We were so excited to receive our Liebster Award nomination from the lovely Saskia over at Songs, Silliness & Such blog! Lamb & Bear has only been going since January this year, so we thought we would have a long wait before people started noticing us, but thank you Saskia, for our nomination, we are very grateful. (Massive appoligies for the delay on our answers, May was a tough month! Illness, illness, illness, then holiday with illness!)

Blogging is all about great content. Sharing your experiences, in our case, as new parents, and hoping others will appreciate and enjoy what you write about. I’m sure you are all aware of the Liebster Awards, but for those who don’t know, it’s an award given to blogs under a year old who are showing great promise. Nominating them for a Liebster Award is basically a way of giving them a pat on the back and saying ‘I like what you’re doing!’

So here are my answers.

1. When did you first start blogging? Vicky and I started Lamb & Bear in January this year.

2. What was the motivation behind your blog? I’m a very sociable person, and since becoming a first time mum, (and not finding it that easy) I found myself talking to a lot of other mums about my struggles and achievements. I remember the moment I thought to myself “I need to start blogging”. I had given a new mummy friend some advice on our bedtime routine, which we had found extremely successful, as she was struggling to get her baby to sleep. I told her our routine was 6 pm bath, bottle, bed every night and to her surprise it worked instantly. I felt so proud I had managed to help another first time mum, knowing one day it will be me seeking the advice (which currently is for weaning! I HATE WEANING.) So after mentioning to Vicky, she suggested we write a blog together (she loves a bit of social media). Two heads are better than one and all that.

3. What is your greatest blog achievement so far? For me it’s two things. Firstly, the great response we’ve had from brands we work with. We have had so many compliments on the look of our blog and how we write our posts. Sometimes I’m a little star struck when very successful brands say they want to work with us. Us? Really? WOW. Secondly, it’s the response I’ve had from my friends. A couple in particular (Emma & Suzy – love you girls), who don’t have children, have told me they read all of my posts and find them fascinating. They are learning everything they need to know before it’s their turn to wipe up sick and change nappies! It makes me feel very proud about the work we put into the blog.

4. What is your greatest life achievement so far? Do you know what, obviously giving birth and raising a healthy baby boy is my biggest achievement, but this will always be my biggest achievement, as will any other children I may have in the future. But on top of that, juggling my career as a designer and being the ‘perfect’ wife (as of December this year!) has to be included. I think what i’m trying to say is, i’m extremely proud of my motivation. As hard as being a parent can be, I haven’t given up on my other goals in life, and have stuck to my career and work hard at keeping my relationship strong; these are all ‘great life achievements’.

5. How does blogging make you feel? Blogging is my therapy. I genuinely mean that. It’s my escape from my day to day life. I hide away in a little blog bubble and write down my thoughts. It really helps with my stress levels, which are pretty high at the moment, yep, you guessed it, because of my struggles with weaning. It also makes me realise how well i’m doing. I’ve been quite negative recently, (haven’t I Vicky), so reflecting on what I’m experiencing as a mother puts everything into perspective. Alex, you’re doing fine.

6. What do you hope to gain from blogging? Just to be noticed as a great blogger. Between us, Vicky and I just want to share our experiences, in the hope we help other mums to be, or new parents. Anything else thrown our way is a bonus.

7. What’s the one thing you wish you had more of? (Blog views, bloglovin followers, comments, sponsors, etc?) Hmmmm that’s a tough one. I think i’ll have to say comments. We don’t get many comments on our blog, but when we do, I get such a sense of achievement. Someone has gone out of their way to read our post, and then taken the time to comment. As a new blogger that’s what I love the most.

8. Which aspect of blogging do you find most difficult? Organisation! No doubt about it. Making sure I stick to my schedule and don’t get tempted by the soaps or my friends boxset.

9. Which aspect of blogging do you find most rewarding? That’s easy. Everything. From the quality of my writing and the creativity of the photos I take, to comments and twitter followers, everything is rewarding. I just love blogging.

10. What do you love most about being a parent? Making Jaxson smile.

11. How many children would you like ideally? I feel blessed to have one healthy baby. But I would definitely like more. I would love a girl, one of each would be ideal, but if I have a boy next, I may be tempted to try for a girl one more time 😉 You never know, I could end up like Victoria Beckham…. only minus the figure and the money.

And here are our questions..

1. How old were you when you found out you were pregnant, and do you feel it was the right age for you?

2. What made you start blogging?

3. What social media sites do you find most useful for mummy blogging?

4. What are your thoughts on product reviewing? Do you think it’s OK for bloggers to ask for freebies?

5. What’s the one bit of advice you would give to a first time mummy (or daddy!)?

And our nomination is…. Hayley from Hayley’s Little Things

Over to you Hayley 🙂

xx