Is This For Real???

I just received this in an email today, one of those regular 'Your baby at XX weeks type mails. i know its American, but even so:

Now that your baby is eating some solid foods, fresh is usually best. However, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics, beets, carrots, collard greens, and turnips contain large amounts of nitrates in some parts of the country. Nitrates can cause a type of anemia in your baby. Even though you can't personally test the vegetables in your area, rest assured that baby-food companies take precautions not to use vegetables high in nitrates. So if you want to feed these vegetables to your baby, it is safest to buy commercially prepared jars.

Is this really true? Surely this is manufacturing blurb at its finest, the only 'safe' way to feed your baby is with manufacturers jars of food... Yeesh...

Prima Pappa Review

The review is done, but thought I'd share a couple of pics of the trial. Note the early theft of mummys Magnum. Gotta give the girl points for intiative...

Mamas & Papas cotbed

M&P thought we might like to review the Harewood cotbed for them... Oh, the stress of the job. Of course, I sighed and huffed, and asked Ella if she'd mind swapping her 4th-time-hand-me-down cot for a brand new Oak cotbed. Strangely, she didn't seem to object, so I agreed.
The review is coming online in a couple of weeks (as always, we insist on using the product in the family for a good test), but I'm pretty sure its going to be a good one - this is Ella on her first night (and yes, she ALWAYS sleeps with her arms like that...)

Rockin baby pouch

Just to prove we really did love the Rockin Baby Pouches THAT much - this is me down on Chesil bank, sporting my very own pouch.
Perfect, it is :)

Laura has perfect caboodle day :D

Felt guilty that had no plans to do anything with the boys for the fourth Saturday in a row (Penalties of being married to a photographer - Saturdays are just a Wedding Zone in summer). Friend who is around on Saturdays needed to stay in and write an assigment (she got her degree in languages last year, and has now decided to add on another 2 years of study for the top-up – Masters? Something foolish for a single Mum who works, anyhoo...). So I texted her and said that I was happy to take her two off her hands (11 and 8, Cams best friend) for a couple of hours so she could study. She rang back and said yes pleee-e-e-ase! So we trotted over to hers to pick up her two – on the way my boys had a change of heart, and decided to not go to the park, but get the pools out in the garden instead. So her boys came equipped with swimmers for an afternoon on the water slide. Half way home I get a call from a stressed photographer – C’s 2nd battery had failed, and he’s down to the last cell on his first battery. I HAVE to get to Portland (off the coast by weymouth?) with his charger.
Hmmmph.
So I thought 'I can’t take the two friends back home and disappoint them and their mum. I’ll take them too... But that’s not very fair on them, being as its an hours run'. So I went back home, picked up said charger, and grab some trunks/towels and a bottle of water (all hail the Caboodle, ready and willing by the door with all baby equipment already in stock!).

So we drove off to weymouth with a bunch of very noisy boys (thank goodness for sat nav!). We had to meet C at a sailing academy on the causeway between Weymouth and Portland. The opposite side to the boat quay is a large shingle bank. We stopped there, trudged up and over the bank, and hey presto, the most amazing sight – huge waves crashing down, SO exciting!
We stayed for an hour and a half, the boys playing just in the edge of the water – in over their shins and they got swept off their feet by the waves, they were rolling in a good 5’ high. Interspersed with some throwing-stones-at-a-target games, they just had a complete ball. And because it was too dangerous for them to go in the water, and the shingle prevented any running, and the beach was empty apart from the odd fisherman, I was able to maintain control of six children safely and comfortably.

We went back to the car about 6, got dried and dressed, and then whipped round to Weymouth for a McD’s (Shush, was a treat). All boys happy and content, delivered back to a very surprised and happy Mumma at 7.30, mine home and bedded just after 8.
What a great day! With very little effort I managed to rescue my man and make him muchos grateful, provide friend with 5hrs peace to study, be the bestest person in the world to 5 small boys, and also got myself a truly memorable and perfect afternoon by some really exciting and amazing surf (LOVE the sea I do). On top of all which I feel like a smug mumma for being so bloody perfect... :D :D :D

My Little Octopus

Just HAD to share a snap of my littlebig lad, Jacob, as The Octopus at his nursery's summer concert yesterday. It was wonderful, pure magic. Sigh. How they grow so fast, too fast, way too fast...