6 Things Men will Never Understand about Women

A Guest Post by the Permanently Perplexed Husband, Phil

Why Does it Take Them so Long to Get Ready? 

Tell a man he's going out and he goes into a well used routine: Shower, shave and dress, quick glance in the mirror, 'Tom Cruise has got nothing on me', done. Ready to go out the door in 12 minutes, like a military operation. Two hours later he's still waiting downstairs, with thoughts like 'What are you doing up there?' and 'Why do you never make that much effort for me!'

Meeting Jacqueline Wilson and a Hetty Feather Review

A Guest Post by Jade...

I have read almost every Jacqueline Wilson book as a child and consider a select few as childhood favourites: The Dustbin Baby, Cookie and The Illustrated Mum. I have always admired her way with words, particularly the way she is able to approach difficult subjects in a thoughtful, and often positive, manner. I had always said as a child that even if I was an adult, the oldest in the queue for her autograph, I would run to the front just to meet her. Someday I would…

You Never Know What's around the Corner.

A Guest Post by Phil

After a long story I found myself a divorced single dad, to my 12 year old daughter, who had been emotionally and mentally broken by her mother and stepfather. Apart from a couple of disasters I had been single for five years and had accepted life on my own so I made a conscious decision to put all my energy into bringing her up and trying to give her a happy life. 

Find your Inner Freak: Why it is Important to be Who You Want to Be.

Another guest post from my friend Rebecca, who is doing a great job of looking after things while I'm on hols!

This is the advice I wish I had been given when in my twenties.

You leave school, you get a job if you can, you earn some dosh and you try and work out what you are going to be when you grow up. Then you realise ten years have gone and you are still trying to work out which direction you are heading so you panic a bit and stress out when you look round at others whom you consider have ‘done something with their life’.

This is why that is all pointless. The secret is that you have already made it. Success is relevant only to who you are. Therefore you should forget trying to be what you think success is based on others and look into yourself. Give yourself a break.

Find Me Face Down on the Floor Behind the Sofa. A Narcoleptic’s Tale.

Our 'hidden illness' series continues with an amazingly insightful and frank post from my fabulous friend Rebecca on Narcolepsy.

If you ask somebody who is ill what the worst thing is about an illness, you will find pain is probably at the top. Followed closely by lethargy or exhaustion. So we know tiredness is awful yet we fail to recognise as a disability. This blog article for The Parent Game is to help you understand the rather odd life cycle of a narcoleptic. Please try and stay awake!

Living with Asthma from a Young Age - How to Help

This guest post is written by my daughter Jade, who would like to tell you about her experiences as an Asthma sufferer. She was first diagnosed at the age of 2 and has lots of advice to help young people cope with asthma, based on her own experience. If you know a young asthma sufferer, you might find this post helpful, because no one knows this illness better than someone who has battled it for 20 years. Asthma is dangerous and prolific and it costs lives. Many people are affected by it and the charity Asthma UK is campaigning for Change to improve the lives of the millions of sufferers in this country. Please click the links to find out how you can help. Over to Jade, who I'd like to thank for writing such a lovely post!

Living with MS, Lorna's Story

I have a lovely friend called Lorna, who I have known for a number of years. I am constantly in awe of her, since she is the sort of mum other mums are jealous of. She bakes amazing cakes, she is super-organised, holds down a demanding job and even finds time to be a fantastic Beaver Scout leader! She is amazing. However, one thing you may not notice about Lorna is that she has a Multiple Sclerosis, a serious medical condition that can effect all kinds of areas of function within the body. She has kindly agreed to spend a little time telling you more about it. Her words a truly inspirational and I may just love her a little bit more after reading them! 

Time for Tea with Teatulia

We love tea parties in our house. It might be old fashioned and a little bit daft, but it's actually really fun, and doesn't have to cost much. You can make your own cakes or pastries, which is a fun activity for children, and then have a proper teapot and cups and saucers, a la Downton Abbey. We even have a cake stand. Oh yes. In the summer this becomes an outdoor activity, like a tiny garden party with just a few select guests. My daughter is a big tea fan and a bit of a connoisseur, so I thought it only right that she contributed to this review of a selection of teas from Teatulia. 

Remembering Jack: The Final Chapter

For those of you with a really good memory, you may remember how myself and my friend Lisa had a great deal of support from a lot of amazing people in order to raise £2,000 for Addenbrookes Hospital. We started the fundraising to honour the memory of Lisa's beautiful son who lived just two days. If you would like to, you can read the original story here. Lisa recently travelled to Cambridge to hand over the cheque and meet some of the wonderful staff who do such a brilliant job looking after some of the most vulnerable of the hospital's patients. There follows a short post from Lisa, who wanted an opportunity to thank everyone who made this possible, so I will leave the final word to her.

Wing Walking Super Mum for Parkinson's UK!

With Mother's Day on our minds, I thought I would share with you an amazing story about a wonderful mum and her crazy fundraising efforts, guest posted by her daughter, Eleanor. It would be really lovely if you could share this post on your own Social Media platforms, in order to spread the word and raise as much money as possible for an amazing cause. Thank you. 

Never Kick a Gift Horse: Buying the Perfect Present

The Art of Buying a Gift - A Guest Post by Jade 

The simple exchange of gifts between one person and another… oh, if only this were true! Everyone struggles to buy gifts for a variety of reasons. I have sorted the most common reasons into five categories below, along with some advice on how to use these reasons not to buy someone a gift to your advantage when choosing the gift.

My Favourite Movie Soundtrack, with CurrysPCWorld

I recently heard about a competition from CurrysPCWorld, the suppliers of all things swanky in the world of sound, including the competition prize, from Bose. The competition really captured my attention, because it was on one of my husband's favourite subjects; movie soundtracks. So, there follows a guest post by said husband, on the subject of Singin' in the Rain. Best of luck, dear!

Note to Self...

A Guest Post by Jade...

A new year for most people will begin in January with a list of resolutions, written in good faith, to improve yourself. Everyone looks to improve in the same areas. Resulting, in special offers at gyms and magazines promoting the New Year’s sale in every clothes shop to help you to find the ‘New You'.

Family Life with Sensory Processing Disorder (Guest Post)

There follows a guest post from my lovely friend Emma, who has kindly agreed to write, in her own words, about her experience of a condition that affects up to one in twenty children, to varying degrees. I think she's amazing and I hope her story will encourage other families facing similar challenges. 

A Day at the Etihad!

You may remember my lovely friend Lisa from the previous post Remembering Jack. She and her family have had a difficult year or so and have shown enormous strength and solidarity throughout. Not least, young Jesse, who, at just ten tears old, has had to endure more trauma and heart ache in his young life, than you would wish on anyone, big or small. So, when Lisa told me about a competition to win Jesse his dream prize, I was very, very glad to assist. ‘Help!’ she said. ‘I have to write about why Jesse is their biggest fan, but I’m HOPELESS with words!’ She’s really not, as you will see below, but anyway…

A Day as a Penguin Keeper at Birdland Park and Gardens

I am proud to introduce my daughter Jade, with her first guest post for you. She is here to tell you all about a lovely place to visit with children. Birdland Park and Gardens in Bourton-on-the-Water, Gloucestershire is a lovely, family friendly environment with lots to offer, including an assortment of over 130 bird species. The prices are very reasonable, and there are extra activities that can be prebooked at fantastic prices. Click on the link to visit their website for more information, or join them on Facebook here. For Jade, the best part of our visit to Birdland, for a life-long penguin fan, was the keeper experience, which included feeding the penguins, amongst many other duties. Here is an account of the day, in her own words. 

The C Word is Courage- A Young Girl's Journey to Survival

Isn't it funny how you can be going about your everyday life, thinking nothing in particular, when, suddenly, you meet someone who has the power to change your way of thinking, or even the course of your life, just by being themselves. I suppose that's what makes us human in some ways, our ability to be influenced and challenged by those around us. I came across a really lovely young lady on Facebook today. She's the niece of a good friend of mine, and she told me the most wonderfully inspiring story of her brave battle with Leukaemia. What amazed me, was that the story was never about her illness, or her fear, or even her, often death-defying, road to recovery. It was a tale of positivity, survival and selfbelief. The guest post that follows is Shannon Humphrey's story, in her own words.