So it's been a couple of months since I last blogged but we've had a lot going on in particular welcoming our second baby boy into the world.

Introducing Dylan Francis Longley, born on Monday 11th June at 12:26am weighing in at a whopping 10lb 2oz!


Life has been chaotic in the lead up to his birth hence the blog absence. In the final weeks at work it took all my energy to get through the day so this poor little space got a tad neglected. What I did do was put together a plan of where I want to take my blog and YouTube channel over the next 12 months. I don't know what I will achieve but it was nice to write down my ideas and fingers crossed I can find the time to tick a few things off the list.

Life with two is even busier than I could have thought possible. It's an endless cycle of feeding, nappies and sleep deprivation but throw a toddler into the mix and it's even more manic. Thankfully Ethan loves his little brother and we often joke that he will kill him with kindness as he's always kissing and cuddling him and showering him with love. Honestly we couldn't have asked for a better reaction from him.



Poor Ethan also hasn't had an easy time of it lately either with two broken bones and two casts in the space of a couple of weeks but thankfully he's fully recovered and back to his usual cheeky self. Juggling pregnancy and then a newborn with a toddler in a cast has been a challenge to say the least!

We've also upgraded our car to an estate - a proper family car! We are heading over to Ireland on the ferry next week to introduce Dylan to the family and meet my new niece Willow so we can't wait to take the car on it's first road trip. Question is, how much stuff will we need to bring with us for a week when you have two small children in tow?

Now I've been sat here typing I want to keep going but I need to take advantage of Dylan being asleep and get myself to bed. I'm blooming knackered but it's worth it when I look at my two boys (three if you count the husband!) and feel like the luckiest mama in the world.

I promise to be back soon x

When the lovely folks at Tesco Baby Club got in touch wanting to know if we wanted to review some Kiddylicious snacks I jumped at it. I had seen them in some of my friend's changing bags but as yet we hadn't tried them. I only even buy Asda or Aldi's own brand of baby snacks so I was intrigued to see if a leading brand were on par or better than the supermarket's own range.

It can be difficult to give healthy snacks when you are out and about especially if you're like me and forget to pack the fruit (every time!) but the Kiddylicious range are perfectly sized to keep in your changing bag and whip out when needed. They have no added sugar and have no artificial nasties so are ideal for those sensitive little tummies. They are also ideal if you want to encourage self feeding and dissolve in the mouth easily therefore reducing the risk of choking (that was my biggest fear when I started weaning Ethan).

Thanks to Kiddylicious and Tesco Baby Club for allowing us to review these fab little snacks, I'll definitely buy more of the wafers in the future.

*Products sent for review but all thoughts are my own*

He's just over 5.5 months now or 25 weeks and in the past few weeks he has shown all the signs that he is ready to start eating food. I was adamant that I wanted to wait until 6 months but I'm also a great believer in following a baby's lead and if he's physically reaching out to grab food off my plate and eat it I think he's ready. 

I, on the other hand am not.

After overcoming a few struggles at the start we have mastered breastfeeding and I feel sad that he will no longer be dependent on me as his sole source of nutrition. We have also reached the stage of it being easy - just whip the boob out and that boy knows what to do. Milk is there on tap, no planning is needed. If we want to stay out all day all we need to make sure is that we have enough nappies but now I'm going to have to think about food and snacks too.

The concept of Baby Led Weaning really appeals to both us of and if I'm honest I can't be bothered to puree a load of food that may or may not end up on the floor. I also like the idea that it teaches babies to chew before they can swallow compared to traditional weaning where solids are introduced after the puree stage.

We've started offering Ethan a few little bits and pieces of our plates and he's loved it. It also means we can eat meals in peace as I plonk him in the highchair and he has food to play with. He gets that it goes in his mouth but then he spits it out most of the time as he hasn't quite realised that he needs to swallow it.

Both myself and Mr T love our food and we want to instill a love of food in Ethan too. I want him to see how food is made, teach him to cook (and bake of course!) and see food as something to be enjoyed, not just fuel for our body. I'll hold off on the sugar for as long as possible, we aren't saying no to sugar but he won't miss what he hasn't had. There is plenty of time for sweet treats in the future.

As exciting as the whole process is, I feel nervous about it too. my biggest fear is choking but from what I have read as long as the food isn't the same diameter as the windpipe then the baby will be fine. Also if they cough it means they are clearing their throat, I only need to worry when he can't cough as that means something might be lodged in the throat eep!

We went to Asda last week to get a few snacks and some emergency pouches to keep in the changing bag if we are caught short when out and about and Ethan needs to eat. I stood staring at all the food for ages - there were biscuits, crisps, rice cakes, smooth purees, lumpy purees, ready meals, baby alternatives of adult food, Ella's Kitchen, Hipp Organic, Heinz, Organix - the list goes on and on. In the end Mr T suggested I pick a few things at random and see how we get on with it. Also how expensive is it?? Pouches are just for emergencies, I don't know how people afford to use them every day.

I also stocked up on some new tupperware and had far too much fun choosing little pots to fill with food for Ethan to eat when we are out and about. I'm actually really excited about filling them with healthy snacks that I hope he will enjoy.

I've never been great with veg but I'm hoping the weaning process will open my eyes to new foods and new ways of cooking. I said to Mr T we can't buy chocolate and fizzy drinks as often now as we don't want Ethan reaching out for them. I want him to see us making healthy choices regarding food and in turn have a positive attitude to mealtimes and what he chooses to eat.

We are away this weekend so the plan is to create a baby friendly meal plan when we get back and offer Ethan food every time we eat. I'm thinking porridge or weetabix might be good for a first breakfast, some finger foods for lunch and a stir fry for dinner as he can easily hold the meat and veg pieces. Mr T isn't back to work until the 5th so it's a good time to start and he can be involved instead of missing out on all of these first tastes.

Maybe he will crack it instantly or maybe it will take a month or two before he starts eating solids and dropping milk feeds. We will follow his lead and see how it goes. I'll post another update when weaning is well under way and let you know how we get on.

The IKEA highchair has been purchased, we have more bibs than we know what to do with and I've a dustpan at the ready.

Let the weaning commence...

After being in labour for almost 2 days Ethan Thomas Longley was born on Monday 7th March, 2:51am weighing 8lb 14oz.

We are completely and utterly besotted with our little man hence the blog absence these past 2 weeks.

I'm hoping to get back on the blogging bandwagon soon but for now I'm going to embrace these newborn cuddles (and get some sleep!)

Hello! You all still there? I've realised it's been 2 months since my last blog post - sorry!

I do have a good reason though. Myself and Mr T were off getting married - it was amazing and more on that in another post but also we have discovered we are expecting a wee baby next year! 28th February to be exact.

We are both over the moon but it's been a whirlwind of emotions. I wrote this post below when we first found out...

I'm writing this post on 24/06/15 and myself and Mr T found out last night that I'm pregnant (if feels so strange to type those words!). Even though this baby is sort of planned it's still a shock. The wedding is 5 1/2 weeks away so on the actual day I'll  be 9-10 weeks gone. 2 weeks ago we decided to throw caution to the wind and if it happened it happened. We thought I had already ovulated so believed our chances of conceiving this month were pretty slim.

Last Friday (19th) I had some light spotting so thought my period was early but then I never came on. I took a test on Saturday morning which was negative then took another test on Tuesday night which turned out to be positive.

We never thought it would happen so quickly. I used to tease Tom saying he had to live up to his brother's record of getting his Fiance pregnant in a month but it looks like he topped that one haha! 

I know it's really early days and this pregnancy could come to nothing but fingers crossed it all works out we will have a baby by the end of Feb/start of March!

We honestly thought we had missed our window for this month and thought it would take at least 3-6 months as you hear so many stories of people trying for ages before it happens.

At the moment we are quietly cautious but excited too. I don't know yet when we will start telling people. Mr T wants to wait until after the 12 week scan but I want to tell my two besties when I see them next week. I'd also like to tell my parents in person so that's either in 3 weeks time or over the wedding weekend. If not I'd have to wait til I'm next back home which could be October or Christmas and that's just too late. Also mum would kill me if I kept something so big from her.

My only worry is work, I only started my new job in January so hopefully they aren't too upset. I fully intend to come back to work afterwards doing 3-4 days if they will allow it but I'll just have to wait and see...

So it's now the 25th of June and somehow I managed to get an appointment with the docs yesterday. Usually it can take nearly a week to see the doctor, fate must be on our side (I hope!). The doctor was lovely, explained lots, said I can still go to the gym and I won't show at the wedding phew! I've been booked in to see the midwife on  the 23rd July but it means leaving work at 3:30pm. If I wasn't so short on annual leave I'd just book the afternoon off.

I did feel a bit icky this morning but after eating breakfast it soon passed. Fingers crossed I don't get bad morning sickness or keeping this a secret at work is going to be hard!

So yeah... looks like we are going to be parents. We had the scan on the 20th of August and I was so scared. Honestly I was more nervous for it than on our wedding day. The midwife reckons it's cos I could control the wedding but I can't control the pregnancy. I kept my eyes tightly shut until the sonographer said "and there's baby, all ok."


After all my worry the scan was amazing! Baby kept jumping so she struggled with getting measurements - it's a right little wriggler already. We could have watched it all day and it's made me so excited for our next scan although I am nervous for that too. I think I'll be worrying until the day it's born.

I still can't believe it and feel so fortunate. So many people struggle with infertility and we got pregnant without even trying. I've also been lucky in that I haven't been too sick, just feeling off it and run down and thankfully it only happens in an afternoon and evening.

Now the wedding is over (I can't wait to tell you all about that) and I've got a bit more energy I'm looking forward to getting back in the kitchen and creating some recipes. I've really missed baking so I've a lot to catch up on!

I'm going to be a mummy....eeeeeee!!!