Birthday Presents For Boys

Mum life, time and work has run away with me, leaving zero time for blogging. Sorry about that. I'm actually mainly sorry to myself, because this is my outlet and I love chatting with you guys and sharing ideas & recommendations etc. So now corona has hit, Im trying to find time to dedicate weekly to my social platforms. Lets see how I get on lol. Anyway...

Recently quite a few people have messaged me on Instagram asking for boys birthday present ideas. The majority wanted 1st birthday ideas so here is what I brought Tayo or what he was given around that age that he's played with a considerable amount. I really find the key to kids playing well are not too many toys. I try to rotate Tayo's toys when I remember to, but these are the ones he will literally hunt out if I put them away lol.

Maxi Cosy Laika

Absolute pram of a city/travelling girls dreams. Here is why...

1. its so bloody light
2. it folds up AND down with one hand
3. it has a shoulder strap for ease of carrying
4. folds pretty damn small and flat
5. looks expensive but isn't
6. isn't a YOYO, everyone & their mum has one of those in the city lol
7. lays completely flat & has multiple recline positions
8. Tayo thinks its super comfortable as he happily sleeps in it

Traveller by PHIL & TEDS

Well wow , this product HAS to get a big fat 10/10 from me. I’ve never needed a travel cot as we usually stay in hotels with cots but my recent trip to Dubai I stayed at my friends house so a travel cot was needed. 

I knew I just wanted a compact & light cot. No one wants to drag a heavy & bulky cot half way across the world. 

On doing a bit of research the one that stood out was the PHIL & TEDS TRAVELLER and it did not disappoint

• LIGHT!!! I was literally shocked at how light the whole thing was. 6LBS!!!!! That includes the bag, cot, mattress & fitted sheet. So good.
• Easy. So quick to assemble & take down so can quickly pack up and move it around 
• Mesh. Cool and free flowing air for warmer countries
• Zip down side. Perfect to use as a play pen

100% recommend this traveller and at £139 it’s super reasonable!! 

Click here to buy 

Travelling with a 6 month old

So after our back to back stint of travelling when tayo was 4 months old we’ve stayed put for a couple months in the UK until today. My mother, Tayo and I are currently enroute to Dubai for a weeks holiday. A forever friend of mine relocated to Dubai about a year ago and has always had an open invitation for us to come and stay and when my husband told me he was travelling for work for 12 days I decided to completely gatecrash my mums relaxing holiday. Lucky her !

A week leading up to our flight I realised travelling with a weaning , combi fed ,teething , alert 6 month old was probably going to be slightly more challenging than our very chilled sleepy 4 month old. I wasn’t wrong lol. There’s soooo much more to take. Food, milk, toys, teethes, the list goes on. Not to mention the mathematics that goes into working out how many feeds / foods to take on board. Admittedly I probably should of prepared a bit better but me being me was packing the day before our flight running around town to find his premade formula that had miraculously sold out of everywhere.... 

LESSON 1 learnt- preparation is key!!

Meet ELVIE

Silent and wearable are two words any pumping mum wouldn't usually associate with their pumps. However, women spoke and Elvie heard. Meet the worlds first silent completely cordless wearable breast pump.

When I first saw this through the wonders of Instagram's sponsored posts, I genuinely thought it was too good to be true. However ladies, I'm here to tell you its not!!! Small and compact enough to wear in your nursing bra, the Elvie pumps means you can pump quite literally anywhere. For mums getting back to work but still wanting to continue breast feeding and/or to keep their milk supply up or even just for mums who are spending the day/ evening out without their little one, this pump is perfect to discretely pump wherever you want. Gone are the days of pumping in the ladies toilets lol.

Bambino Mio Giveaway

Tayo and I have partnered up with the reusable nappy brand BAMBINO MIO for a fantastic giveaway. To win follow @bambinomio and @billiebrown on instagram and tag a friend and comment your last used emoji !

Up for grabs is their brilliant all-in-one reusable nappy, changing mat and wet nappy bag all in adorable rainforest prints. Get entering and GOOD LUCK !! Winner will be announced in a few weeks!

Yes Yes YESS ; Stokke Tripp Trapp

I've been eyeing up the Stokke Tripp Trapp chair for sometime now, even pre-Tayo. Something about a chair that grows with baby is just super appealing. So last month I was lucky enough to get one and let me tell you, I was NOT disappointed!!

Rather than writing paragraphs about how great it is- I'm going to bullet point the reasons you also need one in your life if your about to invest in a highchair... so here goes!

Poppin Placenta Pills

Eating or encapsulating your placenta has become a more and more spoken about trend. Celebs, hippies and animals are doing it so I thought I’d give it a shot since I spent 9 months growing it :) There are plenty of benefits of consuming your placenta, some of them being hormone balance , milk production, assisting the uterus contract back, reducing post-natal bleeding & helping replenish depleted iron levels. 

Since I couldn’t see myself munching into my raw or even cooked placenta , I reached out to the lovely lady at Placenta Plus to encapsulate it for me. The process couldn’t of been easier!!! They send out a pack which includes all the instructions, two ice packs and a placenta bag. After having baby you literally just text the number provided and someone comes to collect your placenta in the bag that same day. Easy peasy ! The pills are then made and delivered back a day later. Super simple and quick ! 

Got milk ?

From the start I knew I wanted a breast pump so I could share feeds with my husband, mainly so he had time to bond with our son, but as well as this, so we can share night feeds, and I'm not the only one awake at night. Funny thing is, once Tayo arrived, little did I know I wouldn't be pumping to share night feeds at all but so I could feed full stop...

Snuzpod 3

My best friend is 5 months pregnant, and the other day she asked me to send her a list of my 'must-buys' for a newborn. Without thinking twice the top of the list was a Snuzpod 3. This bedside crib not only looks great, but is super duper practical.

Muslins for Days

If there's one thing that EVERY mother told me to have plenty of its Muslin Clothes. They were not lying. They are literally useful for everything, when I say everything, I mean everything. I've made a list ...

Hypnobirthing Class - Gigi & Pickle

Saturday was the first of two intense hypnobirthing course days I've signed up to. I wrote a blog post a while ago on what hypnobirhting actually was, so if your lost already CLICK HERE. If your know what I'm talking about please continue....

Peanut

Hi ladies, so I thought I'd share the great experience I've had with the app PEANUT. The easiest way to describe this app, is tinder for mums-to-be and mums. Living in the city and being one of the first of my group of friends to have a baby I was looking for ways to meet like minded women who shared similar interests and were also pregnant or had just had a baby. Lots of women go to NCT classes to purely meet women in their area who are expecting, however I couldn't justify spending £300+ just to meet other mums-to-be. So after a little research I found the app peanut. So you basically make a profile, enter you neighbourhood, your kids ages/ or weeks into pregnancy, 3 things that best describe you, photos (if you want) and a short bio. Then you basically swipe through other women's profiles and either pass or wave. If you both wave at each other it will bring up a chat so you can start a convo and meet up if you get along.

What Breast Pump is Best?

If your breast feeding baby you want to make sure you have the best breast pump so you can express and share the responsibility or you need to get back to work & still want to breastfeed. Theres hundreds of styles on the market and it can be quite overwhelming when trying to decide.

Ive asked real new mums what breast pump they brought and their rating to help you make your mind up...

Bump Band

I remember my sister having a bump support band in her later stages of pregnancy and never really knew how I felt about them. I almost thought that it was squashing the baby and I couldn't really understand how it was providing her relief. However, after experiencing a painful lower back and round ligament pains while walking, I did my research into what could help, and taadaaa bump bands.

Prams & Travel Systems

When it comes to picking a pram / travel system for bubba theres a few things to take into consideration. Firstly, your lifestyle. A women living in the countryside is going to need an all together different style than someone that lives in the city. Make sure you don't buy one for looking pretty over its practicalities for your lifestyle, you don't want to be struggling up the stairs in the tube with a huge, heavy pram. Secondly, know the difference between a travel system and just a standard pram. A travel system is basically 3-in-1, a lay down (from newborn) carry cot, a 6 month + seat and a car seat (or at least as an optional extra) , this means babies car seat can be taken out of the car and clipped straight onto the wheels without having to disturb sleeping bubba, which is not recommended lol. They are generally slightly more expensive, however most include everything you will need to get your little one from A to B, including a car seat. Be sure to check reviews of the car seat prior to buying the system as safety is key. Some prams cam come with adaptors that can be purchased to be attached to certain car seats then to the pram, however some don't accommodate car seats at all. Also, if your buying a standard pram, check that it is suitable for newborns as some don't have a lie flat function. Thirdly, do you like the look of it? Although this isn't the most important thing it will matter to some parents :)

Mama Body Tea

After posting about bloating yesterday it was perfect timing when I received a delivery yesterday  from Mama Body Tea. This Australian tea company has created organic and naturally caffeine-free herbal tea blends to help assist women throughout the different stages of pregnancy and motherhood.

Ikea Nursery Hacks

I don't know about you but I have a soft spot for ikea. Not only because they sell cool reasonable stuff but there seems to be an endless limit to amazing ikea hacks. There's so much potential to buy a bargain piece and turn it into something unique for your home. So when thinking nursery ideas I thought I'd share my favourite ikea hack ideas ... Enjoy

Pregnancy Facial

So while being pregnant I noticed a change in my skin. Not only am I more prone to breakouts but after the spot clears its leaving a faint red scar that I can't seem to shift. How annoying. I think this is because my skin is just more sensitive and basically taking longer to heal.

Not ideal!

However, I did some research and to minimise these breakouts I decided to have a pregnancy facial. Which is basically a deep cleanse to clear all your pores and hydrate your skin as well as being thoroughly relaxing. Because of the limitation of pregnancy friendly products it important to see a professional that has knowledge of pregnancy facials.

Reasonable Unisex Essentials

Matalan 

These are just scrummy! Cloud and Striped 'Unisex 2 Pack Sleepsuits' - £6