Mecca have challenged me to come up with my favourite/cherished memories from my childhood, which is certainly a challenge as usually I can't remember what happened last month, let alone the last decade (ahem) or so, but here goes .....

1.     Name your group of best friends during school – are you still friends?

In junior school we were all best friends and I love that I am still in touch with three good friends from junior school. Senior school was a little different and friendships could change from term to term. In the latter years I found great friendships and Ashley is godmother to my youngest daughter ..... so we are most definitely still the best of friends.
 
2.     What would your typical weekend look like as a teenager?

Staying up late and sleeping all day. I think that is fairly standard for most teenagers!
 
3.     At 14, what did you want to be when you were older? What do you do for a living now?

I thought I wanted to be a vet at one point (although that may have had more to do with my friends wanting to do the same thing) but in the end, I realised that I am a bit squeamish so it wasn't the ideal career path for me! Today, well spending most of my day at a computer is certainly a "cleaner" profession than dealing with germs and blood in a vetinary practice. 

4.     What artists/bands did you love as a teenager?

I balked at the usual boy bands and liked to be a little different and I never forget seeing Prince when I was about 14! When he recently toured again I saw so many of my friends desperate to get tickets ..... I was clearly a trend setter, I just didn't know it!
 
5.     Who was your first celebrity crush?

Tom Cruise! I remember a lad in my class being the spitting image of him and swooning over him hopelessly! Thankfully I got over it, which was good for my own self esteem when I saw him in a club years later and the butterflies of yesteryear had disappeared.
 
6.     What was your favourite film? Is it still your favourite?

My favourite film was Beaches and it is definitely still in my top 5 films of all time. It was hilarious to find out that my friends husband also loves that film ..... although our spouses refuse to let us watch it (and weep).
 
7.     What were your hobbies as a teenager?

I danced, danced and danced a bit more. I may not do ballet any longer but give me a dance floor and I will still dance the night away.

8.     Growing up, who were your inspirations? Has this changed and why?

Darcy Bussell the ballerina inspired me to take up ballet and she also inspired my choice of name for my eldest daughter. I still think she is amazing but I am a little disappointed that she chose to have so much surgery done. Each to their own eh?
 
9.     What is your biggest regret?

I always say you should never regret the things you have done as they were right for you at that time. Maybe we should regret the things we didn't do? Like travelling round the world before settling down?
 
10.   What advice would you give your 16 year old self?

Don't take yourself too seriously, have fun and don't change for anyone!
 

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This post is in collaboration with Mecca but all childhood memories are my own!

I recently wrote a post about how  life changes, seemingly in the blink of an eye, although these days more through tired eyes than anything else but my choice of honeymoon destination has changed in the last 10 years, as much as my lifestyle.

I *may* have mentioned a wedding later this year and we are still debating over our honeymoon destination. Do we want a relaxing beach honeymoon (this may never happen with the children), a cultural city break (again, not sure how enthused the girls would be about this) or simply a big family holiday?

I am a little reluctant to build my own package with independant agents, so I have been trawling through the First Choice website trying to find a solution. My top three family friendly honeymoon picks at the moment (I am a woman so allowed to change my mind) are:

Kos

We have been to Kos before the toddler was born and stayed in a gorgeous resort in Kos Town. I was always a little wary of the Greek Islands (given my necessity to put my toilet paper down the toilet and not in a bin) but so many of the new resorts have modern toilet / sewerage facilities, this isn't so much of an issue any more. You can almost always be guaranteed of the weather and with some amazing Holiday Villages to choose from, good flights and transfers, this makes it a great option for one week or two!

Algarve

There are those that love it and those that hate it, but the Algarve is Portugal's premier holiday destination, with pretty beaches, lots of resorts to choose from and picturesque whitewashed towns. We holidayed in Portugal some years ago and if you pick somewhere like Balaia, it is safely tucked away between the livelier resorts of Albufeira and Vilamoura on Portugal’s Algarve coast giving you the best of both worlds. The Holiday Villages again have something for everyone, from entertainment and buffet restaurants for the children to a la carte restuarants for the grown ups!

Tunisia

Tunisia was the choice of our first holiday as a family of 4. Again the flight times were not too long (especially when travelling with small children) but we chose to go in January last time, which was a little out of season. The best times to go here are really between April and October to take advantage of the weather ..... we learnt our lesson as the outside pool was a little chilly!! Thankfully there was a great indoor pool that the girls could enjoy.

So given our October wedding, this may be a definite contender with 5* resorts a plenty.

The girls feature in every decision we make as a family and it seems our honeymoon is no different. 

In saying that, we could simply sneak off to an all inclusive, adults only resort on the Caribbean Coast in Mexico where I could spend days soaking up the historical sites like Chichen Itzá and Tulum, while my new husband soaks up the sunshine.

We just need someone to have the children for 2 weeks. Any takers?

This post is in collaboration with First Choice Holidays but all holiday experiences and honeymoon aspirations are our own!

Last night I went on a date.

I went out for dinner, had drinks, flirted a little and indulged in adult conversation.

My meal wasn't shared with a small person.

My meal didn't have half eaten and slightly chewed bits of food placed on it.

I managed to have a whole conversation without any interruptions (aside from the attentive waitress).

I laughed.

We held hands, not for safety crossing the road or for fear of losing each other, just simply because we wanted to.

Life changes you, changes the things you once took for granted.

I remember once upon a time going to on an indulgent two week 5* holiday  where my only consideration was whether the bar stocked my favourite alcoholic beverage. Fast forward to today and I am more concerned with checking for suitable flight times, length of transfer and childrens facilities.

Life changes you.

My "date" last night wants us to have some time to ourselves, to find a perfect break for just the two of us.

My "date" also knows how difficult it would be to leave the children.

Being a mom changes you.

Once upon a time I would have been dreaming of hot exotic climates and how tanned I could get in a short space of time but now, I want to protect the skin of my girls and don't let them outside in the sun without applying factor 50. *insert wriggling child and resistence to suncream*

I happen to be marrying my "date" from last night and the girls will obviously be bridesmaids.

I do wonder whether we will get through the ceremony without the toddler interrupting.

I do wonder whether part of her meal will magically end up on my plate.

I know that they will really want to come on our honeymoon.

But do you know what? I wouldn't change it for the world!

I have to admit that I hadn't heard about the BubbleBum Travel Booster Seat before we had the opportunity to do this review but I have no idea how it managed to pass me by! 

I did a little bit of research before the Bubble Bum arrived and it seems that there is divided opinion about it and as I am usually the first to know about new products, space saving and indeed child safety items, I was thrilled to have the chance to try it out. I then found a friend has had one for years *insert slightly cross face for not sharing this fabulous find!!*

We were told that BubbleBum is the world's first inflatable, deflatable, portable and packable car booster seat for school aged children, 4-11 years old and weighing 15-36 kgs. I like the fact that BubbleBum is ideal for everyday use, taking on holiday, rental cars, taxi's, car pooling and with to its narrow design, you can easily fit 3 seats across the back seat of any vehicle!  Thankfully it doesn't take much "puff" either. I managed to inflate it with relative ease .... which is something for a woman who gets lightheaded blowing up balloons!

The 9 year old couldn't wait to test it out, putting her own seat straight in the boot of the car and declaring that one is now the "spare". She took abosolutely no notice of the installation instructions and said it felt a bti "wobbly" but when we clipped it in correctly, she was delighted at how comfortable it was. (whereas I was more thrilled about the safety aspect of the additional securings).

 

In terms of safety, the car booster seat has even been safety tested and approved under the United Nations ECE Regulation R44/04 in its deflated state, making it completely safe to use! It inflates in seconds with just a few puffs of air and deflates and packs down into a carry bag just as quick. When deflated this lightweight car booster seat can be carried in a hand luggage, mum's handbag or any little one's rucksack, saving you money on expensive car seat hire. 

 

 

 

There are handy reminders on the side of the seat, incase the grandparents borrow it for the day, so there is no reason for anyone not to be strapped in securely. 

 

For those who like to co-ordinate (like me), the BubbleBum also comes in four colours including: purple & lime, black & silver and brand new BubbleBum neon pink and neon yellow. Everything is a bit pink in our house, so we went for the neon yellow for a change and my daughter loves it!

 

All in all, the BubbleBum gets a huge thumbs up from the 9 year old and from me (and the two year old who can't wait till she is old enough to have one) and if you would like the chance to win one, just enter our giveaway below.

 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

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