threelilprincesses.com

Blog

  • Aussie Giveaway Linkup #64: Confessional post

    Aussie Giveaway Linkup #64: Confessional post

    Holly at the Devonport Bluff

    Here are some winning confessions from the week:

    • I nervously put up the post “In a desperate bid for chocolate, I’ve opened the Nestle Choc Bits. It looks like we won’t be cooking tomorrow!’’ on Facebook and Twitter last night. I was more than a little shocked at the volume of people who told me I’m not alone in doing this. Who knew!
    • The plan was to last night spend a few hours writing a host of blog posts for here and Mum PR. Instead, I ended up having one mouthful of wine too many and kept getting lured into the above conversation. Concentration fail. How on earth all those famous writers wrote drunk I will never know.
    • There will be a rather exciting event happening here on the blog for mums on September 3. Stay tuned!

    Anyone have any confessions to make? It will never leave the four walls of this blog. Promise. Don’t be shy now!

    OK, onto some other wins. Just click on the links below to start entering some fab Aussie giveaways.

    If you’re a blogger or business wanting to take part in the Aussie Giveaway Linkup:

    1. Only link directly to the giveaway post/s and include the prize and end date in the linky tool below. Link each giveaway separately. If you need to delete it, hover over your link, wait until the red “x’’ appears and click.
    2. Giveaways must be open to Australian residents and be run by Australian-based bloggers or businesses.
    3. Grab the button below to add to your post.
    4. A new list is added each Sunday so bloggers need to add their links weekly.
    5. Start entering the giveaways! Entry is at your own risk. We do not take responsibility for unfulfilled prizes or a blogger/business not abiding by their own terms and conditions.

     



    Aussie Giveaway Linky
    Hosted by Three Lil Princesses



  • My Tasmanian Backyard: Horizon Deluxe Apartments Stanley

    My Tasmanian Backyard: Horizon Deluxe Apartments Stanley

    We set off from home last Saturday – without our two motor mouths. “It just doesn’t feel right without them,’’ The Bloke in the Shed said as we hit the highway for Stanley, in Tasmania’s far North West. That’s what happens when you spend three looooong years without having a night away together. After the constant sickness in our household over the past two months, we were well and truly ready for a break though.

    We stayed at the Stanley Seaview Inn in June with the girls and got a chance to take in Highfield House, Stanley Seaquarium and climbing The Nut. This time, we were treated at the sublime Horizon Deluxe Apartments and didn’t go anywhere. Seriously why would you?

    Horizon Deluxe Apartment Stanley

    It’s hard to describe how incredible this place is.

    The view:

    Horizon Deluxe Apartment Stanley
    The accommodation

    Horizon Deluxe Apartment Stanley Tasmania

    That spa – in all its glorious forms
    Horizon Deluxe Apartment Stanley
    While you may have acknowledged the spa needs to be full before turning on the jets, it doesn’t then pay to start playing around with the buttons (“ooh, look, it has a radio in the spa’’) and accidentally push the “jets’’ button, sending water flying throughout the entire apartment. He then had the cheek to ask if he could listen to the footy on the radio while we were soaking and sipping our champagne. Seriously!

    We ordered dinner from its sister restaurant The Nut View Restaurant, which was sublime. And then had another spa.

    Horizon Deluxe Apartment

    We slipped into the fluffy dressing gowns and watched Spud the movie (review to come) with surround sound and sunk into the gloriously comfy lounge. We’d brought our own movie, not realising there was a selection already there, along with CDs.
    In the morning, when everything was quiet, city slicker Julian heard a noise. He jumped. “What’s that?’’. Me: “Ah, it’s called a cow’’.

    It was enough to prompt him to get out of bed and cook me a full breakfast, with the kitchen bountiful with eggs, bacon, sausages, breads, cereals, orange juice and there was even a Nespresso machine. Although, we didn’t attempt that.

    Horizon Deluxe Apartment Stanley

    While I headed for the rain shower to freshen up before our trip home,

    Horizon Deluxe Apartment Stanley

    Julian spent his time basking in the sun on the front patio, taking in that glorious view – after packing the dishwasher.

    Horizon Deluxe Apartment Stanley

    The apartment, with all its five-star mod cons and perfectly styled decor, was pure luxury. The service was real country style, with nothing too much trouble. It’s hard to fault, to be honest. We would recommend it to anyone who needs to escape and be pampered for a little while. It would be ideal for a honeymoon, anniversary or just a reward for being a good parent. And we all need those.

    To learn more about Horizon Deluxe Apartments at Stanley in Tasmania, visit the site.

    When was the last time you went away with your partner? What about even a date night?

    DISCLOSRE: We received a complimentary night at Horizon Deluxe Apartments. We were not paid for this post. All opinions expressed are my own.

  • Aussie Giveaway Linkup #63: Winning lines

    Aussie Giveaway Linkup #63: Winning lines

    moustache

    Ella: “Look Mum, a ma-tash”. I have no idea why she calls a moustache a “ma-tash”.

    Princess Ella has had some winning lines this week. Like:

    Ella (while I was cooking stir fry): “Mum, if you can’t cook very well, you can always just make easy things that I like – like ice cream!”
    Ella (while eating stir fry): “Mum, this is delicious. You should practice cooking this every night”.

    AND

    While in the bath on Friday night, Ella was blowing bubbles.
    Ella: “Mum, did you hear that? Wow! I can talk underwater”.
    Me: “Darling, I never doubted that for a second”.

    What little gems has your child come out with lately?

    And now for some REAL wins. Just click on the links below to start entering some fab Aussie giveaways.

    If you’re a blogger or business wanting to take part in the Aussie Giveaway Linkup:
    1. Only link directly to the giveaway post/s and include the prize and end date in the linky tool below. Link each giveaway separately. If you need to delete it, hover over your link, wait until the red “x’’ appears and click.
    2. Giveaways must be open to Australian residents and be run by Australian-based bloggers or businesses.
    3. Grab the button below to add to your post.
    4. A new list is added each Sunday so bloggers need to add their links weekly.
    5. Start entering the giveaways! Entry is at your own risk. We do not take responsibility for unfulfilled prizes or a blogger/business not abiding by their own terms and conditions.

     



    Aussie Giveaway Linky
    Hosted by Three Lil Princesses



  • 6. #BloggingPrompts: Make the most of guest posts on your site

    6. #BloggingPrompts: Make the most of guest posts on your site

    Blogging Prompt Guest posts

    After last week’s blogging prompt on opening yourself up to guest posts, a few questions came in, including from Cie and Rhonda, about how to go about pitching to potential guest bloggers and then how to make it work.

    Here are my tips:

    • Pitch to bloggers where the opportunity is mutually beneficial. If you’re a business, for example, maybe look to another mum in business whose blog style is in a similar vein to you and has a similar sized social media following. It’s a great way to help each other out and build each other’s followings.
    • Some bloggers provide guidelines for guest posts, which can make it easier to manage. This can include things like ideal post length, ideal number of images, how many links you’re willing to offer them in the post and what format you like to receive the post in. This prevents any niggling problems down the track.
    • Let the blogger know when their post is going live in advance. Send them a link if you’re able. I would suggest once you’ve scheduled the post, to put the link into bit.ly and share that link with the guest blogger. That way you can both track how much traffic came to it and from where.
    • Once it’s live, make sure to share it on all your social media platforms. It’s good etiquette for the guest blogger to do the same, but many come into blogging unaware of this, so a gentle reminder in your blogger guidelines, and maybe within the context of an email, can help. As mentioned, this is about helping grow each other’s blogs or sites.
    • Likewise, with comments left on the post, it’s generally accepted that the guest blogger will respond – after all, it’s their story they’re sharing. However, you may need to give them a gentle prompt on this. You are welcome to add to the conversation as well, of course.

    You never know, but it may be the start of a relationship where you’re able to continually support each other’s endeavours with future social media shout outs, blog posts and business or blog support. It’s certainly opened up some wonderful relationships for me.

    Do you have any other suggestions to add to the above to make accepting guest posts run smoothly?

    FREE COURSE

    Click the image below to learn how to make money from blogging in this 7-day mini course

    Click Here to Start

  • GUEST POST: Scheduling time for yourself

    GUEST POST: Scheduling time for yourself

    What better timing for a post about scheduling time for yourself than straight after a weekend away with the hubby. Here’s a guest post by the lovely Linda from Mums on the Go. She’s just had her third baby last week and so knows all about the importance of needing to put time aside for yourself.

    * * *

    Since becoming a mother time for myself has become a precious and rare thing. Partly from the natural change in life that occurs with young children, partly because we have no family nearby and partly because my husband and I have always been people with a lot of commitments in life which leaves us little “spare” time.

    When we returned to Sydney before Christmas my husband and I sat down and talked about the changes we wanted to create in our life. By returning to the city we call “home”, we felt better equipped to set up more supportive routines for the family. Time for ourselves was a big priority and we knew the only way to make it happen was to create a family plan for the week.

    It looks like this and is pinned to the fridge:

    time to yourself plan

    You will notice there is nothing high tech or beautiful about our plan. However, creating a basic chart was essential to having us commit to the changes we wanted to see.

    Some people might think it is a bit formal to have a plan like this, but it really works for us.

    As a result:

    • I have been able to go to yoga once a week and my husband usually joins me if he is in Sydney;
    • My husband paddles two mornings a week with his friends when he is in town;
    • During daylight savings we went for a family walk on Friday evenings, which usually included a brief stop at a local park for the kids;
    • We have managed to book a monthly date night;
    • My husband remembers he is on dinner duty Sunday night … some of the time;
    • The only thing on the plan that didn’t really happened is my Wednesday morning swims … Basically because I fell pregnant just after creating the plan and felt too ill to swim in the mornings. By the time I felt better it was too cold in the mornings.

    I know that time for mysef helps me be a better mum, wife and quite simpy a happier human being, so I am glad we have taken steps as a family to make this more of a priority.

    Do you manage to have time for yourself each week? How does it work in your house?

    Linda Anderson Mums on the GoLinda Anderson is Mum of three kids under five, the founder of Mums on the Go and principal coach of a2a coaching. For more tips and resources about caring for your own needs visit the Mums on the Go website or follow on Facebook or Twitter.

  • I Love Linen winner and a gift

    I Love Linen winner and a gift

    The lucky winner of the $120 I Love Linen store credit is

    I Love Linen

    Melissa Te Whata

    Congratulations, Melissa!

    But wait, just like a good infomercial, there’s more! Not steaks knives. Sorry. But equally as good.

    The lovely ladies at I Love Linen saw all your comments about wanting to upgrade your linen, so they’re offering an exclusive FREE SHIPPING invitation – for Three Li’l Princesses readers only. A few quick clicks, and a beautifully wrapped parcel will arrive at your door in a few days – just like mine.

    I Love Linen

    Enter “LoveFreeShipping” at the check out to claim your offer.

    You all know how much I love my soft, smooth sheets, but I also am happy I’m able to support a family run business with three passionate women intent on providing high quality at prices we mums can afford.

    So, what should Melissa spend her store credit on, do you think?