Category: Reviews

1. On the second day of Christmas my true love gave to me ....

   Posted on 7:45am Monday 2nd Dec 2013

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   ...... not turtle doves but outfits for girls I love (it kind of rhymes).

   When we were asked to review the F&F Christmas range, we jumped (or is it leapt like the lords?) at the chance, we love clothes and we love Christmas, so it was a match made in heaven.

   Typically, my eldest daughter had to make her own choices ....... she is 8 after all! (what am I going to do when she is 18???) but I was pleasantly surprised at her request!

   

   
   

   On the second day of Christmas by littlelilypadco featuring metallic cap toe shoes

   
   

   

   Both dresses have roses in the design, a flower that is very personal to us as a family, but each design is very different. As a mom, it's good to know that they are machine washable because my children are like magnets for dirt ... no matter how careful they are!

   The quality is amazing for the price and it just goes to show that supermarket style can rival the high street any day of the week .... usually saving enough money to buy the matching shoes too! This works for me on lots of levels, saving money and having some spare for shoes! 

   If I am honest, F&F is not somewhere that would immediately spring to mind if I was thinking about party dresses but they have a fabulous range of Christmas attire for all ages, including jumpers and some brilliant nativity costumes too!

   

   So on the second day of Christmas, I will happily pass on the turtle doves and have two fabulous party dresses for my gorgeous girls instead. It doesn't rhyme but it works for me!

2. Kelo- Stretch Cream : Review

   Posted on 8:24pm Wednesday 9th Oct 2013

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   As part of our Baby Blog, our new mum blogger has been reviewing the Kelo-Stretch Cream. Kelo-Stretch™ (125ml, £25.99) launched in April 2013 by speciality pharmaceutical company Sinclair IS Pharma and it has been specifically formulated to prevent and correct stretch marks. Stretch marks affect as many as 75% to 90% of pregnant women.¹ They can also appear during adolescence or be a consequence of rapid weight gain or weight loss. Stretch marks may also be caused by hormonal disorders

   So after months of testing, here is what she thought .....

   Pitter-patter of tiny feet, a new bundle of joy that you can’t wait to meet;  what a dream to be a new mum.  Stretch Marks…. not such a dream! But, there is help at hand, in fact there are a lot of products out there that claim to prevent or help existing stretch marks and I am sure that like me, most pregnant woman are rubbing lotions and potions into their growing bumps religiously (and mine was definately growing).

   So how do we know what really works, why do some pregnant woman get stretch marks and some don’t? I put KELO-STRETCH cream to the test through my pregnancy, it features a unique dual formula to address the main causes of stretch mark formation and there is a LOT of science and evidence behind it.

   

   I applied it as per the instructions twice a day from the 4^th month of pregnancy. It sank easily into the skin on application which was a blessing when dressing for work in the morning as you don’t want to be hanging around waiting for your skin to dry off.  It’s also fragrance free, which for me was a true positive because I had made the decision in my pregnancy to be as ‘organic’ as possible and stopped wearing perfumes etc.  For this reason it does have a slightly ‘medicated’ smell about it but that doesn’t stay around for long and gave me confidence that the product had been developed to work rather than just smell good. It claims to increase elasticity and hydrate the skin and I must say that my skin always felt plump and smooth.

    

   So, the million dollar question – did it work? I can happily report I have zero stretch marks! I am still using it now post pregnancy just to be sure, but not one in sight. Will I ever truly know if it was the KELO- STRETCH cream preventing them? Possibly not, but if I am ever blessed with another pregnancy I certainly won’t be taking a chance – KELO-STRETCH cream will be top of my list!

3. Learn to read in 5 weeks for FREE with Reading Eggs

   Posted on 7:16am Friday 4th Oct 2013

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   For as long as I can remember, I have read stories with my girls, (I am not sure whether this is linked to my eldest being the biggest story teller around) but reading is a big part of our every day routine. My youngest daughter is at the stage of loving stories that rhyme while my eldest loves stories that she can read by herself. So when we were introduced to the Reading Eggs Great Literacy Challenge, we were a little intrigued as to what it was all about.

   We found that your child can join thousands of children across the UK taking part in the Reading Eggs Great Literacy Challenge – which is a nationwide effort to inspire children to read! This FREE event will give your child 5 weeks FREE access to Reading Eggs – the online reading programme that teaches children aged 3-13 the literacy skills needed for lifetime reading success.

    

   We have supported Tommy's and raised money through the Water Babies splashathon, so are thrilled to be able to continue this support through Reading Eggs.

   We also love that there are games, songs, golden eggs and other rewards which, along with feeling proud of their reading, can motivate children to keep exploring and learning. We were also interested to find that over 90% of parents found a noticeable improvement in their childrens reading after using Reading Eggs. So we are delighted to be able to share a FREE trial for Lilypad readers!

   Click here to sign up for your free trial and see for yourself how your child’s reading improves by using Reading Eggs!

   Happy Reading!!

   

4. Tommee Tippee Closer to Nature Microwave Steriliser Review

   Posted on 8:02pm Tuesday 1st Oct 2013

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   As part of our baby blog series and after the safe and gorgeous arrival of our new nephew, we are delighted to show a review of the Tommee Tippee Closer to Nature Microwave Steriliser from our baby blogger, Suzi .....

   As a first time mum and having not been around many new born babies, I must admit that I did not have a clue about where to start when it came to feeding and sterilisation.

   My first reaction to the abundance of sterilising products on display at a baby show I attended was; does a little person really require all this equipment?! So I was extremely relieved when my sister in law asked me to review the Tommee Tippee Closer to Nature Microwave Steriliser and assured me it was all I needed to get started.

   I began motherhood breast feeding my new born baby boy and after a few days, also started to express and combine feeds with formula bottles. From this day on the Tommee Tippee steriliser has not left my microwave and I can honestly say it really does what it claims; sterilises in super quick time, is easy to load and provides a great sterile surface for making up the feeds. It took a few attempts at reading the instructions to work out the steps required to ensure sterilisation, but this was most likely to do with my ‘baby brain’ from lack of sleep than anything else, and once cracked the process is actually very simple. 

   

   A great feature of this product is that it keeps the items inside sterile for 24 hours and it can therefore hideaway in the microwave with all the sterilised bottles, saving on all important kitchen work surface space. Whilst it’s designed to hold four Tommee Tippee products, another plus is that it also works perfectly with other brands of bottles and accessories, including breast pumps. My only  wish is that it would hold more than four bottles, but in all honestly if the container was any bigger it wouldn’t fit into most microwaves and I think Tommee Tippee have probably used all the space possible for this type of steriliser.

   

   In summary, this steriliser is practical, efficient and is serving my baby’s need for sterilised bottles perfectly. To top it off Tommee Tippee include a soother in the package which came in very handy at 3am the other morning when nothing else seemed to be working! I will definitely be recommending this steriliser to my sister who is due in January with her first baby, and like me hasn’t had much prior practice!