The Perfect Bonfire Night with Blog Me Beautiful
27th October 2017
The wonderful lifestyle and family blogger Emily behind Blog Me Beautiful shares how she celebrates Bonfire Night with her family. Below Emily provides some tips and tricks for the essentials of Bonfire Night.
I love autumn. The beautiful change in the leaves, wrapping up in chunky knits and being able to hibernate under a blanket with a cup of hot tea – teamed with the promise of the Christmas festivities in the coming months. It is one of my favourite times of the year!
The two main events that punctuate the cosy season are Halloween and Bonfire Night – both of which I’ve always been keen to celebrate with our little family. Picking our own pumpkins, getting little Sophie dressed up and taking her ‘trick or treating’ to our neighbours, are October essentials. As soon as we turn over the calendar it’s firework displays galore!
To get us in the mood, we’ve had a small family bonfire night of our own, at our new house that we moved into at the end of August. Safety is a big concern with a toddler, so instead of an open fire, we’ve used our fire pit, that we actually bought to use over the summer months. Although I love all the traditional fireworks, we opted for extra long sparkers.
Little ones see the magic in the everyday. Sophie is always pointing out what she spots as we drive along, finding laughter and delight in details I would otherwise look past. She said I was like a fairy with a magic wand when I lit the sparklers and she was captivated looking into the fire with her daddy – I can’t wait for her to experience the ‘real’ event.
We’ve had a really mild October, so it’s going to be a bit of shock to the system when the cold weather arrives. Staying outside watching a display can make you a little chilly (even with a nice mug of mulled wine) so layering up is key. Big knits and long hooded waterproof parkas are essentials in my book, for all the family. Sophie may well pull off hats and gloves, but I know she’ll keep her coat on – so getting this right is what really counts. The end of the October half term is ‘putting the heating on’ time, so, making sure you’ve got a thin layer on underneath your woolies is always a good idea. You can shed layers when you move indoors to continue the celebrations.
Sausage buns, toasted marshmallows and toffee apples are all on my November to-eat list, but is there anything better than getting home, slippers on, candles lit and snuggling up on the sofa with a lovely cup of tea? Thought not.
A Q&A with Blog Me Beautiful
What is your favourite Bonfire night memory?
I’ve always loved bonfire night. I remember one year when I was little that my dad knew how desperate I was to go that he organized, for just him and myself to go together. I spent the whole display mesmerised sitting on his shoulders, an evening I will never forget.
What are you looking forward to most this Bonfire Night?
Now Sophie is two, she is starting to understand all of the celebrations. She loves sparklers – telling me that they are magic fairy wands! We are planning to go to the local bonfire and firework display, which is followed by sausages in buns and mulled wine at our friend’s house – I can’t wait!
Have you got any Bonfire Night traditions?
Sparklers are an essential – obviously. As impressive as the big, expensive fireworks, is there really anything better than a sparkler?
What is your top tip for keeping the little ones entertained?
Hanging out with friends who have similar aged children is always brilliant as they always keep each other occupied.
How do you capture the perfect family firework photo?
The trick is to take as many as you can, and odds are, there will be a few perfect ones there. Try to take them as early on in the evening as you can, as using a flash isn’t going to capture the fireworks as well as your little ones expression.
What are your key layering pieces?
November is when it really starts to get chilly outside, and also when the heating gets put on. There is nothing worse than overheating, so having a thin layer underneath your cosy knitwear means you can take them off when you go inside.
What is your go-to Bonfire Night clothing piece?
I love a cosy roll neck. It means you don’t need to faff with a scarf, unless you want to.
Thank you to our dear friend Emily for collaborating with us for this post.
What are you and your family up to this Bonfire Night? Comment below.
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