Sundays are made for....

Decorating, decorating and more decorating! 

Finally we have all the bits and pieces together to start cracking on with Finley's superhero nursery...well big boy room now :) 

I thought I would pop on with a quick little post to share with you all what I have been busy with this Super Sunday.

Finley's Superhero wall...

In Matt's words 'it will be a 30 minute job', hmmmmm maybe an hour I thought, wrong....3 hours later I finally stuck that last last comic page to the top corner. I can still smell PVA glue now, its like being 5 all over again.

 

I will be taking snazzy pictures soon and write  full post on how I managed to survive the comic wall and where to get all the supplies needed....failing this you can buy pre-printed marvel wallpaper....gosh darn it! *face palm*

Here is the finished product all ready for Finley to no doubt come in and pick each and every piece off, oh well at least it looks cool...even if only for a few days! haha.

Make sure to pop back soon for all sorts of superhero baby room fun!

Love Kayleigh x

Spring Time Skin Saviours

If you are anything like me and share the same pale, fair sensitive skin you may be currently looking and searching for a cure to calm the red patches and soothe those dry areas. Usually by now the sunshine has cleared up my dry skin and my freckles are out and about to say hello to all, but as we have only just recently got rid of the latest bout of snow I have been left still feeling the full effects of 'winter skin' in April!

I tend to suffer from very dry patches doted over my face when the weather dips and the central heating gets hiked up to the max, usually I cope okay and feel happy-ish knowing it will only be a few months but this time around it seems to be never ending. And my poor face has been suffering!

Along with the delights I described above broken sleep and early mornings have undoubtedly contributed to my lack lustre appearance...and even some fine lines (agghhhh) so I thought I would let you all in on my skincare saviours that have pulled me through the dark early mornings and 2am feeds!

1. Liz Earle Cleanse and Polish Hot Cloth Cleanser and Liz Earle Superskin Moisturiser

Cleanse and Polish is my holy grail product, I cant believe that for years I used scratchy face wipes to remove my make up. My skin is just not cut out for wipes, even sensitive ones. I have tried alternative hot cloth cleansers but always come back to this, I just cant get enough! In the Autumn/Winter I like to team it up with the superskin moisturiser which is a lot richer than the original formula and you can feel it sinking in combating the dryness from the inside out. Once the weather picks up I will switch back to the original formula but for now I am sticking with this bad boy.

2. Perricone MD Formula 15*

I am falling in love with this product for what it has done for my skin, it is aimed at targeting those pesky fine lines and restoring your skin giving it that glow. When I received this product I was in definite need of a 'glow' Finley had been waking multiple times a night, teething, being back at work! Sheesh the list goes on. But whilst being a strong acting formula it has definitely eased the 'night feed' lines I was getting without being so harsh that it broke me out. And as an added bonus it seems to have evened out my skin tone! I cant wait to see the results in a few months time and I might even be able to go foundation free. It is definitely a considered purchase priced at £99 but you have months and months of use in this one bottle...and it does what it says it will do. 

3. YSL Forever Youth Liberator Serum

I know this product is mainly targeted at the anti ageing market but it has really helped my skin the past few months. I have used it in conjunction with all the creams and serums mentioned and I love it! I received this little mini in a Glossybox months back. Unfortunately I fell out of love with Glossybox last June/July? I couldn't justify the cost to what we were receiving, and it seems many have followed suit since. Its a shame as I did love receiving my lucky dip of products every month but £10 a month when on statutory maternity pay just wasn't a priority....sorry Glossybox. Anyway...this serum left my face silky soft and looking fresh as a daisy. I still have a tiny little left but I'm doing my best to save it for a rainy day!

4. Caudalie SOS Thirst Quenching Serum

I love or should I say loved this product! Sadly Mr SOS serum was completely used up the other day and I can feel myself mooching over to the feel unique website very soon to stock up on more! This little beauty was another sample from Glossybox and I stowed it away knowing I would benefit most during the cold snowy months. And it does exactly what it says on the tube, thirst quenching it is indeed. It is a smooth silky serum that sinks instantly into your skin leaving no residue, just a couple of smooth cheeks...oohh err! Defo love this and cant wait to stock up when pay day comes around. 

I hope that has given you a little insight to what is stacked up on my bathroom shelf, well along with a million other products and poor Matthews one deodorant!

Hopefully the sun will be out and here to stay very soon so I can show off how my skin has survived to its very best since last September and get them freckles dazzling...on a side note, I love freckles sooo much, I am hoping Finley will inherit mine on that squishy nose of his. If you have freckles embrace them, they are beautiful, someone at work once told me they bought a freckle remover cream from boots and I was shocked that 1, there was such a thing as freckle remover cream and 2, why would you want to remove them, they are blumming cute?

Anyway please let me know if you have any tips or tricks for skincare, especially really pale dry skin as I am always on the look out to try the next best thing. I am big on skincare at the moment, maybe even more than make-up...did I just say that? Eeekk...how my priorities change with the weather. As soon as the sun hits I will be raving about coral cheeks and lipsticks haha :D

Love Kayleigh x

Easter Sniffles

Happy Easter everyone :D

Although today is meant for feasting on choccy eggs and eating as many hot cross buns as you possibly can for us we are tucked up on the couch with runny noses and headaches. *cough cough* Boooo.

Finley wasn't too well on Wednesday night, and by not well I mean waking every hour of the night just wanting to be upright but still be able to sleep, then fidgeting then wanting cuddles...sheesh, a poorly bun = a very tired mummy that day. Oh well. I always think when he is upset like that in the night that he is having a harder time than me so it pulls me through! That morning I saw a his 8th tooth had cut through right at the bottom and blamed his newly acquired sniffly nose on that...but as Matthew and I have since found out it was more than likely a sneaky cold as we are also suffering.

Luckily Finley has perked up a little bit but still sniffling her and there, thank goodness for calpol to give his little nose a break from being suckered and wiped.

I very much doubt you want to see a picture of our shinny faces and red noses so I have opted for a rather bemused Finley from last Easter...look at that face, it almost resembles a little Easter egg itself. He would have been just over 3 months old at the time and if I am honest I don't think he has changed one bit! haha. He still has a round face, loves his milk and has no hair....just a little bigger and cheekier now. 

I hope your Easter Sunday is a little more adventurous than ours, I am hoping that we are all right as rain soon as we have choccy eggs to eat.

Lets cross fingers we are tons better tomorrow and can enjoy the bank holiday. 

Have a great day everyone.

Love Kayleigh x

Get Cracking With Crafty Easter Egg Cress-Heads

 If you’re already tired of the sight of all that Easter chocolate, here’s a great idea for Easter eggs that aren’t just healthy, but exciting too! Easter Egg Cress-Heads are easy and lots of fun to make with your little ones over the Easter break, and then once the cress has grown, it’s super tasty in salads and soups - and egg sandwiches too, of course.

To make Easter Egg Cress-Heads, you will need:

• One egg shell per Cress-Head
• Cotton wool
• Mustard and cress seeds
• Art supplies to decorate the egg shells e.g. paint, felt-tips, glitter glue and stick-on eyes

Thanks to Make It and Mend It, in partnership with the greetings cards specialist Hallmark, for this great Easter craft idea

Method

Boil eggs in the usual way, and then use a sharp knife to slice off the top of the egg. Eat the inside of the egg so that the shell isn’t damaged – you want your Easter Egg Cress-Head to be as pretty as possible!

Fill about two-thirds of the egg shell with cotton wool. Add water so that all of the cotton wool is moist.

Sprinkle some seeds on top of the cotton wool, pressing them gently into the cotton wool, and place the filled egg shell into an egg cup. Here’s a tip – if you want your Cress-Head to grow hair that’s a different colour, add a few drops of food colouring to the cotton wool.

Now for the fun part! Ask your kids to get creative and decorate their own Cress-Heads, not forgetting to add a friendly face to give their Cress-Head some character. Be gentle when decorating the egg shells so that they don’t break.

Find a warm, sunlit spot in your house to put the Cress-Heads. A kitchen windowsill is perfect for this.

Water your Cress-Heads every day, and in about 2-3 days, it should start to sprout some lovely green ‘hair’!  Leave your Cress-Heads to grow for about a week to make them as tasty as possible.

You can then use a pair of scissors to trim the Cress-Heads, and you’ll have a nice pile of tasty greens to use however you wish.

Growing Cress-Heads is a fantastic way to teach children about how seeds grow using light and water, and perhaps even inspire them to become avid little gardeners. Even young children can enjoy making Easter Egg Cress-Heads, and it’s sure to make them excited about eating their vegetables!

The images and recipes can be used without charge on condition that a Picture and recipe credit is given to www.makeitandmendit.com

Thank you for this great Easter inspired Guest Post :D

Love Kayleigh x

An afternoon of bubbles and comfy pants..

Every now and then I like to step back and take note of the little things that happen whilst hanging out with that little chap Finners, I love writing milestone posts and jotting down all the dates Finley turned into an even bigger boy than the day before, but sometimes I just want to capture his 'Finley-ness'

Today was one of those moments I grabbed the camera and snapped away, his hair (what he has of it) is all a little skew-whiff, toys are sprawled out over the floor and of course he is head to toe in miss-matched attire...but hey, that's just life with a toddler :D

We recently joined a new class at our local surestart centre called 'Bubbles and Bops', I already knew Finley loved a good boogie and wiggle but he was introduced to his new favourite...bubbles! It had never crossed my mind to pick up any bubbles for him, I'm not too sure why but when I tried to buy some WOW, could I find 1 single tube anywhere...no. They only seem to be sold in mega packs or boxes of 25. So what I ended up buying was a 'mega bubble wand' from Asda with a few bits of shopping - when it came I laughed out loud. It is the size of my arm with the biggest ever wand inside, but for £1 it was worth the investment. I have finally found something other than a Petit Filous to keep Finley intrigued for longer than 10 seconds.

A little bubble burst on his button nose

If you can get your hands on a little tube from your local newsagents I would highly recommend them, cheap and entertaining what more could you want.

Here is a perfect example of Finley's 10 second attention span, he spots one of the cats and he is off. He is a real life baby Ace Ventura and has a strange love for any animal....especially ones that just want to be left in peace and quiet. Sorry Penny Pitstop.

Hands up who dresses like this on days off? *Both hands firmly in the air*

Matt even commented on my cardigan today and said it looked rather strange, my reply was have you not seen me this past 12 months - I dress for comfort now not style...comfy pants are my new have always been my best friend . In a nutshell I only now concentrate on the neck upwards, Hair - Check, Make up - Check, Skincare - Check, Clothes - FAIL. Today I am wearing a union jack racer back, a horse print cardigan, comfy pants and ugg boots with the button missing on one side! Unfortunately Finley sometimes picks up on my strange indoor comfy wear and it is rubbing it off...luckily we dress a little too smart outside of the house so it balances out our randomness. Please let me know I am not the only one?! haha.

Overall we had a smashing afternoon of bubbles glimmering in the sunshine and crawling around in our comfy pants. I hope you enjoyed reading a little slice of our afternoon and would love you to let me know what your favourite moments our with your little one? Or what memories you want to capture in the future.

Love Kayleigh x

Weekend Meet & Greet Blog Hop #19

Welcome back to Meet & Greet Blog Hop! Join in, meet some fellow bloggers, greet them with comments, and grow your blog with new friends! Interested in being a Co-Host? Send an email to 2justByou(at)gmail(dot)com with "Co-Host" in the subject line for consideration! 

Meet Everyone! This week’s get to know you question is: What sound do you love? 

*Hosts* 

Kim - from 2 just B you: I love the sound of laughter; it's contagious and smiles always accompany. =0) 

Laurie - from Created By Laurie: I love the sound of my little man’s giggles… and not just any giggle but what I call his “Drunk Tired” giggles. There are times he gets so tired right before bed time that he will just start giggling on his own at anything- I love it! 

*Co Host* 

Kayleigh – from Beauty, Life, and Babies: My most favorite sound has to be the swimming baths, that echo that hits you when you walk in and hear people having fun and water splashing about! It takes me back to being little and taking my weekly swimming lessons. Just talking about it makes me want to grab my costume and head out! 

*Featured Guest* 

Yvonne – from My Haunted Attic: That's a really tricky question for an indecisive Libra such as myself. There are so many sounds I love, so I'll have to go with a combination of rain and wind, especially when I'm curled up indoors with a good book and steaming mug of drinking chocolate! What sound do you love? Spread the Word, Grab Our Button! 

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Baby's 1st Birthday Present Idea #2

As promised I am back for the second instalment of 'Baby's 1st Birthday Present Ideas' Wahoo!

I shall be revisiting some of the lovely special gifts Finley got for his first birthday like this one and also his gorgeous timeline but also the little gifts mummys babies love that are just too cute and possibly a little bit cheeky!

Looking back aside from his clothes the majority of his presents could be for either a little Dolly Pop or a Rowdy Rascal - Finley very much being the latter.

After racking my brain for ideas I remember stumbling across a gem on pinterest, a little memory box frame filled with lovely newborn goodies. The one on pinterest was A3 and had the tinniest babygrow pinned in, after searching and searching all I could find was this A4 memory box one so I opted for tinier mementos. 

 I gathered all Finley's little newborn lovelies, from his little knitted hat that seemed massive at the time, his name tags and his first ever scan. Another cute touch would be to add the umbilical cord clip, I have put Finley's somewhere so safe I cant even find it...hopefully when I come across it I shall add it in. 

I love it, it ticks all my present loving boxes. And I'm sure when Finley is a little older he will love to see how tiny his little arms and legs once were for those tiny taggies to fit around.

You can buy your memory box frame from John Lewis, mine was £23 and came with all the little pins and printed tags. They do them in pink and blue too! Lovely Jubbly.

They would also be perfect for an 'after wedding gift', if you keep your invites, menu, a little handful of confetti and a photo of the happy couple I'm sure they would love it! 

I hope this has given you a little inspiration for your little ones 1st Birthday and if you do go ahead and make your own please let me know....I would love to see a picture.

Love Kayleigh x