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Saturday 30 August 2014

Luv My Blankee **REVIEW**

Peanut wont take a dummy however she has developed a habitat of holding onto and snuggling into a blanket for comfort instead. 

So when the lovely people at Luv My Blankee offered to send us one of their handmade blankets we were very excited to receive it! 


Luv my Blankee are a company who make blankets in a range of designs and colours as well as the oh-so-soft plush fabric. The blankets measure 70cm by 90cm. The Luv My Blankee blankets also feature a unique dummy pocket which I can imagine would come in very handy to store a dummy in so when it comes to nap time you always know you have one to hand! 

Luv My Blankee also offer a service in which you can personalise your blanket with a black and white photo and text onto white plush fabric with a choice of colours for the backing dimple fabric.

Luv My Blankee blankets are made in the UK (Devon) and are all handmade to your specifications. 




The blanket is a really good size and is SO soft! The design is bright and vibrant and the dimple fabric is so snuggly against peanuts skin. 



Here is the unique dummy pocket which is situated on the back of the blankee in matching fabric to the front of the blankee and is fastened with a popper button. 


Peanut loves her Blankee!!


Blankees can also be placed in the washing machine and tumble dryer and wont shrink or bobble so they can easily be washed and dried when needed.


xXx


* I was not paid for this review. All opinions given are my own.
* If you would like me to review your product or service, please email me on xJessLegresleyx@hotmail.com.

Friday 29 August 2014

James and Evelyn Update.

WOW time has gone so quickly! 

Evelyn is now 11 weeks old and has grown so much, She now has no interest in lying down and wants to be constantly upright looking around having a good old nosy at the world. 
She has had her first lot of immunisations (which I am pretty sure was more traumatic for me than her as she just let out a whimper then had a feed and fell asleep lol!). She also got weighed yesterday and at 11 weeks 4 days weighs 13lb!! 
Evelyn is completely full of smiles and has recently started laughing which is so cute it melts your heart in an instant. Saying that shes already a complete diva when she wants to be and has definitely found her voice when she wants picking up or feeding! 


James is starting school in just over 1 week!! I cannot believe my baby boy is heading off to school. We brought his school uniform Saturday and he was so excited trying on school jumpers and checking out his book bag. 
James also got his second swimming badge at his swimming lessons (super proud mummy)! and he can now swim short distances all by himself with no floats!! He has moved up from the preschool swimming lessons to the school age swimming lessons in preparation for school, I was a little nervous how he would get on as its a lot more "actual" swimming than fun and games like his previous lessons but he loved it.


I cant believe how quickly both my babies are growing up but I am loving the beautiful little people they are turning in too. 


xXx

Monday 25 August 2014

EasyBelts **REVIEW** and **GIVEAWAY**

**AD - Review**

Once kids get to a certain age they love being independent and whilst that's a great quality to have, it can also become a little stressful when they insist on doing jobs or things for themselves which you know they are going to find challenging to the point of them being frustrated. One of those jobs in out house is belts! James has always been super long and skinny and so almost all of his trousers fit great in the leg but are all to often then baggy around the waist. He insists on dressing himself but belts have just proven to be a little to tricky for him to master just yet. 

So when we discovered EasyBelts, which are easy to use belts designed perfectly for kids to use we couldn't wait to try them out. 


EasyBelts are designed with kids in mind. They are made from a high quality, durable elasticated webbing with a D ring and Velcro fastening making them perfect for little hands to use by themselves. The Velcro is a high quality and once stuck down the belt stays put even with little ones running around and playing. 

Wednesday 20 August 2014

Dr Browns Bottles **REVIEW**

Peanut is a complete Milk'o'saurus! She loves her milk but does suffer with wind and struggles to bring wind up. So when we were given the opportunity to try out some bottles from Dr Browns we were excited to give them a go to see if they would help! Here is our review...

We were sent the Dr Brown's Natural Flow 240ml BPA Free Twin Pack.


These are priced at around £11.69 for the twin pack. 

The first thing I noticed is they seem slightly larger than other bottles. Then I noticed the blue tube running through the centre. This isn't something you find in other bottles so I was really intrigued to see whether it would make a difference to peanuts feeding.




This is what Dr Browns had to say about their bottles 


"We offer a complete feeding system for happier babies; one that includes the only fully vented vacuum free feeding bottle. Widely recognised by parents and health professionals as the most effective way of preventing colic symptoms caused by regular bottles and teats, Dr Brown's Feeding System offers your baby the opportunity for a more comfortable feed."

"Our Dr. Brown's bottle features a patented two-piece internal vent system that works unlike any other bottle design. The vent system fully vents our bottle for vacuum-free feeding, which we call positive-pressure flow, similar to breastfeeding. As the baby feeds, air is channeled from the nipple collar through the vent system, bypassing the breast milk or formula, to the back of the bottle. Air never mixes with the breast milk or formula which minimizes oxidation and helps preserve essential nutrients like vitamins C, A and E."

and here is a short video clip showing how the bottles work.


They did seem to help peanuts wind! She seemed less windy and uncomfortable after a bottle and was a lot less sick after a feed!
I was a little worried about how easy it would be to clean the bottles in particular the vent system as the tube is quite narrow, However each bottle comes with a little bristle brush which makes cleaning the bottles easy and simple!


We really liked Dr Browns bottles! We found them easy to use and really saw an improvement in peanuts discomfort due to wind after a feed when using these bottles. If you baby struggles with wind or feeding issues you could try switching to these bottles or trying a new formula from somewhere such as Sell Formula for a convenient way to find the right milk for your baby. 

You can find out more about Dr Browns and their full range of products from their website or one of their social media pages -

Website - www.drbrowns.co.uk

xXx

* I was not paid for this review. All opinions given are my own.
* If you would like me to review your product or service, please email me on xJessLegresleyx@hotmail.com.

Thursday 14 August 2014

SnoozeShade Original **REVIEW**

I am sure all parents at some point have had the dilemma of trying to keep the sun out of a child's face whilst out and about in a car seat, pushchair or pram. Have you tried keeping the sun out of their face by covering the pram with a muslin or blanket or spent your day constantly adjusting a parasol? Then you need to try a SnoozeShade!


We have been testing out the SnoozeShade original for a pram/pushchair and its been fab! 

Evelyn is currently using the pram function on her pushchair and being a summer baby we have tried several things to try and keep the sun off her. I am sure most of you have had the struggle of using the little parasols that clip onto the pushchair, Which are fine until you need to walk, move or the sun changes directions and they then need constant readjustment! 
The SnoozeShade offers an end to all that!


The SnoozeShade protects baby from 99% of UV rays and is approved by the Melanoma international foundation. Making any time sleep time for baby whilst out and about and no more worrying whether baby is covered up or not.

The SnoozeShade original is a universal size and will fit onto all prams, pushchairs, travel systems and 3 wheelers! 
As well as the SnoozeShade for prams and pushchairs SnoozeShade also have a design to fit car seats and travel cots so baby can always be protected. 

The SnoozeShade original is priced at just £19.99 which I think is a fantastic price for something that is easy to use, high quality and protects baby quickly, easily and hassle free.

Here is a short video of just how easy the SnoozeShade is to use on a carrycot (as we used it) along with some fitting tips.


The SnoozeShade came in a handy bag to store it in when not being used and came with some easy to follow instructions (although if you find it easier to follow a video SnoozeShade have lots of "how to fit" videos which can easily be found on Youtube and on their Youtube channel HERE).

We loved the Snoozeshade and will be continuing to use it for the pram and when Evelyn moves up to her pushchair (A great thing about SnoozeShade is you only need to buy one product as it adapts from pram to pushchair!). I loved the little zipper "window" which meant I could unzip it and have a peak inside to check on Evelyn without having to remove the shade all together.


(Peek a boo sleepy baby)

As well as protecting baby from the sun the SnoozeShade can also protect baby from insects, wind, light rain and a chill that you may get whilst out walking. 

I really cannot recommend the SnoozeShade enough! 

You can find SnoozeShade on
or on their website - www.snoozeshade.com 

Have you tried out the SnoozeShade before for either pram, pushchair, car seat or travel cot? 

xXx

* I was not paid for this review. All opinions given are my own.
* If you would like me to review your product or service, please email me on xJessLegresleyx@hotmail.com.

Friday 8 August 2014

We Made Cupcakes!!

With James home for the summer holidays and his excitement building for starting school in September I've been trying to find things to keep him occupied so today we made cakes! 

James loves baking well more the decorating the cakes afterwards lol!

Here is the simple recipe we used for our cakes -

Ingredients

110g softened butter (room temperature) 
110g caster sugar
2 medium eggs
1tsp vanilla extract
110g self raising flour
2tbsp milk

Method

- Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas 4 and line a 12 hole cake tin with paper cake cases,

- Cream together the butter and sugar until well combined and the mixture is pale in colour.

- In a seperate container beat together the eggs and slowly add these to your butter and sugar mixture a little at a time. Then add in your vanilla extract. 

- Sift the flour and fold this gradually into your mixture. Adding a little milk at a time until the mixture is smooth and of a dropping consistency. 
(If you wanted to make your cakes a funky colour you could add a few drops of food colouring to your cake mix at this point!)

- Spoon the mixture into the paper cases until they are half full and then place into the oven. We added a few pink and white mini marshmallows into the centre of ours at this point. 

- Bake in the oven for 10-15 minutes or until golden brown. A tip to check if they are cooked or not is to insert a skewer or cocktail stick into the centre of the cake, If it comes out clean (no cake batter residue left on the skewer or cocktail stick) then your cake it cooked. 

Leave to cool and then decorate as you please!

Here are our cakes...



James cakes (decorated all by himself!) - 


Mummy's cakes - 




Whats your favourite thing to bake? 

xXx

Tuesday 5 August 2014

Appy ice pops **REVIEW**

You may have seen our previous review of the healthy carton drinks from The Appy food and drinks company (If not you can read it HERE).

Well this week they sent us some of their ice pops to try out! 

The Appy Ice pops are new for Summer 2014 and come in 3 great flavours and designs. These are Spongebob in Juicy orange flavour, Dora the explorer in Apple and Cherry flavour and Ninja turtles in Apple and Blackcurrant flavour. 




Just like all Appy products these are low in sugar and contain no artificial colours, flavours or sweeteners! 

They were a big hit here! They only take around 1 hour to freeze so are ready to enjoy pretty quickly and the design means you can snap them in half for smaller children (great idea!). 

The Appy Ice pops tasted delicious! They had a real fruity taste, James favourite was the Ninja turtle Apple and blackcurrant and my favourite was the Apple and cherry. I hadn't heard of a apple and cheery flavour ice pop before so thought this was really unique and tasty. 



There are 8 ice pops in each pack but they are quite large so for younger children you could easily snap 1 in half and share this between 2 children. 

You can find out more about the Appy food and drinks company via there website or social media pages here -

Website - appyco.com/
Facebook - www.facebook.com/AppyFoodandDrinks
Twitter - twitter.com/AppyFoodDrinks

Have you tried and Appy products before? What were your thoughts? 

xXx

* I was not paid for this review. All opinions given are my own.
* If you would like me to review your product or service, please email me on xJessLegresleyx@hotmail.com.

Sudocrem Care and Protect **REVIEW**

We were recently sent a tube of Sudocrem care and protect to try out with peanut.
Sudocrem care and protect is a cream used to help prevent nappy rash.


Sudocrem care and protect is a triple action, hypoallergenic ointment that is gentle on skin and can be used at every nappy change from day one!
The triple-action formula creates a protective barrier, conditions the skin and guards against infection. By sealing in the skin’s natural moisture, Sudocrem Care & Protect helps to keep the skin on your baby’s bottom smooth and supple and nappy rash free. 

Sudocrem care and protect comes in a handy little tube that is easily popped into a change bag ready to be used. The tube has a handy hinged lid which can be open and closed with one hand (perfect when your trying to contend with a wriggly baby lol!). The other bonus of having the hinged lid is no losing the lid somewhere in the depths of the changing bag or disappearing under the sofa! 


We have been using this cream for a little while now and the slight redness that peanut had at times has completely gone and not come back since using this ointment! It glides onto the skin easily and doesn't drag or tug at the skin when applying. It also lasts ages! You only need to apply a thin layer to babies bottom each nappy change so the tube lasts ages and really goes a long way. I really would say its worth trying if your little one suffers from a sore bottom or you are looking for some protection for babies bottom. 

You can find sudocrem care and protect at Tesco, Asda, Morrisons, Superdrug, Boots, Sainsburys, Wilkinsons, Waitrose and at many independant pharmacies.

You can find out more about this product on their website here - www.sudocrem.co.uk/care-and-protect

xXx

* I was not paid for this review. All opinions given are my own.

* If you would like me to review your product or service, please email me on xJessLegresleyx@hotmail.com.

Monday 4 August 2014

Peanuts First Visit To The Swimming Pool!

So today started as a bit of a disaster! We originally planned to take peanut and James to the seaside. We were already running later after after to pop to the post office (massive ques) and Tesco first, Then when we got onto the motorway about 15 minutes in 3 cars in front us was a big 5 car crash! Luckily it looked like everyone involved had managed to get out of their cars and police were quickly in attendance so we all got around and carried on our journey.
However we soon hit MORE traffic and this time it was at a stand still! We barely moved and people were even getting out of their cars on the motorway! 
So we opted to turn around and come home. 

We had promised James we were going to go out but as it was already passed lunch time it was a bit later for a day trip so we decided to go swimming instead!

This was peanuts first trip to the swimming pool, She loves her baths so I was hoping she would love the swimming pool as well! 
She completly loved it!! She happily kicked her legs and splashed around for 45 minutes before she got a bit hungry (still no tears but she was trying to eat the strap on her costume lol!) 

James loved it as it meant he could show off to daddy all the things he has been learning at his swimming lessons recently. Hes been doing so well at swimming lessons and can now swim half a width of the small pool all by himself, He loves going under water (before swimming lessons he didnt even like getting water splashed at him!!) and is doing so well.

James all ready for swimming


Peanut ready for swimming


and lots of smiles after!!


So although our day started off a bit rubbish it turned out fab and both James and Peanut are fast asleeep!

Do your kids like swimming? 

xXx

Sunday 3 August 2014

July Degustabox **REVIEW** and Discount code!

You may have noticed for the last couple of months we have been receiving a monthly Degustabox. This months box was just as eagerly awaited for as we couldn't wait to see what was inside! 


This months box was a little different as this month you could opt in or out of alcohol in your box (there was an alcohol free substitute product in the box if you opted out). This isn't something Degustabox will be doing all the time but I thought this was a nice touch as often monthly subscription boxes come pretty much set in stone with regards to their contents. 

If you opted in to alcohol for your box you would have received these..
Hornsbys Blueberry Cider x2
I've never tried blueberry cider before and wasn't sure before I tried it, However it was really delicious it had a subtle fruity flavour. You can pop a twist of lemon peel in for a zesty taste!

If you opted out of alcohol you would have received these 2 products instead of the cider above...
A Frank snack bar and The Berry Company flavoured fruit tea.
The Frank snack bar was delicious! They are made with 100% natural ingredients and would make a great item to pop into your bag for an on the go snack. They come in 5 flavours Orange, Blueberry, Strawberry, Oat and Double Chocolate. They are also free from gluten, nuts, dairy and refined sugars and are suitable for vegans! 
I wasnt a huge fan of the tea but them in not a fan of tea or fruity teas anyway so wasn't really surprised by this. I can imagine it would make a lovely refreshing drink in the summer for those who do though.

The rest of the products in the box would be the same regardless.

Zeo Drinks
These drinks come in 3 flavours - Peach and grapefruit burst, Citrus crush, Lime zest. These have a real adult soft drink feel to them as them come in a glass bottle with a more grown up range of flavours. My personal favourite was the peach and grapefruit burst which had a fruity, zingy flavour.

Portlebay Popcorn.
Popcorn used to be either sweet or salty and if you were really lucky toffee! But not anymore! Portlebay offer a range of interesting flavours including the ones we tried in our box which were chilli and lime, crispy bacon and maple syrup and sweet and salty kracklecorn. 

Green and Blacks Lemon Bar.
Im always happy to receive chocolate in my Degustabox so seeing this Green and Blacks lemon bar in the box I was very pleased! This 60% dark chocolate bar has a subtle hint of lemon that makes this bar indulgent and tangy all at the same time! Delicious! 

Dr. Oetker Edible decorations.
I love Dr. Oetker products and we have received a few different products over our various Degustabox's.  James loves baking so these will definitely come in handy for topping cupcakes! The Eton mess flavoured sprinkles also tasted fab sprinkled over Cornish ice cream!

Maggi So Juicy/ Baked sachets.
I find sachets like these really useful to have in the cupboard for a quick and tasty meal when you are short of time. They can transform a few simple ingredients into a tasty family meal in a few easy steps. Maggi have such a wide range of sachets that there is something for everyone! Our favourite out of these 4 was the Peri Peri chicken! The chicken came out moist and with a real tasty flavour to it.

So that was our Degustabox. Once again we loved our box! I love the fact for a small monthly fee you can get a box full of a tasty range of food and drink products and you get to try brands and products you may have otherwise not tried, And lets not forget the excitement of opening up your box each month to find out whats inside! 

If you want to try Degustabox then pop on over to their website below to order and if you use the code BJHLL to receive a £3 discount off your box!


xXx

* I was not paid for this review. All opinions given are my own.

* If you would like me to review your product or service, please email me on xJessLegresleyx@hotmail.com.

South Gloucestershire Show

After all the rain we had yesterday when we woke up today is was lovely and sunny so we decided to venture out to The South Gloucestershire Show just down the road from us!

The South Gloucestershire Show is held at ​The Windmill Fisheries Showground, Westerleigh Road, As a celebration of life in South Gloucestershire and a showcase for lifestyle and leisure in and around the county.

Saturday 2 August 2014

GumiGem **REVIEW**

Peanut loves to be carried and hugged and can often be found snoozing in the baby carrier on my chest. It is very sweet but she has a comfort thing of grabbing whatever jewellery im wearing and pulling on it, Not really ideal lol! So when the lovely people at Gumigem offered us one of their necklaces to try out I couldn't wait to try it! 

The necklace we chose to review was a Button Pendant in the colour way "Heaton" priced at £12.95.
I absolutely loved the stylish, bright and funky colours in the style!
This is what Gumigem say about this pendant...

"The GUMIGEM® Button is a classic, simple and elegant shape giving you a stylish accessory that is ideal for mums with inquisitive babies. It also makes a lovely gift for anyone who looks after your baby from gorgeous grannies to adorable aunties! This shape is easy for little hands to handle. Its approx 2inches across, but dented in the middle. If you imagine putting your thumb into a big blob of playdoh.. its that shape!"

This pendant is 5cm in diametre, 1.4cm thick (at thickest point) and comes on a long cord at 94cm long although this is easily cut to adapt to a length you are happy with. 

I really liked this pendant it was stylish to wear but also offered something for peanut to grab (and have a little slobber over) whilst in the sling. I had several people comment on how pretty it was and what a fab idea it was after having many of their necklaces broken or tugged at whilst carrying their babies and Gumigem really does eliminate that problem! 

There are so many styles and colour options on the Gumigem website their is something to suit everyone's style. If necklaces are not for you they also sell bangles, dad tags (for daddy to wear) and teething toys. 

Gumigem jewellery is made from silicone and is BPA, PVC, Lead, Latex and Phthalate free. So is really safe for your little ones! The jewellery is also soft and flexible making it perfect for teething babies. They also feature an easy breakaway clasp incase little one pulls a little to hard on it.

We loved this pendant and will definitely be investing in a bangle to go with our necklace as peanut loves to hold onto them and can only see it becoming more and more useful the older peanut gets! I can highly recommend them!

You can find Gumigem on one of their social media pages here ...

Or via their website where you can find out more about Gumigem and order your own!

Have you tried any GumiGem Products before? 

xXx


* I was not paid for this review. All opinions given are my own.
* If you would like me to review your product or service, please email me on xJessLegresleyx@hotmail.com.