How to Prep Your House for Carpet Layers

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Collaborative Guest Post


So, have you chosen the new type of flooring and hired the professional to install it for you? Well, your task does not end here. There are several other things you can do that will be of tremendous help to the carpet contractor even before they arrive for the job according to Dober Floors.

https://unsplash.com/photos/EScCHx_ZR8Y

These prep steps are really simple to do and do not require any expertise or skills at all. Nonetheless, these are quite necessary if you really want the installation process to end faster.
• Come Up with A Workspace: It is needless to say that when carpet installers arrive, they will need a separate space to work both inside and outside. It will be of great help to them if you could find them a proper space to park their truck. Since they will have to move in and out of the house often, it will also be a good idea to make this simpler for them. The faster they are able to work, the sooner will the installation job complete. When it comes to a workspace inside the house, it is already pre-designated.
• Lay down A Trail: When carpet installers work, they often have to move in and out of the house. Sometimes they may leave behind mud, sweat, dirt, and footprints in your house. These professionals carry heavy equipment behind them, which may easily cause damages to your property if not careful. Thus, it is always better to lay down a trail from the entry of the house to the area where the job is being done. You may use old towels for this or even drop clothes and cardboard. It will be a good idea to adhere these materials. Use a tape to affix the drop clothes or cardboard firmly on the ground to prevent any person from slipping while walking with heavy equipment with them. It does not make any sense if you are trying to save your floor and making it more dangerous for the professionals to walk around.
• Clear Out the Way: Normally, carpets are installed in rooms that witness high traffic, such as your family rooms, bedrooms, and living rooms. There may be several precious and personal items of yours in the area through which the contractors may walk. It will be a good idea to get rid of all valuables that can easily break and are fragile before the actual work starts. Things like costly vases, glassware, and flowerpots should be removed to prevent them from getting damaged as the work commences. When contractors carry heavy equipment with them, it will not be simple for them to keep an eye on these items. There may even be costly items in the rooms where the carpet is supposed to get installed. Things like television sets, wall decorations, furniture, and beds should be removed from the room where you wish to install the new carpet. The emptier the room, the better it will be for the professionals while they work to install the new carpet.

The terrible twos…

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I think the terrible twos have arrived. Frustration of wanting to communicate, but not quite being able to has started to see tantrums being thrown by my youngest child. It feels as though he has gone from baby to toddler in the blink of an eye. Suddenly he is harder to entertain and fiercely independent. The pushchair is now redundant – he must walk everywhere. When he tires he simply sits down on the floor wherever he is – and will shriek when he is gathered up to be carried.

Toddler Climbing..

Today has been a challenge, he has discovered he can climb with ease up the radiator onto the windowsill. The radiator thankfully was cold, but he had scaled it within moments while I vacuumed the rug in the same room. I swung round to see him attempting to stand on the windowsill. Pointing with delight at the hen who was watching him from the garden. Having told him off, and distracted him with a toy car, the next attempt at climbing was over a stair-gate. I have never experienced a toddler attempting to clamber over the stair-gate, and he’s not even age 2 yet…

There’s also the biting, hitting and kicking. N has taken to hitting and kicking everyone when he gets told off. He has also started to try to bite. It’s horrible! I was hoping we might miss this stage! I’ve had to explain to my 8 year old that he can’t hit back, as it reinforces the idea that it’s ok! Currently, when N hits out the children will tell him to stop, and if he does it again then they will walk away from him. This usually results in N crying – but it does stop the hitting out.

Communication

I think, once N starts to talk a little more, the terrible twos may start to be easier to handle. I try to take a breath and talk to him asking him what he needs. One of the tantrums this week, was as he wanted to watch a certain thing on the television again. I spent a few minutes trying to work out what the problem was, then he started to point and say “Gen” ohhh he means “again?” he looked and excitedly replied “Yea” – iPlayer on and problem solved! But sometimes the tantrums are not so easy to resolve – especially when they are over someone elses LEGO car or a school book. But, they’re lessons which he needs to learn – not everything is his. I think though, Christmas may be very interesting!

Ample Foods Meal Replacement Shakes Review

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Collaborative Guest Post

Ample meal was founded in 2015. It might be relatively new. It, however, is one meal replacement that can be trusted to keep you healthy. The reason for this is its three major goals. Ample meal is aimed at reducing spikes in insulin, helping the gut stay healthy, and reducing inflammations.

Although packaged food, Ample meal is a lot different from other packaged foods and meal replacement which makes people feel drained after taking them. It has three versions. They are the original version and two alterations which include a vegan version known as Ample V and the ketogenic version known as Ample k. By constantly taking Ample, you will not only be having access to a good amount of nutrients, but your body will also be able to have enough calories to keep you full for longer than you imagine.

How Nutritious is Ample

If you are looking to buy ample meal replacement, you will have to settle for either 600 calories or 400 calories as these are the two sizes of Ample meals that are available. By purchasing a 600 calorie bottle of Ample, you will be able to get 35 grams of carbohydrates, 35 grams of fat, and 36 grams of protein. Furthermore, each 600 calorie Ample bottle contains 15% of the cholesterol amount that should be consumed daily. Furthermore, a bottle of 600 calorie Ample contains 8% iron, 25% calcium, magnesium, and Vitamin D, and 10% potassium.

It is not enough to know the ingredients that are contained in Ample. It is important that you know what the sources of these ingredients are.

The fat content of Ample is gotten from high oleic sunflower oil, macadamia nut oil, and coconut oil.

Ample’s carbohydrate content is gotten from whole grain oat powder, sweet potato powder, acacia fiber, chicory root fiber, organic psylilium, and tapioca dextrin.

Its protein content is gotten from pea protein, grass-fed whey concentrate, and grass-fed hydrolyzed collagen protein.

 Its micronutrients are from calcium citrate, magnesium citrate, potassium carbonate, and cholecalciferol.

Flavorings include lemon juice powder, dried honey, sea salt, cinnamon, stevia extract, monk fruit extract, and natural flavors. Probiotics include Bacillus coagulants, Lactobacillus rhamnosus, Bifidobacterium infantis, Bifidobacterium lactis, Lactobacillus paracasei, and Lactobacillus acidophilus.

What are the Benefits of Ample?

The ingredients that are used in making Ample are all-natural. However, beyond being natural, there is a lot more to them. They come with some benefits. Although there are many benefits attached to the Ample, one of its most obvious benefits is the fact that it has a good amount of fiber, fat, and protein which implies that you won’t have to feel hungry after taking Ample meal. This benefit is one advantage that Ample meal has over other meal replacements.

Another special benefit of Ample is it can be digested very easily. This is due to the number of probiotic bacteria it contains. The presence of a good amount of probacteria in Ample might not seem like much to the average person. It, however, is a big deal to athletes. This is because according to research, one way to manage stress which is exercise-linked is by eating foods rich in probiotic bacteria. If the gut is healthy, it becomes a lot easier to recover from workouts because there is an improvement in energy storage and a reduction in inflammation.

This is a lot more important than a lot of people are aware of. A healthy gut can go a long way in reducing chronic inflammation which when left unattended to can lead to obesity, depression, and heart diseases

Price of Ample

Ample is nutritious and comes with lots of benefits. It, however, has a major downside. This downside is the amount you have to pay to purchase it. A 600 calorie bottle of Ample can be bought for $7.5. This amount sometimes increases to $8.5. While the price of Ample is not so convenient, there are ways to ensure you pay less than what the average person pays.

If you must pay less for Ample, you can subscribe to a regular shipment. By doing this, you can always get a discount. Although the discount you get might not be huge, it is a lot better than getting no discount at all. Furthermore, if you are not comfortable with the price you have to pay for a 600 calorie bottle, you can always purchase a 400 calorie bottle for between $6-$7.

What does Ample Taste Like?

Ample is not just satisfying and nutritious. It is also tasty. If you are not taking Ample for its nutrient content or for how satisfying it is, one other reason you can take it is for its taste. Although Ample does not contain any artificial sweetener, it is definitely a very sweet meal replacement. It tastes so good because of the fat that it contains.

Halilit Toddler Music Orchestra – Review

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Halilit Toddler Music Orchestra

I was delighted to get to review the Halilit Toddler Music Orchestra. It is suitable for children 12 months plus. Arrives in a neat box, and contains all you need to encourage your child to get performing!

The xylophone proved very popular, the beater is lightweight (so even when accidentally hit on a head while your child is enthusiastically performing it is ok!). It makes a lovely sound, and the beater can be stored safely under the instrument. It is also easily carried around by a child, so marching and playing the xylophone can, and did occur – as did playing laying down!

The xylophone also comes with music so a slightly older child (or a parent!) could play a tune following the colour code. However a younger toddler like mine will still love playing the xylophone and producing twinkling sounds.

The ocean drum is lovely to look at and ideal as a first introduction to the instruments. It can make a variety of sounds – shake it, tap it or use the xylophone beater to hit it to make a noise.

Then there’s the hand held percussion instruments! There’s a rattle roller which makes a great clacking sound. The Bells are lightweight but wonderful to join in with most songs – and perfect for a festive song like – Jingle Bells! The Shaker maracas like the bells and rattle roller are easy to grip, and make a good noise!

Starting to play music with a toddler.

Pick a song you enjoy, it makes it so much easier to encourage them to join in if you are confident! I love Row-Row-Row your boat, mostly as the actions are great fun! As it’s coming up to Christmas we have been playing along to some festive favourites! Older siblings have joined in too – playing their instruments! Yes, we have been having band practice!

No band? Use your phone to play some music to perform with! Don’t worry if music making feels more like noise making – the more you play the more musical the play becomes! N has started to sing along when we start to perform – it’s very sweet!

Why encourage your toddler to play music?

Music is good for so many reasons! It evokes a range of emotions from listener and performer too. Stimulates memories. Music also can help with development of speech via singing nursery rhymes, and motor skills – playing instruments. The effect of playing music from an early age is great, and there’s lots to read on music and childhood development if you’re interested. Most importantly, enjoying music with your child is a great way to bond!

Dental Care for Kids.

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COLLABORATIVE POST

Like most parents, I’m always keen to keep my children fit and healthy. We attend Dr’s appointments, eat healthy and exercise. But looking after children’s teeth is also vitally important. My children have been going to the dentist since they were aged 2. When I have a check up I take them with me so they get used to going and aren’t worried about what will happen.

How to look after your children’s oral health.

I’m sharing this handy guide on how best to care for your children’s teeth. As it’s always nice to have a checklist to remind you what you can do. Remember to always seek advice from your dentist or healthcare professional if you have any worries regarding your child’s health.


Oral Health Checklist created by Natomas Crossing Dental Care

Make brushing teeth fun!

As a child I hated brushing my teeth. So as a parent I’ve always tried to keep tooth brushing fun. My children choose their own brushes, and tooth paste! You can often find character brushes in discount stores which are great for younger children. We have used brushing apps, and watched You Tube videos while brushing teeth as a good way to time how long we are brushing for! Anything to keep the children keen to brush! I’m hoping good habits will last a life time!

Our garden in November

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How it is November I’m not entirely sure. I feel as though I’ve been hurled through the year so far. Now, it is almost next year!

Winter I both love and loathe. I don’t enjoy the shorter days, but winter walks – especially if there’s a little sunshine – makes me smile!

Since I was a small child, I’ve always been told to look at the berries on the trees to see if we will have a cold winter. This holly bush rarely has any berries, but this year it is heavily laden. So if the old wives tale is true, it will be a cold hard winter. I have often thought I ought to keep a diary to see if there is any truth in the tale? Perhaps this year I will.

Winter wildlife

We had to rescue to young hedgehogs. They were out in daylight sunbathing, and after a call to a rescue centre we decided we needed to take them in. The rescue centres closest to us were full, so we had to drive to one a little distance away. The good news is that the centre are hopeful they will be able to be released into our garden in the spring. I spoke to someone at length about whether we should have just fed them, but these were very small hedgehogs, and even being fed it was unlikely they would survive the cold months.

We’ll be feeding the birds again this winter. We feed our birds a mix of nuts, fatballs and seed. Daily checks on food and water for the birds have already begun!

Our Garden in November

I don’t do many jobs in November in the garden. The main one is dealing with the mass of fallen leaves! I am sure we get more every year! The other thing which I am doing is moving more delicate potted plants into sheltered areas of the garden to protect them from the weather. It’s also the time when I plan fence repairs, of which we have a few to attend to!

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Winter Wardrobe – A wardrobe for every season? #ACEWinterRefresh #Ad

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 This post is an entry for the BritMums #ACEWinterRefresh Challenge, sponsored by ACE for Colours Powder. Get help for all kinds of stains with the ACE Stain Helper http://www.acecleanuk.co.uk/ and pick up the range at your nearest Morrison’s store or buy online on Amazon.

I am a great believer in looking after your clothes carefully! If you look after them carefully, they last longer, which is better for your money and the environment too as you buy less.

Growing up I remember my wardrobe being switched over from Summer, to Winter. Away would go the lightweight cardigans and dresses. Out would come jumpers, needlecord and tights! Colours would swap from pastels to mustards and reds. They were warming colours, and thicker fabrics too. It’s something I’ve continued to do as an adult with a family of my own.

The year round items…

Some items of clothing I know I will wear whatever the weather. Hoodies, jeans and colourful t-shirts are my families year round items. These never get packed away! This does mean that they need extra care to keep them looking good! Daily wear means they get marked and the colours dull. So I’ve used ACE to revive the colours and remove stains on my year round clothing!

It’s so simple to use in my washing, just add your normal washing liquid, then when the water starts to fill up your washing machine, add 2 tablespoons of ACE to your washing machine drawer! My coloured clothes have definitely looked a little brighter!

Winter clothes

My winter wardrobe involves quite a lot of wool, I really feel the cold! When I get my wool jumpers out they are ready to wear as I wash and dry them carefully before packing them away in a airtight container. (Cashmere I wrap in acid-free tissue paper, and if I remember I add some dried lavender to the box as I read it discourages moths!) .

I’m always keen to try to refresh my winter wardrobe by adding a few new accessories. If you regularly read my blog you’ll know I love to charity shop! I’ve shared my top tips for charity shopping so do have a read if you’re not sure where to begin! ACE has been a great help with my charity shop purchases. Sometimes you spot something which would be ideal to refresh your wardrobe, but there’s a mark on it – or it just looks really worn. I found a beautiful Boden jacket on the £1 rail of a charity shop. It had a nasty mark on the collar – but otherwise was in perfect condition. So I bought it, washed it, and the stain is much improved – although not completely gone. I should have pre-treated it with ACE, but I was so keen to get to wear it!

I think that it is a great addition to my Winter wardrobe! I’ll wear it with jeans or my jersey dresses and it will really revive my wardrobe. It’s so easy just to slip into dull shades in the winter months, so this vibrant jacket is perfect to keep my wardrobe colourful all winter!

Packing away summer clothes.

I wash and fold summer clothes ready to put away for next summer. Any little repairs get attended to – think lost buttons, or frayed hems. This year I repaired and put away over half term!

Some things I know I won’t wear again so I’ll put those straight into the charity bag. Another great reason to care for your clothes well, is that you can then pass them onto someone else to enjoy – I digress!

Carefully folding my clothes away for summer means that I will feel as though I have a new wardrobe of clothes when I get them out next year! I still add dried lavender to keep the moths at bay, (or atleast I believe it helps!!) but I don’t worry about using tissue paper as most of my summer clothes are either cotton or linen.

Where to store your clothes out of season?

Store your clothes somewhere dry! I store mine in air tight containers in the bottom of my airing cupboard – it works well for me! I do know of people storing clothes in blanket boxes, or up in their loft. As long as your clothes are stored clean (moths love dirt marks on clothes…!) and dry, they can be stored wherever works for you!

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Hatchimals CollEGGtibles Glitter Salon – and Series 6 Royal Snowball 4 pack Review

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Hatchimals have been popular with my daughter for a while! We were delighted to be able to review the new Hatchimals Glitter salon and a 4 pack of the NEW Royal Snowball Hatchimals Collection!

Excitingly, there are two Hatchimals included with the Glitter Salon which are exclusive to that set!

The set comes with a Hatchimal, a Hatchimal egg, accessories, glitter, glue, a brush and the salon.

My daughter couldn’t wait to hatch the Hatchimal egg! Remembering to rub the heart until it changes colour – then it was ready to hatch!

Inside the egg she was overjoyed to discover an elephant hatchimal and two accessories! She couldn’t wait to try it out in the glitter salon!

Hatchimal Glitter Salon

To use the salon, I would suggest covering your play area with something you don’t mind getting a little glittery! We put half a bag of glitter into the dome, then carefully painted a little glue onto the areas we wanted to make glittery! The glue was easy to apply in a bottle which looked like a nail varnish bottle.

Once you’ve added your glue, pop your Hatchimal carefully into the stand and into the dome, ready to be made glittery!

It is then as simple as press the button to make the glitter spin around and make your Hatchimal all glittery!

We left the Hatchimal in the dome for a couple of minutes before lifting it out – just to make sure it was dry. Lifting the dome out may require a bit of adult assistance to avoid glitter spillage! The end result was great and my daughter was delighted! Any excess glitter can be brushed off carefully using the brush included!

We love the Hatchimals Glitter Salon! It is simple and fun to use. No batteries are required – huge bonus! I also love that there is in-built storage for the Hatchimal accessories! I’m forever saying ‘please put the accessories away – they’ll get lost!’ for all toys! Then a few days later we have tears as one has been lost and we spend hours looking for them… But the Hatchimals Glitter Salon has plenty of storage for accessories!

My daughter and I love being able to add the accessories to the Hatchimals to give them a different look!

Season 6 Royal Snowball 4 Pack

I can’t quite believe we are on to season 6 of the Hatchimals! Season 6 feature The Royal Hatch Snowball Collection!

We excitedly opened the eggs, which characters would we discover inside?

Huge excitement as we revealed an ice-skating Hatchimal! Complete with stand so it can stand up!

We found a fuzzy soft one which came with a snowman!! I think this may be my favourite!

Huge squeals as we hatched a glittery monkey with a pink gem! This one is my daughters favourite!

We love the Hatchimals Royal Hatch Snowball Collection and I think another set may well be on my daughters Christmas list! All of the none glittery or fuzzy Hatchimals could be used in the Glitter salon too, so I can see that being used a lot over the next months! Great fun!

Ice Age: Scrat’s Nutty Adventure Game – Review

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Disclaimer: Game Code Received For Review

We were so excited to get to review a copy of Ice Age: Scrat’s Nutty Adventure! It’s available on Nintendo Switch, XBOX One, Playstation 4 and PC, suitable for age 7+. We have reviewed it on XBOX One.

So Scrat – our favourite Ice Age Character – is on an adventure to recover his prized possessions – currently locked away in Scratazon Temple! The only way to get it back is to quest to find four crystal nuts!

Scrat Trying to Catch a Crystal

Game Play

You play the game as Scrat, you control him as he runs and jumps across the map to find the crystals. Along the way there are several Ice-Age creatures to either defeat or avoid in order to get to the crystals! You can attack the creatures from a distance, but beware they can also attack you!

The controls are quite easy, and my 5 year old could master certain bits of the game with no problem. However, she struggled with the problem solving aspects and we did have to point out that the game is aimed at an older child. My 8 year old loved the game, he found it very exciting and enjoyed spotting the other Ice Age characters which pop up in the game. He had no problem with jumping between levels, or working out where to go next!

I think it is a great family game, and we enjoyed taking it in turns to play. It’s a great choice if you’re looking for a family friendly game to play over the Winter months! Watch the trailer here: https://youtu.be/cIkboo7P9FM

Keeping in touch with friends.

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Post in Collaboration with GiffGaff.

When did you last catch up with your friends? If I start to answer that question, my response is often the same. I liked their photo on Instagram, replied to their joke on Facebook, or on a good day… sent them a text asking how they were. But when did I last have a proper catch up with my friends?

Life is busy. We are all busy. Work, family, life! Sometimes it is hard to find time to spend with our favourite people. I find myself very caught up in the world of social media, so I do stay in touch with people – but I don’t see them very often. I’ve got out of the habit of calling people to see if they’re free for a drink. Instead my phone does all my socialising. But what if I used my phone for something greater…

GiffGaff

GiffGaff the peoples mobile phone network, challenged me to host a games night with my friends and family. GiffGaff are run by you, and they are all about keeping you in touch with those closest to you. They offer some great bundles, and I tried out the £15 Goodybag – this gave me 15GB of data, Unlimited texts and Unlimited Minutes. I have to say that, unfortunately the signal in my home was not the best – but I do live in a very poor signal area for all networks. What I did notice, is that when I had signal the 4G worked quicker than my usual network provider – which is a huge bonus! You can get a free sim card, and as always when you change network, you can keep your mobile number if you want too.

So, how to use your mobile to really keep in touch..

Texting your friends

The tragedy is very few of us ever phone each other for a chat. We are so used to just sending a text. I always worry that something is really wrong when they phone me. So, I decided to text my friends their invites to come over. It was quite fun as my phone pinged to tell me whether people were coming over or not! – PING! – (You get the idea!).

Games Night

So, with text invites sent and replies accepting received, there was not much more to do…Well, apart from get ready for the party! As part of our party pack from GiffGaff, we received games from Big Potato!

The thing about a board games night is there is plenty of time to interact. You can’t pick up your phone and mess about on social media while playing a board game – or you lose concentration! (Or get accused of cheating!). Now, we are hugely competitive as a family, so I was a bit worried that we may be a bit ruthless, so I had already planned that we would ensure we mixed up rather than be on the same side… (Remember that Pingpong ball scene in Friends with Monica and Chandler? That could so easily be us…).

Data

Of course, I could have used my data when I had my friends round for lots of reasons! Firstly – Order a takeaway – yes who needs to spend hours cooking when you can click through an order – and save money by applying a discount code too if you can! Send those funny snaps you’ve captured during your games night – not forgetting sharing with your group the video footage of the Victorious Winners of the Giff Gaff Games Night 2019 Trophy… (I would have shared it with you if I was allowed…) Oh, and connect to Alexa so she can entertain us with songs all evening – thank heavens for “Alexa, Play Happy Music!”.

Who WON?!

Well, the games went down really well – we especially liked “Weird Things Humans Search for”. However, be aware that if you play this after a few drinks, it is even more hilarious – some of the answers which were being written down were hysterical!

Unfortunately, I did not win. I personally think I was robbed of victory, and that actually I should have won, I blame my friend Ani for distracting me. Not that I’m bitter. Ok, perhaps just a bit. That trophy was shiny!

Phone a friend…

The funny thing is, after you have had a great night with friends, you feel closer to them. It is suddenly easier to call them and say “Hi, thank you so much for coming over! Shall we do it again sometime soon?”. Having a get together has opened up the doors of communication once more. I think it was a great opportunity to get together and talk! We will definitely be doing it again, maybe next half term?

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