Brand & Blog
Today we have a guest post from the lovely Ami over at Through Ami’s Eyes. As a fellow ‘Essex girl’ I love finding out new places we can take the kids and a couple on this list are new to us!
Over to Ami…
Pickle loves being our and about and some of my favourite days spent with him have been when we have been outdoors enjoying the fresh air and the sunshine. There is so much to do in Essex where we live and I wanted to share with you my 5 favoutire places to go with my toddler in Essex.
As you all know this year we’ve been working with Konfidence as Baby Swimologists. Both of my boys are currently having lessons once a week and they absolutely love it.
Baby Bear is happiest in water and is splashing before he’s even in the pool! Little Lamb has moved up to going in the pool without mummy and is doing incredibly well. After only 4 lessons he’s confident to jump in by himself!
As part of our ambassadorship with Konfidence, they have kindly given me a £50 voucher to spend at konfidence.co.uk to giveaway to my readers!
We love Konfidence products and recommend their Body Warma, Neo Nappy Cover and AquaNappy Swim Nappy.
If you’d like to enter this fab giveaway you can do so via the form below.
Growing up we always had pets. My very first pet as a child was a black cat called Toby. Then we had Chloe, and then Cooper. Cooper was my best friend. She was in my life for nearly 20 years (she had a good innings didn’t she!) and I adored her. We had an amazing bond and she showed me how special it is for children to grow up with pets.
Lamb has been been going to the zoo regularly since he was a newborn so has grown to love all animals, big and small. His first pet was a black cat called Mowgli. We lost Mowgli when Lamb was about 6 months old and it broke my heart (Lambs first word other than dada and mama was cat).
Mums – looking after you is easy, or is it? A guest post from my lovely friend Chelle.It seems you can’t look anywhere without being told about self-care right now. For some it’s a trendy thing but for me, as a mum, it is something that is often lacking.
All of a sudden after years of ‘baby comes first’ we are now being pushed to remember something that we have long forgotten. How do you look after yourself when a baby arrives? Take a nap when the baby does, we are told… but then we are full of guilt for sleeping when there’s SO MUCH TO BE DONE. Having a bath is replaced by washing up, the baby sleeps and you’ll find yourself running around like a headless chicken getting as much crammed into that little amount of nap time.
So in my newborn haze and post PND prognosis I tried to start being a bit savvy with my time. It’s failed on multiple occasions but now I am starting to realise once you start you learn to fit more in.
I bought a kindle so I can read on the go and it’s light to pack in a change bag. I take 5 minutes everyday to write down my favourite moments and try and be thankful for them, and I even get to shave my legs on a saturday morning!
These are all 5 minute treats that gradually tot up. But the hardest part is to stop making excuses where you are the least important person to look after.
Harsh words but Mama it is TRUE.
Mentally we are programmed to put everyone else’s needs before our own, it takes work and perseverance to ensure our own body and mind is nourished too. It’s not easy to do but here are a few ideas:
Spend 5 minutes longer in the bath next time and don’t look at your phone.
Switch of the TV when the kids have gone to bed and pick up a book.
Book a hair appointment while the baby naps!
Encourage your partner to give you an hour or two to yourself on a saturday morning.
Book a pamper for you at a treatment centre that opens in the evenings!
Don’t feel bad about hiding in the kitchen to grab a hot cuppa and a kit kat.
Find a gym that has a flexible creche.
Find a hobby that takes your mind off being a parent.
Book that girlie date with your mates (we know you’ve been putting that off!)
Find a local personal stylist and treat yourself to a few new clothes.
Totter around in those stillettos you’ve not work for ages.
Thank you so much to Chelle for sharing this post. I am so guilty of putting everyone first and not looking after myself. The words ‘self-care’ are spoken around me so often and if I’m honest I try block them out, purely because I know I should be doing it more. I recently wrote this post and spilled my heart about life being quite tough.
I will certainly be taking on board some of Chelle’s tips.
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In the very early days being a mum of 2 felt pretty easy. I fell in love with my new baby instantly, and unlike when I had Lamb, everything felt right.
We were soon breastfeeding comfortably and I was confident to leave the house with both boys on my own. Friends even commented on how well I was doing. It was a breeze.
By 3 months old, Bear had even dropped a couple of night feeds and I was starting to feel human again. I couldn’t believe my luck. I had a baby who slept!
