Lifestyle Archives - The Less-Refined Mind

Buying a Home – Third Time Lucky?

August 17, 2018

I’m probably crazy doing this, but since I’m not actually superstitious I’m going to update you on our house situation. Why crazy? Because the last two times I’ve done this, our house has fallen through; most recently within two hours of the post going live. Surely – surely – it can’t happen a third time? The last I updated you ...

Lifestyle, Reviews

Finding Time to Cherish Memories, Featuring Cheerz

August 7, 2018

I need a new mobile. I’ve made mine sluggish by filling it with photos, because when we have children and especially since the invention of camera phones, that’s what we do. But what we (by which I mean I) do not subsequently do, is anything with those special photographs; unless of course they’ve been taken specifically for IG – in ...

Lifestyle, Reviews

Making a House a Home, Featuring Desenio

July 31, 2018

…Dare I say it?! If you’ve been following along with the saga then you’ll know that not too long ago we were gazumped. But what I’ve not updated anyone with (because I’ve completely lost all faith and confidence in the process) is that we’re back on! We are now partway through the complexity of buying our dream home, and when (if) we get the ...

Lifestyle, Opinion

The One Thing All Work at Home Parents MUST Do To Be Successful

July 17, 2018

I recently published a post about the fact that I struggle to find the time to fundraise, and mostly it’s because I’m also trying to maintain a business behind the scenes. One of the difficulties work at home parents face is that when you work from home, people tend to forget that sometimes, you have to work. This can apply to ...

Lifestyle, Reviews

Crux 15 Bar Espresso Coffee Machine Review – The Perfect Coffee?

June 28, 2018

This Crux 15 Bar Espresso Coffee Machine review is in collaboration with Lakeland, and I was gifted the product in exchange for my honest opinion. As a busy WAHM of two, one of my few vices is coffee. Arguably a bigger vice connected to that one is wasting money on getting a fix when I’m out and about. But at the moment while I’m still feeding ...

Lifestyle

We’ve Been Gazumped – What Now?

June 20, 2018

Right now I should really be putting the finishing touches to one of several reviews I need to get published soon. But first I have to get this off my chest, because I literally can’t focus on anything else. I’m really struggling to get my head in the game, and it’s all because of this: we’ve been gazumped. As anyone who follows me will be ...

Blogging, Lifestyle

Best Camera Phone on the Market For Bloggers

June 19, 2018

I’m currently looking into mobile phones, and as a blogger one of my top priorities is taking good shots, so I’m on the search for the best camera phone on the market. Mine’s not actually due for renewal for another six months, but I fear I’m going to have to bite the bullet sooner than that. Why do I need to replace my mobile? My baby girl ...

Lifestyle

House Viewing Etiquette – Learn From Our Humiliating Faux Pas!

June 14, 2018

In my last post I was talking about our imminent move, but I’ve not spoken too much about the process of moving. You know – the super stressful and annoying bit, where you have to keep the house immaculate despite the two little hell-raisers you happen to live with, so you can show strangers around the private areas of your house that ...

Lifestyle

Choosing Where to Compromise When You Can’t Afford Your Forever Home

June 12, 2018

The say moving home is one of the most stressful things you can do, and honestly, I’ve still not quite accepted that it’s actually happening. Of course, at this early stage anything could yet go wrong and it could all fall through, so any excitement is being reserved – as is the inevitable stress! Besides which, we have mixed feelings: ...

Family and Parenting, Lifestyle

Creating a Garden That’s Perfect for the Whole Family

June 1, 2018

If you’ve been following my IG Stories, you’ll be aware that we’re in the midst of moving home. As I write we’ve just sold our house (hurrah!) – but we’re yet to find our new perfect family home. By the time you read, it could well be that we’ve made an offer somewhere as we have several viewings lined up for this coming weekend. Eek! ...