Mills and Boon Releases The Art of Romance | Over 40 Book Covers for Adults to Colour In

Mills and Boon is celebrating over 100 years of its iconic books and of course that includes their covers.

In celebration they have released an adult colouring book ‘The Art of Romance’ which I have been lucky enough to receive last week to review.

I couldn't help but notice that the book will be officially  released on 5th May 2016 which is my Mum's birthday so after completing the below page - rather brightly - to start her off I have actually today posted the colouring book to my Mum. Why?!?!? Well because it was through her copies of Mills and Boon that I got introduced to the iconic books. Those and Jackie Collins. Two, because my Mum no longer works after decades of being a career woman with long hours and a long commute. She retired to Ireland in my final year of University and one of her main vices now, other than the fags, is reading. She reads a couple of books a week and is a regular at her local library. I wanted to find her a new hobby to have alongside her reading and this opportunity fell into my lap. I hope she takes to it. Oh and that brings me onto a 3rd reason to send it to her. It was she, my Mum who taught ME to colour in when I was little, so it's now come full circle, such is the circle of life and now I am giving her a nudge. Just posting the book and a birthday card cost me £6.60 so I didn't put in a pack of felt tip pens but she will need them.

I was using Aaron's crayons and felt tips to do the above, hence the use of mainly primary colours, but if you had one of those huge sets with various SHADES of various colours wow you could do a mighty job altogether. Both at the front and the back of the colouring book they give you examples of how they could be coloured in:

As you can see from the covers on the right and the example on the left, below (printed in the back of the colouring book) the colours are quite muted which is why I thought it would be fun to do my bright version.

I can't wait to see which angle my Mum goes for - bright or muted. She can't draw for toffee (my Auntie Berniece taught me that) but *is* very good with colours and home interiors, so I think this book will put her in touch with her creative side, which is so important for us to foster as humans. I remember my Mum's colouring in being fabulous when I was little. I hope this book gets her a bit nostalgic. I hope she thinks it's a touching present.

I was asking myself, is sending this to her the right thing (I posted it today as her birthday is 5th May, the same day the colouring book is released) and I asked for a sign. Turned the page and boom! Look below

My Mum was born in the Marian year and her name is unusually spelled Marion. Plus the book will get there by airmail and I always fly there via Ryanair!

Yes, she will most certainly LOVE this colouring in book. Being in the West of Ireland in the countryside she may not know about the recent trend for adult colouring in but I will bring her up to speed. She LOVES knowing something is trendy.

Over the course of more than 100 years Mills and Boon has  documented the history of romance, evolution of fashion and social change from the 1900s to the present day. The book: The Art of Romance features 47 cover illustrations to colour in, alongside year-by- year facts, quotes and memories to give social history and context.

The Art of Romance celebrates over 100 years of the publisher’s most iconic covers, taking the reader back to key moments in history from the austere war years, the birth of a royal baby, the swinging sixties and even the rise of the rom-com in the noughties.

Perfect for fans of art, fashion and vintage culture, The Art of Romance charts the history of romance in the 20th Century, featuring quotes, facts and snippets of information about what was happening in the world when each story and associated cover were created.

The Art of Romance launches as the wave of adult colouring books continues to sweep the UK. The trend shows no signs of slowing down with experts 1 hailing colouring as a great way to exercise mindfulness and distress. Lisa Milton, Harlequin Executive Publisher, elaborates: “Colouring is a wonderful way to relax and be creative; there’s something very nostalgic and comforting about it. The Art of Romance takes you on a fantastic journey back in time, remembering what romance was like when your grandparents met or even when you had your first kiss! With Mills & Boon’s beautiful artwork as inspiration, it is a wonderful way to unwind.”

She continues: “As a heritage brand, with our 108 year archive, we were spoiled for choice for covers to include within the book. In bringing together the vintage covers, snippets of social history and utterly fabulous fashions across the decades, I can’t think of a better way to tell the story of Mills and Boon than through The Art of Romance.”

The Art of Romance will be available to buy from www.millsandboon.co.uk and in all good bookshops from

May 5th 2016.

Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy for this review and will have a further one available for a giveaway. The giveaway will be added to this post tomorrow as we draw closer to the excitement of the book being released! 

WIN A COPY OF THE BOOK HERE:

To enter you  must do all three things: follow @NewMumOnline and @MillsandBoon on Twitter and send a  tweet. All three entry options are mandatory and all must be completed via the following Rafflecopter widget:

a Rafflecopter giveaway
 

More competitions ending in May here, over at Super Lucky Di's blog linky for comps: 

More competitions at ThePrizeFinder - See more at: http://www.theprizefinder.com/content/mills-and-boon-adult-colouring-book-40-covers-colour#sthash.Ob3fPWeM.dpuf

Eating Out With a Newborn Baby and a Five Year Old

Every year at Valentine's social media comes alive with the protests from parents that they are not going out for a meal because "we are parents now". Either Valentine's goes unnoticed or it's just a card and roses and no fine dining. I would have fallen into this camp too, but thankfully with the husband always remembering the roses and card.

This year however, we've managed a meal despite having a newborn. But rather than being for Valentine's it was for my birthday, but it proves it CAN be done. You just have to pick a venue that has family friendly food, with a family friendly atmosphere (family friendly prices helps too of course).

From before we left, I had a vision of lil lady asleep in her pram, next to the table with me eating in comfort. So, I asked hubby that we bring the pram in the car. We hadn't done so yet and we were amazed by how much room it takes up in the boot. The carrycot is large as is the chassis. But we weren't going anywhere that required luggage so the pram had the boot to itself.

Turned out, that even though the meal coincided with the time of day that she sleeps the most, she did grizzle a little and I held her as much as she slept. Probably because whilst there I bottle rather than breastfed her. But also because she kept looking at the ceiling fascinated by the spotlights. I enjoyed the cuddles though and the opportunity to show off my newborn. The neighbouring table simply adored her.

Given I took a bottle for her, this was what our round of drinks looked like LOL

Anyway, below is how cute her buggy looked next to our table, despite the hubby's reluctance to clutter up the place with it (well there was no way I was having her spend that length of time in a car seat; I wanted her to be as comfortable as she'd be at home and due to the time constraints on car seats we'd have had to rush our meal). Beefeater didn't mind in the least that we brought a buggy and our meal was booked for 1800 so we were there at a family time. We loved the booth that we got which could have easily dined 8 people.

Her sleepsuit which includes its very own slippers is simply adorable.

Anyway, we missed parent's evening the week she was born, so the same day as Beefeater we got a one-to-one with Aaron's teacher at 15:30. It went very very well, so well in fact that Aaron didn't want to go home. The only thing that had him SKIPPING out of school was when I mentioned that after an hour at home, we'd be going out again, to Beefeater. He's been before and loves it. 

He was the first to choose his food from the menu. 

Same as last time, he ordered spaghetti bolognese and garlic bread, although this time I also ordered him a corn on the cob which he couldn't eat quick enough. Aaron's a good eater and it's a pleasure to eat out with him.

1 slice of garlic bread didn't quite cut it though so he had to order 2 more. Also, he only eats the bolognese whilst he has "getty" left and the spaghetti finished with lots of bolognese left over. We asked for more spaghetti but as they come as a pack, together, it could not be done.

Given that I am recovering from pregnancy, sleep deprivation and a C section, I decided to have the Seabass as a great nutritious option. I adore the pack that it is baked in as it oozes flavour once open - utterly delicious.

Daddy had a sharing grill platter, which when photographed looks small, but I know it packs a punch by the length of time it takes him to eat it. It also comes with unlimited chips, so at the point in the meal when they say "is everything okay?" that's when you say "more chips please" and we got enough, so that Aaron and I could steal a good few!

Despite my not getting a starter, the seabass did fill me up. I had ordered two sides though to share with the hubby: a delicious side salad and a portion of onion rings. So full was I, I could not face dessert so I had an indulgent Hot Chocolate which was the most enormous thing I have ever seen. It really hit the spot. I wasn't (with sleep deprivation) even going to consider getting my usual after dinner coffee so the hot chocolate hit the dessert AND hot drinks spot, two for the price of one.

Hubby got sticky toffee pudding which he thoroughly enjoyed and Aaron devoured cookies and icecream. He asked me what the spots were (vanilla) but only after it was all gone. So lovely, as when younger, those very same spots would have had him sending the icecream back.

If you would like to see how the cost of our meal broke down, then here is our receipt. Great value! As you can see, in choosing the Capri Sun, Aaron was getting a drink not included in his meal. Plus with me getting the bottled lemonade I missed out on the unlimited refills you get with fizzy drinks, but I was only just out of hospital and fancied it, plus it was MY birthday celebration :-)

I think for a very long time these will be my favourite photos. Thanks Beefeater for a fabulous family night:

You don't have to take my word for it that Aaron loves to eat there, I think the photo below says it all. Who needs a baby sitter when you're eating in a place the whole family can enjoy.

Our meal was complimentary for the purposes of this review. I remain unbiased and honest and have not been told what to say. I would HIGHLY recommend this establishment as the perfect place to feed your family :-)

We dined in the Emersons Green Beefeater where both the food and the service were exceptional. The restaurant was also adequately staffed, lit and was spotless. Beautifully laid out too for the comfort of its patrons.

Our Christmas Tradition and Portable North Pole

We're starting to build up some Christmas traditions and PNP, also known as Portable North Pole is becoming a firm favourite.

Now everyone will tell you that the free PNP video is GREAT and if PNP is new to both you and your child, then it is, it truly is. But 2 years ago, I got the chance to review the paid option and now that's set the standard.

I participated in the PNP Twitter party a couple of weeks ago and on there everyone was raving about the PNP Gold Pass which is only £9.99. It gets you unlimited Premium videos and unlimited calls (from Santa himself). I'm assured by other bloggers that the phonecalls are great as a nudge and reminder for good behaviour from the man in red. We will try them in the next couple of days.

I finally personalised a premium video last night and was not disappointed. I decided to start with the Movie Star one. So far we have watched the free movie and now this paid for option, which Aaron just adored. SO much more personal. It's similar to the one we reviewed 2 years ago, but as he is only 5 now, he did not remember.

These are the things you get to personalise, which is way more extensive than on the free option:

Name

Gender

Age

A photograph of your choice of your child

The child's daily life: I chose school

Effort asked of your child this year: I chose listen to Mummy

So tell Santa the child has been: I chose "nice"

Gift category: I chose toy

Upload a picture of the gift: I chose his tablet

The child lives: UK

Add a picture of the child at home: added a photograph of him dressing the Christmas tree.

Add an album picture: I chose a pic of our recent trip to see The Snowman at the theatre.

Letter to Santa: lucky I DO have a photo of this :-) But there are lots of other things to choose from in this drop down box.

You get to choose FOUR names to appear on the spines of books next to your child's in Santa's library. Seeing these really touched Aaron.

Your relationship with the child: Mother

You even get to download a HD quality video which is lovely to have in the family archives for the future. When I asked Aaron what his favourite bit was, he had to think for a while as the video is FIVE MINUTES long, but hands down, his favourite part was seeing a book with his name on, in the library, alongside people he knew.

Portable North Pole is now in its EIGHTH year and has millions of fans round the world; available in English, French and Spanish.

I've now looked to see what other videos we can do. There are 6 in total, THREE of which are new. So we really ought to try the new ones. Will get personalising those tonight. There is EVEN a Christmas Eve one which is 2 minutes long. The other 5 videos are all a massive FIVE MINUTES long. The Christmas Eve one sounds marvellous:

There's so much excitement in the village as Santa, the elves and the reindeer attend to all the important, last minute details before the Grand Gift Delivery!

Visit an Elf House sounds lovely too. Edit: I have personalised it tonight ready to show Aaron tomorrow. He is going to LOVE it as he keeps asking whether Santa or an Elf keeps an eye on his behaviour in the run up to Xmas day and THIS video answers that question perfectly. Oh my God I cannot wait to show it to him!!!!

Have you ever wondered how Santa can deliver so many presents in one night? Or what he does after Christmas?

Here’s your chance to find out! 

Dec 23rd at 2:00 PM EST / 7PM UK, join @PNPSanta for a once in a lifetime opportunity to #AskSantaAnything on Twitter! 

Get in the Christmas spirit by tweeting directly with Santa - bring the little ones for a truly magical experience. Who knows, you may even win some prizes!

Disclosure: my Gold Pass was free in exchange for an honest review, but we are TRUE PNP fans!

Beefeater Emersons Green Review - Eating Out With a Five Year Old on a Busy Saturday Night

We recently got the chance to review Beefeater Emersons Green. It completely surpassed my expectations in terms of location, restaurant, seating, service, setting and food. I didn't expect to be blown away but I was. If fact all 3 of us were.

On arrival

On departure

As with several of these type of restaurants it was attached to a Premier Inn. The only time you notice that is whilst you're parking, or if you are there as a guest for breakfast. Premier Inn is our hotel of choice, so I am quite familiar with the deal. In fact we stayed in Birmingham Premier Inn recently so as to go to Birmingham Sea Life and Thomas Land and that had a Beefeater too. That time though, we had breakfast not dinner and actually it was just as nice as this one, although it did have an even better outdoor seating area, which with the current weather we didn't miss.

Upon arrival

We were immediately warmly greeted by the Manager himself who was manning the bookings desk, and did for the whole evening that we were there. He took us towards the stairs, which I was glad of as I expected it to be less crowded up there. It was, but to be honest with it being Bank Holiday weekend (the last of the year) and a Saturday, it was busy throughout and remained so till we left (we were there well over 3 hours). I was very pleasantly surprised when he took us to our table as it was surrounded by a feature stone wall to our rear, the stairs on one side and a balcony of what was in fact a mezzanine floor which means we overlooked downstairs and the kitchen. I loved the privacy this end table gave us. Meaning I wouldn't be worried if Aaron misbehaved slightly, or if I took too many photos of food - true blogger style. To have an adjacent table looking at me quizzicly every time I snapped would have been awkward. When hubby came in from parking the car he LOVED our  table, and it confirmed it was the right seat for us all. Aaron "needed" the loo about 4 times that evening as he adored going up and down the stairs bless him. I'm sure after a few hours on his feet the Manager isn't nearly as thrilled about those stairs.

The view from our table - that bright white light downstairs is the kitchen area.

Our waiter

I love waiters who not only have a sense of humour but who also pride themselves on service. Having been in retail for 24 years, superb service is something I live and die by and our waiter even managed to impress me. He came when hubby was parking and then came when Aaron and I were in the loo. When he FINALLY caught the whole family together he cracked a joke about it, and any ice that may have remained was firmly broken. Each time he came to the table he crouched down, so as to be at eye-level - a really nice touch that did not go unappreciated.

Drinks

As is the way when ordering in a restaurant he first wanted our order for drinks, but a few things are significant here

1) we ordered our mains too as by now we knew what we wanted and we didn't want to make the poor guy have to come to our table yet again.

2) we didn't order starters as we knew our mains would fill us and besides I was having a huge milkshake and wanted room for it.

3) they do unlimited refills for fizzy drinks which is always a winner.

The first mistake

When Daddy ordered his main meal he was asked if he wanted chunky chips or fries and asked for chunky. About 10 minutes after ordering, TWO bowls of chips arrived. I said to the husband "they can't be ours, as yours comes with chips but mine does not and I didn't order Aaron any" but hubby was adamant they were ours so he and Aaron dived in. I ended up joining them. Turned out this was THE best mistake that EVER happened as it meant we did not even notice in the slightest that our food was delayed (remember we didn't order starters).

Technical difficulties

Our waiter came, looking a little solemn, but perked up when he saw the chips and explained the mistake. He was very relieved and happy we were enjoying them. We were relieved and happy that he wasn't mad at us for eating them, so didn't even notice the gravitas as he embarked on his tale of sorrow. He had enquired with the kitchen about the whereabouts of our order (even though we weren't even chasing it - see that's proof of his efficiency) and then discovered that our order had not printed in the kitchen, due to till roll running out. Normally it would defer to another till but hadn't done. I THINK he then said our food would therefore be 90 instead of 45 minutes. We'd been knee deep in a Mr.Men book that both Daddy and Aaron were LOVING and I don't wear a watch, so we had no clue that we'd already been waiting a while. I think our waiter went away confused that we were not stamping our feet, but we were having a lovely evening and that supposed bad news wasn't going to spoil it. Plus, we appreciated being given a status update, without having to chase for one. It's amazing how being kept informed can take the thunder out of any storm.

The Manager came to also address said technical difficulties and he walked away just as confused as the smiles did not leave our faces. When I get chance to update my video footage from the night you'll hear Daddy say,  that out of all the children's books we've had at restaurants this Beefeater Mr.Men one was by far and the best. We did a page "spot the 12 differences", we did a maze and we even did a drawing of Mr Clever which we coloured in:

Our food

Daddy ordered Beefeater Mixed Grill £15.99 (without the upgrade), I ordered Oven-Baked Seabass £14.99 (which is NEW on the menu) and Aaron ordered Spaghetti Bolognese.

In a parcel

Open the parcel and potatoes, courgettes and perfect fish pour out!

Aaron's order was from the children's menu so he got crunchy vegetables and his main and garlic bread and pudding. A really good deal for £5.99. He did top it up though by having some of those aforementioned chunky chips AND stealing one of Daddy's sausages, off Daddy's plate when he was temporarily slowing down to let his food settle - you snooze you lose Daddy. I would like to whisper in Beefeater's ear though that I think cucumber would be better than celery as celery strikes me as being a bit too stringy and therefore a choke hazard for very little ones. Cucumber would have gone down a storm though. He did wolf down the carrots, which pleased me no end. Actually, in the kid's menu they have photos of everything, and I think I spy cucumber NOT celery in the featured photo.

Pudding
We all loved our desserts. Not satisfied with losing myself at the bottom of a milkshake I then decided to find my way to the bottom of a big Eton Mess Sundae. Aaron after he ordered his, said he was being adventurous bless him. He didn't like the chocolate sauce but he loved the brownies and the icecream. Incidentally the icecream had Vanilla "dots" in which normally Aaron would class as the equivalent of spots. But he must finally be growing up as he dived in, and simply asked me what they were and happily accepted my answer (which never ever would have happened once upon a time). Daddy didn't talk much whilst he was in heaven devouring his dessert. I should have tasted it but I was too busy enjoying my own.

The apology

We didn't even have to ask for recompense for our delayed food, as the offer was made while our smiles were still intact. I got a complimentary drink, so I topped up my milkshake (which hadn't been at all too filling after all) with a Fentiman's Rose Lemonade which was exquisite. I really wanted something unusual to make me feel less sulky about my pregnant, non-alcohol drinking self. It was Saturday night after all. But I needn't be jealous of Daddy drinking as he got a mineral water, to counteract all of the Diet Pepsi he was drinking. Along with that, the desserts were gratis, which given we had a Leisure Voucher was a real treat. We'll definitely be back and we were so thrilled with the service we received we gave our waiter a £6 tip.

What we loved

All 3 of us without hesitation would say we loved the layout of the restaurant and the ambiance. The service was superb and non intrusive. Each visit to our table was welcomed, warm and genuine.

We loved our main meals, our desserts, the drinks and the Mr Men activity book. Oh and it must be said that the Mushroom Sauce that came with Daddy's grill was to die for! 

Oh and the toilets were immaculate, modern and smelled nice too. Great that they maintained the same high standards there, so that EVERYTHING formed the perfect setting.

I loved that Aaron's meal had a piece of Mr Men paper on the bottom of the plate - really nice touch.

Then, to top it all off, the waiter took Aaron to choose "a toy" and they came back with 4. Three girls and a boy. Little Miss Sunshine, Little Miss Naughty, Little Miss Princess and Mr Bump.

It was easy to keep Aaron occupied despite us being there for hours, as we were all having such a good time.

My dessert was an Eton Mess Mixed Berry Sundae, which I somehow got to the bottom of despite my two filling drinks, my filling main and my filling milkshake. It's decades since I have had a dessert like  that and it was quite literally NAUGHTY BUT NICE ;-)

What I would change

1. The crunchy veg for kids should be cucumber not celery.
2. Would be WONDERFUL to have a salad bar, but Beefeater is it too much to ask, when everything else is so perfect already?
3. Aaron guzzled his Spag Bol but confided in me "it wasn't yummy but I ate all of it". Trust me, if it wasn't, he wouldn't have touched it, so clearly it was, but he must have had better. He is a bit of a Spag Bol connoisseur.
4. Daddy's got a huge appetite and when I saw his grill I thought it would not satisfy him, yet it did. Because where you see one bit of meat, there is three in a concealed pile. So I think the presentation of that needs to be worked on, not just to aid my photography but also so that it is impressive when the waiter delivers it. Hey Chef/Kitchen: don't stack the meat! In my pic above you can see that the onion rings are too greasy. Well I had a separate side order of those too and I had to send them back and I am an onion ring lover ordinarily.

I may add to this review later but for now I have to hit the school run.

I just wanted to come back to say, I hate being under pressure to whizz from sitting down, to ordering, to drinks, to starters, to mains, to dessert to coffee, then being shown the bill and feeling the pressure to leave, so that the next family can have your table. Given that it was Saturday and bank holiday I was fully aware that may happen. I actually LOVED that we did everything at a slower pace. Yes we had a late night but we all came home in such a lovely mood, with warm full tummies. Relaxed vibe and wonderful evening. Thank you Beefeater.

Disclosure: We were given a voucher for our meal in exchange for an honest review. All photos, opinions and words are my own.

I have shared the full album of pics on my G+ page. Apologies for the photos but they are taken on my phone as my camera is broken.

The Journey Through Wales and a Tour Of Bluestone

I am yet to collect and gather my thoughts for my review of Bluestone Wales National Park Resort, but I have spent about 88 hours editing and uploading this. Would love your feedback.

It's our journey alongwith a tour of the house/lodge that we stayed in.

Bye for now, lots to do before the school run,

Liska xxx 

Westfield Stratford City Santa Review

As regular readers will know over a week ago we went to see Santa at Westfield Stratford City. It was definitely by far the BEST Santa experience I have had. You don't have to take my word for it. Look at the kids - my son and my two nieces:

What made it special. Well:

• The cars that you can pay to hire, to push your tot around in. Aaron has loved these for years, but there were many tears when he grew out of the red one, but they've now introduced a higher height limit and black cars. HE WAS THRILLED. Very easy to whizz short legs around a large shopping centre when you can push them in here. He's been out of a buggy for two years, but LOVES THIS.
• The shopping centre is so festive and the team on the concierge desk are FABULOUS. Finally they have a team equal to the word "concierge". 
• As you will see if you've watched my video above, the experience is immersive, as Chloe commented on You Tube.
• The personalised 4D movie you watch in a theatre is INCREDIBLY touching. The Elf shines a light on her face and narrates it. My nieces were 6 and 10, my son 4, and all three equally LOVED it.
• The elves on duty all remain in character and totally add value to the experience which literally couldn't be better.
• Santa is warm and genuine.
• The room you meet him in is so traditional and realistic.
• My heart wrenched at seeing the train circling above our heads - it just caught me as incredibly moving and judging by the video, my boy has the same taste as me.
• The gifts are split into ages AND all individually wrapped (neither of which was the case at Harrods where we'd been only the day before) and this was fabulous as it means all three children got something different. The unwrapping is all part of it isn't it.
• The photo packages are GREAT - we got a bauble with our photo in.

Plenty of photo opportunities there. LOVE the sleigh. Aaron's wearing his Primark Christmas shirt which I adore, and I've got me Chrimbo jumper on :-) Aaron's shirt has done three Santas now and was only a fiver! Please note, you won't be able to take pics with Santa, as you buy those. I was only allowed for the purposes of this review.

Here's some info for you:

Book tickets now to meet Santa, enjoy a new 4D film experience and all kids will receive a gift from Santa too! 

The Grotto will be open between 20th November and the 24th December 2014. Santa gets really busy, so we recommend booking in advance.

When booking we will ask for the age of the children. Please note we cannot provide gifts for children over 12 years old.

You can find Santa's Grotto located outside next to Waitrose and Stratford International Station on the Lower Ground Floor. The best car park is car park A.

You can book your tickets here until 24th December 2014: Santas Grotto Westfield Stratford.

You will note on that same link just given, you can book: Santa's Grotto AND The Hidden House AND Santa's breakfast.

Disclosure: I was provided with a 16 pounds family ticket to Santa's Grotto gratis, for an honest review. We truly loved it and all words/opinions are my own.

A Children's Book for Those With Designer Taste Dog On Stilts for Christmas

So you need a book for your child, or as a gift for a relative or friend's child for Christmas, except you've got designer taste with a working wo/man's budget. You like books that have a deep message or moral, and you like illustrations that stand out, that rival the writing. After all, with a children's book words are few, so the illustrations need to be top dog (pun intended).

A few weeks ago we were sent Dog on Stilts to review and we've read it every day since. The fact that Aaron has let me read it every night already told me that he loves it as much as I do, but I didn't realise he would even tell SANTA about it:

It's a new book that was only released in November this year, so Santa had not heard of it.

Aaron loves the fact that you have to turn the landscape shaped book on it's side for tall stories (i.e. pages where the illustration is so TALL, that it spans two pages, and the book needs to be turned 90 degrees to read it). This was a real novelty that lasted quite a few reads. Now he's really taken with the standard of the story and the graphics. It's an extremely funky book. I thought the design would go over Aaron's head at 4 years of age, but no, he's clearly got discerning good taste like his Mum ;-)

I adore the message of the story, which is that the star of the book is ONLY a medium hound, and he wears stilts to get "creatures" to take notice of him. At the end of the book, his friends make clear that they love him no matter what:

What a truly fab message for a little one's book to convey. Not written the review yet but Aaron adores "Dog On Stilts" by James Thorp and Angus Mackinnon #DogOnStilts

A photo posted by Liska (@newmumonline) on Nov 11, 2014 at 12:56pm PST

It's a deep and meaningful message for children, and a much needed one too. Just like the dogs in the story, people come in every shape and colour. Aaron started his school journey this year, and I want him to be friends with all types and for him not to ever exclude anyone based on their looks, their stilts, or their lack of them.

I have currently lost my camera, so I can't take a photo of the page that is opposite the one above, but me and Aaron have great fun trying to match a dog to each of the descriptions above. The page has so many dogs featured on it, that we do indeed find one for each tag. For the "flat as a pancake" I choose the sausage dog, and so on...

It's a book that promotes questions, so it is a lovely bonding experience to read it at bedtime.

The book retails at 10.99 GBP and even has a musical version, which you can listen to for free here: Super Hairies Dog on Stilts the Musical. That way you can decide if you like the story before you buy the book. I trust you will.

Disclosure: I was sent the book for review and all words/opinions are my own (and Aaron's). We genuinely LOVE it. I remain honest and unbiased.

York Premier Inn, Blossom Street South, First Weekend of St Nick's Christmas Market REVIEW

Premier Inn York, Blossom Street South is LOVELY. I can't stress it enough. What makes a GREAT impression on arrival is:

• The location - SO conveniently close to York Train Station. A short 5 minute walk, which is equally an inexpensive taxi ride if you have a lot of luggage. Reception call cabs for you, no problem at all.
• The location - just a 10 minute very pleasant walk from town which is a delight not a chore.
• The location: the hotel is yards away from tourist attraction and photo opportunity: Micklegate.
• The location: the hotel is right on the street which feels lovely having been in a remote location the night before.
• So, as for York Blossom Street South, Premier Inn, its location ticked ALL of the boxes for me!

• The reception desk is a small pod, so feels incredibly open plan and welcoming, rather than a barrier between you and the hotel.

• The reception greeting is warm, welcoming, bubbly and sincere. Makes you feel as if you are the only person arriving that day (and that was before I said my name in case you think it is because they knew I was reviewing).
• Checking in on time is no problem, as they have radios, and in seconds find out that yes, of course your room is ready for your arrival.
• You are given two room keys, as they can clearly see there are two adults staying.
• The room, as below, is so bright, clean, fresh and airy.
• The temperature in the room is so easily - and quickly - controlled by digital aircon on the wall. It blows hot and cold, and unlike people, that is a good thing ha ha!
• You are told all about breakfast at check-in and what time you will need to check-out. A generous 12 midday for checkout.
• Security is great, where you need to swipe your room card to get from reception to the lifts and from the lifts to the room corridor.
• There are a choice of pillows. I found the perfect one.
• The hotel has the NEW BEDS, which are divinely comfortable. If a little high off the ground!
• The tea and coffee are top brands. Twinings and Kenco.
• There are towels in the bathroom and in the wardrobe cabinet thingy.
• The Wifi works!!!! Horrrahhh!
• The Premier Inn is right on the road, which after being in a remote location the night before, actually felt great (maybe I AM a city girl after all)! I might have made this point already above. Yes I am Irish, but yes, I have spent over 40 years in London!

Like I say, it is right on the street:

We were in the hotel room SUCH a short amount of time, when we headed off to walk to the Christmas Market, as you can already see in two of the pics above. As the receptionist said, it was easily a lovely meander. Not a taxing walk at all despite Aaron being tired. It was the FIRST weekend of St Nick's Christmas Market. I think York saw 600 coaches Saturday and 300 coaches Sunday arrive for it. We were there Sunday through Monday, and I had my first Mulled Wine of the season :-)

Walking back in the dark is no problem at all. Very well lit, and it was very festive. Truly loved it and could have done with staying longer, or staying out later. As you can see in one of the pics, Daddy was carrying Aaron by this point.

Above you can see that there is a key card required from lift to corridor and we were Sssshhh on a quiet corridor. And it was! Quiet I mean!

After having no Wifi the night before, Aaron was thrilled to be able to play computer games on both Disney's and Nick Junior's websites. So that he did, and soundly fell asleep for a "great night's sleep guaranteed" and that it was!

You literally CANNOT FAULT breakfast at Premier Inn York, Blossom Street South. The restaurant is run by Table Table and the team are SUPERB! Bubbly, slick, efficient, sincere, helpful, and more!

You are seated immediately and despite EVERYTHING being self service they are at great pains to explain to you that fried and scrambled eggs are on the buffet but you can ask them for something different. I saw them explain this to about 10 different guests and the script never sounded tired. Everyone was given the same warm welcome. Whilst there Aaron lost a Kinder Egg robot and a kind staff member had kindly kept it safe so we got it back immediately which prevented big tears. I LOVED the unlimited milky Costa Coffee after really missing it the day and night before:

We spent a full hour at breakfast so it was not a hurried affair and I am glad. There is THAT much to choose from you could literally have a 5-course breakfast. I have never seen anyone as happy as Aaron was when he discovered they had Coco Pops, as he had missed them a lot the day before. I made him a sausage sandwich with toast and sausages so he could eat it on our long journey. I snuck it out in a napkin, not that I would have needed to sneak as the team were so amazing they'd have understood it was for Aaron. Very glad I did so as he did eat it. I may have also taken him 2 x mini muffins.

Don't miss breakfast if you stay, and allow enough time to enjoy it. It is SO worth it:

Arriving at York, we'd got the train FROM Scarborough as we'd been reviewing Ox Pasture Hall the night before, so it was very convenient that Premier Inn was 5 minutes from the train station. Daddy insisted on getting a cab though as Aaron was too tired to walk. However on leaving Premier Inn, we were to be getting the Megabus to East Midlands Parkway, where we'd get a connection for a train to Kings Cross St Pancras. Anyhow, Premier Inn is ALSO close to Leeman Road where you get the Megabus. We did wait 45 minutes as it was 30 minutes late but we were WITH the change of driver, so knew 100% it was on the way. We got 3 seats together at the back and it was perfect! 

Thank you so so much Premier Inn.

Disclosure: we received accommodation, breakfast and Wifi for the purposes of this review. ALL words are my own, and I have never been more impressed.