The VOIP phones will allow you to make telephone calls through your internet service provider as opposed to using the monopolise BT lines. A bummer for BT but cheaper for us as we will have the internet connection anyway - why pay for a phone line we don’t need?

The only drawback for the present time is that internet connections, particularly residential ones, can become easily congested and this can lead to lost connections and thus lost calls. However, technology advances every day and this aspect is being worked on. Indeed, we are all being promised better internet connectivity through various companies and teh more advances that are made, the less likely we are to have to rely on BT - that can’t be a bad thing!

You see, with our overcrowded planet it is becoming increasingly neccessary to take better care of it. We need to save the organic life such as trees which supply us with a cleaner breathing environment and certain times of the year cause an influx of paper usage by us sending cards.

Now, there can be nobody without a computer these days. Even little Aunt flo likes to do her shopping on line and Granny Mable can access an internet cafe! With all this in mind, go online and choose a ecards for Easter. Email these to all your family and friends.

You know what it’s like in the past when you’ve picked up yet another brown enveloped bill from the doormat with a heavy sigh. Well, these days we ge tthe same effect from opeining our inboxes - spam mail and reminders of bills galore. It was always nice in the past to open a card or letter that was unexpected - or even expected - as long as it wasn’t a bill or something else that needed dealing with. Well, it’s just as nice to find something bright and cheery in your inbox these days so choose ecards for Easter and brighten up the day of your loved ones.

At the moment I’m vearing towards a wild west themed party - not for any particular reason other than that the props look great. Life-size cardboard cut outs of John Wayne and Calamity Jane along with wanted posters to line the walls, all styled in old print. Room scenes that I can stick round the wall that depict a Western bar room will set the atmosphere nicely and we’ll line up some beer bottles for guests to help themselves.

As the party will be late summer I think we can still get away with some outdoor activity where I’ll scatter sawdust on the ground and play Western songs - well, just for a little while to get in the mood, maybe a little line dancing! Dressing up will be essential - I’m thinking check shirts, jeans, cowboy boots and Stetsons - comfy as well as on theme!

On the list of wedding venues that we narrowed down it took only two visits to find the perfect place. We chose Channels Golf Club in Chelmsford. Not as modern as it may sound!

The building that the event took place in was absolutely perfect in every way. It was a converted barn that had been loosely divided into three sections. One was divided into an aisle with seating either side that we covered with ivory covers with coffee coloured ribbons. The larger mid section was arranged with beautifully laid tables for the wedding breakfast which were easily moved by the staff for the evening reception and the third smaller section was set aside for the evening buffet table and a few comfy sofas for weary legs.

At his most basic the buidling had a beautiful wooden polished floor. The original beams were all in place with a vaulted ceiling and exposed beams throughout. The three sections were seperated by the beams alone and huge, black metal simple chandeliers lit up the upper area. The beams that divided the rooms were lined with twinkling fairy lights which added a magical atmosphere.

Of all the wedding venues we contacted, Channels offered the best service. We had nothing to worry about. We could be as involved or as detached as we pleased without worry. We were able to choose all the food and the budget. We planned our own vows, our music, the layout of tables - everything. We did this because we wanted to and the staff could not have been more accomodating.

We were given a master of ceremonies within our total price, which was extremely reasonable. He made the day run completely smoothly. He was discreet in letting us know what happens and when, in letting us know where we should be and giving us small options such as how we wanted to be announced into the breakfast.

Photos were taken within the beautiful grounds and we were very lucky with the weather. The food was excellent and the whole day and evening went completely without a hitch. There is barely a day goes by, six months later, when we don’t mention it and all our friends and family still say it is the best wedding they have ever attended.

Channels was the best choice of the wedding venues and not a punch up in sight!

It’s quite a picture to see all the young people come out on this special evening, the boys all done up in their suits and the girls in gorgeous, long prom dresses. Hair is coiffered to perfection topped with tiaras (for the girls), heels are high (again for the girls) and the boys have a shave - well, it’s nice that they make the effort.

For the girl with a boy who is desperate to impress this is a night you are unlikely to forget! You will have spent weeks eyeing up various dresses, parading various types of shoes and perfecting your make up routine. All this will come together nicely on the night of the prom when your beau will arrive with chauffeur hire in a long, stretch limo, possibly a chilled glass of champagne ready for you, and you will climb aboad feeling like an absolute princess.

Of course, this is also for the dads - probably one of your proudest moments before her wedding day so enjoy it!

Everyone is feeling the pressure to meet their deadline, the heat from the office machinery is off the scale, staff are crammed together like sardines and sweat is pooling on the floor precariously. An aroma is building that is stifling the thoughts of the staff and all anyone wants to do is get out of there - hardly an environment conducive to getting the best from your staff.

Now move your thoughts to the more modern office envrionment. Still the same amount of staff, still in the same small, expensive office space. Yet now we have the services of the air conditioner. The weather inside is cooler than outside in the summer temperatures. Staff are happy to stay in the office longer, tempers are less frayed, sweat and smells are no longer an occupational hazard and deadlines are met with a cool, calm head.

The advent of the air conditioner has revolutionised the working environment to a bearable place and saved the life of many a temperamental printer!

Denis Island is one of the smaller islands in the Seychelles. It is very exclusive and we have our own private stretch of beach. Aside from a few other holiday cottages the island houses one beach restaurant and one small gift shop and a lot of trees. There is no residential area, no commercial district, no one to hassle us into buying carpets or what not - it simply promises pease and tranquility for a whole ten days of sun, sand and sea, interspersed with gorgeously tasty fresh caught fish and… more relaxing.

After not such a smooth ride through life, my husband and I feel we deserve to give ourselves this opportunity - a true life experience that we will have to share forever. We are just on the verge of thinking about what to take. I have a small bag full of bikinis and my husband wants to take the opportunity to hone his photography skills. The promised wildlife should be spectacular as will the sunsets, sunrises and scenery.

What better way to share this experience with our family than having beautiful, glossy pictures in a photobook that we can re-visit whenever we want to? I just know that if you simply keep the pictures digitally they will get looked at just a few times, this way they can always be on display.

Now, the time came about a month ago when he and a few mates decided they could afford to club together and share a flat. They organised it just as boys do - room each and space for the TV and beer fridge. No thought to how they would clean the toilet, dispose of rubbish, clean their clothes or cook they’re food. Of course, they didn’t think of any of this - in their mind they could live off take aways forever and the washing and cleaning would be done by the fairies that existed when they lived with their parents!

However, and I’m not smug about this (much), my son has now reached the point where he doesn’t want to even see another pizza and even he can tell that his clothes are on the minging side. The fairies, strangely enough, have not done their job and mum’s not coming to the rescue due to a full time job and a home of her own to look after.

I like to think I was firm but fair, cruel to be kind etc in refusing to do anything other than advise on the best type of houseware to do the jobs he wants doing. My only concession is to offer a little financial assistance - worth it to not have to do his washing anymore!

However, I have to say, seeing my teenage boy with an iron in his hands is surely a sight for sore eyes!

In the old days it was simple - traditional names, or naming after the parents was typical but these days anything goes. In fact, baby names are much more ‘Native American’ in style. You know the type of thing, the first thing that pops into your head on childbirth is what you call your baby - things like ‘Apple’ or ‘Sky’ or even ‘Moxie Crimefighter’ or ‘Moon Unit’. I couldn’t follow the same ideas as the Americans because ‘get this damn thing outta me right now’ just wouldn’t sound right yelled across a playground!

And you really do have to consider later life when choosing your baby names. What seems right on a toddler can sound plain daft in the boardroom and vice versa. My mum always told me that children grow to fit their name and I believe thats quite true. I mean, how often do you seem a tomboy with a name like Daisy or Emily - no, they’re Charlies (Charlotte) or Terri’s or Sams (Samantha). And how many burly builders are called Tristan? Not many I can tell you!

That said, I will never, as long as I live, understand how my aunt thought it fitting to call her son Gordon - not for babyhood or adult life!

This, for me, is a holiday. My everyday life is dependent on what time I have to get up to do the school run, being at work on time, taking breaks when I’m told to, leaving work only when the clock strikes 5pm, rounding up the children and providing a nutrious meal, followed by the bath and bed routine. It’s all routine and a holiday for me is a break from all that!

That’s why my family and I opt for self catering holidays. We love the freedom they bring us and the sense of being in control of our own day. We love to be able to come and go as we please. We love to eat what we want, when we want, we love choosing our own, off the beaten track, excursions. This is the way we will always holiday.