LOVING A SECOND CHILD

From the moment you find out you are pregnant with number two, you're filled with wonder. I certainly was, constantly wondering how on earth could I love another the way I love Noah. It just didn't feel possible, my heart was so full and he occupied so much of it that I really didn't think there would be room for another. You never have to worry about your love for your children in comparison to the love for your other half, because they're two totally different kinds, but was another arrival going see my halving the love I had to give? I definitely worried.

AM I A STEREOTYPICAL BLOGGER?

I know there isn't a 'one size' for bloggers, particularly parenting bloggers because there are so many of us. All different family make ups, spread across the world and all doing our own little thing. But I can't help that feel sometimes I am not quite a stereotypical blogger. I see things sometimes that is the 'done' thing, and just think it's so not me, I'd never do that, I couldn't do that. Other times I do thinks that would be frowned upon or shrugged at by the more professional bloggers, I don't put on a facade and I don't mask who I am, my home isn't a scandi dream (though I am trying) and we don't go on long whirlwind adventures to national trusts every day. I'm just me.

ACTIVITIES FOR KEEPING A TODDLER BUSY

Toddlers are feisty, they have their own mind and opinions on what they want to do and certainly on what they don't want to do. It can be incredibly hard to keep them busy or to even get them to sit still, I certainly struggle even getting a photograph of Noah these days with full co-operation, he's a little like a blender with no lid on at times. But, I am noticing that his attention span is much longer than it used to be, we recently did our first cinema trip with him and he absolutely loved it (Trolls is now a firm favourite in our household) he sat so well throughout. Just last week he managed two 3 hour flights seamlessly and shall be doing the same again next week - it's safe to say he can take on a lot more in terms of activities. So, that's what I'm talking about today.

WEANING TIPS

Weaning is something I eagerly anticipated with my first son, it was new, exciting and another stage we could throw ourselves into. With Patrick though I was still excited when the time came, I didn't will it on any sooner as I had with Noah because I knew that it meant my baby was losing a little bit more of the baby phase with each new meal. We even held off with Patrick till he was six months old as guidelines have changed at the recommended age isn't four months anymore, which I was glad of as looking back four months old seems so tiny and fragile to begin it, but I know all babies are different. Patrick simply wouldn't have been ready at that stage, he almost wasn't quite ready at six months either but after giving ourselves a break of a few days after we initially started, he soon came around and got the hang of the weaning game.

SHOULD MY CHILDREN SHARE A BEDROOM

Sharing a bedroom with my sister brings some of the fondest memories of my childhood along with some of the worst, which I can laugh about now - her snoring would have me in tears. It makes me question whether my boys should share a bedroom, is it a bit mean to put them together when we have space for their own rooms, or is this just a part of childhood? I've read so many articles, blog posts and heard lots of different points of view on the matter, it seems everyone's children handle the situation differently, so it got me thinking, should my boys share a bedroom?

PROVIDING FOR MY FAMILY

I recently spoke about my reasoning for returning to work, I needed to feel like I had another purpose and in all honesty being at home with little income for yourself meant it got a little lonely. Whilst on maternity leave, I would be bringing in the pittance that is maternity pay along with some extras from my blog which could vary from £150 a month to over four times that and though so months meant I had an extra lining in my pockets, other went by where I really had to watch my pennies. I didn't enjoy that. John has always been a 'provider', bringing in the majority of our income, but that doesn't mean my wage meant nothing, I was very keen to have that back - thus returning to work 3 months earlier than I could have.

I AM MORE THAN MUM

I'm writing this post on the eve of my return to work, with the intention that it wont actually go live until well into next month. The situation is met with mixed emotions, I am both excited and nervous for my return to work, but I am definitely more anxious about parting with my son. We've enjoyed our nine months with no work between us, and it will be sad to see that end. But god am I excited to be someone other than Mum. And guess what, I feel bad for that. Society has us believing that returning to work is a time to dread, fear and avoid at all costs, but what if that isn't always the case? What if I am actually looking forward to my return, I want to be someone other than Mummy, does that make me a bad person?

SURVIVING BABYS FIRST COLD

Babies first cold is never going to come at a good time, it disrupts sleep, causes a bothered baby and an upset routine, it's not easy. Even with Patrick being our second baby and managing to get to almost 9 months before facing his first bout of the sniffles, we still found ourselves at a loss of what to do. When your baby gets a cold it's always a stressful experience, you want so badly to take the brunt of it for them and I'm sure most of us parents would do just that over and over again to help them feel better, but we can't.

PATRICK AT TEN MONTHS

I finally feel as though the months are going by at the rate they should, it's lovely as I'm getting to take in every last moment of each month and I'm not stuck in that feeling that it's passed before I have had time to know it's in front of me. Little one, you're ten months old. Your ninth month has been one of change, you've began nursery and I'm at work. You no longer solely depend on me every single day and as lovely as that can be, I miss it terribly. Instead of driving a mini wedge between us, which is exactly what I imagined would happen when we spent less time together, it's made us closer - something I am incredibly happy about.

POSTPARTUM BODY PRESSURE

I've had two babies now, and with each one I've ended up bigger than I was before I had the baby. It just happened, particularly with Noah. I don't blame it on the baby because ironically in the weeks and first months following his birth I went straight back to my pre-baby self. But I blame boredom eating during maternity leave, low self esteem and snacking on crap because I didn't have enough time to make something from scratch. I'm sure many women have been in the same boat and should I have another baby in my life, I'd probably fall into the same trap. I am ok with that. *gasp*. There is SO much pressure to bounce back to your pre-baby weight and that as Mums you should want to look how you did before you had children, but does anyone stop to think - we might not want to?

TIPS FOR RETURNING TO WORK

I've now been back at work for over three weeks and if I'm honest I'm really loving the balance between home and my career, I feel as though it seems to be just right. I would be a complete liar if I said I didn't dread returning to work this time around and that's no mark on my job, it's just that I was so content and happy at home, I also really worried how Patrick would cope with so much change. It turns out, he's taken to nursery and my nan / mum, like a duck to water - which of course has made my transition back into my role a lot easier.

FAMILY MONEY SAVING TIPS

It's very rare you're going to meet a family that are happy just spending willy-nilly (did I really just say that? I think I did) The more additions you have to your brood the chances are the tighter your purse strings get. Babies are generally pretty expensive, taking into account for formula, nappies and then the fantastic new wardrobe they need every 3 months. Life can be pretty darn costly. I recently took part in a Twitter chat which focused on family money saving tips, I truly enjoyed it as it really gave me some fantastic ideas I'd never have thought of otherwise. Today I'm going to share some of those, in the hope you too will be pleasantly surprised by just how easy it can be to save those extra pennies as a family.