Skibz Bibs Review

We were sent one of Skibz bibs to road test with Bee a few weeks ago now. The design we were sent is the Cowboy Star original dribble bib in red and white (you can buy it HERE).

When Rocket was a baby I didn't know much about bandana style bibs so completely missed out, but since Bee has been here, they are pretty much all the style that he wears now.

My first thought was that at £8 each, they were a bit on the costly side for us but after comparing them to other dribble bibs around, the quality speaks for itself.

Skibz are made of 100% cotton are exceptionally thick with brilliant absorbancy. I can get twice as much time out of Bee wearing his Skibz than I can from a supermarket brand dribble bib.

At the moment of course, Bee is still very young (he is 12 weeks old) but he constantly has his hands in his mouth so his clothes do get soggy - which is why we love the Skibz as it looks like part of his outfit and firs snug around his neck comfortably. There are 2 popper choices on the Skibz so it can grow with him which is great.

They also wash well so I predict it will have a long lasting job to do when Bee turns into a teething
dribbler!

If you head on over to the Skibz website, you can see all the fabulous different designs you can choose from, as well as other awesome products that they sell.

We are very pleased with Skibz and as teething approaches, we will be stocking up!

You can follow Skibz on FACEBOOK, TWITTER and on Instagram ( @SkibzBibs )

12 Weeks Old

Dear Bee,

You are now officially 12 weeks old and turn 3 months on the 8th. What a whirlwind these last 12 weeks have been!

I have known you now for just under 1 year as you grew inside me and we are now discovering eachother even more.

You are amazing, you have the most beautiful soft fluffy brown hair, I love kissing it. Your eyes are slowly beginning to change from murky blue to what I'm guessing will be hazel green/brown like your big brothers. You have such sweet expressive eyes and eyelashes the girls are jealous of!

You were weighed yesterday at 13lbs 15oz so just one ounce off a stone!

You hold your head up so well and it's great for taking photos with your brother together.

You coo and smile which makes me melt. You are such a serious baby, you love frowning and working the world out, I can see you taking every detail in and it takes a lot of work to make you smile, but when you do it makes it even more magical. I love how you smile at me when you haven't seen me for a while.

You seriously love your milk! you are still mix fed, bottle and breast milk. You have 6-7 ounces a time! I adore the squidgy baby rolls you are developing on your thighs, they are so cute.

Unfortunately you are still unwell with your cold, you have been suffering with it since you were 2 weeks old bless you. I feel sad that you don't know what it feels like to breathe easily. We are getting it sorted though and you have an appointment at the hospital soon.

Bedtime is going great, I love co sleeping with you, I really look forward to nights now so I can lay down next to you and tell you stories. Your face is the first thing I see when I wake up and that makes me so happy. You are also a fantastic sleeper and no longer wake through the night!

You are growing fast and are just moving into size 3-6 month clothes (you have really long legs like your daddy!)

Your brother Rocket absolutely adores you and loves showing you off to his friends at preschool. He kisses you on your head but doesn't understand that you are still too little to play yet. I can tell you are going to be the best (and probably worst) of friends.

I'm so proud of you both.

Keep growing and amazing me sweetheart. My world is compete now you are here with us.

Much love, Mummy xxx

Win Tickets to The Baby Show - with Britax!

Taking place from the 21^st -23^rd February at ExCel London, The Baby Show is the UK’s leading pregnancy and parenting event. There will be hundreds of stands, which will feature anything and everything baby and toddler-focused – from innovative new inventions to showcases from all your favourite brands.

There will also be hourly guest speakers including nutrition expert Annabel Karmel, breastfeeding expert Clare Byam-Cook, and infant research and professor Dr Robert Titzer. With giveaways and special offers galore, make sure you don’t miss out!

To celebrate BRITAX’s continued involvement with the Baby Show and my role as a BRITAX Mumbassador, I’m really excited to be able to give away a pair of tickets to the next Baby Show in February! BRITAX’s stall will be stocked with all the latest BRITAX and BOB products, as well as having exciting offers available to Baby Show visitors. BRITAX experts will be on hand too, to explain the latest technology and take you through all the car seats and strollers on offer.

The tickets entitle you and a friend to full access at the London ExCel Baby Show on a day of your choice. Little ones get free entry so they’re more than welcome to come along too!

Please use the Rafflecopter form below to enter! T&Cs apply.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

My top baby reviews of the first 2 months!

Now that Bee is 9 weeks old I thought it was time to round up the products that I've found the most helpful or pleasing to use! Of course I can't list everything but I hope this will help you discover some things you didn't know about :)

Theraline - The Original Maternity and Pregnancy Pillow

Oh my gosh! this pillow has been an amazing support for me. I received it when I was pregnant with Bee and it really helped getting comfortable at night using it in between my legs to support my hips until the last month when my SPD was bad and there was no way I could get comfortable with or without!
 I used it to prop myself up in bed which was useful for the horrid heartburn I suffered with.
The pillow is nice and long and filled with micro beads which mould to the shape of your body, making you as comfortable as possible. My mum was so impressed she went and got herself a Theraline pillow too!

as a photography support!

When Bee was born I was in alot of pain from the birth, especially with my fall I had and the pillow became my best friend. It literally helped me support Bee and made it possible to get comfortable enough to breastfeed.

We use the pillow every day still and I don't see me ever stopping. Its great for me because of my HMS and can support my joints in so many ways.

One of the surprise uses we have had from it is a photography support! It helps Bee with his tummy time and I get some great snaps of him and his brother.

I would highly recommend this maternity pillow, is a product that has so many uses and you will definitely get your moneys worth!

MamaScarf

The MamaScarf is a nursing cover designed to help mothers breastfeed in public whilst keeping fully covered, making it relaxing and discrete.
 I struggled badly with breastfeeding, especially in the early days and we went to Center Parcs when Bee was only 10 days old and I took my MamaScarf with me.
 I never ended up feeding in public but that was due to not being able to get my joints into a comfortable enough position and with him fighting the latch it was too much.
 However I ended up wearing my MamaScarf every day we were there! Not only is it stylish and actually looked funky it also gave me confidence that if i leaked through my breast pads that I would have extra cover as I was embarrassed people would see! Plus it hid my very new wobbly mum tum!
  Its a beautiful piece of material made out of 100% cotton and it washes brilliantly. Its nice and big, can cover any age baby and can help with confidence to feed anywhere. I love the MamaScarf!

SwaddleMe Swaddle Banket

This was actually a hand me down from a friend but I have to include it as it ROCKS! Bee didn't have it for the first couple of weeks and none of us got any sleep at all. When we swaddled him in this blanket he started sleeping 5 hours straight! It's so easy to use and is a nice snug fit around his arms but leaves his hips and legs to move freely. He is now growing out of the one he has and I will definetly be buying the next size up as we plan to swaddle him for as long as possible. He still has a very strong startle reflex.
 Thumbs up for the SwaddleMe!

Softly Snail Baby on Board - Little Bird Told Me

We were sent the Softly Snail Baby on Board for the back window of our car. I adore this range which is cute and colourful and unisex. The sign gently sways in the window to catch the eye of the driver behind so they know you have a little bundle in your car and to keep their distance.
 Unfortunatly ours managed to fall out whilst shopping sometime and we didn't notice so just make sure it's stuck on nice and secure as its a shame to lose such a pretty sign.




Tommee Tippee Sangenic Nappy Disposal System

When Rocket was born we never had a nappy bin and ended up with bags of nappys waiting to be thown out in the black bin outside, so I was really excited to try it out.
 It's been great so far, we have used it for 2 weeks and there is no smell at all coming out from the bin (its been emptied twice). Its an easy design of lifting the lid, placing the nappy in and pushing it down below the level, twisting the handle then closing the lid.
 We keep ours in the lounge but it's easy to transport it to the bedroom at night for nappy free peace of mind ;)
I'm awaiting a delivery of new cassettes for it at the moment so my tip is to buy them ahead of time so you're not waiting to use it. They come in packs of three and are pretty reasonable.
 Although a nappy bin is a bit of a luxury, it's one luxury I am glad to have!

Snugglebundl Review

We've had a snugglebundl since the day Bee was born. It's a product that sounded amazing to me as, suffering with my HMS, the prospect of not having to strain to pick baby up was fabulous.

I was not disappointed! We packed the snugglebundl in our hospital bag and in fact, the first time we used it Bee was less than an hour old and we were still in the labour and delivery suite.

It's made of such soft and cosy material that it lives up to its name of snuggle as that exactly what you want to do!

It has a very soft head support within the blanket so when you pick baby up it totally supports his/her head whilst their back is also supported comfortably.

You are also able to transfer your sleeping little one from the car seat straight into your arms or cot which is fabulous as every parent knows it's a task to do that and once you've woken the baby that's that!

Look how snugly Bee looks in his. We took it to Center Parcs with us when he was only 10 days old and aside from using it as a lifting blanket (in and out of the cot was brilliant) it was also great for keeping him warm whilst out and about.


I would recommend anyone that has joint problems like myself to invest in a Snugglebundl, for me it helped me bond without the increased pain I would have experienced bending and lifting without help.


You can find out more about Snuggbundl and buy HERE.


Follow Snugglebundl on TWITTER and FACEBOOK

Britax B-MOTION 3 Review

 

As part of the Britax Mumbassador scheme we were sent a B-MOTION 3 to put through its paces

and review (excellent timing as Bee had only been born the week before so we got to take it away and use it!)

We chose the stunning Chilli Pepper model as I loved the red colour which is very eye catching and rich.

Unboxing the B-MOTION3 took around 10 minutes and it really wasn't that difficult to assemble. I was impressed with the quality of the fabric and how sturdy and solid the buggy felt.

One thing I love is its multi positioning feature (with Bee being a newborn the lay flat position is a must) but you can also adjust it to any position you like which helped massively when Bee needed his head elevated due to his cold.

Having a 6 foot (odd) husband, we often find with pushchairs that the handlebars are way too low and cause him discomfort to push, but Britax have really thought this through and the B-MOTION3 offers a height adjustable bar meaning that whoever pushes baby, whether tall or short, can be certain that its going to be a dream to push.. and it really is!

Having air filled rubber wheels and rear suspension you can just about go anywhere with this buggy. Pushing over bumpy terrain in the countryside is absolutely no problem and feels smooth for baby. You also have the option of locking the front swivel wheel if you need to (for those perfectly straight roads)

We live out in the country so quite often take walks down stony paths and fields and its the first buggy I've pushed out there with such ease to be honest!

Another great feature is that you can fold it one handed. It also supports itself freestanding on the ground so you don't have to worry about fiddling with different settings. That also helps keep the buggy clean when stored. It's just as easy to unfold and use straight away too. I did find it took a couple of times opening and closing to get used to it as it was slightly stiff due to being new (and the fact I have a joint problem so everything is harder for me!) but after that it really does go up in a matter of seconds.

I adore that its got a massive shopping basket underneath, storage is a parents best friend and that's where other buggies are a let down! I was able to fill it with the baby bag, coats, rain cover and shopping so that is a fabulous plus.

With the storage it also has a very handy big pocket on the back of the buggy, I love the generous size and how convenient it is to get to baby essentials without having to bend to the shopping basket and dig for what you are looking for.

The seat is very spacious (If my almost 4 year old wasn't as tall as he is then he would fit in there quite happily) there is plenty of room for a growing child to fit comfortably.

The Britax B-MOTION 3 is suitable from Birth to 17kg (4 Years) and weighs 11kg.

It is also avaliable in Neon Back.

Bee's Birth Story

My last bump pic 36+5

The Story starts in the 36th week when I visited my registrar after my second growth scan. Bumble was measuring big, but we already knew that and following in Rockets footsteps we weren't surprised. I'm pretty sure I saw his head measured at 39 weeks!

I waited and finally saw the registrar, who was new to me as my own consultant was on holiday - something I got upset about as I was sure they wouldn't induce me like what had been discussed earlier in the pregnancy.

My SPD and hypermobility had got so bad, I could hardly walk and once on a sofa would need help to get up and the pain... The pain was very bad.

Luck was on my side though as the registrar who saw me agreed that inducing me slightly early (38 weeks) would be the best for me and baby. They had booked the induction but they decided to do a sweep to see if things would get going naturally. Oh my god was that painful.. I was writhing around on that bed! She stretched me to 2cm and said my cervix was favourable (which only one week ago was hidden so high they almost had their hand out my mouth! Or so it felt ;-) )

 I had period like pains and irregular contractions for the rest of the day which made walking around Sainsburys with my mum an interesting task!

The plan was that I would have 2 sweeps a week until the induction, at home with my midwives.

The next day all signs of contractions had stopped so I arranged to have some reflexology to get things going and after an intense session my contractions started up once again but annoyingly by the evening they had stopped again! I was dreading the next sweep which was booked for Friday!

Thursday morning I woke up with a horrendous backache and contractions and I just knew something was up. I had a really bad tummy and after calling my dad to come collect me I walked back into my bedroom and part of my waters went, then some more but not enough to soak through clothes, although it felt really strange!

When I got to the hospital, mum had caught up and both she and dad were with me as my birth partners.
I got checked in the labour ward but was only 2cm and the contractions were irregular so they sent me to walk around the hospital to try encourage them to get stronger and regular.

I spent the next couple of hours walking around and contracting, it was quite painful but bearable, then we headed back to the maternity ward so I could get checked for progress (which was OK... but still very slow)

Disappointingly the doctor wanted me to go home again for a few hours, which seemed silly to me as by the time I would have got home I would have been back again! Plus with how Rockets birth panned out, there was a chance I could have had the baby at home. Though after agreeing and gathering my stuff, I walked towards the ends of the bay in the ward and the rest of my waters went. The doctor followed me into the toilet to check and then suggested I stayed in hospital as my contractions could get stronger now the waters had gone and we agreed I would go for a further walk around the hospital to get them picking up.

My gosh did they start getting stronger, the contraction pain detracted from the SPD pain very well and I was walking for what seems like an eternity as I was desperate not to let the slow down and stop again. When they got too strong I asked my parents to take me back up to the Ward and on being checked (I believe i was 5-6cm at this point) they walked me over to the labour and delivery ward (with stops against the wall during contractions!)

When we got to the labour ward they discussed things with me like did I want the baby placed on my chest (yes), did I want delayed cord clamping (yes) etc and then they said I could have an epidural which was previously discussed but I stupidly said 'no, lets see how the next few contractions are' (seeing as I coped without when I had Rocket) - I never got my epidural!!

The contractions wernt doing as they should have been really and s they were pushing his head down my cervix wasn't moving out of the way properly and baby was back to back and at an awkward angle which was making it even more painful and that was BEFORE they hooked me up on Pitocin to force the contractions more!

I already had an IV in s i was hooked up to antibiotics as a precaution as when I had Rocket I had the infection Group B Strep and he was poorly when Born so it was always the plan to have them just in case here.

I remember the conversation about Bee being born on the 7th, I would have been 36+6 and he would be classed as premature and need all the checks and paperwork done.. It was so important to me to have a 'normal' birth experience and to be able to hold my child for more than 2 minutes and actually have him with me and take him home after having to leave Rocket in special care for 10 days. Bee certainly wanted to be with mummy as he waited.. 19 whole minutes past midnight, entering the world on the 8th November 2013 (and not premature!!!).

I wasn't able to see what was going on (although thanks so my lovely mum I have the entire birth filmed, crowning, coming out, the lot! so now I can see what happened and didn't have to miss out on memories like I had done with Rocket). Bee was in shock though and although he was screwing his face up, he was a grey colour and floppy and not breathing properly so not only did the placing of baby straight away on chest not happen, the delayed cord clamping didn't either as she needed to whisk him to the table to wake him up.. which worked fine and he pinked up straight away.

After that he was placed on my chest and all was right with the world, I'd done it, he was here safely.


The actual birth was physically alot harder than Rockets, the crowning was super intense and the entinox and Pethadine didn't seem to help much! I tore again, but not quite as much as i did with Rocket although I still had to be stitched up like a quilt! I grazed too, not nice!

Mum went home and picked my husband up and brought him to meet his newest son but as the hours were very antisocial and my mum had to work the next day, he couldn't stay long and when he went I was left to get the stitches.

Bee was weighed at 7lb 3oz at exactly 37 weeks and had a head circumference of 35.5cm.

One incredibly negative thing that happened to me was after I had been stitched up the midwife took me for a shower .. on my own.. they were short staffed and my mum had gone home so it was me alone, still wobbly from pethidine and the shock and exhaustion from birth and I managed to slip and do the actual splits landing pretty hard on my bum. I didn't cry out but couldn't reach the emergency bell either as someone had wrapped it around a support handle.. I had to shimmy on my bum then get up on my knees to reach the cord and when the midwife came in she said she could hear a bang but didn't know what it was! They got me checked by the doctor when I got back to the ward but all she did was press my spine and say I was fine.. It was only around day 3 I realised I had really hurt my pelvis.

That night (what was left of it) I couldn't sleep and just sat on the end of the bed staring at Bee.. I was terrified he would cry and wake the other ladies and babies up! silly hey! but that's me lol.

We were allowed to go home the same day, at 8pm after all the newborn checks, hearing etc was done and daddy took some lovely photos of Rocket meeting Bee for the first time, it was heartwarming!



 That's basically my birth story in a nutshell! Its now 4 weeks on and it's all been a complete blur but I Will get on and post as much as I can to catch up!