Candyfloss & Dreams

Category: Lifestyle

lifestyle blog posts focusing on home, lifestyle, parenting, pregnancy, family life and home and style. Home decor and working at home, working at home as a self employed freelancer and blogger. Family lifestyle blog posts including family reviews, family products and saving money as a family. Being a more eco friendly family.

  • Finding childcare in your area

    Finding childcare in your area

    AD – This post is in collaboration with childcare.co.uk a site specialising in bringing families and childcare providors together. The site is trusted by over two million users and offers a range of childcare providers from babysitters to nurseries.

    With everything going on right now and routines being a little bit disrupted i am sure there are keyworkers who have been looking for alternative childcare arrangements as their own nurseries or schools may be closed. childcare.co.uk is a site that can help families in all kinds of situations. Usually the site would probably be used when parents need to go back to work after maternity/shared paternity would be coming to a close or when allocated government funding comes into place for three year olds to attend nursery. it was interesting to see that babysitters could also be found, as well as school tutors, through the site too.

    I have two children that have very different needs due to their age gap. evie is a school aged child but currently too young and not mature enough to stay at home for prolonged period of time. If i didn’t work from home this site would make finding a childminder for after school an easy process. I also have an almost 19 month old that currently doesn’t qualify for funding but in an employed position i would need to look for nurseries or childminders that offered all day hours. A childminder that had space for both my children would be my preferred person to look for.

    Evie and Felix picking daisies

    I have had a look around myself as I am hoping we will be moving by the time Felix is due to have some allocated funding for nursery and a site such as childcare.co.uk could be really helpful in finding a place for him in a new area. The site is easy to use by simply inputting what service you are looking for and including a postcode. a quick search for ‘babysitters’ for example informed me there were around 109 registered users on the site and looking at some of the profiles most were child minders, day nannies or those studying for childcare qualifications. You can see the price per hour underneath the photo provided too. I think this will be a really handy tool to use when we do move and need to find childcare places for Felix so that he can start his early years journey and meet some friends.

    During this time there might be a lot of reasons people are looking for childcare providers but i found tutors to be an interesting one and something parents might be considering for older children whilst they are off school but want a bit of extra support to help them with additional learning that parents are finding hard to teach and encourage. For example, one result pulled up an experienced ks2 teacher which would be suitable for evie’s age, and all of the electrionic qualification certificates where there to see too. During this time it might be worth messaging a tutor to see if online or e-learning classes via video message apps would be a service they offer.

    As a mum that works from home i currently am able to provide all the childcare for my children but when evie was young i was working full time and needed a nursery that would allow for long work days so using a site like childcare.co.uk would have really helped here. Even though i plan to continue to working at home as felix grows older i still want him to make friends and learn in a new setting having access to things that we don’t have. I think a childcare.co.uk will help me find a great early years setting for him when the time comes.

  • behind the scenes of my ig photo set ups

    since the start of the year i have been changing my instagram around. i’m now managing three accounts but focusing on growing one right now and so far it’s going pretty well. i’m trying really hard to find a photo theme and setup up that i really like and what aesthetic i think works well. i’m trying to take better photos with my camera and my phone. i’m trying to display flatlays differently. it’s been fun!

    i try to set up and take all of my photos in one weekend for the following month which can be really exhausting and very time consuming. i then go on and schedule them through the facebook creator tool. i have a business account so i’m currently playing around with peak posting times to see how they make a difference to my my engagement and i’m def seeing some changes.

    what photo props do i have?

    currently i have two vinyl backdrops from capture by lucy. they’re seconds (not that i can tell the difference) that i picked up from blogon in september last year. i have a pink and a brown one. i want to move to cooler, darker photos and i think the brown copper one does this better. i might look to get another in the future that might offer a bit of contrast but still remain in the same theme.

    i’ve also got a little selection of artificial flowers, a strip of black lace, candles, paperclips, coasters, gems and frames. i’m still playing about with these and finding what i like to photograph.

    mostly, i’m taking pictures of books and book boxes. thanks to book boxes i’ve got more useful items as well as props to photograph, and i’m getting new bookish merchandise which fits some of the fandoms. when it comes to choosing the book to photograph. i know to some a book photo might not be their type of thing to follow but oh my gosh there is a big and wondeful community that are totally bookish and i love it.

    choosing what to photograph

    currently i’m looking for photo challenges to join in with. this helps me find book specific hashtags that people are joining in with. it also helps to give me some inspiration and ideas of what to post. sometimes i’m not very familiar with the abbreviations or what the prompts mean. the book boxes i get also have regular photo challenges and prompts so i like to join in with those to show off my unboxings as well as being in with a chance to win a free box. i have a lot of books and new ones coming in from book boxes so i can change the theme. i’ve also found small businesses that do bookish merchandise such as madame alchemie and ash and quill candles which have lovely products which can help theme photos.

    how my photos have changed

    i cant offer any advice as i’m no photographer but im really pleased with how my photos have changed from the start of the year. as you can see below the first few changes took a bit of time to come through. there was all sorts of filters, no consistency at all and no real theme or aesthetic

    i then tried to change to creating a theme throughout march but i wasn’t particularly happy with it in the end. it didn’t really feel like the sort of theme i could do forever. but i felt i did a better job with the lighting and enjoyed trying to do different things with this one.

    my last few pictures have been quite different. i took the time to set up a corner in my living room to create a sort of backdrop and keep the theme consistent. however i think i used the wrong table because there wasnt a lot of space which really limited how much i could move about.

    what i do like about this one is the darker photo and the pops of colour which is how i’d like to move forward with the types of photos i take. they’re not perfect but they’re becoming better and i’m having a bit of fun with the creative side of this. i’m following many bookish accounts who take beautiful pictures that brighten up my feed. they’re fantastic inspiration.

    i think for may i want to stick with setting up a specific area, keeping the darker background and then sticking to one colour. i might leave the photo challenges for this unless they fit the theme rather than trying to theme my photos around the prompts. hopefully over the next few months something will develop from this and i’ll have a theme i’ll be happy with.

  • how we are doing easter this year

    how we are doing easter this year

    i’m not religious. easter has always just been about chocolate eggs and the shops being closed on easter sunday. actually, shops were pretty much closed on the friday and monday too when i was younger, much the same as they are this year so that’s a blast from the past i didn’t expect in 2020 but with vastly different reasons. anyway.

    i don’t even do easter egg hunts. i don’t stick to giving easter eggs on the sunday. i just try and limit them eating them all in one day. the kids get a lovely selection of easter eggs from family and my mum usually gets them an outfit too. this year we are doing a bit of an easter egg hunt on the sunday because things are weird right now and also maybe felix will find it fun. he’s 18 months though so he will probably just eat any eggs he finds rather than looking for more.

    i do know that a lot of people are missing out on time with families this long weekend, or even cancelled trips and holidays. which is really crappy. i totally get it. it sucks. i really hope when this is over you can make up for all the lost time spent with loved ones and trips and nice things to look forward to.

    so our plans for easter will be much the same as they have been every weekend for the past month or so now. staying home, and eating a lot of chocolate, but this time, in the shape of eggs. i’m going to bake a cake and we’re going to attempt some sort of nice dinner on sunday. we will make the most of a bit of sunshine and have a walk together as a family. we’ll have a couple of beers or some wine and watch more of american horror story. i’m hopeful that my pre-ordered copy of the final fantasy 7 remake will turn up tomorrow and then my time will be taken up with that too.

    i’ll video chat my family. i’ll film some of the easter egg hunt and upload it to facebook so family can see what the kids are up to. if i had a garden i’d probably have some beers and a bbq and an easter egg hunt outside but i don’t so i can’t. maybe i’ll play the sims, create my ideal home and let them celebrate with a bbq.

    whatever this weekend is going to do for you, i hope you enjoy the time together. have the easter eggs, eat them all. use leftover chocolate eggs to make rice krispy cakes. play video games. watch films. it’s probably the hobbit or harry potter on itv (it usually is) or something. have a good weekend. cuddle up together. breathe. we’ll get through this.

  • small things that are keeping me going right now

    we are all going through some weird feelings and emotions right now. i thought i would share a few of the smaller things that are keeping me going right now. as much as it’s good being with loved ones it’s hard and when you’re trying to semi-educate and entertain a toddler and continue working and have an unwell partner at home who has been laid off and doesn’t know when he’s going to next get paid any money – well, these become testing and trying times for all of us.

    many people have said they have no self care in place right now or i am seeing their partners aren’t helping at home or getting frustrated with the kids when they’re trying to work. it’s really rubbish and i imagine there are a lot of relationships and marriages feeling the strain right now. please support each other, continue to communicate and let the other half know what you’re struggling with. it is hard finding a schedule that suits everyone, and encouraging everyone to get involved. honestly, the mental load has never felt quite so strong right now. just the other day adam asked me where a sweet treat for felix was, whilst he was in the kitchen and i was annoyed because it’s apparently my responsibility to tell him rather than him looking for something properly. it seems trivial but these sort of things are going to feel so much worse with the current situation being what it is.

    we are all feeling the tension, stress and anxiety and so i encourage you to try and practise some form of self care if and when you can. use your time to have a walk alone, if you can, or a run, a jog. have a bath, read a few chapters of a book, lock yourself a way for 15 minutes and sob into a pillow. cook something, or don’t. have a nap. just try and fins something each day that you’re doing that makes you feel better.

    so anyway more to the point here are a few things i am trying to do just to help

    cooking a fresh meal with our hello fresh/gousto boxes – i know these are hard to get hold of right now and not everyone can get one but these have been so helpful to us. we’ve got fresh ingredients, it limits us going to the store, it’s contactless delivery with the courier and gives us a portion or two of veg. the actual action of preparing and cooking a meal properly is something i’ve missed and lacked on over recent years. we are all trying new foods, some have been hit or miss, but it’s something that we are enjoying.

    facetiming and checking in with family. we have a couple of whatsapp groups with friends and family, we have facetime and whatsapp video calling. seeing people on camera really helps give a bit of normality to everyone that we can’t spend time with right now.

    playing video games. it’s something we’ve always done and now we have playstation now we can revisit a few old games we’ve missed or haven’t tried yet. it’s a bit of actionable escapism. it stops us going out. there are multiplayer options too so we can all get involved. we got felix his own toy controller so he joins in too.

    reading books. this is very much part of my self care, i have a kindle and a fully stocked to be read shelf which i’m getting through nicely. i’ve also got some audiobooks and some fun playlists to listen to whilst cooking or tidying up. having a good sing a long to some fun favourites is helping keep our spirits up.

    a note on book boxes and deliveries. many of the things i’ve ordered or i’m expecting to deliver this month have been on order since the start of march when things were still hard to get hold of with all the delays going on. they’re now coming through with my subscriptions. i have thought about pausing some of these but also it’s that little bit of normality that is keeping me going. it’s very tough because the supply and demand keeps people in work – but the supply was interupted, and it’s also a smaller business, rather than a chain shop. it’s hard because it’s like helping out smaller businesses in these times is keeping businesses afloat but on the other hand it’s making people work, and then again it’s also keeping couriers, often on zero hour contracts or no sick pay, in work and earning for their families. a bit of a snowball affect really.

    we will also be getting easter eggs for the kids and doing a small easter egg hunt in the flat. we never have before, well, we got easter eggs, but not a hunt, and it will be alongside an essential shop, because i think it’s really important to give kids some normality too. older ones will know what easter is about but not quite get why they can’t have an easter egg even though they are still in the shops.

  • a trying start to 2020

    a trying start to 2020

    each time i head outside for a walk with my family (whilst we are still allowed outside for exercise – please don’t ruin it for us, the ones that have no access to outside spaces or the luxury of a garden) i am overcome with sadness. last week was my first trip into a shop in a while as we had been isolating with symptoms. all recovered and feeling better i went to get some a few bits of food and saw all the seperation markings on the floor both outside and inside the shop to maintain people stay two metres a part.

    it is incredibly surreal having to dodge the few people allowed inside a supermarket at one time. i witnessed people being told to seperate if they were suspected of shopping together flouting the one adult per household rule. i have seen the signs on shop doors saying closed until further notice and it widens it up with just how many people are being affected by this.

    i have friends and family members being advised to stay home and in isolation for 12 weeks who i can still connect with online and through video calling. friends who can thankfully work at home and those that have been laid off or furloughed from their job. on my walks i have seen people maintaining distancing but also giving a smile and a hello as they walk their dog.

    i have heard stories on how this is hard and how i should be grateful for what i have because i’m one of the lucky ones. that’s true, i am. i am fortunate enough to be with my partner and kids in a social housing home without the threat of being evicted and the safety net of some student finance at the start of may to help us pay our rent and bills until the furlough scheme comes in. i should be able to claim some money from the taxable self employed grant in june. we’re not keyworkers so we don’t have to work right now.

    there are of course others that are much better off than us. those that are working from home on full pay, those with a garden and access to outside spaces on their property. those that have savings to cover their bills for the time being. anyone that has a delivery saver spot and can get a weekly online shop. those without kids that are working from home but don’t have to also figure out how to homeschool and explain over and over why they can’t see family or friends or touch people or run or climb or do anything that could involve a trip to a & e because we can’t put pressure on the stretched nhs like that. those that have the privledge and virtue signalling to tell us ‘it could be worse’.

    of course i know that it could be worse but it doesn’t mean it’s not hard. it’s all relative isn’t it? someone else’s hard doesn’t invalidate how hard it is for me and my family. i of course feel sorry for people that fall through the gaps and have much more restriction than i do, of course i do. i am overwhelmed with sadness reading how many people have died due to this disease today. i am angered by the amount of conspiracy theories going around. i am frustrated at the lack of work available right now. i am feeling just about everything too.

    these are trying times for us all, times we didn’t expect to have to deal with in 2020. a part of history we don’t want to be part of but will be. a time when we are likely to lose loved ones or see the grief of others. regardless of what happens we are going to feel the effects of this for a long, long time.