Category Archives: Pregnancy, Babies & Kids

Freddie’s Two Year Update

Personal, Pregnancy, Babies & Kids

Firstly let me apologies this is a little bit late, Life has just been so busy.

We now have a two-year-old boy. Two going on 22 sometimes, I swear.
Not sure where the last two years have gone. However, it has been a mixture of ups and downs but wouldn’t change it for the world.

We celebrated his 2nd Birthday the beginning of July and had a BBQ at home with friends and family, we all had a wonderful time, and he got genuinely spoilt rotten.

Freddie has a powerful personality, he’s cute, cuddly, whinge and has tantrums, and all this can happen in the space of a short time too and sometimes all over silly things.

Here’s Mr Grumpy

Since turning two he has suddenly gone from a baby to a little boy, his speech and the words he can say are amazing things like Koala, his name Freddie, cheetah, some words which I didn’t expect him to say until he was older, it has amazed us.   He knows what he wanted even if not all the time we can understand what he is trying to tell us.

His favorite things to do are play with his cars, toys, read his books or playing in the garden with his footballs and net, water/sand tray and slide. He loves being in the garden, and if you need him to come in, it usually takes bribery to work.

Freddie loves watching television too, usually when he’s tired he will curl up on the sofa and ask to view it. His favorite programs are: In the Night Garden, Teletubbies, Bing and Raa Raa the noisy lion.

He goes to nursery 3.5 days a week, Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday Mornings till 1 pm and loves it.  He has made a few friends and has some of the nursery nurses wrapped around his fingers. He has Wednesday’s & Friday afternoons at my parents which he loves.

I will try to do a yearly update on Freddie going forward and you can then see how much he has changed.

Why We Have A Set Bedtime Routine

General, Pregnancy, Babies & Kids

Ever since Freddie was born, I knew I wanted him in a bedtime routine to help him and help us.  When he was newborn, that was different, but he has always slept reasonably well anyway.  He was in a Moses basket next to me when we first brought him home and then when Freddie was only a few months old we had to move him into his room and his cot as he had outgrown the basket.

He slept well in the day, and we always made sure he had his last bottle when we went to bed.

When he got older, we started putting him to bed at about 7 pm and have slowly increased his bedtime, and now at 22 months he goes happily to bed at around 7.30/8pm depending on his nap time in the day or at nursery and whether we are out visiting friends and family.

We put him down with a bottle of milk, kiss him goodnight, turn the lights out and put his lullaby bear on, and without a fight, he drifts off to sleep.  We rarely hear a peep till around 6.30/7am and some mornings we even have to go in and wake him up.

He has all sorts of weird sleeping positions and is still in a sleeping bag due to him fidgeting, as I can’t bring myself to getting him a pillow and quilt.

Don’t get me wrong we have had some horrendous nights too where he has been in with us since the early hours or I have had to get in with him but as often as we can we try and get him settled in his own bed.

Do you have a bedtime routine?

Cheeky Wipes | Review

Pregnancy, Babies & Kids, Product Reviews

We have spent a lot of money on baby products over the years of having Freddie and I love nothing more than trying to save a few pennies here and there on products and not to mention helping and protecting the environment.

This is where Cheeky wipes arrived and came to the rescue.

This box contained 25 Rainbow microfibre wipes, 1 bottle of essential oil and bags to put clean and mucky wipes in before and after use.

They are great for meal times and for taking out and about with you in the handy bags that come with them.

Head over to the Cheeky wipes Website to order yours today.  You can choose your bundle but for this one I was sent for review it is priced at £29.95.

  • We received this product free of charge for the purpose of this review.  However all thoughts and opinions are my own.

Kiddyum Kids Meal | Review

Food & Drink, Pregnancy, Babies & Kids

Freddie is now over 14 months old and loves his food a lot and lets you know if he is still hungry by saying “more”.

I try and cook everything from fresh so when I cook something for us I will put some aside for Freddie but it is not always possible so it is nice to have a back up option in the house.

When working full time it is sometimes hard so I like to keep some ready meals in the freezer for him.  Weaning Freddie wasn’t hard as he eats pretty much everything you put in front of him which made it stress free.

I was sent 4 of Kiddyums ready meals made by Jayne  for review with Freddie.

My husband gave Freddie the Chicken curry one and said he ate half of it, and did enjoy it, but I didn’t manage to get any pictures. He said it smelt nice and looked yummy.

They can be ready in just 5 mins by microwaving them and following the instructions. You can purchase them from Sainsburys , Ocada and Co op.

I tried Freddie with the Fish and Veg Pie and again he ate half of it, he has been off his food a little recently has hes been poorly with a cough and cold.  It certainly looked tasty and had plenty of fish and veg in it with sauce too.

*We were sent the above products for the purpose of this review.  However, all thoughts and opinions are my own.

Smyths Hape Pound and Tap Bench | Review

Pregnancy, Babies & Kids, Product Reviews, Reviews

Freddie loves nothing more than to make as much noise as possible.

We were offered the opportunity to review the Hape Pound and tap bench which can be purchased from Smyths Toys for a price of £19.99.

What I love about this product is you can take the xylophone out so they can play with it separately.  It’s not to big so doesn’t take up much floor space and is wooden so can’t be destroyed easily.  The bright colours so you can thelp each them colours which will help with their development.

Since receiving this product Freddie has spend alot of time enjoying banging it and making lots of noise and would highly recommend it.

About the product

  • Pounding sends the balls tinkling over the xylophone
  • Pull out the keyboard and the xylophone can be played solo
  • Introduces logic, matching, spatial relationships, critical thinking, and an understanding of cause and effect
  • Children can play together with his/her friends
  • Fine Motor Skills: Promotes dexterity, hand/eye coordination’s
  • Contents: One tap bench with 3 balls, A xylophone fixed in the middle of the tap bench and A wooden sticker
  • Dimensions: 24L x 15W x 13.5H cm
  • We received this product free of charge for th purpose of this review.  However, all thoughts and opinions are my own.

Safety 1st Timba highchair | Review

Pregnancy, Babies & Kids, Product Reviews

Our little boy is growing up way to quickly and can crawl, pull himself up and very nearly walk by himself.  He loves his food too.  We had to get 3 highchairs and that’s not cheap so when I was offered one from safety 1st I jumped at the opportunity.

My husband put it together the evening we received it but it wasn’t easy at all, it all came flat packed with instructions but they were pretty useless.  It was a 2 person job as you couldn’t slide any pieces into the frame you had to build it from one side to the other whilst trying to hold it all together

Once we finally fixed it all together, the next day we put Freddie in it, he seemed to like it but when there’s food around he will happily sit anywhere.

Unfortunately, the downside for us with this highchair is you can’t fold it away in a cupboard, once it is put together you have to dismantle it to put it away, luckily our kitchen is big enough to be able to leave it up.  Another thing I would change would be the straps as Freddie can easily turn around in it and has already nearly climbed out of it once as he has managed to wriggle his legs out of the straps, therefore I feel the safety of this highchair is not up to standard.

It easy to wipe over but if food is left or missed it is hard to get it off and have to use brute force.

I can’t say I would purchase this highchair in the future because of some of the points above.

  • We received this product free of charge for the purpose of this review.  However, all thoughts and opinions are my own.

UltraBib with Raglan Sleeves Review – Safari Design

Pregnancy, Babies & Kids, Product Reviews

Freddie loves nothing more than getting messy so trying to find a bib that keeps him clean and is quick to clean ready for the next meal time is ideal. So, when I was offered to review an Ultrabib from Bibetta I couldn’t say no.

Whereas normal bibs just go over the front of the clothes this one is designed with a special flap that creates a catching pocket for any food that they drop and prevents it from dropping on the floor to help keep mess enclosed.

They are available in a range of designs and colours and are priced at just £11.99 and they can be purchased here

A little about the product

* The ideal first weaning bib with sleeves with a soft, springy, pelican-style pocket that folds out to catch food

* Raglan sleeved shape with a wide pocket and relaxed body shape for a longer lasting fit!

* Adjustable Velcro fastening on the back means the bib stays on!

* Made of neoprene so it is stretchy and flexible with a really soft and friendly feel that children love

* Durable waterproof neoprene body

* Strong, soft and waterproof sleeve material with elasticated cuffs

* Absorbent top layer

* Washable by hand or machine at 30 deg. C. Max

* Tumble drier proof and durable

* Multi-award winning design in our own colourful Safari print in Orange

* Perfect for baby led weaning and messy play

  • We were sent this product free of charge for the purpose of this review.  However, all thoughts and opinions are my own.

Cute Nico Changing Bag | Review

Pregnancy, Babies & Kids, Product Reviews

When I first found out I was pregnant I knew there was going to be so much more stuff I had to start taking out with me on a daily basis to places.  We started off with our normal changing bag that came with the pram and it was great, but as our little boy got older we have more luggage to take around with us, such as food, milk & toys.

When John got in contact from Cute Nico asking me if I would be interested in reviewing his changing bag I immediately jumped at the chance to say yes as this would hopefully answer all our problems.

Upon receiving the rucksack I instantly noticed how gender neutral it was which is great if you are unaware of your little ones gender before the birth.

The bag itself is very generous in size and can definitely hold all that I will need for my little boy, along with my own little bits too! I love that there are separate sections inside of the main body of the bag, along with outer compartments too; this definitely helps me to stay organised with separating all of the things so that they don’t get jumbled up and are easy to locate.

The bag also comes with it’s own changing mat & seperate 2 compartments, which easily connect onto anything you want.

This bag retailed at £68.99 and can be purchased from here.I do feel this is a little over priced but is certainly worth it if you wish to spend that sort of money on a changing rucksake.

  • I received this product free of charged for the purpose of this review.  However, all thoughts and opinions are my own.

Attipas Shoes | Review & Giveaway

Pregnancy, Babies & Kids, Product Reviews

Before we know it our little boy will be learning to walk and we will be taking him to get his first proper pair of shoes.

When Attipas got in contact and asked if we would like to review any pair of their Toddler shoes we kindly obliged and choose the sneakers below – How cute are they?

We choose to order size M so Freddie could grow in them and would have plenty of wear in them.

They look like shoes but they are in no way going to hurt your kids feet, they are desgined and tested to be as comfortable and safe as possible and go through vigerous testing – see below.

About Attipas

Even little ones need their own sneakers or ‘Chucks’! The elastic cotton sock makes it easy to slip little feet in and out of these laceless trainers, while perforations on the soles of these fun slip-on shoes keep tender feet cool and dry while children crawl, explore the house or run around the playground.

  • Functional: suitable both for indoor and outdoor activity
  • Breathable: perforated sole releases heat and moisture for added comfort
  • Convenient: durable, non-slip sole, machine washable, fast drying
  • Large toe box: free toe movement for improved cognitive & motor development
  • Safe: all shoes are made of non-toxic and safety tested materials
  • Lightweight & flexible: super lightweight, just like wearing socks
  • Secure: will securely keep on child’s feet

Composition: upper – 80% cotton, outsole – 100% non-toxic TPR

Designed for infants, toddlers and children up to 4 years old.

These shoes are priced at £19.99 which I feel is reasonable for this product.

How would you like to be in with the chance of winning your little ones a pair of these?  If so enter below before the end of January.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

  • I received this product free of charge for the purpose of this review.  However all thoughts and opinions are my own.

Keeping babies socks on with Twiddle Ons | Review

Pregnancy, Babies & Kids, Product Reviews

Our little boy Freddie is just over 5 months old now and is forever loosing his socks so when we had a delivery of “Twiddle Ons” from Sock Ons I couldn’t wait to try them out on him.

We received 1 set of Twiddle ons with fishes on, they are made up of lots of sensory parts so baby can feel and hear different sounds when wearing them.

Freddie loving them and they kept him happy and mesmerized for ages.  I feel these are a must have for babies for their development.

The great thing about these is they are all “One size” so will fit all little feet.   They would make a great little gift too.

These RRP at £8.99 which I feel is reasonable.

  • I was sent this product free of charge for the purpose of this review.  However, all thoughts and opinions are my own.