Today I have a cool competition to win a tea delivery from Piacha, in celebration of their new tea subscription service. Hooray for tea!

I have developed a bit of a subscription habit.

It all started a year or so ago, when I signed up to Cardnest, and then cranked up a notch this year when I bought an Odeon Limitless subscription, asked for a subscription to Living Etc magazine for my birthday and then signed up to Papergang. Oh, and Pact coffee. And last night I accidentally subscribed to the V Gd Fun Club. Gosh, it really IS a thing isn’t it? I’ll be joining the gym before we know it.

(Haha! That will never happen obviously.)

There is something though about that feeling of being part of a club, and of knowing you’re going to get a little treat every month, that’s very seductive. It’s why I’ve added one more subscription to my list this month – the new tea subscription service from Piacha.

tea subscription Piacha View Post

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As it is the season of giving, I have another new giveaway for you all! How generous am I?!

This time I’m giving away something lovely to drink, (wait, why are you automatically assuming it is gin?) from one of my favourite tea companies, Piacha. So not gin at all, but tea. Which is a lot better for you in the long run and dare I say it, even tastier.

Piacha is not only an online tea store but is also a tea bar on the very glamorous Upper Street in Islington. If I lived in London I would be going there to do my work all the time. In Taunton, when I’m not in my office, I have the choice between Starbucks or Costa, and it all gets a bit depressing after a while.

Why do Taunton cafes not have beautiful things like this? Christmas mulled tea Piacha 1_s

In fact, if you DO live in London and are a freelancer without a desk, I would highly recommend Piacha as a place to go and work. They have a lovely range of teas specially brewed for you to order and relaxing and grown up jazz music is always playing in the background, in amongst chic designer ornaments and pretty things to make tea with. When I visited as part of my London cafe crawl, I felt very proper and grown up indeed sat in there with my laptop doing my work.

I know that most of you don’t live in London, so if Piacha sounds like your kind of place, you can recreate it in your own home by entering my giveaway!

I’m giving the lucky winner a set of coloured teas, one of each colour, which you will get to choose, should you win. Each colour represents a different type of tea – black, green, oolong, herbal, white and rooibos/hibiscus. The prize would not be complete without something special to make your tea in so we’re throwing in a stainless steel tea infuser as well, so you can feel like you are in a glamorous and grown up tea bar even when you are just in your own kitchen that, if it’s anything like mine, usually has a dollop of ketchup encrusted on the counter top.

Piacha tea

To win, all you have to do is take a look at the website and decide which tea you think looks like your cup of tea. (See what I did there?) Leave your answer in a comment on this post, and make sure you let me know you’ve done it in the Rafflecopter widget. There are lots of other ways to enter too – do as many as you can!

The competition will close on Piacha’s first birthday – 16th December at midnight. Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

UK and over 18s only. The winner will be notified within 7 days and has 30 days to claim their prize. Judge’s decision final. By entering the competition you agree to be contacted by Slummy single mummy and Piacha for marketing purposes. You are free to unsubscribe at any time.

Competitions at ThePrizeFinder

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I had a very rock and roll moment last night.

I was overcome by the urge to sort out the kitchen food cupboards, an urge that I’m sure was slightly annoying as my boyfriend was trying to cook a roast dinner at the time. Our kitchen is small and having a girl sat on the floor surrounded by tins of beans and half empty bags of pasta isn’t helpful when you’re trying to check the rise on your Yorkshire puddings.

It was certainly helpful for me though as I discovered that while I had been frantically buying those fruit yo-yo bear things on my Ocado app in a bid to get Belle to eat fruit in some form, I had actually been stockpiling them at the back of the cupboard. I transferred them to an old biscuit tin and discovered I had enough to feed a family of four for roughly eight days.

With my iPad in hand, sat on the lino, I did a spot of food shopping and menu planning and reckon I will have saved a considerable amount of cash, just by taking half an hour to actually think about meals rather than just panic buying various meats.

It got me thinking about other potential ways that I could save money, so here are a few of my thoughts to inspire you:

Reduce, reuse and recycle

As much as I don’t want to be the kind of person who leaps on you the minute you unwrap a present so that they can fold and save the paper, there is a lot to be said for being a bit more thoughtful when it comes to waste. Things like wrapping paper and padded envelopes are stupidly expensive and given the number of padded envelopes that come through the letterbox, I really can’t justify ever having to buy one.

Get the best deal

I’m pretty good at comparing insurance deals and energy suppliers – Belle has at least four Meerkats – but I’m a little ashamed to say that I have never tried sites where you can save money on your monthly bills phone, TV and broadband bills. Silly isn’t it? It’s just not something I’ve ever thought to do, mainly because I’m terrified that it might mean not being connecting to the internet for a period. This is less for me and more for Belle – how would she monitor her Dance Moms Instagram account effectively?? It’s definitely something to think about though. View Post

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What makes a perfect cuppa for you? For me it has to be whole milk. I just don’t see the point of that skimmed nonsense. It’s basically water isn’t it? What’s the point of that? It has to be weak too, none of that vigorous squeezing nonsense. My perfect cup of tea looks a bit like chicken soup. I tried making it without the teabag once – it basically tasted the same.

Cup of tea

To help you create the perfect cup of tea, Virgin Pure are giving away one of their funky WaterBars. They look pretty cool don’t they? Obviously it helps if you have a super funky kitchen like this one, but still, we can’t all be Jamie Oliver.

Virgin Pure WaterBar

To enter, all you have to do is tell Virgin Pure what you think makes the perfect cuppa. (I’m guessing for most people it would be basically the opposite of mine – something that actually tasted of tea.)

Virgin Pure competition

There are two ways to do enter:

  • Follow @VirginPure and tweet your comments using #VirginPurePerfectCuppa
  • Like the Virgin Pure Facebook fan page and tell Virgin Pure what makes the perfect cuppa! Use #VirginPurePerfectCuppa in your comments.

Post by Virgin Pure.

Only Virgin Pure page fans or Twitter followers will be entered into the prize draw.  Full terms and conditions are available here.

So what is a Virgin Pure WaterBar anyway?

Good question. The Virgin Pure WaterBar is small, stylish and sits on your kitchen worktop. (Again, the opposite of me.) It is connected to your mains water supply, purifying tap water and serving it perfectly chilled or boiling hot, thus providing your family with an unlimited supply of purified chilled and boiling water at the touch of a button. Find out more at Virgin Pure.

Disclosure

 

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Not long after we’d met, I regaled Boyfriend with a fascinating tale about Paperchase mugs. It really was a cracking story, involving a detailed analysis of what in my mind makes the perfect mug, and how disappointed I was that Paperchase had reduced the thickness of their rims.

It was almost certainly the moment when Boyfriend realised I was The One.

It did make me wonder though whether it might not be a bad idea to broaden my mug horizons. I drink a lot of tea, so mugs play a large role in my daily life, so it’s normal* that over the years I have developed a Preferred Mug Shape. This is the original Paperchase mug that pretty much encapsulates everything I love about a mug – a good, sturdy shape, not tall and thin, not flaring out at the top into a silly lip, and made of a good chunky china, with a good thick rim.

 "Paperchase mug"

Over the last few months though, I have been experimenting, pushing out my mug boundaries, and now have three new favourites. Talk about living life on the edge.

OK, so what have we got…

Now this is one is a bit of a wild card, as normally I don’t like Emma Bridgewater. This mug though was a gift from a very good friend, and even though it’s shape flies in the face of sensible mug design – (a base wider than the top?? Crazy times) – I do love it, if not least for the message:

"Emma Bridgewater mug"

With this next mug, I am challenging my rim preferences.** Normally I like a mug with thick sides, but this is a finer bone china. I absolutely love the design though. I’m a big fan of waves, and it reminds me of one of my favourite pictures – The Great Wave Off Kanagawa – which I actually have as a laptop cover. This mug comes from My Rosie Lee, a lovely company bringing together British design and manufacturing.

"My Rosie Lee mug"

Last but not least is the newest mug in my collection. This one comes from Ducky Dora and I love its chunkiness. There’s no messing with this mug, it is proper sturdy, hand painted, and made from eco-friendly terracotta. It’s the kind of mug you could wrap your hands around in front of a bonfire on a cool autumn evening.

"Ducky Dora mug"

Now I don’t for a minute believe I’m the only person who is fussy about mugs, so what are your pet mug hates?

*Definitely normal

**Rim preferences are definitely a thing

 

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Dear Mummy,

(What do you think by the way of grown-ups who use the word Mummy? I’ve always thought it came across as childish, but an ex-boyfriend of my sister’s used to say it made us sound terribly posh.)

How are you? I hope you are well.

As I’m sure you are aware, the festive season is nearly upon us. Hoorah! I know you find it hard to choose presents for me, so this year I thought I would write you this little note to help you out.

I was just doing a little spot of work and got rather distracted looking at all the Christmas tea gifts on the Twinings website. I thought I might start a collection of decorative tea caddies to compliment my collection of ‘jugs that look like birds where the milk comes out of their beaks’.

I have stacked these tins from the ‘floral collection’ in order of preference, favourite first. Simply click here to purchase the tea gifts or your (my) choice.

"mulles spice tea"

Mulled wine tea

"Lavender earl grey"

Lavender Earl Grey

"Rose Garden"

Rose Garden

"Blossom Earl Grey"

Blossom Earl Grey

"Jasmine Earl Grey"

Jasmine Earl Grey

Fondest regards,

Your beloved first-born daughter xx

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Have you noticed how everywhere you go now they want to dust your drink with chocolate powder or make some elaborate pattern out of milk froth?

I have to admit that although I know the coffee shop people do it for everyone, and probably loathe the very sight of a coffee bean shaped stencil by the end of the day, it still makes me feel special. I genuinely think I enjoy my drink more when it looks pretty. Simple things etc etc.

Quite often I like to take pictures of my beautiful beverages, in a bid to capture their beauty for ever, and also to make me stop for a minute, reflect on the simple pleasure of a nicely shaped cup, and get a bit of perspective on my day.

Here then, for your amusement, is a little gallery of the delightful drinks I have enjoyed recently.

Cheers!

"hot chocolate"

I heart hot chocolate

"pretty coffee"

I want the moon on a stick. Or on a coffee at least.

"cup of tea"

The cutest milk jug you ever did see

"mint hot chocolate"

Marvelous mint hot chocolate

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Lots of people moan about their partners when they’re in a relationship. I’ve been guilty of it myself in the past – it’s just too easy isn’t it? You don’t want to make a fuss, you want to avoid a row, so instead you content yourself with complaining to your friends over a glass of wine or two, or fantasising about what life might be like if you were single.

Personally though, I’m more than happy to be in a relationship. Yes there may be petty annoyances sometimes, but I think on the whole it’s a pretty good deal. I certainly find it easier than having to spend hours writing witty yet approachable online dating profiles.

I love the intimacy of being able to share my thoughts with someone and not be judged, I love the contentment, being able to relax and be myself, and I love the security of knowing there is at least one person who is putting me at top of their list.

*vomiting noises*

Yes I know it’s soppy but what can I say? I am a happy bunny. Still, I’m not going to go on about it. Instead I’ve been thinking about all the little things that I like about being part of a couple, and have come up with a list of my top seven more light-hearted reasons why I’m glad not to be single:

  1. You never have to worry about dating a man who twiddles the hair on his mole ever again.
  2. You have someone to warm your feet on in bed. My feet get painfully cold, so I really do like this one.
    "cup of tea"

    Tea for two

  3. You can order a take-away without either having to do a pathetic ‘meal for one’ or ordering too much and looking like a greedy pig.
  4. There is someone else in the house who will make you a cup of tea without huffing and puffing and complaining about never having asked to be born.
  5. When you’re really tired at bedtime you can just run upstairs really quickly and the other person has to turn off all the lights and check the doors.
  6. If you are feeling a bit sad, there is someone around who will notice and give you a cuddle.
  7. You can sigh heavily and look wearily at a full bin/overgrown lawn/empty fridge and someone will probably do something about it.

Seriously, what’s not to love? What are your best bits about being in a relationship?

Photo credit – hellojenguine

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This morning I wake at 8.30am to a silent house. Everyone but me is sleeping peacefully and I lie in bed for a while, wondering what to do next. I tiptoe to the toilet, not wanting to wake B and shatter my rare early morning solitude. I come back from the bathroom, cursing every creaky floorboard, open the curtains and get back into bed.

I gaze vacantly for a while out at the cold blue sky. I’m on my own but not alone. My ears are ringing with the silence but I am acutely aware of B asleep in the next room and A asleep above me. What would I do now if they were not here and I had no children? Since the age of 16, too young to have experienced any kind of freedom, my life, my mornings and my routines have been defined by others – by pregnancies, babies and children.

I try to imagine what I might do today if I really were alone, but I can’t quite get my head round the scale of it. What do childless people do exactly on their days off, during holidays, with their lives? What will I do when my days no longer revolve around packed lunches, school pick ups and parental visitation rights?

All the solitary gazing and pondering starts to make me feel a bit panicky. I don’t want to think about just me, I don’t know how and I’m bound to get it wrong. Instead I go downstairs and make a cup of tea deliberately loudly, banging cupboard doors and clattering the spoon noisily in the sink.

By the time I get back, B has woken up and scampered from her bed to mine. “Hello!” she sings, greeting me and the tin of shortbread under my arm with a grin. “I had a lovely sleep, but I missed you.”

I smile back. “I missed you too.”

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