This week has been very busy, with work and life. My recipe for today isn’t actually for food, but for fun.

Ingredients and method:

• Take one daughter, aged about 15
• Take one Body Shop open late with invited guests only
• Add a Mum who blogs
• Take some birthday cash and pocket money and spend it wisely

I was lucky enough to wangle an invitation to The Body Shop, Liverpool, where they were holding a Mother’s Day promotional event for bloggers. I’m not usually a great one for going: I dislike the idea that I have to write a review afterwards, and that I feel beholden and like I should be polite. But I like the Body Shop; I remember when it first opened and Anita Roddick was in charge. Back then it had strict policies on recycling, reusing, being green, being organic. I don’t know how much of that still remains, but I do know they’ve lasted well.

The shop in Bold Street Liverpool is a lovely sized shop, not to big or too small, and there were about 15 bloggers there, all told. I didn’t want to go alone, so I took my daughter with me. She’s 15 and just loves beauty stuff, like make up and body lotions, so this was a real treat for her.

With chilled Prosecco or smoothies as a treat, we passed a very pleasant hour there, trying out perfumes, testing hand creams and even having a foundation match session. The lovely sales assistant looked after me very well, and made me up after we matched the foundation.

A rare shot of me in front of the camera! I’m usually the one holding it, so make the most of me while you can.

It’s a rare chance for me to take one child out solo, and I’m very conscious that time is flying past so very quickly. Once we would have gone to the Sylvanian Family toyshop. Now we go to the Body Shop and Sarah is more interested in the make up and smellies than I am. I’ve reached a point where I know what I like and very often I stick to it. Friday was a rare chance to smell a lot of new scents, and to try out new things, with the girl I love best in the world.

Sometimes we argue, but mostly Sarah and I get along well. She acts like a child at times, and at others is so grown up. She wants her chocolate making at night and likes to be waved off to school, but she can cook a whole meal and does the washing virtually single handed. 15 is a strange age, on the cusp of adulthood and yet not far enough away from childhood for the glimmer of the past to have left. No, there are no pictures of her. She refused to let me.

If we hadn’t have been out early the next morning, I might have taken her for a meal into town afterwards, as it was we went home for paella instead. Sarah loves her mango scented bubble bath and body spray: she’s a daemon for a fruity bath! And my purchases? I got some light Fuji Green Tea Eau de Cologne. It sounds weird, but it’s very citrussy, just perfect for our mythical spring and summer. Oh, and my Mum’s Mother’s Day treats… I can’t tell you, just in case she reads the blog.

Spending time with Sarah gave me a feeling of real hygge: time with close family, away from real life and free to talk together. By the end of the evening we’d talked school, friends, blog, book, work. We definitely felt closer.

I must give Sarah Shaw of The Body Shop who organised the event a big shout out…. thank you Sarah and I’d be delighted to come to any more! And please pass on my thanks to the staff members who were lovely and smiley all the night long.

And the official stuff:

The evening was arranged and paid for by The Body Shop but all products that I bought were paid for by me and weren’t promotional. I have no official affiliation with The Body Shop.

My blog is on Facebook as How to Hygge the British Way and you can now follow me on Bloglovin as well. I’m personally also on Twitter and Instagram and as a member of The Hygge Nook on Facebook.

My book, 50 Ways to Hygge the British Way is available in Paperback and Kindle version from Amazon from March 17th. That’s this Friday. I have a giveaway for the book about to start this week. The contents of the blog are entirely different from the blog, so don’t worry that it’s just posts rehashed. Not yet, anyway. If you purchase through the links on this page, I get a couple of pence extra per copy.

****How to Hygge the British Way Blog isn’t monetised. I have taken the decision that I want to remain neutral and not to promote things just because. I will only ever review items that I have bought myself, or that I think will help to promote hygge in a busy life. To do this, I need support. Even just the price of a coffee adds up to a book over time, and it means I can stay independent. Would you help? Please consider clicking through to paypal.me/HyggeJem and leaving even a small amount. I’d be very grateful. Thank you.***