A wonderful company has recently joined us here at LittleStuff; please give a big cheer for Ollipops!
You will find on Ollipop’s nifty website a superb range of really good stuff for the little people. They have the softest little baby shoes, beautiful bibs, gorgeous puppets, Summer essential UV wear, the cutest dressing up costumes and more, so much more.
I’ve also just spotted their funky Western Chief wellies which are very much needed right now in this cold, wet and snowy weather!
Got to also mention their fabulous range of Bobux soft leather shoes & winter winter boots. Show me a cold pair of toddler toes the wouldn’t appreciate a pair of these snuggly warm boots to pad about in!
I was doing the weekly on-line shopping when Dearest Husband piped up, “I need some face cream please.” – “Eh?!” I intelligently responded. Turns out that for months, the Winter months especially, he’s been dipping, daily, into my very special, too good for him, facial moisturiser to keep his dry skin at bay. No wonder I’ve been getting through the stuff so quickly!! Argh!
So, a few browsing clicks down the virtual aisles of the on-line supermarket and I discovered The Real Shaving Co’s stuff. Really, really good it is too. What is most impressive is the reasonable price for a product that has no nasties (no parabens, SLS, SLES or alcohol). I’ve treated Dearest Husband to the anti-ageing (ha!) moisturiser and the smell is gorgeous.
Now, if he can behave himself and leave my own little pots of gorgeous goop alone, I might treat him to a few more of their products…
The Real Shaving Co. products can be found in many supermarkets and they also have an on-line shop.
A short while ago, one of my favourite bloggers decided to interview her 5 yr old daughter. Genius idea. So genius, in fact, that it spread. Soon another took up the challenge to investigate the inner mind of their child. then another, and another… and I can resist no longer. I just had to know what my own children would say (except for pink, of course, who would simply say ‘NO!” or “Way-bu-y-o-o-o–oon” to everything. With maybe a ‘Jam, please!’ thrown in). So, here it is. The world according to the Blue Ones – No.1 is 11, so I expected sensible things. Boy is 8 – I *hoped* for moderately sensible. Jolly is 7, and never remotely sensible…
What’s Daddy’s job?
No.1 – “Photographer – are these going to get harder?”
Boy - “Takes pictures at weddings and stuff”
Jolly – “Photographs!”
How old do you have to be to drive a car?
No.1 – “17″ (sigh)
Boy - “18 or older”
Jolly – “over 18 at least”
How old is Mummy?
No.1 – “30… (hesitates, wanting to be honest, but kind) something?”
Boy - “31″
Jolly – “32″
*(35 is right, so they were VERY kind)
How old is Daddy?
No.1 – “43″
Boy - “43″
Jolly – “42″
*He’s 43 – and they all remember his 40th)
When Gangy & Bumpa babysit, where do you think Mummy and Daddy are?
No.1 – “At the cinema, eating.. wherever”
Boy - “At the hospital”
Jolly – “Out somewhere… probably having a baby”
(* I promise we HAVE been out since Pink was born three years ago. Honest.)
What do you think the Queen looks like?
No.1 – “Grey hair, wrinkles, crown… not really sure”
Boy - “Very Posh”
Jolly – “Not that pretty… but I still like her”
What does your brother do to annoy you?
No.1 – “Trash my room”
Boy - “Well No.1 is just a bit generally, like, annoying. And Jolly is just a bit… annoying. And Pink can be just a bit, like, you know, annoying.”
Jolly – “Say rude names to me”
(*I chose carefully not to investigate further on which rude names)
Where would you like to go on holiday this year? Anywhere in the world?
No.1 – “Scotland”
Boy - “The Peak District (pauses, glazes over and smiles longingly)… Or Butlins.”
Jolly – “Scotland or the Peak District. Or Wales. Or any where with moors really.”
Where do babies come from?
No.1 – “You!”
Boy - “Mummys Tummies”
Jolly – “Mummy’s Tummy”
(*I am of course solely responsible for all babies. Ever.)
How do the babies get inside their Mummies?
No.1 – *snort*… *embarrassed giggle*… flushed cheeks…”You don’t REALLY want me to answer that, do you?”
Boy - “erm… I don’t know, actually” (settles down expecting a full explanation right NOW…)
Jolly – “They grow in a big water balloon thingy”
What do you want to be when you grow up?
No.1 – “Oh, well, nothing set yet. You know, I have PLENTY of time to settle on a career choice.”
Boy - “An Author!” (This is new, a month ago it was a rally driver. The he discovered Hiccup the Viking and Astrosaurs.).
Jolly – “Well, I’m going to be an Army Man, but then when I get bored I’m going to design cars”
If you could be anyone else who would you be?
No.1 – “Harry Potter”
Boy - “Tegs” (from the Astrosaurs books)
Jolly – “Friday O’Leary. The truth is LEMON MERINGUE!”(Mr Gum books, in case you’ve not had the pleasure)
Who do you think is in charge of the country.
No.1 – “The Queen. Or the Prime Minister.”
Boy - “The King! Or maybe it’s the Queen…”
Jolly – Well, the Government work for them, I don’t know who they are… The President?”
If you had children what would their names be?
No.1 – “I haven’t thought THAT far ahead!”
Boy - “Henry.”
Jolly – “Frank, George… and for a girl Megan.”
Who is Barack Obama?
No.1 – “President of the USA”
Boy - “I haven’t a clue”
Jolly – *silent blank face*
How much pocket money do you think you should get per week?
No.1 – “£5″ (the actual limit he may earn with chores)
Boy - “£3.50″ (again, the maximum he can currently earn)
Jolly – “£5″(aspirations towards oldest brothers allowance of riches)
Who is most clever … Mummy or Daddy?
No.1 – “Both of you” *grin*
Boy - “Daddy. Because he just is.”
Jolly – “Both of you”*big shiny eyes and slightly wobbly mouth at the thought of having to choose*
If you were a Mummy what would you let your children do that I don’t?
No.1 – “Stay up later!”
Boy - “Go out on lots more nice outings, play more games together” (*parental wibble…*)
Jolly – “Play xbox every single day. And the Wii. And NEVER do my lunchbox.”
Who’s your best friend in the whole world?
No.1 – “Danny & Olly”
Boy - “Aaron & Josh”
Jolly – “Jake. Today.”
And there, ladies and gentlemen, you have it. the world according the The Blue Ones.
Not one but TWO parcels-containing-pretty-things arrived in the post today. That always makes for a happy day, doesn’t it?
First parcel has come all the way from Canada – Bugalugs sent me a package of hair accessories – non-slip barretts, an adjustable ribbon headband, and a pony loop with a pretty button. All guaranteed to fit, all guaranteed not to slip. Now I just need to convince Pink that hair accessories are A Good Thing. That may take a week or two – it took my nearly three years to convince her that hair BRUSHING was necessary. But they look gorgeous, are so very pretty in a funky not-too-girlie fashion, and I cannot wait to see her in them!
The second parcel has arrived from LegHuggers, and contains two pairs of beautiful bamboo leg warmers. And yes, they are lovely, and no they look nothing like they did in Fame. Now my girl is past the crawling stage when these would have been ace, and she tends to run, not be carried in a sling when again I could have used these on chilly morning school dashes. BUT – we are toilet training, and she is simply incapable of dealing with tights or trousers herself yet. However, slip a pair of these under a skirt, and I think I just may be redundant on many toilet trips. Hurrah! And as if that wasn’t enough, they are also made from bamboo, LittleStuff’s very favourite material. Hurray Hurrah hooroo!
We’ve just signed up another fantastic company to LittleStuff…. Starchild Shoes. Beautifully designed, soft shoes for children with sizes up to age 4. Superb for the little people to run around in with non-skid suede soles and non-toxic dyes.
I’m particularly liking the bright and happy design of their website and I’m also liking their Urban Rock range. Very funky.
Have a look and see if you don’t find yourself wanting to order a pair or two!
The rspb’s big garden birdwatch (30-31 January 2010)
Around half a million people are expected to be watching the garden birds this weekend (30-31 January) for the RSPB’s Big Garden Birdwatch.
So, you want to take part in Big Garden Birdwatch 2010? Excellent news, as it’s simple and fun, and your results will help us to understand more about the UK’s garden birds.
That’s ’simple’ covered, then!
What about the ‘fun’? Well, that starts when you settle down for your hour watching and recording the highest number of each bird species seen in your garden, or local park (not flying over) at any one time, on either Saturday 30 or Sunday 31 January 2010.
As Britain has endured its harshest winter since the launch of Big Garden Birdwatch over 30 years ago, The RSPB is particularly keen to know how the wintry conditions have affected garden bird numbers and whether people see any unusual visitors. There has been huge interest in garden birds during the snowy weather, with RSPB switchboards and website being inundated with people looking for advice on feeding hungry garden birds and help identifying unusual visitors. Big Garden Birdwatch should help us understand the effects of the prolonged cold weather.
The extraordinarily harsh weather is particularly bad for birds with small bodies like robins, long tailed-tits and wrens. Says Dr Avery, “ It’s unlikely the long tailed tit, which famously flew into tenth place in 2009, will remain in the top ten this year. Sadly, we may even see the nation’s favourite garden bird, the robin, also fall out of the top ten in 2010. If this is the case, it’ll be the first time the robin hasn’t featured in the top ten since the start of the survey.”
The RSPB is also keen to identify any regional variations that occur as birds fly to milder regions in search of areas less affected by the weather or where natural food is still readily available.
Sarah Kelly, the RSPB’s Big Garden Birdwatch co-ordinator, said: “Big Garden Birdwatch is a fun, easy activity that anyone can do. All you need is a pen, some paper and just one hour of your time over the weekend 30-31st January. Record the highest number of each species seen at any one time and send us your results. It’s that simple!”
Visit the RSPB website www.rspb.org.uk/birdwatch for more information and to submit your results online.
So, there I was, finally getting round to becoming a fan of Baby Bean on facebook, and I got a quick message back to say I was actually the 100th fan, and so had managed to win a PaperPod!
Well, as regular readers will know I already have a PaperPod, so didn’t think I ought to take another one. But – I was fairly sure that someone out there would be bowled over by one of these amazing things. The lovely Victoria from Baby Bean and I put our heads together, and decided we’d come over all charitable, and offer it not to just yet another competition winner, but to a great cause instead. So – here y’go. Your chance to NOT win a PaperPod of your own. But your local Mums n Tots/playgroup/childrens ward/reception class just might be oh so very grateful indeed…
Yes, yes, I know, it seems like only a few days ago we had a birthday in this house. That’s because we did. No.1 and Pink’s birthdays are 7 days apart (and Jolly is just before Christmas. Fine planning, indeed).
So – No.1 is eleven today. ELEVEN! It just seems so big. I know we say that every year, but this one feels like the closing of an era – I see him changing right in front of me, morphing from my darling toddler boy into the wonderful man I know he will become. This is the year he heads off to High School, and really the babyhood is behind him.
His tenth year has been a tough one for my biggest boy – he has been very ill, missed two terms of school, had doctors looking VERY hard for leukaemia, but finally diagnosed with M.E. However since the summer (the restorative powers of days and days spent with his brothers was a joy to watch) he has steadily improved, far quicker than his doctors or therapy team expected, and he’s now finally back in school most days.
So in honour of this seemingly momentous occasion (and not in any way because I did it for Pink and would be in Big Trouble if I didn’t), I’ve done another little montage of my bright, funny, silly, talks-too-much boy.
PS – do keep your eyes peeled for a small yellow Lion called.. er.. Lionel. He pops up quite regularly…
Go on, you know you want to, it really is very extremely nice. We don't do them often, and they're always interestingly bursting with lovely things. Honest.
A wonderful company has recently joined us here at LittleStuff; please give a big cheer for Ollipops!
