My son the loon...........

I popped into town this afternoon with Beansy (aged 7) as he wanted some new shorts for beavers.  I was having a look in Peacocks and had left him at the accessories whilst browsing.  When I turned around, this is what I found..........He was "rocking out" to Florence and the Machine's version of "You've got the love"

When I asked him if he minded my blogging about this, he said "I am such a cool dude mum, my fans (!) will love it"  so please, leave my little dancing loon some love!!!

Peace and Love

S.A.M xx

A bedtime lullaby

Seeing as my last post was my angels with dirty faces asleep, it lead me to think that I really need to write down our bedtime lullaby in case we all forget it in years to come.

Firstly, I must explain, my lovely mum always used to stroke my hair whilst singing (or rather La, La, La-ing) along to the beautiful Brahms Lullaby it is a piece of music that makes my feel so happy and secure and I found myself doing exactly the same thing to Beansy when he was a tiny baby (funny how we all turn into our parents the minute we have kids, that's a whole other blog post!).

As he got older and I was La, La La-ing away, he used to say "words Mama, words" and so it evolved that the following words (I will not use the word singing, have you heard my voice?!) accompanied this lovely piece of music:

"Go to sleep, Beansy Beans, go to sleep little Beansy

Mummy loves you, very much,

you're the best boy in the world

I love you, yes I do, you're the gorgeous Beansy Beans,

I love you, yes I do, you're the best boy in the world"

This has evolved over the years to include Beau Bo and Pixie and now is in family folklore.  It's a ritual that now comforts my kids and they all want their lullaby!

What's your bedtime rituals??

The Future??

Every night before we go to bed, we go into each of the kids bedrooms to give them a final kiss and cuddle.  This is what greeted us in each case last night, is this a sign of future dreams/aspirations/jobs?  Will I have a showjumper and Wildlife Expert/fashion designer (it was my Louis Vuitton after all!) and Rugby Superstar????

Pixie, aged 2 with lollypop the pony

Beau Bo aged 4 with a Louis Vuitton scarf and vintage lion

Beansy aged 7 wearing his Rugby kit and with a book!

I'll love to show them this in 30 years time to see what their current dreams have lead them to!

Peace and Love

S.A.M

The Lion King - West End Extravaganza and grubby gym kit!

I was delighted last Wednesday when I was offered the opportunity to review The Lion King Musical and offered two tickets for a 7:30pm showing.  HAW is not interested in musicals, Beansy prefers sport and my little Pixie is too young.   I spent a LOT of time in theatres as a child as both a performer and spectator and it has riled me for years that HAW would rather have hot needles poked in his eyes than see a musical. 

However, at the age of 4 my wonderfully charismatic Bo Bo is looking to be my "luvvie" in the making.  Since he could walk he has been performing, my dad has taught him all the old songs and he can do a fabulous Gene Kelly impression. 

He loves the Lion King and was so excited when I told him we were going.  I decided to drive as he had school the next day and I figured he could fall asleep on the way home.  However, in true SAM style we were stuck in the most horrendous rush hour traffic (we live 10 miles away) so at Clapham Junction, I decided to park the car and catch the train into Waterloo. I made a split second decision to change my clothes as had my new Jimmy Choo boots on (6 inches) and a lovely DVF wrap dress.  I ended up putting on my gym kit and trainers (yuck) but at least I was now dressed ready for mortal combat during rush hour. 

Sadly, in my rush to get us out of the car and onto the train to get there in time, I left my camera in the car and so sadly no photos to accompany this blog post!

We arrived with 10 minutes to spare, collected our tickets and found our seats.  We were then transported to the Serengeti Plains as we joined the young lion prince Simba as he starts his epic journey to become the King of the Pride Lands with help along the way from friends Timon and Pumba.

For those of you who don't know the story, it goes something like this:

"After the birth of Simba to King Mufasa and his Queen Sarabi Simba's evil uncle Scar hatches a plan to kill both Simba and Mufasa and proclaim himself as rightful King. Scar tells Mufasa that Simba is trapped and in need of help, Mufasa rushes to rescue his son, but is caught up in a stampede of wildebeests. Simba believing his fathers death is his fault flees the kingdom leaving Scar to reign over the Pride Land. The Lion King Musical follows Simba as he grows up and decides whether to return to the kingdom which has been almost destroyed believing he is to blame"

It was quite simply a rollercoaster of a musical, my Bo Bo was transfixed and on the edge of his seat the whole way through, the scenery was simply stunning and the amazing costumes were out of this world.   It is no surprise that over 50 million people worldwide have seen this and that it is one of the most popular family musicals to date.

The Lion King Musical features moving vocal performances from the whole cast and some of the most memorable songs from the film such as the phenomenal “Circle Of Life”. This wonderful show is complete with giant giraffes and antelopes and many more animals brought to life by striking puppets and special effects.

Have a sneak peek here

On leaving the theatre, my little luvvie asked "Can we come back tomorrow?"  He is my boy alright!!

If you want to find out more about London shows from where to eat, what to wear and how to act, then have a look at this really informative guide Superbreak 

Break a leg!

Love and Peace

SAM

Silent Sunday - My beach babes

Where's my *bleeping* keys......

Something happens very frequently in our house.  It drive me absolutely insane and I have tried many, many times to rectify this problem.  It is getting to the stage where I am wondering if I am alone, am I the only person who suffers from this dreadful condition (disclaimer it is definitely hereditary as my mum has the same condition) it is driving a wedge between HAW and I and if I don't sort it soon, I fear our marriage may be over........

What can this condition be?!  What is so dreadful that I of all people (being superamazing and all that) can't rectify?

I'll tell you in the hope that someone can cure me.....

I can't stop losing my keys!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Yep, those things that are so small yet such an important part of life. 

Take today for example, I rushed out of the door, all three kids were clean, pressed and fed, I was looking half way decent thanks to my mummy saving masterpieces (more of that to follow) and I hadn't raised my voice once. 

I dropped the kids off, came home and could I find my keys?! NO I COULDN'T.  I re-traced my steps to no avail, the school office didn't have them and my bag was empty (well apart from lots of used tissues, make up, my diary, 3 nappies, 4 pens, my ipad, my phone and a water bottle plus numerous receipts).

Luckily, having been in this position more times than I care to admit (ok it's more than 10 and less than 100) I called my key holders.  Fortunately my dad was in and so off I trotted, got the spare key and home I came.   However, once in, I couldn't find the key so presumed it had fallen off my key ring.

Fast forward to this afternoon - Rush out the door at 3pm, pick up the angels with dirty faces and then home.  Guess what, this has never happened twice - no bloody key!!

We all trot into the garden whilst I try the back door (pathetic really as I remember locking it before going on the school run) but I had to be seen to be doing something.

The kids are running amok, checking the Robin's grave (we had to bury one yesterday, very sad) and generally enjoying this unexpected jaunt into the garden of mud.

I am sitting in the gazebo with my bag turned out (same stuff as before but add 6 apples) and something tells me to shake it.  It sounds like Aladdin's cave but again under inspection it is empty.  I can now feel numerous things in the lining and it dawns on me that there must be a hole somewhere.

Lo and behold there is a hole which I can just about put my finger in.

Joy of Joy - not only have I found one key but 3 (yes dear reader 3 front door keys) plus £11.98 in change, 2 lipsticks, 2 lip glosses a mascara and 2 more pens.

I am in key heaven!!

So my little word of advise to anyone who loses keys on a regular basis, check the lining of your bag!

Peace and Love

SAM x

Buggysnuggle

There are some products that should be handed out to all parents on the way out of the hospital.  The all new design Buggysnuggle is one of them!

The new design Buggysnuggle, a footmuff for pushchairs. Fits almost all pushchairs, comes in 40+ fabric designs, is very easy to fit, the top can be zipped off for use in warmer weather and the zips open at the bottom allowing muddy feet to stick out.

I have been a fan since I inherited one from my sister in law about seven years ago which has stood the test of time on all my buggies across the world.  It had been skiing in the alps, hot to trot in the Maldives (obviously unzipped) and on numerous trips out and about.  It was admittedly getting a bit grubby so when we were offered the chance to review the all new design Buggysnuggle, I jumped at the chance.

We were sent the funky cow design which suited my little moo very well!  It also went beautifully with my Mountain Buggy which any style conscious mother wants.   Pixie was so excited and couldn't wait to get into her buggy:

We have been road testing this now for around 3 weeks.  Everything about it is great from the lovely, soft fur (faux of course) but the biggest improvement from the original  is the fact that the zip opens at the bottom so muddy feet can stick out!  This was something that used to really grate me about the old style design, but even if it does get muddy it is washable and quick drying which is an absolute must if you are a heavy buggy user.

 I also LOVE the new addition of a hand warmer pocket at the front although Pixie has been using this to put her toy phone and dolly in.

The buggysnuggle comes in several different designs from hearts and flowers to stars and stripes and you can now accessorise with matching hats and blankets.  They are also nice and roomy and easy to fit on all sorts of buggies thanks to the elasticated back and one size fits all strap insertions.

I'll leave the final word to Pixie - when I asked her what she thought about her new buggysnuggle, this is waht she did :

*MWAH* and that gets my seal of approval!

Listography - take 5 children's books....

Goodness me, what a week of blogging about literature.  Firstly, I blogged about world book day Here and then earlier today (yes another post on the same day, impressed?!) I blogged my story telling abilities (or not) Here.

Now the lovely Kate at katetakes5 has decided that this weeks topic for Listography is 5 favourite children's books. 

In no particular order, here are mine (not the kids, mine I tell you!)

1) Where the Wild Things Are - I LOVED this as a child and it's not surprise what my eldest darling son is called!  Yes, inspired by my love of this book.



2) Any of the Enid Blyton St Clare's books - I wanted to be a twin, I wanted to go to boarding school.  Instead I had a younger brother and went to a little prep school with not a hope in hell of boarding!

3) Piggly's Play Truant - utterly transfixed me as a child, the fact that they skipped school.  I was such a goody goody I enjoyed their naughtiness!  I am re-reading this with the boys and they love it as well.

4) The folk of the faraway tree - Another Enid Blyton CLASSIC.  If you haven't read this, then please, please do.  Beau Bo is enraptured by the goings on of moonface at the age of 4.

5) Peepo - Pixie LOVES this and I had forgotten how good it is - it's also beautifully illustrated with lots to look for.  We both adore this.

Love and Peace

SAM x

Relax Kids - A Review....

The thing I love about twitter is that you quite literally tweet with people you don't know, have a quick 5 minute conversation and the foundation of a friendship is formed.  I have been tweeting with one such lovely lady, Marneta Viegas or @relaxkids for a while now and she asked me if I would like to review one of her CD's which aid relaxation and stress management techniques. 

Unfortunately for the boys, they both seem to have inherited my hot temper - HAW is so chilled out he is virtually horizontal, but I have always been a hot head and it seems as if the boys are set to follow.  As a grown up I have learnt to rein it in but asking a 7 and 4 year old to do the same is near on impossible.  

The CD introduces children to relaxation and stress management techniques by getting them to imagine that they are the characters in fairytales.  This CD has amongst others, Aladdin on his magical, flying carpet, Peter Pan and Jack and The beanstalk.    Each relaxation track is set to music and you absolutely must listen to Marneta's voice as it soothes the quickest of tempers.

Not only is it a good relaxation/calming down CD, it also has lots of positive affirmations which if you are listening at bedtime can't be a bad thing.  Where this CD has come into its own though for us, is on the school run.  We are always stressed and fraught in the mornings and to get into the car and put on the CD instantly calms everyone (but more so me!) and leads to us discussing how we are all feeling  and definitely helps the boys get into the right frame of mind for learning.

I have actually passed the CD onto a friend who is having dreadful problems with her son at bedtime.  He has been unable to "switch off" since starting school in September but after only 3 days of using the CD he is a different child and she is finding bedtimes relatively stress free.  Long may that continue.

Please have a look at Marenta's website here Relax Kids where you will find lots of free downloads and reviews.  She is also a fabulous, chatty tweeter and I am sure she would love to "tweet" you all.

What ever happened to MY weekends?!

Ok, this is going to sound incredibly selfish but what on earth happened to my weekends?  You know the sort, a long lazy lie-in with the one you love, followed by a jaunt through the more eclectic areas of London, stopping for a long, alcoholic, lazy lunch whilst poring over Time Out trying to decide what to do or who to see?

Then a nice supper in front of a roaring fire before having a long, luxurious bath and maybe popping out to the cinema.  Or deciding on a Friday morning to go away for the weekend and that hurried scramble to find somewhere (I always loved Bath)

I tell you what happened - The Kids came along!!

Now, don't get me wrong, I adore my kids, they have made me such a better person and I wouldn't change anything, but by heck what I wouldn't give to have a time travel machine to be able to go back and appreciate what I had before my weekends were spent watching football, driving around here there and everywhere, the whole "routine" of being a parent.  I guess what I am trying to say is, will I ever get that spontaneity back in my life???