Blog : Little Lilypad Co

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The Little Lilypad is a lifestyle blog mostly written by a mum to two beautiful, cheeky and entertaining daughters. It is sometimes written by the Man on the Pad or by one of our baby bloggers. Occasionally we accept guest posts too. There is frequently talk of sustainable living, saving money, lifestyle and travel. It is hopefully helpful, sometimes funny and always honest.

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Category: Views & Ramblings

  1. My daughters wishlist

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    There has been a distinct lack of writing on the Lilypad blog lately, mainly due to taking a Christmas break but also due to a small problem with my hand that has made any kind of writing at all pretty difficult. The doctor has told me to rest (like that is ever going to happen) so this weeks Wednesday wishlist is brought to you by my eldest daughter.

    I asked her to write a wishlist, not for material things but for the things that would make her happy today.

    Here it is ....

    Daughters Wishlist

    My wishlist for this week is to get my hand functioning normally.

    What's on yours ..... ?

     

  2. My Reverse Resolutions : 2013

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    For the past two years I have not made any New Years Resolutions. This is partly due to the fact that I break them but mainly as I prefer to reflect on the past years achievements rather than set, sometimes unrealistic, goals for the next 12 months. (such as the ridiculous idea of giving up chocolate!!)

    Last year I started the post with my favourite quote of the year, so here is my favourite of 2013 : "If you expect the world to be fair with you because you are fair, you're fooling yourself. That's like expecting the lion not to eat you because you didn't eat him"

    So here are my Reverse Resolutions for 2013.

    1. I have forced encouraged my girls to continue with their swimming lessons this year. This may not sound like a spectacular achievement but trust me, on a Monday evening when a certain 8 year old does not want to go swimming and a 2 year old wants to get in the water instead, this is a particularly amazing achievement. Or when said 2 year old decides she no longer wants to go under the water, perserverance has definately paid off ...... and the daily bath time soaking session is testament to this. Although I have to give a nod to Water Babies for their amazing encouragement every step of the way.

    2. Helping my youngest daughter make the transition into nursery. This was always going to be emotional. She has always been at home with me, daddy, nanny or her god parents, so taking her into a new enviroment was as much difficult journey for me as for her. My baby is growing up, I had to allow her to do it.

    3. I stepped out from behind my laptop and went to three blogging conferences this year. So many people think I am a confident person but its all a facade and going and introducing myself to new people is totally out of my comfort zone but I did it, three times and guess what? I had a blast and met some amazing people.

    4. I write a reflection of the last 12 months on my blog without actually mentioning the blog. The Lilypad blog and social media presence continues to provide fantastic opportunities, great collaborations and the chance to meet truly inspirational people. How can I not be proud of that?

    5. Getting Engaged! Now I accept that this would not necessarily count as an achievement but it is so darn exciting that I had to include it and if I have one goal for 2014, it is planning an awesome and very personal wedding!

    So going back to my favourite quote of the year, my mum always taught me to "play fair", so am just kind of hoping there are no lions out to eat me in 2014 as I am really looking forward to what it brings!

    New Years Eve

  3. On the fourteenth day of Christmas my true love gave to me .....

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    ...... a little selfish wish for yuletide beauty.

    When I was younger, I wanted to be a grown up. I wanted to be taller, have a bigger bust, longer eyelashes and less spots! Now I am a "grown up" (or so my birth certificate says), I want to be younger, I may be a little bit taller but my beloved heels definitely help, good mascara improves my eyelashes and the spots .... well they come and go.

    I never really thought about my skin as I was growing up and when my friends and I went in search of the best sun beds to get a tan (I know, I know), some of us got piercings, the others tattoos, we never gave much thought past the following weekend, let alone the long term affects on our body.

    Now I see my girls growing up and I want to hang onto their innocence and childlike beauty but I know they won't listen. I know that they will be as stubborn as me but I hope that they are strong like me too, otherwise I can see me frog marching them for tattoo removal before they are 21 and showing them images of tattoo removal before and after just to make my point.

    I remember writing a post a few years ago, after my daughter asked why I had lines on my head and I suspect that those lines are as much to do with not looking after my skin as they are to do with laughter. So while I want laughter to fill my girls lives, I hope that this is the only filler they consider for their faces (which is more than can be said for me).

    So this Christmas time, eternal youth is a bit of a tall ask for Father Christmas but I tell my eldest daughter if she doesn't believe in Father Christmas she is never going to get any presents from him, so for the record .... I believe!

     

    This post was brought to you in association with Sk:nclinics

     

     

     

  4. Pampers UNICEF campaign

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    Vaccines are something that we take for granted in the UK but this is not always the case across the globe. We are therefore delighted to bring this post to you in association with the Pampers UNICEF campaign to share with you how Tesco is backing the project in the global fight against Maternal and Newborn Tetanus.

    From October to December, Pampers and UNICEF, the world’s leading children’s organisation, come together for the eighth year to launch the “1 pack = 1 vaccine” campaign. This year, Tesco has upped the stakes and set the challenge to its shoppers to help raise the cost of one vaccine every second of the campaign period – that’s nine million life-saving vaccines helping to protect the lives of 3 million women and their newborns! 

    A team from Tesco and Pampers visited Senegal, West Africa, to see the success of the UNICEF vaccination programme and meet those who have witnessed the devastating effects of MNT first-hand: 

    Ami Seck tragically lost her first baby boy to tetanus;

    “After a few days, we noticed the child was trembling excessively,” Mame Touty, Ami’s mother-in-law says, “We spent nine days in hospital, but the boy died on the tenth day. When it happened we were very dejected. After the regretful incident, Ami became pregnant again, but we learnt lessons, we had an antenatal care package, and everything went smoothly. Everyone knew that our baby boy died but we are a living example of how you can get out of the maze.”

    Ami Seck

    Moussa Pouye is the Chief Nurse at Dabaly Health Post, Nioro District, Senegal talk about dealing with a case of tetanus;

    “I had to deal with a case of tetanus where the lady had no antenatal care or tetanus vaccinations. I met with the Supervisor of the Health Centre and he gave me 200 doses of tetanus to do an immediate campaign in the area to avoid another case. We made sure all other women in the village were protected. The village, Touba Saloum, now has its own Health Hut and all the women are subscribing.”

    Moussa Pouye

     

    Ways you can help:

    Visit your local Tesco today and pick up your pack of Pampers or buy online at Tesco.com: 

    1 Pack = 1 Vaccine

    During October – December 2013, for each Pampers®- UNICEF pack purchased, Pampers® will donate the cost of one tetanus vaccine to support UNICEF in the fight against Maternal and Newborn Tetanus.                                                                         

    UNICEF Pledge Donations

    By becoming a monthly donor to UNICEF today you can join thousands of other parents who donate every month to improve the lives of these vulnerable children. Visit www.supportunicef.org/Pampers to see the difference that you can make.

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