15 Top Tips for a Balanced Life

Working as a holistic health practitioner means I am privileged to be a part of someone's life journey - that could be a road to better health, much needed relaxation or an understanding ear and support.

I am very vocal about my own life and don't hide the highs and lows I have experienced, in fact I use these experiences to help me be a better practitioner.  I left a physically and emotionally abusive marriage with three children under the age of 5, to say I had hit rock bottom would be an understatement, but I did it, I dragged myself kicking and screaming back into reality.

As I recovered and tried to find myself I learnt how to laugh and smile again, I learnt from others how to interact, trust and love again.  It's quite incredible how much we do learn from those people that surround us on a daily basis.

How Learning to Knit Reduces Stress

I have a long list of things I would like to learn, my very own bucket list if you like.  I would love to learn how to take wonderful photographs, to be able to speak Italian, to paint a picture...the list goes on.

Thanks to my resolution challenge I can now tick one thing off my list - knitting!  Yes, at the sprightly age of 41 I have finally picked up a pair of needles and clickety clacked away to my hearts content. 

Don't ask me why I wanted to learn to knit. 

Learn from your Mistakes in Five Simple Steps

We all make mistakes during our lives, some are tiny and others monumental but the key to recovering is to learn from the lessons these mistakes provide.

Now we all know I have a flawless reputation...no, sorry - I just couldn't finish that without laughing.  I've made plenty of mistakes over the years - disastrous marriage aside - but I never thought that one simple indiscretion could inspire a blog post - but here we are.

I hold my hands up...'it's a fair cop' as they say.  This week I attended a Speed Awareness Course.  Not because my jogging career is taking off in a big way but because

New Beginnings - Learn a new skill from home with E-Learning

I love September.  Not only because the air is crisp and the leaves turn a beautiful colour, not because I can dig out my big jumpers and hide the excess flesh which has been on show all summer, but because the air is full of new beginnings.

Kid's return or start school, college or university and the shops are full of gorgeous stationery to accommodate their needs - my idea of heaven.

My challenge for this month is 'To Learn Something New' and there really is no better month to start this in.  I have a bucket list the length of my arm of what I would love to learn; photography, Italian, painting, knitting...the list if endless.

Holiday Blog Tour #5 - A Girl's Getaway

What a busy month August has been, I am never happy when my children go back to school as they are such wonderful company, but after our hectic month's challenge I think sitting with my feet up sounds fabulous!

For the final week of August and the last Blog Tour I was able to sneak away for a couple of nights with just my daughter.  I love all my kids and we have had an amazing summer but to have some mummy-daughter time is quite precious.  I left the destination up to her and thankfully she chose the walled city of York in North Yorkshire (and not Milan or Paris as my budget may not have stretched that far!)

A girlie trip is very different to a family holiday

Holiday Blog Tour #4 - City Breaks

Who said a city break had to be for couples looking for a romantic getaway?

Don't get me wrong, as we sat on the train heading to London we were surrounded by doe eye'd lovers, but it certainly didn't deter this single mum and her band of teens.

There are plenty of cities here in the UK for us to choose from for an overnight stay, each one offering it's visitors a wealth of historical sights, attractions and hotels. 

If you are planning a trip around the UK or visiting us from afar, take a look on Wikipedia for an impressive list of cities; Bath, Birmingham, Cambridge, Leeds, Manchester, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Nottingham, Sheffield, York, Wells...these are just a few from an extensive list which also covers Scotland, Wales and Ireland.

Holiday Blog Tour #3 - Staycation

Holiday's are a wonderful way to explore foreign lands or distant parts of your own country.  We love to venture far and wide in search of an escape, but in our quest for adventure we often overlook the simplest destination of all - our own back yard.


By this I don't mean open the patio doors and take in the view of your petunia's, what I do mean is take in the delights of your local area.

Holiday Blog Tour #2 - Day Tripper

The sun is still shining here in England and as I continue on my August challenge - to get out and about more with the kids - it has made our outings all the more enjoyable.

As our 'Blog Tour' continues we have moved North, leaving the wondrous Cornish coastline behind and have nestled in the green fields of Somerset.

A county rich in cider and cheese, caves and beaches and of course, world famous music festivals.

This week's post zones in on day trips and Somerset has more attractions than days in the year so you will be spoilt for choice.  In our mad dash up the country I have only managed to touch on two of the attractions available so please do visit www.visitsomerset.co.uk for more wonderful trips to enhance your holiday or fill a day off.

I'm going to start with my own personal favourite - Glastonbury.  I'm not going to ask you to pull on your wellingtons and festival gear for this day trip, Glastonbury may be well known for Glastonbury Festival but for me this is a place of mysteries, myth and legend.  King Arthur is believed to have been active here, South Cadbury being a possible site for Camelot.

Glastonbury itself is a mecca for anyone interested in holistic living, crystals and new age.  Jeans, t-shirts and faery wings are the norm!

On a day trip to this magical place you can take in the range of quaint shops, visit the Abbey with its impressive grounds (perfect for picnic's so plan ahead and pack your chicken wraps and crudités) and finish with a walk up to Glastonbury Tor which has stunning three hundred and sixty degree views from the summit.

Entry to Glastonbury Abbey is:-

• Adult £6
• Children £4 (5 - 15 years)
• Seniors £5

Luckily my children love Glastonbury as much as I do and have explored every inch of the Abbey and purchased many a crystal from the quaint high street shops, but what if you don't have a family of hippy's?  Where do you go on your day trip then?


I would suggest you head towards the River Axe and the nearby Wookey Hole Caves.  These are Britain's most spectacular caves which have existed for over a million years.  Earliest man, hunting with stone weapons lived in the caves as did the Celtic people of the Iron Age.  It was believed that an evil old woman resided in the caves in the 18th Century, she was turned to stone by a monk using holy water.  The legend of the Wookey Witch is still strong today and you can see her skull in the museum, found in 1912 by archaeologist Herbert Balch.


The caves are incredibly impressive and I marvelled at how anyone could live there as I descended Hell's Ladder to the Witch's Kitchen, surrounded by shining stalagmites as they erupt from the rock around me and dodge the dripping stalactites.

The legends are brought to life by the wonderful guides who, in my opinion, must be able to recite the history of the caves in their sleep!

Once you return to the surface the fun continues and there are plenty of attractions for kids of all ages.  Wookey Hole has a paper mill, pirate island adventure golf, cave museum and cave diving museum.  There is a circus show and circus museum (complete with petrified mermaids discovered on the coast of Bali in 1823), mirror maze and old penny arcade.  There is a dinosaur park and my own personal favourite - Fairy Land.  It's a fantastic day out for all the family and you just never know who you might bump into!

The restaurant does serve a fantastic homemade steak pie but there are plenty of picnic benches if you want to take your own lunch.

Wookey Hole Caves are open all year (except Christmas Day and Boxing Day), 7 days a week.

• Adult - £18
• Child - £12 (3 - 14 years)
• Seniors - £12

You can save 20% if you book online.

I love Somerset and return as often as I can, there is so much to keep the kids entertained but if, like me, you're drawn to the legends and rugged landscapes then pack up the car and head off on your next day off.

Take in the traditional market towns, country houses and parks.  Visit the Georgian splendour of Bath or Wells, the smallest city in England, a medieval jewel at the foot of the Mendip Hills.

Of course for all the book lovers out there, no trip to Somerset is complete without exploring the open moorland of Exmoor National Park and breathing in the air of Lorna Doone's county.

Do you have a favourite place to visit?  A favourite escape for a day trip?  I'd love to hear about it so please share it with us here.

Holiday Blog Tour #1 - Destination Cornwall

Happy August!  Welcome to this month's challenge, 'Get out and about more with the kids'.

This week's post comes to you from sunny Cornwall.  We are staying in a beautiful village called Downderry near Looe on the South Coast of England.

I spent my childhood exploring the coves, crabbing and rock pooling along the Cornish coastline but for some reason I've never been back with my own children.

What Would You Do for the Quiet Life?

The big news here in the UK this week was the birth of the #RoyalBaby, unfortunately I had to miss all the coverage as my next July challenge was to go one week without my television.

Thank goodness for the Radio, Heart FM kept me up to date with everything I needed to know re baby news and I was also lucky enough to share my challenge with Ed and Rachel's Breakfast Show live on air.

It's not very often I get such a flamboyant start to my challenges but this week's did get off to a pretty impressive start.

Facebook - Are you Addicted to Social Media?

When I added a week of 'no Facebook' to my challenge list I honestly didn't think it would be a tough one - it was only for 7 days, no problem.

How wrong could I have been?  I have really missed it, which confirms a niggling suspicion I had about myself - I am a Social Media Fanatic.

Cynics will tell us that all this mumbo jumbo social media has caused the fall of our society; my own Dad can't understand why I comment, like pages and post pictures for, and I quote 'the entire world to see'.  I have tried to explain the privacy settings to him but this is the man who couldn't find the 'B' on his keyboard and had to call me!

How to Help the Environment with One Simple Switch

What a great week to do a challenge; I have been car free for seven days and this particular challenge happened to coincide with a UK heatwave, yay.

When I decided to include, 'appreciate what I have by giving something up' as one of my resolutions I knew each item would have to be important, otherwise where's the challenge?

So what could I give up for a week that I would miss?  No, it wasn't chocolate.

Boost your Inner Sunshine in One Easy Lesson

Happy July!

As I type this week's post the sun is streaming through the window and the weather man has promised a spell of sunshine, ice cream's, paddling pool's and a hose pipe ban - okay so I made up the last bit!

What a wonderful way to start my July challenge,  this month I have to 'be grateful for what I have by giving something up'.

Sounds simple enough doesn't it?  Over the next month I shall be giving up my car, Facebook and the television, this week I gave up the hardest thing of all - no, it wasn't chocolate.