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Dear Daisy, It is your first day at school...

Will this be my last pregnancy?

A question none of us know the answer to I guess. But something I have been thinking about this last couple of days. 

I am finding this pregnancy relatively tricky, in that I have never felt 100%, I have had sickness, aches pains and just felt naff. I also haven't found it easy with a toddler to chase around after and wake up to in the night (when she doesn't feel like sleeping herself!). I know they all really trivial in the grand scheme of things, there is no major complaint there, but it doesn't mean that I personally have had the time of my life being pregnant this time. Don't get me wrong, like I have said many times before I am truly grateful to be pregnant and cooking this little boy, I really am. 

I have often thought I would like 3 children, all relatively close in age. It just seemed like a good number and I guess the house would always be lively and hopefully happy, the more children there are the busier it would be! But after having the lovely news of having a boy this time after a gorgeous little girl, Daisy it has got me wondering, would I really want 3?

Daisy Bump (30 weeks) - Baby boy Bump (26 weeks)


It was never something we decided on, or even discussed really. Just something I had in my mind I guess at some point. But then I have this sudden sadness, will this be my last pregnancy? And if so have I / am I really cherishing it enough? I haven't gone in to this pregnancy thinking this will be the last time I see a little baby pop up on that ultrasound screen, the last time my belly goes pop into a bump or the last time the dainty little flutters in my tummy turn into full blown kicks and rolls that make me wince and laugh when they make me jump! And well maybe I should have. 

Because I guess even if you decide to take the plunge and have that third, well who knows if it will possible. You just don't know really what is laid out for your future. A little deep today, but something I wonder if other people think about too? 

I suppose all I can do for now is to start to drink up this pregnancy and enjoy it as much as I can! 

Hayley xx


26 Weeks Pregnant: Video Diary

So here we go again, frightening to think that next week I will be in the third trimester! waaaa! But how exciting, we will soon have our teeny little boy here!


I am sure you will agree my belly has gone POP!!!!

Lot's of love,
Hayley

GIVEAWAY!!! #Lovelytummies with Palmers: Pamper Hamper

If you have seen my latest post all about avoiding stretch marks you will know how I recommend and absolutely love Palmers products!




I now have a little pamper hamper for one of you to win! All you need to do is enter the below rapplecopter give away and you could be in with a chance to get one for all your pampering needs! 

The winner will be picked at random by the app and shared with you all on the 27th Feb! 

Good luck! 



a Rafflecopter giveaway

Lots of love, 
Hayley xxx

#Lovelytummies with Palmers | Avoiding those dreaded stretch marks!

If you have been following my blog since the very start (almost 2 years ago, crazy huh?) then you will have seen in my previous pregnancy with Daisy I talked a lot about stretch marks and the fear of getting them, trying to avoid them and the rest of it!



Well, I am happy (but lightly coy) to say that I got away with it, weather it was due to the hardwork of greasing, rubbing, massaging, buttering and oiling my tummy or if it simply is genetics I am not sure, I am no mad scientist. But... This means I am not going to be doing anything less crazy this time around, I can't risk it!


The beach ball the day before I had Daisy at 37 weeks! 

I am at risk of sounding incredibly vain but we all want to avoid these things if we can, mainly for self confidence. I am feeling bigger this time around so who knows, maybe the tiger marked skin will hit me this time around.

I used Palmers in my last pregnancy and to be honest it is a staple brand on my dressing table all year around anyway, I love their cocoa butter especially for the summer and banishing away the dry, holiday skin that I am so lucky to get! I think it is just the smell that gets me every single time. it just has holidays written all over it! Some products actually smell good enough to eat!

I have got a nice little selection here now on my dressing table ready to pamper my over stretched (the worst is yet to come!) pregnant body, and that includes for me my expanding tummy, bulging boobs and sadly my problem area has always been my thighs. I was unfortunate enough to gain a few scars there from my teenage years but luckily they are silvered now and barely noticeable, although I know they are there!!




So, my favourite product that I am so pleased to be using again is the tummy butter, this stuff is so easy to apply. It feels quite solid but once you have a bit in your fingers it starts to melt and is so easily absorbed by your skin, it just vanishes, leaving you nice and smooth. I absolutely hate the feeling of being greasy and some oils etc I have used before do this to me, but this is fab!

The other product I have been trying out is the masage cream for stretch marks, this is something I didn't know existed last time around! This is in a simple tube, which I love. No messing around! On the instructions it says to use 3 times per days or as often as possible, I don't think even I will be able to manage this but I certainly have made sure it has a place in my morning routine.

The other product you can see in the shot is the massage lotion, now this has a super easy pump applicator, perfect for quick applications, and the consistency allows you to use it a and when without feeling the need to "air" yourself for a while to dry off!

I absolutely love these products and really do recommend, one bonus is that they are really affordable too. I have tried some products that are really overly priced, based on recommendations, and although they may have helped a little (who knows, I can't prove it?) I didn't feel they were any better than these. All I am really looking for this time around is natural ingredients such as cocoa butter, argan oil, sweet almond oil and centella asiatica which are all great for helping the skin to retain moisture and elasticity whilst obviously not bringing nay nasties to the table.

Are there any other products you personally recommend?

Lots of love,

Hayley xxx

*PR Samples but all reviews are my own

24 weeks pregnant: Video Diary

Sorry for the delay, but here is my latest video diary, 24 weeks pregnant!

There have been a few struggles (minor I admit!)...




Lots of love,
Hayley xxx

Bump #2 Pregnancy diary: Weeks 21-23

Can you get your head around how quick these updates are flying around? I seriously can't! I have a feeling I will be saying that at the start of every post up until the end of my pregnancy. I am feeling quite content as a pregnant lady of 23 weeks at the moment.



 I generally feel well (albeit a bit pooped come an end of a day), am enjoying having my appetite back, have a nice rounded, lively little bump that isn't too uncomfortable yet and well I just feel quite good. I would be happy to pause the pregnancy and soak it all in for a month or so if I could at this stage! That way I could enjoy it, enjoy being a mummy to just Daisy for a little longer and just saviour the time a little. I don't have Bernards watch though so it will just fly by and soon I will be a slightly more chubby, uncomfortable, probably tired again, agitated big muma! But then on the bright side it does mean I will be getting those newborn snuggles before I know it!

To think I am over half way is crazy, we have too much to do before he comes such as find a place to put his belongings and create a place just for him, as in a cute little nursery. We may be mad but we have just started looking at making some amendments to our house, so where this will fit in I have no idea. Exciting but slightly bonkers seeing as though our family is about to grow in a matter of months!

I have started shopping for him now, and actually am going to stop for a little while (if I can!) until I at least have a cupboard to put them in for him! At the minute they're in a pile on my bedroom floor in plastic boxes, not ideal. But we will sort it!

In a few weeks we have a little holiday booked, well the time booked off at least. We were off to the Canaries for a week to get a bit of sunshine but time went on too fast and if I am really honest flying pregnant with a toddler in tow just wasn't making me feel all that excited. So we are now looking at a few days in Centre Parcs, just a lovely few days with Daisy & my husband, no pressures or stresses. Just fun! But that is in a few weeks yet sadly.

In terms of my ever expanding bump, it really is going pop! I have got to the stage where people are taking a double glance or coming out right and saying wow you got big! I really do not think I am big at all, yet! But I certainly have gone pop and am looking pretty pregnant now, rather than that chubby, bloated stage!



Movement is good now, he wriggles about at various intervals during the day and as before his favourite time of the day is just as I go to bed! I can see my tummy jumping about, twitching and starting to roll which I forgot how much I actually loved watching and feeling that!

In my last update I mentioned that sickness was slowly subsiding and I am happy to say it has probably been close to two weeks now since I was last sick - thank Goodness!!!! I can't tell you how happy that makes me feel and a little less gross!

Other than that the only real "symptom" I am feeling is a bit hormonal, well emotional I guess. I don't like to show my emotions really and I think that comes in the main from my day to day job as an account manager, it isn't the done thing to show emotions in that way and so i think I have kind of adopted it in my day to day life. Sometimes people have commented that I come across as I don't care but that isn't true, I just tend to think it through in my own head or go all out with my opinions. And sometimes my opinions may not be appreciated! I have gone off on a tangent a little, little distraction technique there! But yeah, I guess there have been days where I feel on the brink of tears, feel down and glum, mostly when I am tired or busy. But this is just part of pregnancy I guess!



Lots of love,
Hayley xxx

"Dare to explore. Dare to dream. Dare to discover. Dare to be you"

"Dare to explore. Dare to dream. Dare to discover. Dare to be you" 
Oksana Rus

I am sure you will have seen a post a week or so ago about making memories and cherishing the little things with your children, well this is just a follow on from that really. 

Once again over the past few weeks I have just tried to enjoy every minute I get with Daisy on our days out together exploring and letting her be the curious little rascal that she is. 

The sunny but chilly days make me so happy and Daisy loves being able to be free and run her little legs off whilst letting her curiosity explore new things...








Lots of love, 
Hayley & Daisy xxx




Creating bedtime habits (good ones)! #2

Not so long ago I wrote a post all about how I was attempting to change Daisy's bedtime habits for the good of us all. You can find that post here, but the short of it was that I was the first to admit I had molly cuddled her for a little while, but now was the time to get her in a habit of realising her bed is her own, it's Daisy's little safe place where she can snooze the night away happily.

In the last update she was pretty happy to go to bed on her own after a week or so, I say "night night", tuck her in and sat with her for 2/3 minutes. However in the night when she woke all hell broke loose! Headbutting of the headboard, everything stripped out of the cot and chucked out, you get the picture (If not just think of that scene in the exorcist and you'll begin to understand!!!)! It was difficult, it disrupted the whole house and just felt like we were losing a battle we would never, ever win!



Well, we have progress. Daisy will now wake in the night as she previously did but now will just call my name, I pop my head in and tuck her back in, she rolls over and doses back off. Winner! It is so much easier! I would absolutely love no wake up call at 2/3 am but hey you can't have everything can you?!

I would like to say it works every time but sadly she does wake at times at 4/5am and will roll back over but will just toss and turn and won't settle. She isn't upset but soon becomes fed up and moans a little. I often bring her into our bed then, and like before she will sleep merrily until 8-9am, however long we let her sleep for! I still have to wake her most days for nursery!

It is all a learning journey and hopefully one day soon she will sleep through every single night and we will have no disturbances but I genuinely think it will happen when it happens. She is not very old, going through lots of developmental phases, teething and a busy bee of a toddler so I don't expect it to be all hunky dory all of the time! I also have noticed she is beginning to understand fear a little, so maybe nightmares are playing on her mind? Who knows!

 I found a great website (click the link) which has hit it on the head for me "Many factors can lead to sleep problems. Toddlers' drive for independence and an increase in their motor, cognitive and social abilities can interfere with sleep. In addition, their ability to get out of bed, separation anxiety, the need for autonomy and the development of the child's imagination can lead to sleep problems."

My other thought is when do I know she is ready for a big girls bed? As you'll know we are expecting our second baby in early June and it would be lovely to use that cot and replace it in Daisy's room with a nice, little ladies bed. But maybe this will add more disturbance to her improving sleep patterns? Any thoughts?

Lots of love,
Hayley xxx