A few weeks ago I held a friends newborn baby and my ovaries ached (shhh don't tell my husband) and whether is your first, second, third or twentieth thanks to Britain's largest family The Radford's, I don’t think the feeling of excitement, joy and sheer emotion of having a new baby ever changes. However, just as you can feel excited about the prospect you can also feel overwhelmed and worried about it. It’s a rollercoaster ride of emotions that is for sure. Once you are over the initial excitement, you can start to think about the future and preparing yourself for the arrival of your new baby. But what do you really need?

If this is your second child or beyond, you may be blessed with things you have kept from your first born. The most popular things to keep tend to be push chairs and car seats, even nursery furniture and clothing. So if you do have their benefit now would be the ideal time to sort through the loft or storage areas and see exactly what you have. It can also help determine how much you need to invest in for the new baby. But for some, you are starting from scratch and so you may feel like you have a big endless list of things to buy or consider for your new baby, but actually there are not as many essentials as you possibly once thought.

Sourced

Somewhere to sleep

Baby’s need a place to sleep, after all, they tend to spend those first few weeks sleeping a lot. So you may want to consider what sort of arrangements you are going to have in place for this. Of course, there are moses baskets that offer great flexibility for sleeping. But you could also consider the more permanent arrangements such as a cot that will potentially live in the baby’s nursery. There are all sorts of accessories to consider when it comes to sleeping arrangements, particular mattresses and sleeping aids, so it’s always advisable to do your research to ensure that the products you think you might not will actually be beneficial.

The feeding arrangements

Some people choose to breastfeed, others choose to bottle feed. Whichever route you decide to embark on is a decision only you can make and it is personal to you and how you feel. Sometimes you may have plans to feed in a certain way and things just don't go to plan. There are, however, essentials that could work with each type of feeding possibility such as breast pumps for breastfed baby’s or bottles and sterilisers for the bottle fed ones. Make the choice and then ensure you have what you need to embark on the feeding journey you choose.

Clothing for those first few weeks and months

We can often get a little carried away when it comes to buying clothes for a new baby. It’s all those cute little outfits you see in shop windows or websites like Next or Zara. The truth is, in those first weeks and months the chances are your new baby will live in rompers and sleepsuits. Cute outfits are great, but don’t have too many where you run the risk of your baby outgrowing them before they even have a chance to wear them. Be careful with your purchases, and instead, by a few months ahead to ensure you have a steady stream of clothing from newborn size onwards.

Sourced

Dealing with siblings

It can be hard to handle siblings when you are expecting a new child. You run the risk of feelings of jealousy creeping or feeling left out. It can be hard to remember at times there are other feelings to consider, especially when you are exciting and concentrating on taking care of yourself through pregnancy. The essential factor here is to ensure that you involve your child in the process of welcoming another baby. That might be a surprise gender reveal or making it a big event to announce the new sibling. It might just be arranging a private scan so that they get to meet their new sibling, a 4D scan could be a great bonding experience.

Getting out and about

You might need to consider the getting out and about arrangements for you new baby. Which could mean doing research on travel systems, push chairs and car seats. The car seat essentially is something you need for the hospital to get you home safely, so that may become your priority if you are planning on spreading the bigger purchases. There are options to suit all budgets in this field, and the best advice would be to go out and visit them and try them out and see how they feel. People have opinions from the top end of the budgets right through to some of the cheaper options available on the market.

Finally, make sure you take care of your own well being. Taking time out for yourself, enjoying a nice book and a relaxing bath. They may not be essentials that cost much, but they can make all the difference to how you feel.

Do you remember being a child and having a bike with a bell? You know the most painful sounding bell you can imagine and you rang it and rang it and rang it? Yep, I was that child. A bell or a horn isn't something that is intentionally designed to drive the neighbours bonkers but it is also a safety accessory, although it is an uphill struggle to try and convey that to small children.

Not any more!

The Mini Hornit is the world’s most fun accessory for children’s bikes and scooters and we are told that it is fast becoming a craze in the UK, Europe, North America and Australia. It comes loaded with 25 sound effects from bells and trumpets to racing cars and animals, and has bright lights (white AND green!) for safety.

It is loud without being defeaning and some of the sounds are hilarious .... especially when people are not expecting to hear a police siren in the park. The mini hornit has an attachable remote trigger you can activate these lively, attention-grabbing sounds without ever taking your hands off the handle bars. Using a pair of large rubber wings, this nifty little device also easily clips onto the frame or handlebars which makes it is the perfect accompaniment to a child's bike or scooter.

The tech bit is:

Product Features:

• Rubber wing-clips lets you attach it to any bike or scooter
• Packed full of 25 fun and attention-grabbing sound effects (85 - 90 decibels)
• Super bright 12 lumen white and green lights, with constant/slow flash/fast flash modes
• Dedicated "lights off" switch so you don't have to scroll through all of the various settings
• Shower-proof (IP33 rating)
• Batteries will last for 7 hours on constant light mode and it needs 2x AAA batteries

Oh it also looks like a super big eyed turtle ;-) 

The mini hornit retails at just £14.99 but we are excited to be able to give you a chance to win one! All you need to do is enter below.

 a Rafflecopter giveaway

The Prize: Mini Hornit - colour of choice.

The winners will be chosen at random by the random winner generator on Rafflecopter and notified within 7 working days by email
By entering this competition, you understand that your details may be retained for future mailings. You can unsubscribe from this mailing list at any time.
There is no monetary equivalent.
Little Lilypad Co take no /responsibility for loss or damage in the despatch of prizes
If the prize is unclaimed within 7 days we reserve the right to redraw the winner.
End Date 12/11/2017 at 12am

So the National stats have sealed it, mums and dads to be are favouring flower names for their little pink bundles of joy. In fact, out of the top 100 baby girl names, 12 spots are taken up by floral type names.

Lily, Poppy, Daisy, Rose, us Brits just can't get enough, apparently.

In fact, with so many names up there, it’s made me wonder just why we're favouring the florals. Some names have jumped a whopping 400 places in the last decade. It’s a floral frenzy!

I've pondered on it, of course, and here’s my take on why flower names are trending once again.

Pretty name, pretty personality

From Lily to Iris and all that’s in-between, when we name our children, we allow ourselves to imagine what they may be.

Think about it, how often do expectant parents turn their nose up at certain names. Those ones that remind us of the school bully? Names that connote snobby standards? Names that make Santa’s naughty list before baby is born? We all know the ones.

When we choose a flower name for little girls, we are taking inspiration from nature. Calm, beautiful, natural, flowers are individually intricate, yet one of life’s most simple pleasures.

Happy and at ease, wherever they grow, what more could you want for your newborn?

It is easy to remember

With so many new name creations and choices, a simple and elegant flower name is quite simply easy to remember (and spell). Having our own little Flora Queen also helps my husband remember my favourite flowers when it comes to valentines and anniversaries.

Keeping it in the family

While the flower name boom is only just hitting its modern-day peak, it isn’t the first time florals have dominated. The first era of flower names was in bloom between the mid-1890s to around 1920. 100 years on and now these names are more popular than ever.

Of course, there’s something quite romantic about an olden name being used in today’s times, but that not might be the full story. So many expectant parents choose to register their children in memory of late great-grandmothers and even grandmothers. Carrying middle names is a popular tradition too.

The rise in flower names could just be a nod to those wonderful women.

Maybe they just like it?

Oh my gosh, ground-breaking, I know. But as names become popular, and we hear them more and more, they do grow on us. Sometimes unknowingly.

When we choose our children’s names, we often look at what sounds right for the time. For most mums and dads, this will be completely different to names that were about when they graced the playground. In fact, one sure way to feel old is to attempt giving bump your best mates’ names. You’re archaic. Good luck for the teen years.

And so it goes, popular girls names right now are Lily, Poppy, Willow and the kind. And falling on mum-to-be’s ears, what better name could there be for bump?

Tweet

Last year I gave in and allowed my eldest daughter to have a mobile phone, with a list of rules as long as your arm ..... including DO NOT DROP it! At the time I told her that I wouldn't replace it if she broke or lost it but I didn't tell her that I took out insurance on the phone, just in case.

We all know that insurance products generally take the pinch out of paying up for loss, theft or damage of valuables. Mobile insurance is no different, provided the premiums are fully paid and conditions for making a claim are met. Reports have revealed that some mobile insurance policies may not actually offer coverage as promised in the adverts, which makes it very important for you to carefully read the fine print before signing up for mobile phone insurance, and before making a claim as well. One of the common conditions that tend to skip the eye/mind is that theft could be covered only when forced or, for that matter, theft or loss must be reported within a specific time.

Even if you do manage to meet all conditions and file a claim, just how many times will a mobile insurance cover your losses? A question worth pondering if you have butter fingers or a tendency to lose/misplace valuables. 

Mobile Insurance Claims – Premium and Excess

The number of mobile insurance claims that one can make are likely to vary based on the insurance product/provider, the value of the mobile phone, and the paid-up premium. In fact, if you’ve opted to pay up the insurance premium on a monthly basis, you may be required to pay the full amount upfront before making your first claim. The more expensive the mobile phone, the higher the risk and, hence, the higher the premium and excess.

An excess is a sum of money that you are required to shell out from your pocket when you make a claim. Excess amounts can get more punishing with each claim that you make – in some cases, time limitations may apply. 

For instance, a £25 excess is payable on claims on ordinary mobile phones, while excess on iPhones tend to be double the amount when a claim is filed for the first time. You could land up paying twice the excess amount on the second claim on the iPhone. Insurance claims for two different phones within the same year can also spike the excess by 100 percent. 

The excess amount charged per claim varies from one insurance provider to another and is definitely higher if the mobile phone is an expensive one such as the iPhone. 

Mobile Insurance Claims – Maximum Limit?

The number of mobile insurance claims you can file during a 12-month period differs from one insurance provider to another. There are insurance firms that offer instant cover with unlimited claims with an excess of £25, but for brand new mobile phones. Yet, others limit the claims to just two per mobile phone in a given year. Do remember and watch out for exclusions, conditions, limitations and excesses, which are an integral part of mobile insurance products.

However, similar to home/vehicle insurance, mobile insurance costs may increase or decrease based on the number of claims made. Do note that switching mobile insurance providers may get difficult as most of them offer policies applicable to gadgets purchased less than six months ago! 

The reliability of mobile insurances differs greatly, partly because of the type and extent of cover they offer and also because of the way they are availed. Package bank account, mobile phone warranty, or even home content insurance can (to some extent) offset costs incurred on repair/replacement of mobile devices, but not without other consequences. 

It is, therefore, a must to shop around for a good offering from a reputed provider, handle and protect the mobile phone responsibly and, of course, report incidents of threat/loss or damage in a timely manner with the prescribed documentation to make best use of mobile insurance products.

Here are a few options for iPhone insurance that covers loss;

only Ultimate cover iPhone insurance covers you for both theft and loss

Asurion offers loss coverage

Loveitcover it offer a decent deal too

As for my daughter, she managed a whole year of looking after her phone until one of her friends managed to drop it in a plant pot, but that is a whole other story. 

Thank goodness for insurance eh?

Tweet