FAMILY WEEKLY UPDATE: 14TH - 20TH SEPTEMBER 2026 | HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL, DISNEY SHOPPING & FAMILY UNO FUN!
Family Weekly Update
This week's Family Weekly Update covers 14th–20th September 2026, and it was a nice mixture of days out, blogging, family time and getting on with a few projects that I'd been meaning to finish.
Lawrence had a day off, so we managed to fit in another Trafford Centre shopping trip, and I also headed to The Lowry for a solo theatre trip to see High School Musical. Back at home, I finally finished a blog post that I'd been working on for quite some time, and we ended the week with a fun afternoon at my parents' house.
Here's what we got up to!
💻 Monday – Weekly Vlog Editing & Blogging
Monday was another day spent at my computer, catching up with some editing and blogging. I spent most of the day editing Weekly Vlog #468 and writing the Family Weekly Update blog post to go alongside it.
There wasn't much else to report from Monday, but it was good to get another weekly vlog and blog post finished.
🛍️ Tuesday – Disney Store, Minecraft Shopping & Lunch At Pesto
Lawrence had Tuesday off work, so we decided to head to the Trafford Centre for a bit of shopping and some lunch while Alice and Leo were at school.
We started by having a look around the new The Entertainer store. While we were there, we spotted a little plush toy of Rex from the PAW Patrol Dino Movie, which we thought the children would like, so we bought it for £8.
We then headed into Selfridges to have a look around the new Disney Store. We didn't buy anything this time, but it's so nice to have a Disney Store back in Manchester. When Alice and Leo were little, we used to visit the Disney Store almost every week, so I've really missed having one nearby. It was lovely to have a look around again, even if we did manage to leave without buying anything!
After that, we headed to Pesto for lunch. We both ordered from the lunchtime menu, where you can choose three dishes for £13.99.
As usual, I went for exactly the same things I always order! I had the pepperoni pizza, chicken wings and spicy Italian sausage with potatoes and peppers, along with a Diet Coke. Lawrence went for the lasagne, arancini and the spicy Italian sausage with potatoes and peppers. I know I probably should try something different occasionally, but I really enjoy my usual choices, so I always end up ordering them!
Once we'd finished lunch, we walked over to Trafford Palazzo to have a look around Primark. Leo has been really interested in Minecraft recently and had asked if he could have some Minecraft clothes, so we wanted to see what Primark had. Luckily, we managed to find a few things for him and bought a Minecraft hoodie, sweatshirt and a pair of jogging bottoms.
While Lawrence was paying for the clothes, I walked across to Primark Home for a quick look around. They already had lots of their Christmas decorations and homeware out, so of course I had to have a look! It still feels quite early to be thinking about Christmas in September, but I always enjoy seeing the new seasonal ranges.
After that, we headed back to catch the bus home and made it back in time to pick Alice and Leo up from school.
🎭 Wednesday – A Solo Theatre Trip To See High School Musical At The Lowry
On Wednesday, I headed out on my own for a theatre trip to see a matinee performance of High School Musical at The Lowry.
I got the tram over to Salford Quays and, as I had some time before the performance, decided to treat myself to lunch at Nando's. I ordered the Cheesy Garlic Pitta and a Lemon & Herb Double Chicken Burger with cheese, along with mash and a Sprite.
After lunch, I still had a bit of time before the show, so I headed into the Cadbury Store. I picked up a Roses Pick & Mix containing just strawberry and orange creams, as they're my absolute favourites! One of the best things about being able to choose your own chocolates is not having to buy a whole box just to get the ones you like.
I then had a quick look around the M&S Outlet and The Works before making my way over to The Lowry.
This time, I was sitting in the stalls in Row P, Seat 31, and I had a really good view of the stage. I really enjoyed the performance. It was lovely to see High School Musical on stage again, and I had a great afternoon at the theatre.
After the show finished, I headed back to the tram stop and made my way home.
👉 You can read all about our Family trip to see High School Musical in our High School Musical family theatre review, or head over to All About Theatre for my full 5-star review of the production.
💍 Thursday – Finally Finishing Our Wedding Blog Post
Thursday was another day spent blogging, but this time I was working on something a little different.
I'd been writing a blog post looking back at mine and Lawrence's wedding, called Our Wedding Day 10 Years Later: Looking Back At Our 2016 Wedding. I'd originally hoped to have it finished and published before our tenth wedding anniversary in June, but we'd been so busy that I just hadn't managed to get it done.
It's quite a big post, and there was a lot I wanted to include, so it ended up taking much longer than I'd originally expected. I spent most of Thursday finishing it off, and it felt really good to finally get it completed, even if it was a few months later than I'd planned!
I've really enjoyed looking back at our wedding and remembering all the little details from the day, so I'm hoping to continue writing more posts for the wedding series.
🧁 Friday – Disney Video Editing, Cupcake Recipes & More Wedding Memories
Friday was another day spent working on my blog and YouTube content. I started by editing one of my Disney Come Shop With Me videos, which I'd filmed during one of my recent shopping trips.
I then wrote a new recipe blog post for the simple cupcake recipe we always use when making cupcakes at home. It's a recipe we've used lots of times over the years, so I thought it would be nice to finally share it on the blog.
Once I'd finished that, I made a start on writing the next post in my wedding series. I didn't manage to finish it, but at least I've made a start. After taking so long to complete the first wedding post, I'm hoping I won't leave quite such a big gap before finishing the next one!
🏡 Saturday – Homework, House Jobs & Turning Red
Saturday was a fairly quiet day at home. I started by helping Alice and Leo with their homework before getting on with a few jobs around the house.
There wasn't anything particularly exciting planned, but sometimes it's nice to have a day where we can just get on with things at home. Later in the day, we settled down together to watch Turning Red on Disney+.
It was a nice way to spend some time together before the children's bedtime.
🃏 Sunday – A Family Afternoon Playing UNO
On Sunday, we decided to walk round to my parents' house for a family afternoon together. We'd planned to spend some time playing UNO, which is something we've all been enjoying recently.
Mum had put out some snacks for us, which Alice and Leo were very happy about, especially the chocolate fingers! We ended up playing quite a few different versions of UNO, including UNO Flip Extreme, UNO No Mercy and the original UNO.
It was a really fun afternoon, and we all had a great time playing together. It's funny how many different versions of UNO there are now. The original is still great, but some of the newer versions can get quite competitive!
After we'd finished playing, Dad kindly gave us a lift home. Once we were back, it was time to make dinner, get Alice and Leo bathed and ready for bed, and prepare for another week of school. Lawrence and I then watched a bit of television before heading to bed ourselves.
💭 Final Thoughts
It's been another lovely week, with a nice mixture of getting things done and spending time together.
I really enjoyed our Trafford Centre day on Tuesday, especially having a look around the new Disney Store. It brought back lots of memories of when Alice and Leo were younger and we used to visit the Disney Store all the time.
Wednesday's trip to see High School Musical was another highlight. I always enjoy going to the theatre, and it was nice to have a little afternoon out on my own.
I'm also really pleased that I finally finished our wedding blog post. It's something I've wanted to share for a while, and although it took longer than planned, I'm happy to have it completed.
We finished the week with a lovely afternoon playing UNO at Mum and Dad's, which was a nice way to spend time together before another busy school week.
🎥 Watch Weekly Vlog #469
If you'd like to see more from our week, you can watch Weekly Vlog #469.
This week's vlog includes our Trafford Centre shopping trip, a look around the new Disney Store in Selfridges, my solo theatre trip to see High School Musical at The Lowry and our family afternoon playing UNO.
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