprise.

 

Here are five of the most common, along with how to manage them in the most suitable fashion.

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#1. Child Behavioral Problems   

 

As our understanding of ADHD and related conditions grows, the number of diagnosed cases shoots through the roof. While getting your child tested at the earliest stage possible will help the cause, you may need to push the issue. Otherwise, your child’s case can be lost in the system. If an issue is detected, the diagnosis will point you in the right direction of treatments and coping mechanisms. However, one of the best things you can do is connect with other parents in a similar situation.

 

#2. Limited Home Space

 

Times are hard, not least with regards to affordable housing. A property that is a little smaller than you’d ideally like for a family of your size can cause a few issues. Bringing a sense of stability to the child’s bedroom should be at the top of your agenda. Meanwhile, bathrooms are surprisingly important. In truth, sticking to a minimalist design and getting rid of clutter should work wonders throughout the home. When the home is blessed with a happy vibe, the impacts will be palpable.

 

#3. Relationship Troubles

 

The harsh reality of life is that roughly one in three marriages ends in divorce. When your relationship breaks down, finding a fair solution for both parties is key. You'll also need to ensure that you are both able to provide your child with the best life. Family law solicitors can take care of the legalities and financial aspects. Your job as responsible adults is to sit down and explain the situation in a comforting way. Providing a united front is essential, even if you no longer get on.   

 

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#4. Internet Safety

 

While they’re still toddlers, the kids are likely to be limited to a few iPad Apps. However, they’ll soon be playing games with friends via the internet. Whether it’s playing on the PlayStation or using the laptop doesn’t matter, they need to be safe. Reading support from experts in the field of online safety will help you stay on top of this challenge. Even if your child isn’t at risk, it’s always good to put your mind at ease. Prevention is always the best form of protection.

 

#5. School Admissions

 

Once upon a time, the process of getting your child into a school was the simplest of tasks. Nowadays, not quite so much. Therefore, conducting the necessary research in advance is vital. It is another option to think about homeschooling. One way or another, ensuring that your child receives the best schooling is vital for your child’s early years. The ‘fun’ doesn’t end there, though, as you’ll have to do it all over again once senior school, college, and university admissions arrive!

*Collaborative post

Victorious Festival Portsmouth - The Perfect Festival for Kids

Back in the Summer Holidays, Elliot and I headed down to Portsmouth on Bank Holiday weekend to spend the day the Victorious Festival.

The Victorious Festival, now in it's 7th year, is a three day family friendly festival held on Southsea Common. Featuring many different stages and big names in music such as the Prodigy it really has gone from strength to strength over the last few years.

The music side of it wasn't really a draw for me as I'm rubbish at current music and haven't got a clue who's in the chart these days but the kids arena sounded fantastic and this is what swayed our decision to go!

Leaving Erin with my parents, we headed down to Portsmouth on the train from Poole. I've only been to Portsmouth a couple of times before so I was looking forward to going somewhere different - Elliot was excited just to be going on a train!

We arrived in Portsmouth just after 10am and we hopped on a Hover bus from the station which took us directly to Southsea Common. It was a beautiful sunny day and the view over the water to the Isle of Wight was stunning.

The festival itself was massive and I definitely underestimated how large it would be - we seemed to walk forever around the outside barriers to get to the entrance! Entry was nice and fast, our bags were checked and I picked up a lost child wristband to write my number on incase Elliot and I lost each other. We had a wander as we got inside the festival and it was the perfect time to get our bearings as it was still nice and quiet.

We decided to head straight for the kids area, where we quickly discovered that all the activities (including the face painting and bouncy castle!) were free - how amazing is that?! Featuring a whole variety of local businesses, all with children's activities we were spoilt for choice. Elliot decided to go on the bouncy area while there were no queues - this area was continuously busy all day so if you're thinking of coming next year, make this first on your list to do!

Some of the other stalls we visited were the RNLI where we learnt about safety in the sea, the Mary Rose museum where we were able to see and hold actual items that were on the ship, we played with ALOT of Lego with the team from the Portsmouth Historic Dockyard and we couldn't resist getting a giant slush drink!

One of the things Elliot was looking forward to was the meet and greets and he was quite excited to spot Paddington Bear. He's always loved meeting characters and mascots...Erin is the opposite however, she runs a mile if shes anyway near someone dressed up! Through out the day we also met Finn & Jake from Adventure time and even some Princesses.

Just before lunch we headed to the stage where our favourites, Andy & The Odd Socks were due to perform. The sun was shining and it was a lovely atmosphere - there were rows of hay bales for the audience to sit on and space for the children at the front to dance. There was a children's entertainer, Ross Presto who was very funny and Elliot even got picked to join in with a game. He won a bag of sweets so that made his day!

After Ross came the Princesses who sang and danced to lots of recognisable pop/Disney songs - they even did Baby Shark much to the delight of the kids in the audience!

Finally the moment, we'd been patiently waiting for - Andy and The Odd Socks! We had a spot right at the front of the hay bales and Elliot had loads of fun dancing around and flossing to his favourite songs. It was probably one of the smaller stages the band have played but they certainly had a large enthusiastic crowd! The band have so much energy - they must have a pre-gig snack that includes weetabix and redbull because they do not stop! As always we loved seeing them rock out and it was great to hear Unique again. We love this song and the important message it puts across - and it's so blimmin' catchy!

As the band came off stage, eagle eye Elliot spotted Andy at the side saying hi to some of the audience so he dashed on over for a high five!

After all that excitement we decided to head out of the kids arena in search of something yummy for lunch and we were so spoilt for choice that it took us almost half an hour to decide! In the end we had ostrich burger and fries which was lovely, we sat under a tree with the Common Stage in the background and it was a nice moment of calm in the busyness of the festival. I have to say it was so lovely in the kids arena and then coming into the main festival where there were so many people was a bit overwhelming!!

After a quick stop at the Coca-Cola stand to try out the new zero flavours, we decided to head back to the kids arena where there was a ton of things still to be looked at! Top of Elliot's list was the Rebel Yarn Bombers - these lovely ladies had a massive selection of knitted monsters that were all lovingly handmade and even named. All the monsters were available to adopt for a donation and the money was being raised for the Roald Dahl Charity. Elliot took a l-o-n-g time to decide on a monster...and we even had to come back later in the day so he could get a couple more!

Some of the yarn bombers work on display - impressive!

The next few hours were jam packed with lots of making in the arts and crafts tents, Elliot played some football with Little Kickers, he built some sandcastles at the beach area, he checked out the instruments at the Ready to Rock school and we even got to sample some really really yummy Montezuma chocolate...guess which bit was my highlight ;)

I have to say that everyone we spoke to on the stalls was so friendly - we met a really lovely young lad on the Foster Portsmouth stall who spent ages colouring with Elliot and helping him choose about a thousand stickers to go on his sheet! He told us all about how Foster Portsmouth had helped him throughout his childhood and how passionate he was about getting the word out about fostering. He was called Elliot too!

Elliot and Elliot! Foster Portsmouth

Our final activity of the day was another Andy & The Odd Socks set - I think this one was even busier! We bumped into some friends of ours, Laura and her son Max from Max and Mummy and we had a fab time sat with them. The boys were off down the front throwing some shapes whilst we sat and relaxed on the hay bales!

After the show Elliot managed to get selfies with the band so he was one happy boy, always nice to chat to them and they are always so friendly to us.

With a fond farewell to our friends, it was time for Elliot and I to head home. As the kids area was drawing to a close, the rest of the festival was starting to get even busier with crowds of people streaming through the gates. Perhaps we'll stick around for the evening entertainment next year!

The Victorious Festival was bigger and better than I'd imagined and we were absolutely blown away with how amazing the kids arena was. There was so much on offer and you literally could spend all day in there - pretty much like we did!

We look forward to seeing what next year has to offer :)

Bring Order To The Chaos Of Your Kid's Bedroom

As any parent will tell you, their kid’s bedroom is often in a state of chaos. And while this

may appeal to the child themselves, other people have to go about family life in the

knowledge that part of the house is permanently off-limits.

Is this acceptable?

If you ask many parents, it’s not. But many are at their wits end figuring out what to do about it.

Fear not. Here are some ways that you can bring order to chaos in your kid’s bedroom.

Give The Child Ownership

Part of making a kid’s bedroom less chaotic is to give the child some ownership over

what’s inside it. If they want a wooden dolls house, then let them have one. If they want to

put their pictures on the wall and organise their toys, then let them do it.

The reason for doing this is simple. If the child believes that they have some control over

their environment, then they are much more likely to keep things tidy. Although you may

not agree with their tastes all the time, being able to design their room connects them to it.

As a result, they will want to make it as good as they can.

Start Seeing The Room Through Their Eyes

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There’s no shame in seeing your kids bedroom from your perspective. After all, seeing

things from your perspective is what you’re used to. But now many experts, like

Maryana Gryshpun from Mammoth projects, thinks that parents should change their tact.

Rather than viewing rooms from their perspective, she argues that they need to start seeing

them from a child’s-eye view. Only then will they be able to appreciate why it’s so hard for

children to keep things tidy.

Her approach is to change the layout of the room to suit a child. Rather than having full-size

chest of drawers, she suggests moving everything a couple of feet down so that it is easily

accessible by a young child.

Create A Theme

This point cannot be stressed enough: make a child’s bedroom thematic. Not only do themes

help to create interest and make a child feel at home, but they also develop a sense of

continuity which can otherwise be sorely lacking.

Themes are also great for children who have a passion for a particular subject. As a parent,

you could create a butterfly-themed room for a child who loves all things insectoid, or a

race car-themed room for a child who likes to watch Formula 1. The possibilities are virtually

endless.

Use Tactile Cues

As adults, we see the world visually. But for children, the world is explored with all the senses,

including the sense of touch. One of the reasons children’s rooms become so chaotic and

messy is because the child themselves feels agitated in some way. Children tend to act out

their emotions. So parents who want to avoid the perpetual mess of their kid’s bedroom can

use warm and soft textures to inspire calmness. Plush pillows, soft rugs, stress balls and

calm lighting will all help.

*Collaborative Post

Camp Bestival 2018 - A One Day Visit, Our Review

Last year, Camp Bestival was one of the highlights of our Summer and I knew that we would end up going again this year. As luck would have it, we were only able to go on the Friday (which is the first proper day) and this coincided with the Andy & The Odd Sock show AND the nice weather!

Unlike last year when I packed wellies, raincoats and black binliners, this time round it was sunglasses, sun lotion and plenty of water! We decided to leave nice and early again incase of festival traffic but we needn't have worried, we arrived on site around 830am and got parked straight away. The carpark was massive and we had a good 10/15 minute walk to the entrance but I'm just glad the ground was dry with no chance of my buggy slipping out of my grasp down the hill like last year!

Our first stop was the Dorset Farmers Market for breakfast because surprise surprise, the kids were hungry already! Randomly, on Elliot's summer holiday bucket list he wanted to have a croissant so he managed to tick this one off, it was a chocolate one too. I've no idea where his need for a croissant came from, we have had them before!

After brekkie we headed up to the Magic Meadow to get our bearings and start exploring. I have to say, it was so nice to be able to wander round freely and not be dragging the buggy through thick mud like last year! We didn't really have a strict itinerary - I know some people do at festivals, and you could go through the timings with a fine tooth comb and plan your whole day around who you wanted to see but ours was very much a laid back plan.

The Magic Meadow has a whole host of things to see such as the Bollywood tent, Caravanserai, The Wall of Death, climbing walls, the Love-Bot robot, the Big Top, trapeze and circus school, HMS Bestival (a life sized ship filled with entertainment), an inflatable church, a giant disco ball and the World's Biggest Bouncy Castle. And trust me, it's massive! Elliot missed out on this last year as the queues were too long so we decided to do this first - and luckily because it was still quite early in the day, he was straight on. He loved it!

World's Biggest Bouncy Castle 

We spent the next hour or so wandering through the Castle Field where we discovered the charity area tucked away in a quiet spot. Lots of great charities with stalls and most of them had something for the children to either win or do which is always a bonus! Elliot managed to win himself a big cup of fruit which was swiftly claimed by Erin! The kids spent ages at the Litter Free Coast stall where they got busy making medals and trying on different accessories for a photo. Elliot looked quite fetching in a blue wig!!

Next up was the area Elliot was most excited for - the lower kids garden. Here you will find the Science tent which plays host to lots of live experiments on stage, the CBeebies tent, facepaint, softplay, funfair rides, Insect Circus and Museum, LOL surprise fun, Family Traveller, lots of tempting food and drink vendors and Make Space - which is every arts&crafters dream! There is literally so much to see here that you could spent your entire day in the Lower Kids Garden and not be bored.

Number one on our list was a Duggee hug in the CBeebies tent. My children are obsessed with Hey Duggee and I've heard the Stick song more times than I care to mention! We queued up and as predicted, Erin freaked out at the sight of Duggee. She's not really a fan of a)things bigger than her and b)people in costumes! Elliot got his Duggee hug though and they both had a bounce to the stick song that Elliot sung....those poor people working in the tent, wonder how many times they heard "Stick!" over the weekend?!!

Erin is not impressed!!

We could have spent longer in the Lower kids garden but our tummies were rumbling so we headed up to the Upper Kids Garden which is where the Feast Collective is located. The Feast Collective is a celebration of exceptional, artisan food producers from across the UK and there is something to tempt every taste!

It does get very busy in the tent and I really struggled to get the buggy round due to the crowds, and it was SO hot. Paul got himself some kind of fish dish but I couldn't decide, too much choice! Me and Elliot decided just to get an ice cream - the heat does funny things to your appetite doesn't it. We also spotted Mary Berry at Zoe's Ghana Kitchen and she was filming - I have to say she looked a lot less sweaty and hot than us!

After a quick play in the circus area and a promise to come back later we headed for Dingly Dell. This is an area that I have heard so much about from fellow bloggers but we totally missed it last year! It feels a world away from the hustle and bustle of the festival but there were so many things for children to do - plus being a woodland, it was very shady which was VERY needed on a hot day like it was.

Elliot was immediately drawn to the Kew Gardens area where he found a totally amazing interactive installation of a giant fungi. It was fascinating! It was musical, it lit up - I can only imagine that it looked even more impressive at night time.

Heading deeper in Dingly Dell we found Lizzie's Way which Camp Bestival describes as a woodland wonderland. Here we found a mud cafe, potions, woodland snaps, puppet show - so many things to fuel little imaginations.

There was even a wooden band area so of course Elliot had to pretend he was in the Odd Socks!

We could have spent longer in Dingly Dell but we had to get to the Big Top for the highlight of the day - Andy and the Odd Socks!

The Big Top was even bigger this year - and probably just as well because Andy drew a massive crowd. We were right down the front (as usual!) and it was a bit mad down there - I took barely any photos as I was holding Erin up on the barrier! It was a great show and the atmosphere was brilliant in the Big Top. We love the Dinosaur Football Legend Megamatch song and it's always entertaining watching the giant footballs bouncing around the crowd, not to mention the T-Rex on stage!

We were really lucky to meet Andy after the show, we were walking past the barrier and Elliot spotted him. There were quite a crowd wanting to say hello but Elliot was so chuffed that Andy came straight to him for a high five :)

After stopping at Shaken Udder for a delicious milkshake, we headed for HMS Bestival. Erin had a nap while I sat and enjoyed the entertainment on stage. The boys decided to try out the games in the Actual Reality Arcade. Think of your favourite childhood arcade games....but life sized! They were in their element and spent a good half an hour battling laser beams and space invaders.

Bollywood....Camp Bestival Style

After a quick mini rave in the Bollywood tent we decided to head back to the Upper Kids Garden to grab something to eat and it was nearly impossible to decide again! Everything smelt and looked so good but in the end I decided on a tandoori chicken wrap with chips, whilst Paul and Elliot got burgers. Obviously the food and drink prices are a bit higher than average but you do kind of expect that when you go to a festival. Most stalls were offering child portions though which was good to see.

It was lovely to have a sit down and watch the world go by for a bit. We actually bumped into some friends so it was nice to sit and have a chat whilst Elliot and his friend Willow showed off their flossing skills!

One of Elliot's favourite bits of last year's Camp Bestival was the circus area so we made a beeline for this after our food. Elliot literally could have spent all day there! He had so much fun walking the tightrope, attempting to ride a unicycle, balancing and bouncing on the giant balls.

After deciding not to run away with the circus, we headed for the Greatest Tent on Earth in the Lower Kid Garden where we caught the tale end of the ZSL Gruesome Nature Live show. Elliot got a bit upset when he realised he'd missed most of it so we hope we get another chance to see this at some point!

The crowds had thinned quite a lot by this point so we were able to take a look at the stalls - Erin was fascinated by the bubbles by Elliot predictably wanted to look at the toy stall! The staff were really helpful and helped him pick out a diabalo which was the right size for his height. He was a bit of a natural with it and had it spinning like he was a pro!

Our time at Camp Bestival was almost over for another year but on the way back to the carpark we stumbled across one of the parades. This is the first time we have caught one of these and what a treat it was. There was a nautical theme and the parade included a giant mermaid, pirate drummers, jellyfish, lobsters - even a shark! It really was a treat for the eyes and a fantastic way to round off our day at Camp Bestival.

It was a slow walk back to the car - the hill seemed a hundred times steeper going up! We had a fab day and I've no doubt we will be back again next year :)