What To Get Where - Baby

Before becoming a mum I didn't know what I needed to get let alone where I needed to get it, now we are 11 months in I do feel like I've gathered some wisdom on the subject. I am nowhere near an experienced mum just yet but I have figured out what works for us and how to save money on items while getting the best stuff!

Feeding: Feeding is so stressful, I breastfeed so I didn't have to buy much for this but once weaning started it was a whole new world I knew nothing about. We started with purees both homemade and Ellas Kitchen pouches which we found to be good quality, baby enjoyed them and well priced. We soon discovered that Rory was more suited to the baby led approach so now he eats pretty much what we eat but snack wise I do like to have a selection of baby safe snacks so keep him full on the go or distract him while walking around the supermarket! We have found Aldi's Mamia range to be the most affordable, he absolutely loves the Carrots Snacks and Raspberry Rice Cakes both of which are less than 50p and last all week. We also love Boots own range. Own brands have proven to be of equal quality of baby brands and usually half the price! 

Bath and Body: Poundland is the place to go! We aren't fans of spending loads of money on washing stuff because at the end of the day they just wash. Johnsons is a reputable brand known for great quality baby products and they are super affordable anyway but bought from Poundland they are even more so. We have never had an issue with them and actually have never had to re buy the shampoo after 11 months as the bottle is still half full! Poundland also sell a pack of three super soft flannels which are you guessed it, a pound and so incredible good. It's all we use!

Nappies: We mostly used Pampers Pure at the beginning as we were kindly gifted a good supply from  Pampers and we got a lot in Bounty packs (get these) and Emmas Diary packs (get these too!) and honestly, they are fantastic nappies but once they ran out and we had to pay for them, we found them to be too expensive so we started trying out so many different supermarket own brands, some better than others but we found Tesco Fred and Flo nappies to be by far the best. Very affordable, soft, no leaks and super cute patterns. Aldi is also ok, don't have the same luxurious feel but do the job well and are a bargain!

Wipes: Aldi, Aldi and only Aldi! Their wipes are incredible! Less than 50p per packed, you can get travel sizes for your handbag and you can even buy in bulk which we do. The packaging is functional and sturdy, you get a lot of wipes and they are the perfect wetness! They are also sensitive which is great for little baby tushies!

Toys: We are very lucky that Rory has 5 older cousins, 3 boys and 2 girls so we have been given so many second hand toys all of which have been tried and tested by real life little ones and then passed on to us. We also love to look on facebook marketplace for second hands bits in our area, send a quick message, jump in the car and go collect! Be sure to give them a clean then they are good as new. We also love supermarkets, they tend to have a great selection of toys and garden centres are fantastic for good books!

Clothes: We have bought clothes from literally everywhere over these months but now we have found our faves that we frequently shop at when Rory has a growth spurt! My absolute favourite is Morrisons Nutmeg, they always have the cutest bits and so so cheap! They also regularly have really good sales to collect bits for his future wardrobe. Other supermarkets such as Asda and Tesco are also great. We also looooove Next but as Next is usually quite pricey we always looks out for sales or outlet shops. We have found so many great deals recently.

 Nursery Furniture: Everything in Rorys room is either Ikea or Mokkee, both affordable, stylish and functional brands. We continue to be very impressed with everything we have bought. Don't fall into the trap of thinking you need to buy everything from John Lewis or Mothercare because you will end up paying more!

Baby big buys: So im talking things like the pram, carseats, carriers. What we did was go into shops such as John Lewis, Mothercare and Mamas and Papas to have a look, ask questions and roll prams up and down the aisles then once we decides what we wanted we went and bought them on Argos or Precious Little One as they were so much cheaper!

I hope some of this helped you as a new or expecting mama or even a seasoned mama who's looking for something new to try out!

Do you have an brands/items that you swear by, what are they?

Rory Has His Own Room!

We lived in a tiny 1 bedroom house when Rory was born, the garden wasn't useable, tiny kitchen and everything was unbelievably dated. We tried our best to make it look nice, we painted and bought all new furniture and I'll be honest, we really did love it but Rory was outgrowing being in our room and Watson (our dog) desperately needed a garden.


We always said that one Rory turned one we would start looking to move but my the time he was 10 months old we realised we needed to get a move on and hopefully with his own room he would start to sleep better.

Spoiler: we were wrong! Still sleeping as badly as ever

We are now fully moved in and unpacked, we are loving all the space, the big kitchen feels like a crazy luxury for us and Watson is in his element running around the garden. I may do a full house tour at some point but until then have a look at Rorys new room!

I'm sure things will change as time goes on, more toys will sneak in after his upcoming 1st Birthday but at the moment, his room is adorable and its working well for us, Rory absolutely loves to play and pull down all his books but sadly, not sleep! Baby steps!

Birthday Wishlist!

I am turning 27 next week, like what?! There isn't much I want this year, my birthday lists are usually makeup, makeup, makeup (which it still kinda is) but this year thanks to a little pain the butt named Rory, I don't have as much time to experiment like I used to with makeup. I do still put it on most days but I tend to use the same products every day which has made compiling a list for Liam really hard!

1. Revolution X Roxi palettes - Roxsauraus (a youtuber) has created three palettes with Revolution and they are so lovely! I am including these because I really like them but I wouldn't be too sad if I don't get them or one of them as they are quite bright shades and I know I won't make full use of them in my now boring daily makeup routine.

2. Too Faced Damn Girl mascara - this mascara has only recently been released and I already know I need it! I can easily incorporate this into my daily routine and I am the biggest fan of their Better Than Sex mascara so I'm sure i'll love this one as well. How gorgeous is the packaging?!

3. Cath Kidston Pushchair Organiser - I don't know how I have managed for 10Months without one of these, I am constantly trying to juggle a coffee or losing my keys and phone while out and about so I just really need something to keep everything together. The colours of this one would look lovely with our pram but honestly i'd be happy with any organiser that stops me spilling my Starbucks Caramel Macchiato.

4. Wilde Women by Louise Pentland - this book is the third in a series and I have loooooved the previous two so much, I am desperate to read this one! Sadly, it doesn't get released until July but I may just have to put some birthday money aside to get it and pre order it on amazon. Dying to find out what's next for Robin Wilde!

Lastly, we will be in Ilfracombe, Devon for my birthday like we are every year. Last year we had tapas and this year I have my heart set on a full Afternoon Tea with a sea view. This weather had best cheer up otherwise it will be a rainy indoor Afternoon Tea but either way I am getting a scone! haha! 

10 Month Baby Update! 🎉

Apologies for my absence in the here recently but omg, having a 10month old and being back at work part time has been hard! 

Firstly, I’ve been back at work for almost 2months now and it has been an emotional rollercoaster to say the least. Initially I was really worried about leaving my boy, I fully trust our family to care for him but he is still exclusively breastfeeding so I’ve been pumping a lot to keep up with him but thankfully, as it turns out, he doesn’t drink/want as much milk when he’s not with me so it hasn’t been too bad! This has meant pumping at work which my work have been great with and as I only work part time I haven’t lost too much time with my baby boy. It’s been nice to have a bit of me time as well. Who would have ever though work could feel like me time?! 

Breastfeeding wise, he loves the milk! He’s a milk monster! He still feeds to sleep but has become less reliant on it recently and will settle just as well with his daddy which has been nice for us all. I intend to continue until he’s one then slowly weaning him off the tit at his own pace. Neither of us are in any rush, it really is a lovely experience and I wouldn’t change it for the world. 

Weaning is great! We are are all really enjoying it. He is very adventurous and doesn’t struggle with new foods, he is very able when it comes to different textures and shapes of food. He pretty much eats what we eat now which has been good for us as parents as we have had to start eating a little healthier. I’ve been making more food from scratch to make it healthier for sharing! He loves a snack, rice cakes and fruit such as banana, strawberries and orange are his fave but he’s not fussy! He eats a lot! More than my 3 year old niece, definitely explains his moobs! 

Physically, he is doing amazingly well! He’s been crawling for a while, cruising the furniture and recently he has started standing unaided and taken his first few shaky steps which he is improving at everyday. Certainly won’t be long until he’s running! 

Speech wise, he’s a noisy little thing! Loves to laugh, squeal, blow raspberries and growl but hasn’t made any noises that sounds like actual words as of yet and we think he won’t for a while but that’s fine by us as he will do it when he’s ready.  

Sleep... well, this is something he has far from mastered. He wakes many times a night which is frustrating but he is showing progress. He used to need feeding back to sleep but often now he will just have a cuddle and go back

down or sometimes a pat on the butt does the trick. Sleep is something we really struggle with but it’s also something we have accepted and manage with as best we can. Again, he will sleep when he’s ready. He still naps for a good 3-4hours over the course of the day but if he doesn’t get that he’s a very moody boy so I am reluctant to reduce his napping. But this does mean that I also sometimes get a daytime nap which I looooove!

His favourite things to do are eat, feed and play with wheels! My god does this boy love wheels, pram wheels, car wheels, toy wheels, scooters, anything with wheels so we have accumulated quite the collection of vehicles recently! He also really enjoys his fur brother Watson, everything that dog does is hilarious. He especially likes to watch him poop! 

His least favourite things are being put in the car seat ( he loves the car once it’s moving though), being laid down for a bum change or getting dressed and being told no when he’s bashing toys on the tv. He has developed a special half cry half scream for these situations and it’s the most vile noise on earth. 

The fact that he is 10month old both terrifies me but also makes me so incredible proud. He’s such a loving boy and such a character! We are currently in the process of moving house and planning his Hey Duggee themed birthday party as well as a week away in the next month so there’s a lot going on! We are so excited for all of it though! Count down to a one year old is on!

Weaning: Completely Baby Led

Weaning terrified me and I am back to tell you that it doesn't anymore!

 My baby is growing up and becoming a little person. A little person who can and will be influenced by my eating and the food I choose to give him. 

I'm not a healthy eater, I don't eat fruit, salad or many vegetables. I have a fear of unknown foods and a huge fear of texture, living off mostly carbs and meat. I have gotten better in recent years but my diet is still far from good.

I want Rory to have a healthy relationship with food unlike his Mama!

Not long ago I wrote that we were doing a combination of purees and baby led, that was mostly through fear if i'm honest with myself. Fear that I wouldn't know what to give him that was healthy so a puree full of veggies would be the healthiest option but I have realised that just isn't the case. A healthy balanced diet includes fruits, veg and everything else!

Rory started refusing the spoon, he only wanted to feed himself so thats what pushed us to let him, I started with what I considered safe food such as boiled veggies but soon enough he was stealing my toast and staring longingly at our food.

I just thought fuck it, i'm going to feed him what we eat but with baby safe changes and added fruit and veg. He now eats a close variation of our meals everyday and he is finally embracing food! He could eat all day long if I let him!

Here he is eating a mini stir fry! Well cooked steak with baby corn, carrot and broccoli. He loved it and it was relatively mess free which is a huge bonus!

Mini pizza is definitely a fave of his as he is such a carb lover like him mama, he really enjoyed this meal. The pizza got demolished first followed by the carrots but as usual he ignored the broccoli.

I just don't get why he doesn't like broccoli! It is one of the few veggies that I like so I try and hide it as best I can! This is a quick dinner of cheese and broccoli on toast, he really enjoyed this one!

For breakfast he often has cheerios, fruit and a yoghurt. This may seem like a lot of cheerios but they mostly end up on the floor or in the dogs belly! The blueberries always get eaten though as they are a huge favourite! The skins do tend to come out in his poop though so I try not to give him too many haha!

A yoghurt is one of few things he will let us spoon feed him as he just loves them so bloody much! 

If you are struggling with BLW I would advise you to just do it! Give them a little of everything to try and if they don't like it, try again later. Get yourself up to date with how to cut and cook things safely which can easily be found online and away you go. As with adults, everything in moderation. The only things we avoid is chocolate, sweets and we try to keep salt at a minimum.

These are some other foods that have been a big hit...

. Grapes cut into quarters

. Easy pealer oranges, these are his faveeeee

. Blueberries

. Crumpets

. Toast

. Reduced salt baked beans

. Raisins

. Cream cheese sandwiches, sometimes with sneaky broccoli inside!

. Cheerios

. Mamia Carrot puffs (instead of chocolate for Easter, because bunnies love carrots!)

. Humous

. Carrot fries (homemade)

. Grated cheese

. Peas

And a few things he doesn't like...

. Broccoli on its own

. Cucumber

. Strawberries

. Banana (which he will eat from other people but not me?) Maybe he knows I hate them! lol

Learning With Little Ones This Easter

Something a little different on the blog today! I was recently contacted by education.com and asked if I would like to share a learning worksheet (https://www.education.com/worksheets/)with my readers and talk about their website. At first I thought well, Rory's too young for this but then I thought, many of my fellow mums do have older children and with the Easter holidays in full swing they may be looking for both fun and educational activities to do with their little ones! 

"Education.com aims to empower parents, teachers, and homeschoolers to help their children build essential skills and excel. With over 12 million members, Education.com provides educators of all kinds with high-quality learning resources, including worksheets, lesson plans, digital games, an online guided learning platform, and more." (education.com)

Education.com has a huge selection of worksheets and activities that you can download and print for free, whether your kids love to learn or would rather just colour it in, they are sure to find hours of entertainment and maybe even give you time for an uninterrupted cup of tea!

The worksheet I have chosen to share with you all is the "Crawlies Maze" as it is great for a range of ages, even Rory who is only 8months old will enjoy watching me do it or me holding his hand to help him it. In addiction to this worksheet you can find loads more printables on the website for you to explore. 

Zoella X ColourPop Collaboration - Brunch Date Palette

I am a huge Zoella Fan, I do feel she has been slacking recently with her youtube channel and her Zoella Beauty range but when this collaboration was announced, I knew I needed to try something. I had never used anything from ColourPop before either so this gave me the perfect excuse to try them out!

I have always been concerned about shipping and customs costs when ordering from America so have always avoided it but this collection if ordered within 24hours had free shipping to the UK which was a really nice and well thought out choice from Zoe and the team at ColourPop. This fact is definitely what swayed me into going for it!

I am all about eyeshadow palettes, I have quite the collection already so I knew what item I would be purchasing! 

Lets first talk about the packaging, it's beautiful! The palette is a basic cardboard (reminds me of Zoeva) but has a luxurious matte soft feel and the design is wonderfully whimsical with the waffle design outer packaging and the brunch inspired pink palette. A perfect combination of fun but also grown up. 

It fits perfectly with the design of the rest of the range which I think is so well designed, very unique and aesthetically pleasing!  

I would have loved to get the whole collection but my maternity leave budget meant just the palette for me. It cost roughly £17 including a small fee which I thought was a reasonable price for a collaboration palette.

Inside you have 12 shades, 5 mattes and 7 shimmers/foils. In my opinion there is a good selection of creases shades, natural shimmers and a few pops such as the gorgeous blue and the gorgeous burgundy. It is certainly a palette you can wear everyday but it is entirely possible to make something more fancy out of the shades. It is the perfect take on holiday palette for me, I could easily create a week or twos worth of looks out of this.

Left Top to Right Bottom

Maple Syrup - Sundae Funday - Sunny Side Up - Americano - Brunch Club - Extra Slice

Champagne Toast - Pancakes Please - French Toast - Skinny Latte - Cinnamon Sugar - Mimosa

As you can see, the swatches are impressive! The mattes are very pigmented but also very blendable so it's easy to apply because it is so easy to blend out and keep looking perfect. It really doesn't take a lot of work to get the crease looking great. Brunch club is an intense matte blue, not the most unique of shades but is a nice addition. 

Maple syrup, Americano and Mimosa are the perfect selection of crease shades that will work with most looks and French Toast is the most beautiful burgundy that you could use in the crease but I think would work wonderfully for a smokey eye. Extra slice is a matte with flecks of gold glitter and it is the absolute dream! I can't wait to do a full smokey eye with it.

The shimmers, especially Pancakes Please and Cinnamon Sugar just kill me. They are so incredible beautiful and right up my street! I have used them both so many time since owning this palette so I am sure they are going to become everyday faves. 

There has been a lot of backlash on this palette, people saying the shades are boring but I just don't agree. It is an everyday palette, yes but it is a step above. A step more pigmented, a step more sparkly and you definitely can make it work for a night out too.

Ultimately I am really pleased with my purchase! What does you guys think of the collection and this palette in particular? 

TOP TIP: Like many ColourPop shadows (so ive heard) the shimmers and even the blue are best applied with a finger in order to get full pigmentation. You can use a brush but you get the best look with your finger.

SHOP THE COLLECTION HERE