Tweet

Anyone that knows me well, knows that I have a penchant for shoes and bags, so when I was asked to run a competition with Lotus Shoes, I was happy to agree.

Now I have to admit that I hadn't heard of Lotus Shoes before hand but their website tells me that they "include designs that are at the height of fashion and inevitably suit a spectrum of tastes, together with timeless classic options which encapsulate style and elegance"  The shoes look like they would definately be kinder to my feet than some of my choices over the years but I was more drawn to the bags they have and selected the Vittoria! 

I have a multitude of black handbags, so having a contrasting cream and navy bag is quite a novelty (it also goes with a pair of fabulous Navy shoes that I have).  I love that it has lots of compartments, including two inner mobile phone pockets (one for me and a spare for my daughters iPod!) and it is wipe clean .... a must for mums who have to carry around food and drinks for their little ones.

It looks fabulous and the small charm makes it still a little girly. Lotus Shoes products are all about style and quality and makes me feel like a "real" grown up .... a girly grown up but a grown up nonetheless. 

If you would like to enjoy some of the quality and style from Lotus Shoes, then we are delighted to host a competition to win a £60.00 voucher to spend on their site, just enter here.

 

Disclaimer: I received the Vittoria bag to review but the opinions and comments herein are my honest opinion. 

Tweet

Today is International Women's Day, which is held annually on the 8th March and thousands of events are held throughout the world to inspire women and celebrate achievements. I have to be honest and say that the most inspiring women I know are mums who are juggling children, careers, domestic and professional demands .... what's not inspiring about that?

Most mums will tell you that they just "get on with it", so after speaking with some fellow bloggers, we have compiled a very tongue in cheek survival guide to being a happy mum.

 

1. Accept the fact that you will say all the things your mom said and you promised you wouldn't.

2. Find some perspective and hang on to it.

3. Accept that you will never have a tidy house again (or for the next 20 years anyway) - From Suzanne Whitton 

4. Accept that going to the toilet is no longer a private affair.

5. It is normal to think of the dishwasher as your best friend.  - Both 4 & 5 are from Emma CrazywithTwins

6. Accept that you can't do everything on time, to the standard that you'd like you and also accept that if you do manage to do this, other mums, like me, will get you when we next see you in the playground. - Love this one from Liz Weston

7. Don't worry about leaving the house in your pajamas/ with shreddies in your hair/ with yesterday's make up on- as long as you leave the house! - From Susanne Remic

8. Come to terms with the fact that the music you randomly start humming at the bus stop will no longer be the latest chart topper but instead your childs favourite nursery rhyme or theme tune to their most watched TV show! - From Jennifer Dixon 

9. Put everything of value (financial or sentimental) on a high shelf and move it upwards as the children get taller. By the time they're 15 you should probably have anything you care about (that isn't human) stored in the loft. - From Jenny Leonard

10. Expect nothing. Enjoy everything!

 

"Here's to amazing women, let us know them, let us raise them, let us be them"

 

Tweet

Do you remember when you were younger and your mom would say "she is 12 going on 21" and typically you would roll your eyes and think it was just Mom being silly and dramatic? Unfortunately when I became a Mom myself, I find myself saying the same old cliche's I heard my own parents say but the worrying this is ..... my daughter isnt 12, she is 7.

Everyone says that children grow up faster these days and I frantically hold onto my daughter's childhood because once that innocence is gone, it is lost forever. With the introduction of technology into their little lives, they are exposed to different mediums of influence (a previous post shared my "love"  and consequent confiscation of the iPod) I was a little horrified to hear slight twangs of an American accent coming out of her mouth influenced from some of the programmes she watches and I long for the day when Fifi Forget Me Not was the programme she loved most!

This weekend everything was "boring" or "borrrrrrrring" if I am saying it correctly (am clearly down with the kids) and this is where I have to remember that I am the grown up. Sometimes her behaviour amuses me as I see her growing up and developing her personality but arguing with me is not amusing and we had quite a bit of that this weekend! She was certainly reminded about her boundaries!

I am sure I could start a whole new blog about how my 7 year old thinks she is a teenager but I am sure she will get to a point where she doesn't want me to write about her at all, so for now I will just say that she is "7 going on 17" and wait for her to roll her eyes at me, like I did when I was 12.

 

Tweet

I regularly blog about our Water Babies adventures and Nanny is delighted that on this new course there is another "Nanny" joining the classes this term. She has taken great pleasure on passing on her wisdom for ease of changing and approaching the lessons (anyone would think she is a dab hand at it these days!!).

So with the little fish usually being star pupil, Nanny was a little perplexed this week to find that she wouldn't go to Kate the swimming teacher and she cried everytime she went to approach her. Now knowing my youngest daughter can be a cheeky little monkey when she chooses to be, I did wonder if she was just wanting to spend her day with Nanny or if she was feeling off colour but Kate suggested it maybe a stage of seperation anxiety.

The little fish is now fiercely independant but still needs reassurance from time to time and this is typical of seperation anxiety. I spoke with the Water Babies Midshires team and they recommend allowing the little one time to process information as they are becoming independant but do not know how to be. I suspect that this is what has happened in our case.

They also say that the early stages of child development & new experiences can also cause anxieties and consequently the "water wobbles".  Things like:

• Starting to walk or crawl
• A new experience like nursery, new teacher, new baby in house, change of sleep times
• Mum goes back to work
• They have an extended break from lessons e.g. summer holiday