Baby Shower gift ideas

With restrictions lifting in the UK lots of parties are starting to happen more and more and I've noticed lots of people planning baby showers. 

I know that most people give baby clothes as presents, and while that is so appreciated by new mothers there are often lots of other things they need or have their eyes on, so I thought I would put together a list of present ideas for if you are stuck and don't want to give clothes. 

Money or Vouchers

This one is probably my go-to because I would rather parents buy something they actually need. I usually give a £20 John Lewis voucher (I used to go to Mothercare but as that's now gone...). A voucher towards a big or special item can come in really useful and while it's not the prettiest thing its probably one of their favourite presents. 

Personalised gifts

I love anything with Harry's name or initials on and always have, so when people got us things with his name on they were probably my favourite presents. I love the idea of gifting one of the My 1st Years backpacks or one of their wooden toys, although maybe not too useful with the newborn stage something beautiful for when the baby is a little older. Obviously, if you don't know the baby's name this one is a little harder. 

Jelly Cat stuffed animals

I found Jelly Cat by watching YouTube and fell in love, they do so many different animals and these are perfect 'special' soft toys that will last the baby for years. I love the idea of if the parents have a themed nursery - especially if its an animal theme - you can get an animal to match. Harry got his Jelly Cat elephant this year from my lovely work colleagues and I'm even more obsessed!

Potty Training

Lockdown seemed like such a great time to look at potty training, and I know for a lot of parents it worked out really well. 

Most people this kind of post would go up when their child has nailed potty training and is having very little or no accidents at all. This is not the case for me. 

I wanted to write a post about the real struggle we have had with Harry because all the posts and videos I've seen have gone on about how easy it is. We have not had that experience. 

Harry started showing signs of being ready for potty training a little bit before his 4th birthday, but with working full time I didn't have the time to dedicate to potty training. I knew I had around 6 days off over Harry's birthday and could dedicate that time. Then lockdown happened and I thought yes! This is the time I've been wanting. We let Harry enjoy his birthday and the day after we said to him 'that's it, you are 4 now, time for the nappies to go'. 

Shockingly, Harry was fine with this. I did lots of research the days leading up to this and knew that for the first day or so Harry was going to need to be naked. We had got all the options, not knowing what Harry would prefer, a traditional potty or toilet seat. Harry chose the potty and this was fine by me. 

We did around 3 days with naked and Harry amazed us. He did so well having very little accidents, we had set timers on our Amazon Echo for 15 minutes, then 20, then half an hour until the third day when we felt that Harry had nailed it. He had started telling us when he needed to go and even did a few poo's on the potty so we got rid of the timers and let him go when he needed. 

On day 4 we felt it was the time to start with some pants. This is where our problems started. Harry chose his own pants (Hey Duggee) and every morning was super excited to pick a pair, then he wouldn't be able to tell us when he needed to go. He would pee in his pants and just carry on playing or whatever he was doing. We decided to go back to being naked and I did more research which said to try just trousers as pants felt too much like nappies. After 2 more days of naked we put Harry in just some loose joggers and had the same issue as with the pants. 

Its been months now and when Harry is naked he is completely perfect, no accidents and really being good at telling us when he needs a wee. He has even started to tell us when he needs a wee or a poo when he has a nappy on, but the moment he has something else on, pants or trousers he is not even acknowledging that he needs to go and its gotten to the point where if we are home he is naked and if we need to leave the house he has a pull up on. 

I honestly feel like a failure with this, Harry started school in September and I was really worried about not potty training him before, however I have spoken to his new teacher and they have no issue with him being in nappies. But I just don't know where to turn with potty training. A friend said to me wait until his speech gets better, but I don't know when this will be. 

Rainy day activities for toddlers

Rainy days are finally here!

The weather seems to have taken a turn, which means if you are anything like me you are scouring the internet for ideas for things to do with your toddler while it's raining. So I thought I would show my list of go-to activities for when it's raining. 

Disclaimer - Some of my links are affiliate links. This means I may earn a small commission if you chose to buy something from my link, but it will not affect the price you pay!

1. Baking - Any time I make a list of activities to do with Harry baking will always be top of the list. Baking is my passion and something I know Harry will love too, even if it's just getting to lick the bowl! 

Baking is a great activity for kids and can be very educational too with measuring the ingredients and mixing the wet and dry ingredients. Biscuits and cupcakes are my favourites to make because Harry can let his creativity flow with the decorating. 

2. Biscuit decorating - So if you are not a baker, this is something really fun to do with your toddler. Buy a basic pack of digestive or rich tea biscuits, some chocolate spread, sprinkles and icing pens. Spread the chocolate spread over the biscuit and let them go with decorating! You can talk about the colours of the icing pens, shapes of your sprinkles and see what happens when they drop the sprinkles from different heights and directions.

3. Painting - Harry loves to paint. Recently we cut out the letters of his name in cardboard and let Harry loose with his paints. These came out great and really helped Harry to recognise his name. We are now planning on putting these in a frame for his room too!

4. Puddle jumping - This one needs no explanation. Sometimes, even when it's cold or wet outside its good to just get out. So get out the raincoats, puddle suits and wellies and go and get some fresh air. Then when you get home, grab a hot chocolate to warm up. Your toddler will thank you for the change of scenery. 

5. Puzzles and games - We love puzzles in our house and have recently discovered Orchard Toy games. These are fab - especially for little ones and can be very educational too. Harry loves to help complete a puzzle and break it up for us to do it all over again! 

If you don't own any Orchard Toy games I highly recommend the Shopping List - you can find this here - it's very simple but great for your first game!

What's On My Amazon Wishlist

Am I the only person with about 12 wish lists on Amazon? I have one for me, one for Sam (not that he uses it) one for Harry and one for pretty much every room in the house, then storage ones too. I may be a little obsessed really. 

For todays post I thought I would share some of the things on my Wishlist, because honestly I'm super nosey and if I saw this post I would be clicking straight on it!

(Please note I will not be sharing my Wishlist on this post, I am not in any way begging for gifts I just like to see what's on other peoples list and get ideas for mine. If you don't like the idea of this post please do not feel like you need to stay!)

Disclaimer - Some of my links are affiliate links. This means I may earn a small commission if you chose to buy something from my link, but it will not affect the price you pay!

1. Baking supplies

I don't think I ever not having baking stuff in my Wishlist. I love baking. It's my happy place and so I am always looking for new things for my baking hobby! Right now I am in desperate need of a new mixer as mine has finally after around 7 years. I would obviously love a kitchen aid but I just can't justify £500 for a mixer right now. I'm currently looking at this one. 

2. Instax Mini

Who remembers the original poleriod camera's back in the day? I remember my aunts buying me one for Christmas when I was around 9 years old and I'm 100% positive that is where I got my love of photography and all things media! So when the Intax Mini's came out I was obsessed but haven't been able to bring myself to buy one because as a parent, there is always something more important to spend the money on! The camera I am looking at is here.

3. Nespresso Vertuo

I am a huge coffee lover and I have a Dolce Gusto machine, which I love but honestly, the Nespresso Vertuo looks amazing! With the milk frother I can see me using that so much. You can find the coffee machine here

4. iPad Pro

Who doesn't want one of these? For me I would love it for doing some writing on the go as it is almost impossible on the go at the moment. You can find the iPad Pro on Amazon

5. Bookmark

Possibly my favourite thing on my Wishlist (and the ONLY Harry Potter thing) is this beautiful Ravenclaw (the best house) bookmark - Please note other houses are available! Find on Amazon here