BEGINNING DAIRY FREE

Patrick is dairy intolerant, it came a little out of left field but wasn't completely unsurprising given his history the past few months. I'm glad that we've got an answer to all of his health concerns and hopefully it means we're on the road to wellness again. Seeing your baby constantly poorly is never going to be an experience you take on the chin, it has been really hard and I'm so happy to wave goodbye to those times now. But, it means we're on a new journey and it's one without dairy. Now I'm an 'allergy mum' it only feels right to document the highs and lows on here, it isn't all plain sailing and whilst you might hear of allergies much more in today's society, they still aren't wholly catered for which did shock me a little, hence why I wanted to share everything with you guys. I've sought a lot of support amongst mothers and fathers of children with allergies, and some of them even helped me get answers to Patricks sickness, which I'm forever grateful for. So if I can shed some light onto things for someone else, I'm more than happy to document our updates over here in my little corner.

A HOLIDAY WITHOUT CHILDREN - I CAN'T WAIT FOR...

Holidaying alone, just me and John was something I had firmly waved goodbye to as soon as we realised I was carrying Noah. I expected the next time we boarded a plane, sans children would be well into our forties. Yet here we are, four years down the line just moments away from that exact holiday and though it seems unpopular to admit it, I'm really looking forward to it. Travelling abroad with children in a lot of aspects isn't exactly a holiday, especially when you have more than one child, it's hard, really, really hard. I spoke about some of our struggles in a previous post, after we returned from our family holiday in May, though I love letting our sons explore the world half of me needed another break when we returned just to recover.

FOUR REASONS I DON'T LIKE AUTUMN

Don't be fooled by the title, Autumn is by far my most favourite season as it technically stretches until December 21st, which means it's generally filled with festive excitement, cosy sweaters and duvet snuggles. However like most things in life, Autumn being no different, there are some things that I'd like to leave behind and quite honestly dread every time September rolls around again. I'm not letting my brain fully sink into Autumnal mode just yet, as we have a little sneaky summer getaway planned for the end of the month.

XTAVA 5-IN-1 REVIEW AND GIVEAWAY

I'm a sucker for a beauty tool just as much now as I was before I became a parent. I've always been really into hair and beauty, even if I'm absolutely pants at it and just a simple Insta hashtag search of the latest trends puts me to absolute shame - I still love it. I wont lie though, I'm quite stubborn when it comes to trying new things, I like to sit firmly in my comfort zone. When it comes to hair tools I thought I'd found my ultimate life product in ghd's, I wasn't far wrong, they are flippin amazing and having owned a pair for eleven years now, I don't think that will change. However, there is room for more, I mean come on there is always room for more right? I often turn down the option to review new hair tools as they don't really suit what I want from a product, but when I caught a glimpse of the Xtava 5-in-1 curling wand, there was no way, I could say no.

ORGANIX GIVEAWAY

I think most parents of weaning aged children have heard about Organix. They're an amazing baby food brand that pride themselves on having great taste, with zero junk. They've become a staple in our household, especially since Patrick became dairy intolerant, as Organix have been one of the only brands we've found that use dairy sparingly. Which of course is great for us as it means he gets to enjoy the same treats he always has, and doesn't miss out.

A YEAR ON - MY MOST USED BABY PRODUCTS

I know along the way of parenthood for me, I've documented which products I love, those I couldn't live without and the ones I most certainly didn't need. They're usually pretty relative to what stage my sons have been at, which is great but doesn't exactly give a true reflection of my all time 'must haves' as a parent. I am a mum of two, so I've tried and tested my fair share of baby products, by no means am I an expert or anything close to but I have a blog and I'm a parent, so of course I'm going to share with you the things that I think will make life a whole lot easier if you're raising your own Brady bunch.

WHAT'S WRONG WITH MY BABY?

Over the last few months, Patricks health appears to have deteriorated. Don't panic, this isn't anything too traumatic, but it has been a seriously worrying and stressful time of late. Hence, you may have noticed small absences across my blog because when you have a poorly baby without a shadow of a doubt he's come first and ultimately that means my little corner of the internet has been on the back foot. I wanted to write about this as the situation unfolded, but we had no resolution, I didn't want to put the problem out there without solving it. However, we're here now a full five months later and I think, I really do think, we're so close to finding out exactly what it is that has made our baby boy so poorly.

OUR AUTUMN BUCKET LIST

Autumn is my favourite season, it's mild, crisp and cosy. I love everything about it, from the warm knitted jumpers, darker evenings, hot chocolates and pumpkin picking to crunchy leaves underfoot and bonfire night. There's a lot that happens during Autumn and the build up to Christmas slowly looms. This Autumn is no different to last, and I have a set list in my head of things I want to do as a family. Last year Autumn was amazing for us, my blog really started to hit the ground running, my health fears over Patrick slowly drifted away and we really got into our grove as a family of four.