Pink Lining Notting Hill Tote Bag Review

I was using the smaller mum on the run bag but I've found that I needed more space to carry snacks etc so I bought this beauty.
I absolutely love it. I used to have the Yummy Mummy bag but I wanted something more 'for me'. The Notting Hill tote looks more handbag like and to the untrained eye it is just another stylish tote bag.

It still has lots of pockets for all my baby needs and more. I love that it has 2 removable bottle holders which I use to store Sophia's water bottle.
Even though it doesn't come with a long canvas strap like the other bags I've found that I don't need it as it has built in pram clips. These are genius and it looks very stylish hanging from my pram handle.
The only negative that I've found is that the inside pockets are not deep enough to fit nappies in. My nappies stick out and get dog eared but it is something that is only a small niggle.

I'm also a bit obsessed with this cottage garden print at the minute as its so beautiful and perfect for summer.
I would definitely recommend this bag as it would suit a newborn or older children. They have just brought out new designs and the penguin one especially looks fab!

I bought this bag myself and this review is all my own thoughts.

Yumbox, making weaning easier.

So Sophia is now 10 months old. We are still breastfeeding but she eats solid food also. We started baby led weaning at 5.5 months but she would gag and it would put me off so we went onto purees. She would never eat more than a couple of mouthfuls of purree and it always felt forced. Then at 7 months old she had a couple of teeth so we went back to baby led weaning and she was like a different baby. She loves eating finger food and hardly ever gags. I think it made all the difference waiting until she was ready and had teeth.

So I have several baby cookbooks and I love making her different foods it's just not easy making sure that she has a balanced meal. Me and my husband eat processed fatty food such as burgers, pizza and curry etc and I don't want Sophia to eat anything bad. Especially whilst she is so young that she doesn't have a choice what she eats so we make sure that she eats a healthy balanced meal. The Yumbox makes this easier as it has several different trays all labelled with what to put in, protein, dairy etc. So when we go out I make Sophia a little healthy packed lunch and she loves it.

The tray is removable and it is dish washer safe. It is also air tight when closed so you can put yoghurt in one of the compartments and it won't leak. I love how it even has a small round compartment suitable for a dip.

I also love how it fits into her Pink Lining mini rucksack perfectly so I can still use my small mum on the run bag whilst I put her lunch in her own bag. She is too young to carry it yet but I hang it off the pram handle.
There are cheaper lunch boxes out there but they aren't as cute as this! I bought the older version as it was on sale the only difference is that the new updated trays won't fit in. I'm hoping that it will last a good few years and see her into nursery. Overall I would recommend the Yumbox as it's a great idea to keep a busy mum focused on feeding her child something healthy.

You can buy this box here

My Baby Awards! 10 products that we have found to be better than all the rest

All the products that i have mentioned is in comparison to other brands that I have tried and tested. Some things that I love won't be included as I've not tried anything else so I don't have anything to compare it to.

Here are the products that I have found to be the best of the best in my own opinion:

1. Boots Soft Cloth Baby Wipes, these are just amazing! They are fragrance free and so soft and gentle and just work really well. My main positive is that there is no dragging on the skin at all. Just soft and gentle. I have found Pampers, Huggies, Sainsburys and Johnsons to all drag on the skin but not these. Also they are cheaper than all of the above.
2. Next clothing especially babygrows the quality of these just blow the other brands out of the water. They last well and stay soft not to mention they have the cutest designs going! I could be biased as we have about 6 with cats on <3 but the quality is just A1. They are a little more pricey than other brands but I guess you get what you pay for with these. I feel like I owe a special mention to Tu Sainsburys as these are also amazing quality and have cute designs.
3. Pampers Baby Dry Nappies I didn't want to be a Pampers snob but I now totally am oops. The baby dry are so soft, thin and comfortable looking compared to other bulky ones out there and these hold much more and as they say keep my baby dry. I can be confident that I can put one on before bed and she will be dry in the morning even after having at least 2 wees. I have tried other stores own brands and been disappointed and also I'm disappointed with the others from the Pampers range such as the New Baby as these leak and won't hold much wee. You just need to make sure not to go up a size too soon as I made that mistake with the baby dry and woke up in a puddle, so that was my fault. These are so nice and slim and have cute designs compared to Sainsburys Little Ones and Asda Angels which don't keep her dry.
4. Asda Little Angels Baby Powder this is great quality and I prefer it to Johnsons which is fragranced urgh.
5. Anbesol liquid, for teething. You put it on her gum and it numbs it for a little while giving short term relief. Cons, it is pricey compared to others and you can only use it every 3 hours but I would recommend it over other.
6. Calpol is the best for pain, fever and general unwellness. I find she takes it off the spoon well. Special mention to Nurofen for babies this is more or less the same but has quite a wide pipette so is not as easy to give her.
7. Simple Baby All in One Wash I really like this and feel that I can use it if we share a bath. The fragrance is really gentle and it bubbles up well. Special mention to Asda Angels which she likes and is gentle on her skin.
8. Nuby teething toys are great for her to chew on and light for her to hold. They are pretty cheap as well so that's a plus. Special mention to Lamaze toys which she also loves but they aren't as easy to get the certain ones that you want and they cost more.
9. Snufflebabe have the best products for when she has had a cold with their chest run and saline nose drops.
10. Bepanthem nappy cream does what it needs to do and I find it easier to apply than the thicker Sudocrem and also more hygienic because it's in a tube not a tub.

Other Special mentions:
- Big Bugs Band TV show
- Pink Lining Yummy Mummy Changing Bag
- Cosatto Easi Peasi Changer and Bath

Tip of the day: don't get a pram that has inner tubes in the tyres. I work in a bike shop and see people coming in all the time with punctures. The shop doesn't always have time to fix it there and then. If so it can be costly and it may mean waking your baby to get it out of the pram whilst it's done. Overall it's a complete nightmare so don't do it!

Co-Sleeping, my story. The reality behind the controversy

Co-sleeping was something briefly mentioned at parenting class which was frowned upon and has lots of controversy surrounding it. I sat there and thought oh I'll never do that! 

Fast forward to a 2 week old baby who will only fall asleep in my arms. As soon as I gently transfer her to her moses basket and tip toe into bed BOOM she is awake. It was so cruel on my sanity, she would be asleep and I would stand there for 5 minutes staring over her thinking can I actually sleep? And just when you let yourself believe that you might get some sleep and settle into bed. It feels good and pull the duvet up she would wake up. It would be so depressing, I felt desperate. I spent the first couple of weeks breastfeeding her on the couch and holding her in my arms whilst she slept I unfortunately didn't.
She would fall asleep in her electric swing but no where else and you are not allowed to leave them to sleep in swings or car seats as it is bad for their posture.

When my husband went to work after 2 weeks I found myself resided to the couch when she woke so it didn't wake him up, as before I would sit up in bed and feed her but I felt like I couldn't. I was exhausted and found myself nodding off with her in my arms on the couch which is very dangerous and often how babies get suffocated. One night my husband suggested bringing her to bed. I think he meant for me to get her to sleep in bed and then put her in her basket next to the bed but I knew she when she did fall asleep so did I. The midwife at the hospital showed me the correct position for feeding my her whilst lied down in bed. On your side with your baby under your arm and one leg over the other so you physically cannot roll over onto your baby. My arm around her protects her from my husband if he came too close or if one of my cats jumped on the bed.
This night I slept and it was wonderful! The first night in a long time where I got a decent amount of uninterrupted sleep. I felt like a new person and it was definitely a turning point!

Yes me and my husband were scared that we would hurt her in some way but I am a light sleeper and would wake up at any sudden movement from my husband or cats. I made sure that the bed cover was only up to her chest which meant that the majority of my upper body was without cover and I am cold so I wait for her to finish feeding and then try to carefully lower myself under the cover.
Part of this is my fault and I was warned by my health visitor as she uses me as comfort. She doesn't have a dummy (and would spit it out when we tried) she doesn't always feed from me but suckles for comfort which is how she always falls asleep. At first I didn't mind as anything for peace and happiness, but now she is approaching 6 months old and we want to get her into her cot in her own room I will pay the price.
Co-Sleeping is so convenient as she can feed whenever she wants and we never get up in the night anymore. Also due to this she never wakes up as much as if I would put the light on and get up etc as that would make her wide awake and take a long time to settle. So now she might feed or suckle in the dark and more or less goes back to sleep straight away with no fuss.

I'm the news it is classed as dangerous but when you look at the figures the babies who sadly were smothered by parents it was due to them not following the correct guidelines and procedures they had drank alcohol, smoked or took medication before bed which is a no no. Co-Sleeping can be done safely but it was a last resort for me and my sanity as I did try her in her moses basket. I never wanted to cosleep. 

Co-sleeping does have positives and negatives like everything, here are my main ones:
Negatives:
*No husband cuddles
*I get a dead arm and mostly have to lie in a uncomfortable position.
* my sleep quality isn't very good as I'm so cautious.
* I've had a very bad back since having her and I blame this partly as it's uncomfortable and my back is cold.
* Now that she is bigger she takes up all the room as she likes to lie on her back with her arms spread out. She always loved this and would wake up in her basket as she touched the sides. Also she didn't like being swaddled and would wriggle her arms free.

Positives:
* I actually get some sleep even if it's not the best quality it is sleep!
* It's so easy to feed her and I don't have to get up in the night.
* I feel secure with her next to me as I know that she is settled, happy and safe. I love to gaze at her and listen to her breathing (sometimes snoring hehe).
* She settles quicker as babies are used to mums smell, warmth, heartbeat and breathing noises when they are growing inside you and she gets this comfort when she is cuddled next to me.
* If she does wake we both go back to sleep fairly quickly due to the hormones in breastfeeding.

If you look at other mammals they all sleep with their young, there is only us who doesn't so like breastfeeding it is the most natural thing to do.

If we do have another child I would not want to do it again but I would if I had to. You can buy a Co-Sleeping pod bed things which I would look into. It is a crib that adjusts in height that fixes to the side of my bed. It is very safe and the baby can feel like it's Co-sleeping and I would have the feeding convenience and them hopefully put them in there little bed pod, yet still have my own bed room. It's a great idea but they are expensive.

So Co-Sleeping goes hand in hand with breastfeeding and if you are thinking about it I would read the NICE guidelines. It is not for everyone but it can be done safely and happily.

Jodie x

Breastfeeding, my story

So breastfeeding isn't for everyone for lots of reasons but I especially thought that it wouldn't be for me. I've always had sensitive nipples and I didn't like them being touched, so I thought that I would hate it. I promised myself and my husband then when the time came that I would try.

My daughter Sophia was born in July this year and within the first few hours they want to get your baby to feed. To be honest I can't remember this due to all the drugs that I had but I do remember that night the nurse waking me up every 2-3 hours to wake Sophia up to feed her! It sounds crazy but yes I had to wake her up to feed. This is only in the beginning as your baby literally has to feed from your boobs 24/7 to make your milk 'come in'. In this time you have colostrum milk so you don't have nothing but most breastfed babies are expected to lose up to 10% of their bodyweight waiting for your mature milk. It can take up to 5 days to come in but I was lucky and it came in on day 2. Sophia had put weight on before we came home from the hospital which was great news as they expect a loss.

Anyway at first breastfeeding hurts! It really does it feels like hell. My nipples were all raw, sore and blistered and each time she fed it was excruciating. At first babies don't know how to latch on and as I was in hospital for 5 days I would press my buzzer each time and a nurse would have to latch her on for me as I couldn't do it. Eventually she grasped it but I feel like if I would have left hospital earlier like most mums do say on day 2 I probably would have given up. So your nipples hurt and your baby needs to feed constantly and your tired from sleeping in 2 hour intervals if your lucky and you are hating this. Hang in there momma because it will get better I promise! I got relief with Lansinoh Lanolin cream this stuff is my holy grail and a must buy! I still use it now. It is a cream that you put on your nipple and it helps it to heal quicker and keeps it moisturised and soft, your baby can feed with it on so you don't have to wash it off.

There are lots of positives for breastfeeding here are my favourites:
* Weight loss! My tummy was gone after 2 weeks and I did no exercise.
* It's free!
* Convenience, when babies are crying and you think they might be hungry you can just pop your boob in its mouth and have a instant answer! but with formula you'd have to make a bottle and let it cool all whilst your baby is screaming. Urgh. Also no sterilising.
* Close bond. I feel like I have a closer bond with my daughter as I get special looks from her that no one else sees when she is eating and milky drunk (cutest face ever). She also does other cute stuff like hold on to my top or finger with her free hand or massages my boob like a kneeding kitten.
* Bigger boobs. It's true I've gone up at least a couple of cup sizes.

Your breaking point will come
Mine came when I was about 2 weeks in. I was tired and my nipples hurt alot and I felt like I was in it alone. Even though my husband was here only me got up in the night with her as only me could feed her. I was exhausted and snapped. At this night feed I felt like I could go no further and I gave her formula. She drank it but I felt terribly guilty and cried. At this moment I thought I would never breastfeed ever again. The next day as I'd not breastfed her my boobs were huge, hard, sore and leaky it wasn't good. My husband and mother in law took care of her for a couple of hours whilst I had a bath and a couple of hours sleep. The first bit of time that I had to myself since having her. As my boobs were sore from not feeding her now I just popped her on to relieve some of the pressure and surprisingly it didn't hurt as much! My nipples had had a well deserved rest! It still hurt but I was over the worst. I continued my Lansinoh cream and it gradually got better. At this point I thought that we would combo feed her both as my husband could help more but I felt like it didn't settle as well on her stomach. It made her more sick so after 2/3 weeks we went back to exclusively breastfeeding.
Having the support was very important in breastfeeding as there were breastfeeding support workers at the hospital and one continued to visit me at home. This support was vital as I could ask any questions I had 24/7 as they give you their mobile number. They also told me about a local breastfeeding group in my area which I attended. At first with her feeding so much I was a recluse but this felt good to go out and have a reason to get dressed once a week. It was great to meet other mums going through the same thing. Also support from family was vital as at my age (27) no one was breastfed in either of our families as formula was pushed back then. They needed to understand why I was doing this and not hogging the baby so no one else could feed her. Breastfeeding is so good for both mother and baby. As well as help to protect the mum from cancers it has everything your baby needs. A breastfed baby will not need water or anything just your milk until 6 months when you start to wean but then your baby will get the majority of its nutrition from your milk.
I know that you can pump your milk into a bottle so I tried this with a manual pump. It hurts even though her feeding no longer does. It works different from her mouth. I tried it and she wouldn't drink my milk out of a bottle something which are working to overcome so that she can start to be minded by Grandparents every once in a while.

Things that I found that help apart from the Lanolin cream are:
* Nursing bras, these have a little clip at the top so it pulls down easily.
* Nursing tops especially these from Blooming Marvellous. It looks like there is a vest underneath but there isn't. You just pull the material to the side and unclip your bra and your away.
* Reusable bamboo breast pads, I was spending £8 per month on disposables but these are approx £8 for 6. They are more comfortable, environmentally friendly and reusable.
* Breastvest, this is a vest but doesn't cover your boobs so you can wear your own top over it and lift that and your baby can feed without everyone seeing your skin. Nice and discrete. This is something that I wish I'd discovered sooner as I've been wearing the same 3 tops urgh. I have yet to try this (soon) but I imagine that it is amazing!

Fun nuggets of info
* she has a favourite boob.
* when she is feeding from one boob the other leaks and it can squirt very far like a fountain. So be prepared.
* I feel like breastfeeding helped her get great head control very early on as she had to reach for my nipple herself rather than being lied back and bottle fed.

So there you go I love breastfeeding. I understand that it is not for everyone as some mothers cannot do it for lots of reasons or they just don't want to which is fine as well.
I've had a great time with Sophia but if we have another in the future i understand that it may not be the same and I might not be able to do it again. Also it requires alot of time. At first I literally stuck on the couch feeding her all day, I would have to have my food brought to me and eat it with one hand and I've even had to take her to the loo not ideal but anything for a happy baby. When you have another young child you might not have all day to sit with a baby attached to your boob.
I hope to continue to breastfeed her until she is about 1.5 years old but we will have to see. I get alit of satisfaction seeing her develop knowing that all her nutrition is from me.
Jodie x

Sophia's Birth Story

So it's been nearly a week and I want to get the details of Sophias birth down before I forget them.
As I've had high blood pressure since week 36 I've been monitored twice a week by the midwives and been on medication to keep it down. At my routine 40+4 appointment my blood pressure was very high and i measured to have some protein in my urine which are both signs of pre eclampsia. I was shipped off to the hospital and I was told that I was not leaving without a baby! This was so crazy to hear.
At 7pm they started the induction with a pessary as I was 1cm dilated. I was given 2 IV drips saline and a magnesium sulphate one and a catheter which were awful, I had to have canulars in the back of both hands and one was a double one. I freaked out over these as they hurt and I was terrified. I was told that at 1am they would come back to check on me and break my waters if they could. At this point they gave me another drip this one was to bring on stronger contractions. Due to the possibility of a C section I was not allowed any food or water this was absolute torture as I'd not eaten much that day and I was sent to the hospital at 3.30pm. I was starving and thirsty and miserable but understood why they were doing it. I also couldn't move from the bed due to being hooked up with both arms something that I didn't want for my labour. Eventually they let me have a tiny amount of water.
My contractions get going and I eventually have some gas and air. At 1am they break my waters and do a membrane sweep which really hurt (the sweep not waters), I was now 2cm dilated. The next contraction after my waters had gone was alot more intense due to the water not being there and my uterus squeezing more effectively. The next few hours are a blur the pain got very intense and and it was bad! Mike my husband was brilliant and I am so lucky to have him there for me. He held my gas and air as I could hardly move my hands due to the drips.
A while later maybe 2-3am I ask straight for a epidural i originally didn't think I'd have one since I was so terrified of injections. My plan was to have pethidine before a epidural but I felt I needed to bypass this and stop the pain now!
The anaesthetist was busy in surgery and couldn't come, another hour went by and she was still in surgery I was starting to lose it! I now had the pethidine. It must have helped to calm me down as I don't remember having it. I eventually got my epidural about 3-4am? and I was super calm it didn't even bother me Mike couldn't believe it. He said I was just chilled and smiled when it went in due to the relief. I did feel a plastic like thing go in but it didn't hurt just pressure. I was surprised by how much I could still feel after the epidural.
I had a patch of my left side of my back where I could still feel pain and I could still feel my legs.
They had me lie of my left side to let gravity move the medication across my back. I assume this worked. I could still feel my contractions but alot duller so I was now coping. I was 6-7cm and Mike got to see Sophias head. I think it was now about 6 am. They had me do some practise pushes but after 20 mins they said to stop for another hour to let her move down the birth canal more herself as she still wasn't low enough.
An hour later we push and push.
It was exhausting.
The babies heartrate kept dropping and not coming back up the way they kept all talking made me think that I was going to have a C section at any second. I don't remember but Mike said they pressed the emergency buzzer and within 2 minutes we had about 8 people in the room. It was quite scary and I was told it was emergency forceps time as she needed to come out now!
They had to make a inciscion and use forceps to deliver her it took 2 contractions once they were in and boy could I feel them it was excruciating even with a epidural but she was born very quick after they came in. It turns out the cord was wrapped round her neck twice which kept making her heartrate go down. She was perfect though she got a 7 on the apgar test at birth and then a 10 at 5 minutes old.
They now delivered my placenta which I don't remember but then they stitched me up which I felt and Mike said that I was pissed off and told them to stop mauling me and that I just wanted to be left alone.
They put her on my chest as soon as she was born and my first thought was wow she is so warm she was roasting haha but perfect.

Since her birth I had to stay in due to my pre eclampsia and my blood pressure not going down. I had her on the Friday lunchtime and was not discharge until Tuesday afternoon. Wednesday comes around and the community midwife visits and sends me straight back as my blood pressure is still too high. They didn't keep me in though. Today is Thursday and I am currently waiting of her to come check on me again as I might have to go back in. I hope not but pre eclampsia is very dangerous.
Sophia is doing very well! They usually expect babies to lose weight in their first few days but she has put on 40g. So breastfeeding, even though it's painful it is working and she is thriving.
Being a mum is awesome :-) x

My Favourite Maternity Clothes

So there's no better excuse for a wardrobe overhaul than when your pregnant and your clothes no longer fit. I have trawled for hours online to find that all my favourite high street stores no longer stock maternity clothes in there shops anymore it's all online only. This is very frustrating as I would have liked to have seen them and tried them on first. Most maternity collections are pants I have found that my favourites are from New Look and Asos, not to mention any ebay bargains that you can bag.

Anyway I am lucky to be due a summer baby so I can get lots of cute spring/summer clothes to wear. Here is what I am currently wearing:

New Look V Neck Red Tea Dress £22.99
This is just stunning and it can be worn casual or dressed up. I wear it with black maternity leggings and some black ankle boots.

New Look Navy Butterfly Print Dress
Like most of the new look dresses they also make them for their normal none maternity line. The material on this is nice and loose and thin so it's very breathable and comfortable to wear. It clings to you in just the right places. Again I wear this with black leggings and black ankle boots until it gets warmer.

Asos Star Print Dress
This has a tie at the back and it has a nice length to it. I've seen so many short maternity dresses just urgh there is no need for that. My above dresses are all just above the knee so not too short. The material of this is quite thick so it may be too warm for summer but I am enjoying wearing it for now. It can be worn with some cute flat shoes or boots. I bought this brand new with tags from ebay at the bargain price of £12.99

ASOS Ridley Skinny Jeans Mid Wash £22.99
These are just beautiful they are very flattering and nice and skinny. I have some gap skinny jeans which are not skinny in the slightest. It's also hard to find under the bump maternity jeans that don't fall down with the elasticated waist band but these don't. They are tight on the bottom of the leg so if I do get the dreaded pregnancy candles I will have to give these a miss.

New Look Striped Knit Cardigan Shell Pink £17.99
This is from there normal line and is the perfect spring summer cover up to go over my dresses or tshirts. I love the very pale pink colour and it's very comfortable to wear.

These are my favourite pieces but I have lots more of New Look pieces that I love dearly such as their maternity tshirts and leggings. The material and fit is just right. I also feel the need to mention bras as wearing a bra when pregnant is not easy. Due to the extreme soreness in the first trimester I had to go bra free most of the time and when my sickness was bad I didn't want any tight band around my mid section as it made me want to be sick even more. So the answer is to get a bra with no underwire or padding! As easy as it sounds they were hard to find I found my favourites from mothercare which also have clips for when I want to breastfeed which will be handy.

Update - I'm having a baby this summer!

Hi sorry I've been away for a while life has been busy and crazy! I can happily announce that I am 5 1/2 months pregnant with a baby girl! She is due early July 2014 and Me and my husband are thrilled to say the least. This is our first baby and the preparation has been keeping us busy and poor haha so no treats for me even though Benefit have brought out some nice new products.

For the whole first trimester I was so ill with bad morning sickness it was truly hell on earth I could barely eat or drink anything i just wanted to hibernate away from the world, so wearing my contact lenses was a no no and wearing make up has been the last thing on my mind. As due to the sickness my eyes where constantly watering and sore.
I am glad to be feeling better and healthy and we have recently moved house and are trying to set up the internet still so I will keep you guys updated and I will be back with some new content soon :-)