London Mums Blog

Free and affordable half-term and Halloween suggestions for the under fives in central London ...

If you do not have school-age children yet, you likely are not aware that this week is half-term.  Many small playgroups will be closed and the museums will be packed but there is still on lot going on for even the teeniest of the Under Five’s in Central London.

The Westminster Children’s Centres and the neighbourhood pools will be open; you should ring ahead just to confirm that the times have not changed.  Battersea 1 O’clock club will also remain open from 1 – 4 daily for the under fives. 

If you want to fight the crowds, the Museum of London has some amazing activities for the over 3’s, as does the Transport Museum (£10 per adult with no fee for children, or £30 for an annual family pass).  The V and A has a ceramic workshop where you can make beads or plates.  The Foundling Museum and the National Gallery have storytelling sessions.  The Tate has a great Halloween session.  Whole Foods Market will have some activities as listed below.

You’ve seen the Changing of the Guards, but what about the Guard’s Museum?

Whether you’re brand new to London or have lived there all your life, “24 Hours: London” has something for you. Catering to everyone from tourists to foodies, shopaholics and spa addicts, this dynamic guide is packed full of well-known and totally unusual things to do in London. You’ve seen the Changing of the Guards, but what about the Guard’s Museum? 

This user-friendly guide gives you opening hours, contact information, travel directions and even tube stops. What makes it unique however, is how the information is presented. Author Marsha Moore breaks down the day, hour by hour, around the clock and gives you the best London has to offer. Jet-lagged and raring to go at 5 in the morning? Bored at 3pm? No problem, Moore has plenty of suggestions. From fish markets to phantom houses, bat-walks to burlesque teas, Marsha Moore covers it all!

The curse of the common cold

The whole family is suffering from colds at the moment. I rarely got colds before our son was born and now in his ten months of life, I’ve lost count of the number of colds we’ve all had and how many sick days my husband’s taken!

Being ill with a baby is in itself something challenging too. You can’t just have a duvet day and wallow in your own self-pity when there’s a little one to look after. They are miserable with their sniffles and you are miserable with yours and it all makes for some long days. Parents of older children tell us how it only gets worse, as once they attend school they pick up bugs all the time.

In a desperate attempt to reduce the number of colds we get (as we move into prime cold-catching season), I researched cold prevention and the best ways to deal with a cold when you do have one. I learnt that I don’t spend long enough washing my hands – you’re meant to sing ‘Happy Birthday’ twice as a measure of how long to wash and rub your hands.

star struck….the holly and the ivy…

Yes, I know it’s too early for Christmas carols but I can never resist a pun, so this is just a quick update on my night up West with one of my favourite gal pals – Ruthy Ruth who helped me get my work mojo back many months ago. We loved The Ivy – all swank and bubbles, a fab place for a pre theatre supper if ever I found one.

The show was great too.

The Chelsea Physic Gardens (with kids)

Heavenly Idyll in Bustling Chelsea ... If you don’t mind keeping your children from trampling rare species of plants and herbs gathered from around the world.

From inside the walls of the Physic Gardens, one feels a surge of nostalgia taking in the views of ordered rows of trees, blossoms and plants set against the red brick walls of the gardens and the Victorian mansion blocks and houses outside.  One might even sappily confess to feeling what Chelsea may have been like during Queen Victoria’s reign.  The contrast of the grass and gravel paths, flowering shrubs, lazy willow branches to the unseen, but presence nonetheless, of chaotic traffic outside the garden makes the case for a trip to the Chelsea Physic Gardens.

Half term fun at the National Gallery

As you may know, the National Gallery does fab FREE children's events on Sundays. The good news is that they have scheduled some extras for the October half-term break. The best part is that you can book the half term events in advance.

WHAT: Magic Carpet storytelling

WHO: under-5s

WHEN: Tuesday 27 to Saturday 31 October 2009; 11.30am

COST: free!

WHAT: Light On The Water: Make an exciting panorama with boats floating on clear blue water under a dazzling sky. Join artist Harriet Mena Hill for layers of fun in this collage workshop.

Wild Child Potty larges it up at U2

So, that's it. I am officially Old. Not because I have reached yet another significant birthday. God no, I only made 40 two years ago thankyou very much, I'm in no hurry to reach - sudden sharp intake of breath - fi.. fiff... .

I can't even bring myself to write it, let alone say it.

Although of course by the time I do get to fi... my half cen... (there's no pretty way to say forty-ten, is there?) it will no doubt be the new 40. Or, if I'm lucky, have won the lottery, and am fortunate enough to live somewhere with continual soft-focus lighting, the new 38...

Heinz secret ability competition

Heinz is running a secret ability contest -- all you need to for a chance to win £1k is video your "secret ability" and enter it in the contest. If you don't have a secret ability, the fine print suggests you are allowed to make one up.

So far there are no entries so I'd say you'd have a darn good chance of winning if you entered.

Here's some inspiration if you need it:

This post is written by Susanna, a London Mums Blog founding contributor. You can read more at her blog,A Modern Mother.

This is a sponsored post.

The West End draws families by day; theatre goers by night

With some inside guidance, the West End is an extremely pleasant and child friendly destination for families, especially those with under 5’s in tow.  Museums, playgrounds and outdoor areas and some great family-friendly places to eat that are somewhat well suited for pushchairs and noisy children make The West End a great place to take little ones for the day.  Here is just a few of the temptations that call...
 
The National Gallery: While there are no exhibits in this museum particularly pitched to little ones, there is The Magic Carpet Ride for the Under 5’s.  Every Sunday, at 10:30 and 11:30, in the education wing (which is the opposite side of the entrance on Trafalgar Square) a docent gathers families for a prompt start to the activity.  After in introduction and discussion of the rules, the group walks through the galleries and sits in front of a work of art to listen to a story about the picture and sing a song.  It is priceless and FREE!!   

On giant shagging bunny rabbits

really should have been paying more attention, but when someone said, ‘Proms‘, you said ‘How high?’ without really enquiring too much further into the matter.

You did manage to glean that it was a Purcell concert, but you failed even to find out what was being played.

Which was probably a good thing. You have recently decided that you don’t go to enough classical concerts to waste one by repeating yourself too often and as it turned out you’d already seen this particular piece at at the Proms.