babyurbeautiful

If being a busy Mum makes you a last minute Christmas present shopper like me, then you will love the prices on toys at Asda at the moment. Their prices are generally very competitive anyway, but they currently have 2 for £10 on selected toys, and Little Tikes products, a great toy brand.

You're probably too late for delivery before Xmas now, but you can pop down to grab them in-store.

Here are some ideas for stocking-filler toddler gifts, which my 2 year old loves!

Little Tikes Light n Sound Rings
Usual Price: £8.00



Little Tikes Stack n Tow Rescue Team
Usual Price: £7.00



Little Tikes Drop n Roll
Usual Price: £8.00



Little Tikes Food Mixer
Usual Price: £6.00


Click here for all 2 for £10 offers.

Merry Christmas!

CB

Lush Cosmetics are promoting some Chistmas Good tomorrow with their #ThoughtThatCounts Day!

What does Christmas mean to you? Lush believe it's about real thoughts and thoughtfulness: for friends and family, those less fortunate, animal welfare and trying to make the world a better place. So they are taking the phrase 'thought that counts' and filling it with meaning!

On 17th December 2013, Lush staff all around the world will be performing their own #ThoughtThatCounts and would love for you to get involved by sharing your #ThoughtThatCounts on Twitter and Instagram, whatever it might be.

It doesn’t have to be spectacular – it can be as simple as a ‘hello’ to someone you’ve never spoken to before, ‘thank you’ to someone that you love or a thought for someone less fortunate. You could even share your thoughts about how you’ll be making your Christmas more green or cruelty-free.

I'll be using some of their eco Xmas pressie wraps, which are so cute!


Pudding Wrap 
£2.50 each
https://www.lush.co.uk/product/5744/Pudding-Knot-Wrap




Whatever you’ll be doing to make this Christmas extra special, please join Lush in making it count!

17th DECEMBER #ThoughtThatCounts

Follow on
Twitter @Lushltd
Instagram @Lushfreshhandmade

Coming up to Christmas, I usually like to spend much of December eating mince pies and drinking mulled wine with friends. However still breastfeeding my 11 month old , I am not drinking any alcohol, which makes Christmas just a little less merry than it should be!

So, to try to keep spirits high with Xmas Cheer, I thought I would test out some non-alcoholic mulled wine alternatives.

Belvoir Mulled Winter Punch
£2.46 per bottle
Available from www.belvoirfruitfarms.co.uk/shop/mulled-winter-punch 


Description:
A rich spicy non-alcoholic fruit drink, best served warm. Made from fruit juices and spices.

Verdict:
Yum! This tastes just like mulled wine, although it doesn't have the 'kick' of an alcoholic wine. It is more fruity though which makes it so yummy. My hubby loved it too, possibly more than the alcoholic version!!

Belvoir Cordials
£3.84 per bottle
Available from www.belvoirfruitfarms.co.uk/shop/cordials


Description:
These fruit cordials come in a variety of flavours, but the Xmassy ones are:

• Spiced winter berry
• Honey, lemon, ginger
• Spiced apple and ginger

They can be mixed with hot water for a warm spicy punch.

Verdict:
These taste delicious. The Spiced Winter Berry flavour in particular, tastes to me a lot like mulled wine, again without the 'kick'. It is very sweet and delicious. In fact, I'm drinking one right now! It also lasts longer than a pre-mixed bottle!

Rochester Mulled Berry Punch
£4.99 for a 725ml Bottle
Available from Holland and Barrett
www.hollandandbarrett.com/pages/product_detail.asp?pid=3084



Description:
This fruit punch contains: Water, Organic Raw Cane Sugar, Organic Elderberry, Organic Blackcurrant and Organic Apple Juices (all from concentrate), Organic Mixed Spices (all ground), Citric Acid, Organic Orange Oil.

Verdict:
A nice warming, spicy Xmas drink, very similar to the Belvoir, although just not quite as tasty.

Eisberg Cabernet Sauvignon 
The full range is available in Morrisons and selected varieties in Asda, Waitrose, at RRP £3.50.



Description:
The Eisberg alcohol free wine tastes like a real glass of wine, but without the alcohol units, and with just a third of the calories! Made in the same way as your favourite wine, the alcohol is then gently removed using one of the world’s most advanced techniques to ensure that as much of the original character and flavours of the wine are kept intact. The result is an alcohol-free wine containing less than 0.005% alcohol, only 34 calories per 125ml glass and the real flavour of the wine varieties that you know and love. Available in Chardonnay, Riesling, Rosé and Cabernet Sauvignon.

Verdict:
I tried the red, the Cabernet Sauvignon. Firstly I sampled a glass without the mulled spice, and yes, it does taste like wine! I then tried it warmed and mulled, and really couldn't tell the difference until I sipped a mouthful of hubb's 'real' one, and realised the alcohol 'kick' is definitely missing. However, this is the closest you will get to a verion of mulled wine that tastes like the real thing but without the alcohol.

Here is a lovely mulled wine recipe:
http://www.jamieoliver.com/recipes/recipe/jamie-s-mulled-wine

Or for lazy/busy Mums try a ready prepared spice bag from Schwartz: http://www.schwartz.co.uk/products/herbs-and-spices/spices/mulled-wine-spice.aspx?gclid=COqz2q_AmbsCFdHItAodyVAAIA
This contains an aromatic and warming blend including orange peel and cassia. With a Foil Fresh seal for extra flavour, it is £1.59 for 6 sachets.

Mulled Wine Instant Tea
Available from: www.whittard.co.uk/instant-tea/instant-tea-flavours/mulled-wine-instant-tea.htm
£5.50 for 475g



Description:
A fruity and mildly spiced mulled wine flavour tea, which is alcohol free. Ingredients are: Cane Sugar, citric acid, tea extract (0.95%), natural flavouring, colouring (beetroot red). This is an instant tea powder and is suitable for Vegans (me!) and Vegetarians.

Verdict: 
I was expecting a black tea with spices, but this actually has no 'tea' flavour, it is a magic powder which is stirred into hot water and makes a hot drink that tastes like a sweet mulled fruit punch. Amazing! Lasts forever too!

Twinings Christmas Loose Tea 
Description:
Assam Black tea with Christmas Spice flavouring

Verdict:
This is not decaf, so I limit myself to one a day, but absolutely love the taste. It is a nicer spice than a chai, much more Christmassy tasting, and works very well with the black tea and a dash of soya milk. Lovely as a gift. Tastes nothing like mulled wine but a Xmas tea and a mince pie always goes down well.

Merry Xmas!

So an update to my previous post:
I'm 34 weeks pregnant and have so far avoided purchasing a Winter Maternity Coat, which I will only get 1.5 months use out of! However, with temperatures dropping and the forecast lengthy cold snap predicted, combined with the fact my coat buttons won't do up and I just popped a seam at the back squeezing into it (oops!), I decided I need to invest in one.

I wanted something that is a reasonable price and that can be worn afterwards too, so it's not a waste of money. After much searching, I picked two faves to try out. Here are the results:

ASOS Maternity Parka 
£65
From www.asos.com


Made from a shower-proof cotton this funky parka by ASOS Maternity is designed to fit through all stages of pregnancy. Available in black or khaki, it has a faux fur trim hood, quilted lining, soft fluffy inside to the hood, zip front, and over bump inner drawstring. It is also cut longer at the front to cover your growing bump.

I wrote recently about the back-to-work wardrobe I was planning, inspired by watching Suits on TV.

Since discovering that 13th December is an official Christmas Jumper Day, (http://www.savethechildren.org.uk/christmas-jumper-day/about) I have been searching for Xmas Maternity Jumpers that look good.

We registered to support Save the Children and I am having my jumper day early, this Friday, on my last day at work.

If you want to help support it please arrange your own work Xmas Jumper Day!

Every time someone texts "TEAMBUBS" to 70050 they'll add £1 to our fundraising total. Text in your £1 now!

Here are my faves:

Maternity Cream Penguin Print Christmas Jumper
£24.99
Cut longer to cover your bump. Lovely and soft and fluffy


Maternity Black Reindeer Light Up Christmas Jumper 
£29.99
Cut longer to cover your bump. Has a funny flashing nose.

ASOS Christmas Cardigan With Reindeer Design 
£35.00
Cardigan is always a good choice as it fits around the bump.



ASOS Vintage Look Christmas Jumper 
£38.00
You could get this in a larger size and as it's longline it should cover the bump.



There is also a massive selection at Primark which you could get in a larger size (I find 3 sizes up is good for pregnancy) and wear baggy, if you're on a budget.

I decided on the New Look Penguin one, see me here, in a size 10:



Also, John Lewis actually have a Save the Children Jumper for men, and will donate £25 to the charity from every jumper sold, see:



Save the Children says:
The power of £1 A donation of just £1 really can make the difference between life and death. Your money could pay for nine sachets of oral rehydration treatment for children suffering from deadly diarrhoea. Reach £95 and you could pay for a midwife’s training to help ensure babies are delivered safely in the poorest parts of the world.

More info:
Web www.christmasjumperday.org
Tweet it: #xmasjumperday

Please text "TEAMBUBS" to 70050 now! 

Merry Xmas!
CB

Itsyourstory (www.itsyourstory.co.uk) was the first company in the UK to sell photo personalised books for children and maintains that it is still the best.

They produce a range of personalised products available from www.itsyourstory.co.uk, specialising in photo-personalised children's products where you upload a photo of the child and then it appears on the product. They have everything from story books and e-books to letters to Santa, water bottles, t-shirts and posters.



They are offering all children a free personalised Christmas e-story between now and Christmas. Simply use the code FESTIVEFUN at the website checkout after you make your e-story here:

https://www.itsyourstory.co.uk/products/49-animated-snowman-e-story.

Early on during my maternity leave I posted about the wonder of discovering that 2-in-1 shampoo conditioner is actually ok for my hair, and especially great considering how little time I had to actually have a shower. And it was great, up until about a month ago.

But almost overnight my hair just started getting dry and fuzzy and looking generally shite. As it turns out, the reason why that shampoo worked so well was because I still had a lot of those lovely pregnancy hormones knocking around in me that made my hair look thick and shiny!

But there is apparently a time limit on hair hormones - roughly 11 months post birth - and so it's back on the shampoo and conditioner for me. Not that I mind. I've been using L'Oreal Smooth & Polish which seems to have done the trick.

My other current hair raising issue at the moment is that I want to get my hair cut and coloured but I'm too scared to try out a new salon in the town we just moved to.

When we lived in south London I went to an excellent salon which not only did amazing colouring and cuts but was also super reasonable on price. (It's called Shine if you fancy giving it go).

Now I need to find somewhere new but the only way is to give the local salons a go by trial and error. When around town I see women with terrible hair and women with great hair but I'm not nearly brave enough to ask them where they get it done.

The thing is, getting hair coloured is expensive and if it looks shite there isn't much I can do about it - blonde is fairly permanent.

Maybe I'll just wait until I can't take my hair as it is any longer and then I'll be forced to just do it!

RL x

We love bringing cheer to mummies and mummies to be - yey!

On Friday Lucy had her second settling in session at nursery which she took to really well. She didn't even cry when I left! So I'm both relieved and slightly upset about that.

Leaving Lucy at nursery is going to be tough, but I still know I'm doing the right thing by going back to work. It's partly about me - I just don't feel I'm cut out to be a stay-at-home mum, much as I respect those who are (or have been - my own mum was). But now I've been a mum for a year, going back to work is also about Lucy.

So here's my perspective. You'll notice that I precede most of these points with 'I need' which may come across as selfish but it would be foolish and unhelpful to deny that mums have needs too.

And admittedly some of the below are pertinent mostly to my own situation so bear with me. Feel free to comment if you disagree!

I need some mental stimulation
I've been working since I left school and been doing marketing of various kinds for over 10 years. And since the novelty of being able to watch daytime TV wore off fairly early on in my maternity leave, it's been really hard for me to keep myself challenged mentally (not mentally challenged!).

I promised myself that I would stay abreast of the latest online marketing developments and even learn some new things while off work, but I'm ashamed to say that I've barely done much at all. The daily business of being a mum has kind of worn me down. I can barely decide what to make Lucy for lunch or dinner most days.  But doing this blog with the girls has re-motivated me and made me realise that going back to work is definitely best for my brain.

I need some sleep
As I mentioned in a previous post, Lucy used to be a pretty good sleeper. But even back then she only slept through the night maybe 4 out of 7 nights a week and I still had to get up at 7am 6 days a week. For the last 2 months she's woken several times every night and frankly I'm exhausted. I'm on edge a lot and get teary at small silly things like I used to when the preggers hormones were raging in me. And I'm not the best mum when I'm tired as I've started to lose my temper more often, quickly followed up by a large dose of guilt!

Hubby does help out on weekends but ultimately most days a week it's me that hasn't had more than two or three hours of sleep in a row for what seems like an eternity. How other mums manage to do this from birth and still function is amazing to me.

Going back to work will allow me to get back at least half my sleep (and half my sanity) as we'll now have to share the shifts equally. Maybe my ginormous eye bags will get smaller too.

I need to get back the equality in my relationship
This is completely my own issue (not down to my husband) but being at home for a year and not earning money has knocked my confidence a bit and made me feel less of an equal in the relationship. When your 'job' is essentially cleaning the house and looking after a child it's easy to feel unappreciated or that what you're doing is trivial when it's really not. It's sad I often find I'm trying to justify - to myself - what I haven't done during the day.

I also haven't been able to contribute financially to any big costs this year such as holidays or the house move which has been hard as I'm used to paying for things roughly equally.

All these things tend to put me on the defensive quite a lot which is no good for a harmonious marriage! Poor hubby - I think we'll both be glad to get back to the norm!

Nursery gives Lucy what I can't
I might be alone in this, but as Lucy has grown more alert and physically capable I've found I can't keep up with her needs in terms of stimulation and play. I'm not saying I don't ever play with her, read to her and generally entertain her, but if I'm honest I don't spend as much time on it as I feel I should. There is always just too much other stuff to do.

But Lucy loves the nursery - she can run around and play with all the toys and do activities that I'm often too knackered to want to do (like messy play). She likes interacting with other kids and she gets as much attention as she wants from the lovely staff.

I'm hoping that going to nursery will help her become a more creative, sociable and independent child.

Lucy gets to spend more time with her dad
The new working set up means that both hubby and I have flexible working arrangements (lucky I know!) and Lucy gets to spend a full day with just her dad in addition to the weekends we all spend together. Not very dad would feel brave enough to ask for flexible working for fear of it affecting his career so I have much respect for my man. I know that this aspect alone of my going back to work will make it worth it.

Our water is normally fluoridated and fluoride is contained within many toothpastes.

There has been much discussion recently about the dangers of fluoride.

However, the NHS says that fluoride actually protects teeth in the following way: "Fluoride disrupts the process of tooth decay by: changing the structure of developing enamel, making it more resistant to acid attack - these structural changes occur if a child consumes fluoride during the period when enamel develops (mainly up to seven years of age) encouraging better quality enamel to form that is more resistant to acid attack reducing plaque bacteria’s ability to produce acid, which is the cause of tooth decay". (See www.nhs.uk/conditions/Fluoride/Pages/Introduction.aspx) They provide a link to the benefits of fluoridation on the British Flouridation Society website here: http://www.bfsweb.org/facts/dental_benefits/facts_.htm

In contrast the website http://fluoridealert.org/articles/50-reasons/ quotes research papers that show that
"fluoride is not an essential nutrient. No disease, not even tooth decay, is caused by a 'fluoride deficiency.'(NRC 1993; Institute of Medicine 1997, NRC 2006). Not a single biological process has been shown to require fluoride. On the contrary there is extensive evidence that fluoride can interfere with many important biological processes. Fluoride interferes with numerous enzymes (Waldbott 1978). In combination with aluminum, fluoride interferes with G-proteins (Bigay 1985, 1987). Such interactions give aluminum-fluoride complexes the potential to interfere with signals from growth factors, hormones and neurotransmitters (Strunecka & Patocka 1999; Li 2003). More and more studies indicate that fluoride can interfere with biochemistry in fundamental ways (Barbier 2010)."

So, are you willing to take the risk? I have decided no, with my children and myself, and have therefore been looking for fluoride free alternatives. Here are the ones I tried:
 
Green People Toothpaste
from www.greenpeople.co.uk

 

Adult Toothpaste:
£3.50 for 50ml
Comes in fennel, mint, minty cool, or citrus and aloe vera flavours and is fluoride and SLS-free, and free from artificial sweeteners.  Formulated with organic essential oils, Vitamin C and Myrrh, they offer natural protection against bacterial growth, one of the main causes of gum disease. Green People's natural toothpastes contain soothing ingredients that are gentle on sensitive gums.


Children's Toothpaste 
£3.50 for 50ml
Come in two flavours: mandarin and aloe vera or mint and aloe vera. These certified organic toothpaste for children are gentle enough to be used on babies' gums even before their first tooth emerges to reduce the discomfort of teething.

My comments:
When you are used to using a foaming toothpaste which leaves your teeth feeling tinglingly clean, this toothpaste is quite hard to get used to because it is very sticky and doesn't lather up in your mouth like regular toothpaste. I used mint flavour but also couldn't really taste the mint. My 22 month old loves the fruity kids paste though, and it has really helped to get her to brush her teeth which she didn't before, and with no worries about her swallowing something poisonous. It seems to work well too. After a week my teeth still felt clean. 

Greenpeople products are also 100% cruelty free and not tested on animals, and most pastes are fully vegan like me.


Aloedent Toothpaste
£3.95 for 100ml
available from www.beautynaturals.com or selected supermarkets


 
AloeDent's range is fluoride and SLS free dental care. Aloe Vera alongside Tea Tree Oil  helps in the fight against bacteria. The triple action formula toothpaste contains:

• Aloe Vera - helps soothe gums
• Tea Tree Oil - natural antiseptic
• Silica - for natural whitening
• Co Q10 - helps keep gums healthy
• Peppermint & Menthol - natural flavour.

My comments: 
This paste lathers up like a normal toothpaste, and has a pleasant taste. It is a clear gel and I tend to use quite a lot to clean my whole mouth. I notice that sometimes my teeth don't feel as 'clean' as they used to with regular toothpaste, maybe a little furry?

Forever Bright® Toothgel
£5.75 for 130g 
from www.foreverliving.com


This is a non-fluoride formula, that contains aloe vera and bee propolis. It is designed to nourish, strengthen and protect teeth and gums whilst fighting plaque and whitening without bleaching agents. It has a mint flavour.

My comments:  
This is nice to use as it lathers up and makes teeth feel very clean and breath feel fresh and minty, with the reassurance that it is fluoride free. However, it does contain SLS (Sodium Lauryl Sulfate) which is a negative point (for more info on possible effects of SLS see this informative article: (www.greenpeople.co.uk/info_features_sls.aspx )

DrOrganic Mouthwash
£5.69 for 500ml
from Holland and Barrett www.hollandandbarrett.com


This mouthwash combines the soothing properties of Organic Aloe Vera with Icelandic moss, Tea tree and Grapefruit and Gotu Kola with a mint flavour for fresh breath.

My comments:  
This mouthwash has a very strong taste but it does the job without fluoride, alcohol and other nasty chemicals.


CB

Recently launched was this Monthly Wellbeing Box for Mums-To-Be called:
Project-B
www.project-b.com

A great concept: The idea is that it is a monthly box of wellbeing goodies designed to nurture the pregnancy journey of mum-to-be. Working with some of the UK’s leading brands, and industry experts, each Project-B box is tailored to a month of pregnancy, supporting mum-to-be with helpful tips, information and products.

You can buy it monthly or as a one off gift, and it costs only £14 a month.

The first Project-B box starts in Month 4 of pregnancy, with a further 6 boxes up to Month 10 - and a congratulations box - once baby has arrived.

The products included in each box are tailored to each specific stage of pregnancy and range from relaxation, to healthy eating, to household items, to pampering. Brands include Pregnacare, Palmers Cocoa Butter, Spontex, Nakd cereal bars, St Eval Candle Company, Green People, Nailgirls and more.

There is also an info sheet in each box, written by industry experts,who give impartial, pro-choice information in each box. These are Midwife and Health Professional Nikki Holdsworth RSc (Hons) RM and journalist and author of ‘What To Buy For Your Baby’ Liat Hughes Joshi. Their information covers the following: This Month’s Pregnancy – an overview of what’s going on! Eating Well this Month Staying Active this Month Shopping Ideas this Month - for pregnancy and for baby Plus a What’s in Your Box This Month – covering details on each of the products included.

I tried box number 3 for Month 6, which contained the following products:

• Apthoderm stretch mark cream- (very small sample, maybe 2 uses so hard to tell if effective)
• Mumkind Bump to baby food bar- (I couldn't eat this as I don't eat dairy which it contains)
• Divine fairtrade chocolate bar- (as above, unfortunately contains dairy, a shame as I love Divine choc!)
• Femfresh intimate wash- (try before nookie :) )
• Nailgirls London Nailpolish- (a nice safe alternative to normal polish)
• 2 x Tea pigs tea bags- (delicious!)

I think the choice of brands generally is good for the boxes, and allows women to try different 'wellbeing' products they may not otherwise be aware of. However, I think for £14 a month I would expect full size samples or more samples.

The information sheets enclosed were interesting, but I think they could be greatly expanded, for example the one about what's happening this month could perhaps be done week by week on a fridge magnet chart or similar, with pictures and fine details for each week, and telling me stuff from a midwife or expert that I might not get from the usual books.

The recipes were good, but not enough: these could also be expanded to perhaps a mini booklet full of recipes using a list of foods that are essential during your stage of pregnancy such as these:
http://www.vivashop.org.uk/vvf/healthy-living/mother-baby/fabulous-female-fertility-pregnancy-wallchart 

All in all, I think this would be ok as a gift for someone if you bought them a subscription to all the boxes, but I probably wouldn't sign up to it for myself. It is a great concept, but could do with a few tweaks to make it brilliant.


Find more details here:
Facebook: www.facebook.com/projectbpregnancy
Website: www.project-b.com 
Twitter: @ProjectB_UK 
Instagram: instagram.com/projectb_uk
Pinterest: pinterest.com/projectbuk/

Looking for some stocking inspiration? By that we mean fillers you filthy minded fillies!