Broody Broody Broody....

Everyone around me seems to be announcing their pregnancies or giving birth, It's impossible not to be broody especially when my sister in-law has just given birth to a gorgeous little girl!

As I'm sure every mum will know when your child gets to an age were they aren't exactly babies anymore

the whole world seems to ask you when your having another and tell you it's time for another

and it's been no different for me & the girls are no exception, Every other day Issy & Daisie ask me can they have a brother they even have a name for him, why don't I have another everyone else has 3 kids and the excitement from them when I'm bloated after a meal is just soo cute! Daisie is turning 3 in July and will be starting nursery in September.

We started trying for Daisie when Issy was in nursery and I fell pregnant quite quickly  and that was the plan for number #3 when Daisie started nursery too.

It seems like such the perfect age to have another while Issy's at school, Daisie would be at nursery while I'll be at home with baby BUT

As much as I really want another and as much as my womb & heart are begging me My head is screaming 'OH HELL NO' 

I've been a mum since I was 16 and I love every moment of it but as selfish as I may sound I would like at least a year were I can treat myself a little and my body being my own of course If we had another now every penny we get would go towards stuff for baby (most of our money now goes towards the girls)

I'd also like to be driving for atleast a year before we have another (as much as the thought kills me) 

So we can enjoy some days out with the girls and maybe a holiday or two.

While all those thoughts are circling my mind I also have many PRO's to having another now,

When the girls and baby are of an age to be left alone I'll still be of an age to be able to live the life I didn't have in my younger days, I'm not talking clubbing maybe a girly weekend away or something! Without the guilt and worry of leaving the kids behind like I have now.
They would all be of an age were they would be practically begging me to leave them alone just for a night or two. Where as If I put off having another for a few more years there will always be a baby to stop me from enjoying some time away, I have always said I don't want any more once I hit 3O to the point I've considered being sterilized at 3O (I know there's no way my broodiness would allow that) but I'm still set on having 4 children so unless I have twins that little plan I've always had will be going out of the window.

I don't believe their ever is a perfect time to have children, When you feel ready is the most perfect time you'll ever get.

Reverse shampooing

I've seen reverse shampooing posts all over the place.

Yep you read that correctly you condition first and shampoo last, it feels so alien to do I keep forgetting to do it that way it just feels so odd to do it that way after years of shampooing first.

So I gave it ago for myself when I finally remembered but my results wasn't as great as the ones I had read about my hair was greasy a lot sooner than it usually gets, A hair wash lasts me around 3 days if I'm lucky! I'm convincing myself its my hair colour with my roots showing as much as they are against the light ginger that makes it look so greasy tho as it doesn't feel greasy but looks like I've dipped my head in a chip fryer, whether my results where different because my hair washing session was gate crashed by the girls too, I thought I'd got away with sneaking upstairs for a quick hair wash while they were settled and happily playing but I was wrong so it was a matter of quickly rinsing it all out, I could possibly have let some in and that's why I ended up with greasy hair a lot sooner OR it could be that I had 2 shampoos in the mix

I will be trying again when the girls are in bed to see if the results are any different with my argan oil shampoo & conditioner as I managed to pick up the argan oil conditioner in poundland on Weds.
(I'm currently researching if they are animal tested)

I'm not getting on to well with the wilko own brand shampoo & conditioner so will be going back to my fave superdrug own brand, also following my recent post about outing animal tested products I'm having no luck with finding if Wilkinson own brand is cruelty free and I've read superdrug own brand is cruelty free so superdrug I'm coming for you!

Outing animal tested products

I've never been for animal testing and have recently decided to out it all together.

I'm yet to go through all of my make-up and household products and get rid of them, I will do a follow up post with a photo of the products I found in my house that test on animals.

It's amazing how many every day products could be tested on animals bleach, general cleaning products, toothpaste, mouth wash, air freshener, sanitary towels, deodorant you name it.

It's nice to see the amount of pages of lists of companies that don't test on animals is a lot bigger than the ones that do with a lovely 28 pages of PDF file compared to the 14 page file of ones that do!

As silly as this may sound I never would have guessed that Olay test on animals their labeling just looks so gentle, Andy found it hilarious when I came out with that they never came across as a company that would test on animals but there they are on the companies that test on animals list :(

Body shop has become a tough one to judge because they don't directly test on animals but are now owned by l'oreal who still use animal tested ingredients so by shopping in body shop are you in a way funding l'oreal and their animal testing ways?

I personally think non animal tested products should have a bit more of  a visible label, being a mum and often having my little ones in tow on the weekly food shop it's not so easy to spend majority of my time hunting for the little leaping rabbit on products I plan to buy or carrying round a 14 page list of animal tested products BUT I will do it if i have to and highlight the products I'm most likely to consider chucking in my trolley.

Another thing that made outing animal tested products harder was differing lists.

I've found lists on the PETA website which I'm following, If you know of any others please do let me know :)

British 10K London Run 2014 - Help for heroes

                                  

My brother Gavin is running another 1Ok run this year in aid of help for heroes 

proud really doesn't come close, he started doing runs back in 2O1O if I remember rightly.

Every donation no matter how big or small is very much appreciated 

Justgivng page 

I'm hoping I manage to get up to London to watch him run this year.

Every time I watch the video my other brother JR made of the run he took part in 2O11 I get goose bumps and end up welling up watching the love as he waves goodbye to join the race.

Picnic Pastels

I made the mistake of going down the summer/spring isle in asda the other day

and came across the most gorgeous picnic stuff.

I fell in love with the fold away lunch bags and cool bag so just had to go back for them,

I really need to go and grab the gorgeous plates,bowels and cups they have in too

all in gorgeous polka dot pastels! I'm likely to use them as everyday plates for the girls tho

I plan to do lots of park picnic trips with the girls this summer so was on the look out for a cool bag to hold all of our stuff and this was just perfect.

The little lunch bags also came in pastel gingham sort of pattern too and many other colours, 

I've tried to find them online so I could show you the full range but I'm having no luck in finding them online :( 

The cuteness of the little lunch bags there was no way I was leaving them behind 

I can see the girls strolling along with them in hand now :') 

Although it's likely to be bundled on the buggy if I know my girls. 

They are the perfect size for a little lunch for little ones and can be easily carried by them too,

Each bag folds down nice and flat and velcro's shut perfect for when they are empty making them so much easier to get home

 What makes this range even more brilliant if you aren't already sold by the gorgeous colours is the price

The 15L cool bag is a bank breaking £3 and the little lunch bags £1.5O each 

Ebay wishlist #1

Easter bucket list - Farm trip

 WARNING -  picture heavy post

Today we had our trip to the hop farm.

On arrival,the website and their Facebook website it was listed FREE entry but I had read on facebook on a friends status that the farm is now 1O tokens to get in a token being £1 per token

which even at that price I didn't think was to bad, As we got their we were greeted with the £1 parking fee again not to bad but what about this FREE entry?

the FREE entry allows you to walk into the hop farm, play area and crazy golf 

but everything else costs from 1 token right up to 5 tokens per person

I knew some rides you had to pay for but not all

so much for the FREE entry huh?

Don't get me wrong I didn't expect it all for free but it would have been nice for the FREE entry to have been a bit more clear stating that the farm wasn't free 

Luckily because I read previously that you had to pay for entry to the farm animals and the rides being from £1-£3 I had some cash on me but only ended up purchasing 1O tokens

when we got closer to the farm section there was a maximum of 1O animals which I wasn't willing to pay £1O to spend 2 minutes in there. 

It was a little bit chilly so that put a downer on that part of the day if it was warmer and I had some more money on me I'd have been more than happy to stay longer and let the girls have a few go's on the rides and go into the farm but with me taking up a token to it just wasn't worth doing or going on half the things as I would have no money left after going on 2-3 things the £5O I took with me really wasn't enough to cover the day like I had thought :(

So after a go on a few rides we decided we'd head to broaditch farm for the Easter bunny hunt and the Easter wonderland the entry for these were £8 each for the combo for children and £1 for adults 

BARGAIN!! 

Although broaditch farm isn't the kind with animals 

I really cannot recommend broaditch farm enough I can't wait to get involved in the other activities through out the year, their Halloween event is high up on my list I chickened out last year!

The easter wonderland was a alice in wonderland theme Alice leads you through wonderland to the white rabbit who reads you a story then you head off to get a gift (totally unexpected)

The gift was such good quality too, they got to choose from an chocolate egg and egg cup or a mug.

Then we headed off to the bunny hunt soooo much fun

you walk through the woods looking for clues each bunny you came across had a name and a number which with those names and numbers you had to work out what it was it said on your worksheet 

we also had to look out for some other woodland creatures, carrots and radish

Once we were done we had to head back to the farm to collect our prizes again AMAZING quality there's 4 baskets of toys to choose from or a big chocolate bunny.

There was also the awesome barrel buggies at £1.5O a go I was just gutted I couldn't have a go :( 

Have you visited a farm this easter?

Don't compare your behind the scenes life....

With other peoples highlight reel!

I'm really guilty of doing this I'm forever looking through instagram and blogs, getting sad at how everyone's kids room seem to be so perfect, how they are able to have little things on display in their living rooms and kids room without them being destroyed, how perfect and immaculate their houses are. I read this quote out to Andy 'Don't compare your behind the scenes life with other peoples show reel' and he had the great idea of making a blog post out of it and our behind the scenes.

It's a quote I really must remember when I'm getting down about how perfect everyone else's houses seem compared to mine

 Of course I and many others only upload the best bits and the tidy bits of the house, manage to get a photo without getting the stain on the carpet/rug in.

 I'm sure I'm not the only one that's guilty of having that ridiculously cluttered corner?

pen marks up my walls all around the house?

little mucky hand prints all down my back door windows?

the understair cupboard piled high with all sorts because out of sight out of mind?

a pen/paint stain on the sofa?

Kids bedrooms that are a wreck until you finally muster up the courage to go and tackle it?

A washing pile that's bigger than it should be? 

A tv cabinet that has pen marks and drink stains all over the top?

One thing we are guilty of here is if there's space on it we will fill it, I want a dining table but I know it will just become another place to throw crap onto! we have a fold away one but it's barely used because it always has some kind of crap on it, The dogs cage forever has something thrown on top of it. 

 one thing that is a regular in my house is that every wall but the girls bedroom that is wallpapered has that one little thin strip missing, My bedroom still has this strip missing ^ Because I refused to buy a whole roll at £1O or so for that one tiny strip? Luckily my wardrobe is HUGE and hides it perfectly, My living room has a strip missing again I'm not buying a whole roll for the tiniest strip but my door hides it, My landing has a strip missing but I have the wallpaper for it but also have a hubby that isn't in a rush to finish that little strip and a stairway with the tops unpainted because I can't reach it.

 Daisie felt her room needed these lovely black crayon marks all over the wallpapered wall.

These won't be covered/redecorated until we know for sure she's out of her Picasso stage.

On instagram I do tend to share the new art all over the walls, the state of the girls bedroom but I do get pictures of the girls in the tidiest bit of the house without the clutter.

 Looks pretty homely and near enough perfect right? ^^ 

It stayed that way for the night, the corner with the hoover is now cluttered with all of Andys bike stuff and notice the reflection in the tv of my old wallpaper still standing on the other wall? That's now gone but when my living room was at its most perfect to me it was still unfinished. 

One thing your guaranteed to find in my house is some kind of bike part 

So remember
'Don't compare your behind the scenes life with other peoples show reel'

Easter bucket list - Bulb potting

Today we got to do some bulb potting with my mum in the pots we had decorated earlier on in the week :)

I'd have loved to have got pictures with my mum in them but she would have gone nutts at me.

I'm so excited to see and photograph the progress with the girls 

and hopefully keep them alive (I'm the worse gardener ever) 

 

My tattoos and their meanings

To be honest not many of my tattoos have much of a meaning so I will list the ones with meaning , I'm one of those people that likes a design so will have it done and deal with it later, I don't regret any of my tattoos I regret placements but not tattoos! I'm not keen on the size I had my leopard print down my arm but never mind there's not a lot I can do about it now

I wanted it back when I had it, I see it as I won't ever be on my death bed wishing I had something done while I had the chance why worry about later? live for what you want to do now, How will I look when I'm older? Pretty damn awesome ;) 
and I'm going to be more worried about getting to bingo on time rather than how pretty my legs look in my knee length pleated skirt.

Chest - My chest is a piece that's dedicated to my girls, The devil and angel swallow represent that children can be little angels but such little devils too! Not that Daisie is the naughty one and Issy's the good one like everyone seems to think.

Back - My back hasn't been done yet but the design is ready and waiting to go! It's a dream catcher that to look at would be a standard dream catcher but to me it has 5 different meaningful features in it. even down to the beads and feathers

Roman numerals on my hands - The roman numerals I have on each hand are the girls date of births

Fingers - Not all of them have a meaning but two have a meaning I have an A on my ring finger for Andy and I have a fishing hook on my little finger (Andy loves fishing and we used to go for the weekend every now and then) We plan to make it a family thing as soon as I can drive.


Candy cane heart on my hip - I have a candy cane heart on my hip that's black and white tho (being a Tim Burton fan and all that) It has the date of mine and Andys first Christmas together, Andy also has matching on his leg.

I have many other tattoos if you wish to see those please don't hesitate to ask :)

Scuffity scuff

Today I went and grabbed the girls some new shoes before we headed to the park for the day,  because Issy's new sandals I bought from eBay her toes are hanging right off the ends and both girls are in serious need of some summer shoes.

Issy chose hers and was really chuffed with them

so when we got to subway she got changed into them, then we headed to Wilkinsons (a few feet away)

while I nipped in to get us some more plant pots to decorate 

she stayed outside and played a small bit of football with Andy. I wasn't even gone for 5 minutes 

and I came out to a tiny scuff and the front of her shoe gaping away at me!!

Playing football in them really wasn't daddy's wisest choice but I'd have hoped that 

they could handle a small bit of football considering they are being worn by a child?

Issy is a super scuffer but never have they scuffed so quickly they literally had just over 5 minutes of wear :(

I still have the receipt and will be taking them back tomorrow to swap for another pair that hopefully can manage more than 5 minutes of wear.

Andy has said he will glue them but £7 and 5 minutes of wear at the most

really isn't that impressive at all.

We never did make it to the park as Daisie really isn't well at the moment.

The furry friend tag

 

I was tagged by the lovely Heather over at prettylittleteacupp

What is your pets name?

Bear

What kind of pet are they and what breed?

Dog & she's a chiuhauha

How long have you had your pet?

Just under a year as she's only 1 herself

How did you get your pet?

I went to go and have a peek at my auntys new pups her one had, I fell in love and just had to have her (If I could have afforded them all I would have had them all)

How old are they?

She turned 1 in February

What are some quirky things about your pets personality?

The way she will hide her treats but never eat them, I'm forever finding stashes of everything she's collected! She's a serial humper the minute I straighten my legs out she thinks it's an invite to come and ride my leg/feet :/ Oh and if she comes across a screw she will bark at it and run around it for ages

What does your relationship with your pet mean to you?

 :| she's my very own little teddy that holds all of my secrets :)

 

 What are some of your favourtie past times with your pet?

Cuddles and watching her go crazy over a tiny bit of metal 

 

What are nicknames that you call your pet?

Muttly 

Favourtie toy?

Bear tends to claim anything fluffy if the dogs leave a teddy anywhere she will run away with it, I'm forever having to chase my knickers off her too -__-

I tag Sarah over at curvestheword

and anyone who would like to take part :)

Easter bucket list - Decorate plant pots

Today we got to tick another thing of our Easter to do list and got the paints out again to decorate some plant pots.

Such a cheap and fun thing to do my pots cost me £1.5O each for a 23cm pot from wilkinsons

I plan to go back and get a few in different sizes as the girls had so much fun painting them, Daisie is still to finish her's but we have plenty of time to add extras to it :)

I love how the girls were total opposites and Issy painted in brights while Daisie painted in pastels.

I plan on getting some more this size and doing hand print tulips on them but today 

I thought I'd let the girls go wild and do whatever they wished to do and it was a total hit Issy was asking could she finish Daisie's so next time I shall be grabbing extras.

What you will need

- plant pot

- paints

- paintbrush 

- some clothes you don't mind the kids getting messy in 

Have you been up to some super cheap crafts this Easter holiday?

Argan oil shampoo25Oml

I grabbed this beauty from my local poundland

It's on eBay ranging from £2.79 + £2.9O P&P to £3.99 with FREE P&P 

They also have the conditioner on there which I'm intrigued about and would love to give ago

but I'll keep my eyes peeled for it in poundland first

They had some other argan oil bits in too but I only grabbed this for now.

I can't stand the feel of oily stuff!! so even this was a hit and miss for me but you can barely notice that it has any oil in, it just feels like a normal everyday shampoo.

I used it the other day and I don't know if it's the placebo effect because I've seen/heard the name argan oil pop up all over the place or because it is really good?

I used it along with my normal shampoo and conditioner using this as the second lot of shampoo after my original one first, The stuff I'm using is a new one I'm trying from wilkos

and it usually leaves my hair feeling a little bit rough 

but with the argan oil shampoo used in between my hair feels really smooth and looks shiny.

You only need a small little amount for it to lather up, my hair is mid length and I only needed two little squeezes for my hair 

I'm definitely stocking up if they have any left on my next visit

Have you tried any argan oil products?

This or That - Tag

I spotted this tag over on laurecca while browsing bloglovin earlier on today and just had to take part.

Make-up

1. Blush or Bronzer –Blush! I'm far to pale to use bronzer

2. Lip gloss or lip stick – lipstick! I can't stand the fact everything sticks to lip gloss

3. Eyeliner or mascara – I love both but I wear mascara every time I wear make-up so I guess mascara

4. Foundation or concealer- I barely use concealer lately so Foundation it is
5. Natural or Coloured eyeshadow – Natural I'm not a eyeshadow wearer

6. Pressed or loose eyeshadow –Pressed

7. Brush or Sponge - Brush! a sponge just feels/seems like its absorbing and taking the foundation off rather then blending it in.

  Nails

1.Opi or China Glaze- I guess OPI, I only own OPI crackles but when it comes to this brand it depends on the colours in the nail shop.

2. Long or Short –If natural its short all the way, long actually makes me gag/feel sick but acrylic both

3. Acrylic or natural –Acrylic

4. Bright or dark-All depends on my mood/the weather

Body

1. Perfume or body splash - perfume

2. Lotion or Body Butter-I use either, I'm currently using a butter

3. Body wash or soap- body wash

4. Lush or Other -Lush all the way, I'll happily give other brands a go tho 

Fashion

1. Jeans or Sweat Pants - Jeans but if I could pull of sweat pants it's likely I'd wear those pretty often
2.Long sleeves or short sleeve? - depends on the weather for me and my mood

3. Dress or Skirt? - dress although I want to start wearing skirts more often but the way my hips stick out make me feel frumpy

4. Scarves or Hat - scarves, I own loads barely wear them but I own one fashion hat the rest of my hat are wooly bobble hats

5. Studs or dangling earrings - a bit of both again it depends on my mood or my outfit

6. Necklace or bracelet- necklaces! I have bracelets but end up taking them off because they irritate me

7. Heels or flats -Flats,flats, flats!!! If I could pull of heels I soo would but I don't feel comfortable wearing heels unless its a night out or out for dinner

8. Cowboy boots or riding boots - riding boots

9. Jackets or hoodies  - Jackets

10. Forever 21 or Charlotte Russe- I've never  heard of Charlotte Russe so Forever 21 it is

Hair

1. Curly or Straight - straight I can't curl my hair for love nor money
2.  Bun or Ponytail – I love a doughnut bun or a effortless messy bun (I can never get my messy buns to look effortless stylish tho) 

3. Bobby pin or butterfly clips - bobby pin

4. Hairspray or gel - I don't use either but hairspray if and when I do

5. Long or short- Long only because when it's short all I want is long hair

6. Dark or light- I love either or I'm leaning towards dark's lately only because my roots are dark and it gives me more time to touch up my roots as they aren't so obvious

7. Side swept bangs or fully bangs -I love a full fringe but mine refuses to behave itself and stay full

8. Up or down - For convenience I chuck mine up a lot but I love my hair down but half way through the day I always end up putting it up

Random

1. Rain or shine- shine but I do love a snuggle on the sofa with the rain hitting the windows

2. Summer or winter- summer

3. Fall or spring- I love both, fall for the colours changes in the leaves etc but i adore spring to see all the beautiful coloured flowers open up

4. Chocolate or Vanilla- Vanilla for scent and taste, I hate everything chocolate flavoured other than chocolate itself

I tag anyone who wants to take part!  If you've already done it, leave a link in the comment I'd love to read your answers!

Summer Scents

Easter bucket list - Pasta necklaces

Please excuse the quality of photos my partner used my camera last night and decided to let me know the battery was low when I turned it on to a 'NO battery' alert :(

So the trusty phone camera had to do.

While preparing a home made macaroni cheese the other week it hit me that using the pasta to decorate and make necklaces/bracelets with would be a great cheap bit of fun.

So today we gave it ago out in the garden as the weather was nice and they could make as much mess as they liked.

I grabbed some penne pasta too while doing the food shop just to mix it up and have the option of two different shapes,feels,length etc.

We finally got to give our ELC paints and a go and the colours are soo gorgeous!

You'll need

- string

- paints

- glue (optional)

- glitter (optional)

- macaroni pasta 

- penne pasta

Do you have any cheap crafts planned for the Easter holidays?