Unfortunately, in the middle of gathering posts, my email provider has let me down big time. If you emailed me your post between 22nd and 26th April, I may not have received your email. I've tried to let people know but if you have submitted a post and it's not here, please do leave a comment with the link and I'll update the carnival asap to include it. So, I hope you are ready for this slightly different carnival and that you enjoy reading the posts as much as I have!
To start off, 21st Century Mummy criticises the benefit system in Benefits and Little Britain.
Over at It's a Mummy's Life, Holly muses about the elections and whether we can trust politicians well versed in spin.
Heather's election Notes from Lapland raise the issue of who should or shouldn't be allowed to vote, a topic so close to my heart at present that her post inspired me to write my own take on the topic with an added personal manifesto in Can I Vote Please, I even Have a Manifesto!.
The Sardine Tin also ponders the topic of voting in Sign(s) of the Times and wonders whether what we vote should be kept between the ballot box and yourself or be out in the open.
In a bun dance has a manifesto for more interesting elections on offer, especially as she can't see much difference between the main contenders anyway so don't miss her fantasy manifesto!
Muddling Along Mummy takes on the the candidates wives, and pays respect to the one who has decided not to be her husband's campaigning handbag in Perhaps the Greatest campaigning wife is the one who isn't?
Liz at Living with Kids also takes on the politician's wives theme in Behind every great man ... and how the focus on the wives distracts from the policies.
Diary of a (not so) Single Mum gets down to the knitty gritty of why she is a reluctant voter - disillusioned with the confrontational mindset of politicians that have you switch off before you listen to what they actually have to say. She also looks at the policies she agrees and doesn't agree with.
You can read about the issues that really matter to particularly a SAHM at TheMadHouse, including some obvious contradictions in the system. She also has a good few ideas of how things could be improved.
Find out what would happen if Yummy Mummy Flabby Tummy was running the country, and you may find a serious contender for the big 3.
Angels and Urchins reports the proposed new parent salary legislation and the political debate this is causing.
Iota from Not wrong, just different asks the question what kind of associations of the elections for children we are creating and how we may make politics interesting and exciting for children.
If you want to know what politicians need to do to win Kate's at Mum's the world vote, don't tally and head over to read her post on what's important to her particularly in the light of her children's future.
Emily over at Babyrambles shares what she likes about the election debates and how they could be even more exciting for her, and everyone really.
And if you can't wait for an election leaders' debate that is a bit more fun, why not head over to Bringing up Charlie, and you may even be the lucky winner of some fab DVDs.
Fraught Mummy of Brits (no longer) in Bosnia tackles the controversial issue and attitudes towards fully veiled women in the UK in Covered up, where she wonders how it is that more Muslim women cover up completely than in the Muslim country of Bosnia where she lived.
Frances from a parent's guide to the early years foundation stage explores the talk and realities of party policies in relation to the Early Years Foundation Stage in Education, the elections and the Early Years.
And moving on to primary school on a connected topic of pressurising our very young children, Victoria who blogs at It's a Small World After all asks quite rightly why children have to start school so very early in England in Education, Education, Education.
Believe it or not, Jack Straw is Nickie's NBF as she reveals on her blog Typecast, and she's got a photo to prove it! Which reminds me that I've yet to see any candidate canvassing in our area...
If there's one thing MrsW would change, it would be the introduction of Proportional Representation for the elections, have a look why on Clinically Fed Up (and you'll get a wonderful photo in the package too).
London City Mum ponders what politics in a parallel universe may look like.
Clare Macnaughton wonders whether to vote Tory or not.
And lastly but definitely not leastly Single Parenthood. Tales from the Frontline has a look at Bigotgate and even dares to mention the I-word (that'll be immigration).
As a little addition for the not so politically minded amongst the BMB carnival readers, I've decided to include the entries I received which do not follow the suggested theme. With my email not working I couldn't really inform people and give them a chance to resubmit so I thought it would be better to just include the entries. Mummy has a Headache ponders how her children are copycats in From the Mouth of Babes. Mummy Musings muses about her Return to Work after her maternity leave. All Baby Advice tells us all about Czech Easter Traditions, while Red Ted Art demonstrates some Swedish Easter traditions and let's us get crafty making Swedish Hearts. Finally the Good Life Blog looks at the benefits of baby signing.
If you want to find out more about the Best of British Mummy Bloggers carnival, would like to find out about the schedule, contribute or even want to host it, you can find out all about it here. It was a great experience for me, I found great new blogs I hadn't come across before and the entries were simply inspiring to read.
