Easy Simple Haircare Routine for Mums With Long Hair

Before having Archie I was very much a beauty kind of girl and as you know this little space of mine online was all everything beauty and that was the only kind of content I produced. Then my little bubble came along and everything changed because he became my whole world and focus. Now Archie is three and the whirlwind of having a baby and adjusting to life as a mum settles down, I feel like I'm finally finding my feet again. Whilst I'll always be a mum first, I've also remembered what it feels to be that beauty girl again and slowly but surely I've started taking better care of myself. Being a mum is hard work and it's so easy to pop on those mum leggings, leave the house without makeup and have your hair permanently in a mum bun. Well, mum's I'm here to tell you that it there will come a time where you will be able to put some focus back on yourself again and its all about starting with the little things. For me if my hair is looking rubbish, then it can instantly flatten my mood and make me feel sluggish, especially when I look in the mirror. So many have you have been so sweet over social media and constantly message me asking how I get my hair looking good - FYI I don't think its anything amazing, it certainly doesn't feel it, but having it down in a certain style always makes me feel so much better about myself. So I thought I would give you all the lowdown on my simple haircare routine, because it is SIMPLE and let you know what works for me. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that it will inspire you to get out of your mum comfort zone and do something so easy that will make you feel a hundred times better about yourself.

Is The Courtyard by Marriott Hotel Luton, Family Friendly - Full Hotel Review

As a parent there is nothing that brings you more joy than seeing your babies experiencing new things and having the time of their lives and for us the best experiences we have with Archie are the ones where we go out and explore new places. Before Archie came into our wold, the hubby and I loved travel - Nothing has changed since becoming a family of three and we are keener than ever now to take Archie to new places and teach him that life is for adventure. However travelling with children of any age comes with its own set of issues, the biggest one for us is finding the right accommodation on our travels and making sure wherever we stay is child and family friendly. There are so many wonderful places to stay, but sometimes it can be hard to tell from a website or photos of hotels if it they would be suited to families. Over the weekend myself, James and Archie were kindly invited to stay at the Courtyard by Marriott Hotel in Luton to see if it was the perfect stay for us and if its a hotel that would be suited to any family on their travels. I can confirm right now we had one of the best weekends this year and I want to take the chance to tell you all in detail why this hotel would be perfect for you and your family if your looking to stay overnight in the Luton area.

Why a Girls Holiday is Still Ok When You Become A Mum

On Friday night two weeks ago, I had my bags packed and ready to leave the airpot to head to Ibiza for my best friends Hen Do. Before deciding to commit to the Hen Do, I had a lot of worries and doubts and even considered backing out of my best friends important weekend, all because I had the mum guilt. Mum guilt is very real and I get it in waves about the smallest and simplest of things, so you can imagine what kind of guilt I was feeling about leaving my baby for a long weekend. After some long discussions with the other half, who insisted that I went, I secured my place with my deposit and off I went the other weekend on what I would class as one of the best long weekends away I've had in a long time. I know a lot of us mums get thrown in situations where we feel torn between choosing our children and our desire to do things for ourselves; More often or not our babies win every time (and rightly so), but every now and again it's ok to do something for yourself. So today I thought I'd sit down and tell you why it's ok to get out the house and let your hair down once in a while. Grab a drink and some cake if you have some lying around as this is probably going to be a long post as I have a lot to say about getting over the mum guilt fear.

My Top Tips for Taking The Perfect Photo of You & Your Toddler

Over the last couple of months, I've really tried to switch things up on Instagram and move away from the beauty flatlay's. You guys know that I love my beauty treats but I'm slowly moving away from all of that and focusing on becoming an established mummy/family blogger because that is my main focus on life right now. One thing that I love doing is taking photos of myself and Archie, I find these photos do really well on Instagram and they are great keep sakes for the family photo album. Whilst these kinds of photos are my favourite, they are by far the most difficult to take and I'll warn you now sometimes your photos shoots will be a complete fail. Trust me, I have an album on my laptop with hundreds of crazy blooper photos. Trying to take a photo of a toddler on their own is hard enough as it is but taking a nice photo of you and a three year old who isn't sleeping and refuses to sit still is a nightmare.

As most of the photos that you see of myself and Archie over on my Instagram are taken by myself, I thought today that I would share with you some top tips and things that have really helped me to take those photos. Plus a few of you have been asking how I take these pictures and if my three year old really sits still for the camera (he really doesn't).

Hello I'm Back | The Past, Present & Future

Hello everyone! It's been a long time since I've sat at my laptop and felt motivated and inspired to write. I know I've been missing in action for a long time, not just on my blog but across all my social media and to be honest I've needed the break. Before I disappeared my blog posts where few and far between and I think I just felt the pressure of blogging - As you all know comparison is the devil, especially within the online community and I found myself really stuck in a rut. To top it all off my nana who I'm really close with passed away at the end of September which completely zapped all of my creative juices. It was a really hard time for me and my family loosing someone so close and I've never experienced a loss of someone close in my adult life so it was a lot for me to deal with. I've just spent my time over the last few weeks being with my family and focusing all my energy on whats really important to me - Archie. Archie is definitely the best medicine and his little cheeky smile has not only helped me get through my own personal struggles but he is always helping me grow and improve as a mother, he really gives me so much more than he'll ever know. In the back of my mind I've always had that little niggle telling me that I need to get back into the everyday swing of life, but the time has not felt right until now. The break was just what I needed and I feel ready to pick up my camera again and getting those creative juices flowing again. Sorry for the really rambly start to this blog post, I'm really out of practice, but what I'm trying to say is that I'm back, sorry for being gone for so long and that I've missed you all.

EvyTechnology Sunscreen Mousse For Kids | The Best Sunscreen for Kids

This heatwave in Britain right now is amazing and I'm loving all the holiday sunshine at home - Who needs to go abroad when the weather is this good? One thing I get really worried and paranoid about is protecting my skin against the sun and I try to avoid sunburnt skin as much as possible. I worry about sun damage and exposure even more so now that I have Archie and the last thing I want is him burning - It's so important to stay safe in the sun and I'm sure every parent will agree with me that its a top priority when it comes to fun in the sun. Archie's a few months past two now and right from the beginning he has hated me applying suncream to him. I've tried everything from creams to sprays, ones that roll on and ones that say they are easy to apply and are non sticky. Everything I've tried always ends in Archie running away from me, crying because I'm applying lotion onto him and more often or not half a bottle of sunscreen all over me. Not only is the sunscreen application a disaster for us, but Archie is always so sticky afterwards which always makes him look really uncomfortable in the hot sun. I always hoped that there was a solution to my sunscreen nightmares and luckily for me there was. A brand called Evy Technology got in touch with me and their revolutionary sunscreen has changed everything for us. So much so that these nightmares are a thing of the past, so I feel like it's my duty to tell every parent out there about how amazing the Evy Technology Sunscreen is, especially if my story is sounds all too familiar for you.

A Little Tour of Archie's Nursery

I was scrolling through my blog the other day hoping that some inpirstation would strike (I've had a bad case of the dreaded bloggers block recently) and it occurred to me that I've never shared Archie's Nursery with anyone on the Internet. I know a lot of you who read here are fellow mums or mums to be and I know that I loved reading these posts whilst I was pregnant and I spent way too many hours browsing Pinterest for nursery inspiration. Archie is now two and it makes me a little sad to think that not only is he growing up, but its time to start changing things up a little bit in his room and start making things a little less babyish in there. Theres talk between the hubby and I about upgrading Archie's cot to a bed as he's almost out grown it (he's really tall for his age) and with a new bed I think it's time for a new theme (hello Pinterest). So before everything gets turned upside down and redecorated I thought I would grab some snaps for you guys and myself - Because let's face it, I would be gutted if I didn't have these photo's to look back on in a few years time.

Archie's 15 Month Update

It's been ages since I last updated you all on Archie, 5 months to be precise and I'm kicking myself a little bit for leaving things for so long as so much has changed in that time. I love these posts and sharing with you all the things my little bubble is getting up too, but I mainly love these posts because they're great for me to look back on and its almost like a little diary entry. I don't even know where to start as he's come on so much since his 10 month update (here).

Five Things That No-one Tells You About When Becoming A First Time Parent

Archies 10 Month Update