Living Arrows #1 - Tractor Rides, Raspberry Picking and Big Changes

I've now been blogging for six years, long before I became a parent. When I started I wrote about my favourite perfumes or the book that I was currently reading, but when I had Noah the blog evolved and became all about him. Then of course all about Ava when she was born.

There's nothing I enjoy more than writing about my children, documenting as many moments as I can. I'd give up the reviews, the days out, the partnerships, and the collaborations over the countless posts I've written about them. Those posts are the heart of this blog and I hope that when they are older they'll like to read them and won't be too embarrassed about the excessive amount of photo's that I've shared of them. 

This week I've decided to take part in a linky that I've not taken part in before, it's called Living Arrows and is all about celebrating childhood. It's quite an emotional time for us at the moment, which you can probably tell by the gushy paragraphs above. Noah only has two weeks left at nursery, then it's off to school in September. It's such a huge milestone and is extremely bittersweet. With Noah feeling so emotional lately, we've been taking little moments here and there, just the two of us to have a little bit of one on one time. These moments I always make time for but I think they are extremely important at the moment. Here are a few snaps I took last week, on one of our little walks together which ended up with Noah eating half of a wild raspberry bush! 

My Sunday Photo - 27/52

aden + anais x Natchie Art Collaboration - Giveaway

aden + anais, the baby care brand widely known for its iconic muslin swaddling, sleeping, feeding and bath time products, is delighted to announce a collaboration with the Brooklyn based artist, Nadia Ackerman of the Natchie Art Studio. 

The collection comprises hand-drawn prints designed Nadia who is a singer/songwriter as well as an illustrator. She originally hails from the northern beaches of Sydney, Australia before moving to New York 19 years ago to pursue her dream of becoming a jazz singer. She has performed on Late Night with Jimmy Falon and Good Morning America and on stage with artists including Sir Elton John and Sting, before teaming up with aden + anais’ co-founder Raegan Moya-Jones who bonded with each other as Australian’s living in Brooklyn. Nadia’s unique approach to her art began when she started seeing her songs as images and felt an overwhelming desire to draw her music. 

The aden + anais x natchie art collection features two different designs, whales & boats and the benita & bird. Included in the collection are 2-packs of swaddles which retails at £29.95 and the dream blanket costs £46.95 (pictured on this post) both are made from the aden + anais’ signature 100% cotton muslin which we all know and love.

The Natchie Art range has become a new favourite of mine, it's so eye-catching and artistic, what's not to love about it? How would you like to win an aden + anais dream blanket in either of these limited edition designs? To enter simply use the Gleam form below and don't forget to enter my other blog competitions!

aden + anais x Natchie Art Dream Blanket worth £46.95

Terms & Conditions.         
1. There will be 1 winner who will the prize mentioned above.
2. Winners details sent to Fuse Communications & the prize sent directly from them. 
3. Competition ends 31/07/18.
4. Incomplete entries with be disqualified.
5. UK entries only.

Fisher Price Imaginext Jurassic World - Review

Noah could possibly be Imaginext's number one fan, there's not a day that goes by without him playing with his Imaginext toys. I've lost count of the times I've watched him set up his figures, alongside his playsets ready to play. He'll then lay down, enthralled, and become engrossed with them for quite some time. 

With his love of Imaginext, we were both really excited when we saw the new Imaginext Jurassic World advertisement and both squealed in delight when we were offered a big box of the new range to review! It was just the perfect opportunity for Noah and I was so happy to accept the opportunity. Here's what was inside our huge Dinosaur influencer box:

Jurassic World Imaginext Walking Indoraptor - RRP: £64.99
This is the show stopper when it comes to the new Jurassic World range. Not only does this toy look really impressive, and quite scary but it also has some really cool functions too. First, notice the red stand on the dinosaurs back? This is a place for Imaginext figures (like Owen who comes with this set) to stand and it controls a few of the toy's actions too. Turn it to make the dinosaur run forward or press it to make it roar and open its mouth. With two stomping speeds, walking or rushing the Indoraptor is bound to keep kids busy trying to keep it under control. The Owen figure can also ride the ATV and when you roll the car it makes the dinosaur run faster! Included are the large Indoraptor toy, ATV car and Owen figure. It retails at £64.99 which I think is quite fair with how engaging and interactive it is.

Imaginext Jurassic World Dinosaur Hauler - RRP: £42.99
The Dinosaur Hauler is what every child needs to capture and transport those pesky raptors! Just like the Walking Indoraptor this vehicle has one of the trademark red platforms where your figure can stand or you can use to control different aspects of the toy. With the hauler, you turn the red power pad midway it lowers the ramp to the vehicle, and if you twist it completely then it ejects the cage. When your Imaginext figure is standing on the power pad they can man the projectile launcher, shoot out the net and catch the raptor! With this set, you receive the vehicle, projectile launcher, net, blue dinosaur figure and one Imaginext figurine.

Imaginext Jurassic World Figure Mosasarus & Diver - RRP: £18.99

We are familiar with the accessory and figure packs so we were happy to see that they've released them within the Jurassic World range too. We were sent the Mosasarus set which was the first toy that Noah wanted to open! The Mosasarus moves it's fins, tail and opens its mouth with the press of a button. It's quite a scary looking thing and one which Noah seems to be really drawn to. The diver figure which comes with this set is fully equipped for deep sea diving and for taming the beast! There are two other larger assortment packs, each coming with a different dinosaur, figure and accessory. 

Imaginext Jurassic World Sub Dino Catcher - £11.99 each

There are half a dozen character packs which are available, which all retail at just £11.99 each. The £11.99 character set's come with one Imaginext figure and a dinosaur or vehicle. These sets are great for building your own Jurassic World collection, adding even more fun into play, without breaking the bank. We were sent the Sub Dino Catcher which goes perfectly with the Mosasarus set!

Well, what can I say other than Imaginext have gone and done it again! In Noah's eyes, they are the best toys there are! Over the past week, he's constantly played with the Jurrasic World range and Ava has now become obsessed with dinosaurs, constantly toddling around the house while roaring!

I also have to add that these toys aren't just a hit with Noah, as parents we love them too. They are such sturdy and well-made toys, ones which really encourage your child to use their imagination, and create their own stories and games through play. I could honestly sit there and watch Noah play with them all day long, he enjoys them so much and I know that he'll be playing with them for years to come!

Imaginext Jurrasic World toys are suitable from 3 years and available to buy now, online or instore at retailers like Smyths Toys.

- We were sent these products for the purpose of this review, however, all opinions are my own.

3 Ways To Make A Garden Child Friendly

Buying our first home four years ago was a very important milestone in our life. Noah was only a few months old at the time, it felt wonderful to be in the position to give him a proper family home and for it to be an investment for his future too.

As mentioned in previous posts, our house needed a full renovation before we could move into it, but we knew what we were getting ourselves into. Our main goal was to make the house a home. A space that was just ours, one which would be the perfect base to create an endless amount of family memories for years to come. 

By the time we'd accomplished our goal, Noah was a fully-fledged toddler. He was really finding his feet and loved nothing more than being outdoors. With this in mind, the next step was to create an outdoor space that was safe for him to enjoy. Here are 3 ways we created a child-friendly garden:

1. Remove all hazards

I decided to start the post with this suggestion because it was the main issue for us and our garden. When we moved in to our house, the entire front yard was filled with gravel. It didn't look nice, but I presume the previous owners decided to do it because it meant no upkeep from them. It was the first thing to go, not only was in an eyesore but it was also unsafe and the neighbourhood cats all saw it as one huge litter tray too! Gross!

2. Check plants aren't poisonous

Our garden also had numerous plants and foliage which we didn't really want to remove. The plants looked like they'd been around for some time so we didn't like the thought of removing them. They also looked nice and gave the garden a little privacy.

All parents know that toddlers like to explore using their mouths so before we agreed to do anything I did a little research on which plants are toxic and which aren't. I think this is really important to do, even if you don't have children. One of my relatives recently moved into a new house and soon after her dog started to become sick. She was taking him to the vets on a weekly basis but they eventually got to the bottom of it, he'd been eating the fallen leaves of a toxic tree. It cost my relative a couple of hundred pounds to get it removed but her dog is no longer getting sick and the hazard has been removed.

3. Create a safe surface

Kids love to explore and can become quite excited when outdoors which is why it's so important to create an even and safe surface for them to enjoy. An easy and efficient way to do this is to install Artificial Grass. At first, we opted for real grass as that tends to be the norm but we soon regretted it. We could never get it to look nice. We are outside most days so it looked patchy and when it rained it turned into a mud bath! It was a nightmare. We've turned to artificial grass as gives you the look of a real lawn without the high maintenance! The best of both worlds.

Do you have any tips you'd like to share with me?

- This is a PR Collaboration.

My Sunday Photo - 26/52