Yummy Mummy Flabby Tummy

Miss C, Fashion is Sequins...

2012-01-31T09:30:00.000Z

Whilst I don't enjoy glitter as a form of artwork, (it just doesn't come off a lino floor!) I absolutely love anything that sparkles and shines in terms of clothes, shoes, jewellery...mobile phones...

Miss C has also taken on board my glitter and sequins fetish, like magpie like mini-magpie, and adores anything that blings or shimmers.

Next have a gorgeous range of girls clothes that are just perfect for the glitter-holics in us. These are some of my favourite pieces fromt their Spring/Summer collection:

This strawberry appliqué top is really sweet and Miss C loves strawberries so I know she'd love this top. Perfect for those cooler spring days and a bargain at £5.50 - £6.50 depending on the size.

Could these Union Jack lace-up boots be anymore sequinced up? I love them! Unfortunately they aren't available in Miss C's size but I'm totally tempted to get them for me! Prices start from £17 and from kid size 9.

You can mix and match colours with their coloured skinny jeans and coloured heart crews. The colours are really vibrant and summery! Be gone winter!! Prices start from £10 for the skinny jeans and £11 for the crew tops. I love the glitter heart motifs on the crew tops. One in every colour please!

This post is for the Next Blogger Network which I am a member of. I haven't been compensated for this post and the opinions expressed are my own from a prompt provided by Next Blogger Network.

The Sunday Round-Up #WeekFour

2012-01-29T22:21:00.000Z

The end of the month is nigh; it's almost February, the month of love and pancakes. I love pancakes, yum!

Last Sunday we spent a quiet day indoors playing, reading and watching films. It wasn't nice enough to go out anywhere, although we did manage to pop over to my friend's house to see her and her little girl for an hour. We were dropping in her birthday present as she turned 4 during the week. When we arrived, the little girl was wearing a Sleeping Beauty costume and had told her mummy she was going to lie on the couch until Wee Z arrived so he could kiss her to wake her up because he was her Prince. Kids are so cute!

On Monday when I got home from work we played in the living room whilst Got to Dance was on in the background. I love Got to Dance and whilst I'd like to say it is because of all the amazingly talented dancers, (which I guess in parts it is) it isn't all I watch it for: I have a huge crush on Adam Garcia. If anyone watches Got to Dance and saw when Adam got up and did a rendition of Night Fever, well I nearly fell of my couch! I have it marked to keep on Sky+ for whenever I'm feeling down.

On Tuesday we went swimming again with Mama N and Wee J and one of the mums from nursery and her 2 little girls. It was lots of fun and the kids' swimming is really coming on. Wee Z braved the water with no armbands and was trying to swim himself. I wanted to put him into swimming lessons as I definitely think being able to swim is a life-skill you should have but both Husband and I are confident swimmers and we decided one of us would teach him and Miss C. Cheaper than swimming lessons anyways!

On Wednesday we had to stay in all day and wait for the (much anticipated) "big girl" bed for Miss C. I ordered it just after Christmas and I've heard about it everyday since I told Miss C she was getting her "big girl" bed. My advice after this experience is - tell your kids nothing! They don't need to have things to look forward to as they don't deal with waiting well...but that's just my experience. Unfortunately, whilst the bed arrived, they had brought a double mattress instead of a single mattress and having dismantled Miss C's toddler bed, she had to have a sleepover with Wee Z that night. She wasn't bothered though and was quite happy to sleep on her old mattress beside her brother. I think she got in his bed though at some point during the night as her hair bauble was in his bed in the morning.

On Thursday it was my day off and Husband, being the fantastic Husband that he is, let me have a lie-in. Woooo! I slept til 9am and got up feeling refreshed and raring to go. Then it started to snow. I hate snow. After my car experience in the snow 2 years ago, I refuse to drive anywhere in the snow, so I do feel terribly inconvenienced when it does snow. Husband had arranged a play date for Wee Z with one of the girls at nursery who he gets on with really well so he drove over to their house, with me a nervous passenger, whilst the snow continued to fall. Wee Z had great fun with his friend and Miss C played with the little girl's sister whilst us parents drank tea and ate cake...my kind of play date!

On Friday we decided to make white chocolate cookies. It's a recipe in Lorraine Pascale's new cook book and by golly they were tasty. They didn't take long to make either which is always a bonus! Miss C had ballet so I took her there and Husband took Wee Z and his friend from next door swimming. It was pizza night for dinner which I always love forward to as I love pizza. I'm a spicy chicken, red onion, peppers and mozzarella slices gal.

On Saturday, after work, Husband went to watch the football with some of his friends whilst I took the kids to the library. Our library has a small museum so we decided to take a wander round it before choosing some new books and then picking up a happy Daddy as his team won. I'm still working my way through my books from 3 weeks ago so I renewed them but I'm almost finished my Trisha Ashley one and it's been a really good read. After the kids were in bed, Husband and I watched a TV series we recorded awhile ago called Happy Endings. It's been really funny and is kind of like a more adult version of Friends.

Here is my favourite photo from this week:

This is our cat Casper. He'll be a year old soon! This picture came as a total fluke but it really did make me laugh!

So that was our week! I need to start writing down what I do everyday because I've really struggled to remember some of the things we did. Thank goodness for Facebook and Twitter to jog my memory.

What's For Dinner Today Mummy? #3

2012-01-29T21:28:00.000Z

Italian food has to be one of my absolute favourite cuisines. I could eat pasta everyday but I know it wouldn't do my waistline any favours so we only have it 2-3 times a week.

Tonight we had lasagna!

Lasagna is definitely one of those dishes that always tastes better on the second day but I always forget to take my mince out of the freezer until the night before we're going to eat it. Usually I'll get up and make it whilst I'm eating my breakfast so it has time to sit before we eat it at tea time.

I don't always make it homemade to be honest as sometimes it is just easier to buy the jars of red lasagna and white lasagna sauce and just cook my mince and Bob's your uncle, it's done! That's what I did this morning but the kids love it and it doesn't do them any harm to have the "out the jar" stuff!

One lasagna dish I do make from scratch (apart from the pasta) is veggie lasagna. It's really tasty and instead of a béchamel sauce, I make a cheese sauce to put in between the layers of tomato, carrot, courgette, peppers and onions. I made this for Miss C's 2nd birthday party and it was generally well received.

For the tomato sauce: -

Olive oil for cooking
1 onion, chopped
1 leek, chopped
1 garlic clove, crushed
1 red pepper, chopped or sliced whichever you prefer
1 carrot, peeled and chopped
1 courgette, chopped
1 1/2 tbsp tomato purée
1 tsp caster sugar (the tomato makes it quite acidic otherwise)
1 tin of chopped tomatoes
150ml vegetable stock

For the cheese sauce: -

110g cheddar cheese (a medium or mature strength)
600ml semi-skimmed milk
50g butter
1 tbsp plain flour

You also need 6 lasagna sheets

Heat the oil in a pan and then sauté the onion and leek for about 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the garlic and sauté for another minute. Add the red pepper, carrot and courgette and fry for another 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the tomato purée and the sugar, stirring, and cook for about 1 minute. Add the chopped tomatoes and stock and simmer, uncovered, for about 15 minutes. If the veggies are still slightly hard don't worry because they'll cook in the oven.

To make the cheese sauce, melt the butter in a pan on a low heat. Add the flour and stir until the butter looks thick but not so much that it starts to lump. Gradually add your milk, continually stirring. Once all the milk is added, continue to stir until thick which takes about 10 minutes. Turn off the heat and add your cheese. 110g is about enough for me but add it to your own tastes.

This recipe fills a square ceramic dish. Start with a layer of the tomato and veggie sauce and then place 3 lasagna sheets on top. Pour some of the cheese sauce over the top and spread until the sheets are covered. Repeat the layering until the dish is full. I usually only get 2 layers because of the depth of my dish.

Cook in a 180°C oven for about 30 - 40 minutes.

The kids love lasagna because it has some of their favourite things in it: pasta and cheese! Wee Z wasn't so keen on it at first but now he eats his up in about 5 minutes! Miss C, as usual, can't see a good plate of food go passed her.

For dessert we had homemade carrot cake which, again, tastes better on the second day. I made it last night and managed to recover it from a baking disaster involving silicone cookie cake moulds and it not being cool enough to take out of the moulds.

Wee Z clearly enjoyed his carrot cake with fudge pieces on top as he devoured his in about 30 seconds!

Silent Sunday

2012-01-29T09:30:00.000Z

Books That Make Us Giggle

2012-01-27T09:30:00.000Z

I love how something so silly can get my children into fits of giggles. It can be the most random thing and off they go. For example, the word poo can get Miss C into uncontrollable bouts of giggling to the point where she is red in the face which then sets Wee Z off, who continues to say the word to get Miss C to giggle even more.

As well as silliness and loving to laugh, Wee Z and Miss C LOVE to read. We've been reading 2 books recently that combine silliness and laughter into easy to read picture books; Socks by Nick Sharratt and co-author Elizabeth Lindsay and Dance Together Dinosaurs by Jane Clarke and illustrated by Lee Wildish. Two books that definitely make us giggle!

Dance Together Dinosaurs takes the Strictly Come Dancing show to something funny and original for kids to enjoy. The book is colourful, combining sparkles and spangles to make the dinosaur characters really stand out; they almost dance right off the page. The story incorporates various dance styles like the tango and disco which sees the dinosaurs dance across the glitzy floor. The words were easy to read so Wee Z was able to read this book himself and laughed out loud when there was a mention of a dinosaur poo! Beware of those sneaky dinosaurs though, as they are up to something with those dance judges!

"That is so silly Mummy!"

Sockywockydoodah! If you thought socks were just for keeping your toes warm then you have to read Socks. Who knew you could do so much with your socks?! There are sock animals, sock people and even sock instruments. What we loved about this book was the illustrations; everything is in back and white except for the socks! There are multi-coloured socks, patterned socks and stripy socks. We loved reading about Goldisocks and the three cross bears and the search for the Sock Ness Monster. There are lots of silly sock-related words but that just added to the fun of the book which is what reading is all about in our eyes; having fun!

"Look Mummy, it's a Sock Casper!" (Casper is our cat.)

Dance Together Dinosaurs - Published by Red Fox Picture books part of Random House Children's Books - RRP £5.99 paperback - Available to buy now

Socks - Published by David Fickling Books part of Random House Children's Books - RRP £10.99 hardback - Available from 2nd February 2012

We received Socks and Dance Together Dinosaurs for the purposes of a review. The opinions expressed are my own.

The Gallery - My Photography Resolution

2012-01-25T09:30:00.000Z

One of my lists of things to do this year was to take more photographs. Of me! With the kids! Like Tara says herself, I always end up being the taker and not the taken in photos. I don't mind if my hair is a mess or if I don't have make-up on in photos. Nor do I mind if I have a huge spot on my chin (although to have a photographic reminder of it usually persuades me to stay behind the lens!)

After buying a new camera at Christmas, I also vowed to be more adventurous with my camera...in that I'd try different settings...nothing kinky here!

We are now into week 4 of January and I've managed to get 2 shots of me with the kids...

I was also slightly adventurous by taking the auto-shoot off and using the manual mode on my camera...I think it turned out well!

Note to self...I must try harder!

This post is for The Gallery. The theme this week is My Photography Resolutions.

Conception and Pregnancy - One Born Every Minute

2012-01-24T20:43:00.000Z

In April 2006 I threw my mini pill contraception in the bin and that was when we decided to start trying for a baby. We weren't going to start immediately as we had a wedding to prepare for in July however I thought it would be good planning to get an idea of my cycles over a few months so that when I did fall pregnant I'd be able to give my DR exact dates.

My surprise at finding out I was pregnant a week before our wedding was quite shocking. I hadn't had a period since coming off my pill although I thought this was perfectly normal as I'd been on the pill for 3 years. Sadly we lost the baby whilst on honeymoon only hours after the pregnancy was officially confirmed by my DR.

After having an operation in Portugal in an unknown hospital to remove the remains of the pregnancy, I was worried. What if they'd damaged something? What if I could never get pregnant again? I was bleeding heavily after my miscarriage the week my period was due but I kept thinking that that could be down to the miscarriage itself and not my actual period.

We never officially decided to start trying again but we never did anything to stop the chance of a pregnancy happening. We continued with our every day lives whilst trying to get over what had happened whilst we were supposed to be enjoying our first holiday together.

On September 21st 2006, the day my period was due, I waited all day for it to show up. I came home from work and decided to go to the shops to get a test to see if I was pregnant.

I was shaking as I unwrapped the test but managed to do the deed and waited the 2 minutes for my results...not that I needed to wait because as soon as I peed on the stick the 2 lines showed up almost fluorescent in colour. I was pregnant!

My pregnancy went well. I never had any scares or complications but I was definitely on edge for the first 12 weeks. Every day I woke with nausea I was thankful. As my tummy grew I felt more secure in my ability to bring this baby into the world.

Forty weeks and 1 day after finding out I was pregnant, Wee Z was born. The best day of my life.

This post is for the Netmums and Channel 4's One Born Every Minute birth story prompt. You can read more stories on the Netmums Birth Story board or the Netmums Parent Bloggers Network.

Help Sudocrem Give Back

2012-01-23T20:34:00.002Z

When Wee Z and Miss C were babies they did go through spells of nappy rash and the one cream I always used was Sudocrem. I've used it before I had them and my Mum used it on my Sister and I when we were babies. My Gran may even have used it on my Mum!

It's always nice to give a little something back, if you can, no matter how small. If you can't help financially then go and "like" the Sudocrem Facebook page where they are pledging to donate £25000 to the NSPCC.

For every "like" Sudocrem receive they will donate 50p to the NSPCC. A very worthy cause indeed!

I have not been compensated for this post. This post is for blog-match.com.

Spring Fashion For Wee Z From Next

2012-01-23T09:00:00.000Z

Last night at dinner Wee Z asked me for something he has never asked me for...a second portion! Clearly my boy is going to hit a growth spurt so now I need to start hunting for new clothes for him.

Wee Z is at the age where some days he'll decide what HE wants to wear. I think I'm quite good at picking out clothes for my children, always making sure the colours aren't clashing and that the clothes are weather appropriate but I have come to notice that Wee Z has developed his own style.

Wee Z prefers a short sleeve to a long sleeve top. Anytime he wears a long sleeve top, he HAS to roll the sleeves up. Next have some gorgeous t-shirts in their Spring/Summer collection that I know Wee Z would love. Handy for your purse, you can buy them in 2 packs, like these Breton Strip tops costing £10-£12 depending on the size you need. For cooler days, t-shirts can be teamed with this gorgeous stripe hoody ranging from £10-£11.

Wee Z also loves his jeans and having already bought Next jeans in the past, I wouldn't hesitate on buying them again. They are good quality and come in a range of different styles and fit.

For something a bit smarter a pair of Next chinos and a gingham shirt make a perfect combination for those parties or family days out.

If Wee Z could put together his own outfit for the day then I think he'd definitely go for this look: jeans, a t-shirt and the plum-baseball jacket.

A very trendy boy indeed!

This post is for the Next Blogger Network which I am a member of. I haven't been compensated for this post and the opinions expressed are my own from a prompt provided by Next Blogger Network.

What's For Dinner Today Mummy? #2

2012-01-22T21:28:00.001Z

Last night we went out for dinner so I decided I wasn't going to cook anything too fancy for dinner today. I like the theme of low maintance cooking to run through the weekend if I can!

Tonight we had one of my favourite quick fix meals - Fajitas!

Eating and enjoying Mexican food has to be one of my favourite memories from growing up in Mexico. Every so often my Mum and Step Dad would take my Sister and I to a restaurant in the city centre called Don Taco. We used to have pretty much the same thing everytime we went but the food was so delicious, it was hard not to. My favourite was steak filled tortilla wraps with plenty of lime. Yum! One of my other favourite snacks was cucumber slices with chilli, salt and lemon.

For our fajitas I buy chicken breasts, prawns, onions and peppers as well as a fajita seasoning mix although you can easily make your own seasoning with cajun, paprika, chilli powder and any other spice you have lying in your cupboard. You also need tortilla wraps. I don't like things like salsa or guacamole so I just have mine plain, but Husband likes his with cheese and mayonaise. The great thing about buying tortilla wraps is you can fill them with just about anything you like.

Certainly not like they make them in Mexico but definitely just as tasty!

The Sunday Round-Up #WeekThree

2012-01-22T21:08:00.000Z

It's been a bit of an emotional week this one. On Sunday mornings, Husband goes to the gym whilst the kids and I have a lazy morning in our jammies, watching a film. Last Sunday, we watched Alice in Wonderland which is one of my favourite Disney films. We're going through a phase of watching Disney Classics and so far, Beauty and the Beast (or Juicy and the Beast as Miss C calls it) has been the biggest hit.

On Monday, after work, we had the scary task of going to register Wee Z for school. It is hard to believe that he is almost 5 and starting school after the summer holidays but he is looking forward to going. Maybe that will change when he starts going but I'm hopeful it won't!

On Tuesday we brought the bikes out of the hut and went for a bike ride round the block. Casper decided he was going to follow us, like he usually does, and ended up almost 10 foot up a tree when a German Shepherd decided to chase him. I wasn't impressed with the owner of this dog as they thought it was appropriate to allow a dog of it's size to be off a lead in a public place, only a few yards from a primary school. It took about 20 minutes to rescue Casper from the tree and at one point there were fears I would have to phone the fire brigade...which would have been tempting if the firemen in films actually existed in real life.

On Wednesday it was Husband's birthday. He awoke to cards, a few presents and lots of hugs but otherwise we had a quiet day. Whilst I did my housework, the kids and Husband played a new Orchard Toys game that Wee Z got for Christmas called Pop to the Shops. Wee Z even let Husband win!

We went swimming on Thursday with a few friends. Wee Z and Miss C haven't been swimming since our holiday in Fuertaventura and whilst Miss C took to the water straight away, Wee Z was little unsure at first. Eventually he got into it and they had a lot fun splashing and jumping in the pool. Miss C had her Daddy up and down the slide a few times. I only took her once as there was a bit of a boob flashing incident...

On Friday I spent the day baking a giant cupcake for Husband. He bought me the silicone moulds for Christmas so I thought I'd use his birthday as an excuse to try them out. My first attempt ended in disaster as I took the top half out the mould as soon as it came out the oven thus resulting in it collapsing. Once I had redone the top half, I got to decorating it with buttercream icing and a strawberry jam filling. We made the letters out of sugar paste and I think it turned out rather well for my first attempt! Miss C also had her first ballet lesson and she was so cute practising her naughty feet, good feet.

On Saturday we celebrated Husband's birthday with a night out to a restaurant with out Street Clan aka Cupcake neighbour and her partner, God Father and his partner and God Father's daughter. Husband and I had never been to this restaurant before but we'd heard good things about it. The food was really delicious and we had a fantastic night out. I think Husband felt a little better about turning 3...

I can't believe we're almost into the fourth week of January! However, I am so skint I wish it would hurry up and end!

Silent Sunday

2012-01-22T09:30:00.000Z

I Have A Baker's Dream

2012-01-19T09:00:00.000Z

It was Husband's birthday yesterday but because we were both working, we didn't make too much of a fuss on the day. We'll be making it up to him though by attempting a giant cupcake birthday cake for him on Friday and enjoying a meal out with friends on Saturday.

I am really nervous about making this giant cupcake but I have my silicone moulds and instructions so I'm keeping my fingers crossed that it turns out well.

I love baking and trying new things but I am always nervous about people trying my cakes incase I poison them (though I am REALLY careful) or they taste disgusting. So it was a really nice feeling to be asked by Cupcake Neighbour to make some 1st birthday cupcakes for her God Daughter.

We decided to go for 10 vanilla cupcakes with a vanilla buttercream and 10 chocolate cupcakes with chocolate buttercream. Cupcake Neighbour provided me with the ingredients and cases and I did the rest with help from Miss C and Husband. I think they turned out well and Cupcake Neighbour assures me they went down a treat at the party.

I've been seriously thinking about starting up a small business from home making cupcakes to order. I do work part-time so it really would just be a small business with me accepting 2 or 3 orders a week. I love the idea of making cupcakes and other goodies to sell and have recently been even more inspired by Kelly at The Cupcake Queen who has just opened a shop selling her cupcakes. That is my dream!

For now though, as I'm completely self-taught, I'll have to keep practising and perfecting my recipes and designs and who knows; one day you could be visiting me in my own shop?!

First things first - tackling the giant cupcake birthday cake! Wish me luck!

The Gallery - Eyes

2012-01-18T09:30:00.000Z

Mrs Tara doesn't make it easy for us when it comes to The Gallery themes. I know eyes is a fairly obvious theme but how was I going to get a photo of my childrens' eyes without blinding them with the camera flash?

I took a few test shots but nothing seemed to come out right and the kids eventually got fed up. Even the cats didn't want to help me out. I resounded myself to not taking part this week and instead nosing at what everyone else came up with and kicking myself for not being more creative.

And then I came across this photo...

I knew I had taken this photo, or at least before I found it, I was pretty sure I had taken a photo of the peacock at the country park. I literally whooped when I found it!

I love peacocks. They are so elegant and regal and their feathers are simply beautiful. I've always thought the circular markings looked like eyes. What a handsome chap!

This post is for The Gallery. The theme this week is Eyes.

Registering My Baby Boy For School

2012-01-17T09:30:00.000Z

I thought yesterday was going to be a bit of an emotional roller-coaster for us. See, yesterday was the day when, like many other parents, we had to register Wee Z for school. Eeeek!

Wee Z starts school in August and he is really rather excited about starting school. Wee Z LOVES to learn and he can't wait to go to school so he can practise his reading and writing and his sums.

I was worried about enrolling him at the school of our choice as it is a Catholic school and we are not Catholic, so we wouldn't get priority even if we are in the catchment for the school. The school is attached to his nursery, which is non-denominational, and it's brand new with state of the art equipment. They have a huge outdoor area, a huge gym and playing fields too. It's definitely one of the best in our area and they are keen to keep class sizes small which I know will be a huge benefit to Wee Z and maintaining his love of learning.

We turned up early because experience has taught me that for these things being a first come, first served usually goes in your favour. I think we were the second parents in and we were taken into the Primary 1 open plan area. It looked amazing. Lots of space for arts and crafts, a reading corner and really colourful with art work covering the walls. Wee Z looked around in amazement and although he was sitting patiently on his chair I could see he was itching to get up and explore.

Filling in the forms was pretty straightforward but it really hit me then that I was filling in forms to enrol my son in an education. I knew I was in the right school for him, I just had to hope he got a place. The Deputy Head took us into his office to go over Wee Z's forms and I cringed a bit when he wrote N/A in the Baptism Certificate seen box. What was lovely is that he recognised Wee Z from passing through nursery and chatted away to him about his teachers and I kept thinking, I really want Wee Z to come to this school.

The meeting took about 15 minutes with the DH going over the school handbook and giving us the opportunity to ask any questions. As we were finishing up, the DH hadn't given any indication as to when we might hear if Wee Z would be accepted into the school so I decided to just ask. At least if I had a date as to when to expect to hear it would take my mind off it for awhile.

"So when will we found out if Z has got a place?" asks a nervous me.

"When will you find out if he has a place? You find out now...he's got one!" says DH, slightly bemused.

Yippee! He's in! I'm delighted, we're delighted but most importantly, Wee Z is delighted. Apparently because the school is our local school he is automatically entitled to a place there. What a relief!

Now I just have to wait for Miss C's nursery letter to say if she has a place at the nursery beside the school as it is a ballot decision system for the nursery! Fingers crossed!

Win Yourself A Special Treat

2012-01-16T21:10:00.000Z

Apparently today is referred to as "Blue Monday" because it's the most depressing day of the year. People are feeling the tug of the purse strings and wishing the sunshine would hurry up and arrive. I can't say I'm feeling particularly blue today...unless my fingers count cause it is freezing!

I have a £50 Experience Days UK voucher up for grabs for one of you lovely readers. Experience days are great; you simply choose an activity you would like to do, for example, driving an Aston Martin a la James Bond, choose your location and date and then off you go. The site has reduced some of their prices so you can put the £50 voucher towards something really special and have a well deserved day out.

All you need to do to be in with a chance of winning the voucher is leave me a comment below telling me what experience you'd go for. I've always fancied having a helicopter ride but you can't beat a day of pampering to make you feel refreshed and looking lovely!

For an extra entry you can tweet the following: -

I'm entering the £50 Experience Day #giveaway on @LauraCYMFT blog http://bit.ly/A9hQOy

Remember to let me know you've tweeted and please ensure you leave me a way to contact you to let you know if you've won! Good luck!

The competition is open to UK residents only. No cash alternative. The voucher is being provided by Experience Days UK and they will be responsible for emailing the winner with their voucher code. The competition will close on January 31st 2012 at 8pm.

I have not received anything for hosting this competition.

What's For Dinner Today Mummy?

2012-01-15T21:50:00.000Z

This is a question I get asked everyday by Wee Z, even though we have a meal planner on our fridge which tells him exactly what we're having each day. Whilst a meal planner is great and helps you keep on top of your food budgets, it can get repetitive unless you change it up regularly.

I decided to do that this weekend. As Husband works a Sunday night shift, we have our roast dinner on a Saturday and I cook something light for the kids and I on a Sunday. Miss C is a lot more adventurous with her food than Wee Z, however he is coming round to the idea of trying new things although not until he is 5 he says. So far on the day he turns 5 he is trying Brussel sprouts and broccoli!

Here's what we had for dinner tonight:

Rice cooked in chicken stock with veggies and smoked sausage

Garlic and coriander naans a la Asda

Strawberries with meringues dipped in chocolate with cream

I love rice and pasta dishes as they are so easy to throw together and take no time at all to cook. Wee Z loves breads so I thought he might like to use the naan bread to eat his rice with and they both LOVE smoked sausage so I added that, along with some lea & perrins (no soy sauce left!) to make it more appealing to them. Wee Z isn't keen on veg at all and picked the sweetcorn out of his rice but did manage to eat the tiny pieces of carrot without knowing it. Miss C had finished hers within about 2 minutes...she likes something different every now and again!

We have a dessert at the weekends too instead of yogurt or custard. Miss C could eat a full punnet of strawberries herself and these ones were really sweet. Wee Z tried a strawberry for the first time since he was a baby and managed to eat half of one before deciding he didn't like it. I commended him on doing a great job trying it! He had bananas with his meringue instead which he polished off in no time.

The Sunday dinner verdict - Yummy!

The Sunday Round-Up #WeekTwo

2012-01-15T20:21:00.000Z

The second week of January has definitely been a lot more tiring than the first week although with less hangover symptoms. Last Sunday we spent the afternoon at the country park with a friend and her little girl. We took a long walk along the river, passed the stables and we caught sight of some of the horses huddled together, shivering, in the fields. Wee Z wasn't too fussed about going to see the ones that were right up at the gates but Miss C followed my friend and her little girl through the muddy puddles. Puddles so deep that her wellie boot got stuck and she fell face first into the mud. That pretty much cut our park visit short but Miss C was a good sport about it and decided she would walk all the way back to the car instead of crying for me to carry her...though that would never have happened anyway!

The kids had an early night on Sunday as on Monday morning it was back to nursery for Wee Z. To say he was excited about going back was an understatement; he was REALLY excited to go back and see his teachers and his friends. I don't take Wee Z to nursery because of my shifts at work but Husband told me that Wee Z and one of his friends ran to each other and hugged for ages when he walked in! When I finished work we went for a walk around the block to get some fresh air and to drop a birthday card into Miss C's God Father's wife. I've been trying to get Miss C to walk more to build up her stamina for when she starts walking to nursery in August and she did really well, keeping up with us and running alongside her brother.

On Tuesday when I got in from work, I got changed into my "park" clothes (old jeans and wellies or trainers) and we met up with my friend Mama N and Wee J at the country park. The country park is starting to become my favourite place to go for walks as there are lots of trails you can go on and lots of pretty sights to see and knooks and cranies to discover. The boys ran up and down hills together, pretending to be explorers on a mission to get baddies (boys will be boys) whilst Miss C did her best to keep up with them. We didn't stay long as Husband needed the car for work and it was starting to rain. We came home, got out of our dirty clothes and enjoyed some hot chocolate!

Wednesday was fairly quiet and as it wasn't particuarly dry outside we stayed indoors and did some colouring in. Wednesday is cleaning day in our house and although I HATE starting the cleaning, I love when it is all finished and the house is spick and span again...not that it lasts long!

On Thursday it was my day off so Husband let me have a long lie. Not that it was very long but I did take my time getting ready and enjoying a shower with the door closed and no children running in and out. Cupcake Neighbour had asked me to make some cupcakes for her for her God Daughter's first birthday. Cupcake Neighbour is her nickname because she brought me some packet made cupcakes one time as a surprise and it just kind of stuck from then. Miss C and I got started making her 10 vanilla cupcakes and 10 chocolate cupcakes. Miss C was very keen to crack the eggs and we did lose a few but I think they turned out well in the end! After lunch we met up with Mama N and Wee J again for a walk in the country park. This time we went to see the animals and whilst I ran from the 3 llamas, (I'm always scared they spit!) Miss C and Wee Z made friends with the rabbits. They now want one!

On Friday we had our appointment with Wee Z's Doctor to try and get to the bottom of his eczema. I'd just like to say thank you for all the lovely comments of support and advice I received after I posted about his eczema. I was in 2 minds about whether to post it but I'm glad I did as everyone was really helpful. As the Doctor we've been seeing is on placement at our surgery, she called in a senior Doctor, my own Doctor it turned out, just to check his skin and to agree what steps we needed to take. I came away feeling pretty positive that they are ready to help him get over this and manage his eczema properly. There is a whole other post here, so I won't go on much more! Once the kids were in bed, Husband and I enjoyed a night in watching our new favourite TV show Rizzolli and Isles. The show is based on the characters in the Tess Gerritsen books, mainly The Surgeon and The Apprentice. The new series starts soon and if you like CSI then it's worth a watch!

On Saturday, whilst I was at work, Wee Z went to his first karate class. It's at the school attached to his nursery and is taught by the same man that taught Husband and is co-taught by his son who started karate at the same time Husband did. Wee Z said he really enjoyed himself and is keen to go back next week. We're keen for him to get involved in a sport; it keeps him fit, active and gives him something to look forward to. What will be lovely is if he continues his karate, he will be following in the footsteps of his Daddy, Papa, Bella and (black belt) Pops.

This week seems to have absolutely flown in again!

Silent Sunday

2012-01-15T09:30:00.000Z

Can Eczema Be This Bad?

2012-01-12T22:13:00.002Z

I'm feeling really frustrated and sad for Wee Z because of this...

This is his skin at the moment which is caused by eczema. When I think of eczema I picture dry skin that perhaps flakes a bit. Never, ever have I seen a skin condition referred to as eczema look like this. It looks sore so I can't begin to imagine how Wee Z must feel having to live with his skin in this condition.

It looks so bad I think you might be thinking that I'm doing nothing to help his skin. Where's the cream for this boy? Change your washing powder! Check his diet isn't causing this! I promise you though, I have done everything I know and have been told to do and yet nothing seems to work.

The most frustrating things about this is his skin only started to look this way in August last year, and by last year I mean 2011. Only 5 months ago. Wee Z did have a slight case of baby eczema but it cleared up before he was 1 and I've never had any problems with his skin since. I have no idea what has triggered his skin to flare up like this other than he started to drink full fat milk at nursery. We don't drink milk, through choice and they only have semi-skimmed milk in their cereal. Nothing else in his diet or our lifestyle had changed.

As soon as I noticed his skin flaring up I started using diprobase which is the cream Miss C uses for her eczema and the cream Wee Z used as a baby. It didn't make his skin any worse but it wasn't getting any better. Whilst we were on holiday, the sun helped his skin improve and it looked a lot better when we got home. I still took him to the Doctors as I was concerned about how quickly his skin flared up. The Doctor seemed to think it was more of a heat rash but to continue using his cream to keep the skin from being dry.

A month later and his skin was not improving, infact it was getting worse. The backs of his knees were raw from him scratching and even though I kept his nails as short as I could, he still managed to open the skin. The sides of his legs were covered in the material from his trousers, literally sticking to the wounded skin.

I went back to the Doctor and saw a different Doctor who, sad to say, was a lot more helpful than the previous Doctor we saw. She swabbed his skin as she thought he probably had an infection because the wounds weren't healing. Wee Z had a 7 day course of penicillin to take and she prescribed us with a 2% steroid cream and more moisturisers.

His skin much improved

I was told to use the steroid cream once a day for 2 weeks and his skin looked amazing after using it for only a few days. I was to continue using diprobase although we did try dermol cream which didn't help and I also had to use oilatum in the bath. After the 2 weeks he went back to the Doctor and she prescribed a 0.5% steroid cream and an oil based moisturiser. We were told to use the steroid cream for 4 days and then stop completely and only use his oil based moisturiser and the oilatum in the bath. After about a week of using the oil based moisturiser, Wee Z's skin started to get bad again and the oilatum didn't seem to be helping either. Infact I have used oilatum before and it only seemed to flare both Wee Z and Miss C's skin up.

We are going to the Doctor again to have his skin rechecked and I'm fairly certain it is infected again. He's not allergic to anything, nothing in terms of diet or washing powder has changed and we've asked nursery to stop letting him have milk so I really am clueless as to what is causing his skin to look like this. I really hope we can get him help with this sooner rather than later as I'd hate for him to have to live with this for much longer. And bless him, he doesn't complain once.

Spring Fashion For Miss C From Next

2012-01-12T09:00:00.000Z

After Christmas I do a big clear out of toys, books and clothes that the kids don't use or wear anymore. This then gives me an idea of what I need to buy for them in terms of clothes for Spring/Summer time. I have much more fun sorting Miss C's wardrobe out than Wee Z's, as she has a huge selection of dresses, cardigans, leggings...the list goes on. I love pretty colours on her so I'm really excited about the Spring collection for girls from Next.

I love the selection of colours in their cardi range which are perfect for those cool Spring days on top of a dress or shorts and t-shirt combo. There is a colour to suit everyone. They can also go together or mix and match with their equally colourful skinny jeans. Miss C mostly wears skinny jeans or jeggings because they fit better and go with wellies or Winter boots without the tucking-in fuss normal jeans give!

Especially cute is this 70's inspired block dress. Although it isn't something I'd put on Miss C, it is something I'd want for myself (however I'd belt it at the middle for a more flattering shape on me!) and can see it really suiting an older girl. I love the colours and it looks really light and airy for those warmer Spring days.

My favourite piece is this Stone Frill Mac. I love the pink frill lining and the colour is really fresh and warm. This is definitely the perfect Spring jacket for Miss C! She'd look super sweet in it.

Can January hurry up and be over with so I can be paid and have some pennies to spend please?!

This post is for the Next Blogger Network which I am a member of. I haven't been compensated for this post and the opinions expressed are my own from a prompt provided by Next Blogger Network.

The Gallery - Phone Photos

2012-01-11T09:30:00.000Z

Up until recently, I never had a good camera phone (or a good phone) so I never really took any photos with it. They always turned out grainy, dark and...rubbish. Then my phone broke, and whilst I swore I'd never join "the real world" and get one of these fancy, all singing, all dancing smart phones - I did. I had to; they don't make the phone I was using anymore!

So now I have a phone with a pretty decent camera on it which is really handy as I always seem to forget my actual camera when I go out. I don't have the steadiest of hands so I'm very pleased that my camera phone has the facility to auto-focus for me. That's as far as I've got with any of the features on it though.

This photo I took on Monday. I just happened to be passing it with the kids and saw it and thought damn I wish I had my camera...and then remembered I had the next best thing. I quickly took my phone out, (as I always feel a bit weird randomly stopping and taking pictures of scenery in the street) hit auto-focus and took this picture. No editing done, just this shot. A perfect Winter's day. What a clever phone!

This post is for The Gallery. The theme this week is Phone Photos.

My Favourite Posts and Photos of 2011 Part 2

2012-01-10T22:43:00.002Z

I'm continuing revisiting my posts and photos from last year as I only got to June last week. Here's some of my favourites from July to December.

In July Husband and I celebrated being married for 5 years and it has become a tradition for us to visit the restaurant where we had our wedding meal. The food, as always, was delicious and the company was fabulous too. Having that one night together just for us reminds us of a time where we weren't parents, raising children and reminds us of what we enjoyed about each other in the beginning of our relationship. The following weekend I enjoyed a girlie night out for Mama N's hen night. We had such a laugh and it was great to be able to go out and let my (wild) hair down. My favourite photo that month was for Silent Sunday, a picture I took in our local park but could be anywhere in the world.

In August, Miss C surprised us all by deciding she was going to potty train herself in 2 days. We've had a few accidents since but on the whole she has done really well and I'm glad I'm almost finished with the nappy stage. Just night time to master now! I had a difficult moment with Wee Z and trying to explain why Cerrie on Cbeebies has half an arm. It's hard to know what to say but I think he got it and hasn't ever said anything about it again. My favourite photo that month was the one I took for The Gallery theme World Photography Day. Wee Z picked some lovely blue flowers and on top of one of them was the tiniest snail I have ever seen.

In September, Miss Baby K came to visit us for a few days. It was lovely to see her and my Sister but having a 5 month old in the house really reminded me of what having a baby was like. The lack of sleep, the lack of sleep and the lack of sleep. We also took our first family trip abroad to Fuerteventura and had a great time together. My favourite photos that month where the ones I took on our trip to the Isle of Arran. Arran is simply stunning and if you ever visit Scotland, you must get on the ferry and head over there. It's breathtaking!

October saw the start of Miss C's terrible twos. OK so they didn't just start in October but they definitely got worse and only Wee Z could think up a way other than time out to help deal with these tantrums. Wee Z had his first experience of Trick or Treating for Halloween and thought it was fantastic and he can't wait to go again this year. My favourite photo that month was the one I used for The Gallery theme Faces. Miss C just looks like a sleeping beauty, so peaceful and angelic.

In November I was having a moment of wondering exactly who I was. No longer a young, crazy, care-free girl but a mother and wife. Part of me still feels like that crazy girl is inside me somewhere...she's probably asleep right now, but does becoming a parent change you or do you just grow up and become the person you were supposed to be? My favourite photo that month I used for Silent Sunday. It was a picture I took on my phone whilst we were out walking and I love how the sun is peeking through the trees...the perfect Autumn day.

December seem to creep up on me and just appear. Usually I'm quite organised for Christmas but come December 1st, I don't think I'd done most of my shopping. The best part of December, apart from Santa visiting, was seeing Bella and Pops, who came to stay with us for a few days. Living so far apart, it's always nice to see them and the kids love having them to stay. Christmas is definitely all about being with family and loved ones. Our Christmas was spent at home and looked like this. My favourite photo that month was one of the ones I used for The Gallery theme My Awesome Photo. It was hard to choose, but this one was definitely my favourite and again, a capture on my phone.

So that was 2011...I wonder what 2012 will look like?

Sudocrem and Mummy Matters Week

2012-01-09T21:18:00.001Z

I can remember Sudocrem being part of our medicine cabinet when we were younger so it was always going to be in ours, especially now we have Wee Z and Miss C. It's great for any little cuts or grazes or for nappy rash in babies and it smells nice too. It can be a bit of a pain to get off but that's about my only criticism!

This week until Friday 13th (eeeek!) Sudocrem are hosting a Mummy Matters session on their Facebook page. It gives us parents the opportunity to ask a panel of experts on their own subject anything we need answers to.

Here are the sessions for the week:

Monday 9th - Jennifer Liston-Smith (Executive and Maternity coach)
Tuesday 10th - Claire Wylde (Dietician)
Wednesday 11th - Jo Barnard (Careers Adviser)
Thursday 12th - Wendy Powel (Pre and Post Natal Fitness Expert)
Friday 13th - Beth Goodrham (Personal Stylist)

To get involved just head over to the Sudocrem Facebook page and ask away!

I have not been compensated for this post. This post is for blog-match.com.

Nappy Rash

The Sunday Round-Up #WeekOne

2012-01-08T22:34:00.001Z

We are a week into 2012 already?! That is just crazy. I have a feeling this year is going to go in just as quickly as 2011 did. Here's what we've been up to this week in my Sunday Round-Up!

Last Sunday was spent recovering after a night-in with Cupcake Neighbour and God Father playing the board game Logo and enjoying a bottle of fizzy wine. I was rather merry after half a bottle, which may seem a tad light-weighted, but I'm not a big drinker so it doesn't take much. We had a good laugh seeing in the New Year together but didn't stay up too late as we Husband had the kids to get up to in the morning.

On Sunday afternoon we decided to take a walk to the park to try and clear our heads and let the kids run riot after being stuck indoors for almost a week. We fed the ducks, played in the park and then headed home to get ready to have our steak pie dinner at God Father's house. Dinner was really lovely, spent in the company of our lovely neighbours. They were on the drink again but I stayed clear of it as I had to be up for my first shift after two weeks off and to say I was not looking forward to it was an understatement.

My first day back wasn't actually that bad. I did an 8 hour shift as voluntary overtime and it was fairly quiet, still being a bank holiday and all, so I can't complain too much about it. I do enjoy my job I just couldn't face the idea of 8 hours at work when I usually only work 4 hours a day.

Tuesday was back to normal with my shifts and Husband was starting back at work on the night shift. The kids spent the day doing arts and crafts as the weather was rubbish. They made some lovely felt pictures with the packs Cupcake Neighbour bought for them and Wee Z wrote me a lovely letter using sticky letters and his own penmanship when he ran out of letters.

Wednesday and Thursday were much the same with work and then playing inside with all the new toys and puzzles. I did manage to get the kids out for a walk on Thursday afternoon down to the local park. It was a bit chilly but it was dry and my motto is unless it's pouring with rain or the streets are covered in black ice, we're going outdoors! On the way home from the park Wee Z started complaining he was cold and wanted to be home NOW! Wee Z is very responsive to goal orientated games, so I decided to get him running home by giving him a starting point and a finishing point. We started with short distances, one lamppost to the next but soon we were running most of the way and it cut 10 minutes off our normal walking time.

On Friday I went for my food shopping although with lots of sales on, I ended up spending a bit more than normal buying clothes for the kids. It's hard to resist a bargain though! I got Wee Z a lovely winter jacket for only £8 which I was really pleased about. We had our neighbour and her kids over to play. The boys played with Wee Z's cars and the girls made pancakes and eggs in the Peppa Pig kitchen.

On Saturday Husband went to the gym whilst we went to the library to pick out some books. I got a few for myself as I haven't read a book in a few months now and I've got the itch to start again. I'm starting with Wedding Tiers by Trisha Ashley. It's chick-lit but that's the main genre I'm into. I chose a Jill Mansel novel and a Louise Bagshawe novel too. I just need to find the time to read them!

A quiet week for us, trying to get back into some sort of routine whilst the schools are still off. Here's hoping the weather is better this week so we can get out to play more!

Silent Sunday

2012-01-08T09:00:00.000Z

My Favourite Posts and Photos of 2011 Part 1

2012-01-06T09:30:00.000Z

A few weeks ago I took part in the Britmums blogging prompts to showcase some of my favourite posts of 2011. This is something I like to do anyway as I like to read back on the year and some of the milestones we've reached or some of the fun things we've gotten up to.

So I decided to post a recap of some of my other favourite posts from last year, having sat and relived them over the last few days. These are from the first 6 months of the year!

In January I was feeling sleep deprived as Miss C was teething. She was a late comer with her teeth, not really getting her first 2 until she was about 10 months old. A blessing for me really as I was breastfeeding but a nightmare for her (and us) as they pretty much came one after another. I also shared a bit more about myself in the "7 things about me" meme. My favourite picture that month was one for Silent Sunday - just my kind of humour!

Sadly in February an Uncle passed away, quite suddenly and most definitely unexpectedly. Death is one of those things that we all know eventually will come to us but it's strange how actually experiencing it in your circle of family or friends puts life into perspective. Thankfully I've always got Wee Z to make me smile with all his random comments he comes out with. My favourite picture that month was one for The Gallery and the theme was Togetherness.

Giving something up can be hard to do, especially if you become addicted. In March, around No Smoking Week, I wrote about my journey through giving up smoking. It was hard at times and occasionally I jumped back on the smoky wagon but it was worth it in the end. For my health and for the pennies! My favourite photo that month was of me and my old school chum Amy from And 1 more means four...and 1 more for The Gallery theme Education.

In April we got to know some of our neighbours a bit better by starting up a Come Dine With Me night. What a laugh we all had as we hosted the first evening. It was stressful too and I was glad when we served pudding to be done with the cooking! It was great though to gain some truly great friends through it. We also got a new addition in April in the form of Casper the kitten. He's almost a year old now and has fitted into our family so well. The kids adore him and he adores them back which is just lovely to see. My favourite photo that month was this Silent Sunday post where Wee Z had made me a beautiful Mother's Day card.

Apart from my gorgeous Miss C turning 2, the most important thing that happened in May was meeting my beautiful niece, Miss Baby K. She was born in April but living so far away meant that it wasn't possible to see her in her first few moments of life. Holding her for the first time was really lovely and although she isn't my daughter, I felt unconditional love for her straightaway just as I had my own babies. I'm so proud of my sister, bringing her little bundle into the world. My favourite photo that month was the one of Miss Baby K I used for The Gallery theme April.

Wee Z turned 4 at the beginning of June. It's hard to believe how fast he has grown up! With growing up though comes learning lots of new things, some of which aren't always things that you want to encourage. Wee Z's rowdy ways with some of the other boys at nursery were starting to rub off on Miss C which resulted in my rather embarrassing shopping trip with her. My favourite photos that month were the ones we used for The Gallery for the Dads theme. I couldn't pick just one of Daddy as there are so many fantastic moments that I've captured of him sharing and enjoying his time with his children and them with him.

Twelve Things For 2012

2012-01-05T09:00:00.000Z

Last year I wrote a list of 11 things I wanted to do for 2011 and decided to do the same this year except as it is now 2012, I need to think up 12 things I want to do.

Firstly to recap on last year and what I actually managed to achieve:

Decorate our bedroom - didn't get round to that one.
Change the carpet on my stairs and landing - didn't do that one either.
Re-paint the bathroom - erm nope didn't managed that one.
Re-paint the toilet - Nope...God what was I doing last year??
Re-decorate Wee Z's room - Ah now this one we did manage, it's now a lovely blue colour with football duvet covers and cushions.
Move Wee Z in to a "bigger boy" bed - Along with the decorating, Wee Z got a big cabin bed which he loves.
Move Miss C in to a "big girl" bed - We moved Miss C in to her toddler bed without any fuss from her.
Clean under our bed - I managed that one but needless to say it didn't last long and a pile of rubbish has piled up under it again.
Clean the oven - Erm...I did the grill.
Learn how to change a light bulb - Nope didn't manage that one but I did ask Husband to change 2.
Learn how to change a tyre - Thankfully I haven't needed to know how to do this so far...really must learn.

Now for this year:

Decorate our bedroom - This will actually happen this year as at the end of the month the room is being re-plastered, so unless I want to stare at bare walls, it will be done.
Change the carpet on my stairs and landing - The stairs are getting really creaky now so the carpet is coming up whether I like it or not and they are being fixed. Then the new carpet will be put down.
Re-paint the bathroom - It really does need done now!
Re-paint the toilet - As above!
Re-decorate the kitchen now that we've moved on from food splats all over the walls.
Experiment more in the kitchen with my numerous cookbooks I now own.
Practise more big cakes and improve my cupcakes
Read more books.
Move Miss C in to a "bigger girl" bed.
Have a huge clear out - I'm such a hoarder.
Take my camera out with me more often.
Take more photos of me with the kids - I have so many of them with their Daddy and not nearly enough with me.

Wordless Wednesday

2012-01-04T09:00:00.000Z

What Do I See in 2012?

2012-01-03T09:00:00.000Z

I've been a bit quiet on the blogging front over the festive period but I feel it's important to take a break from my blog or I end up getting stuck in a rut of not knowing what to write.

So here we are in 2012! Doesn't it feel strange saying that? I felt like 2011 just absolutely flew in which is really scary as it means my children are growing up just as quickly and in the blink of an eye they'll be teenagers ready to leave home and start their own lives.

I don't do resolutions. I never have done. I'm always trying to keep fit, eat more healthily and do more in life that I don't see the need to make a point of making them at New Year. I do like to think about the year ahead in a positive manner and think about all the exciting things that are going to happen.

In April, Miss Baby K will celebrate her first birthday. I can't believe it's almost been a year since she was born. Again, it just goes to show how quickly time is passing us by.

In May, Miss C will be 3. When Wee Z turned 2 I had just given birth to Miss C so I don't really remember the 2 stage with Wee Z however I've been able to (mostly) enjoy this age with Miss C. There have been times where her behaviour has been somewhat testing but I look at it as her developing her own personality and testing the waters with her Mummy and Daddy.

In June, my baby boy Wee Z will be 5. This is terrifying me because I can't get over the fact that I have been a Mummy for 5 years. Where has the time gone? What also scares me is I can't really remember lots of the things he did as a baby or a toddler. Is that supposed to happen? I'm thankful for the videos and pictures we took of him that I can look back on and help jog my memory!

In July, Husband and I will have been married for 6 years. I'd say 2011 has been our most testing time for our relationship, juggling work and parenting. It's been hard to have any "us" time. We're making more of an effort now and I know I still fancy the pants off him and so long as we have that, we can't go wrong!

In August, Wee Z will start school which is emotionally draining in itself but a few days later Miss C will start nursery. When Wee Z started nursery I wasn't overly emotional about it because I knew I'd still have my baby girl and I'd be able to enjoy spending a few hours with her alone during the week. However, when they start school and nursery I'll have no one and I think it will hit me hard seeing them both set off on their new journeys. I am also excited for them. I know Wee Z is going to thrive at school and really make us proud. Miss C is going to love nursery and I'm excited for her to make some new friends.

Which brings me to Christmas this year which is going to be even more exciting than 2011. Wee Z has been quite aware this year and Miss C has fed off his energy a little bit but I don't think she's quite got the concept of Christmas and Santa. This year she'll be 3 and a half come Christmas and already I know how much more aware she is going to be and I can't wait. Of course, Wee Z will be 5 and a half so I know the "has Santa been yet?" is going to start this year.

All in all I'm looking forward to 2012 and everything it holds for us. I'm still holding out for a lottery win (who isn't?) but otherwise I'm feeling positive and who knows, maybe there will be a few surprises in store for us?!

Reading over this I decided to make one resolution; to really appreciate my children. I'm going to soak everything up that they do this year because, if 2011 is anything to go by, this year will go in just as quickly and they won't be my babies for long.

Happy 2012!

Listography - Top 5 Photos of 2011

2012-01-02T20:47:00.001Z

I couldn't not join in this week's listography as it is such a fab list and gives me the chance to browse through all of the photos I took last year. Choosing only 5 was pretty hard though!

Miss C with Casper having a cuddle...so cute!

A little sleeping beauty.

Miss C found a lovely red flower on holiday.

Wee Z and Husband exploring the rock pools in Arran.

Wee Z cuddling his baby cousin Miss Baby K whilst Miss C enjoyed a chocolate brownie!

Our Christmas In Pictures 2011

2011-12-27T20:13:00.000Z

And Just Like That It's Over

2011-12-26T21:24:00.000Z

Christmas has been and gone in our household. The tree is down and the house is looking fairly normal with a little less space for anything. Thank goodness it's over for another year!

As exciting as Christmas is, especially now with young children, I always have an anti-climax sort of feeling towards the day. All that preparation for one day and as quick as the blink of an eye, it's over!

On Christmas Eve we went to bed excited to wake up with the kids and see their faces as they entered the living room to open their presents from Santa. Their faces were a picture, especially Wee Z's, who took his time unwrapping each present and careful looking at what he had received. Miss C was a bit more production line about it but then she is only 2.

After the present opening was completed, we chose some of the new toys to play with and spent a few hours with the kids enjoying family time together. We then had to start preparing the food for our Christmas dinner. This year we had my Father in Law and youngest Brother in Law for dinner and as soon as I have to cook for more than us 4, I get a bit stressed. I mean, it's OK if the food tastes crap and I'm feeding it to us, but it's quite another story if I'm feeding it to other people. I want them to enjoy their food so they come back again...although maybe if it did taste rubbish I'd get out of hosting dinner at all?!

As my BIL is quite fussy, I decided to make macaroni for him and the kids. The kids would eat a roast dinner but I thought we should treat ourselves to some steak instead and Husband spent a small fortune buying fillets for my FIL, him and me. I made roast potatoes, steamed veggies and a peppercorn sauce to go with it. Husband made his prawn cocktail for us (garlic pizza bread for the kids and BIL) and I served apple crumble with ice cream for dessert. It was rather yummy!

After the stress of cooking and all the clearing up and once FIL and BIL had gone home, we got the kids bathed and in their jammies and settled under a duvet on the couch to watch The Gruffalo's Child. I thought the kids would fall asleep watching it but no, they stayed awake captivated by the story until the very end. I could feel myself drifting off to sleep as I was so exhausted but as soon as the kids were in bed, I got my second wind and Husband and I sat up watching TV and working our way through the chocolates.

When I went to bed I lay there and thought that's it; Christmas is done. I don't know what the end to that thought was because I fell asleep!

Even The Breakfast is Festive

2011-12-23T09:00:00.000Z

I am so excited that there are only 2 more sleeps until Santa comes! The tree is decorated, the cards are hanging up and the advent calendars are almost finished. Everything is looking rather festive in our house...including the cereal.

Here is Miss C sampling some Snowy Puffs, otherwise known as Sugar Puffs with a Christmassy twist. The Honey Monster has added snowballs in the form of meringue to his puffs as a limited edition pack for Christmas.

Miss C's verdict - she loved the snowballs and picked them all out to eat them all up. Not so keen on the sugar puffs though. The kids love Honey Waffles, maybe next year you could do those Honey Monster?

This is a review post. We received a box of Snowy Puffs for the purposes of a review. The opinions expressed are our own.

Christmas Gifts - Homemade Truffles

2011-12-22T09:00:00.000Z

Last year as Christmas gifts for the nursery staff and some of our neighbours, I made chocolate fudge. This year we decided to make truffles. I love truffles because they are bite-size deliciousness and really quite addictive. They are also really easy to make.

For my fudge, I asked my Mum to find me some cellophane bags as she's quite good at crafty things so I thought she'd know just the place to find some. All my Mum could get was some cellophane sheets from Thorntons (of all the places) but it did the job fantastically.

On Twitter a few weeks ago @Jessies_Online shared her eBay shop and a link to some cellophane party bags which is exactly what I was looking for. I bought some gorgeous blue and white snowflake bags which are perfect for holding all the truffles in and look really pretty as a gift I think.

There are so many variations to making truffles but I tend to stick with just plain digestives and chocolate drinking powder for mine.

Recipe

1 pack of digestive biscuits
1 can of condensed milk
50g of unsalted butter, melted
50g dessicated coconut - optional
70g drinking chocolate
Chocolate sprinkles, icing sugar, cocoa powder or dessicated coconut for rolling them in

Start by crushing your biscuits in to a fine mixture. I did this with a food processor or you could put them in a bag and used a rolling pin to crush them. Add your drinking chocolate, dessicated coconut and butter and mix together. Then add your condensed milk bit by bit so you can judge easily how much you'll need. If you use too much the mixture will become too sticky and will make it hard to roll the truffles. Once mixed, allow it to cool in the fridge for about 30 minutes.

The mixture is ready to roll if you can roll a truffle without it sticking to your hands and it holds it shape when placed on a flat surface. You can roll them as big or as little as you like and coat them in sprinkles, cocoa powder...whatever takes your fancy. I coated these ones in chocolate sprinkles and dessicated coconut.

Place them in your bags, again how many depends on size and how generous you are feeling and seal them up with some ribbon. Yummy!

I'll have that one and that one and that one...

The Gallery - Christmas of Yesteryear

2011-12-21T09:00:00.000Z

I'd love to say I'm sharing a photo from a Christmas many, many years ago but sadly I'm not. My old photographs are currently boxed in the loft underneath, behind and in between all of the Christmas presents.

This photo is from our first Christmas together as a family of 3. My Mum and Step Dad spent Wee Z's first Christmas with us. It was a relatively quiet one after everyone had visited to drop presents in for Wee Z. We spent the morning opening presents, playing with new toys whilst Wee Z had a nap (present opening can be a tad overwhelming to a 7 month old apparently) and enjoying a stroll in the afternoon to work up an appetite for our Christmas dinner. We enjoyed our meal together, playing games and watching Christmas TV.

Wee Z adorned a Santa outfit for his Christmas outfit which was so cute but didn't stay on for long. In the evening we went to visit my Father in Law and came home with more presents for Wee Z who was just ready for his bed by that point.

It was a lovely Christmas and really brought back the meaning of Christmas to me; sharing it with family and those you care about most.

This post is for The Gallery. The theme this week is Christmas of Yesteryear.

The Christmas Cracker Show

2011-12-20T20:59:00.000Z

On Friday it was that time of year again at nursery where all the parents piled in to see their children performing in their Christmas show. Last year they had a nativity and recreated the story of the birth of Baby Jesus. This year the nursery put on a fantastic show for us all called The Christmas Cracker.

Each group at Wee Z's nursery had to learn a song and they performed it for us. They were all smashing! The 4 year olds that we watched as 3 year olds last year were much more confident and sang so loudly, knew all the words and knew all the actions too.

Wee Z's group were singing "When Santa got stuck up the chimney" and wore hats and scarfs and had tissues for props. They did very well; all the groups did and there were plenty of proud parents, some close to tears.

My "Proud Mummy" moment was when Wee Z opened the show with his lines he had been practising. He was the only child to have a line of his own so I was beaming even if you could hardly hear him! He had to say "Welcome to our Christmas show. Sit back, relax and enjoy!"

It's scary to think that this time next year we'll be watching a 3 year old Miss C in her first nursery nativity. How the time flies!

The Weekend We'd Rather Forget

2011-12-19T20:43:00.000Z

Last weekend was one of those weekends I could quite happily forget about. It was terrible. Friday night, as I was finishing clearing away after dinner, Husband shouted me through to the living room. I thought he was shouting me to see something cute or funny the kids were doing but no...! He shouted me to tell me that Miss C had just done a poo but might have been pushing too hard as it seemed she had a minor rectal prolapse.

Husband phoned NHS 24 to get some advice and the nurse didn't seem to think this sounded right for a 2 year old, especially when Husband told her that Miss C had passed blood too. Husband had to take her out to hospital to see a DR. I was so stressed and scared and felt sick. All I could do was stay at home with Wee Z and wait to hear if she was OK.

Thankfully Miss C returned home fairly quickly after seeing the DR. They seemed to think that she has been straining to go for a poo and may have been a bit constipated. More fibre in the diet should sort her out and if that doesn't help, they can give her some laxatives. She seemed in good spirits though as she walked through the door wearing a bedpan on her head.

Whether it was down to the stress of Friday night or I was holding out for something, I woke up on Saturday morning feeling like death warmed up. My throat was swollen and it felt like I was swallowing knives. My ears were pounding and my joints were aching. I had to go to work though, it was my third to last shift before my holidays so I wasn't about to phone in sick.

My voice was strained, which was bliss for Husband as it meant I could hardly talk. When I got home from work, we pushed the couches together, I put my jammies on and we all cuddled up under my duvet and watched Despicable Me. Husband made sure I had plenty of painkillers, throat spray and cups of tea.

I didn't feel much better on Sunday and after spending the day with my Dad, I had an early night which I thought might help me feel more human again. I couldn't eat anything apart from some soup but I was craving carbs! I honestly felt like I'd never feel the feel of swallowing normally again.

This morning I awoke and all positivity left my body. My ears were pounding harder and my throat felt dry and raw. I got ready for work, took some more painkillers and wrapped up warmly. The thought of 4 hours at work was exhausting but I only had 2 more shifts to go.

I thought I may fall asleep at work, and then my painkillers started to kick in. My throat wasn't sore, I could swallow again. At first I swallowed cautiously, in case it was a fluke, but then I got braver and I was eating a banana and then a pear and gulping down cups of water.

My throat is still slightly tender but I definitely feel much better. However, Husband is now unwell so it looks like I'm on tea duty! I can cope with that though, so long as Miss C doesn't give us another fright.

My Best Holiday Ever

2011-12-15T21:37:00.000Z

Preparing to go on holiday is up there with one of the best feelings in the world. Knowing you've worked hard all year and saved up all your pennies makes that week or 2 away truly amazing. I've been really lucky to have gone on some fantastic holidays when I was growing up.

It's hard to pinpoint my best holiday because each one was memorable in it's own way. However, one that always makes me smile is when my Dad took my sisters and I to France. We spent 4 days at Disneyland Paris which was really good fun. I was 14 at the time but the kid in me still loved going on all the rides, meeting my favourite Disney characters (Tigger and Pooh) and watching the parade and fireworks at night. My youngest sister was 3 at the time, almost 4 so it was really amazing to share her first Disney experience with her.

After our 4 days in Disneyland, we headed over to a town called Berny Riviere just outside Paris to go camping for 10 days. I hate camping so I wasn't looking forward to it at all. I was also missing my friends and boyfriend because spending holidays with them was much more fun than being with my Dad and sisters (said the teenager in me!) We arrived at the campsite which was also a caravan site and immediately set about exploring the place. It was sunny which was bonus but that would mean cold, cold nights. No fun in a tent!

Not too keen on camping, can you tell?

Do you remember going on holiday as a teen and seeing the big group of kids who had gotten to know each other over the course of their holiday and thinking I want to be part of that gang, but not having the courage to go up to them? That was how I felt on our first night. The thing was, this group was no ordinary group of kids; this group was made up of around 6 or 7 boys and 2 absolutely stunning blonde girls. It was intimidating for sure!

Thankfully there was a boy in that group who apparently took a shine to me and we got to chatting. I found out he lived about 20 minutes from where I lived so we chatted about the area and places we'd go to hang out. We even shared a cheeky kiss in a tee pee in the play-park...! He was leaving 2 days later but he was kind enough to introduce me to the group.

My little sister loved going fishing!

The next 9 days were spent laughing by the pool, sharing life stories and dancing the night away with these 2 gorgeous blondes and the entourage of boys. Being able to drink at the age of 14 in France meant we took full advantage of cocktails and shots so most nights I didn't need my extra blanket in the tent! We were thick as thieves but made sure to welcome new people in to the group as they arrived and it was always a tearful goodbye when someone left.

It came time for me to leave and we promised to stay in touch. Sometimes these sort of friendships, like a holiday romance, just stay that way and don't develop past your holiday but we did keep in touch and I still have all the letters my friends H and K sent me over the years. We met up a few times although living far apart didn't always make it easy. We're still in touch to this day thanks to the powers of social media aka Facebook.

I never saw the boy who introduced me to my wonderful, gorgeous blonde friends again. He did contact me when I got home and persisted for a week or so but I remembered I was supposed to have a boyfriend and didn't reply. Being 14 is a fickle age! But I'll always be grateful to him for taking me in to the group and making my holiday to France one of the best holidays in my life.

This post is for the BritMums Blogging Prompts where this week they are asking about our best holiday.

Wordless Wednesday

2011-12-14T09:30:00.000Z

Christmas + Chocolates = Happy Me

2011-12-14T08:30:00.000Z

One of the best things about the festive period is being able to over-indulge on everything that isn't particularly good for you. Calories at Christmas don't count!

The aisles in my supermarket are lined with tins and boxes of chocolate at seriously cheap prices, making them excellent gift ideas. Already I have 2 tins of chocolate in my house and it's not even the week of Christmas!

This got me thinking about which tins of sweets are my favourites. The ones I have at the moment are Roses and a limited edition tin of Quality Street, who are celebrating their 75th anniversary this year.

I prefer the fudge in Quality Street; they are mourish! However the strawberry and orange creams in Roses are lush! If they could make giant fudges and giant strawberry and orange creams I'd be a happy girl. If you're a fan of the hazelnut caramel in a Quality Street tin then you'll be pleased to hear they've launched a limited edition "My Purple Bar" which is a big chocolate hazelnut caramel bar. Yum!

I took to Facebook and asked my friends to help settle the debate - Roses or Quality Street? It was fairly evenly split with only one person choosing Celebrations instead. And now I ask you readers - what tin of chocolates are you hoping to find under your tree this year?

We received the limited edition tin of Quality Street and 2 My Purple Bars in return for this post. The opinions expressed are my own.

Christmas Happy Families

2011-12-13T17:00:00.000Z

This weekend was an exciting one as Bella and Pops made their Christmas trip up to visit us all. It was touch and go as to whether they would make it with the weather being so bad up North last week and with their dog, Cooper, deciding he was going to swallow a ball and not pass it within a 24 hour period. Thankfully, the wind eased off and Cooper threw up his ball so Bella and Pops arrived on Friday afternoon and were welcomed by a very excited Wee Z and Miss C.

Miss C told Pops how much she had missed him which was very sweet. I think it's really lovely that they remember them especially when they don't see them often. As always, they came laden with gifts for us all; chocolates for me, wine for Husband, animal snap for Miss C and happy families for Wee Z. They hadn't been in the door five minutes and Wee Z had roped them in to playing a game.

On Saturday we had booked to go and see Santa and the kids were really excited. We were greeted by one of Santa's elves who Miss C decided to call Ben Elf, like the one from Ben and Holly's Little Kingdom. He chatted away to Wee Z, asking him what he was going to ask Santa for. After a few minutes waiting outside of Santa's log cabin, the big man was ready for us.

The cabin was filled with presents and in the corner was Santa. Miss C immediately freaked out but Wee Z went straight up to him and said hello. Santa asked him to sit on his stool and to tell him what he would like for Christmas. "Stickers by numbers please Santa!" He had a photo with Santa and then took his gift and off we went.

We decided to have a cuppa and ended up running in to my MIL and her husband so we all sat together enjoying some ~~rather overpriced~~ very tasty carrot cake and cheesecake. Wee Z and Miss C opened their presents from Santa; Wee Z got a pirate dress up costume so he just had to put it on in the middle of the cafe and Miss C got a soft toy giraffe.

Once we got home and the kids had gone to bed, Bella and Pops treated us to a take-away and then we decided to tackle the present wrapping. I am a terrible wrapper; I could ruin the entire Santa belief with one misplaced piece of sellotape, so Bella offered to help. We chatted away, laughing as we recalled old stories and reliving the take-away we had just eaten. Quality family time!

All too soon and Sunday had arrived which meant it was time for Bella and Pops to go home. Thankfully the kids didn't get upset when they were leaving which made it easier. I don't like my Mum or my Sister leaving because they live so faraway. However I'm sure we all appreciate each other a lot more for it.

Funny Things My Child Says #3

2011-12-12T20:46:00.000Z

Wee Z has a nursery concert on Friday and has been learning lots of Christmas related songs like Santa Got Stuck Up The Chimney and Jingle Bells. He's been teaching Miss C Away In A Manger and all about Baby Jesus which she thinks is fab as she quite likes babies.

As I'm getting the bath ready I can hear Miss C and Wee Z talking away to each other. Wee Z is telling Miss C she has to be Mary and he will be Joesph and they have to find a space at the Inn so Mary can have Baby Jesus. They both come running through from Miss C's room to tell me all about their game.

"Mummy, me Mary!" says Miss C.

"And I'm Joesph and there is no room at the Inn Mummy so Mary has to sit in a stable!" says Wee Z.

"Mummy, me have Baby Jesus!" says Miss C.

"Really? Where is Baby Jesus?" I ask her.

"Baby Jesus in mine tummy!" says Miss C as she rubs her tummy.

"OH right! How did Baby Jesus get in your tummy?" I ask her.

Miss C looks at me as if I've asked her the most ridiculous question and then answers "In my mouth Mummy!"

Silent Sunday

2011-12-11T09:00:00.000Z

A Letter To Santa From Miss C

2011-12-09T09:00:00.000Z

Dear Santa,

I have been a very good girl this year Santa, just like last year although, to be fair, I didn't know much about Christmas or you then. This year my brother has been telling me all about Christmas and this baby called Jesus. I'd quite like a baby for Christmas, a pretend one Santa, not a real one. My Daddy says Mummy isn't allowed a real one and I agree with him as I liked to stay the baby of the family.

I'd also quite like a puppy. My God Mummy has a new puppy and he is really friendly although I'm not too keen on him giving me kisses. I think a pretend puppy might be a better idea as then my kitten Casper won't get too upset. But Mummy says you've not to get me one of those life-like puppies that do actual pees.

I really like doing jigsaws with my Mummy and Daddy so some new puzzles would be nice. My favourites at the moment are Peppa Pig and a fairy toadstool one but they are getting too easy for me now so Mummy says I need some new ones to help me learn more.

Thank you very much Santa,

Love Miss C aged 2 years and 6 months

P.S - Santa, my Mummy has been telling me and my brother that there are lots of children who won't get presents this Christmas. I hope you haven't forgotten about them Santa, but my Mummy says we can help those children by visiting Operation Christmas Child and making an online shoebox filled with goodies for a little boy or little girl so they can enjoy a Christmas gift too.

A Letter To Santa From Wee Z

2011-12-08T09:00:00.000Z

Dear Santa,

I have been a very good boy this year although Mummy does tell me I have my moments. I try to tell her that I'm just expressing my individuality but she says that I am stubborn. Sometimes. Anyway, I'd like to think that I have been a good boy most of the year; I have helped my sister with her learning and given her lots of cuddles and played lots of games with her. I've helped my Mummy with her baking and helped her watch her tummy doesn't get bigger by eating the cakes we bake. I recently started emptying the dishwasher - just the plastic stuff Santa - which is lots of fun.

Taking all of this in to consideration Santa, I'd be really happy if I could have: -

Some puzzles like the Orchard Toys ones I already have, they are great!
Stickers by numbers
Horrid Henry books
A game for my MobiGo
A flying board

Incase you haven't heard of a flying board Santa, my Mummy hasn't either, this is a really cool silver board that can fly like the Silver Surfer from that film my Daddy watched. It's amazing!

Thank you very much Santa,

Lots of Love,

Wee Z aged 4 and 6 months

PS - This letter may have been altered by my Mummy slightly but that's only because I was too tired to write all this myself!

The Gallery - My Awesome Photo

2011-12-07T09:00:00.000Z

I love playing around with my camera to see what shots I can capture. Mostly my photos turn out OK but because I've been practising and snooping around other Gallery entries, I've managed to get a few really great shots; I think anyways!

So Tara is asking us to choose one awesome photo for the chance for it to be made in to a canvas courtesy of Photo World.

Do I choose this one that I caught without even knowing it?

Or this one of gorgeous flowers in summer when there had been a few rain showers?

The bridge we drove past in Aviemore?

Or this one? The one that Husband said is the best photo I have taken and it was taken on my phone.

You don't make it easy for a girl, do you Tara?

This post is for The Gallery. The theme this week is My Awesome Photo. Go check out all the other awesome entries.

Christmas Gifts - Scootrix

2011-12-05T09:00:00.000Z

I always struggle with stocking filler gifts. I don't want to buy rubbish just to fill a stocking so when I was asked what my thoughts were on Scootrix, a company that designs children's scooter accessories, I thought these would make interesting gift ideas.

Scootrix allows your child to customise their scooter with a registration plate and funky scooter wheel clips. The personalisation is great for if your kids have the same scooter or if you're at the park and the scooter gets mixed up with someones, so you can tell them apart.

The Wheel Whizzers come in a pack of 2 with a choice of 4 colourful designs and simply click on to the wheels at the front of the scooter. They are designed to fit both the mini and maxi micro scooter and cost around £6.99.

The personal plates come with 3 sheets of coloured letters and numbers so your child can create their own registration plate for their scooter. The plate isn't very long so you couldn't put a long name on it; we just about fit Wee Z 4 on. The personal plates cost around £9.99.

If your child has a scooter or is getting one for Christmas then either of these would be a fab stocking filler. They are something a bit different and will make their scooter really stand out. Personally I don't like the personal plates; I've seen them on prams and think they just don't look right but I think the wheel whizzers are quite fun. I hope they come out with some funkier designs!

We received some samples of the Scootrix scooter accessories from The Handpicked Collection for the purposes of a review. The opinions expressed are my own.

My Best Posts of 2011

2011-12-04T21:33:00.001Z

The blogging prompt on BritMums this week is: what were your best posts this year? Usually I recap some of my favourite posts from the previous year in the New Year but since BritMums are asking...

In January I wrote about New Baby Visiting, something we all ~~endure~~ experience with a brand new baby. I found it quite hard with Wee Z because he was the first grandson in the family and being too polite to say give us some space please. With Miss C, I was a lot firmer and whilst I didn't refuse people seeing her, I made sure it was at a time that suited us. I also made sure I was made a cup of tea, not the other way around!

In April we welcomed a new addition in to our family in the form of Miss Baby K. Staying a few hundred miles away from her is hard but we enjoy our time together so much more because of it and I loved meeting her for the first time.

My Gran was really important to me and I often talk about her on my blog as I'd like Wee Z and Miss C to be able to read about her when they are older, even though they never met her. We toasted my Father in Law's birthday on May 22nd which coincidentally was my Gran's birthday.

In the same month Miss C turned 2 and I wrote her a letter which I hope she will read and cherish when she is older. I wrote Wee Z a letter too as he turned 4 a few days later.

My Sister wrote a post for my blog during breastfeeding week, sharing her experience as a new, breastfeeding mum. It was one of my most popular posts this year!

These have been some of my favourite posts of this year. I love reading back on what I've written, just to bring back the memories and often for some inspiration.

Silent Sunday

2011-12-04T08:00:00.000Z

Christmas Ideas - Gift Experiences

2011-12-02T10:00:00.000Z

I openly hold my hands up and say I am absolutely rubbish at buying gifts for people. If I know they like a restaurant or a beauty salon or a specific shop then I buy them vouchers. Lazy? Yes, but I am so rubbish at gifts that unless I ask them what they want, I know a voucher for their favourite place will make them happy and they can choose something they really want.

A great idea that I've noticed over the last few years is vouchers for Wish Gift Experiences. These can range from spa days to driving a flash sports car to a family makeover and photo shoot. Of course, these are gifts that are going to cost you a bit more but are ideal for someone special to have a really fun day out.

The range of experiences on offer is really fantastic; there is something for everyone! For this review, I was allowed to chose an experience to try out. Unfortunately I found the lack of locations for some of my preferences disappointing as most of them seem to be way down south but I found an experience that is literally right on our doorstep that I knew Husband would enjoy. Paintballing!

The gift experience arrived in a plain white box and inside held details about the experience and the voucher itself. I'd be happy to receive it and be excited to open it up! Of course, if the experience you've chosen doesn't sound like the recipients cup of tea, they can exchange it with Wish for something else. Once you have your voucher you simply go to the website, enter the voucher code and they will give you instructions on how to redeem your voucher with your chosen location.

The Paintballing Gift Experience covered the costs of hiring all the equipment and protective clothing for up to 8 people. You also get 100 paintballs each for £11.50 however the organiser gets 200 paintballs. Husband immediately knew this would not be enough and he bought extras on the day at a cost of £7 per extra 100. He advises grouping together and buying in bulk as you need plenty of paintballs to really enjoy yourself. You can also buy paint and smoke grenades at £3 each.

There are 4 areas where games can be played. These range from attack games to defence games to tactical games. You can spend an hour on each zone (swapping sides after half an hour) before moving on and at the end of the day the organisers let them have a free for all until all their paintballs were finished.

On the day Husband went the weather was pretty rubbish. It rained on and off and due to the rain, Husband couldn't get access to one of the course events so this is definitely a spring/summer activity. The voucher is valid for 10 months though so a recipient would have plenty of time to book and go.

Husband really enjoyed his paintballing experience and is considering booking to go again. The disappointing aspect of the gift experience was that he still had to cover additional costs for the initial paintballs. If I was receiving a gift like this I'd hope to not have to pay anything! However it did allow him to take his friends paintballing for the cost of £11.50 each instead of £36.50 as it costs £25 to hire all the equipment and clothing. They had a great day out and Husband said it is definitely the most fun you can have with your clothes on.

This is a sponsored post. We received a gift experience voucher for an activity of our choice. The opinions expressed are our own.

Whoopie Pie Fun

2011-12-01T11:00:00.000Z

I'm definitely a cupcake kinda girl. Fairy cakes just don't cut it for me as I like my cakes big and covered in delicious buttercream. I love birthday cake too. I mean it's like a giant cake sandwich! So where does a whoopie pie fit in to my cake diet?

"A whoopie pie is not a cookie or a typical cake, and it's definitely not a pie!" says author of Whoopie Pie Fun, Claire Ptak of Violets baking company. I'd describe a whoopie pie as a mini cake sandwich. You get 2 small circular cake sponges, fill one with buttercream or a cream-filling of your choice and then sandwich the pieces together and there you go - whoopie pie!

I don't think I could easily be persuaded to move from my beloved cupcakes to whoopies, but I can see the appeal of them, especially when I tried this recipe from Whoopie Pie Fun. It's a chocolate whoopie pie with a marshmallow filling. They remind me of giant Oreos!

Chocolate Whoopie

Makes about 9 large or 24 small whoopie pies

175g plain flour
100g cocoa powder
1 1/2 teaspoons of bicarbonate of soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
125g softened unsalted butter
200g caster sugar
1 large egg
225ml buttermilk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 180°C/gas mark 4. Line 2 trays with baking paper. In a bowl, sift together the flour, cocoa powder, bicarb of soda and baking powder. Stir in the salt and set to the side.

In a separate bowl, cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Add the egg and mix well. Add the buttermilk and vanilla and beat until well combined. Slowly add the dry ingredients to the wet mix, mixing until just incorporated. Chill for 30 mins before using.

Drop 18 large or 48 small scoops of batter, about 5cm apart as they will expand, on to the prepared baking trays. Bake in the middle of your oven for 8-10 mins for small pies and 10-12 mins for large pies. When touched, your finger should leave a slight impression. Remove from the oven and allow to cool.

Marshmallow filling

3 egg whites
150g caster sugar
2 tablespoons of golden syrup
Pinch of salt
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

Weigh your ingredients in to a heatproof bowl and place the bowl over a pan of boiling water. Whisk continuously by hand until the sugar has dissolved and the mixture is frothy and slightly opaque (about 10 mins).

Remove from the heat and whip the mixture with an electric whisk on high speed until it is white and thick and holds its shape. Use it straight away. Spread the mix on one whoopie pie and then place another whoopie pie on top and press down gently.

Taste wise, the sponge wasn't too heavy or too sweet but our favourite bit was the marshmallow filling. I couldn't believe how much it tasted like proper marshmallow. For something different, whoopie pies are great but I don't think I could part with my cupcakes.

Whoopie Pie Fun by Claire Ptak (Bantam Books) is available to buy in paperback now at a RRP of £6.99.

This is a sponsored post. We received a copy of Whoopie Pie Fun by Claire Ptak for the purposes of a review. The opinions expressed are my own.

Dear Santa, I Would Like...

2011-12-01T09:00:00.000Z

It is now the 1st of December so I can now get in to the Christmas spirit. I don't mind talking about Christmas before December I just don't get in to it until I have my first chocolate from my advent calendar (Peppa Pig since you asked and yes it is Miss C's but they both have 2 each and I find that one chocolate a day for 24 days is quite enough!) (For a child!)

BritMums are asking us on the blogging prompt this week - what do you want for Christmas? Me? Really? I used to get really excited about Christmas (and my birthday) before I had Wee Z. I couldn't wait to see what everyone had bought me, often going on present hunts to see if I could find a stray present that Husband had forgotten to hide. Since having the kids though, my excitement is for them and seeing Christmas through their child eyes again.

But since they asked...All I want for Christmas is...

Ugly Betty Season 4 on DVD (I love my boxsets!)
Some baking goodies (baking utensils, cutters, shapers, cake tins and an icing piping machine!)
I did want new underwear until I read Northern Mum's recession money saving tips...
Some new PJs (lovely and cosy - maybe a onesie!)
Some new socks (I keep finding holes in mine!)
The Cake Boss recipe book (or bring Buddy to me please - if Santa is real, he WILL do this!)
Lorraine Pascale's Home Cooking Made Easy book
Tom Hardy (The real Tom Hardy, not a cardboard cut out...Santa prove to me you are real!)
A new camera (as mine is knackered!)
A big box of Thornton's chocolates - or any chocolate to be honest!
A kitchen aid

I'm not asking for too much am I?

The Gallery - My Kitchen

2011-11-30T09:00:00.000Z

My kitchen is the heart of our house. It's really spacious and warm and we spend a lot of time at our kitchen table playing games, drawing and eating meals together.

This is my favourite part of my kitchen; the art wall. Originally we had the blow air heating system which we replaced with gas central heating and Husband took the old system out leaving a great big gaping hole in the wall. We never got around to redecorating the wall as it seemed like a handy place to put notes and then drawings started to appear from Wee Z and Miss C. The wall even gets used as our Christmas card wall.

With a new picture coming home from nursery everyday, I'm considering turning the whole kitchen in to an art wall. Saves on the paint I guess!

This post is for The Gallery. The theme this week is The Kitchen.

Happy St Andrew's Day

2011-11-30T08:00:00.000Z

What better way to celebrate than with cupcakes?

Bloggy, Bloggy On The Web, What Do We See In The Year Ahead?

2011-11-28T21:15:00.001Z

It's getting close to that time of year again when this year ends and a brand New Year begins. You start to think of resolutions, (that are made in good faith but are often broken within a few days) plan the year ahead and look forward to a fresh start.

I'm not thinking about my own personal resolutions (I tend not to make any anyway) but I am thinking about where I'd like to see my blog go in 2012. When I started blogging 2 years ago it really was to have somewhere to record what was happening in the world of a 2 year old Wee Z and a brand new Miss C. I've always kept a diary and love reading back on what I was thinking or feeling. Writing a blog gave me the opportunity to share my diary with my family and friends who I don't live near to and who don't see Wee Z and Miss C often.

When I was offered review opportunities, at first I was like "what's the catch?" but I decided to give it a go and I haven't looked back since. I try to keep a balance on my blog and stick with what my blog originally set out to be but it is nice to receive some perks for my children to enjoy (or me!)

When I mention that I write a blog outside of the World Wide Web, some people look at me like "OK", others laugh and don't take it too seriously and others are really interested. I enjoy writing my blog though and that's all that matters. What started off as a hobby really has grown in to so much more. I have had some really amazing opportunities from blogging and have met some wonderful people too.

For 2012 I'd love to continue meeting other bloggers and being inspired by all the other bloggers out there who just enjoying writing and sharing their stories. I'm excited to be going to BritMums Live in June 2012 though how I'm going to deal with the London Underground I don't know?!

I hope that Wee Z and Miss C continue to keep me inspired to write my blog...am sure they will. They are pretty inspiring people!

I really believe that blogging is going to continue to grow as we move in to 2012. So long as we have social networking and social media, blogging is going to be right there amongst it. It's a fantastic business tool but it is also great for us who don't have the notion to put pen to paper but finger to keystroke instead.

This post is for the BritMums Blog Prompts - What are your predictions for the year in blogging, 2012?

The Belle Shall Not Go To The Ball

2011-11-28T21:01:00.001Z

I was super excited on Thursday night as it was my work's night out on Friday. I was really looking forward to going; I bought a new dress and new shoes and had booked myself in for some beauty treatments. I needed a good night out.

As I went to bed I started to feel a bit ill. I kept getting up to go for a pee, which isn't unusual as I drink about 3 litres of water a day and my bladder isn't what it used to be pre-childbirth, but even the frequency for me was off. Then it started to get sore.

I tried to go to sleep and must have dozed off because when I woke up I was bursting for the loo. It was 5.30am so I went back to bed but couldn't switch off. I lay tossing and turning until I decided to go in the bath in a hope that my aches might settle. I took some painkillers and a pint glass of water and lay in a steaming hot bath for an hour.

After having a urinary track infection at the age of 15 and again in both pregnancies, I'm pretty confident on recognising the symptoms. I wasn't prepared for finding blood though. I made an emergency appointment at the Doctors and was seen within a few hours by the Nurse who tested my sample and confirmed I had protein, white cells and blood in my pee. She sent me off with 3 days worth of antibiotics.

I felt too unwell to go to my work's night out. Instead I lay under my duvet watching Masterchef.

I had to go back to the Doctors today as my 3 day course of antibiotics just hasn't helped. Thankfully I was able to see a Doctor who was able to prescribe me stronger antibiotics (penicillin bad boys!) and I have the joy of taking them for the next 2 weeks. I'm hoping they start to take effect soon as I feel like all I've done is sit in my bathroom all weekend.

The only fun I'm having for the next 2 weeks!

I'll get my night out one of these days!!

Silent Sunday

2011-11-27T08:00:00.000Z

When Will My Child Eat His Veggies?

2011-11-25T08:30:00.000Z

My Sister is currently weaning Miss Baby K. She's decided to take the Baby Led Weaning (BLW) approach instead of making purees for her. I did BLW with Miss C and found it so much easier than having to spend Sunday evenings cooking and pureeing food for the week for Wee Z. Another thing I found with BLW over pureeing is that Miss C is a lot more keen to try new foods than Wee Z is. The BLW approach, I found, is great for learning about different foods through sight, smell, touch and taste.

What a messy baby Miss C!

Wee Z is a fussy eater. When he was weaning he would eat loads of fruit and vegetables without even knowing he was doing it because it was all pureed in to one funky coloured gloop. As soon as I stopped pureeing his food and introducing texture, he went right off vegetables and would only eat banana or raisins.

How do I encourage him to eat more veggies? How do I get him to try new fruits? I try not to force them on to him but I always make sure he has a vegetable on his plate. Apparently it takes up to 15 attempts at a food before a child will eat it. Well I persevered with peas for the last year and only in the last few months has he started eating them...reluctantly I may add. I try to encourage him without feeling like he's being forced and as he loves numbers, I tell him to count out X numbers of peas and then eat them two at a time.

Stubborn from a young age is our Wee Z

Ella's Kitchen have teamed up with Rachel Stevens (from S Club 7 fame) and have released a 5 track CD with nursery rhymes such as twinkle twinkle little star and the hokey cokey with the words changed to sing all about eating fruit and vegetables. The aim of Tasty Tunes is to try and encourage young children to eat their 5 a day through learning and exploring foods with the help of a memorable, fun song. In theory it's a good idea because you have songs like head, shoulders, knees and toes to help children learn about their body parts but will it really encourage them to eat more healthy food? My children enjoyed listening to the CD at meal times but it didn't make Wee Z want to eat any grapes or broccoli. Sadly!

Tim from Bringing up Charlie wrote a really interesting post about how parents "convince" their children to eat up their vegetables. Some of us use the good old "carrots will help you see in the dark" and "eating sweetcorn will make you a giant" but really, Tim is right; whatever did happen to "just eat up your dinner, it is good for you?"

We received a copy of Tasty Tunes for purposes of a review. This a fun album to have on in the background whilst enjoying meal times together which is my own honest opinion. The album is available to download for free from the Ella's Kitchen website from November 2011.

The Gallery - Something I Am Proud Of

2011-11-23T08:30:00.000Z

This photo is of Wee Z when he was about 4 weeks old. His head is resting on his Daddy's shoulder and by chance he pulled this "looks like I'm smiling but actually have wind" face.

Fast forward (and it literally feels like someone has hit the fast forward button on my life) and here is Wee Z aged 4 years and 4 months in his nursery photograph. I can't quite believe it!

Wee Z recently had his nursery report and it seems he is doing very well at nursery. He is making new friends and enjoying all the activities. His reading and writing have come on fantastically in the last few months to the stage where he can read us a bedtime story with little or no help. He has been learning sign language and Spanish and is already doing basic math sums.

I am so proud of my little boy who is growing up far too fast!

This post is for The Gallery. The theme this week is Something I Am Proud Of.

Who IS She?!

2011-11-21T22:00:00.000Z

On Thursday night I removed my tongue stud. It wasn't deliberate; I had a dentist appointment on Friday morning and didn't want him lecturing me about how bad it is for the enamel etc, etc. I still haven't put it back in. Why? I'm not really sure. Part of me thinks I've outgrown my piercing now I'm a mother. Part of me feels like I'm losing my identity pre-children.

I've always had piercings from a young age. I had my ears pierced when I was about 6 or 7 and then had another piercing in my ears so I had 2 earrings in each ear. When I was about 13 I had the top of my left ear pierced twice and then did a self piercing* to give me 3 earrings in each ear.

A baby at the age of 18

At the age of 14 I decided I wanted my belly button pierced and whilst I'm sure my Mum wasn't keen on the idea, she took me to a reputable salon to have it done hygienically and thus avoiding the risk of me going somewhere cheap and smelling of booze to get it done myself. Or using a stapler in Science class as a DIY one**.

At the age of 15 I had my nose pierced and then at the age of 17 I had my tongue pierced. I don't know why I wanted all these piercings, I just did it.

As I've grown up, the piercings have come out and never gone back in. My nose stud I had to remove as it wasn't deemed professional in my workplace and Husband hated it. My belly button piercing came out shortly after my first scan when I was pregnant with Wee Z when the midwife told me off for still having it in at 12 weeks in to my pregnancy. After I had Wee Z, my belly button changed and the ring just didn't look right when I put it back in.

What else has changed about me since I've had children? I stopped wearing all my jewellery (though sovereign rings just weren't cool after the age of 18), I stopped wearing midriff bearing dresses and crop tops and I stopped wearing thongs that rode up my bum and hung out over my jeans. I cut my hair a bit shorter and stopped dying it vibrant red. I stopped using the F word to describe everything.

Can't get away with that dress anymore!

Where did that young girl go with her multitude of piercings, seriously revealing party dresses and a love for all things naughty? Did she completely disappear or is she lying in wait for the day she can be re-released in to the world? Sometimes I do wonder if that was ever really me or if I'm now the ME I was supposed to be all along? Does having children really change your identity or do you just become the person you were always going to be?

*I do not recommend self-piercing in anyway shape or form. Always get it done by a professional in a reputable place. You don't want an infection there. Trust me!

**I also do not recommend self-piercing with a stapler anywhere, even if it does make the boys in your class laugh.

10 Questions Meme

2011-11-20T21:22:00.001Z

I've been tagged to take part in the 10 Questions Meme by Moors-Mummy. I'm quite nosy so I enjoy reading answers to these memes to get to know other bloggers better.

The idea of this meme, which Super Amazing Mum started up, is to answer 10 simple questions and then pass the meme on to some more bloggers.

Here goes!

1. Describe yourself in 7 words - I am slightly addicted to eating cake.

2. What keeps you awake at night? Generally I sleep quite well even if I am worried about something. At the moment Miss C is the one keeping us all awake at night. I wish she could sleep through all night again. I don't know why she wakes, she just seems to lie in her bed and cry.

3. If you could be anyone for the day, who would you be and why? I think I'd do a body swap with my Husband. I think we'd understand each other a lot more if we did. Otherwise I'd be Tom Hardy so I could come and find actual ME and go on a date with actual Tom Hardy after planting the idea in his head when I was Tom Hardy...lost yet?

4. What are you wearing right now? That's a bit of a creepy question! I'm wearing tartan jammie bottoms, a black vest top and a brown cardigan. What a combo!

5. What scares you? In everyday life, I'm not a big fan of wasps so I am pretty relieved when they start to die off and I don't have to constantly duck and dive randomly in the street. One of my biggest fears though is anything ever happening to my family.

6. What is the best and worst thing about blogging? The best thing I'd say is the release I get from sitting down and writing a blog post. Sometimes I do just write a post and then delete it because I've needed to vent but it's not been appropriate to hit publish and it makes me feel so much better. It's also a great way to keep a diary of my life with Wee Z and Miss C which I can share with friends and family. The worst part about blogging is getting bloggers-block.

7. What was the last website you looked at? Twitter - I'm always on there!

8. If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be? I'm happy being who I am and how I look. Yes I'd maybe like to have the bump in my nose fixed and have some bigger boobs but I don't stress about these things and I think when you set about changing things about you unless they are to make you happy, then you should just stay true to yourself.

9. Slankets - Yes or no? I have no idea what a slanket is so I'm going to say no?!

10. Tell us something about the person who tagged you?

Moors Mummy is a teacher and a mum and likes whiskey. She's also a bit of an insomniac...maybe need more whiskey to help with that? Moors Mummy is a fairly new blogger and worth checking out.

Now to pass this on! Sorry if you've been tagged already. Just count yourself extra special!

@honieBuk
@NotMyYearOff
@LadyofEssex

Who Won My John Lewis Giveaway?

2011-11-20T21:06:00.001Z

The response to the John Lewis voucher giveaway was amazing; a whopping 163 entries. Sadly there can only be one winner and that lucky person will have £50 to spend in John Lewis on whatever takes their fancy!

I've used random.org to draw a winner from all the valid entries I received.

Comment number 56 belong to Kelly from A Place of my Own and was her twitter confirmation entry however I was curious to see what Kelly would like for Christmas:

Hmmm I'd definitely like some more sleep too Kelly! Well done and thank you everyone who took the time to enter and to John Lewis for sponsoring the competition.

Silent Sunday

2011-11-20T09:00:00.000Z

What Am I Thankful For?

2011-11-19T21:00:00.000Z

Do you know what I miss? Being a child and being totally oblivious to the ins and outs of the world. Not having to worry about money or bills, job security or cost of living. I never realised actually how much my Mum and Step Dad did for me when I was growing up until I had to pay my own bills and provide food for myself.

When I was 17 I did a really, incredibly stupid thing that did cause a lot of stress for my Mum and Step Dad and could have cost my Step Dad his job. I'm not proud of what I did and I think they realise that. I'd like to say it comes with growing up but really, I should have known better.

I went to stay with my Dad, moving 300 miles away from my Mum and Sister and all of my friends. It was scary. It was lonely. It was an eye-opening experience. My Dad didn't have the luxury of a well paid job or a partner to help with the bills. He was living within his means but his means didn't always stretch to be able to support me. He did the best he could but I quickly realised that I would have to make money myself to buy clothes, food and to help my Dad out too.

I had to grow up fast. I got a job at McDonalds which wasn't my dream career but it was a job and I could start straight away. I didn't do particularly well if I'm honest. On one occasion a customer left without paying because I forgot to charge them and another customer waited about 30 minutes for a chicken burger. Needless to say I didn't pass my probationary period.

During those months living with my Dad I helped him with his karaoke and DJing jobs and through this I made friends with the regulars at the local pub. I also got a new job working for Sky TV which was OK. I had to learn the train and underground travel routes myself and I was paying my phone bill and buying myself the odd treat. I was learning to be an adult. A responsible one.

Just before my 18th birthday I met Husband. I really feel like he came in to my life at the right time to help me make that last move in to full adulthood. My Dad announced that he was selling his house and moving away. I don't even remember him asking me if I wanted to come with him but then maybe he already knew I was staying put. I moved in with Husband the week before my Dad moved away.

I cried. I felt abandoned. I didn't have any family around me. Not for miles. But I was thankful. I was going to make my start my own future.

My relationship with my Mum and Step Dad gradually improved and I am thankful to them both for everything they gave me growing up and continue to give me now.

I'm thankful to my Dad for taking me in, no questions asked and trying his best to provide for me with the little he had.

I'm thankful to my Husband for the life he is giving me, Wee Z and Miss C. He works hard to provide for us and shows us love and support every day.

I'm thankful for my 2 beautiful children who really are a blessing and I cherish them both everyday.

I've a lot to be thankful for! Just remembering them makes the trivial things seem really insignificant.

This post is for the BritMums blogging prompts. This week the prompt is Thanks.

Fabulous 3D Cakes

2011-11-17T17:00:00.000Z

I love watching cake related shows, my favourite being Cake Boss although I've just finished watching a series called Fabulous Cakes about bakeries across America and some of the most fantastic cakes I've ever seen.

It does seem to be the trend at the moment; the bigger the cake, the better. I've seen gorgeous fairy castles, 7 tier patterned pillow themed cakes with edible glitter and even a life size dog cake. It's amazing what they can do with sponge and icing these days!

Ahhhh but then they cost you a lot to buy don't they? Some of the cakes on Fabulous Cakes cost around £1000 and they only fed 40 people! I do love cake but not that much!

I could go to the effort of making one of these amazing cakes however time is not always available and when I'm coming close to a birthday, I get so busy preparing food, organising the party and buying presents, I run out of time and end up buying a cake instead.

Asda have a new range of 3D cakes that look great. There are 7 cakes to choose from and I was given the opportunity to choose 2 from the range to try out. Miss C loves animals and chocolate so this chocolate monkey cake is perfect for her. I love the way the monkey just sits there looking cheeky with his banana and his delicious chocolate curl fur. It serves 22 people - plenty to go around. The sponge was a bit heavy for my tastes but the chocolate buttercream and fudge arms and feet...heavenly!

Wee Z loved the choo choo train as he loves bright colours and sweets. This is a Madeira sponge with vanilla buttercream and a raspberry jam. The sponge was lovely and moist and the red icing had a raspberry tang to it. The train looks fantastic too. It serves 32 people although I think it made it round 4 people as it was so yummy! My neighbours were all happy with me this week and everyone said the cakes were delicious.

Finger-licking good

Stuffing her face full

The best thing about these cakes...the cost! Only £15 each which is a real bargain for 3D cakes like these.

This is a sponsored post. I received 2 cakes from Asda for the purposes of a review. The opinions are my own.

The Gallery 11.11.11

2011-11-16T09:00:00.000Z

Remembrance Day; that was the date for the theme of The Gallery this week. Tara asked us to take a picture on Friday 11th November 2011 and to post it today.

Wee Z asked us why everyone was wearing "red and black flowers" so we explained that they were called poppies and we wore them as a sign of respect and remembrance of those people who fought in World War 1. He was silent for a few moments and pulled the "child processing new information" face.

Of course this really doesn't mean anything to him just now but I do believe it is important for him and Miss C to learn about the past, good or bad. We went in to town on Friday and saw so many Cadets walking the streets selling poppies in their uniforms, looking very smart. I smiled inside thinking maybe in 10 years time that will be Wee Z or Miss C; how proud I would be!

I never met my Great-Grandparents but I do know that they may have fought in WW1 and survived as my maternal Grandparents were born almost 10 years after the war ended. I may not have known anyone who fought in WW1 however I realise that without them fighting for their country, we wouldn't be where we are today.

I'll make sure Wee Z and Miss C know that too.

Childrens Autumn/Winter Trends From Next

2011-11-13T22:48:00.001Z

I really do love Autumn with the crisp mornings, fresh air and low sunshine gently warming me up. I love getting wrapped up in scarfs and jackets and pulling on hats and gloves. I equally love seeing the kids in their jackets and scarfs, looking fresh faced and cosy all at the same time.

Next have got some gorgeous pieces to add to your childrens' Autumn/Winter wardrobe which will keep them warm and looking cool all at once. For the boys there are hooded fleeces, trapper hats and skinny jeans. Now I'm not saying I'd have Wee Z in those overly skinny, painted-on look jeans that Olly Murs wears but I do think Next skinny jeans look great and they are fab for wearing with boots or wellies to stop the ends getting wet and worn or cold drafts getting in. You don't have to mess around tucking the ends in to socks before putting boots or wellies on either.

Skinny jeans are also in for the girls and can be teamed with their lovely boots, funky gilets and hooded fleeces. Miss C loves her gilet as it keeps her warm but not so restricted when she's running around outside as a jacket does.

As well as these conventional Autumn/Winter clothes, Next are bringing fun in to fashion with these cute tutu skirts. Teamed with tights and a hoodie, girls will still be warm but with a quirky edge. Miss C loves her dress up tutus so Next could be on to a winner with these for everyday wear. Of course, if your own little girl loves tutus as much as Miss C does then their tutu pajamas will make bed time that bit more exciting!

With trends like these my children are going to be *even more fashionable than I am!

*that wouldn't be hard!

This post is for the Next Blogger Network

Bobux - Gorgeous Shoes For Little Ones

2011-11-13T20:22:00.001Z

Win one of three pairs of Bobux, the original baby and toddler footwear that combines nature with nurture.

From birth to three, little feet undergo an enormous amount of change. Whether crawling, toddling or walking, a child's footwear needs to support healthy, natural development.

Bobux, a leading New Zealand innovator in children's footwear, draws on both science and working with globally renowned specialists and natural heath researchers to create eco-friendly footwear that allows unrestricited development as babies and toddlers grow.

Bobux offer 3 ranges of footwear based around the philosophy that children do better when they are comfortable, happy and free to develop as nature intended. Each shoe is designed to support key stages of a child's development from crawling to walking.

Soft sole (indoor wear): the first ever soft-soled elasticated leather baby shoe was created in 1991 by Bobux founder Chris Bennett. These are soft, breathable and flexibles shoes for babies 0 to 27 months. Made with eco-leather and non-toxic stitching and dyes and with a unique ankle support, these Bobux originals work with little feet as they grip the floor, flex muscles and spread toes, assisting in crawling and making those first steps as easy as possible. The fun, colourful soft sole designs also work to stimulate little minds just as they are starting to take in visual information.

Pre-walk (outdoor wear): feature a revolutionary duo-flex sole (leather round the edges and rubber underneath) to support but not restrict natural movement during those first few steps. The pre-walk range consists of sandals, ballet shoes and sport shoes.

i-walk (outdoor wear): a soft, flexible rubber-sole shoe with extra grip that conforms to the natural walking motion of little feet allowing them to grow and explore without restriction, avoiding malformation and spinal issues later in life. The i-walk range consists of sneakers, loafers, casual shoes and sandals.

To view the entire collection visit www.bobux.co.uk Prices start from around £19

Competition is now closed!

I have not received anything for hosting this competition.

Silent Sunday

2011-11-13T07:00:00.000Z

Remembrance - Someone Special

2011-11-11T08:00:00.000Z

I remember your laugh

Or cackle so you called

I remember your puddenclook

And you big red handbag

I remember your cupboard

Full of Clarks and Hush Puppies

I remember making bacon sandwiches

Cooking the bacon in lard

I remember your vegetable soup

And baking Tom and Jerry fairy cakes

I remember your house

The smell of each room

I remember the garden

Where we use to play

I remember the warmth

That made your house a home

I remember the times

We never wanted to leave

I remember you strong

And standing your ground

I remember you kind

Gentle and warm

I remember you well

And wish you were still here

I'll remember you yesterday,

Today and tomorrow

I'll remember you forever

Making a Personal Change

2011-11-09T08:00:00.000Z

I remember looking at my tummy a few days after Wee Z was born and thinking "how am I going to get rid of this?" Looking at pictures of celebs in magazines who had lost their baby weight and pouch within a few weeks of giving birth made me a tad envious. Where were they finding time between bonding, feeding, burping and nappy changing to actually exercise? You'll notice I didn't mention sleep in that list - that just doesn't exist when you have a new baby!

A few days after having Wee Z

I've always exercised even from a young age when I went swimming, ice skating and joined cheerleading. I enjoyed those activities because they were fun but the idea of running the 100 metres in P.E was unbearable. I often had "sick notes" for P.E blaming my lack of participation on "the time of the month."

Losing the baby weight after Wee Z took about 9 months and even then I could never get down to my pre-pregnancy weight. I did do some exercise when I could be bothered but mostly I kept fit by walking a lot with the pram.

With Wee Z when he was 10 months old

Then I found out I was pregnant with Miss C and any exercise went out the window. I was exhausted running around after a toddler, working and keeping house. I did go to aqua natal classes for a few months but had to stop when I started getting really bad back pain.

After Miss C was born I lost my baby weight a lot quicker and I put this down to breastfeeding and still running around after Wee Z. I didn't do any exercise and was constantly eating especially sweet things as I found I was craving them whilst feeding Miss C.

With Miss C when she was about 2 weeks old

Just after Miss C turned 2, I stopped breastfeeding altogether. Whilst I had lost weight, I noticed the skin on my tummy was really flabby and sometimes when I walked my thighs would be rubbing against each other. I felt horrible! Clearly my metabolism wasn't what it used to be either - I kept eating the sweet things but it wasn't burning off quite as quickly as it used to.

I decided it was time for a change. I made myself get back in to exercise whether I liked it or not. Mostly for me but also for my children. I want them to enjoy keeping fit and a big way I can help them do this is by being fit myself. I now exercise 4 times a week doing toning and cardio DVD workouts at home. I also walk to work 3 out of the 4 days I work which is a good 2 miles. I try to avoid eating junk during the week and eat plenty of fruit at work too.

On holiday in September. I'm noticing a difference in my bum and legs

I'm definitely noticing the laborious task of working out paying off. I stopped weighing myself, mainly because I forget, but I do see my tummy more toned and my bums and legs more firm. I feel fitter and healthier too. Heart disease seems to be running in my family so although it can be hard to keep motivated sometimes, I have to stick to my change.

And with all the exercise I'm doing I can still have my cake and eat it!

This post is for the BritMums blogging prompt - Change.

Top Ten Toys For Christmas and A Little Something For You Too

2011-11-08T08:00:00.000Z

Tis the seasonto be jolly, and, of course, to buy those much sought-after toysfor the little ones! According to John Lewis, 60% of all toysales are made at Christmas and with that in mind, the retailer has revealed its2011 predictions. Here guest blogger Tamsin McCahill provides anoverview of the top ten.

We’re also offering you the chance to win a£50 John Lewis gift voucher to help towards your Christmas shopping. All youhave to do is leave me a comment below and share something you're hoping for under your Christmas tree. Remember to leave a way for me to contact you if you win.

For an extra entry follow my blog in Google Friend Connect or subscribe by email and leave another comment to let me know you've done it.

For another extra entry tweet the following "I'm in it to win a £50 gift card for John Lewis on @LauraCYMFT blog http://bit.ly/uNZuwf and leave me another comment to let me know. Separate comments makes it easier for me to keep track of entries, so thank you!

1. Giant Piano Mat, £30

This six-foot keyboard is great for kids –and adults who loved Tom Hanks in Big. Just spread it onthe floor and start tapping - the volume is adjustable (as a gift to yourneighbours) and it even records, so you can enjoy your rendition of Chopsticks againand again.

2. Holiday Barbie, £34.95

Ifyour little girl has been dolly-mad since she was in the cot, it may be timeto buy her her first Barbie, or add to the growing collection! Here, Barbiewears a glitzy green gown, perfect for the party season.

3. Lego Creator Cool Cruiser, £34.95

Boys love cars. Boys love Lego. Put themtogether and you’ve got a sure-fire Christmas hit. Creating the sportyconvertible will keep him busy through Boxing Day and when he’s finished, hecan enjoy features such as working steering and opening doors.

4. Lego Sort and Store Head, £39.95

Lego-mad children will love this storagebucket in the iconic shape of a Lego head. Your feet and pushchair will lovethe fact they’ll never tread on or run over a stray brick again! The head storesup to 1,000 pieces, and sorts them into small, medium and large with a gentleshake.

5. Sylvanian Families John Lewis DepartmentStore, £79.95

Yes, you read that right! Sylvanian Familieshas brought out a John Lewis Department Store and the detail is incredible!There’s a toy, fashion and homewares department for the mouse family to shop in,and it even comes with its own John Lewis carrierbags, shopping trolleys and cafe.

The bestof the rest

Other toys John Lewis predict to be big are HexbugOriginal (£10.95) - the micro bug craze set to sweep the nation’s playgrounds; PaperJamz Autotune Mic (£49.95) which gives even the tone deaf perfect pitch; FurReal Cookie (£69.95) – a cute little puppy that responds to your voice; V TechInnotab (£79.95) – an educational hand-held device; and the Early Rider classicbike (£119) – a beautiful balance bike made of eco-friendly wood.

Competition is now closed!

This is a sponsored post for which I have been compensated. This guest post has also allowed me to offer the competition to win £50 voucher.

Dressing Up Fun

2011-11-07T07:30:00.000Z

Wee Z and Miss C love getting dressed up. Whether it's for a party or just for playing in the house, they love putting on their costumes and getting in to character and having fun. Husband and I have been to a few fancy dress parties this year and even I'm starting to love getting dressed up. We've had two 80s themed birthday parties and I went on an 80s themed hen night. You can get really creative with dress up and it is always a good laugh!

I'm not very handy with a sewing machine so I always buy costumes for the kids. Luckily there are plenty of places to buy them now and there is a huge selection too. Cartoon characters, superheros and fairy princesses; there really is something for everyone regardless of the theme. One of my favourite costumes was one my friend's little girl wore for a Halloween party. She was a baby kangaroo which was so adorable on her! She won best dressed baby girl at the party.

Here's Wee Z modelling his latest fancy dress costume: Peter Pan.

It's made from a soft green felt like material and the golden leaves sewn on all over the costume really set the outfit off. It's a 2 piece so it's really easy to slip on and off and comes with a soft foam sword so he can fight off those naughty pirates.

Or perhaps he's solving mysteries with Scooby Doo aka Miss C.

Scooby Doo is an all in one suit complete with hooded Scooby Doo head so she can still see without having a mask right over her face. The paws that go over her hands have a strap across them that she can slip her hand through to stop the paws flapping about. The suit is really soft and not too heavy so she doesn't get too hot wearing it.

We received both of these costumes from Fancy Dress Outfitters, an online fancy dress retailers. As well as lots of cartoon character and movie inspired costumes, they have a great selection of Christmas costumes for babies and children. If you're looking for something for yourself, they also have a fab collection of adult costumes.

The only trouble with getting dressed up is trying to convince them to take them off for a bath!

This is a sponsored post. We received 2 fancy dress costumes of our choice for purposes of a review. The opinions expressed are my own.

Silent Sunday

2011-11-06T07:00:00.000Z

Parents: A Call For Your Help

2011-11-02T16:46:00.001Z

Once I found out I was pregnant I used the internet heavily to read up on what to expect in my pregnancy and reading horror birth stories (I don't recommend that!) to try and prepare myself for becoming a Mum. I joined numerous online communities and parent sites and still use them now even though Wee Z is 4. Mostly now I share my own experiences but I have met some lovely people on these sites and it's nice to share our experiences and stories of bringing up children.

A leading detergent manufacturer is in the process of building a new online site where parents can come and share ideas and tips for raising healthy and happy children. They are looking for our feedback on what the name of the site should be. You may have already seen a few posts about this but the more feedback they get the better. As the site is aimed at parents like us, our feedback is key to getting the site just right.

They have come up with 6 names for the site and it would be great if you could leave a short comment saying which name you like and why. Is there a name that would put you off joining a site? If there is anything else you might like to add about what you'd expect to see on a parenting site then please feel free to comment on that too.

The Active Mother
Mothers' Playground
Impractical Mum
Adventures in Parenthood
MumsWorld
Destination Mum

I quite like Adventures in Parenthood as I feel there are quite a few sites out there with the word Mum in them. More often than not, it is a Mum who is at home with a new baby or young children but I know there are Dads out there who'd like to get involved on these parenting sites and seeing the word Mum can be off-putting to them. It may suggest that Dad can't join the site so Parenthood is perfect to make Dads feel included. I also see bringing up children as an adventure in life!

Thank you :)

Handmade Birthday Cards

2011-11-02T09:00:00.000Z

Today is Pop's birthday so last week, Wee Z and Miss C spent the afternoon making him some cards. We got the busy box out that Bella and Pops got Wee Z for Christmas last year and had a good rummage through to find lots of things to use to make the cards.

I love handmade presents and cards. I'm already trying to think up some Christmas gift ideas for the nursery staff. Last year we made chocolate fudge and cut it in to small pieces, wrapped it in cellophane and tied it with some pretty ribbon. I don't know whether I'll go with food this year though as I know they get spoiled with boxes of chocolates!

Here is Miss C's card:

Here is Wee Z's card:

They both decided they wanted to draw a big birthday cake and also have Pop's name on the card so I did that for them and then they coloured them in. Wee Z chose some lovely gold love hearts to stick on the rainbow coloured cake and Miss C opted for some glittery snowflakes and beaver stamps. It's amazing where their imagination takes them!

After making their cards they decided they wanted to carry on drawing, which was fine by me because it keeps them entertained for ages. I'll just need to get myself a bigger wall to display all their lovely works of art!

The Gallery - The Letter T

2011-11-02T08:00:00.000Z

The theme this week for The Gallery is the letter T. Short of taking a photo of the letter T, (which I did consider since Wee Z loves using his camera to take pictures of letter magnets!) I think Tara is saying choose a word beginning with the letter T and take a photo that represents that word.

I've chosen Togetherness.

I love watching my children interacting with each other. Mostly they squabble and shout at each other when one of them has a toy the other wants to play with and that causes me a real headache. But there are those rare moments when they will just sit together and talk to each other and be very considerate and kind to each other.

Those moments make your heart melt and you think them lucky that no matter what happens, they will always have each other.

Music as Therapy

2011-10-31T21:56:00.001Z

I adore music. I could listen to music all day and will happily listen to any style of music so long as I like the song. I find music really relaxing and I often listen to the words in the song and find they can relate to something in my life.

The lovely Susan has tagged me to take part in Mammywoo's Music as Therapy meme. I have to choose 3 songs that mean something to me and write out the lyrics that get to me the most. I've decided to go with some of the old karaoke songs I used to sing as I loved karaoke growing up (I still do!) and the songs remind me of the times I spent with my family in their (child-friendly) pub on a Sunday afternoon.

My first song is by The Carpenters and is called Rainy Days and Mondays. I love this song and I sometimes think it's really about how Karen Carpenter felt in the band before she died.

Talking to myself and feeling old,
Sometimes I'd like to quit,
Nothing ever seems to fit,
Hangin around, nothing to do but frown,
Rainy Days and Mondays always get me down.

My second song is Earth Angel from the film Back to the Future. My Dad is a big fan of the Back to the Future films which is probably why it ended up being one of my songs. I must have been about 6 or 7 when I started singing it.

Earth Angel, Earth Angel, will you be mine?
My darling, dear, love you all the time,
I'm just a fool, a fool in love with you.

My third song is a bit more up-tempo as after those soppy numbers I wanted something to lift the mood. Instead of going for classic Total Eclipse of the Heart a la Bonnie Tyler, I went for Nikki French's version. Even listening to it now, it brings back much more recent memories of being out with Husband enjoying care-free nights with our friends. These lyrics make me think of my Husband and how we'll be together forever.

And I need you now tonight
And I need you more than ever
And if you only hold me tight
We'll be holding on forever
And we'll only be making it right
Cause we'll never be wrong
Together we can take it to the end of the line
Your love is like a shadow on me all of the time
I don't know what to do and I'm always in the dark
We're living in a powder keg and giving off sparks
I really need you tonight
Forevers gonna start tonight
Forevers gonna start tonight

What a fun meme! I will now pass this on to (hopefully) some more willing bloggers to take part and apologise in advance if you have already been tagged. Just consider yourselves extra special!

@mummydaddyme
@and1moremeans5
@stressymummy
@5kidscounting
@chattybabytweet

And just because I know you are dying to hear it, this is Husband's karaoke song...

The Wonderful World of Disney

2011-10-31T08:00:00.000Z

If you love Disney like I do then you need to play the brand new Disney Universe game available to buy from October 28th 2011 for all the major consoles including Xbox 360. Wee Z and I have been playing it for the last week and it really is a Disney fans dream game.

In terms of console games, I really do enjoy playing the more fun, cartoon-like games as opposed to the hardcore Call of Duty and zombie games that Husband enjoys. Disney Universe is perfect for the gamer in me. The levels aren't particularly hard as you are guided through your quest to save Disney Universe from the "bad cube" called HEX who has turned all the goodie bots in to bad robots and is trying to take over the virtual Disney world.

What we loved about this game was the different costumes you could dress up in to play as. You could be Nemo (Finding Nemo), Stitch (Lilo and Stitch) or even Captain Jack Sparrow (Pirates of the Caribbean). In fact there are over 40 familiar Disney characters to choose from whether they be from Classic Disney right through to Pixar.

There are 6 different worlds to explore again inspired by Disney and Pixar films with lots of fun and fairly easy games and puzzles to play. You can play in one player mode or as a group of up to 4 people where you can play as a team to defeat baddies or against each other for the highest score.

Wee Z enjoyed helping me play through the game, pointing out enemies and telling me where to find coins. Each world has 3 zones and there are 3 levels in each zone. At the end of a zone you unlock a new costume which you can then change in to. You can also collect coins to buy costumes and to buy in to the other worlds before you finish the first world.

Disney Universe is aimed at children but I have had so much fun playing it myself once the kids are in bed. I'd definitely recommend it if you enjoy fun games that don't require a lot of thinking or hours of game-play to complete.

This is a sponsored post. We have received Disney Universe for the Xbox 360 for the purposes of a review. The opinions are my own.

Halloween Crafts and Pictures

2011-10-30T09:00:00.000Z

On Tuesday, Miss C came home from playgroup with her first ever art craft. I was so impressed!

Miss C had made a little Halloween ghost who she called "Ghostie". It looked like it was very simple to make with a few pieces of toilet roll, some newspaper for stuffing to make the head and then some string to wrap it up with.

Wee Z also brought home a lovely picture of a pumpkin he had coloured in (well partly) at nursery. We hung it up on our craft wall to display it amongst all the other lovely pictures and paintings.

Sadly Miss C's "Ghostie" didn't survive when one of the cats decided to shred it. Thankfully Miss C hasn't noticed.

Silent Sunday

2011-10-30T08:00:00.000Z

Trick or Treating For Beginners

2011-10-29T14:34:00.000+01:00

Last night my friend, Mama N, had a Halloween party for the kids. We started off the party by going trick or treating around Mama N's neighbours. Wee Z has never been trick or treating before so at first he wasn't keen to leave the warmth or the party food in the house but once he found out that he was getting sweets, he grew to love the idea.

Wee Z had such a great time telling his favourite joke that he would run away afterwards, forgetting to collect his bag of sweets, eager to get on to the next house. Husband kept having to call him back to collect his sweets. He then got very excited with all the sweets he was getting and was running from door to door shouting "I got MORE sweets!" Miss C was indifferent.

After trick or treating we went back to Mama N's house. There were lots of goodies and I made some Halloween cupcakes. They turned out much better than my attempt at Halloween cobweb cakes! Mama N's Mum had made some lovely truffles and coconut ice (which Wee Z loved) and there were sausage rolls, pizza and wedges too. Mama N really did spoil us.

More of Mama N's family turned up and the kids looked smashing in their costumes. We played a few games of musical statues and gave out lots of sweets to the trick or treaters who came to the door. All too soon it was time to go home but the kids had a great time.

Here's the recipe for my Halloween cupcakes. It's really easy and makes some delicious chocolate cupcakes - they taste a bit like brownies.

For the cakes:

150g unsalted butter, softened
150g caster sugar
150g self-raising flour
15g cocoa powder
3 medium eggs, room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the buttercream:

150g unsalted butter, softened
250g icing sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 teaspoons hot water
Orange food colouring

For the ghosts:

White ready to roll icing
Black icing pen

Makes 12 good sized cupcakes

Preheat your oven to 180° C/350° F/Gas mark 4 and line a baking tray with 12 cupcake cases.

Place your butter, sugar, eggs, flour, cocoa powder and vanilla extract in a mixing bowl and whisk for around 2 minutes. The mix should be smooth and light chocolate colour. Divide the mixture between the cases and cook for 18-20 minutes. The cakes should spring back when you press the tops and a cocktail stick should come out clean if you pierce the cake. Leave them on a wire rack to cool.

To make your buttercream, place the icing sugar, butter, vanilla extract and hot water in a bowl. I add my food colouring at this stage so I don't over-cream the mix. How much you add is up to you and how strong you want the colour to be. I used just over half a teaspoon to get the pastel orange colour. Mix until everything is combined and creamy. Spread the icing on the cakes using a knife or use a piping bag if you want to give the buttercream a spiral effect.

You can decorate the tops of the cupcakes with any spooky thing you like but I chose ghosts as I had white icing in the cupboard. Draw a template on some greaseproof paper and then use a small, sharp knife to cut your ghost out of icing. Place the ghost on top of the cake and use the black icing pen to draw some eyes on.

Spooky but tasty!

Keeping Me Warm in Winter

2011-10-27T22:36:00.001+01:00

As the evenings are getting darker earlier and the days are getting colder, I can definitely feel winter coming. I'm not that keen on winter as I hate being cold but it does give you an excuse to get your comfies on and snuggle under a duvet with a hot chocolate and your other half to cuddle in to to keep you warm and cosy.

Winter also gives me an excuse to break out my smellies from last year's Christmas gifts and indulge in a hot bubble bath. To make the perfect bubble bath you need some lush smelling bath cream, really hot water and to finish it off, candle-light.

What could be more romantic than your other half surprising you with a bubble bath and these very pretty floating heart candles? These are available to buy from Eden Fantasys who specialise in a huge range of adult toys and sensual gifts.

When placed in water the candles float and with the lights off in the bathroom, would make a bath very inviting indeed. They'd also look great around the bathroom or bedroom and be a nice touch to a table centre piece. They really set the mood and look very pretty too.

The only thing I didn't like about the candles was the smell. It reminded me of the smell of wax crayons, not something I want to be reminded of when I'm trying to melt the stresses of the day away.

The candles come in six different colours: white, yellow, pink, red, purple and blue and come in a circular pack of 6 candles. You get approx 2 hours burn time with them. These would make a lovely gift for someone.

This is a sponsored post. I have received floating heart candles for the purposes of a review. The opinions expressed are my own.

The Gallery - Faces

2011-10-26T08:00:00.000+01:00

This post is for The Gallery. The theme this week is Faces.