Dear Lochlann... you are four.

 // 2.1.2019

Hey there little boy guess what, you turned four today.  Our little blonde, curly-haired Peter Pan is growing up! You were so excited this morning and told us that your favourite present was your electric toothbrush despite the bicycle and a dozen hot wheels cars also waiting for you.  You were allowed any breakfast of your choice but simply went for coco-pops but you were even too excited to eat those!

You have grown up so much in the past year Lolo.  You have left nursery joined big school, given up bedtime nappies and even given up your dummy.  When I think about how far you've come this year I realize you really aren't my little baby boy anymore.  We were so worried (well I was your dad knew you'd smash it) about you joining FS1 in September and yes there are sometimes tears in a morning but you have done so well.  You have your own little group of friends and you happily tell us all about your days.

You absolutely love every type of vehicle there is you are all about fire engines, police cars, helicopters, trains... you name it, you love it! Christmas and your birthday have been a dream come true for you as you are now the proud owner of a whole fleet of play mobile vehicles.  You are still such a home bird and love nothing better than staying in at home and playing quietly with your toys.

The vehicle theme continues when you are asked what you would like to be when you are older. Your answer usually ranges from pilot to fireman to astronaut to train driver.  Whatever you choose to do I know you will love it and I have no doubt that you will be great at it.

... slow down boy of mine and stay little just a while longer.

Love you to the moon & back again little Lolo.

Love,

Mama

xx

Dear Posey... you are five.

Well little girl I cannot honestly believe it but you are five years old, five already!  I am not sure how we have got here so quickly and yet it seems as though I can barely remember a time where it was just your daddy and I.

You are growing into such a wonderful person P, you are bright, you are sassy and you are ever so caring.  Right now your favourite things to do are draw and write.  You are so determined to read and write which is just fantastic.  You can be quite hard on yourself, it seems we may have a little perfectionist on our hands.  I hope to try my best to teach to you to be kind to yourself, these things will come, there's time yet my darling.  We were so amazed by your confidence when we went ice-skating in Copenhagen, you went straight for it round and round the rink on your own like the super star that you are!

You recently learned how to swim without your life jacket and your face beams with pride each time you manage to swim a width or two of the pool.  You have your daddy and Sally to thank for this.  I love watching you in the pool, I think it is most probably your favourite thing about living in Abu Dhabi!

You miss your family in England and I know you find that hard, you've had such a wonderful Christmas with them all and it was lovely to watch you bond with everyone.  You spent time doing everybody's make-up on Christmas Day and Boxing Day which was so funny and so cute too.  Great Nanna looked fantastic! :)

In this letter to you I also wanted to say sorry.  I am sorry for being a shouty mum and I am sorry for not always taking the time to play with you.  You mean the absolute world to me and I feel like I stumble my way through my firsts as a mother with you.  You are my first, you are the little one that made me a mother - I am learning a long with you and I hope that you can forgive me for any mistakes I make and I hope you know how proud I am of you.

I love you so much sweet Posey Margaret Ivy, Happy fifth birthday.

Love you to the moon & back, always.

Mama
xx

Getting fruity with Kibsons.

Before I get started with this post, I feel inclined to say hello! I haven't written in a while and wanted to say hi to the few lovely people that take the time to read my blog.  How are you? What have you been up to? I would love if you left a comment to say hello on this post!

Right back to the post.

A little while back, we were very kindly invited to a little event with https://kibsons.com over in Dubai.  Kibsons is a fresh food delivery service in the UAE.  We love the company and have been using the service for a few months so were delighted when they invited to spend the morning with them.   The company was established over 30 years ago and prides itself on its relationship with customers and the quality of the produce it delivers.


Posey and Lochlann thoroughly enjoyed the event as they got to paint on canvasses using a variety of different fruits and vegetables.  You can see their creations in some of the shots below.  It was a really lovely way to spend the morning with the children and has encouraged us to get the paints out with children more often.

After the masterpieces were complete, the children were treated to a complimentary box of healthy Kibsons treats whilst myself and Sam were interviewed on camera (eekkk!) giving our reasons for using and enjoying the service.

We love to use Kibsons because we know we can trust their produce.  The children get really excited when the blue box arrives at the door and it has such a positive effect on our eating.  The best thing about Kibsons for me has to be the price of the fruit and vegetables.  If you are someone living in the UAE, I would highly recommend using Kibsons.  The quality is great, the price is reasonable and the fruit lasts longer than it seems to from the supermarkets.

Thanks Kibsons! I look forward to ordering from you when we get back to Abu Dhabi!

* This post is in no way sponsored and the opinions included are my own.

Design & Dine

So it is has been a while since I blogged ( I think that is how every post of mine begins LOL) but I tried something a little different last night and fancied writing about it.

Design and Dine was something my friend told me about a while ago but we've never got round to going.  When they announced this month's one had a travel theme I was really excited to go.  Once a month a lovely lady called Gemma hosts a brunch with a difference in Dubai and in Abu Dhabi -  the difference being that not only to you get to eat and drink to your heart's content you also get to create a piece of art work.

Last night, as I said earlier, the art work was travel inspired.  We were given a canvas, a world map and a quote.  We had to draw or trace the outline of the map and quote onto our canvasses, all the while sipping a cosmo or two!  The setting was just beautiful as it was in the Venetian Village at the Ritz Carlton.  We were lucky as we got a table right on the water's edge which created a lovely, calm and relaxing atmosphere despite it still being around 38 degrees! 



Once we had drawn out the outline we were seated for dinner.  We enjoyed 4 courses from the Olive restaurant which included: gazpacho, mozzarella flat bread, patatas bravas, olives, ricotta ravioli and then a trio of desserts to finish.  After devouring the delicious treats it was time to head back to our canvasses and get painting! We were given all the equipment we needed and shown a few design ideas.



I decided to go for a more pastel style with mine and as I hoped to hang it in our apartment, I painted the background a subtle grey rather than painting a blue for the ocean.  I certainly won't be giving up my day job anytime soon but it was fun and I like my finished product.

Now I plan to hang it in our apartment and buy some cute pins to place on it to show where Sam has been, where I have been, where we have been together and where we hope to travel to as a family.

If you live in the UAE or are on a holiday and fancy doing something a little different, I would defiantly give the Design and Dine brunch a go!

I love how many new little opportunities I have been lucky enough to have since we moved out here!
There is another brunch coming up during Ramadan so if you fancy going just search Design and Dine over on Facebook for more details.

Thats all for now :)

Thanks for reading,

7 months in...

The wall of dreams at Yas Beach.

7 months in doesn't quite have the same ring to it as 6 months in but I have been one busy lady recently so, alas, it's now mid March and we are 7 months in!

7 months into living a 7 hour flight away from the UK. 7 months into working in a new school.  7 months into the littles settling into their new home.  7 months into apartment living and 7 months into living in the desert heat!

How do I feel about it now?

In the interest of being honest, it hasn't always been an easy move but then we never expected it to be.  We moved two small children away from their home comforts and we have all had to adapt to a very different culture.  There have been many ups and downs along the way.  They say it takes at least 12 months to feel settled and to think of this place as 'home'.
Having said that, there are so many positives here that sometimes I wonder how we will ever go back to England.

Highlights of the past 7 months include;

• our marriage has survived!! Wahoooo!! 😂
• settling into and beginning to enjoy a new workplace
• watching P and L settle and thrive in their classes 
• copious days enjoying the swimming pool
• a yearly membership to the local waterpark (Yas water world which is 10 minutes away and fantastic for children). 
• Trips to Dubai 
• Our desert safari for Sam's 28th birthday
• making new friends
• watching Sam enjoy playing for the Saracens Rugby team (not going to lie I think it is rather hot watching him run around the pitch in his shorts!)
• visits from Sam's sister Kate and my sister Sophie 
• I got to see one of my best friends and her beautiful baby girl on a trip to the UAE for her 30th
• trips to the beach for birthday parties 
• watching Beauty in the Beast in the park, all sat together on a blanket munching treats whilst the sun set 
• Sam cutting off all his hair (I am pretty much his no.1 fan at this point)
• playing in fake snow at the Galleria Mall at Christmas time
• Christmas Brunch at the Westin Abu Dhabi 

... the list goes on.   I could go on about the negatives that we have experienced (like me crying every time it bloody snows in England and we aren't there to enjoy it) but then, nobody really wants to hear me moan.  Those aren't the things I want my children and I to look back on either. 

In short, yes we get homesick quite often but the move out here was absolutely worth it.  Work is going well, the children are happy and my husband looks great with a tan! What more could I ask for?! 

We are very much looking forward to our holiday back to England in the summer.  There are lots of people that we miss terribly and I can't wait for everybody to see how much our two littles have grown.  I am so proud of my little family and despite everything, I am really proud of us for moving out here. 

I am now going to share some of my most favourite photos from our time here so far - most of which are just iPhone snaps...

Our first date night in Abu Dhabi

P and I at the Crowne Plaza on Yas Island

P and L enjoying an ice-lolly at Dubai Mall

Our first trip to Dubai

On the boat ride to watch the amazing fountain show at Dubai Mall

Our first ever time trick or treating.

When Sam plays the name game at Starbucks! 

When Posey won star of the week and got to take Popsy home.

My handsome husband on his birthday trip to the desert. 

Me feeling awkward around a camel... 

At the F1watching Mumford & Sons ... what a great night! 

P and L all ready for National Day celebrations

Christmas 2017 at the Westin Abu Dhabi 

Posey just generally being her usual self :) 

Our boy at Yas Gateway Park 

After our winter picnic at Yas Gateway Park 

and then she turned four. 

And he turned three...

When my beautiful friend and her family visited during their stay in the UAE for her 30th.

Mother's Day celebrations at Lochlann's nursery.

A special moment with my boy and I whilst waiting for Daddy to bring the coffees. 

When Auntie Katey came to visit.

When Auntie Sophie popped in for 3 hours on route to Nepal. 

One of my most favourite things about Abu Dhabi... the sunsets. 

Our littles on a recent visit to Jumeriah.

If you have reached this point you are an absolute legend because I included FAR too many photos! Thank you for reading, I am sorry my posts never follow a pattern or schedule, I'll get there one day... maybe! 😊

Shop small in 2018.

So,  I wasn't sure whether to write about this now or save it for February (I am longing for pay day don't know about anyone else).  But, after watching so many lovely ladies on Instagram supporting small brands over the Christmas period, I really wanted to write a post about which small brands we love and why.

All my life, my dad has run his own business.  It's a football merchandise business and I spent many a weekend working for him.  He, pretty much, works every day of the year with really long hours so I have seen first hand the blood, sweat, tears and passion that goes into running your own business.  This is why I think it is so important to support small brands and help their business grow if you can. At the end of the day,  supporting the brands I am going to feature in this post allows a mama to keep doing what she loves and spend more time with her children too - whilst allowing you to enjoy amazing products.

I hope you enjoy this post; let's get into it.

Brand 1.  Birdies and Bearcubs http://www.birdiesandbearcubs.co.uk

This is a brand I have been admiring for about two years now.  They are a children's clothing brand and do a few items for adults too... after all twinning is winning!  They stock tees, sweaters, hats and hoodies.  Our most favourite items are the tees and sweaters.  Most recently,  we purchased their special edition Santa tees. For Christmas,  Posey received the gorgeous red 'we both matter tee' and Lochann got the Mumma's boy tee in a beautiful burgundy colour.  I also have my eye on the, 'darling you're different' tee for Posey and the, 'I am enough' tee for myself.

The quality of this range is really brilliant, I honestly cannot fault it.  The clothes are really comfortable and my children love wearing them.  In fact,  my son often strops if his momma's boy tee isn't clean! I often size up when I buy for my littles from this brand but that is purely because I want them to fit them for as long as possible as we love these items so much.  They wash really well too, which is a winner!

Jade, the lovely lady who runs Birdies and Bearcubs, is really friendly and super stylish.  She also gives me major hair envy as she has gorgeous locks and a fringe to be proud of! 😊 You can follow her on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/jadelarrah/

Tops: Birdies & Bearcubs.  Shorts Cribstar 

Tops  Birdies & Bearcubs 

Brand 2. Cribstar https://www.cribstar.co.uk

Ok, Cribstar is another stylish children's clothing brand run by a lovely mama.  This is my go to shop for trendy little tops for birthdays.  Last year,  I got my children matching ones that said, ' not your basic 2 year old and not your basic 3 year old.'   This year, we went for something slightly different and bought the candle tees which both the children love.  Again, the quality is great and the prices are reasonable.  For P and L's birthday outfits this year, I also treated them to a pair of matching shorts each.  They are comfy little grey numbers with a leopard style print on them.  I love Lochlann's little bottom in his and Posey looks super stylish in hers.  I like to team these little outfits with their converse.  Honestly my children are far better dressed than I am!

Top Birdies & Bear cubs Shorts Cribstar 

Top: Cribstar Shorts: Next from a pack of three.

Brand 3.  TeddyandCo http://teddyandco.bigcartel.com

This brand is a little different as it isn't a clothing brand.  This lovely lady sells prints and wooden peg dolls.  I have followed her instagram shop for a while now and have often sat and thought about how much my two would love the peg dolls.  I love the fact they are not plastic- fantastic, much more pleasing to my eye!   Plus I love the idea that these are custom made.  I decided to buy some for Lochlann's third birthday.  We are now the proud owners of Batman, The Joker, Woody and Buzz!  Both Posey and Lochlann love playing with the dolls.  They are brilliant quality and look lovely sat on the top of our Ikea play kitchen too!  Another fabulous thing about this brand is ' Fiver Fridays.'  Every Friday,  you can grab yourself a peg doll or a print for just five pounds.  How great is that?
I am planning on adding to our peg doll collection very soon.

Photo credit  Teddy and Co. 

That's it.  There are LOADS more small businesses that I could mention but these three are my favourites at the moment.  Three great quality brands, three lovely mamas and lots of beautiful products.

I know there is a general consensus that buying from small brands is too pricey and I do sometimes understand where people are coming from.  In all honesty though, the brands I have bought from have produced some lovely things that are really great quality.  I plan to buy less ' stuff ' and spend more wisely in 2018.  I am going to shop small in 2018.  I love so many small businesses and what they are all about.

Which are your favourite small brands?  Share yours in the comments!

Thanks for reading.

Lots of love,