Tips For Children Starting School!

I can't believe its been almost 2 years since James started at Primary school! In September he will be heading in to Year 2 and has settled in to school so well he is happy, settled and doing really well which I am of course incredibly proud of.

(Here is James on his very first say of Primary School!)

I wanted to put together a post about a few of the things we did with James before he started school in the hope they would help him settle better and whilst im no expert I wanted to share those with you.


Talk to them about school - As soon as we started applying for schools for James we started talking to him about going to school which meant it became familiar. We kept it lighthearted and kept the conversation open for him to ask questions etc if he felt he needed to. Talking about it made it seem less daunting and more a part of every day conversation for James.

Let them help purchase school uniform - More than likely going to school will be the first time your child will have to wear a full uniform which can be a confusing for a child who is used to wearing and selecting their own clothes. I took James along with me to pick up his uniform letting him try it on both in the shop and at home. He felt grown up helping pick his own school clothes and he was so excited to wear them for his first day at school.

Have them present during the home visit - Our primary school have a home visit for pupils who are joining reception class where a teachers / teaching assistant come to your home to meet you and the child and find out a little more info etc about them. I felt it was really important for James to be here for this so that he could meet his possible teacher but also so they could get a look at him at home rather than just hearing information from me. It enabled them to see how he interacted in an environment he was comfortable in too.

Go along to settling in/ stay and play sessions - Lots of primary schools will offer settling in sessions or stay at play sessions for all children starting school. These will be on certain dates and it will give your child a chance to have a look around the school and what will be their new classrooms. It will also give them a chance to meet teachers and other children who will be joining them in September so that when they start some faces will be familiar making it less daunting.

Get Everything prepared - The day/ evening before school begins talk to them about what is going to happen the follow morning. Let your child help set out school uniform etc and make packed lunch the evening before if needed. This way the morning can be relaxed and not frantic and stressful for your child. I found James wanted extra cuddles and had lots of questions the morning before so it helped that I had everything prepared before hand so that I could take my time with him and answer them all.

Practice the school run - Before James started school we did the school run several times it gave us a chance to see how long it would take but also a chance for James to see the school again. We did it several times when other children were in school too so he could see them happily playing outside which made him excited to go. I found practicing walking the school run got him familiar with our morning routine and the surroundings which made it less daunting on the morning of school.

So thats a few of my top tips that I found helped us! Do you have any to share for all those mums and dads with children about to start school? I would love it if you could share them in the comments below.

Good luck to all those parents and children who are going to be starting their exciting journey in school this September!

xXx

Sharing some advice for new mums.

I was just 19 when I had my first baby James and boy was I scared. I had no clue what I was doing and when they handed me my tiny baby boy I felt clueless to the situation and the pain and 18 hour labour certainly didn't help towards that clueless haze I was in.

After a sleepless night at the hospital my husband came to collect me in the morning and after a quick check over and a bit of paper work we were signed out of the hospital, handed our baby in his new car seat and sent on our merry way. Im pretty sure as soon as we stepped out of the hospital doors both me and my husband looks at each other in the hope that the other knew what to do with this baby we had just been handed!

(James just a few hours old!)

It was all going to be this giant learning curve and new adventure for us both in which we would have to learn as we went, pick up new skills and adjust to life as parents. Being quite young not many of our friends had babies which made the journey even harder as it felt like we didn't have many people to turn to for advice, we soon both learnt our own parents were invaluable for such advice!

Now as a mum of 2 I am most certainly still learning, still adjusting and still often turn to my mum or other friends with babies for advice. However I have learnt a few things on the way and so today I thought I would share a few of those thoughts with you, so here they are.

• When you first come home don't feel like you have to allow everyone round to visit straight away. Its ok to say no and its ok to need some time to bond and recover as a family. Its so easy to feel pressured into feeling like you must let everyone round as soon as you are home but that's not the case and people will understand that you need some time to settle home. 

• Check out your local area for mum and baby groups or sessions as these can be a great way to meet new mums and get out and about. Sometimes being a new mum can feel quite lonely so meeting others who are going through the same thing as you can be an easy way to meet lots of mums in one place. If you have a local Sure Start centre these often run baby groups such as baby massage, mum and baby groups, young mum groups and stay and play sessions.

• Pyjama days are fine, whilst going out to baby groups and play dates is a great way to meet new mums and get out and about its also ok to admit that some times you just need a day to yourself. It can be a lovely opportunity to just spend some one to one time with you and your little one with no pressure to get ready and be out and about and organised.

• Don't be afraid to tell doctors/ midwives or health visitors exactly how you are feeling! When I had James I knew something wasn't right with the way I was feeling but I was so worried that if I told someone they would try and take my baby away that I didn't say anything. Eventually my husband persuaded me to speak to a doctor who said I had mild post natal depression and offered lots of help, support and advice. These people are there to help and support not judge or intimidate so please do feel like you can talk to them if you need to, they won't know whats wrong or be able to help if you don't. 

• Don't feel guilty for taking some "me time", your a mum and a human not a robot and we all need a little time to ourselves to recoup and sleep (mostly sleep lol!). I used to feel so guilty about even leaving James for a few hours with my mum, it felt like I wasn't doing what I was suppose to and I was in some way failing by letting someone else care for him. Now I can look back that was most certainly not the case and by giving myself some me time I could be a better mum to my baby as I was more relaxed, had caught up on sleep and had managed some time being me rather than "mum". 

• Try not to compare your babies milestones to everyone else's baby. Its so easy to get lured in to comparing your baby to others of similar age and then worrying if they are different. How much milk are they having, how many teeth, are they walking, sitting, crawling, do they sleep through the night are questions I am sure we all ask and so will many other mums. Whilst its great to compare stages and milestones for a bit of fun please don't worry if your baby is different, all babies develop and learn at different rates so unless you feel there is something seriously wrong try not to worry. 

Most of enjoy your baby! They certainly don't stay little for long and before you know it they are heading of for school and you are left wondering where your little non sleeping milky monster went and how time went so fast! 

Do you have any top tips to share for new mums?

Please do share below in the comments I would love to hear them. 

xXx

Top tips for swimming with children.

Swimming is something I have always thought to be a really important skill for a child to learn, after all it can save their life! 

I have taken both my children from young babies and James absolutely loves being in the water now (in fact we can't get him out most of the time!). I know that taking a young baby swimming on your own can be quite a daunting experience so I have shared below some of our top tips and advice for swimming with your child and building water confidence. 

- Get your children used to the water at home first in the bath. Encourage them to splash about and make being in the water fun, sing songs and play games. This will help build up your child's confidence in water in a relaxed environment in their own home. 

- Attending swimming lessons can really help build children's confidence in the water and not only that but they can really help build up your confidence when taking your child swimming on your own. The instructors at these lessons will often teach you lots of helpful hints and tips on keeping safe in the water and encouraging your baby to enjoy the water more and more. 

- The first couple of times you take your baby/ child swimming don't expect to be in the pool long. Being in the pool (especially if its a little busy) can be quite overwhelming for small babies and children and often quite tiring. When we first started taking James we found around 20 minutes was plenty of time in the pool, we gradually increased that time and now at 5 I think he would stay in the pool all day if he could!

- Using a buoyancy aid can also help your child gain confidence in the water. We found the SwimFin to be the perfect buoyancy aid as it kept the child in the optimal swimming position and only offers the amount of support your child requires. It is also shaped like a shark fit and so children will love wearing it and as they bound around the pool they are gaining confidence and often learning basic swimming skills such as reaching with their arms and kicking their feet to move faster. 

- Take a towel or if you have one a hooded poncho style towel to the pool with you and leave it pool side (somewhere it will remain dry). As I am sure you have noticed when you get out of the pool its REALLY cold, babies especially will really feel this so having a towel to hand when you get out will mean they stay warm until you get them dressed.

- My biggest top tip would be to stay relaxed and calm, enjoy the experience and bonding time with your child. Have lots of fun and remember your baby will pick up on your mood so lots of smiles and encouragement whilst in the water will mean they will feel more happy and relaxed to be there. All children will develop and learn in there own time and confidence will come over time so just stick with it.

Do you have any top tips for swimming with babies or children?

xXx

This post was written in collaboration with our SwimFin review.

5 top tips for the perfect roast dinner!

Cooking a Sunday roast is a rite of passage once you get to a certain age. I’m now married and, having always been pretty much a disaster in the kitchen, I thought now was the time that I master the holy grail of English meals. My mum is a brilliant cook and cooks a delicious roast every Sunday and so, channeling inspiration from her, here are my top tips for getting your Sunday dinner spot on.

1.       Yorkshire puddings need hot oil

For the most delicious light Yorkshire puddings, forget all about Aunt Bessie’s. Believe it or not, Yorkshire puddings are relatively easy to get right. Heat vegetable oil in a bun tray for ten minutes at 180 degrees before adding the Yorkshire pudding mix and cooking for a further twenty minutes. Make sure you use self-raising flour and you’ll get big, fluffy Yorkshires.

2.       Fluffy on the inside, crunchy on the outside

This is the way that roast potatoes should be. Par boil potatoes for eight minutes before shaking them in a colander – this will give them their fluffy texture. Cover them with oil and the juices from your meat before roasting them for an hour or so.

3.       Not too crunchy, not too soft

Veg is a very important part of the meal and it’s usually not people’s favourite so you need to make sure that it’s the right consistency. Everyone’s had that mushy broccoli that reminds you of school dinners and that is totally not what we’re going for here. However, don’t cook them for long enough and they taste raw. Keep checking the veg throughout the cooking process to make sure it’s perfect.

4.       The creamier the better

When it comes to mash potatoes, the above really is true. No one likes lumpy mash, so to make sure it’s really smooth add butter and milk to taste (this is not a meal for those watching their weight!) and toss aside the potato masher after the first few mashes and use an electronic mixer to get them super smooth.

5.       Relax!

Although it can be a bit of a juggling act working out all the timings for all the different elements, try not to worry too much – it’ll all come together in the end. Pour yourself a glass of Prosecco and try to really enjoy the whole experience.


This post is a guest post written by the lovely Samantha from Coco Butter Blog. Here is a little about Samantha and her blog . 
"I'm Samantha and I blog over at Coco Butter Blog about all things beauty, fashion and lifestyle. From the best bars in London, to all the latest beauty products, easy peasy recipes to book reviews - if it's happened to me that day, you'll probably read about it later!" 
Here is the link to Samantha's blog why not pop over and check it out - coco-butter-blog.blogspot.co.uk.

xXx