I have recently been fighting a losing battle to keep our house tidy. I’m constantly having to remind the kids to tidy up after themselves and the one thing that never seems to get put away is LEGO. One unfortunate LEGO character gets sucked up by the vacuum cleaner while its friends try to escape. Clearly … [Continue Reading..]
Family Life and Lifestyle
The LEGO piece, the vacuum cleaner and the stain on my conscience.
I have recently been fighting a losing battle to keep our house tidy. I’m constantly having to remind the kids to tidy up after themselves and the one thing that never seems to get put away is LEGO. One … [Continue Reading...]
Framing a subject. A simple photography trick when all else goes wrong!
This photograph was taken with the help of my youngest daughter, Izzy. She very kindly agreed to hold up this old picture frame so I could take a shot of a colourful market as we looked down at it from a bridge … [Continue Reading...]
Is it wrong to make children aware of your stress?
If there's one thing guaranteed to make a parent feel stressed, it's when their offspring accidentally hits another child on the head. This is exactly what happened at the swimming pool the other day when Izzy, my … [Continue Reading...]
Christmas gifts from Samuel Windsor
Just the other day, I had to get ready for a formal event in Central London. An unavoidable last-minute outfit change meant I was scrabbling around for a tie and handkerchiefs. Had I opened a Christmas gift-package … [Continue Reading...]
Kids and tech: Why our sat-nav moos like a cow.
I looked at my phone. I simply didn’t recognise it. The icons were in completely different places. I immediately guessed what had happened; Helen, my nine year old daughter, had been playing with it. … [Continue Reading...]
Teaching self-esteem: Is school the correct place to do it?
Every now and again, my children come home from school and mention something about their day that knocks me sideways. One such occasion happened earlier this week when Helen, my nine-year-old, came home talking … [Continue Reading...]
Health and fitness
Cream of tomato soup recipe with Beko #EatLikeAPro
There’s been a lot of confusion this year over whether it is autumn or winter. Having had several frosty mornings, I’m going to call it. Winter is here and that means many things, including the need to eat more … [Continue Reading...]
Could Gymfinity Kids impress this fully-fledged gymnastics dad?
I had no interest in gymnastics until two years ago. Sure, I took my kids to a gymnastics club, but parents were not allowed to watch the sessions, so I had no idea what my kids were up to. It looked nice, but it … [Continue Reading...]
Screen time, diet and their impact on a child’s behaviour #EatLikeAPro
I’ve long been an advocate of limiting the amount of screen time children have. I accept screen time is a fact of life, but I want it balanced and to my children are undertaking physical activities, ideally outside, … [Continue Reading...]
Fathers’ Issues / men’s issues
Should I be a cool parent?
It was a dark night and we were driving home. It’s at such moments that I find my children can be at their most chatty and Helen was in a talkative mood, testing me, to see if I was a cool parent or not. … [Continue Reading...]
International Men’s Day 2018: A positive experience?
I can't pretend otherwise, it took me a long time to come around to the idea of both International Women's Day and International Men's Day. I found them to be slightly vague concepts and at times the debates they … [Continue Reading...]
Equality and Human Rights Commission promotes flexible working to dads and employers
This International Men's Day, I'm doing something a bit special. You may find me gracing your small screen at some point as I feature in a video recorded by the Equality and Human Rights Commission to encourage men … [Continue Reading...]
Family Finances
Water conservation: A further way to save money and the environment
When we moved to our new house, I had a concern about my family’s ability to lead an environmentally friendly lifestyle. In many respects it … [Continue Reading...]
Hero Dad: The importance of having life insurance
Some time ago I had a meeting with a financial adviser. At the time I didn’t have life insurance and hadn’t had any in place for quite some time. … [Continue Reading...]
Photography
Framing a subject. A simple photography trick when all else goes wrong!
This photograph was taken with the help of my youngest daughter, Izzy. She very kindly agreed to hold up this old picture frame so I could take a shot of a colourful market as we looked down at it from a bridge … [Continue Reading...]
Playing with lighting and a fast shutter speed
There are two elements of photography I have rarely experimented with: Lighting and a fast shutter speed. This week I combined the two to take this image of coloured water splashing out of a glass. By my own … [Continue Reading...]
Enjoying the colours of autumn
This is one of those blog posts that nearly didn't happen. I was uncertain about posting this image on the blog but Mrs Adams persuaded me otherwise. She said it featured a beautiful mix of autumn colours and that I … [Continue Reading...]
Reviews
Christmas gifts from Samuel Windsor
Just the other day, I had to get ready for a formal event in Central London. An unavoidable last-minute outfit change meant I was scrabbling around for a tie and handkerchiefs. Had I opened a Christmas gift-package … [Continue Reading...]
The Audi A6 Avant: A different experience
Over the past couple of years, I’ve driven many different Audi SUVs; the Q2, Q5 and the Q7 among them. The Audi A6 Avant was going to be a different experience. I hoped it would be a much more practical family … [Continue Reading...]
Improved home security with Philips Hue lighting
A short while ago we experienced an attempted break-in. Luckily it was foiled by our secure back doors, but I think part of the reason our house looked so tempting was because we had no working security lights. With … [Continue Reading...]
Cars and Automotive
The Audi A6 Avant: A different experience
Over the past couple of years, I’ve driven many different Audi SUVs; the Q2, Q5 and the Q7 among them. The Audi A6 Avant was going to be a different experience. I hoped it would be a much more practical family … [Continue Reading...]
A classic way to balance work and family life
In my latest article highlighting dads seeking to improve work / life balance, I speak to Claus Stig Christensen who runs classic car rental company BookAClassic. … [Continue Reading...]
Behind the wheel of the Dad Taxi
There are numerous signs that my children are getting older. Five-year-old Izzy no longer watches Paw Patrol and, nearing the end of her first year at school, has learned to read and write. Helen, who is nine, is … [Continue Reading...]