Our Favourite Five – January
January has been a crazy busy month and I have been trying to spin too many plates at the same time. We’ve had illnesses, my ongoing ear problems and poor old M has been suffering with nosebleeds the last few days too. Still, it’s not all been bad. The nursery bear came to visit and I took M to the theatre by himself for the first time.
Here are our top five favourites for the month.
1. Silent Night Mattress
Back in November, I won some Love2Shop vouchers with Mumsnet. At the time, we talked about buying bunk beds for the boys with the money but as it was something we were going to buy anyway we decided to spend the money on a much needed new mattress for our bed. Our old mattress was almost 10 years old and was starting to give me backache – never a good sign! We decided to go with the Silent Night Miracoil mattress and I can honestly say since having it my backache has gone and I am getting a much better nights sleep!
2. Gold Books!
E this week as he has just moved up another reading level and is now on Gold books. I am one proud mama! Although it can be a bit of an arduous task having to read with him every evening. it is obviously paying off. He is reading so well and has really gotten the hang of expression.
3. Chinese Face!
This photos is one of my favourites this month. It just cracks me up. M is attempting his cheesy Chinese pose here and of course can’t do thumbs up properly! I have such cheeky boys!
4. Friday Fun
M and I enjoyed our first trip to the theatre just the two of us. I need to make the most of my Fridays (I work 4 days a week) with him because soon he will be at nursery 5 mornings a week and I will be forced to come to terms with the fact that he really is no longer a baby anymore *sob!*
5. Toy Fair 2016
I went to Toy Fair for the first time this year. I didn’t really know what to expect but had an amazing day even though it was quite hectic. My head was literally buzzing from seeing so many toys! I got to meet some of the brands I have worked with in person though so it was great to put names to faces.
Hanging out with @amomentwithfranca and Care Bears at #toyfair2016 today #toys #children #carebears A photo posted by Suburban Mum (@suburbanmum) on
That’s our favourites for January – what were yours?
Linky rules
Each month I will list five things that my family and I have been into – be it a favourite song/band, new programme on tv, item of food, gadget place(s) we have visited etc…
You are very welcome to join in and do the same OR post any of your own favourites – pretty much any top 5 list goes.
- Please grab my badge (below) and add it to your post, or link to me via a text link
- Post your link at the bottom of this page
- Use the hashtag #OurFaveFive on twitter and tweet me @suburb4nmum with the url of your linked up blog post and I will RT
- Leave me a comment and I will comment on each post linked up
- The linky will open the last friday of each month
- That’s it – enjoy! I hope you find some new things to try

Copy and paste this HTML code onto your blog post:
*By linking up to Our Favourite Five you are also agreeing to receiving a monthly reminder email. Your email will NOT be used for any other purposes.
[inlinkz_linkup id=602791 mode=1]

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We enjoyed the glorious sunshine this weekend with a trip to Brighton. We went on the @brightoni360official which is right by the sea front.
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Afterwards, we headed to the open air roller rink for a roller skating session!
The roller rink is:
⭐ Suitable for over 5s
⭐ £6.50 if you have your own skates or £9.50 if you need to hire them
⭐ 45 minutes per session
Full details to visit the i360 + skating
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🚗 Parking nearby (we parked in the Regency Square Car park)
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☕️ Bar inside the i360, cafe and gift shop
Book tickets here:
https://tickets.brightoni360.co.uk/tickets/?_ga=2.195305772.1869001490.1689671753-1757164059.1689671753/#events?eventid=157](https://suburban-mum.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/417980235_313576471048632_3682382982231216432_n.jpg)

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We are really lucky that our local Laser Quest (@laserquestkingston) is just around the corner from us. It means we can pop in of a weekend or anytime during the school holidays, and with summer just around the corner, I know Laser Quest will be one of our go-to places for some family fun.
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![[AD] The sun has finally made an appearance and the boys have been making the most of it by spending it 
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If you like the sound of Barracudas, find out more over on their website. You can also save £20 a week or £4 a day, using my discount code: MARIA20](https://suburban-mum.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/336812306_765234558514317_685553691647241974_n.jpg)


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16 thoughts on “Our Favourite Five – January”
Oh no I hope you start to feel better soon, I think bugs hang around at this time of year. We need a new mattress too but every time we go to look for one, there is too much choice ha! The picture of your boys is so cute, they are both so sweet! It looks like a good month despite the bugs. Thank you for hosting xx
Thanks Lisa – there is definitely so much going around at the moment. We had the same problem with the mattress but we are so pleased with it now we’ve got it! x
I really enjoyed this post and love the pictures of your sons they are so so cute. The toy fair sounds fantastic too and you got to see Franca! Angela popping by from #KCACOLS
Thanks Angela – it was lovely catching up with Franca. Makes such a difference going round these sorts of place with a pal! x
The Toy fair looks great fun, lovely picture of you and Franca #KCACOLS
Yay to a new mattress! I am a bit jealous you had your picture with a care bear I loved care bears when I was younger! #KCACOLS
I know I used love them too! My sister loved them even more though! x
Ohhh a new mattress is such a wonderful thing! Also, the toy fair looks totally ace. I need a giant care bear in my life 🙂 #KCACOLS
What a great linky idea! the toyfair looks great, i love carebears :p (i mean loved….. ) Thanks so much for linking up at #KCACOLS. Hope you come back again next Sunday
Thanks Charlotte – would love to have you join in if you fancy it? The linky is open on the last Friday of every month xx
Aww honey this is a lovely month even though I know you guys have been ill. Take care of yourself in Feb and hope to see you soon. #OurFaveFive
Well done E on the reading level! Such a clever boy xx Really hope you are all feeling better soon. Try and get some R&R, I know us Mum’s struggle with that though xx #OurFaveFive
What an awesome idea for a linky! I’ll have to have a think. Thanks for sharing and well done on the reading level! X #kcacols
Love this idea! Hopefully I’ll remember to link up next time. We’ll done E on how well you are doing on your reading! Oh how darling is that picture of your boys. The toy fair sounds exciting as well.xx #KCACOLS
Great picture of your boys, so cheeky looking. Great on going up a level with the reading too! #KCACOLS
Well done on E’s reading. My son’s levels are counted by numbers, so not sure the equivalent to gold, but I’m lucky he loves reading. My youngest starts school and September and I thin it will be harder for him.
I bet you to toy fair was interesting. In my previous job I used to attend and visit lots of trade fairs, it’s nice but exhausting