I’m going to Britmums Live…

Posted on May 16, 2013 by gillian

I’m off to the Britmums Live mum blogger conference in a couple of weeks. So here’s all about me, in response to the ‘I’m going to Britmums Live’ meme...if you’re also going, make sure you say hello:

Britmums Live 2013

Continue reading →

Posted in Life / style / clothes / beauty, Work / life | Tagged , , , , , | 4 Comments

Seven ways to turn a bad day back around

Posted on May 14, 2013 by gillian

Having a really bad dayMotherhood; it’s all hearts and flowers, and sitting around gazing in wonder at your amazing baby, isn’t it?

Apart from when none of you have slept, everywhere’s a mess, there may or may not be teeth on the way, your child is emitting a low-level grizzle even Calpol can’t remedy, your hair is 90% dry shampoo and you don’t have a second to do anything, yet all anyone wants to know is “just what do you do all day, exactly?”

Don’t get me wrong, motherhood is wonderful, unexpected, awesome in the true sense of the word. But some days are just plain old bad days. Especially in the early weeks and months, when you’re still trying to find your feet and get your dry shampoo-coated head round everything.

So here are my seven suggestions to try and turn a terrible day into a good one (one idea for each day of the week, in case it’s really that awful): Continue reading →

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Markets, feasts & pop-up beer bars: SE London food & drink

Posted on May 14, 2013 by gillian

Crystal Palace Food Market

There seem to have been lots of great food and drink-related things going on around here recently – so here’s a mini round-up from our local London area: Continue reading →

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Travel tips for toddlers

Posted on May 11, 2013 by gillian

Beach huts, BournemouthIt’s official, we finally all have passports, we are going on a summer holiday. It took so long securing the passports that the actual break seems to have crept up really quickly. Also, how hard is it is to get a wriggly one year old to sit still for the photo?

We’re off to France soon with all of Alex’s side of the family, so Eliza will be able to get up to lots of mischief with her cousin. I’m really looking forward to eating all the cheese, drinking all the wine and having lots of friendly babysitters on hand.

Last year we couldn’t quite get out heads around the logistics of taking a newborn out of the country, so it’ll be a certain mademoiselle’s first non-UK break, and our first proper holiday for over two years (I’m not counting our Belgian babymoon).

So here’s where we need help: Continue reading →

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Talking TalkMum

Posted on May 8, 2013 by gillian

TalkMumI’ve been meaning to write for a while about what I’m now doing work-wise, and for various teeth and sleep related reasons I’ve not quite got round to it just yet. I will soon, but in a nutshell I officially finished maternity leave at the start of the year and have been freelancing part-time since January.

One of the things I’m working on at the moment that I absolutely love is a community management role editing TalkMum.com. TalkMum is a collaborative blog set up by the people behind the Pregnacare range of vitamins, designed to talk all about issues around trying for a baby, pregnancy, and being a new mum (so, pretty much right up my street then…) It involves working with some fantastic writers, including Fran, Rachel, Kiran, Eleanor, Nat, Marissa, Fozia, Anna and Cath.

The new theme for May launched today – it’s birthdays, milestones and memories, and you can read lots more from previous months in the February, March and April round-up posts.

(And if you’re reading this and would like to know more about getting involved with writing, or want to write a guest post, just drop me a line).

On the nursery side, thank you for all the lovely helpful comments about Eliza settling in, it seems like so long ago! She now absolutely loves it and will even bring me her shoes and bag on the morning of her nursery days. The best part of any working day though is always the really long hug when I pick her up, and seeing how animated she is, with crazy hair, covered in food, and babbling away on the journey home.

Photos: big thanks to the TalkMum bloggers in March.

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Never get round to printing photos? Win one of *five* £25 vouchers for photo printing site Photoworld

Posted on May 3, 2013 by gillian

We love you photo bannerDo you take thousands of photos, but very rarely get round to actually printing them? We are very guilty of this! We only print copies for special occasions – like my Valentine’s Day banner, as above – or for presents, and the majority of our photos are stored electronically. Which is fine, but it’s so nice having actual copies you can look at, isn’t it?

Photoworld is a photo printing website that offers a whole range of printing services – from individual copies, to a selection of photo books, canvases and posters. There’s also a range of personalised items, from mugs to snow globes. The lovely guys at Photoworld have very kindly given me *five* £25 codes to giveaway for use on the site, on anything you want – why not finally get that first year photo book printed? (They’ve also given me a code to use myself, so this is what we’ll be doing!)

To be in with a chance of winning one of two £25 codes to use on the site, all you need to do is: Continue reading →

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On yet more teething terrors

Posted on May 1, 2013 by gillian

Please believe these days will pass Just a very quick post to say, for what must be the billionth time, isn’t teething an absolute pain? We’re awaiting the arrival of the fourth back tooth (story to date: here). It’s hanging around in the gum like an unwanted guest who is threatening to get drunk, cry, and ruin the party. As a result we’ve all been up, and down, and are tired and ever-so-slightly emotional.

It’s not all bad though, here are some upsides:

  • I’m now able to syringe Nurofen out of the bottle one-handed while I hold a wriggling toddler in the other. A further skill to add to the parenting CV
  • Being awake for hours last night meant I was able to track down the pair of shoes I wanted online (last pair left anywhere in what’s kind of my size)
  • All this comfort feeding means I feel totally justified in taking a very healthy interest in all the biscuits in the kitchen

Joking aside, I hope it comes through soon as I’m not sure there are many things worse than being woken up by the sound of your child screaming. And apart from that, she’s just completely brilliant at the moment, so happy and joyful, and on the days when she’s at nursery I miss her so much that my arms ache.

Are you suffering too? If so, I’m sending lots of positive thoughts in every direction. And just think, it’s a long weekend (looking forward to it SO much…)

Photo thanks to barley lover Laura Scott.

Posted in All about being a parent, Doctor's note, On motherhood | Tagged , , , | 5 Comments

Mamas & Papas Baby Bud – the ultimate space-saving high chair?

Posted on April 30, 2013 by gillian

Mamas & Papas Baby BudLooking for the ultimate space-saving high chair for urban living? Well, call off the search; we may have found it in the Mamas & Papas Baby Bud.

For a lot of people space is at a premium, especially when you still live in your pre-child London flat. And baby stuff just takes up so much room, doesn’t it? I swear it grows overnight. When it came to weaning, we bought the cult Ikea Antilop high chair and it’s been brilliant. But it doesn’t fold up and as our dining table is in our living room, there’s no hiding it either.

So I was intrigued by the premise of the Baby Bud. A high chair that doesn’t take up extra space? We were sent one to review to try it out for ourselves. Continue reading →

Posted in Brilliant baby buys, London | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

We love the new DVF range for BabyGap

Posted on April 25, 2013 by gillian

DVF clothes for BabyGapLooking for some summer clothes for the mini ones, now the weather has finally turned? I’m ever-so-slightly in love with the new DVF for BabyGap Explorer range. It’s the second time that Gap have teamed up with DVF, aka Diane Von Furstenburg, maker of the iconic wrap dress (did you know she used to be a Princess?). Continue reading →

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Snogging, celeb crushes and problem pages – the lost love of teenage magazines

Posted on April 23, 2013 by gillian

Just 17 magazineA snapshot of me, aged 14 and a half (as dutifully recorded in my Just 17 yearbook):

  • What I like: dying my hair, boys with six packs
  • What I don’t like: nuclear testing, nuclear bombs, exams
  • Distinguishing features: lots of earrings!
  • Favourite film star: Keanu Reeves, fit!!!!*

I was sad to read yesterday that More! magazine is to close after 25 years. I was never a regular reader, put off by the in-your-face blatancy of the position of the fortnight (although I’d always read someone else’s copy, of course). But as well as the loss of a magazine that lots of girls still love and reflection of the print media landscape as a whole, I was sad because teenage magazines like More! played a huge part in my adolescence. And is this something young people of Eliza’s era will now never know? Continue reading →

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