The Power of Positive (and Negative) Thinking

A little while ago I was doing my usual jog round the lake, I was doing a good pace, about normal, I wasn't puffed out or aching in any way, it was an average jog I felt ok, until for some reason in my head I began replaying a conversation I had with another mum several years ago.  I don't know why this conversation came to mind but I was replaying it back in my head word-for-word.

The conversation was about childbirth.  I was describing the experience of giving birth to my first child.  It wasn't a particular positive experience for me and I remember clearly saying in my head to myself as I was jogging along "I was so scared", recalling the experience.  At that exact moment, for no reason that I could explain I stopped running.

I wasn't tired, out of breath, in pain, but the power of that negative phrase quite literally stopped me in my tracks.

This led me to think about how powerful a negative inner voice can be and how mindful we have to be of it.  It was also a powerful reminder of the importance of using our positive inner voice.

If that one negative phrase could be so powerful so as to stop me from running think how powerful positive phrases and affirmations could be in our everyday lives.

It's no secret I am  a fan of positive affirmations, I love writing affirmations for all sorts of people and scenarios, I love sticking them round the house and keeping them in my purse, they help me to keep a positive inner voice.

In my Etsy shop I have several series of affirmation cards available for digital download, but I have also put together an exclusive set of affirmation cards just for new subscribers to my mailing list.

You can print them off and use them round your house, or gift them to friends or family, place them somewhere that you'll see them every day.

You can subscribe right here and receive a link to these downloadable affirmation cards immediately. You'll also receive notifications of new blog posts, newsletters, giveaways and updates.

As for me and my thrice weekly jogs, I am focusing hard on positive thoughts to keep me running and I haven't stopped so far.

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Home Preschool - Under sea cave hideaway

As part of our Seaside theme that we have been following this summer I decided to create a little under-the-sea cave hideaway for my boys to play in and explore.  

Because we have a ridiculously small house, we don't have enough space for a dedicated corner for something like this so I re-claimed that mostly dead space under the dining room table to create an under-the-sea den.

I simply pinned some grey fabric to the underside of the table (no worries about damaging the table because no one sees the underside anyway), I also pinned some strips of chiffon, some grey netting and some other spangly kind of fabric (I am sure it has a proper name but I have no idea what, it's the sort of thing that people use to make dance outfits).  

I wanted the cave to have a bit of a magical, mystical feel which I hope the chiffon and net etc gives, I chose shades of green to suggest some sort of seaweed. 

Inside I put a big piece of drift wood to start giving it a more coastal feel, I also added three baskets of objects for the boys to explore, one contains pebbles, another shells and the last contains driftwood. 

I also included a little box with a sliding lid (I wanted to use a treasure chest but don't have one) and filled it with some cheap beads and shiny buttons as treasure, I also added a greet bottle containing a treasure map that Boris and I made together in the winter (its even more tatty now so more authentic looking).

Finally I put a basket of sea themed books into the cave, the titles are:

Three by the Sea - Mini Grey,

The Boy on the Beach - Niki Daly,

Don't be Afraid Little Pip - Karma Wilson and Jane Chapman,

Milly and the Mermaids - Maudie Smith and Antonia Woodward,

Mrs Armitage and the Big Wave - Quentin Blake,

Melrose and Croc Beside the Sea - Emma Chichester Clark,

Traction Man and the Beach Odyssey,

Splash Anna Hibiscus - Atinuke and Lauren Tobia.

Give a woman and hand and click on one of my affiliate links if you are interested in any of these books!

Don't forget everyone I am still running my GIVEAWAY till Friday evening so get over to Facebook and join in the fun!!

Click HERE to take you to my Facebook page.

LION KING GIVEAWAY!!

GIVEAWAY DAY IS HERE!!

Today I am giving away this fabulous kit containing everything you need for a fun Lion King themed activity week that we did a few weeks ago.

The kit includes:

Jungle shaped playdough cutters,

Silicone bug cake/ice/jelly mould,

Six plastic bug toys, 

Six plastic jungle/safari animal toys,

One dropper pipette,

Instructions for making jungle play dough

Cotton drawstring bag to keep everything in.

This kit is worth £18.00 and I will be taking orders from anyone who wants to buy one after the giveaway is finished.

To enter you need to:

Like my facebook page,

Like the Facebook post about this giveaway,

Leave a comment on the facebook post about this giveaway. 

The giveaway closes on Friday 10th July, I will announce the winner, chosen at random, here and on my facebook page that evening. 

Here is a reminder of some of the brilliant activities you can do with this kit:

Good Luck!!

COMING MONDAY - LION KING GIVEAWAY!!!

Tune in on Monday evening for my first giveaway on this blog!!

I will be giving away this fabulous kit containing everything you need for a fun Lion King themed activity week.

The kit includes:

Jungle shaped playdough cutters,

Silicone bug cake/ice/jelly mould,

Six plastic bug toys, 

Six plastic jungle/safari animal toys,

One dropper pipette,

Instructions for making jungle play dough

Cotton bag to keep everything in.

This kit is worth £18.00 and I will be taking orders from anyone who wants to buy one after the giveaway is finished.

Details of how to enter will be shared on Monday.

7 Days of Vegan Breakfasts - Smoothie bowl

Phew it's hot in this part of the UK at the moment, I am loving it, playing out in the garden, with the water table and running through a sprinkler, when it's sunny it just cheers you up and makes you feel glad to be alive.  It is days like these when I am beyond thankful that I am a full time mum and about to be outside making the most of the weather instead of being in a stuffy office (been there) or classroom (been there too).

So what better way to honour the hot sunny weather than to enjoy a cooling smoothie bowl for breakfast. 

I used frozen berries in mine to make it extra cool and refreshing.

I just whiz it all up in my blender,

And it comes out looking like sorbet,

I add some finishing touches,

The dig in,

It's a thing of beauty!

In this smoothie bowl I used a glass full of frozen mixed berries, topped up half way with orange and mango juice, the added several tablespoons of soya yoghurt and the a squirt of maple/carob syrup blend.  I add this because I just don't find the fruit sweet enough, it's a bit sharp on my palette so the syrup just sweetens it up beautifully.  I then add a sliced banana on top with some goji berries, then I sprinkle on some linseeds, chia seeds, sunflower and pumpkin seeds.  

It's delicious, refreshing, satisfying, a perfect breakfast for a hot summer day. 

Don't forget I will be doing an exciting GIVEAWAY soon, so call back again, you can like my facebook page or subscribe by email to my blog to keep up to date with what's happening.