That thing called love....

Today has been one of those days...

Wee man is cutting a back molar (I think) and goes from inconsolable to ticked off in the blink of an eye!

He's also at that stage where he's into everything, so on quite a few occasions today I've had to move him from something, tell him why I don't want him doing A, B or C ("please don't put your wee finger in the plug, you might hurt yourself") and then redirect his attention so it doesn't become his main focus. 

I put him down for his nap about half an hour ago and was rubbing his head as I do before he drifts off.

I just felt emotional out of nowhere and immediately thought "I hope he feels loved".

I don't know where it came from or why. I don't know why it hit me so strongly and with such force either.

This wee boy gets told a million times a day that I love him. I'm very affectionate and tactile with him. We spend as much time together as possible and I try to make every minute count, so when I'm having my saner moments (like now) I have no doubt that he feels loved. 

Though it does show you how one trying day (we all get them, right?) can attack your vulnerable side and make you doubt yourself. 

Have you ever had a moment like that? 

A year ago today...

This day last year I was doing the final checks on my hospital bag (and yours!) before my induction that night. I had no idea what the future held for us both. All I knew was that I was ready - ready to meet you and see your wee face, ready to stop the Ranitidine, ready to walk like a human as opposed to a farm animal. More than anything, I was ready to start being a mummy to you.
After a 24 hour labour you arrived and my God, you were perfect. The minute I held you a lot of things became insignificant. As twee as it sounds, you became my whole world.
People tell you that the first year flies by but I cannot believe how quickly it has went! It only feels like yesterday that I carried you out to the car eager to get home and have everyone meet you. I've watched you grow from a tiny, helpless little baby  into a loving, funny, strong willed, cheeky wee boy.
If this year is an indication of what the rest of our years together are going to be like, I can't wait!

Pet Pawtraits Blogger Challenge

I decided to get involved with the Pet Pawtraits Blogger Challenge in with Animal Friends.

This is Buddy the Yorkie with my wee man. Since the baby was born Buddy has adored him. If he cries, Buddy goes to him to see if he is ok. Now that O is older they play "tug" together with Buddy's tug toys & Buddy is a lot more gentle with O than he's ever been with me during our play sessions! It's a gorgeous wee friendship & I can't wait to see how it develops in the coming years! 

Much love. xXx

@latte_fiend on Twitter. 

Jellycat

There is plenty I want to say about Jellycat & their products but I'm trying not to waffle. :-) I was offered the opportunity to review three of their toys: the Bashful Beige Bunny, Clicketty Walter Whale & Octavia Octopus Jitter.

First off, the packaging of these toys is just too cute. They come in their own wee branded drawstring bag and my son had just as much fun with those as he had with the toys inside. He's at that age now where filling & emptying provides him with endless enjoyment.


Onto the products:


Bashful Beige Bunny - Small £11

This is one of the most plush soft toys I have seen on the market. I have a basket full of soft toys that my little boy has received since he was born, he is 11 months old now. He loves rubbing them on his face as he's going to sleep & he also loves giving them kisses/cuddles. This bunny is no exception. I have put him down with it at nap time most days since it arrived & he loves snuggling up with it. As I said before, its very soft & its easy to manipulate so he can hold it when taking steps (he's just learning to walk).
The only thing I would say is that if you're wearing dark coloured clothes the bunny tends to "moult". I don't think that's a massive issue though, a quick rinse in the machine would probably sort that out.


Octavia Octopus Jitter - £11

I know I only have the experience of these three items but they all seem to be made incredibly soft, with tiny little hands in mind. This feels like a soft-knit, that's the best way I can describe it!
My little boy is quite content to sit in his buggy & look around but I always like to have toys hanging from his pram to entertain him in case I run into an unexpected delay. This toy kept him perfectly entertained one morning while I was in the bank. He spent the entire time pulling the octopus by the legs causing that jittery sensation, which in turn made my little man laugh his head off. :-) I love how the babies can pull on the body or some/all of the 8 legs...whatever they find easiest to manipulate. He's now getting to grips with holding one end & pulling the other when we're at home. :-)


Clicketty Walter Whale - £11

Another soft to the touch toy! While O loved all of the toys I think this was the one that held his attention for the shortest amount of time. I think this was basically down to the fact that his development is beyond this toy now. He knows he can move the rings. He knows that they make a noise if he shakes Walter so he does it once or twice then moves onto the next toy. As a mother I can't fault the toy though. Its maybe something I would buy for a younger baby when they initially start to take an interest in the items around them & are just developing their grasp.

Now that I know Jellycat exists I will definitely be visiting the website when my friends have babies. I was surprised at how reasonably priced they are & they have a varied selection of toys. I would love to buy O some of the Farmyard collection.

Have any of you bought from Jellycat?

What did you think of their products?

Much love. xx


Lisa
@latte_fiend on Twitter












While I received these products for free for the purposes of the review, my opinions on the products are entirely my own & honest.

What's In My Changing Bag?

Jen over at Chic Geek Diary has inspired me to do my own "What's In My Changing Bag?" post. You can find her here if you want a peek at her changing bag post. I've actually enjoyed looking at a few of these posts since reading Jen's. Everyone seems to have the same "staples" but then the items get vastly different. :-)

The bag itself is a Caboodle changing bag & I love it! Its really roomy, therefore I don't need to try and squash everything in.


Nappies & Wipes
I use Asda Little Angels & either Morrison's Sensitive wipes or Asda Little Angels Sensitive wipes. O would have quite sensitive skin & it took us a while to find a few options that work.


A Mini Changing Mat
Just for unexpected nappy changes in the car or at the library....places were there aren't changing facilities.


Bibs
I used to pack five or six but now that he is older (11 months) I just need to pack two - one for when he's eating & one in case he's teething & particularly drooly.


Water
I always pack a fresh sippy cup of water and bring another bottle of fresh water just in case he's particularly thirsty.


Pre Walkers
He has a pair for around the house & a pair for his baby bag. He prefers to be bare footed & pulls socks off at every available opportunity but he's also cruising furniture & taking a few steps. The leather/suede pre walkers stop him slipping on tiled/wooden floors & keep his feet safe at the park.


Books & Toys
He loves his "That's Not My...." books at the moment so I always pack one or two of them & a few toys for the car/restaurants.


Camera
I always have a spare camera in my bag in case my iPhone dies. Although, for a few months now I have been conscientiously trying to take a few pictures to capture the memory & then I try to live in the moment. I was at the beach towards the end of the summer and remember thinking to myself "I've spent almost an hour basically looking at my son through the lens of camera, I should be on the other side". It made me feel quite sad. Looking back on photos will be very nice but I want to enjoy the moments with my son. I want us both to have memories of being together, not memories of me pointing the camera.


Spare Change of Clothes
For any & all eventualities! :-)


Dummy Wipes
O doesn't suck a dummy but I've always been of the mind-set that if they're safe & gentle enough for a dummy then they're safe enough to use on O's hands before meals & to wipe down restaurant/café highchairs.


Teething Teddy Ring
I always have a few of these ready & chilling in the fridge. My son just cut his second tooth at the weekend & there's nothing that gives him more satisfaction than chewing one of the rings.


A Piece OF Fruit
Just in case the baby is peckish after Rhythm & Rhyme/Soft Play or getting hungry before his food is served when we're out for lunch/dinner.


Medicine Box (Sort Of)
This is more of an accumulation of things that I've popped in the bag & never taken out. Though, they've all been used at some point!
Nappy Creams: Sudocrem, Metanium & Antipeol. O never had nappy rash until his first tooth started cutting. Sudocrem didn't work, Metanium didn't work & finally Antipeol cracked it! Calpol, Snuffle Babe, Thermometer, Nelson's Teetha Granules, Medicine Spoon & Calgel.

Dear Baby Boy....

Dear Baby Boy,


Mummy has been thinking about a few things today so I thought I would tell you about them.

• I wish that you would kiss me with the same enthusiasm that you do when offering kisses to virtual strangers.
• I wish you would throw your toys in the toy box as expertly as you throw your snacks around the kitchen.
• I wish you would race to your bedroom at bedtime as quickly as you race to the bathroom when you discover the door is open.
• I notice that you don't rip the pages out of your books like you rip them out of my magazines.
• I'm not as silly as I look, I know that when you start clapping in that cute wee way that you're really just trying to distract me from the fact that I caught you pulling all the DVDs off the shelf again.
• Why don't you get as excited to see me as you do when you see your granny's dog?
• You're as complaint as you are defiant and I love it.

All of this and only 10.5 months old. I joke of course but more than anything, I hope that you never ever change. If I had to make a list of what my perfect baby would be like....its you. You make me smile every single day. You make me want to be the best person that I can be. I've never known love like it. Who needs a man on Valentine's day when I have a mini Mr Perfect at home?


Much love. xx


@latte_fiend on Twitter

Where would I be without Lush? :-)

When my son was born he had quite dry skin. I tried a few products that people swore by but they either didn't work or his skin reacted. I realised that he was going to take after his mummy and have sensitive skin as a child (I've since grown out of it). I done a bit of research and decided to use coconut oil. It was a dream! His skin was perfectly smooth within a few days and he also smelled good enough to eat. Now he still gets a coconut oil massage after his bath, just to maintain. 

I've always been obsessed with scents and smells so I really wanted to find something for his baths that smelled lovely but that he wouldn't react to. I done patch tests with a few different products but no joy. I was visiting Lush one day for my regular goodies. I mentioned my 'dilemma' to one of the staff and she pointed me in the direction of the Fun bars. There are 5 different scents and each is as delicious as the last. 

Blue: Lavender and chamomile

Yellow: Creamy vanilla

Green: Citrus

Pink: Fruity (smells like sweeties though!)

Red: Mandarin and orange oil

They come in at £5 and last forever!

They can be used under running water for bubbles, as shampoo and as a body wash. 

I bought my son the blue bar and the green bar about 4 months ago and still have more than half of each left. That's got to be good value for money! You only need the smallest amount too. I have even give a few lumps to my cousin when I'm babysitting and she loves playing with it like playdough then washing with the result. It is what it says it is, fun! 

Spring cleaning my friends?

I thought when I got to my late 20s that I knew who my friends were, I thought that they would be my friends for life. I've learned that people change, both myself & others.

I'm a single mum of one. When I fell pregnant last year the reactions of some were a surprise. Some friends were over the moon for me, said they would be there to support me as & when needed. Others acted like it was the end of the world. Was it going to affect their lives in the slightest? I think not. I just put it down to them being shocked about the news & moved on. 

As the pregnancy progressed people I used to think of as good friends were withdrawing from me. Now that I couldn't get drunk & didn't want to go out partying I seemed to have lost my appeal. I had enough on my plate though so I swept it to the side, assuming those same friendships would come right in the end. 

When my baby boy arrived this year I got some cold, clipped congratulatory texts....basically just paying lip service to save face. 

Now my baby is 7 months old & those friendships haven't improved. I'm tired of trying. I'm tired of being the one to put in all the effort. I'm sick of phoning to see how they are & having them not ask about my son in return. 

Just like I sometimes need to spring clean my house, I need to also spring clean my friendships & bin those that are no longer working. It's sad to turn my back on years of friendship but I refuse to waste my time on what is no longer working. Not to mention that if people couldn't be there for me during the biggest event of my life to date, well then they have no business being in my life at any other time. 

I wish them no ill will but it's time to move on & leave them behind.

Peace. 💋

@latte_fiend on Twitter