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Today I joked about my little water baby being a future Olympian. It was a joke obviously but am I saying that it didnt cross my mind for a single second that, one day, my water loving baby might go on to swim for her club, her county, her country? I can't say that.

As a parent, I think we all have desires and aspirations for our children, whether it be a doctor, lawyer, following in our footsteps or following their own dreams, so how do you strike the balance between being a supportive parent to being a pushy one?

I remember dancing three times a week until I was 16, I was the first in my class to do pointe ballet and I always had a dream to dance on the Royal Variety Performance. At 16, I went to college, got a job and a life that didnt fit in with my dancing disciplines, so I gave it up and with it, I gave up my dream. Looking back, do I wish that my parents had pushed me? Absolutely. Would I have listened? Probably not.

My daughters however are not 16 and are not old enough to make those choices, so I will continue to make them for them. My eldest has already given up dancing at the ripe old age of 7 but I refuse to let her give up swimming. This isnt to say that I do genuinely think she will be a future Olympian because she can be anything she wants to be, although if the moaning about weekly swimming lessons are anything to go by, I suspect this *may not* be the case.

The little one has started a new course with Water Babies this week and they have been encouraged to lie on their back and kick their legs, which after a little encouragement was met with many chuckles. She is super comfortable in the water and whilst the kicking and splashing isnt quite Olympic quality just yet, maybe it will be one day and maybe, just maybe I am that pushy parent after all.

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I have a confession to make. Last weekend, we had a completely relaxing evening and a morning lie in, at a lovely hotel ..... just the two of us.

This never happens.

When presented with the opportunity to take advantage of a pamper package at the Village Hotel, Coventry, with an overnight stay and a 3 course evening meal (*whispers*) with wine, my initial thought was guilt. I know this sounds ridiculous but I genuinely felt guilty that we would be leaving the girls to go and indulge in some totally selfish "us" time. Obviously once I had sorted babysitters, the guilt subsided somewhat and a few butterflies of excitment fluttered in my stomach. 

The pamper package we were offered included a 3 course dinner, accommodation for the evening in one of their 3 star rooms and full access to the Healthworks Spa and Leisure Club with a treatment included. I was delighted when I realised my gorgeous other half decided he would prefer to use the Leisure Club, so I got to have his treatment too. I will openly admit to being a bit of a spa addict and over the years have had some great spa experiences and some not so great but this weekend was perfect. I had a great therapist and we were chatting along (as much to do with me being nosey and a chatterbox) but as she worked on the knots in my shoulders, I was less chatty and more sleepy!

 

David from www.future-focus.eu said: ‘A massage can be the perfect solution to stress and fatigue Whether it’s an overworked parent looking to relax, or someone simply looking to have some downtime, a massage could be the perfect solution.’

My gorgeous man is a connoiseur of all things food related so he was really looking forward to the meal, he had already chosen his meal before we had sat down. Me, however, I was looking forward to sitting down, with someone else preparing the food, cooking it, serving it and most definately the clearing up. Add into the equation that it was delicious and you have two very contented parents.

We enjoyed drinks in the bar, we laughed, we kissed and cuddled (sorry kids, I know you dont like it when we do that without you) and just enjoyed being us. 

Did we have a great time? Definately.

And should parents be pampered? Absolutely.

 

Disclaimer: We were given the opportunity to review the pamper package by the Village Hotel but the views in this blog post are honest and our own!

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You may recall that last month I mentioned the MyFamilyClub Savings Pack, well with Christmas looming on the horizon, I have been looking at the ways I can get the most for my money this holiday season.

I will openly admit I love to shop but I will openly admit that I am not particularly good at saving, so if I can find a way to do both, this makes me a happy girl. I am not talking about making presents or buying off Ebay (although there are lots of bargains to be had this way), I mean getting the most from the shops on the high street. It was interesting to watch Charlotte from MyFamilyClub on BBC News last weekend as she firmly believes in haggling. Now I remember doing a car boot sale with my mom when I was little and I can vividly remember people haggling over 20 pence but I know this isnt what she meant. If you are buying bulk items or paying cash, most retailers will give you some form of discount or free products in order to close the sale. (This doesnt apply to the supermarkets, although it would be nice to get some free biscuits once in a while).

So what if you cant haggle? Then there are other options and this is the bit that really interested me. With the MyFamilyClub Savings Pack you get to: 

• Choose five re-loadable gift cards from our carefully selected retailers.
• Top up your gift cards online using a debit or credit card.
• Save between 4% and 10% every time you top up your gift cards on line. 

Once you get your head around what this means, you can start to appreciate what this can mean for your bank balance. I sat there and decided to select a Boots gift card, which when you top up on the MyFamilyClub website gives you 6% discount. So if I shopped at Boots, during one of their points promotions evenings, buying the 3 for 2 products and using my discounted gift card, I worked out that I would literally be saving nearly £50 on the products I wanted.

It sounds incredulous but its true. Its not about being cheap, its about being savvy and with a spare £50 in my bank, I have got my eye on some gorgeous shoes for the Christmas Party season!