Baker Days - Cakes For Special Occasions

Now I have to admit I am prone to a slice of cake, you could say I am on a special cake diet. I see it and I eat it…and worry about the consequences at a later date.

BakerDays have very recently given me the opportunity to personalise an entire cake from scratch, from the double chocolate chip sponge to the very icing on top! In the theme of Valentine’s day I chose a fitting design ‘Love & Kisses on Valentines Day Luke’.

The aspect that sets this cake aside from any other cake is that it comes through the post and fits through your letter box as would any of your other post. I have to admit that the thought of squeezing a cake through the letter box did sound a little strange to me at the start of my cake journey but the cake arrived well packaged and even survived it’s adventure through the door.

My worry was that the cake would arrive un-fit for consumption after being dropped by postal handlers along the way, but I have to admit that upon seeing the lovely presentation tin the cake was encased in I was very pleased and my mind lay to rest.

The cake looked great, and although it is not massive (it comes through the letter box remember) it is the perfect amount for 2 people. Or if you wanted to gift this to one person, you (I) could very easily eat it (I am not just talking personally am I?)

So I have told you all my shameful secret, you know…seeing cake and eating it and dealing with the consequences later? Well with Luke’s cake now within my grasp…I cut it and ate a slice! Completely shameful I know!

I did share a little with Leo however, so that should ease my conscience surely?

The cake tasted as I expected, yummy. Yes it was very tasty. I did manage to pull myself away though and put the rest of the cake back in the tin and hide it until Luke got home. That’s when the rest of the cake disappeared, while Luke exclaimed his appreciation by ‘umming’ delicious munching sounds throughout.

The Letter Box cake range is priced from £14.99 but dependent upon what recipe you select this price will alter. For the Double Chocolate Chip sponge it adds an additional £2.00 to the final bill, bringing the cake in at £16.99.

I do think that this is a expensive way of buying a cake but I do like the personalisation that goes into it and of course all of the different designs that are available.

So would I buy one?

The answer is yes I would. If there was a special occasion coming up I could justify the price then yes I would. The cake quality is great and it is a really personal little gift that you can eat! *Bonus*

I often give myself a budget like I am sure many of you do, and I would go out and spend this on a bottle of wine or something similar for someone, but I am sure I would get extra brownie points for a cake!

So with Valentines Day coming up why not have a look around the rest of the designs and see what you think?

Disclaimer: I was sent the Letter Box Cake for the purpose of this feature however all views and opinions expressed are completely honest and my own.

Sleep Training

Leo woke up one night last week and no amount of cuddles or milk would settle him. So having work the next day and worrying about being up all night with him, I succumbed and allowed him to snuggle up in our bed.

First fail.

The next night Leo just would not go down in his cot, no matter what I did he just screamed. This for Leo is completely out of character as he usually goes down at 7pm with a bottle of milk and off to sleep he goes. He had even been sleeping through the night and I thought our sleep problems were well and truly behind us.

He stood there in his cot holding his blankie and milk bottle tightly, and it suddenly dawned on me where he wanted to go. Our bed. So I took him through just to see what he would do and sure enough he began sucking on his blankie and drifting off to sleep.

Second Fail.

He didn’t care if I was by his side or not, so I left him to it and went down stairs (by this time it was already 9pm and my evening was gone) but when I came up to bed I moved him back to his cot. I suddenly thought that he may be wanting a bed and the cot was the issue, in hind sight I can see that this was not the right time for such a big change but we gave it a try.

I got him a duvet and a new pillow with Mickey Mouse dotted all over it, and I had Luke take down the cot side and in it’s place put a bumper bar to keep him from rolling out. At bed time Leo refused to go in it and seemed really un-settled again. So I lay down with him on his big boy bed and we cuddled. I put on his Winnie the Pooh Light Show so that he could see it dancing around on the ceiling. But still nothing worked.

In fact he got so clingy that I couldn’t even leave the room and I was waving goodbye to yet another evening of things I needed to get done.

So I took him into our room – Third Fail.

I had already decided that the cot bar was going back up as he quite obviously was not ready for that change just yet and I was even ready to pull out the big guns of controlled crying.

I lay with my little man tickling his hand and holding him, and then I started to move away as I heard him starting to drift off to sleep. It was like he could detect when I got out of the door, with his alarm sounding making me come back in.

When I eventually got downstairs I was adamant that I was going to get him back into his own bed and to going off to sleep without me. It is amazing how 2 nights can make such a difference to a routine and what the child expects from you.

I moved Leo into his big boy bed around 11pm again just as I was going to bed, and he spent a matter of hours in there before he was awake and back in bed with Daddy and I.

After finishing work the next day I got the Allen Keys and asked Luke to put the cot back together for me. Of course he decided not to help, told me that I should battle it out with him as he would have to do it eventually. My argument on this front is that he has demonstrated that he is not ready, and for me to get him back in his cot I was going to have to make sure he couldn’t get out, so that he would eventually go back off to sleep.

So without Luke’s help I attempted to put the side back on only to get so far before he comes in and tells me that I have blunted all of the screw heads. But eventually Luke had Leo’s cot back together and ready for Leo that evening.

That night Leo screamed for 1 hour and 45 minutes. He stood up screaming at me for what felt like forever. I wondered if he would give in and go to sleep as we hadn’t had to practice controlled crying for a very long time.  Eventually he sat down in his cot, and then lay down before he fell asleep and slept all night long.

The next night Leo cried for around an hour before falling asleep, I was anxious it would be longer as Luke and I had plans to go out. He was meant to be going to Granny’s house overnight but I decided that it would be best if she came to us so as not to disrupt his routine further. I knew if I didn’t have him fast asleep by the time Granny arrived she wouldn’t be able to leave him crying and would give into him. Luckily just before Granny arrived Leo was fast asleep and dreaming and didn’t even know we left. He slept all night long and was bright eyed and bushy tailed by morning.

Saturday night Leo cried for around 20 minutes before drifting off and sleeping ALL night.

Sunday night took less than 5 minutes before he was sleeping like a baby, all through the night!

Monday night he went down just like he usually would, he let me tuck him in and even hover by the cot like I always do. Before I walked out of the room telling him I loved him. There were no tears, no screaming and he went straight off to sleep. Sleeping all night long.

With each passing night there really was a difference in how long Leo was crying for until he was just back to normal. I have spoken on my views about controlledcrying before and how I felt about doing it. But now at 19 months old I have no problem in sleep training him. I feel he needs to know that bedtime is bedtime and he goes down to sleep in his cot (or bed…at some point in the future).

The Possession Review

Lionsgate very recently sent me the new release of The Possession to watch for one of those moments when I obviously have a child free moment. Yes… I do occasionally get them!

So with Leo tucked up for an afternoon nap and Luke hard at work, I curled up on the sofa to watch a film that I wanted to watch, a film that Luke would refuse to watch had I waited for him to come home later that night.

I have to admit that I enjoy horrors, I always go in with really high hopes and come out feeling a little deflated after all of the hype that goes into the advertisments and the pre released trailers. And I thought maybe this time would be different, maybe this time my expectations would be met.

The film is about a young girl Emily who is coming to terms with her parent’s divorce. Emily and her elder sister are visiting their Father who has just moved into his new house since moving out of the family home. While driving along they drive past a garage sale where a mass array of household items and personal effects are up for sale.

Emily discovers an old antique (dybbuk) box completely unaware of the sinister items inside the box, and the malicious spirit that she is about to unleash.

The beginning of the film set the scene of what to expect from the remainder of the performance but I have to say after an explosive start I felt that it took too long for anything else to happen. There were moments where little Emily got my attention but for the most part I thought it was a bit hit and miss.

I liked that on this occasion instead of it being a Christian exorcist as in the majority of the other possession titles I have seen, that it was based around the Jewish faith. I thought that the basis of this had the prospect of a good film and had there been more scenes with the possessed child and more of a story about where the box had originated rather than CGI bugs swarming out of the young girls mouth, there would have been more of an edge surrounding it.

I do really think that it was somewhat watered down to appeal to a wider (younger) audience. Maybe to get more people through the cinema doors? Or to make more DVD/Blu Ray sales? For me in a film like this all the stops need to be pulled out and if that means making it 18+ then so be it.

I am yet to watch a possession horror film that has ticked all the boxes and let me leave the screening thinking that they had nailed it. I admit I do have high expectations for a film of this genre (I guess I just want something to really scare me!) but so far I am still waiting for that one film to come along and do just that.

For now though I do recommend giving this film a watch as although it did not tick every box for me it was enjoyable and lets face it Jeffrey Morgan is very easy on the eyes!

You can purchase your very own copy of The Possession right here.

Disclaimer: I was sent The Possession on DVD for the purpose of this review, however all views and opinions expressed are completely honest and my own.

Dear Homebase...

Dear Homebase,

Back on the 17th December 2012 we placed an order with you for a wardrobe. A wardrobe that was going to take until the 18th January 2013 for you to deliver it, despite this long wait we decided to proceed with the order and booked the time off work to be in for the delivery.

The day before delivery was supposed to take place, I received a text telling me to expect my order between 12:30 and 2pm the following day as arranged. The 18th January brought with it a dusting of snow, and I wondered whether or not the delivery would still take place. I had to guess that it would as I heard nothing from you to say otherwise, and knowing that you had my number I liked to think that you would contact me and let me know if this was not the case. 

So I waited in all day, denying my little boy his first proper experience of the snow as I was worried that I wouldn't hear the front door knock while we were outside! However I shouldn't have worried as you didn't show. You didn't bother to let me know and it was I who had to call you to re-arrange delivery! You wouldn't have got in touch at all.

We re-arranged delivery for the 2nd February 2013, 2 weeks and 3 days since the first failed delivery. 6 weeks and 3 days since our order was first placed with you. 

Of course I cannot argue with the weather, and I don't expect you to be able to predict it, but I sure as hell would appreciate the communication to let me know. But I brushed this under the carpet and told my partner it was ok, that delivery had been re-arranged.

So you can imagine my surprise yesterday while I am waiting in the house expecting a delivery between the hours of 7am - 12pm and nothing arrives. We didn't even receive a text with an expected delivery slot this time. Nothing. Zilch. Especially nothing to say there was a problem and you wouldn't be delivering.

So I called you back up and gave you our order number, only to be told that no delivery had been booked in for the 2nd February and that we were not going to have our wardrobe again, but you could book it back in for delivery on Friday 15th February. 

Friday 15th February is 8 weeks and 1 day since we first placed our order and in my opinion completely unacceptable. I have lost all faith in you as a company and your delivery service. You are wasting my time having me sit in waiting for a parcel that most likely will not turn up.

Your explanation for being out of stock for the wardrobe we ordered back in December, a wardrobe that should have been delivered weeks ago is not cutting it. 

Why would you arrange a delivery for an item that you don't currently have in stock?

Why did you not contact me on any occasion to let me know what was going on?

So Homebase your service to me has highlighted that you have no sense of urgency or honoring a pre-arranged delivery date. You obviously don't know how to pick up a phone and provide the customer service that is needed. However you are very organised when it comes to debiting the money and not providing the goods.

I am so close to saying forget the order and go elsewhere, but after waiting this long I do want my wardrobe and for this whole pa-lava to be over. One thing is for sure though, I will never order through you again as it has been a awful experience and not something I wish to repeat.

Yours,

Dissatisfied Customer 

Learning through play

Leo loves to play, and if you were to see our house at this present time you would see that he has more than enough to play with. But Leo is actually role playing, he is using his imagination to play make believe games.

I thought he was a little too young to be doing these things but the more I think about it the more I realise that it is a learnt behaviour. He watches me talk on the phone, so he talks on the phone. He has seen me vacuum the floor, so he does it too. Everything he does he has seen done at one point or another.

For Christmas we got Leo a wooden play kitchen, it is something that we had been wanting to get for him for quite a while. The main reason I knew he would love the kitchen is because of the doors. Yes…My son has an obsession with opening doors putting objects in and out and then closing the doors again before repeating.

So I knew that what ever we did get him would have to be strong and sturdy, as Leo was going to play… hard with it.

As expected the kitchen has been a big hit and by far his favourite Christmas present, he stands with his kitchen utensils and cooks porridge on the hob, and stirs it so effectively. Leo will then bring me over the yummy bowl of steaming porridge (or orridge as he calls it) and of course the spoon so that I can eat it all up. Of course I make the appropriate eating noises to let him know that he has cooked up one mean bowl of porridge, and usually after I have eaten my fair share, Leo will chow down on the rest making the same eating sounds and dipping the spoon in and out of the bowl.

I have told Leo that the pots and pans can get very hot so he has to be careful while he is cooking on the stove, and understanding exactly what I have said he touches the pans and then puts his hand to his mouth. Strange as this sounds this is what Leo does when he touches something he expects to be warm or hot such as the radiator.

To go alongside the kitchen Santa brought Leo lot’s of pretend food so that he would have lot’s to cook up for Mummy and Daddy. Sure enough little man is roasting chicken and cooking up delicious vegetables in his oven, and the more he plays and we say the names of what he is cooking, the more he is learning to say. He tells me ‘pizza’ and points into the oven, and sure enough…His plastic pizza is cooking in there. Of course when the pizza is all cooked up we must eat it up very quickly with our enthusiastic ‘yum, yum’ noises.

Leo will whip out his very own Dyson hoover to clean up the mess that has made on the floor, whizzing it backwards and forwards with his very own ball technology! He especially loves to help Mummy clean up the house, and the best thing is that now he has his very own…He doesn’t cling onto my Dyson…and he doesn’t try to sit on it to go for a ride!

Leo also has his very own baby boy doll, we have named him Josh in honour of his baby cousin. I think that Leo believes all baby’s are named Josh or as he would say ‘osh’. But we have to sit and feed Leo’s baby doll with his very own doll bottle. Leo will then pick him up and give him a reassuring pat on the back before putting him into his pram and pushing him around the entirety of the house.

Who’s to say that imagination cannot come into play now? Leo has demonstrated that he is playing and making the very most out of his already, even if he is just mimicking learnt behaviour he is still playing make believe and becoming a very clever, well rounded little man.

Birmingham Sea Life Centre

We were given the opportunity to take Leo along to the Sea Life Centre in Birmingham the other weekend courtesy of Ladbrokes. I of course jumped at the chance as I thought Leo was going to love looking at all of the bright fish of all different shapes and sizes bobbing around in their tanks.

We must have tired Leo out over lunch at a near by restaurant, as by the time he had devoured his cheese pizza and munched his chocolate fudge cake, he was ready for a nap. But still we had come to visit the Sea Life Centre and we had foolishly decided that Leo should walk around....

Of course Leo had other plans, he was going to run. From start to finish and if I had not kept up with him he would have blitzed the attraction in no time at all and be coming out of the other end having not seen anything! 

I was disappointed that Leo was more interested in running around rather than looking at the many marine creatures that were on display to him, he did show fleeting signs of interest before zooming off again but there was so much more zooming than studying. I am putting this down to him needing a sleep...But still it would have been really special for him to have a proper look and take it all in.

Having been to the Sea Life Centre before I have been able to take everything in without a larger than life toddler running up and down ramps before becoming fascinated by pretty lights. I have even been able to take in the 3D cinema, even though on this occasion it just wasn't going to happen. 

Leo did seem to love the Jelly Fish that floated around elegantly in the large tube aquarium, they come in so many pretty colours and glow beautifully. Of course it wasn't long before Leo was on the run again...

At the end of the Sea Life Centre before you enter the gift shop, there is a mirror maze. This being Leo's first experience of a mirror maze I have to admit I was anxious and excited all at the same time. Leo wasted no time in charging off and in a matter of moments he had become the first casualty. That's right Leo ran straight into his reflection, taken a tumble backwards and by the look on his face...Was wondering what on earth was going on.

To add extra bewilderment, Leo suddenly started looking from left to right. There were 3 Daddy's in front of him all talking away making sure that he was ok. Leo really didn't know where to look and it soon became apparent that he was more than ready to go home.

Ladbrokes are currently celebrating the launch of their new Octopays game hence the sea life theme! To complete the sea life experience we were also sent a Sea Food Cookery Book and a Blue Planet DVD.

We had a fantastic day out all in all even though Leo was a little monster running here, there and everwhere. We will certainly be taking him back to the Sea Life in the near future and I am hoping that he will take more of an interest in the marine life.

Disclaimer: I was sent vouchers to cover our entrance fee to the Sea Life Centre, a cookery book and Blue Planet DVDs for the purpose of this feature. However all opinions expressed are completely honest and my own.

The Petite Star Njoy Bubble Review

I have to admit when it comes to pushchairs, I have a weakness.

An infalliable lust that keeps me wanting to see what each and every one of them can do, where they can go and the different adventures that can be shaped.

My latest test subject is no other then the Petite Star Njoy Bubble.

This light weight stroller is one of a kind on the design front, I have never seen a stroller like it.

Why is it so different?

Well! it is an umbrella fold combined with a reversible seat allowing this stroller to be parent facing or outward facing! The beauty of it is that unlike other strollers that boast parent facing (my favourite feature in a pushchair) you can alter the position of the seat unit without removing it from the chassis.

I have always loved having Leo face me while we are out and about, over recent months he has been facing out into the wonderous wide world but when the Bubble arirved I could not resist taking Leo out in the parent facing mode. We walked around Tesco grabbing the essentials having a lovely little chit chat and Leo used the words that he knew to chatter back to me, very content facing me all the while.

The seat positioning is operated by a handle at the top of the unit and you will find that it is the same handle that reclines and inclines the seat. In both parent and rear facing positions you can lie the seat flat, so that when the little rugrats fall asleep you can cosy them up and give them their full sleep out.

Assemblying the Bubble

In the box:

- Instruction Manual

- Chassis

- Wheels

- Head hugger

- Rain Cover

Putting the Bubble together is simple as all you need to do is attach the front wheels by popping them into place and attach the hood.

At first I found the hood a little fiddly but once I got it lined up with the runners correctly I realised how easy it really was. With all four wheels now in place and the hood attached, that completes the assembly process for the Njoy Bubble.

Simplicity at it’s best.

With the Bubble now completed in front of me I looked it up and down forming my initial impressions.

So what did I think?

The ice white of the aluminium frame looks great against the black material of the hood and side panels, and the electric purple seat unit adds a welcome splash of colour to the stroller. At first I wasn’t too sure if I had fitted the hood correctly as it felt a little wobbly, but as the hood is made entirely out of Nylon fabric and moves with the positioning of the seat it does need the leeway. I have found that due to this the hood does not feel as supported and sturdy as on other strollers I have tried but it is a generous size offering shelter from the elements.

The seat unit offers the passenger lots of room to stretch out and enjoy the ride, and with the included head hugger it is possible to use this stroller from newborn. What I especially liked about the seat was that you can sit it upright with the incline, with some strollers I have found that leo can never sit completely upright as the incline doesn’t go that far forward. Leo likes to sit up and see everything as we go around, and we often have a struggle if I dare recline him before he falls asleep! So for us this is fantastic, and I know if Leo could he would give it a big thumbs up!

When out and about with Leo I do still tend to have a changing bag with me, especially if I am out for a rather long day, if I have Leo in parent facing mode then there is not really anywhere that I can hang my changing bag, and I do worry that if I do hang anything off the handles that I risk tipping the stroller as it is very light. There is a shopping basket based underneath the Bubble but due to the seat design it is rather fiddly to get to. Petite Star have compensated by adding a zip on either side of the basket so that you can have better access but the space available is still rather tight and realistictally you probably wont get anything in there other than the raincover.

Now I have already mentioned that this is a light weight stroller, but I don’t feel that this gives it the justice that the Bubble deserves. The entire stroller is incredibly light, even with my 18 month old in the seat, it is effortless to push and goes up curbs like a dream. As babies grow into bigger babies, and then into little people it gets harder to cruise them around with their weight becoming more apparent they often weigh down the stroller… So the Bubble is a great choice for those of us who have older babies who still need a pushchair.

Leo is far off being able to walk for the duration we are out and we do still need a stroller. This pushchair is light enough for me to push one handed, so while I have Leo on the reignes I can still keep up with him and control where the pushchair goes! And when Leo’s little legs get too tired, he can go straight back into the Bubble for a rest.

Over the last 15 months I have had the pleasure of trying various different strollers, and one thing I find very important is the ease of putting it up and down. After all this is something that you will be doing on a very regular basis and you don’t want to be faffing with fiddly elements. So I am pleased to report that this umbrella fold stroller is very simple to put up and down. It is very similar to other umbrella fold pushchairs that I have used and simply has a push up button in the middle of the back frame, and a push down switch on the right hand side. Then by pushing the stroller forward it collapses and automatically locks with the clasp on the side.

You can fold the stroller in both seat positions and don’t have to fiddle around to alter the seat before collapsing it, and the collapsed stroller is the perfect size to fit easily in the boot of my 206!

Putting the stroller back up is just as simple, by firstly releasing the clasp and pushing down on the middle pedal at the back of the stroller to re-tension the frame.

It really is that simple!

When I first touched the EVA foam wheels I will admit that I wasn’t to sure of them, you could maybe even say I didn’t like them. However after giving this stroller a real test run I have been forced to change my mind. The wheels run smoothly providing you with great control!

The raincover fits the pushchair securely in either parent facing mode or outward facing. When the raincover is on it gives Leo plenty of room to manuever and stays out of his way. I have been storing the raincover in the basket so that it is always there if we suddenly need it, which with the British weather is always a possibilty!

Over all I think this is a fab little stroller with big capability. I know a lot of parents want the oppurtunity to be face to face with their baby while out and about so this feature is a big attraction.

Petite Star really have done themselves proud with this nifty little number, by providing a stroller that can be used in both parent facing and outward facing positions without the need to remove the seat from the chassis and it is bound to be a big success!

With the added head hugger you can use this stroller from birth and realistically you will only need one pushchair. For £199.00 RRP this is a very attractive price for a pushchair that has the potential to carry your little one through to a time when you no longer need a pushchair.

Disclaimer: I was sent the Petite Star Njoy Bubble for the purpose of this review, however all opinions expressed are completely honest and my own.