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Hair wars…
I have what you’d call a love/hate relationship with my daughter’s hair. I love it when it looks neat and tidy, I hate it when I have to plait, wash or comb it – and so does she.
When she was younger I could almost get away with doing it while she slept, but as she’s got older we’ve gone from me chasing her around the house with a comb in my hand, to her sitting down for half of the ordeal before deciding she’s had enough. Oh, and did I mention how she hates to have water or shampoo touch her hair?
With her kinky afro hair I’m always on the lookout for any brands claiming to have an ‘easy comb’ or ‘detangling’ effect to make at least one aspect of the hair-dressing procedure less harrowing.
I’ve recently been trying Mini Naked De-tangler Shampoo and while it wasn’t an obvious choice – ie not aimed at afro-haired children – I was surprised (and glad) to see it did the job. Part of the Naked range, but specially for little ones, it’s almost completely (97%) made from natural ingredients.
Admittedly I wasn’t too keen on the smell when I first started to use it, but I think that may have been the combination of lavender oil in the ingredients alongside aloe vera – I’ve never been a fan of lavender and it always takes me a while to get used to the aroma!
It retails at about £3 which isn’t too bad, especially as afro hair doesn’t need to be washed every day – which is quite lucky really as I don’t think I, or my daughter, could cope with the trauma!
Alesha Dixon announced as judge of Explore Learning Writers’ Awards 2019
I’m a huge fan of Alesha Dixon – she’s definitely on my list of favourite celebs to chat to – so I was pleased to hear she’s been announced as judge for the Explore Learning Writers’ Awards 2019.
This is a chance for budding young authors across the UK to have their work recognised.
Open to children aged from four to 14, youngsters are encouraged to write a 500 word story with the winner bagging a trip to Disneyland Paris for their family and £500 worth of books for their school library.
To top it off, Britain’s Got Talent judge Alesha will surprise them at their school with the news.
Mum Alesha is herself a published author and will this year release the third instalment in her children’s book series, Lightning Girl.
The comp opens March 11 when this year’s theme will also be announced.
Explore Learning will be running a number of free creative writing workshops with schools and libraries across the UK to inspire kids to take part.
The closing date for entries is Sunday May 5.
For more info visit www.explorelearning.co.uk/youngwriters
How do you get kids to eat vegetables? #EatinFullColour at the Bird’s Eye First Plates Restaurant
How do you deal with getting your kids to eat vegetables?
An easy life or forever a struggle?
Mine is the latter, so I was intrigued when we got an invitation to the Bird’s Eye First Plates Restaurant.
Here little ones were encouraged to #eatinfullcolour with a range of veg based dishes which included pea cake (yep, and it was actually quite nice!).
It was interesting to see the dynamic as all the kids sat together happily – mostly – trying out lots of different vegetables.
Us parents were lucky enough to get tips on how to get more veg in their tummies from TV child psychologist, Dr Elizabeth Kilbey, as seen on Channel 4’s The Secret Life of 4, 5 and 6 Year Olds.
She told me: ‘Don’t be deterred by them saying ‘I don’t like that’.
‘If they like particular colours try pairing them up, association helps.’
And even, gasp, making eating veggies fun!
For example, Dr Kilbey added: ‘Can we have a snack of every single colour today? Can we build a rainbow of the food we eat today?’
Research by Bird’s Eye to mark their Eat in Full Colour campaign shows that children are actually becoming more adventurous with their food, with 4-9 year olds naming sprouts and spinach as their favourite vegetables.
Almost a third (32 per cent) of parents say their children would eat just about ANY type of vegetable served – and only 29 per cent struggle to get their kids to eat their greens. Unfortunately I’m in that 29 percent!
But I was given some hope to keep trying after the event, adding more colour to ALL of our plates and trying new vegetables.
Click to see footage from the event (my daughter even has a speaking part!).
The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole Aged 13¾ The Musical – competition
HANDS up who remembers reading The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole as a child?
Well now the much-loved novel by Sue Townsend has been adapted into a stage musical and is running at London’s Ambassadors Theatre – and you could be there watching it with your family!
Set in 1980s Leicester, the adaptation of the best-selling book is described as ‘a timeless tale of teenage angst, family struggles and unrequited love, told through the eyes of tortured poet and misunderstood intellectual Adrian Mole.’
For a chance to win a family of four ticket, all you have to do is sign up to follow my blog via email and follow my Instagram account @themediamummy for an additional entry.
Sue Townsend’s The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole aged 13¾ – The Musical runs until 12 October 2019
Ambassadors Theatre, West Street, London WC2H 9ND
Terms and conditions – Ticket competition for a family of four ticket to be redeemed on a Monday-Thursday show, subject to availability during July & August. Name to be drawn on Thursday 27 June, 11pm (UK time).