Lifestyle Archives - The Less-Refined Mind

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! ...

Lifestyle

Do You Know What Your Tampons Are Made Of?

May 24, 2018

Today I’m going to be talking about menstruation, so if you’re squeamish or a prude, look away now. But please don’t – because if you’re a woman this applies to you, and if you’re a guy then it applies to your girlfriend/wife/daughters. And ethical feminine care is need-to-know-stuff. Especially if you’re one of the 80% of women who ...

Lifestyle

Living With Anxiety – My Secret Struggle

May 22, 2018

Last week was Mental Health Awareness Week, and it occurred to me that though I’ve referenced my anxiety many times, I’ve never written a dedicated post about it. I’ve spoken a little about when it started and why, but never how it affects me. So, better later than never, here’s how anxiety affects day to day life. I ...

Lifestyle

We Grew Up Like Sisters – But I won’t Call Her

May 17, 2018

I had a strange dream a couple of nights ago, about an old friend. She wasn’t just a friend though – she was more like a sister. We were friends for practically my whole life…until we weren’t. I had my first sleepovers at her house, I had my first cigarette with her, and she was there the first time my heart was broken (when my ...

Giveaways, Lifestyle, Recipes

Love Sausages But Want a Healthier Option For Your Family?

May 15, 2018

Last week after many months of feeling detached and out of the blogging loop, I finally attended my first solo event since Elfin was born – and it was totally worth the wait! Today I want to talk to you about the nations favourite: sausages. Richmond have launched healthier chicken sausages and I was invited to a demonstration of how ...

Lifestyle, Positivity

Planning My New Office Space – In Anticipation!

May 3, 2018

I’m super excited to share with you all that we’re now seriously looking at moving. After all the work we’ve done to make our current home perfect, we thought it was really clever to leave and go somewhere else that is not perfect. *rolls eyes* Why do we do it to ourselves?! Well, in our case there is method to our madness, though I sometimes ...

Lifestyle

Emergency Service Heroes 2018, With Peli UK

May 1, 2018

Last year when I was still pregnant I wrote about how one of my closest friends had delivered her baby at home like the freaking warrior that she is. And then she unexpectedly haemorrhaged. By the time it happened both she and her tiny newborn had been checked over and given a clean bill of health – meaning the midwives had left her and ...

Giveaways, Lifestyle, Reviews

Putting the Finishing Touches to Our Playroom – With Posterlounge

April 27, 2018

Posterlounge review: I was gifted the product and compensated for my time in exchange for my honest review. If you’re a regular reader, you’ll know we installed a playroom last year when we converted our garage. I’ve not stopped going on about it since, because part way through the work, what was meant to be my office, was hijacked and became ...