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35 weeks… Woohoo

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So today I am officially 35 weeks by the magical dating scan date. By my dates which are obviously more accurate I am 36 weeks but hey ho either way we are getting close. Within the next month my our baby will (should) be here. That is a slightly surreal feeling. We are more or less prepared in all of the practical ways but we STILL don’t have a name so please feel free to leave all your suggestions in the comment box.

Cravings:

Nothing new this week.. Still loving ice. A lot. I still want to brush my teeth. All the time. The apple thing has returned a little.

Weight:

I haven’t gained any weight the last week or so but my bump looks seriously enormous.

Physical changes

I have Braxton Hicks contractions all day long. They aren’t painful but are incredibly uncomfortable.
Lots of pelvic pressure.. Sore and bruised feeling.
Backache constantly.
Cramps are horrendous at night when I don’t drink a Powerade during the day.
I have little appetite..I guess as the baby is taking up so much room these days.
My milk production is definitely getting in gear and breast pads are no longer optional.

Baby:

We had a scan on Monday and our beautiful girl seems to be doing well and is estimated to be about 5lbs.

Sleep:

Sleep is still pretty rubbish. I wake up more tired than when I go to bed. I remember this from last time and I know I just have to put up with it.

Preparation:

I’ve had a little bit more energy this past week and I’ve been preparing for these first chaotic weeks by making food for the freezer. So far I’ve made: Chicken Curry, Beef Stew and Cottage pie. I know I will appreciate this when I’m bleary eyed and looking after a newborn and toddler.

Izzy:

Izzy is still very loving with my bump but the past few days she is definitely experiencing the terrible twos. Tantrums and testing my patience. Still loving our time together but hope this is a short phase.

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Nothing more exciting to tell you really but here is the baby bump update for this week:

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Looking forward to meeting you baby girl 🙂

Hospital Bag Essentials

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This is one topic which is in every pregnancy magazine. On every pregnancy app and discussed whenever you mention labour.

What should I pack in my hospital bag?

I asked this on Twitter and here are some of the suggestions I was given:

* Energy drinks such as lucozade
* High energy snacks like Mars bars
* Maternity pads
* Breast Pads
* Tea Tree oil ( for post labour bathing)
* Hand sanitizer/Anti bac spray/wipes
* Camera/charger and memory cards
* Apple gadgets and chargers
* PJ’s/Nightie, slippers etc
* Towel and flannel
* Toothbrush and toothpaste
* Lipbalm
* Cooling spray or water spray bottle
* Smoothies/juice
* Nursing bra
* Big knickers/ paper pants
* Hair bands
* Wet wipes
* Lansinoh
* Magazines

Oh and Gin in a tin of course.

Some extras I would add to the list:

* Tens machine
* Moisturiser
* Tweezers
* Ear plugs ( in case you are in hospital for a while before birth and need to sleep )

These are all just for you of course and you will need a separate bag for your newborn. I will post tomorrow on what I think you need for those first 24 hours in hospital for your little un.

Golden Syrup Suet Pudding

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Today has been a gloomy weather day in my home town and so I’ve craved comfort food all day long. Myself and Izzy curled up on the sofa this afternoon eating home made cottage pie – I will share this with you another day and then I really fancied some golden syrup suet pudding!

My mum used to make this and I’ve no idea where the recipe originates from plus I’ve made some slight adaptations but however you look at it this is such a simple pudding.

I love fruit and I love cake/puddings but I’m not a fan of combining the two unless its an apple pie or a chocolate orange cake 😉 I don’t like dishes like spotted dick or Christmas pud for example.

My favourite puddings are Treacle, Chocolate or Golden Syrup and today Syrup won.

Is there anything more comforting on a rainy day than hot pudding and custard? How about if I told you that you could make this from scratch and be eating it in 10 minutes?

Golden Syrup Suet Pudding

You will need:

60ml of Lyles golden syrup (4tbsp)
50g of Suet ( I used atora)
50g of caster sugar ( I used vanilla golden caster sugar)
1tsp vanilla ( I used Nielsen Massey)
125g of Self raising flour
1 large egg
100ml of full fat milk

Grease a pudding basin/Pyrex bowl completely. Pour golden syrup into bottom of basin. Mix together flour (sifted), sugar and Suet in a bowl. In a jug mix together milk, egg and vanilla. Add wet ingredients to dry and mix well. Carefully put your mixture on top of your syrup and cook in a microwave on full power for 4.5 minutes. Remove from microwave (carefully as hot) and run a knife gently around the outside of the pudding. Turn onto a serving dish and serve with custard. Drool.

golden syrup suet pudding

 

Ok so it may not be the prettiest pudding you have ever seen and next time I shall definitely grease the sides a little more thoroughly but wowzer it tastes good. It’s like my childhood on a plate.

Serve with lashings of custard.

Find my slow cooker version here.

It’s all about you…

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I have finished working now for the remainder of my pregnancy and I’m really enjoying the additional time with my daughter. She’s at an age where she is such good fun and the odd tantrum aside she is a joy to spend time with.

I find it hard to remember a time when she wasn’t around and that at one point I didn’t have this one central focus in my life. It really is all about her.

So what happens when baby 2 arrives? How do I split my time? How do I ensure that my wonderfully funny toddler still gets the time and attention she deserves whilst caring for a newborn? I have to admit I’m a little bit worried.

Even now I’m starting to find it hard to do everything she wants and needs from me. She loves having me involved with all of her activities and I’m constantly being told Mam come on…help. She loves me to to sit on the floor to play cars, colour in or just be next to her – with a daily increasing bump this isn’t easy but I do try.

I just look into the future a little and think woah I really hope she doesn’t resent the baby. Realistically I know at some point she will even if just for a short time but I’m hoping she will adore her little sister so much that it will be short lived.

Do any of you parents of two or more have advice for me?

I really REALLY can’t wait for the baby to arrive but do you know what I am really going to miss the time with my girl.

Look at this big girl..where did my baby go?

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Still a mini foodie.. eating Chorizo, chickpea, tomato and paprika stew

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Playtime

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Having supper at Nanna’s house

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Out for a nighttime stroll in her swanky new Jane Trider buggy

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Cry me a river ….

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A few days ago my toddler made a mess eating some chocolate cake. Not exactly an unusual scenario one would think. Definitely not one which would usually make you cry for 30 minutes is it?

This week I am in my 34th week of pregnancy and well I’ve cried a bit. By a bit I mean at least once a day and for at least 5 minutes at a time.

One day was particularly bad and I cried most of the day for no reason or for completely irrational reasons.

Reasons I’ve cried this week:

* Toddler making a mess
* Toddler being loving
* OH being in work
* Cramp
* Forgetting to bake
* Being sore
* Forgetting to blog
* Feeling fat
* Worrying I haven’t gained enough weight
* Worrying I’ve gained too much weight
* Thoughtful friends
* Thoughtless friends
* Loving my pantry
* Feeling my baby move
* Watching my toddler hug and chat to my belly
* My lovely man
* The film About Time
* Surprise Surprise
* Tipping food/drinks over the floor

So why am I so hormonal?

Well firstly it’s totally normal. The Third Trimester is full of anxiety,fear and highly emotional.

I asked my twitter followers about it and these are some of the responses I had:

* Cried when boyfriend couldn’t decide what he wanted for dinner
* Cried because my freezer was too full
* Cried because OH didn’t put enough cheese on my nachos.
* Cried because daughter had nappy rash

Others said they had irrational fears or major anxiety. It seems its not just our physical bodies going through turmoil at this stage.

Anyway after shedding a lot of tears watching absolutely beautiful film About Time last night today I feel brighter and I haven’t cried once. Woohoo.

Now if someone could stop kicking me between the legs repeatedly all night long that would be great.. I mean someone must be doing that right. Ouch.

Here is a bump pic for all you bump lovers:

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Disney Infinity

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I’m not a typical gamer but I have to admit this latest game from Disney/Disney Pixar made me want to go out and buy a console. I mean the game includes the best that Disney had created from Toy Story to Monsters Cars and Tangled. Something to appeal to everyone.

Is my daughter too young for this? Yes probably.

Did she get excited when watching the video below? Yes definitely.

Disney Infinity is an action-adventure game with physical toys, open world creation and story-driven gameplay. Characters, play-sets and other features are brought into the game using figurines and discs with the included Infinity Base

Some good news for reluctant gamers who are huge Disney fans like myself..it’s also being released as an IPad app! WOOP. So no need to buy an expensive console if you don’t already have one but you still get all the fun. Read on….

Disney Infinity’s Toy Box mode is now available as a standalone app for iPad.

The app is available on iPad (version 2 upwards and iPad Mini) and can be downloaded from the App Store for free until October 5. Disney said the game features “a fully playable version of the unique Toy Box mode from Disney Infinity”.

* This is a featured post.

The Baking Boom

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Five years ago would anyone have predicted that baking would be so cool in 2013?

Shows like the Great British Bake Off have rekindled the nations love for cake, bread and all things biscuity. I love it. I’ve always loved baking ..ever since I baked my first rock buns with my mum when I was ..well pretty small.

I love the fact that at most times of days you can flick through the TV channels and find a cake related programme. It makes lazy afternoons on the sofa so much more appealing although I always end up with the urge to make cake and an increasing jealousy for all of the beautiful cake tins, display stands and the very many cool retro bits to pretty up your kitchen. I mean obviously I NEED these Tala pastry cutters or this cocoa shaker ..Christmas is coming after all. HINT HINT.

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I think I’ve probably made more cake in the past year than I have in my entire life. Here are a few of them:

Chocolate Mint Cake:

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I made the Chocolate mint cake for the Great Bloggers Bake Off.

Rock cakes:

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I make rock cakes quite regularly now, they are fairly simple and give me a little taste of my childhood.

Pineapple upside down cake:

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I love Pineapple upside down cake. It’s one of my very favourite cakes.

Have you always love baking or are you a new convert after the contagious excitement of The Bake Off etc?

AEG Ultrapower Review

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I love my vacuum cleaner. That’s a sentence I never thought I’d say. Maybe I’m getting older.. Or it’s a “mum” thing but I am definitely more interested in household appliances than I used to be. Uh oh.

When I was offered the chance to review the new super swanky cordless AEG vacuum I jumped at the chance and when the parcel arrived I was like a kid at Christmas. I know. Sad right?

But just look at it….isn’t it pretty?

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Firstly the stuff you need to know:

UltraPower® offers an extremely powerful vacuum clean throughout your home. It has a unique combination of high performance and a long 60 minutes running time, which makes it great for both quicker cleaning jobs and longer, tougher ones.

With the new innovative nozzle technology and high voltage, you will always have enough power to get rid of everything from breadcrumbs to heavier sand or gravel. UltraPower® simply takes cordless cleaning to a new level.

3 step power control allows you to have high performance on all surfaces, so you can adjust the power to your needs. From ‘Booster’ for thicker carpets or tougher cleaning jobs, ‘Normal mode’ for everyday high performance cleaning or ‘Long mode’ (60 minutes run time) for day to day cleaning jobs.

Innovation is at the forefront of this UltraPower® model with new Brushrollclean technology which removes tangled hairs and fibres from the brushroll into the dustcup at the press of a button. This saves you the time-consuming task of cleaning the brush roll and prevents frequent clogging.

The AG5012 is light and versatile, it steers easily around furniture and with LED headlights, you don’t miss a thing. Thanks to its self-standing design if you need to take a break or simply answer the phone, you can leave it anywhere.

Where you can buy it:

John Lewis


What I thought:

Well to start with its so easy to use and very light which is a massive bonus for me at this stage in pregnancy. It means I can lift it up and down the stairs without worrying and there are no wires to worry about tripping over! Even my toddler has had a go.

The three power modes are great for my tiled bathroom, laminated kitchen and thick carpets. I particularly love the booster mode. The detangling button which cleans the brush roll for you is brilliant and means you haven’t got the annoying, messy task of pulling out hairs/fluff yourself.

Once the battery is charged fully it will easily last for my entire house to be cleaned. I clean up after messes more quickly as its so easy to just grab off the charging station. It looks so sleek and pretty that I don’t even feel the need to hide it away in a cupboard the way I did with my old battered Dyson.

It’s bagless and simple to empty.

I like the LED lights on the front which mean you don’t miss any dirt or dust and Izzy finds it lots of fun too. In fact I’m sure it’s ok for her to do the hoovering soon yes?

In fact the only negative I can find is that there is no separate tool to get into the little corners and crevices although given the swivelling, compact nature of the nozzle it will get into most spots anyway.. So really its only getting the spiders off the ceiling that it can’t do.

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The AEG UltraPower has an RRP of £229.

* Thank you to AEG for sending a sample for the purpose of this review.

Online friends can’t be real friends..can they?

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When I was pregnant with my daughter I didn’t really use social media much. I had a twitter account and used it sporadically but it wasn’t until my daughter was born and I discovered the Zombie mums that I began to use it more and more. Zombie mums (or moms) was a hashtag used by fellow new parents mostly between midnight and 5am to chat and give moral support during those early months when you feel like you are going slightly insane from the lack of sleep. I found lots of other mums and dads who I still interact with on twitter.

This pregnancy is different. I have used twitter a LOT more in the past 2 years. I use it to keep up with RL ( real life ) friends, to enter competitions, to keep up with news and to share my blog posts. I have gone from following and being followed by under 100 people to following 1100 and being followed by over 1600 lovely people. I can say lovely quite confidently as for the most part I interact with a good chunk of them on at least a weekly basis. I know how old their children are, what films/books they enjoy..what cake they like to eat..their political views and what goes on in their day to day life. I know more about some of them than I do my friends that I see in the flesh. But are they real friends? I sometimes try to explain the relationship you can build up with friends on social media to people/family who don’t use it. It’s hard. They don’t get it. I’ve had the sentence “it’s not like a real friend though is it?” said in different ways to me so many times.

I have a group of friends ( yes real real friends) on twitter that I know I can count on for support. I know I can text them at midnight with an issue and they won’t mind. Some of them are also pregnant and I love this. I missed having pregnancy buddies the first time round. I know they won’t look at me in gross disbelief when I ask them about an embarrassing side effect of pregnancy or think I’m being over the top when I worry about absolutely every little thing.

Things my Twitter friends have done for me:

* Sent me cards to cheer me up when I’m down.
* Read my blog, commented and tried my recipes.
* Given me moral support at conferences when I have been ridiculously nervous.
* Listened to my doubts and fears.
* Checked up on me when they haven’t heard from me in a while ( a day ha )
* Answered every possible midwifery based question I could ask..yes I’m talking to you @midwifetomum

These are things that some of my oldest friends don’t do. In fact considering I’ve had a pretty horrible pregnancy I have some friends who I have been close to for over 15yrs that I have maybe heard from once or twice. This isn’t a dig at anyone specific – in fact they don’t read the blog but just highlighting the fact that just because someone lives down the road it doesn’t make them a better friend.

The online world can be weird, cruel and dangerous but so can the “real” world. I think in years to come people won’t find it at all strange that most of your friends are people in tiny boxes on a timeline. After all most of your real life friends are thrust upon you ..be it by school/college/work etc but on Twitter you choose who to follow and therefore who to befriend so generally most of them will have common likes/dislikes with yourself. Bonus.

In the last year I have seen a world of bloggers and tweeters unite to protect and support a grieving mother, to raise money for worthwhile causes, to spread awareness of domestic violence and diseases we don’t normally hear about – for the most part these people make me want to try harder, to do better and to help others.

In summary don’t forget your RL friends but definitely open up to making long lasting friendships in those online forums n Tweeting web pages (as my mum would say). I heart the Internet.

You can follow me on Twitter if you like : @writingforfun if you interact I always follow back x