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We were inspired by a discussion on our Facebook page about the choices of having more children, so when Halifax asked us about parents managing their finances responsibly, it made us consider how careful parents need to be.

I vividly remember a friend once telling me that if you waited till you could afford children, then you would probably never have them. I always thought babies were expensive, with the cost of nappies, wipes and clothes that they grow out of every 3 months .... that was until I had a 7 year old. When the children are little, you have control over their expenditure but as they grow up, the outside influences tend to have an influence on your bank account too. When children reach school age there are the limitless requests for money for this activity or that school trip, not to mention all the after school clubs and birthday parties that ensue.

So our Facebook discussion asked about "how many children is enough" and interestingly alot of responses were more than the average 2.4 children. So many of our followers had 3 or more, with one lady having an amazing 7 children (I was totally in awe) but there was a general consensus that parenting is a hard job on its own without the pressure of providing for more and more children. However, the ultimate response was if you can provide for them (and cope with them), then you should have as many as you like!

Juggling your finances in the current economic climate can be difficult and there is no doubt that no matter how careful we all are, there will always be that surprise cost that comes just when the money has run out. My mum always taught us that if you can't afford it, then you shouldn't have it but if you are responsible, there are some great interest free Halifax credit cards. I am not advocating running up huge credit bills but with 0% interest rates available, it gives you time to repay the card, without additional cost to your family.

I have had a Halifax bank account for years and unlike some banking establishments, they have always provided a great service and been totally transparent, which is what you need from a bank. Having the ability to apply for services online always appeals to me and being able to manage it online is an added bonus for busy parents who don't have the time to physically pop into a bank. Parents are generally busy folk and making sure that we all make the right choices for our family is paramount, whether that is deciding on something simple like a credit card or one of those life changing decisions about having another baby! 

 

Disclaimer: Whilst Halifax approached us to write this post, I personally held an account with Halifax for over 10 years and have used their credit card services, so this post is from a personal perspectivie, not a comercial one.

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If there wasn't enough going on over Easter, what with trips to the coast, Easter Egg hunts and the challenge of eating copious amounts of chocolate, it was also the birthday of the man on the pad, unfortunately I had not got him a birthday cake. Anyone with children will know that this is an essential part of any birthday celebration and whilst the "birthday boy" in question is in his (ahem) thirties, the children still expect cakes and candles ...... so step in Baker Days to the rescue!

I love that the Baker Days website give you the option to order before 2pm and they will deliver your cake the  next working day, almost anywhere in the UK.  All their cakes are handmade and  in their words, "no cheap alternatives, no preservatives and no funny stuff", so it is like a homemade cake, perfectly presented (without the crispy edges and dodgy icing - in my case anyway).

Despite being slightly panicked that I didn't have much time to choose the right cake, the website was easy to navigate and I soon found the motorcycle design, which was just perfect for my gorgeous man. I was delighted (and a little alarmed) to find the box on the mat the following morning, upon my return from the school run and wanted to check that it had survived the journey through the Royal Mail postal system. I was genuinely amazed that it was not only intact but came with candles too! As I said earlier, despite the "birthday boy" being a little older than the number of candles supplied (we didn't want to start a fire now did we?) they made my birthday cake "rescue" even better!

The cake wasn't gooey or too sweet, it was just a delicious and light treat on his birthday .... and it also saved my reputation for being ridiculously organised in everything I do!

So Baker Days get a huge thumbs up from all at the Lilypad ..... but shhh, just don't tell the man on the pad ..... it's our little secret!

 

Disclaimer : Baker Days offered us this cake to review but the review is an honest and natural one. We have no hesitation in recommending the cakes and service offered by Baker Days and provide this review for our friends and followers as a genuine recommendation.

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Date Night? It sounds so grown up, like something actual grown up's do when they have small children .... errm hang on, that would be me then! Eeek!! So when we were asked to try the sizzling new menu from Chiquito's, it was as good an excuse as any for a date night.

Now we personally have a little history with Chiquito's and when I say we, I mean my gorgeous other half. He used to live very close to a Chiquito's and it was part of his staple diet. He has gone as far as to say that if he were on death row, it would be his meal of choice. (I am obviously hoping that he is never even any where close to death row but it kind of tells you how much he loves it!)

He was intrigued to hear that they have introduced new dishes such as Blackened Salmon and Jambalaya added but happy that some of his favourites such as the Chiquito sharing platter remained. In saying that, he knew what he was having to eat even before we had sat down. Unfortunately when we looked at the new menu, his desired meal was no longer on offer! To their credit, the staff asked the chef if he would add steak to the chicken fajitas meal and he was happy to do so for a small charge, so all was not lost!

 

I have to admit something here, I am not a huge fan of spicy food and the mexican menu was full of delicious sounding delights but I was worried about selecting something that was going to be too hot, so I tried to play it safe with my starter of chicken wings (but I was grateful for the bottle of water I had ordered) and a fully loaded burrito for my main meal. Guess what? I really enjoyed it and was halfway through it before I remembered to take a picture ......

The menu has a massive selection from salads and sharing platters, to fajitas and steas, so there is something for everyone. Having never eaten at a Chiquito's before I was genuinely pleased to find that the staff were attentive, the food was delicious and the ambience really good. I also loved that my gorgeous man got to indulge in his passion for mexican food, which made him very happy indeed.

Chiquito's was a great choice for our date night but it would be an ideal place to take the children too. It is not pretentious and the food certainly doesn't leave you feeling like you want more food, as some fine dining establishments can. The only thing my man is wanting now ..... is to know when we are going back!

 

Disclaimer : We were offered a voucher to go and review the new menu but the recommendation is a natural one based on past and current experience.

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I genuinely can't recall learning to ride a bike, it has just been something I have always known how to do isn't it? So why at the grand old age of "almost" 8 years old, can my eldest daughter not ride a bike? I was having this conversation with another mum in the playground last week and we were both talking about how our children have never learnt to ride. My daughter has had a bike of course but never quite confident enough to take the stabilisers off.

It has made me wonder why she has never learnt, like I did as a child? Riding a bike should be as much part of your childhood as building a den or playing tig, so where in the last 8 years did I go wrong? Should I have persevered more or should she have tried a little harder? On reflection I think I have spent so much time filling our weekends with play dates and day's out, that somewhere along the line, we have forgotten the simple stuff.

My youngest daughter is definately an adventurer and will, at the grand old age of 19 months, happily hide in a den made of blankets. She is a boistrous little character (which her angelic look belies) and I want to encourage her to enjoy the simple pleasure of riding down a hill with the wind in your face, without a care in the world (but a safety helmet on her head!!). So when is the right time to learn?

After some deliberation, I then made a conscious decision to get them both Strider Balance Bikes from Learning Early. Having looked at what bikes are best, I love the philosophy behind the Strider bikes, in that children learn balance safely. Using a balance bike is now regarded to be the safest way to learn how to ride a bicycle, as stabilisers just teach the child to rock from one side to the other AND the child still needs parents assistance up curbs etc. This totally echos our experience. After the delivery of the little ones bike (suitable from 1 years old!!), I soon ordered the Super Strider for my eldest (designed for children aged 6+)

The Learning Early experience has been a pleasure before the girls have even sat on their bicycles, as they offer a very personal service and an amazing one hour delivery slot! In this present economic climate, it is genuinely refreshing to find a Company who care about the customer, and not just about the sale.

The Lilypad blog has always been about our journey as a family, so I have my fingers crossed that the next journey will be the one where we can all ride with the wind in our face, adrenalin in our veins ....... and not a stabiliser in sight!