Getting Back In The Game.

I honestly cannot remember the last time I went on an actual "date". In a nutshell I have spent the best part of the last 7 years as a single parent and after finally coming to some sort of conclusion with a past (non existent) relationship I feel comfortable at the prospect of putting myself out there, enjoying life and perhaps meeting somebody new. The relationship was over years ago, but for some reason I stopped myself from moving on. I wasn't happy being single and yet did nothing to rectify the situation and the longer I left it the easier it became to just be satisfied on my own. I started thinking that maybe this was it for me, that "single" would be the box I ticked for the foreseeable future. That thought scared me more than anything. After all, why did I not deserve to meet my soul mate and live "happily ever after"?

I have gone through many changes over the past year or so, the biggest being a physical change and I have so far lost over 5 stone. Its not just my shape that has changed though, my whole outlook on things seems to have shifted. I feel a lot happier in myself and I am a lot more willing to get out there and start living life as apposed to watching everyone else live theirs and doing nothing to make "me" happy.

So with that in mind, I thought I would be bold and brave and join up to a dating site. It's easy enough to talk about making changes and getting out there but actually doing it is a whole different ball game. I know there's lots of bad press surrounding dating sites and the whole "online dating" scene but there are also many success stories and you get nothing from not trying right? So the lovely people over at Match.com have offered me a months free trial to "test the waters" and see how I get on. I have never been good at selling myself and I am looking at the registration page now and It is as blank as my mind! I guess I just have to be honest and get the "real me" into words and on the screen. I am slightly dubious and really nervous about joining a dating site but I am going into it with an open mind.

Could this be the start of something new? Lets see...

Do you have any dating stories? Did you meet your true love online? Of do you have a dating disaster? I would love to hear from you.

The Great Outdoors

There are many things that both myself and Aalliyah love to do, but our most favorite past time has to be enjoying the great outdoors. Whether its a trip to the park, a nature reserve, a stroll through the woods or even walking to my weekly Weight Watchers meeting! (Don't worry, we do pass some beautiful scenery, even a river and some horses too!) 

There is just something magnificent about being outside. Its healing, it's therapeutic, it's the perfect way to let off steam after a hard day at work and the guaranteed way tire out the kids and let them go wild when they are bursting with energy (Which lets face it is pretty much 24/7) But my all time favorite thing about the great outdoors?..

It doesn't cost a thing! All you need is your imagination and you can let that take you to far away lands when you are outdoors. Lets face it, there are not many things in life that are free anymore, but this is something that will always be available to us. So get out there and enjoy it! There are literally thousands of beautiful places around, so get the family, get your shoes on and go explore!

We recently visited a local park called Salcey Forest. It was wonderful. There were tree top walks, nature trails, adventure playgrounds plenty of beautiful picnicking areas. We had so much fun being outdoors. Whatever the weather we always make sure we have a fun filled day. Planet earth is our playground and come rain or shine we will always find new wonderful places to explore.

This is my entry to the Center Parcs and Tots100 May challenge and if I am chosen I would like to visit Sherwood Forest.

Where will your outdoor adventures take you?

Minecraft Paper Craft Review

Aalliyah loves pretty much anything "Minecraft" so it was no surprise that she squealed with delight at getting a paper craft set for Christmas. Like many other things we realized that she was yet to open her set so we decided to give it a bash and I must say I was so surprised at how much fun it was not only playing with the completed pieces but building them too.

The Minecraft paper craft set is really simple to put together and since there is no cutting or gluing required it can be done with little or not adult supervision. It is simply a case of folding and slotting together. Some of the bits can be a bit fiddly but once you get the hang of it it gets easier.

Now those of you that are familiar with Minecraft will know that you have many different blocks and materials, the most common being things like grass, dirt, oak wood, cobblestone etc. Then you have your highly sought after things like diamond and redstone. The paper craft sets are just like the game in every way. You even have characters and monsters from the game that you can build also. There are a few different packs to choose from. The main large pack has pretty much everything you need to get you going and there are other smaller packs which are more specified such as a "Utility pack" or a "Hostile Mob" pack. Gotta love those hissing creepers and those groaning zombies right?

We had so much fun with these sets and because they are blocks they are very easy to store. Aalliyah gets them out on a regular basis and as she also has the Minecraft figures she has a whale of a time building her world and playing. There are still a few sets that she hasn't got yet, but I am sure it is not going to be long before she asks for them too. I love it when she plays with her paper craft sets as it gets her off of the iPod or the Xbox and gets her imaginative juices flowing. These sets provide endless hours of fun and imaginative play and I highly recommend them to Minecraft lovers everywhere.