Finger Food Friday - 31/05/2013

Today's food was broccoli!

The first two "trees" that I gave C, he ate no problem.

Along came number three and he decided that he didn't like it! Completely turned his nose up. I tried him with another piece and he wouldn't even take it from my hand.

Eek! I know that sometimes it can take a baby a few goes with something before they take to them so I'll give it another shot!

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Veet EasyWax - Review (BzzAgent)

As a member of BzzAgent, I was sent Veet's EasyWax to try out. I'll be honest, I was scared. I've never had a wax before as I usually shave. I have a secret....I haven't shaved my legs since before C was born....8 months ago *shock horror*! I always wear jeans and never get my legs out so I just didn't see the point. Chris doesn't care - or at least he tells me he doesn't! My leg hair doesn't grow very badly anyway.

It was very easy to use. Just put the wax block into the device and plug it into the mains for 20 minutes to heat the wax to the right temperature. A red light shows to confirm that the wax is heating. The only gripe I have is that I would prefer if the light switched off to tell you that it was ready instead of having to keep an eye on the clock.

Once it was ready, I applied it. The wax glided on really smoothly then I placed a strip over the top. And prepared myself. I didn't prepare myself enough. I have got 5 tattoos, four of which are directly on bones, but pulling those wax strips off hurt like Hell!

You can kind of see the peachy/pink wax!

I persevered and I'm glad I did. Every hair was removed and I didn't have to go over any bits. My legs are now as soft as a baby's bum and it took no time at all! I will definitely be replacing my trusty shaving with this EasyWax!

As I previously mentioned, I received this item from Veet via BzzAgent free of charge in exchange for honest reviews and passing my experiences onto others. So, I have got a discount code for you to try this item out for yourself!

Amazon are selling this device for £14.99 but using the code EASYWAX4 will get you 50% off. Go for it! You won't regret it.

What We Bought, Pt 2

Yesterday, I posted about the fact that I hated shopping but had to indulge in some....and I've done it again today! Crazy!

Anyway, I just wanted to share some of today's purchases - some of you might like something for your little ones!

Tu Clothing at Sainsburys buys:

3 pack of sleepsuits (£7), Sandals (£4.50) and 2 piece swimsuit & hat (£9)

I love the little sandals. Perfect for all the summery weather with his new short and tops I bought him yesterday!

George at ASDA purchases:

2 x 3 packs of vests (£3 each), 3 pack of sleepsuits (£5), 6 pack of printed bodysuits (£7.50), jeans (£5), trousers (£7)

Woven pyjamas (£6)

His first pair of 'big boy pyjamas'! I love them!

One of my favourite places to buy baby clothes is ASDA. The sizing is great and C still fits in the 3-6 mth clothing and he's 8 months!

We also picked up this bath seat from Smyths. It's absolutely fantastic (we tried it out as soon as we got home) and it is so much easier to bath C.

Where is your favourite place to buy baby clothing and why?

What We Bought

I hate shopping. There. I said it. I'm a woman and I hate to shop. I tell a little lie. I like shopping for baby clothes and that's about it! Today though, we ventured out.

Chris's laptop broke a couple of months ago and it's just progressively gotten worse. So he bought himself a new one! You can see the new one next to the old one below. He definitely needed it!

All chuffed with his new laptop:

C needs new clothes. He's bursting out of everything so we were totally in our element when we were choosing what to buy him. 

Here's what we chose:

(T-rex & robot t-shirts 2 for £8 in Boots, Whale t-shirt £2.99 in H&M, Moustache & braces tee and shorts set £7.99 in H&M, Polo £3.99 in H&M, checkered shorts £3.99 in H&M)

Chris convinced me to buy myself something. The last time I bought clothes for myself was when my daddy gave me money specifically for clothes at Christmas but I've lost weight now and none of it fits me! I chose this lovely long top at £12.99 from H&M.

 I felt so guilty afterwards because I could have spent that money on him!

I have been looking for a facial cleanser but have never tried any of Lush's tubs. I branched out and went for the Herbalism one. I will do a review once I've used it!

C's birthday is in September and I've been wracking my brain of what to buy him. On an impromptu visit to the Disney Store I found a big Dumbo teddy! C loves Dumbo and has got so many Dumbo bath towels, bibs, vests and sleepsuits so I bought him it. Here it is in comparison to his current Dumbo teddy:

Big Dumbo teddy £18 in the Disney Store

Of course, I just had to buy him a little present that he could have now. We went for the stacking cups which were £4 in Early Learning Centre. Obviously, he doesn't know how to stack them yet but he enjoys knocking them down once I've stacked them!

I also picked up a few gifts for Chris and C's grandad's for Father's Day but I'll not post them here as I don't want to spoil the surprise! I haven't spent this much in a while and I don't even want to look at my bank account! All worth it though!

Charity Walk for Coeliac UK

(This post is picture heavy).

My friend Jessica is coeliac so has to have a gluten-free diet. She decided to plan a charity walk for Coeliac UK to help with the development of more gluten-free products.

We walked along the coast from Cultra to Bangor (have a Google if you're not familiar with NI!) which is roughly eight miles. It was a beautiful day with only a five minute sun shower! I was pushing C in the pram (who isn't exactly light!) so it was like a double workout for me.

Along the way, we stopped and let C dip his feet in the water for the first time! I was expecting him to cry as it was cold but he just looked at it as if to say "what is this?" Haha!

C walking with Jessica:

At the end of the walk, Jessica had planned a little lunch for everyone. If you know Jessica, you'll know that she always goes all out with the planning. The kids got goodie bags with lucky bags, colouring books, stickers, masks etc and because C is only little, he got a book and rattle toy and a little bag of biscotti! We also got goodie bags filled with gluten-free products and a little gluten-free recipe book, a gluten-free cupcake and a thank-you gift (mine was a bookmark).

Jessica's table layout:

Beautiful handmade wine glass charm:

Gluten-free 'thank you' cupcake:

My thank you card and bookmark:

C's first time in a restaurant highchair!:

After the lunch, we had around an hour to spare before getting the train home. Bangor has a lovely park so we took the kids there.

Myself and C having fun at the park:

C and Jessica at the park:

Sleepy C on the train home:

All in all, it was a great day. I was exhausted after it but so glad I did it. Jessica counted up the sponsors totals and over £700 was raised!

Encouraging Self Expression Through Play

For a child to develop well, they must be able to express themselves through play. Play itself is an incredibly important part of a child’s life, as it is the primary way they learn about the world around them and develop on emotional, social and physical levels. In many ways, a child playing is an experience very similar to that of school or work; necessary activities that help us to get on in life. So, as a child develops through play they begin to get a sense of themselves, which will naturally lead to a desire to explore it, which they can continue to do through play.

Play acting, or make believe, is a time honoured favourite amongst young children and is one of the best for encouraging self-expression. With a few simple props, children can transport themselves to a world of their own creation and be whoever they want to be. Though your natural instinct might be to think that playing other people is bad for a child’s self-expression, it is in fact the complete opposite. The more children explore at playing characters of their own creation, the more sure they will become of themselves. Play acting is a wonderful exercise for the imagination and will help children to understand the power of their own minds and form independence. Not only that, but play acting will also help them grow in confidence as well as enabling them to understand any fears or concerns they might have. Children sometimes struggle with difficult issues and find it easier to express their worries through play, and parents can help their children to overcome these worries by participating in make believe or whatever method the child chooses to express themselves in. Generic puppets like the range by Galt Toys, for example, are often used for talking children through complex ideas.

Parents can also play their part in encouraging self-expression through play by providing encouragement and the right tools. There are plenty of creative activities that children love to participate in, such as painting, drawing, and arts and crafts in general. For children, these activities are a great way of making sense of things they’ve seen and done through their own creations; namely taking the knowledge they’ve already acquired and presenting it the way they see it. Similar to play acting, children can take a few simple tools and use them to create something unique and meaningful to them. In some ways, children expressing themselves in this manner is similar to the process of dreaming; a sorting of ideas and information in an accessible way. Parents should be supportive in any kind of creative forms of self-expression; it’s a healthy emotional outlet as well as an enjoyable form of play.

The ability to self-express is valuable to a child, as it will form the basis of how they handle both themselves and the world around them when they grow up. Self-expression can lead to talents emerging, aid growth in confidence, emotional and social skills and more; the more a child plays in this way, the more they will learn about themselves and be happy with who they are.

(This is a featured post for Galt Toys).

Guest Post from James at Daddy's Space

Hello my name is James I'm daddy to three amazing children Charlie who is three, Harry who is two and Olivia who is just 6 Months old (See the family) . I blog over at Daddy Space, I have been blogging for about 8 Months on and off and find it a great way to express myself. I'm thrilled to have been given the chance to guest post for Rebecca. 

I'd like to write about children's Jab's (Vaccinations) next week is Charlies 'pre-school' booster it protects against diphtheria, tetanus, whooping cough and polio. I'm really worried for him as this will be his first jabs where he is of an age where he will know whats happening. I can see him being so upset by them and I fear he will look at us with a slightly tainted light for taking him there. 

All the vaccinations so far have caused tears but the kids have been to young to understand. This time Charlie is old enough to say 'why did that hurt' or 'Mummy that wasn't nice' I just hope he excepts that its not nice but has to happen. I'm sure that as soon as he gets his sweeties he will forget about the whole incident but at the moment it is something that really worries me.

The next set of jabs will be when he is at school and it will be easier to accept as he will see class mates having the same. I remember mine at secondary school and it was a competition to be the bravest so that helped everyone get through them.

It has been lovely to be given the chance to guest post for Rebecca.

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Finger Food Friday - 24/05/2013

Today's finger food was carrots!

The carrots were easy enough for C to hold in his hand but because they were quite watery, everytime he took a bite out of one they slipped further down in his fist!

He seemed to really enjoy the taste and didn't leave any! I had to give him a little extra help when he reached the end but that was to be expected.

Already looking forward to next week!

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Co-sleeping

Before we had C, Chris and I always said that we wouldn't co-sleep because we'd worry about falling into a deep sleep, forgetting that he's there and rolling over on him or him overheating.

Then he was born.

As he was premature, he spent the first 17 days of his life in NICU/SCBU. When we finally got him home, he was content in his Moses basket. Then it started. He just decided that he did not want to be in it at all. During the day, he napped on my chest. 

At night, I knew I didn't want him in bed with us. He was premature and so tiny and I spent many a night awake, watching TV downstairs (I think I watched the whole six seasons of Gossip Girl within a week!) with him sleeping on me. I knew I couldn't keep it up. I was exhausted and something had to give. Chris suggested just leaving him in his Moses basket to cry but I knew that C needed me. He needed cuddles and reassurance that I was there for him and that I wasn't going to leave him.

I brought him in with us. The first few nights, I hardly slept. I was so worried but my "motherly instinct", if that's what you want to call it, kicked in. Even in my sleep, I always knew that he was there with me. We slept properly. He rested his head on my arm and I lay on my side with my knees bent under his feet to prevent me from rolling over. I wake up in the same position that I go to sleep in. 

Eventually he outgrew the Moses basket and we packed it away and built the cot. Maybe he'd prefer it? No.

We still don't have a baby monitor - I know, we're bad! So now at night time, C goes down for his 'big sleep' on the sofa and we carry him up to the cot when Chris and I are going to bed. I know it's not ideal but it works for us!

C sleeps in his cot then and will wake sometime between 3 and 5am to come in with us. Many people have said that we're making a rod for our own back but we don't care. He's not going to be small for long and we love it.

Are you for or against co-sleeping? 

Let me know your thoughts!