The Baby Show Olympia

At the weekend we went to 'The Baby Show' at Olympia. I was desperate to go to the show back in February whilst I was pregnant but in the end never got round to getting tickets. But the other half got them this time! I thought it would be helpful to do a review for anyone considering going to any of the future 'Baby Shows'

I really enjoyed our day out and would recommend it to any parents but particularly first time expectant parents! There was everything you could possibly ever need for a new arrival under one roof. From big brands such as Maxi Cosi, Mothercare and Tommee Tippee to independent retailers. Pretty much all of them were offering cheaper prices on the day but I would say do your research before you go, as a lot of stuff you can find cheaper elsewhere. For example I was in Tesco the other day about to buy a Gro-Egg that was priced at £13. However I thought I'd wait until the show to see if it was cheaper. That wasn't the case and they were more expensive at £17.50.
I must say I was overwhelmed by all the stalls, when I'm like that  I go in to 'buy mode' so I did have to refrain myself from buying items we didn't really need. With that in mind I think it would be a good idea to go with a list of things you need to purchase and try to avoid impulse buys. Another tip would be to make sure you go round the exhibition at least once to compare prices. Also give haggling a go, someone did it next to me and managed to get a deal to save some money!
We didn't get round to seeing any of the talks with guest speakers/experts but it's worthwhile choosing any you wish to listen to and shopping around them. I would've liked to have gone to the 'First Aid' talk.

For any parents with young children there was a Fisher Price crèche to keep them entertained whilst parents shopped.
There was a big changing area with plenty of changing tables, we used it a few times and never had to wait. They were also giving away packs of Asda nappies and wipes as well as offering them for changing. We came away with three packs of nappies and about five wipes!

Some of the things we got up to...

1. Meeting Apprentice winner Tom at his 'Nipper Clipper' stall.

2. & 3. Eliot and myself testing out the giant Fisher Price bouncer.

4. A view of the exhibition.

What we bought...



Five bibs for £10 from Funky Giraffe after reading Emma's review on her blog Emma and Alfie

They really are lovely and there was such a vast range to choose from, we couldn't decide and were at the stall for ages! They are thick and soft which means the dribble does not get through!

 1.

 1.Personalised train. £1 for each letter/carriage. 

2. Pink lining 'Blooming Gorgeous' change bag £55.

3. New invention by Tom from The Apprentice. Baby Nail Clippers & file £5.

I'd been looking at personalised trains on 'Not On The High Street' and had been planning on getting one. When Eliot moves in to his own room his bedding is train themed so I wanted little touches to got with that.

I really like Pink Lining change bags and I've had my eye on them since I was pregnant but never got round to getting one. So when their older designs were on offer for £55 I couldn't resist!

We met Tom who seemed like a genuinely nice guy, asked about Eliot and told us about his son. He also signed our purchase! These nail clippers are great and feel totally different to using other bay nail clippers.

We didn't buy much as obviously with a four month old we have all the 'big' essentials. All in all we had a great afternoon!

Did you go to the baby show?

Eliot's 4 month update

This is the first update I have done as I've only recently started blogging.
I cannot believe our boy was four months exactly yesterday, I know every parent says it but I really don't know how we got here so quickly!

General/milestones

Eliot usually sleeps through the night but does have the odd wake up and will need a little milk before going back to sleep. One of my favourite things is waking up to him 'talking' in the mornings and when I go over to pick him up he gives the biggest smiles! He is a happy chappy in the mornings!

He has been determined to sit up since before he was three months, obviously he hasn't quite accomplished it yet but can pull himself up when he holds on to you. 

His hair has grown a lot over the past month.

He has recently got better with hand eye co-ordination and can hold objects and put them towards is mouth. He also grabs hold of anything that passes his grasp, hair, clothing, skin etc etc!

There's a lot more gabbling, gurgling and in the past week or so has developed a high pitched squeal/shriek/scream...lovely!



Feeding

Eliot adores his bottles and has 7oz bottles during the day and an 8oz bottle before going to bed. In the past month he has started kicking up a fuss when he finishes bottles. He is a reflux baby and has just gone through two boxes of infant Gaviscon after the GP prescribed it and asked us to keep a diary. It certainly makes a difference but he still sometimes brings up a little milk, he'll be reviewed in November.
Earlier today Eliot had his first taste of baby rice and seemed to enjoy it!

Before...



After!

Weight

I don't know how much he weighs as we haven't been to the health visitor for weeks but the last time we were there he weighed 13lb 10oz, so I'm sure he is somewhere within the 15lb-16lb mark.

Clothes

Eliot is in 3-6 months clothes but I can see that swiftly changing to 6-9 months with some items. Especially all in ones and jeans etc.

Eliot's Likes/Dislikes

• In the morning after his first bottle he likes to have a play on his gym but not so keen to go on it at other times of the day.
• He loves attention and often seeks it by his high pitched squeals.
• As always loves bottle time. 
• Loves baths
• Since 3 months he has become more aware of our cats and has recently started smiling and laughing at them.
•  Enjoys putting things in his mouth.
•  Loves being out and about the move, he often gets cranky if we stop!
• Likes playing with more toys and looking at books.
• Doesn't like his sleep being disturbed (who does?!)
• Does not like tummy time

Silent Sunday 27/10/13

Recent baby buys #Toys

Last week I went shopping at Lakeside in Essex. Well we didn't actually make it to the shopping centre but visited a few shops in the retail parks including Kiddicare. The last time I was there Eliot was a five month bump!
My intention was to buy a highchair in preparation for weaning but that plan was swiftly abandoned  and  I came away with some of his first Christmas presents.
Here is what I bought...



L

Polka Party Walker £19.99

Buzzing Brains Rocking Rings £5.59

Vtech Nursery Rhymes Book £7.48

Buzzing Brains Pound-a-ball £7.48

Eliot will be exactly six months on boxing day so I'm sure he will be ready for the walker. I thought this was a bargain at the reduced price of £19.99. I like the fact the toy is removable so that he can also play with other toys on the tray and perhaps have snacks on it. It has two height positions so will adapt as Eliot grows.

I really love the Buzzing Brains stacking ring, they are bright and colourful. I particularly like that two of the rings have beads/balls inside for more stimulation.

I remember buying a Vtec musical book for my niece years ago. I just adore the words, pictures, music all combined into a robust book that can be wiped clean without any pages that can be torn.

Last but not least I picked up the pound-a-ball toy which is recommended from 12 months but I'm sure Eliot will use it before then. It will be perfect to help develop hand-eye co-ordination.

All of the toys were reduced but I was very disappointed when I discovered that both Buzzing Brains toys had 50% off a couple of days later. I emailed Kiddicare to see if I could refund the difference without trekking to our nearest store but they said they couldn't, I went would have to go to a store. The difference is only just over a fiver but with Christmas approaching quickly we could all do those little savings!

What toys have you bought for your little ones this Christmas?

70 Have You Ever

70 Have You Ever?

Tagged by the lovely Emma @emmandalfie_91

1. Taken a picture naked? No.

2. Painted your room? Yes.

3. Kissed a member of the same sex? Yes.

4. Drove a car? Yes.

5. Danced in front of your mirror? Yes.

6. Had a crush? Yes.

7. Been dumped? Yes.

8. Stole money from a friend? No!

9. Gotten in a car with people you just met? Yes.

10. Been in a fist fight? No.

11. Snuck out of your house? Yes.

12. Had feelings for someone who didn’t have them back? Yes.

13. Been arrested? No.

14. Made out with a stranger? Yes.

15. Met up with a member of the opposite sex somewhere? Yes.

16. Left your house without telling your parents? Yes.

17. Had a crush on your neighbor? No.

18. Ditched school to do something more fun? No.

19. Slept in a bed with a member of the same sex? Yes.

20. Seen someone die? No.

21. Been on a plane? Yes.

22. Kissed a picture? Yes.

23. Slept in until 3? No.

24. Love someone or miss someone right now? Yes.

25. Laid on your back and watched cloud shapes go by? Yes.

26. Made a snow angel? No.

27. Played dress up? Yes.

28. Cheated while playing a game? Yes.

29. Been lonely? Yes.

30. Fallen asleep at work/school? No.

31. Been to a club? Yes.

32. Felt an earthquake? Yes.

33. Touched a snake? Yes.

34. Ran a red light? Yes.

35. Been suspended from school? No.

36. Had detention? Yes.

37. Been in a car accident? Yes.

38. Hated the way you look? Yes.

39. Witnessed a crime? Yes.

40. Pole danced? No.

41. Been lost? Yes.

42. Been to the opposite side of the country? I think so.

43. Felt like dying? No.

44. Cried yourself to sleep? Yes.

46. Sang karaoke? Yes.

47. Done something you told yourself you wouldn’t? Yes.

48. Laughed until something you were drinking came out your nose? Yes.

49. Caught a snowflake on your tongue? Yes.

50. Kissed in the rain? Yes.

51. Sang in the shower? Yes.

52. Made out in a park? Yes.

53. Dream that you married someone? Yes.

54. Glued your hand to something? No.

55. Got your tongue stuck to a flag pole? No.

56. Ever gone to school partially naked? No.

57. Been a cheerleader? No.

58. Sat on a roof top? Not that I can recall.

59. Brush your teeth? Yes.

60. Ever too scared to watch scary movies alone? Yes.

61. Played chicken? No.

62. Been pushed into a pool with all your clothes on? No.

63. Been told you’re hot by a complete stranger? Yes

64. Broken a bone? No.

65. Been easily amused? Yes.

66. Laughed so hard you cried? Yes.

67. Mooned/flashed someone? No.

68. Cheated on a test? No.

69. Forgotten someone’s name? Yes..

70. Slept naked? Yes

A bit of fun post!

I tag all of you! :)

The trouble with boys

Eliot a few weeks old pulling his ooo pose!

 

Now any first time parent to a bouncing bundle of joy has to get used to nappy duties quickly. The thought of nappy changing didn't bother me as I've done it plenty of times before. On the other hand the other half had no idea about changing nappies as he'd barely held a baby never mind changed one! He's now a pro, so all is well.

When it comes to boys every parent has undoubtedly experienced the pee shower! It first happened to me on the post natal ward at hospital. I knew to expect this as I'd heard/read the stories and experienced it with my friends little boy. However I still screeched and jumped back like nobody had ever warned me about it. Naturally it's happened countless times since, he's christened the carpet, the sofa, my parents' sofa, our bed, his changing mat, his clothes, our clothes etc etc. Many of those times I continued to jump back and squeal in horror, which often led my other half to dash in thinking there was some sort of catastrophe. As time has gone on we've gained a pretty good idea of when a pee shower might occur during change time, although he still catches us out :)

I guess the moral of the story is, be prepared with a cover up!

 

Does your son often catch you out? 

'First Christmas' Buys

I was out shopping with my mum and Eliot the other day and popped into the Card Factory to pick up a birthday card. However I got distracted by all the 'First Christmas' items. It's Eliot's first Christmas and our first Christmas as parents so a very special time. I thought I'd share the things I picked up.



Stocking £1.99

Tree decoration99p

Teddy/stocking keepsake £2.49




Socks £1.99

What I personally LOVE about the Card Factory is that they don't rip you off with their products. I have seen many beautiful 'First Christmas' products but as Eliot will only have one 'first Christmas I didn't want to be spending more than double on similar items from other places. Of course the 'Special Little Boy' tree decoration can be used for many years to come, until Eliot grows out of it. All can be kept as keepsakes, his current memory box is rather large and I fear one day I will have to do a cull of the things in there :(

Anyhoo back to the 'buys' I think these would make great little extra pressies to add a finishing touch for babies celebrating their first Christmas!

Have you bought any 'First Christmas' items yet? 

Bloglovin & GFC lurrve

New on GFC  and  bloglovin button, follow me there!

I apologise that the bloglovin button is in the comments box of all my post. This should teach me not to just skim read instructions!!! I certainly don't want it thrown in readers faces at the end of every post. I should of known it wasn't right when the instructions were complicated and not just copying and pasting! If you can tell me how to remove without ruining my template it would be greatly appreciated. Thank you x

A year ago today...

Today is a cause for celebration! Exactly a year ago today we found out I was pregnant, a whole bloomin' year!!! Where did all those months go?! What an array of emotions I've been through since then! I remember just wanting to get through each day/week/month just so I had my baby safe in my arms. Now I wish I could slow the clocks down so he didn't seem to be growing so fast! I vividly remember how I found out. A life changing moment I will never forget! I had some scary moments throughout the different stages of pregnancy. Read about them here First Trimester, Second Trimester, Third Trimester



 

How many weeks were you when you found out you were expecting?

I'm a teacher...don't hate me!

Being out of the loop as I'm on maternity leave, I forgot yesterday was another strike day for teachers. ATL, the teaching union I belong to haven't taken strike action for a while so I would not have been striking. But fellow colleagues did participate. The media lead you to believe it's all about pay and pensions but it certainly isn't!
 Here is a link to a letter a teacher wrote to parents in regards to strike action...sums it up.



Time flies...

I cannot believe it has been 16 Weeks since our little boy was born! I know it's a cliche and all parents I know have said exactly the same thing but time really does fly!  It seems like yesterday he was placed on top of me, wrapped in a towel. The first thing I noticed were his little eyes looking all over the place. He had a little cry but wasn't screaming as I imagined he would, I guess that's after Eliot Judewatching too much of One Born Every Minute.
Those first few weeks as a first time mum were hard, harder than I ever I imagined! I reminded myself to savour these precious moments as my little bundle of  joy would not be little for very long. At some point I would have to return to work and not spend my whole day with him.
So I'd say the same to any expecting or very new parents, cherish all the time you have with your new arrival, even through you're getting your head round your new job as a parent. It's so easy to forget these special, unique life changing moments but do because Time flies.

My amazing little boy, I cannot believe you are almost four months!

You've grown and changed so much already!

xxx

'Other half' rant...

Lately the other half seems to 'mysteriously' forget to tidy up after himself, (more so than usual) or obviously believes that magic fairy (me!!!) will do it for him. It's driving me bonkers!
After conversing with other fellow females it seems as though some (not all!) men don't do general, simple day to day tasks as quickly as us women might do. Would they do the same if they lived by themselves? Perhaps if they wanted to live in squalor but I'm sure it would be a different story if there was nobody else to pick up after them!

Here's what I'm talking about in pictures...

1. Oh I'm sorry! Is an arms length from the sink too far for you to go to put these in the dishwasher?!

And while we're at it, do you really need to use two glasses before you go to work in the morning?!

2. Hmmm, it's obviously just as difficult to put your clothes in the laundry basket! Do you think I sit  around watching TV or Netflix all day since I became I mother without anything else to do?!

3. Ok I'll give you number 3. as it needs to cool down before it can be put away.



Sometimes it's like I have two babies to look after! These aren't the only 'lazy crimes' going on in our home, plates being left out and work papers strewn all over the place are another couple I can name!

Anybody else having similar problems, feel free to rant in the comments ;) x



Grange Print Photo Canvas Review

Recently I bought a deal from Wowcher to have a photo montage put on to canvas. I purchased it for Eliot's Nana Mary as her birthday is coming up, and I knew she would love pictures of Eliot. It was a great offer on Wowcher, £7 plus P&P.
So once I got my code through I went to the website and started the process. Firstly you were asked to pick a layout and then upload your pictures. You could choose photos from your computer, facebook, instagram and I think a couple of other sites too. The only downside to this was if you loaded photos from one place and then wanted some from another, it would clear what you had already done. This meant starting all over again! In the end I saved all the photos I wanted to one place and uploaded from there (common sense kicked in).
What I LOVED was that you could zoom in and out on your pics and position them exactly how you wanted them. You were also given the option to change the colouring from what you had your photos in to another e.g. sepia, black & white etc.
Of course it didn't end up being just the £7 plus postage and packaging. I had to choose one option (think it was 'stretch') which cost more to ensure the photos were exactly how I'd positioned them.

Overall I was really impressed with how simple it was to use the site. When it arrived I only wished I'd bought more for our home and for my parents!

With Christmas just around the corner I think these would make great gifts/keepsakes for family or friends. Of course you might want to get it for yourself!



The big 'W' prep

Weaning! It comes round quicker than you know and amidst unhooking your nursing bra or preparing formula feeds you need to consider how and when you’re going to start introducing solids to your baby. Be it starting on sloppy mush or getting straight in with baby led weaning.  
That time has come around for us and I’ve been thinking about weaning for the past few weeks 
In recent years the recommended age to introduce weaning has increased to 6 months. The NHS website says:

 ‘Research shows that babies need nothing but breastmilk or infant formula for the first six months of life.  This gives a baby’s digestive system time to develop so that they cope fully with solid foods.’ 

You can read more here  http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/pregnancy-and-baby/Pages/solid-foods-weaning.aspx#close

After reading Kerry’s post over at
http://www.livedwithlove.com/2013/10/the-pros-cons-of-baby-led-weaning.html
it’s made me think I should jump straight into baby led.






Our lil chappy

Eliot is 15 weeks and a VERY hungry formula fed baby, he has been on Aptamil hungry for over a month. There is no way I can see him getting to 6 months with just bottles. He already has a larger quantity than most babies for his age and weight.


With this in mind I’ve taken advantage of  supermarket ‘baby events’ and have stocked up on some basic weaning essentials from Tommee Tippee as I am a fan of the brand (future post on that coming soon!).

Cute little first cup!



Handy pots for 'mush' or finger foods on the go.

 

Beaker for when we move on to 'no handles'

'Shatterproof'' gets my approval! I love the stars, so cute.

I also have some of the Tommee Tippee Explora spoons but left them at my parents.

 Sloppy mush stuff!

  I would love to hear your recommendations on any weaning books!

How old was your baby when you started weaning? What products would you recommend?

Bear with me...

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I want to share my whole pregnancy journey from finding out to post natal ward experiences. I am doing my pregnancy in stages by weeks as pages on my blog but the whole process is taking me longer than I had thought as I don't want to miss anything out! So please bear with me, the rest of my pregnancy experience will be up ASAP. I just wanted to get the shorted posts up!

Thanks for reading!

Sleepsuit Rant!

So my gorgeous boy was born heavier (a hefty 9.5lbs!) and longer than your average newborn. My other half says the first thing he noticed was how big his hands and feet were! There was no way he was going to be in any ‘newborn’ sized clothes for long. However I didn’t envisage the ‘sleepsuit problem’ that is leading me to this sleepsuit rant today!

Eliot is 15 weeks exactly today and fits very comfortably into 3-6 months clothes. Sadly his not so little tootsies are outgrowing them already and this is requiring a sleepsuit masscre! In other words, me chopping the toes off.

I know he can wear pj’s and other clothing without the feet in but I just love all in ones, they scream ‘baby’ to me! Of course they keep our lil ones nice and snugly too! Naturally I could buy the next size up but this wouldn’t fit well elsewhere and I wouldn’t be getting the most out of my product!

So this is plea…please can all baby manufacturers make the feet of their all in ones slightly longer for the bubbas with larger feet?
This will ensure less chopping of garments in the future and additionally they can be saved for any siblings. Many thanks!!!

A couple of Eliot's 0-3 month sleepsuits with their entire feet hacked off. I'll just go for the toes in the future!

Do you have the same problem? Have you ever cut any of your babies’ clothes to get more wear?

Finding out...

I remember many a year ago back in my teenage days saying to a group of friends, 'when I get pregnant I want to be ready (in terms of age/home/work etc) but I want it to be a surprise'. And that's how it pretty much happened.

My other half and I had discussed having a family on many occasions and decided we would see what happened after my 30th Birthday in September 2012. In October I remember thinking my period was late but not reading into it as I have polycystic ovaries, therefore I'd experienced missed periods before and thought it would be more of a challenge to become pregnant. It crossed my mind that I should take a pregnancy test but put it off as I didn't actually believe I could be pregnant. Then one Thursday, one of my colleagues commented on how I looked different that day and I appeared 'glowing'. I brushed it off but in the back of my mind thought 'maybe I should take a pregnancy test'.

So on a rainy Friday after work I picked up a two pack pregnancy test in the pound shop as I happened to be in there. I thought I don't want to splash out on a fancy digital one just yet, but more so as I didn't think I could be pregnant.

I arrived home and headed straight to the loo! My other half wasn't home and I hadn't mentioned anything to him. Little did we know our lives were going to change...

The tests from the pound shop were strips that you dipped into your wee rather than the usual pee on stick type. I grabbed a disposable plastic cup, did what I had to do and dipped the strip inside. Then I lay it flat on some tissue. I waited for a bit then took a peek...much to my disbelief I could see a faint blue line where it confirmed you were pregnant, so automatically I had to do the second strip. Again it turned blue, I felt an array of emotions, shocked, happy, excited but still did not believe I was pregnant. By this time my partner was home, so I told him 'I think I'm pregnant' and he was as surprised as me! Thinking that the pound shop tests couldn't possibly be right I dashed out again to Superdrug to get another one. Of course it came back positive and it sunk in that we were expecting a bubba!

Still I had to go out the following day and buy a digital one that predicted how many weeks pregnant I was...

                              It was very early days but our pregnancy journey had begun :)

What was your experience of 'finding out' like? Did you take a mountain of tests to confirm?