The Sunnmøre Museum, Ålesund, Norway

The second port stop on our recent Norwegian cruise was Ålesund, and we spent a lovely few hours visiting the Sunnmøre Museum, located a few kilometres outside the town centre. The open air museum is spread over an area of 50 acres and contains more than 55 well preserved buildings which trace the history of the area from the Middle Ages to the early 20th century. The museum also has a large boat collection along with replicas of Viking ships.

We travelled to the museum by bus, which cost us NOK 105 each way for our family (two adults and two children) and took about ten minutes. The bus station is located just outside the cruise terminal and there are buses about every fifteen minutes, you need a number 618 or 624. It was quite straightforward to find the correct bus, and we asked the driver to let us know when we needed to get off. There are also plenty of taxis available from the cruise port, and from overhearing another family on the way back I believe that they cost around the same price.

On the day that we visited, the museum was hosting a private event organised by the Disney cruise and so it shut at 1pm. It's an infrequent occurrence but it's worth checking the website before you visit just in case! It was also a busy day with guided tour groups from both our cruise ship and another that was in port on the same day, but we managed to overtake, and as long as we kept out of their way we had plenty of room to explore!

We followed the suggested route around the museum from the guidebook, which has plenty of information about the buildings you see. There was also often extra detailed information in English inside the buildings. We started our tour in the Boat Hall, a large building that houses a superb collection of original and replica boats.

Elsewhere in the museum is a boat building workshop where you can see how the boat was constructed using a beam hung lengthways down the middle of the building in a design related to that of Viking era longhouses which was really interesting to see.

I really liked these small buildings called the Kyrkjebuder - Church Huts. They are little sheds, used for storage, and also for eating and changing in after travelling all day to get to church.

Some of the buildings are placed around a little lake, like this Fjordmannstova - shelter for the men from the fjords that came to fish and couldn't return home every night. This hut was built in 1868 for two fishing crews.

The Stabbur below was used for storing cereal, flatbread, salted and dried meat and fish and dates back to around 1600. The children were fascinated by the fact that it was raised above the ground and were desperate to crawl underneath, but I would only let them sit under it for a quick photo, it made me too nervous!

The children really enjoyed exploring all the different buildings at the museum, and there were plenty of steps and ladders for them to climb and open areas to run around in.

You can read more about what we did in Alesund and what we got up to in the other ports on our cruise here.

We received complimentary admission to the museum in exchange for a review. A family ticket costs NOK 170 (approx. £15 at time of writing).

Review - Fun stationery products from Tinc

I was recently contacted by Tinc and asked if I'd like to review some of their stationery products. Tinc stands for 'Think, Inspire, Create' and there are a number of Tinc stores across the UK as well as an online shop. Tinc sell a huge range of fun colourful and cheerful products, and we were sent a few bits and pieces from their range to try out.

Mia was thrilled with this water bottle and is delighted to be able to replace her boring school water bottle.

The drinks bottle comes in a gift set with a snap wristband and a silicone wristband as well as a keyring that you can add your name to, it will be perfect for school and it's so bright it will definitely stand out in the classroom tray!

Harry loved this Strawberry scented stationery bundle from the new 'Tasty Tincs' range. The set includes a scented ruler and pencils along with a pen. It's a really smart set and would make a lovely gift.

I claimed the gorgeous strawberry keyring to hang on my bag!

Finally we were sent a lovely selection of scented food erasers. I think that they are far too nice to use as erasers though! They are really sweet, and the perfect size to use with dolls or ponies. They are rather smelly, and very sturdy so they can be played with and carried about without damaging them.

We were sent these products in exchange for a review. 

Our cruise to Norway aboard the Disney Magic

Over the May half-term we spent a week exploring the Norwegian Fjords aboard the Disney Magic cruise ship. It was our fifth family cruise, our second Disney cruise, our first visit to Norway, and a fantastic holiday.

This was our first time sailing on the Disney Magic, and it's the smallest cruise ship that we have sailed on before, although it is still a very large ship with plenty to do on board!

One of the great things about this itinerary was that the ship was able to dock very close to all the ports. In the past we've found ourselves miles from a city centre, whereas on this holiday we were able to walk easily from the ship to where we wanted to be, which was brilliant. We visited four Norwegian towns on our cruise - Stavanger, Alesund, Geiranger and Bergen, and they were all lovely. One of the scenic highlights was the journey between Geiranger, located deep in the heart of the fjords, and Alesund.

One thing that Disney has spot on when it comes to cruises is family friendly activities and entertainment. Our children aren't keen on being left alone in the kids club which is a bit of a shame as there is plenty going on. However there were lots of 'open house' sessions where we could go in along with the children, and activities that we could all take part in together like carving a racing car from soap, painting an animation cell, general crafting, and playing in the play area. There were also plenty of other family activities taking place around the ship.

The evening entertainment was also superb, with a fantastic show each night. It was mainly Disney themed shows with amazing costumes, singing and dancing inspired by Disney films and characters, and we were also treated to a hilarious juggling and comedy act from Pete Matthews and a fab magic show from Hector is Magic.

The cruise had a Frozen theme, and one day the ship was decorated with snowflakes and icicles overnight. We enjoyed a Frozen themed dinner, and then a late night Frozen show - Freezing the Night Away - with a dance party and stage show on deck, culminating in a mass 'Let it Go' singalong.

There were plenty of opportunities to see the Disney characters, and our normally shy children were thrilled at the opportunity to meet and greet their favourites. Mia's little face in particular lit up when she saw her princesses, and they are so good at interacting with the children. Mia wore a different princess dress every day, sometimes two, and even Harry joined in the dressing up!

You can see my stateroom tour with video here, and the cruise has left me with plenty to write about over the next few weeks, with lots more to share about the ports that we visited and some of our favourite attractions.

This was our second Disney cruise - we were lucky enough to enjoy a Caribbean cruise aboard the Disney Fantasy in 2013. You can read some posts about that cruise here:

Our Caribbean cruise on the Disney Fantasy
Ports and Excursions on our Disney Caribbean cruise
Our Caribbean cruise on the Disney Fantasy - Practicalities with small children

I'm going to BritMums Live 2016! #BML16

This year I'll be attending BritMums Live, #BML16, for the fourth time! I love going to BritMums, it really is one of my highlights during the year. I love meeting up with both familiar and new faces and I always find the sessions really inspiring. This year the format is slightly different with the entire conference taking place over one day, so I'm travelling up the day before and staying the Friday night in the Travelodge.

This year I am lucky enough to be sponsored to attend BritMums by Make it Coats. I have been a Make it Coats Ambassador since I first met them in the Craft Lounge at BritMums last year. They tried to teach me crochet on the day which was a bit of a fail, but they subsequently invited me to take part in a crochet along using Patons yarn. It really inspired me to get to grips with crochet, and I've been flying with it ever since! I've completed a couple of lovely craft projects using their products, and the one that I'm most proud of remains the Patons crochet along afghan, a lovely blanket that I'm so proud of.

So here is some information about me, and if you spot me please do come and say hello, I'm absolutely terrible at recognising faces!

My name: Jennifer

My blog: Jennifer's Little World

Find me on social media at: 

Twitter - https://twitter.com/JenniferJain
Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/jenniferjain
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/jenniferslittleworldblog/
Pinterest - https://uk.pinterest.com/jenniferjain/
YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/user/jenniferjain1

How I look: Brown hair, probably in a pony tail, and glasses. I'm fairly short!

Is this my first blogging event? No, as well as BritMums I've also been to Blog On Winchester and a few other smaller events.

I will be wearing… I've not decided yet but it's a fair bet that it will be jeans, a t-shirt and trainers!

What I hope to gain from #BML16: A fun couple of days away meeting some old friends and hopefully making new ones, as well as learning lots in the sessions. I'm particularly interested in the creative side of blogging so I'll be looking out for sessions focused around that (although I must admit that last year I ended up not going to many sessions as I was too busy chatting and wandering about!)

My tips for a great conference: Remember that other people are just as nervous as you are. Try not to stick with the same familiar people all the time and chat to new people as well. Take an extra bag for the bits and pieces you'll collect and wear clothes that you feel comfortable in. Take an external charger for your phone!

I've joined up with the I'm Going to BritMums Live linky where you can get to know other conference attendees before the big day!

Disney Magic Stateroom Tour and Video - 1048 Deluxe Oceanview Stateroom

On our recent cruise aboard the Disney Magic we stayed in Stateroom 1048, a Deluxe Oceanview Stateroom, and I thought I'd write a little review of our stateroom in case it is helpful to anyone researching a cruise aboard the Disney Magic. I would imagine that all the staterooms in this class will be very similar.

You can have a look around the stateroom in this little video tour that I put together:

Stateroom 1048 sleeps four people, and is located on Deck 1. It's very close to the Midship elevators and also close to the Forward elevators. It's in an excellent location for the front gangway when you are in port (the one which was used on three of our four stops) meaning you don't need to worry about waiting for elevators when you are leaving and entering the ship. It's also only a few floors below the Walt Disney Theatre, so if you are coming back to the room after a show you can avoid the crowds waiting for the elevator by using the stairs straight back to the room. To get to the other end of the ship from Deck 1 rooms you do need to go up to a higher deck and walk across, but this only affected us when we wanted to get to Cabanas directly from our room, as on all the other decks you can walk the entire length of the ship.

We found that the location of the room meant it was very quiet. There is no noise from any of the ship's entertainment and only a very little corridor noise from people returning to their rooms. The motion from the sea in the room was much less than that in other areas of the ship.

The room has two small portholes instead of one large window, but this wasn't a problem for us as I just enjoy having a window, and it meant that the children could look out of one window each! I believe that rooms in the same class on higher decks have the one larger porthole.

The stateroom has a fridge which is always handy to have, and plenty of storage space with lots of drawers and cupboards. The bed is raised high which means that you can easily stash suitcases, strollers and so on underneath, and there was also plenty of hanging space in the wardrobe. There is also a safe and hair dryer.

There are two small bathrooms which is really useful in a family room. One has a toilet and sink, the other has a sink and a bath. Although the bath tub isn't a full length bath, you can fill it deep and it was large enough for two children at once!

The bed is big, comfortable and fills up most of the width of the room, but the back half of the room is very spacious even when the bunk beds are set up. There is a thick curtain to pull across the room, and it means that you can put children to bed earlier and not worry about disturbing them if you want to sit and read or use the bathroom. The television is on their side of the curtain, but you can swing it over to your side of room if you want to watch it while they are sleeping.

While you are eating your evening meal the stateroom attendant will set up the bunk beds and they will be put away for the day at some point in the morning. You aren't able to set them up yourself, but there will always be someone around to put them out for you if children want to nap during the day. The top bunk felt safe for children and there is a light near the ceiling.

The room is filled with plenty of little Disney touches! It was clean, well maintained, and suited us perfectly.

If you have any questions about the stateroom or about a Disney cruise in general please do leave a comment, I'd be happy to help!

My Sky Blanket in May #skyblanket2016

My Sky Blanket is now complete! Here is a link to the completed Sky Blanket. 

Here is how my blanket progressed throughout the year - January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September, October, November and December.

If you have found this page because you would like to make your own Sky Blanket, you might like these posts:

Tips for completing a Sky Blanket

My Sky Blanket - What I would do differently next time

We are flying through the year now and my Sky Blanket is definitely looking blanket like! Here are my previous updates - January, February, March and April - and here is how my blanket is looking now!

I'm still working diligently away although I must admit that I'm not being as conscientious about doing my row daily, instead I tend to do three rows or so at once. Also, either this month hasn't been as interesting weather wise or else I've seen most of what the sky has to offer now with regard to the palette of colours that I'm using, as it's been pretty dull in terms of different stitches or embellishments! I did however add in a little anchor bead for the first day of our cruise holiday over half term.

My crochet is definitely improving and I'm pretty sure that I'm not losing or gaining stitches at the end of rows anymore, I've learned where I need to insert the hook to make the last stitch of the row. The edges are looking a little wobbly though, I'm really hoping that adding a border at the end will smooth it all out a bit.

There have been a few grey patches but overall there has been plenty of blue emerging as well, perhaps I don't need to panic yet about running out of grey yarn!

There was a group of us taking part in the Sky Blanket project throughout 2016, and you can find us across social media, in particular Instagram, using the hashtag #skyblanket2016. The project was started by Bug, Bird & Bee, The Boy and Me and You Little Sew and Sew.

If you aren't sure if a Sky Blanket is the project for you, you might like this blog post with some more ideas for a year long craft project.

With many thanks to Make it Coats for supplying me with the yarn for this project.

Crafting is my Therapy June 2016

Welcome back to month 5 of Crafting is my Therapy hosted by myself and Me, You and Magoo! I am really enjoying co-hosting the linky and I've discovered some fantastic new blogs, it's lovely to see what a variety of things people have been working on.

This month, my Sky Blanket continues to grow. My Mum took this photo a couple of weeks ago when I was visiting her, and you can see how large it's getting! It's nice and warm to sit under now when I'm working on it, although the wrong time of year really - I'm looking forward to snuggling up under it while I work on it towards the end of the year! I've not done much in the way of different stitches this month but it's been nice to see a lot more blue showing up and interestingly the sky seems to have been more settled lately, I've been using the same colour for several days in a row.

I've also been having a go with a bead loom that my Mum bought me from Tiger. It's a lovely little loom, and although I've made a start with the beads included in the kit I can see it working really well with larger beads and yarn too, so I'll be trying out a few different things!