Category: Motherhood

Baby shower games!!
Life · Motherhood · Ocassion

Baby shower games!!

aimz182 Comments

My friends are planning a baby shower for a brand new mama-to-be, so I thought it would be a good time to suggest some fabulous baby shower party games:

  • Chocolate covered nappy: this infamous game involves using a CLEAN nappy filled with various melted chocolates and the guests have to sniff/taste they way to a guess of which chocolate was used. Suggested by Amy from the smallest of things.
  • Abi from something about baby suggested loads of games (see her post) my favourites were the egg and sperm race (decorate the wooden spoon as a giant sperm) and guess the celebrity baby name.
  • This game sounds great: fill baby bottles with a drink and the first to finish the bottle wins (could be any drink in their). Thanks to Mia for this suggestion.
  • Some twists on traditional party games from Nicola (all things spliced) pin the dummy on the baby, modelling play doh babies and fill in the missing nursery rhyme lyrics.
  • Porn or Push? You all get pictures of women giving birth mixed with porno faces and have to guess which is which. Thanks to Leslie from Messy Blog for this suggestion.
  • Michelle from the purple pumpkin Suggested guess the famous baby, using childhood photos of celebrities.
  • The baby food game was also suggested but I think I will avoid that one, thanks Emma from the Money Whisperer.

I now have loads of ideas for games, can’t wait to show you all photos from the party!!

Phobias? Insomnia? Addiction? Anxiety? Here’s something new to try. 
Motherhood · other

Phobias? Insomnia? Addiction? Anxiety? Here’s something new to try. 

aimz18Leave a comment

Personally I suffer from dentist phobia, I have since I was little. I get worked up days before my appointment, losing sleep and getting anxious and then on the day of the appointment I will feel sick and get a tight upsetting feeling in my stomach and will often have panic attacks in moments before I go in.

When I was contacted by Hypnosis Ninja I immediately though to trial their “fear of dental work” track.

The track is sent to your email and you can save it to iCloud which means you can play it directly from there. It is about 10 minutes long, you need to be sitting or lying comfortably (ie not being distracted by other things and definitely not driving), I used it as heading off to sleep, I found it help settle me really quickly as it has a meditative quality to it as well (they state that you can happily fall asleep while listening to it and it still works).

I listened to the track about 10 times, although they say it can work from listening to it once, and had a dentist appointment this week: I slept normally the night before and although I still got anxious and nervous before my appointment I did not have a panic attack and was much more calm than normal. So I would say it has helped.

Hypnosis Ninja offer all kinds of hypnosis help:

I’m off to download the “get to sleep fast” track to try out with Bethany! I hope there is something here for you to try x

*please note: item was received free for review, however this has not effected my opinion and all words are my own. Affiliate links have been used.

#tsumtsumtravels travelling chums to make your journeys less painful
Motherhood · Toys

#tsumtsumtravels travelling chums to make your journeys less painful

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We all know how hard work travelling with children can be, check out our tips and hints here.

Posh Paws International, exclusive producers of the Tsum Tsum collection have recently brought out the Tsum Tsum Vacation Pack.

The Tsum Tsums are all dressed ready for their summer holidays. Minnie, Mickey, Donald, Daisy, Dumbo and Pluto (I love Pluto best!) all with rubber rings, goggles, swimming hats and surf boards, they are so cute!

Since we are a blogging team we separated our Tsum Tsum buddies and half went off to the Philippines with Epril and half stayed home with me an my kids (sorry for the boring holiday Minnie, Dumbo and Pluto lol).

They went to the Arundel Wildfowl Trust with us, spent time on Worthing seafront and helped teach my kids to ride their bikes!

The Tsum Tsums are small enough to fit in your handbag and yet really help entertain the kids when they are getting bored. Definitely a toy worth pulling out when the kids start getting irritate half way through the journey.

Here are a few of Epril’s photos from the Philippines, even if their holiday was upset by a family disaster.

 

*note: toys were provided free for the purpose of this review, this did not effect my opinion and all words are my own

Photowall Prints: so much better than “just a canvas”
Gift guide · Home & kitchen · Motherhood

Photowall Prints: so much better than “just a canvas”

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Since having the children we have had several photoshoots which we have bought canvases from and boy are they expensive; I think the last one cost £1000! It’s a lovely print but ouch!

We all have so many lovely pictures taken on our phone now and the quality of the cameras are so good that you might as well get some prints done from them.

Photowall offer some lovely canvas prints and wallpaper murals but they also offer the option to upload your own image and put it on a canvas with frame or as a wallpaper mural.

Photowall were kind enough to send me a canvas with frame from one of our photos, from Disneyland Paris last year. I admit I didn’t pay attention to the sizing and was stunned when it arrived:

But the quality is amazing considering it was taken on a lowly iPhone 5. Although it didn’t arrive in its frame it was really easy to put together (well it was easy for hubby).

If you would like 20% off at Photowall as well then use the code: amyshiphamcampaign2017 code valid until end of November 2017

*please note: canvas was provided free for the purpose of this review, however all words and opinions are my own. 

Beating the winter blues and back to school energy slump
Health · Life · Motherhood

Beating the winter blues and back to school energy slump

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Whenever the kids head back in September I find it’s the sign that winter is coming an not only are the days grey and horrid but the kids head home with a million germs and we get hit by colds (check out my post about avoiding the cold and tips on how to fight it here).  Continue reading “Beating the winter blues and back to school energy slump”

The Mummy cold; hints and tips
Health · Health & Beauty · Life · Motherhood

The Mummy cold; hints and tips

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Ok we all know about “man flu”, how at the smallest sniffle the guys are meant to lie on the sofa in a grumbling, feeling sorry for themselves mess (which just for the record my hubby doesn’t do this, he is actually pretty female in his reaction to a cold) so let me explain the mummy cold: no staying in bed late, no sitting on the sofa watching to all day and no rest, we have to suck it up and get on with it. The school run must still be done, everyone still needs feeding and the housework will only go a few hours without being done. 

My temperature is well over 38, my nose won’t stop running, my head throbs with every blink and I am exhausted. 

What an amazing time for Coldzyme to send me their product which prevents the common cold (if you start using it soon enough) or shortens the duration of your cold. It is a mouth spray, 2 squirts to the back of the throat (it doesn’t taste terrible actually) which apparently coats the lining of the throat and acts as a barrier preventing the cold virus from being with the human cells. 

Unfortunately I think I got the sample too late to help me with this cold so I’ve asked my fellow blogger how they treat their colds:

  • Sophia from Tattooed Tealady suggests boiled water with ginger, lemon and honey. Which sounds lush to me!
  • Laura from five little doves suggests Vicks on the feet with socks over. I’ve tried this before and it never works for me but does for the kids, weird!
  • Sinead suggests Chai Tea, not something I’ve tried, but apparently is full of cold busting spices. 
  • I love the idea of this Elderberry cough syrup from bluebearwood
  • Alice from Living with a Jude recommends rooibos, peppermint or ginger tea and a steaming bowl with peppermint in to clear the sinuses. 

I shall report back as to whether the Coldzyme helps clear it quickly, but in the mean time I will go rest and recuperate!

*coldzyme was provided free for trial, but I was not required to write about it I chose to of my own doing. 

What to buy a 9 year old girl?!
Gift guide · Life · Motherhood

What to buy a 9 year old girl?!

aimz182 Comments

It is my daughters 9th birthday this week and I never realised quite how difficult it is to shop for her age group!

She does like toys, she still plays with baby dolls and Barbie’s, but since she has played with these for years there is a limited number of additional items she wants to go with these. She has asked for:

    • Steffi vet set

Simba Steffi Love Animal Doctor

    • Barbie date night furniture

MATTEL BARBIE FURNITURE INSIDE DOOR – DATE NIGHT & ACCESSORIES PLAYSET TABLE & CHAIRS (DVX45)

    • Steffi newborn set

Steffi Baby World Playset (Styles Vary)

  • Lily super snackin’ baby

BABY ALIVE C09638020 Super Snacks Snacking Noodles

I also decided to buy her some more grown up presents, not just a bunch of toys. So I got her:

    • A personalised unicorn hoodie

[ Kids ] Personalised Unicorn White Glitter Hoodie Choose Your Name and Colour (9-11, Purple)

    • LED flashing trainers (specifically the ones without heelies!)

Santiro Unisex Boys Girl’s Sneaker Casual Shoes for child USB Charging LED Luminous Light SSK006G3-35

  • I also got Bethany a selection of proper make up from the Natural Collection in Boots

With thanks to Laura from Women in Progress, who suggest unicorn snot and got me onto the train of thought of unicorn presents!

Party!

Of course the only suitable party for such a grown up young lady is a pamper session, dinner out and a sleep over with her best friend!

Since it is her birthday Sunday 17th September make sure you all keep quiet about her presents 😉

*post contains affiliate links

Chicken pox: early symptoms with photos
Life · Motherhood

Chicken pox: early symptoms with photos

aimz1817 Comments

My little darlings picked up chicken pox a few years ago and I remember googling early symptoms and photos of the spots so I could work out if it was what they had, I got some good photos and thought it might be helpful to other mamas out there if I was to share them.

Early symptoms:

  • Fever
  • Tiredness
  • Flu/cold like

Early spots

The first spots tend to appear on the torso, so belly or back, that’s not to say they won’t appear else where first but usually it’s the torso. They appear as red dots initially and after 12-24 hours they will start to blister and look fluid-filled.

They may or may not be itchy at this time, in fact they may not become itchy at all, neither of my children suffered from itchy spots with chicken pox.

Bethany didn’t have many spots, she was poorly the day before spots appeared but after that she was her usual self. Her spots were all up by 2 days in and all healed within 5 days.

Poor jack had lots of spots, and I mean LOTS!

I’ve never known a child have it so bad, it was over his “boy bits”, down his ears, in his mouth, down his throat…he really suffered. He was feverish for the day before spots appeared and fell asleep in the middle of the floor (which isn’t like him), his fever continued for about 5 days and it took 5 days for spots to stop appearing and another 5 days after that for them to start healing over.

Treatment:

  • There are loads of products available over the counter
  • We found bicarbonate of soda and porridge in the bath really helped. But don’t bath them once the spots start healing, this can cause them to scar.
  • Kids paracetamol is best to keep their temp down, not ibruprofen as that can cause the spots to become infected.

I hope the experience of our chicken pox helps a mama out there. Please remember I am not a doctor (or medical professional of any kind) I am just passing on our experience in the hope it helps you.

Keep Calm and Carry On Linking Sunday
Did your kids have a nasty case of chicken pox, or did they barely notice it?
Competition · Giveaways · Motherhood

Birthday party ideas: Giveaway £30 to spend at Party bags and Supplies

aimz1851 Comments

Children’s birthday parties used to be a bunch of friends around the birthday kids house for party food and pass the parcel, then at the end of the party you would get a party bag with a piece of cake in it. This is not the case anymore: parties are themed and parents pay hundreds of pounds for entertainers to run the party, the party bags are also themed and not full of tat.


I highly recommend checking out the party bags and supplies website, they offer themed selections of pre-filled party bags, table/room decorations and to make it even better, we are offering you the chance to win £30 to spend on their website.

For a chance to win please enter the rafflecopter giveaway below:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Terms and conditions: only open to uk residents, rafflecopter will be open from midnight on 13th September until midnight on 30th September, winner will be picked at random, if you have previously won one of party bags and supplies competitions, you cannot enter future competitions, prize will be organised by party bags and supplies an alternative will not be supplied by Eps and Amy blog should the company fail to provide. We reserve the right to amend on cancel giveaway at any time.

Mudpie Fridays